Alien: Earth Has A Lot In Common With A Forgotten (And Terrible) Sci-Fi Series

Even the perfect organism isn't immune to spoilers. This article discusses major plot details from the first two episodes of "Alien: Earth."

Science fiction has never been the easiest genre to get right. It takes a special alchemy of imagination, social commentary, and pure entertainment to deliver a movie or television show worthy of our time. That goes double in an environment where studios and decision-makers are throwing all their chips to the center of the table in favor of recognizable franchises and established IP over all else. Once upon a time, "Alien" and "Star Wars" and "Star Trek" represented the cutting edge of original sci-fi filmmaking. Nowadays, we have to settle for "Strange New Worlds" remaking old episodes of "The Next Generation" or "Stranger Things" tripling down on potential spin-offs — nothing to turn our nose up about, to be clear, but still inherently derivative works.

But then, most relevantly, we have "Alien: Earth" as the biggest head-scratcher of all. While reviews have generally been solid, /Film's Chris Evangelista singled out the FX series in his review as "a lifeless slog that's a chore to sit through." We tend to agree, at least based on the early episodes. The world-building and production design certainly get points for creativity, actors Sydney Chandler as our Hybrid protagonist Wendy and Timothy Olyphant as the unsettling Synthetic Kirsh steal the show with their tricky performances, and everything about the look and feel of the show are of a piece with the first "Alien" film.

Yet, at every turn, though "Alien: Earth" is billed as a prequel to the original 1979 Ridley Scott classic, there's one wildly unexpected sci-fi property that the show's first two episodes remind us of far more: the already forgotten (and, frankly, terrible) Paramount+ series "Halo," unbelievably enough. From some seriously wonky turns that fans never anticipated from the respective material, including tenuous storytelling decisions that don't hold up under much scrutiny, to a truckload of fascinating concepts that the show's writers otherwise can't quite figure out what do with, "Alien: Earth" feels cut from the same cloth as the failed "Halo" adaptation.

Is this the first and last time anyone will ever reference "Halo" following its unceremonious cancellation after a disappointing second season last year? I can't say I went into "Alien: Earth" under the impression that I'd ever end up drawing this comparison, of all shows, but here we are. The FX series tries its hardest to evoke our nostalgia for the original "Alien," much as "Halo" relied on the popularity of its video game source material by recreating as much of their aesthetics as it possibly could. But surface-level mimicry isn't a substitute for thematic depth or a well-conceived narrative, no matter how many ambitious ideas and twisty plots both shows toss at viewers.

So, how could so much promise go so wrong? "Alien: Earth" starts from an encouraging enough place, bringing the cosmic nightmare that is the Xenomorph (along with some creepy-looking extraterrestrial pals) right into our backyard here on Earth. Similarly, "Halo" season 1 opted for the clever decision of avoiding a straightforward adaptation of the first "Halo" game, "Combat Evolved," and instead invented a new origin for the Master Chief's (Pablo Schreiber) first meeting with the AI Cortana (Jen Taylor) and humanity's conflict with the invading aliens known as the Covenant — a choice that infuriated fans expecting a remake of the games, but benefited a creative vision attempting to pull off something very different. Indeed, there's something to the idea of both shows using familiar iconography and visuals to tell an original story. Unfortunately, that novelty factor soon wears off to increasingly diminishing returns.

In both cases, such a fresh approach in a new setting is soon subsumed by sci-fi zaniness and an off-putting tone, neither of which ever quite comes together. "Alien: Earth" unnecessarily complicates its own lore, adding Hybrids and Cyborgs into the mix along with pre-established Synthetics. It doesn't help that the conceit of having children's minds in adult bodies feels more grating than interesting, reaching its nadir with two characters calling each other "Bro!" while roughhousing next to Xenomorph eggs in episode 2. This calls to mind the entire arc in "Halo" revolving around Makee (Charlie Murphy), a human captured by the Covenant and raised as one of their own. By the time she develops a bizarre romance with Master Chief, well, kids would say the series "lost the plot."

But perhaps not all hope should be considered lost just yet. Like the "Halo" series, anything in the "Alien" franchise is bound to elicit strong reactions and sky-high expectations. In both cases, there's a certain standard to be met in terms of taking elements from the original works, remixing them into something new, and delivering a genuinely thrilling storyline at the same time. And, for better or worse, both shows don't inspire much confidence about lasting much longer than a season or two ... at least, if the early returns from "Alien: Earth" are indicative of the series as a whole.

The good news is that there's plenty of time for the season to recover from its initial missteps and bring things back on track. Creator Noah Hawley has a well-established track record with series such as "Fargo" and "Legion," proving that he can balance the demands of fan-friendly properties while challenging his audiences to go along for the ride — regardless of whatever oddball directions he chooses to go. There's nothing inherently wrong with the zaniness on display in "Alien: Earth." Although certain script choices make for irritating characters (looking at you, Samuel Blenkin's obnoxious trillionaire prodigy Boy Kavalier) and confounding plot turns (why are so many people obsessed with and well-versed in "Peter Pan" in the year 2120?), big tonal swings and storytelling risks should always be applauded. The ratio of swings and misses versus actual hits may be somewhat lacking thus far, but there's enough evidence to suggest that Hawley's deep-seated relationship with "Alien" may yet lead us down some truly inspired paths.

New episodes of "Alien: Earth" debut on FX and Hulu every Tuesday.