Let me start by admitting that I like "Falling Skies," at least enough to watch the new episodes every week On Demand. I think it has solid acting, good pacing, and enough action to hold my attention. Critics seem to agree with me, as the series holds a 71% on review aggregator Metacritic, indicating "generally favorable reviews," and that sounds about right. Although it hasn't been quite what I expected, as a summer show on cable TV it serves its purpose just fine, especially when you consider that the television schedule is pretty thin (just one reason we have so many summer movies) except for baseball, "Tosh.0" and "Franklin and Bash." Noah Wyle, the show's bookish protagonist, carries the series well as an everyman and brings some solid acting chops to the table, too. His supporting cast is just as good and has created smart, realistic, and well-rounded characters. Overall I would rate the show as good, not great, and I'm glad to see TNT renewed it for a second season.
So why, then, has the series been steadily losing viewers since its June 19th two-hour premiere? Why is there such a notable disparity between what critics and audiences think (users gave it a pitiful 5.5/10 on Metacritic and IMDb) of the show? With aliens in front of the camera and Hollywood legend Steven Spielberg behind it, why isn't this show more popular?
First off, I think a lot of people, myself included, had high expectations for the series, and rightfully so. When I saw the previews during the NBA playoffs and learned Steven Spielberg was producing a show about an alien invasion, I thought "That looks awesome--when does it premiere?" I guarantee many other Americans were thinking the same thing. After all, Spielberg has mastered alien movies, from the mysterious "Close Encounters of the Third Kind" to the heartwarming childhood classic "E.T." to his terrifying blockbuster adaptation of "War of the Worlds." All three are different and enjoyable in their own ways, but the key to each film's success was a strong central character the audience could relate to and identify with, someone who could hold the fabric of the movie together when UFOs started landing and towering tripods burned cities to the ground. He gave you the aliens and special effects you were looking for, but never without the human element.
So naturally, big things were expected of this show, even though Spielberg merely produced it, meaning he neither wrote nor directed a single scene in the series; his lone contribution was writing checks. TNT wisely attached his name to the project in order to attract more viewers, but this decision was a double-edged sword in that it added more hype to the show and saddled it with unrealistic expectations. To make matters worse, the previews also mis-marketed the series as a big-budget sci-fi action show by showing breathtaking clips of alien spacecraft, robot-like machines and cities being pelted by blue lasers. In reality, "Falling Skies" is a more subdued portrayal of survival. There's some action sprinkled in here and there to keep the blood flowing, but the majority of the plot focuses on protecting the children, procuring supplies and hiding out in an abandoned school named after JFK. The invasion happened six months in the past, and the show doesn't tell us much about the initial attack except for a few details mentioned here and there by the characters so it seems unlikely that we will get treated to an awesome recreation of Boston falling to a fleet of alien invaders.
"Falling Skies" has other flaws besides unmet expectations. First, the show is set in the Boston area but was clearly was not filmed there (it was actually filmed in Canada and while this is a minor complaint, I mention it because it's annoying and lacks authenticity). The soundtrack is repetitive and the CGI is, for the most part, very poor. The alien machines (referred to as mechs) look terrible, and every time they appear the only thing I think about is how millions of dollars couldn't produce more realistic computer effects. I will concede that the alien creatures themselves (referred to as skitters) look quite good, although I've noticed they sound exactly like the aliens from the "Alien" franchise and lack an original design. Some of the dialogue is sappy, several characters (the fiercely religious optimist and rebellious teenage son are two examples that come to mind) are cliches and the plot can be a bit predictable, too, faults much harder to forgive when you're not getting blown away by action sequences. Lastly, while the pilot episode was fantastic, the show has gotten bogged down a bit and the most recent episode's turn of events/change of scenery was a much needed breath of fresh air.
Six episodes in, we know what the show is; a solid but unspectacular family drama set against the backdrop of an alien invasion. Other people might not like it but for me, that's good enough.
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