A lot of people, myself included, went into FX’s Alien Earth assuming it was a miniseries. How could it not be? It’s an Alien story. Said stories usually have a high body count and one or two survivors at the end. But that’s not what showrunner Noah Hawley wound up doing…and to talk further we’ll have to get into spoilers, so you know what to do if you haven’t watched the show yet.
Only folks who’ve seen the finale are reading this, right? Then you’ll agree with me when I say….what happened? Buzz around this series was super-high; it was believed that Hawley would reinvigorate the Alien franchise and make it scary and thrilling again, much like what’s been done with Predator lately. And as the series started, it looked like that’s what we were getting. Problem is, critics were only sent the first three episodes.
By the end of the season, no major character had been felled by a Xenomorph, not even the ones who had it coming. Payoff for the new creatures never came…the eyeball monster took control of a dead body instead of the annoying CEO who practically asked for it. And protagonist Wendy was left in an almost invincible position, gaining total remote control of the computer systems on the island and somehow taming a Xeno into her pet and attack dog. What kind of story was this? That couldn’t be where it ends, could it?
It could have. Hawley never had a greenlight from FX or Hulu to make a second season. That ending was one giant gamble. Looks like the wheel stopped on the right color…FX just announced a second season today. But will it steer closer to what Alien is supposed to be or will it get more nuts? With Hawley it could go either way.
“It has been our great privilege to work with Noah for more than a decade on some of FX’s best and biggest shows, and we are thrilled to extend our partnership well into the future,” FX chairman John Landgraf said in a statement. “Noah never stops surprising us with truly original stories, and his unique ability to bring them to vibrant life as a director and producer as well as writer makes him extraordinary. We can’t wait to get to work on the next season of ‘Alien: Earth,’ as well as some equally exciting future projects in advanced development.”
It is unknown when shooting could get underway for the second season of Alien Earth, nor when it could show up. Might take a couple years.
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