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Episode 2.07
Writers: Bradley Thompson & David Weddle
Director: Holly Dale

THE VERDICT Falling Skies absolutely raises its game with this one. What threatens to be a replay of the “captured skitter” storyline actually plays as a pacily effective siege tale, filled with plenty of run ’n’ gun action and scenes where we witness characters acting like the military strategists they’re supposed to be. There’s a brilliant moment of Alien esque body horror with the spidery creatures erupting from Jamil’s mouth (and the creatures themselves are a cool new threat, scuttling en masse down corridors in frankly terrifying fashion). Director Holly Dale injects genuine energy and urgency and delivers some memorable visuals – a particular highlight is the scene where a Mech mercilessly zaps a returning prisoner, who collapses, dead, in the snow. It’s a starkly haunting demonstration of the invaders’ ruthlessness, made all the more effective by Weaver’s quiet order to “Save your fire” as a fellow resistance fighter vengefully retaliates.

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ALIEN LORE We’re beginning to gain an insight into the invaders’ ambitions for the Earth. Intriguingly, they seem to be motivated by ecological principles, believing that humanity is “fighting to the death over dwindling resources.” The Overlord claims that they have a “task” and calls it “a correction.” There also seems to be something weirdly sexual in the connection between the aliens and Karen (“We’re going to do things together you can’t even begin to imagine,” she pants, as a tentacle thingy twitches rather alarmingly in front of her. Call 0898-ALIEN-POSSESSION now!

TRIVIA The phrase Molon Labe is a piece of Ancient Greek, said to be uttered by King Leonidas in defiance of the Persian army’s demand that the Spartans surrender their weapons during the Battle of Thermopylae in 480 BC. Never say we don’t learn yer nuffink.

BEST LINES
Tom: “I’m convinced [the revolution is] real.”
Weaver: “Come on, Tom… a bunch of cockroaches reading Das Kapital ?”

Falling Skies is now showing on FX.

Nick Setchfield is the Editor-at-Large for SFX Magazine, writing features, reviews, interviews, and more for the monthly issues. However, he is also a freelance journalist and author with Titan Books. His original novels are called The War in the Dark, and The Spider Dance. He's also written a book on James Bond called Mission Statements.