Spielberg’s drama joins TNT’s Sunday lineup
As with any Spielberg science-fiction project, there are two aspects from “Falling Skies” one can expect: aliens and family dynamics. The writers also focus the entire plot on the events that occur several months after the actual invasion and how the humans plan to regain the planet.
The first thing that “Falling Skies” does right is avoiding the stereotypical alien invasion opening that previous science-fiction movies and television shows have used. Instead, the invasion is portrayed through a child’s drawing of the events from before the show’s opening. The children also describe the basic outline of the story: the aliens invade, destroy all of the major cities and their military and snatch the adolescents as mind-controlled zombies, and the parents are forced to fight.
Noah Wyle stars as Tom Mason, a former Boston history professor. He is forced into combat after the aliens — giant, insectlike creatures the humans call “Skitters” — killed his wife and abducted his second-born son. When the series begins, Mason becomes the second lieutenant in the resistance’s 2nd Massachusetts Regiment, a mixture of military veterans like Capt. Weaver (Will Patton), civilians willing to fight and children. Tom’s goals include staying alive, protecting his oldest son Hal and his youngest son Matt and rescuing his middle child, Ben.
The story behind “Falling Skies” is more captivating than other series of its kind — like “V” and “The Event” — partially because it doesn’t follow the same generic pattern as most science-fiction programs. Instead of focusing on constant battles between humans and aliens, “Falling Skies” is all about the survival of the human race. It evens features humans fighting against other humans as the resistance ends up fighting against a group of criminals who wish to steal their food and weapons.
Every so often, emotional, sentimental moments find their way into the narrative and remind the characters what they have lost and what they are fighting for. One such scene is when Tom’s youngest son receives a skateboard for his birthday in the second half of the premiere. All of the resistance members gather around and watch the children play while marveling at how little time the children have to do such. This bittersweet moment of normalcy portrays the overall theme of the show: a longing for a world where the children have a future.
The special effects in the series are excellent, but they aren’t demonstrated that often, which allows audiences to soak in the emotional story and provides room for character development. During the action sequences, resistance members are pitted against two different types of aliens: the spider-hybrid creatures and the giant biped robots called “Mechs.” The aliens are only fought in small clusters, preventing the battle sequences from being chaotic and filled with senseless action.
As Tom Mason, Wyle depicts a similar nerdy persona he fondly portrayed in “The Librarian” series. Being a former history professor, Tom constantly makes historical references, comparing this battle for Earth to the Revolutionary War. Moon Bloodgood (“Terminator: Salvation” (2009)), whose previous roles mostly required her to not speak much and to look pretty, plays the regiment’s pediatrician and possible love interest for Tom.
As summer television standards go, “Falling Skies” is by far the best summer show this year.