After decades spent in space and as a film franchise,Alien: Earthfinally brought theAlien franchiseboth to Earth and to the small screen. Created by Noah Hawley, this long-awaited show brings the Xenomorph threat to Earth, which is not totally unprecedented in the history of this franchise, but pretty close.
Given that a lot is riding on this show, it’s natural for people to have questions about it. Here’s everything we know:
What is Alien: Earth about?
The story is set in the year 2120, just two years before the events of the originalAlienand 16 years afterAlien: Covenant. At this point in Earth’s history, the world is ruled by five massive corporations: Weyland-Yutani, Lynch, Dynamic, Threshold, and the newly formed Prodigy.
The official synopsis for the show explains: “When the mysterious deep space research vessel USCSSMaginotcrash-lands on Earth, Wendy (Sydney Chandler) and a ragtag group of tactical soldiers make a fateful discovery that puts them face-to-face with the planet’s greatest threat.”
Alien: Earthopens with the crew of theMaginottraveling back home after collecting five dangerous alien creatures from across the cosmos. Such creatures involve an eyeball with tentacles, a killer bug, and a Xenomorph. These dangerous aliens are soon unleashed, and they bring plenty of scares in the show’s first couple of episodes.
The main character, Wendy, is a “hybrid,” a synthetic android downloaded with the mind of a natural-born human. Wendy is the first hybrid in the history of the Alien franchise, since her human body was afflicted with a terminal illness. Wendy is joined by a few other children who become hybrids.
Wendy and the children embark on a quest to reunite with and protect her brother, Joe, when he is sent to investigate theMaginotcrash site. Also on the ship is the cyborg Morrow, who is dead-set on capturing and delivering the Xenomorph to his superiors.
On a more thematic level, the show is a meditation on the lines between artificial intelligence and humanity. This definitely isn’t a new theme for this franchise. However, given that the series is set on Earth, it gives a greater depiction of how humans perceive AI, with the leaders at Prodigy no longer considering Wendy a human after her mind was put in a robot body.
At the same time, it explores humanity’s evolution and its place in the animal kingdom, with Kirsch (Timothy Olyphant) musing over how humans, despite their technological advancements, will become food for the predatory Xenomorph.
When is the release date for Alien: Earth?
Alien: Earthhit Hulu and FX at 8 p.m. ET on August 12. The show debuted with two episodes, with one episode premiering each week from then until the eighth and final episode of the season.
Episode Dates:
Are there any trailers for Alien: Earth?
There have been tons of trailers forAlien: Earth, including a full trailer that was released on June 5. That trailer gives a pretty full understanding of the premise, but it doesn’t offer a ton of spoilers beyond that. Overall, they have shown that the series is well-resourced and has the budget to be a long-term success.
After the second episode premiered, a teaser was released that showcased some of what will happen in the rest of season 1. The video shows glimpses of Wendy imprisoned with Morrow and the hybrid Lost Boys. It also shows the scientists at Neverland studying and experimenting on the captured aliens. This all came after Wendy reunited with Joe and ran off to rescue him from the Xenomorph at the end of episode 2.
What has happened in Alien: Earth so far?
At this point, only four episodes ofAlien: Earthhave aired, and much of what was hinted at in the teaser has come to pass. Wendy succeeded in killing the adult Xenomorph, but both she and Joe are seriously wounded by it after their reunion. They are both taken back to Neverland by the Lost Boys, who have retrieved the other alien specimens. However, many of them haven’t been the same since their terrifying mission.
Slighty and Morrow have formed a wireless link to each other’s minds, allowing them to communicate from afar. Morrow manipulates Slighty into helping him retrieve a Xenomorph specimen that he can bring back to Weyland-Yutani.
He even goes as far as to threaten the life of Slightly’s human mother to do so. Slightly was last seen spying on Joe, intending on having him host a Xenomorph larva for Morrow.
Meanwhile, Nibs has been so shocked by her encounter with the one-eyed octopus that she makes herself believe she is pregnant. She starts acting like an adult to make herself feel stronger and cope with her post-traumatic fear. Curly is also competing for Boy Kavalier’s attention by trying to prove herself superior to Wendy.
Speaking of which, Wendy has realized she has the ability to hear the Xenomorphs communicating with each other, which Kavalier tries to exploit. Joe is also forced to work directly for Prodigy to stay close to Wendy and pay off his new mechanical lung, which he received after his near-fatal encounter with the Xenomorph.
During one of Prodigy’s experiments with the Xenomorphs, a chestburster emerges from Joe’s infected lung, but Wendy is able to tame and bond with it by speaking its language, implying even greater changes for the characters at Neverland.
Who is in the cast of Alien: Earth?
The main cast ofAlien: Earthincludes:
WhileAlien: Earthhas a large main cast, it also has a sizable list of recurring players, which includes:
Where can I stream Alien: Earth?
FX’s Alien: Earth. OFFICIAL TRAILER. We were safer in space. Premieres August 12 on@fxnetworks| Hulu and with#HuluOnDisneyPlus.pic.twitter.com/rCGXwI44LZ
In addition to being released onHulu,Alien: Earthis also available to stream on Disney+ and to watch on FX if you have a cable subscription.
What was the verdict on Alien: Earth?
The critical consensus aroundAlien: Earthhas been overwhelmingly positive. The movie has received universal acclaim with an 85 onMetacriticand a jaw-dropping 96% onRotten Tomatoes. The 72% Popcorn Meter score also indicates that the show is a hit with most audiences.
It seems all those years of hard work on the series, along with the amount of time fans waited for an Alien installment set on Earth, have paid off.
In our4.5-star review of the series, Digital Trends writer Anthony Orlando wrote, “FX’s hit series,Alien: Earth, brings intense sci-fi terror to Earth and new life to the Alien franchise.”
