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Episode 2.04
Writer : Heather V Regnier
Director : Michael Sapochnik

THE VERDICT : The assault on the harvesting factory is the highlight of this otherwise middling episode. It’s an environment that feels torn from the nightmares of a Victorian urchin, all steam and rust and cries of children. The show adds an especially eerie moment of bio-horror here, showcasing the vile, lamprey-like creature that emerges from a goo-dripping chute to sink its hooks into its victim’s flesh. The shot of the skitter brushing Matt’s hair with almost maternal tenderness is a nicely creepy touch. Elsewhere, it’s good to get some back story on the terminally gruff Weaver, but the daughter storyline ultimately drags, leading to an interminable ending filled with platitudes about living with hope (an emotional beat over-egged by the closing shot of a crying Weaver). And the episode wastes the chance to contrast the respective leadership skills of Weaver and Diego – that was the story, surely, right there?

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ALIEN LORE : We continue to build up a picture of the post-invasion world. Northern Mexico has apparently been devastated, with the agricultural town of Parras completely wiped out. Bad news for devotees of Casa Madero, the oldest winery in the Western hemisphere.

BEST LINE :

Weaver: “I’ve never been able to control my anger. It sweeps through me like a brush fire.”

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.