I cannot believe this show got a second season though. It wasn't all that great. I did watch all of season 1 though, and I will watch this season as well, cause well there isn't that much sci-fi-ish stuff on TV all the time :)
This show was better than "V" though... which rightfully got the axe!
I cannot believe this show got a second season though.
I don't think there is any way it would have on network TV, but dual revenue streams can lead to such decisions and for a non-sports channel the turner networks get a pretty good fee.
Personally, I think it is doomed to fail in the sense that such a plot doesn't make for effective TV. TV is built around an open ended structure whereby you can get to as many episodes as possible and then get into syndication. Such a plot, however, has a pretty definitive end. That leads to pacing problems and that's (not surprisingly) the big problem with this show.
A show like M*A*S*H had a definitive end as well but it was able to remove itself from the war and just use that as a backdrop. Therefore there were never any pacing issues because we really didn't care how the war was going outside of indirectly effecting the stories. When you wanted it to end, the war just ended and you had a built in framework for a finale. Falling Skies, however it tries to build on characters, has no other real plot except the war. To that note, while skirmishes have taken place and people have died there has to date been no significant events in over a season's worth of episodes.
This show was better than "V" though... which rightfully got the axe!
Another show doomed to fail. I have no idea why they even bothered with it, frankly. By its own admission the original mini-series was nothing but a cover for the fact they weren't allowed to specifically make such a series about Facism. It wasn't very good science fiction, but that facet at least made it interesting television and consequently when they originally made a TV series about it the premise was even worse than "Falling Skies" (as they actually had kicked the aliens off of the planet once). It wasn't even a popular enough brand to milk.
The "skitter lover" took a shotgun to the chest. It was awesome. The kid annoyed the shit out of me last season. Anyone buying the Skitter Rebellion? Sounds like a elaborate trap just as much a legit conflict.
The "skitter lover" took a shotgun to the chest. It was awesome. The kid annoyed the shit out of me last season. Anyone buying the Skitter Rebellion? Sounds like a elaborate trap just as much a legit conflict.
I'm kinda hoping for it to be true. The aliens in charge are huge dueche bags. "We ARE harvesting your planet little human, work with us or die".
I think that was the gist of the conversation at the beginning of this season.
Sounds like a elaborate trap just as much a legit conflict.
The problem I have with the 'trap' element is that we don't know (or there just ceases to be one) the reason the aliens stopped nuking the planet. This is a case where a show tries to be so clever with its audience that new plotlines can't develop because not enough of the shows canon is known. The trap angle only makes sense if there is some known reason preventing the aliens from using their superior technology to eliminate/control the humans. You don't resort to the risk of such small scale tactics when you have such a technological advantage unless there is a good reason to avoid that advantage. Unfortunately, this series has developed so ridiculously slowly that we have no idea what motives the aliens have.
The head aliens(douche bags), tried to offer them a safe haven if they just gave up resisting. So, I'm guessing they want the planet/people intact if they were trying to throw that offer out there. Even if it wasn't a legit offer, it's still along the same lines of deception as a fake rebellion. You're right though, we have no idea why they woudn't just wipe everything out and avoid the headache in the first place. Having this come up around the same time as the pilot with news of Charleston, makes me skeptical about just about everything going on right now. A little more background into the aliens would deffinitely help.
They don't wipe everything out because they use the population (harnesses/skitters) as an invading/labor force
We really know that, though? We know they harness some children and we know those children have been used as intermediaries. When they captured a bunch of adults they killed all but one.
I get why they don't grease the whole planet, but anytime they come across the resistance they never seem to use overwhelming force. The end of season 1 was the closest and even then, they could have done more and wiped the whole 2nd Mass. out.
I get why they don't grease the whole planet, but anytime they come across the resistance they never seem to use overwhelming force. The end of season 1 was the closest and even then, they could have done more and wiped the whole 2nd Mass. out.
In story -- no clue either.
Out of story -- pacing issues.
None of this espionage storyline we've seen recently makes a whole lot of sense given this is a planet that we're assumed to have been taken quite quickly and the known resistance barely has the ability to kill the aliens.
I won't go into spoiler details but I will at least say that this question of context is at least addressed in the latest episode, though I wouldn't go so far as to say it has been answered.
I think discussing previous episodes is fine. If people don't want to be spoiled, then they should probably steer clear of this thread. As they should expect discussion about the show. Otherwise the whole thread would be nothing but spoiler tags.
I think discussing previous episodes is fine. If people don't want to be spoiled, then they should probably steer clear of this thread. As they should expect discussion about the show. Otherwise the whole thread would be nothing but spoiler tags.
We've established that then. It'll remind me not to look at the thread the day after when I haven't yet watched it. :)
In terms of what I was referring to above is this question of context that the show is trying to dance around. As we've talked about before, this sort of show tends to struggle on TV as it is a medium that lacks long term commitment and attempts to stretch content over long periods of time. Shows that don't have a definitive beginning and ending can be episodic and have the plug pulled or be extended as needed.
Falling Skies has a definitive end. It's a problem that the original V miniseries struggled with as we saw weekly tales of back and forth between a unit of rebels and the aliens but with no real headway by either side. Falling Skies has this as well. For all we've seen and all that have died nothing has really yet occurred. It's still a small band of rebels fighting very small engagements with no change in their overall condition.
What we know is the planet was taken by the aliens, presumably quickly. We know of at least this one organized rebellion group and we know it was originally part of a larger effort. We're led to believe that there are others out there. What we don't know is why the aliens invaded this planet, and more importantly, why they stopped their mass destruction. There are theories to answer this, but nothing very concrete. We've seen very little interaction between the presumed leaders of the aliens and any one else. Mostly we just see the foot soldiers (skitters, mechs) and most of those encounters have been little more than skirmishes. We know of next to no information on what the aliens are actually doing, save for the effort they put into chasing these humans and as others have pointed out they don't seem terribly good at it.
With no context some of the show doesn't make sense. This season we've seen the aliens employ a lot of small unit type tactics. Tom's implant, the ambigious reuniting of Karen/Rick, the new micro aliens seen in the last episode. One doesn't use small tactics if they can use big ones. It's inefficent. The only reason a conflict like Iraq takes so long and is so dangerous is there are political and social reasons not to bomb them to the stone age with the superior firepower used to enter the country in the first place.
Modern shows, however, tend not to want to give out these big answers. It's powerful marketing, particularly in using the internet as a means for people to discuss the show and pass their theories on. IMO, it ruins a lot of modern shows. The current run of Doctor Who, for instance, is lousy (IMO, others strongly disagree). There's only so many times you can blow up the universe in an attempt to fool internet fans before such an event loses all impact. In Falling Skies, our carrot is this all important context. In the scene between Tom and the fishhead we're to believe that was addressed, though Tom's reaction strongly suggests that the fishhead was being anything but truthful. According to the fishhead the reason they haven't obliterated the planet is that they are seeking to improve humanity.
That's pretty hard to buy as we've seen so little interaction between alien and human. In terms of adult interaction, we saw Tom on the ship whereby the only course of discussion was a potential herding of humans into encampments (and we don't know if that was an honest discussion or another rouse). Given how that engagement ended up (with the mass slaughtering of captured prisoners), it's pretty hard to see where they were helping anyone. The only thing of consequence to that engagement was their ability to track Tom via the implant, though if the aliens have any sophisticaned communication at all one would think tracking a slow moving pack of humans would not be difficult at this point. After all, some alien unit seems to be in contact with them every week and it isn't like the humans have exactly been able to hide from any sort of airborne spotting. In terms of interaction with children, we've only seen the aliens harness them for purposes we do not yet realize.
The one comment in this week's episode that really bugged me was that of Ben when he said he was leaving. He stated that he was going to find other kids who had their harnesses removed. Given how experimental the process was for the 2nd Mass and how suspicious/intolerant humans have been towards those that may have any contact with the aliens I found this comment kinda 'TV-ish'. The kind of thing that doesn't necessarily make sense in terms of narration, but does in terms of foreshadowing.
The other 'TV-ish' thing we saw this episode were the little bug-like aliens. Admittedly, it made for good TV. The basement was spooky and having the little bugs come out of Jamil was cool. It made for good character development for Anne and Matt. It did give the humans a really good reason to not just hole up, though against the kind of firepower that the aliens could put on them that wasn't particularly necessary motivation and the humans never really make that much effort to do so. From a plot perspective, however, it doesn't make a lot of sense that this group of humans who have had this much contact with the aliens have never seen such a species. There's only so many aliens, for so many purposes, that an invading enemy could cram on those vessels.
The one angle that does appear to hold some merit, though not without the distinct possibility of being a fabrication, is the skitter rebellion. That's the only story point, frankly, that has led to any sort of context for this show.
So was anyone else yelling "Yes!" when the Overlord got blasted for hurting Ben? There was something satisfying about hearing that cocky bitch choke on it's own blood a bit. I liked using that to their advantage to get the hell outta there too. Once Boon was slowly executed in front of them, while trying to get back to the line, you knew it was gonna be ugly unless they came up with something. I was kinda hoping someone would put a round through the traitor chicks head. Her name escapes me for now. Still, at least we know the rebellion is a real thing and they are a bit scared. Also, Pope with a bit of a 180 there. I guess ebing on his own wasn't nearly as fun as he thought it would be.
They didn't take long to flip Charleston on its head, did they? With the way everyone was talking you could tell, that the "President's." version of democracy was a bit too close to a out right police state. People afraid to speak up and so on. Wuite a bit of arrogance floating around too. I'm interested to see how things shake out with the Gen. in charge now. Although, I found it a bit laughable at the 2nd Mass memebers who turned in their street clothes for unis only to keep their hair the same. I guess not all the regs are needed in the new Army. :o)
Great episode. Too bad fishhead didn't get zapped a few times first. Also, love the ODST ending. Friend or Foe? I'm guessing Foes.
Not sure. Wondering if that "weapon" was related to these guys. It was pointing up in the sky. So maybe a defence against them landing? Which could make them worse than the fishheads?
If they are enemies, then the humans are screwed. How would they survive with another hostile alien force? They got to be good guys, or at least temporary allies.
Thanks for the heads-up!
I cannot believe this show got a second season though. It wasn't all that great. I did watch all of season 1 though, and I will watch this season as well, cause well there isn't that much sci-fi-ish stuff on TV all the time :)
This show was better than "V" though... which rightfully got the axe!
I don't think there is any way it would have on network TV, but dual revenue streams can lead to such decisions and for a non-sports channel the turner networks get a pretty good fee.
Personally, I think it is doomed to fail in the sense that such a plot doesn't make for effective TV. TV is built around an open ended structure whereby you can get to as many episodes as possible and then get into syndication. Such a plot, however, has a pretty definitive end. That leads to pacing problems and that's (not surprisingly) the big problem with this show.
A show like M*A*S*H had a definitive end as well but it was able to remove itself from the war and just use that as a backdrop. Therefore there were never any pacing issues because we really didn't care how the war was going outside of indirectly effecting the stories. When you wanted it to end, the war just ended and you had a built in framework for a finale. Falling Skies, however it tries to build on characters, has no other real plot except the war. To that note, while skirmishes have taken place and people have died there has to date been no significant events in over a season's worth of episodes.
Another show doomed to fail. I have no idea why they even bothered with it, frankly. By its own admission the original mini-series was nothing but a cover for the fact they weren't allowed to specifically make such a series about Facism. It wasn't very good science fiction, but that facet at least made it interesting television and consequently when they originally made a TV series about it the premise was even worse than "Falling Skies" (as they actually had kicked the aliens off of the planet once). It wasn't even a popular enough brand to milk.
*clings beer glasses together*
Here's to hoping that little skitter lover goes down in flames. (can't remember his name)
Kinda bummed that Pope is the new "bad guy".
I liked having a rebellious mad genius on the team.
Ha! I was thinking the same thing. I started liking him by the end of season 1. Now I really can't stand him
I never did like the character. I hope he stays off-screen.
BTW, the eye-parasite removal was pretty "special".
Where is the little skitter loving kid? I can't remember what happened to him last season.
I'm not 100% sure, but I think he ran away.
I did see a preview that showed him, and it seemed like he wasn't a skitter lover anymore
The "skitter lover" took a shotgun to the chest. It was awesome. The kid annoyed the shit out of me last season. Anyone buying the Skitter Rebellion? Sounds like a elaborate trap just as much a legit conflict.
I'm kinda hoping for it to be true. The aliens in charge are huge dueche bags. "We ARE harvesting your planet little human, work with us or die".
I think that was the gist of the conversation at the beginning of this season.
The problem I have with the 'trap' element is that we don't know (or there just ceases to be one) the reason the aliens stopped nuking the planet. This is a case where a show tries to be so clever with its audience that new plotlines can't develop because not enough of the shows canon is known. The trap angle only makes sense if there is some known reason preventing the aliens from using their superior technology to eliminate/control the humans. You don't resort to the risk of such small scale tactics when you have such a technological advantage unless there is a good reason to avoid that advantage. Unfortunately, this series has developed so ridiculously slowly that we have no idea what motives the aliens have.
The head aliens(douche bags), tried to offer them a safe haven if they just gave up resisting. So, I'm guessing they want the planet/people intact if they were trying to throw that offer out there. Even if it wasn't a legit offer, it's still along the same lines of deception as a fake rebellion. You're right though, we have no idea why they woudn't just wipe everything out and avoid the headache in the first place. Having this come up around the same time as the pilot with news of Charleston, makes me skeptical about just about everything going on right now. A little more background into the aliens would deffinitely help.
They don't wipe everything out because they use the population (harnesses/skitters) as an invading/labor force
We really know that, though? We know they harness some children and we know those children have been used as intermediaries. When they captured a bunch of adults they killed all but one.
I get why they don't grease the whole planet, but anytime they come across the resistance they never seem to use overwhelming force. The end of season 1 was the closest and even then, they could have done more and wiped the whole 2nd Mass. out.
In story -- no clue either.
Out of story -- pacing issues.
None of this espionage storyline we've seen recently makes a whole lot of sense given this is a planet that we're assumed to have been taken quite quickly and the known resistance barely has the ability to kill the aliens.
I won't go into spoiler details but I will at least say that this question of context is at least addressed in the latest episode, though I wouldn't go so far as to say it has been answered.
C'mon, go into details. I want to know what you're thinking. I put up a spoiler warning in the topic, and you can still use tags
I think discussing previous episodes is fine. If people don't want to be spoiled, then they should probably steer clear of this thread. As they should expect discussion about the show. Otherwise the whole thread would be nothing but spoiler tags.
We've established that then. It'll remind me not to look at the thread the day after when I haven't yet watched it. :)
In terms of what I was referring to above is this question of context that the show is trying to dance around. As we've talked about before, this sort of show tends to struggle on TV as it is a medium that lacks long term commitment and attempts to stretch content over long periods of time. Shows that don't have a definitive beginning and ending can be episodic and have the plug pulled or be extended as needed.
Falling Skies has a definitive end. It's a problem that the original V miniseries struggled with as we saw weekly tales of back and forth between a unit of rebels and the aliens but with no real headway by either side. Falling Skies has this as well. For all we've seen and all that have died nothing has really yet occurred. It's still a small band of rebels fighting very small engagements with no change in their overall condition.
What we know is the planet was taken by the aliens, presumably quickly. We know of at least this one organized rebellion group and we know it was originally part of a larger effort. We're led to believe that there are others out there. What we don't know is why the aliens invaded this planet, and more importantly, why they stopped their mass destruction. There are theories to answer this, but nothing very concrete. We've seen very little interaction between the presumed leaders of the aliens and any one else. Mostly we just see the foot soldiers (skitters, mechs) and most of those encounters have been little more than skirmishes. We know of next to no information on what the aliens are actually doing, save for the effort they put into chasing these humans and as others have pointed out they don't seem terribly good at it.
With no context some of the show doesn't make sense. This season we've seen the aliens employ a lot of small unit type tactics. Tom's implant, the ambigious reuniting of Karen/Rick, the new micro aliens seen in the last episode. One doesn't use small tactics if they can use big ones. It's inefficent. The only reason a conflict like Iraq takes so long and is so dangerous is there are political and social reasons not to bomb them to the stone age with the superior firepower used to enter the country in the first place.
Modern shows, however, tend not to want to give out these big answers. It's powerful marketing, particularly in using the internet as a means for people to discuss the show and pass their theories on. IMO, it ruins a lot of modern shows. The current run of Doctor Who, for instance, is lousy (IMO, others strongly disagree). There's only so many times you can blow up the universe in an attempt to fool internet fans before such an event loses all impact. In Falling Skies, our carrot is this all important context. In the scene between Tom and the fishhead we're to believe that was addressed, though Tom's reaction strongly suggests that the fishhead was being anything but truthful. According to the fishhead the reason they haven't obliterated the planet is that they are seeking to improve humanity.
That's pretty hard to buy as we've seen so little interaction between alien and human. In terms of adult interaction, we saw Tom on the ship whereby the only course of discussion was a potential herding of humans into encampments (and we don't know if that was an honest discussion or another rouse). Given how that engagement ended up (with the mass slaughtering of captured prisoners), it's pretty hard to see where they were helping anyone. The only thing of consequence to that engagement was their ability to track Tom via the implant, though if the aliens have any sophisticaned communication at all one would think tracking a slow moving pack of humans would not be difficult at this point. After all, some alien unit seems to be in contact with them every week and it isn't like the humans have exactly been able to hide from any sort of airborne spotting. In terms of interaction with children, we've only seen the aliens harness them for purposes we do not yet realize.
The one comment in this week's episode that really bugged me was that of Ben when he said he was leaving. He stated that he was going to find other kids who had their harnesses removed. Given how experimental the process was for the 2nd Mass and how suspicious/intolerant humans have been towards those that may have any contact with the aliens I found this comment kinda 'TV-ish'. The kind of thing that doesn't necessarily make sense in terms of narration, but does in terms of foreshadowing.
The other 'TV-ish' thing we saw this episode were the little bug-like aliens. Admittedly, it made for good TV. The basement was spooky and having the little bugs come out of Jamil was cool. It made for good character development for Anne and Matt. It did give the humans a really good reason to not just hole up, though against the kind of firepower that the aliens could put on them that wasn't particularly necessary motivation and the humans never really make that much effort to do so. From a plot perspective, however, it doesn't make a lot of sense that this group of humans who have had this much contact with the aliens have never seen such a species. There's only so many aliens, for so many purposes, that an invading enemy could cram on those vessels.
The one angle that does appear to hold some merit, though not without the distinct possibility of being a fabrication, is the skitter rebellion. That's the only story point, frankly, that has led to any sort of context for this show.
That how I look at it. I mean, why else would we have this thread other than to talk about the show?
So was anyone else yelling "Yes!" when the Overlord got blasted for hurting Ben? There was something satisfying about hearing that cocky bitch choke on it's own blood a bit. I liked using that to their advantage to get the hell outta there too. Once Boon was slowly executed in front of them, while trying to get back to the line, you knew it was gonna be ugly unless they came up with something. I was kinda hoping someone would put a round through the traitor chicks head. Her name escapes me for now. Still, at least we know the rebellion is a real thing and they are a bit scared. Also, Pope with a bit of a 180 there. I guess ebing on his own wasn't nearly as fun as he thought it would be.
They didn't take long to flip Charleston on its head, did they? With the way everyone was talking you could tell, that the "President's." version of democracy was a bit too close to a out right police state. People afraid to speak up and so on. Wuite a bit of arrogance floating around too. I'm interested to see how things shake out with the Gen. in charge now. Although, I found it a bit laughable at the 2nd Mass memebers who turned in their street clothes for unis only to keep their hair the same. I guess not all the regs are needed in the new Army. :o)
Everytime the General popped up I laughed. Poor dude is typecast as Max Headroom.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cYdpOjletnc
I've had that thought with every role he has ever been in.
I think of him as Jim Taggart from Eureka.gif "106")
This show just keeps getting better and better for me.gif "1")
Great episode. Too bad fishhead didn't get zapped a few times first. Also, love the ODST ending. Friend or Foe? I'm guessing Foes.
Not sure. Wondering if that "weapon" was related to these guys. It was pointing up in the sky. So maybe a defence against them landing? Which could make them worse than the fishheads?
If they are enemies, then the humans are screwed. How would they survive with another hostile alien force? They got to be good guys, or at least temporary allies.