Falling Skies Recap: “A More Perfect Union”

by Merrill Barr:

Falling Skies Recap: “A More Perfect Union”
Original Air Date (TNT): August 19, 2012
Season 2 Episode 10

DAI!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WHY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Okay, now that I’m done sulking I’ll start by saying I’m not left unsatisfied with the end of season 2 of Falling Skies. I think the show grew by leaps and bounds over it’s season one counterpart. The writers learned how to take stories up to their natural conclusion instead of dragging them out and they most certainly succeeded in removing the “Walking Dead with aliens” stigma from the show.

I want to work backwards with this episode because something I truly appreciate about Falling Skies is its willingness to expand its universe at any given moment. First it was the Skitters, then the Overlords (or should we start calling them Ashveni?), this was followed by the Crawlies and now this new creature that bares much resemblance in physical appearance to humans.

We now know the weapon the Overlord was building was clearly for the new species we just met, but why? My personal theory is, there’s a war taking place between the Ashveni and this new species and the Ashveni were using Earth to recruit a new fighting force. So when next season starts I expect this new species to be friendly at first but turn hostile relatively quickly.

I’ll say this, the finale delivered on some solid character work. Albeit a bit rushed. First there was the reveal that Anne is pregnant with Tom’s child. Not that I’m surprised, but I think it would’ve had stronger impact if the audience was in the dark with Tom right up until Anne begins to scream for her unborn child’s life. The rest of the character work came during the final battle.

This is where I get a bit pissy. I’m disappointed by that final fight. The fact that it was built up so much, for it to only last a mere two minutes in the last act of the season feels lame. There was so much more that could have been done that it all felt anti-climactic and not in a good way. Oh, and again, DAI!!!!!

But that battle did deliver on some solid moments of badassery. Namely from Tom and Redeye. Despite the size of his opponent, the rebel skitter put up one hell of a fight. And I know some will be disappointed by the fact that Tom’s sheer beating of the Overlord is only shown from his side, but I think the Spider-Karen moment tells us that it would have looked goofy as all hell.

Then there’s the Hal reveal at the end of the episode and with it an explanation as to how Karen was still being controlled despite not being harnessed. We all suspected that a parasitical tool was being utilized to control Karen and now we must wonder what the new plan is for Hal. It’s clear based on his reaction that he’s aware of his new found friend, but how far does the corruption go? We’ll have to wait a year to find out.

All said, I enjoyed the season 2 finale of Falling Skies and I can’t wait to see what’s coming next from the Second Mass in 2013.

~Merrill Barr, DarkMedia Resistance Group 49 – out~

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DarkMedia contributor Merrill Barr can also be found on his podcast, The Idiot Boxers and on Twitter @sonic43.

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[Photo Credit: Cate Cameron]