Alien: Earth Season 1 Review: Creepy, Ambitious

Alright, let’s talk Alien: Earth Season 1, the first TV stab at the Alien franchise that’s been scaring the pants off us since 1979. Noah Hawley, the guy behind Fargo’s brilliance, takes the helm, bringing xenomorphs to our planet in a gritty, sprawling prequel set in 2120, two years before Ridley Scott’s original film. With a killer cast—Sydney Chandler, Timothy Olyphant, Alex Lawther—and a promise to blend bone-chilling horror with big ideas, this sounded like a slam dunk. But does it deliver? Well, it’s a wild ride with some legit scares and cool vibes, but it’s also a chaotic jumble that doesn’t always stick the landing. Let’s break it down, no fluff.

The Setup: Xenomorphs Crash the Party

The show kicks off with the USCSS Maginot, a Weyland-Yutani research ship, crashing on Earth after its cargo of alien critters goes haywire. Enter Wendy (Sydney Chandler), a hybrid with a human mind in a synthetic body, leading a ragtag crew of soldiers and misfits from the Prodigy Corporation. They’re sent to poke around the wreckage, only to find xenomorphs and other creepy crawlies that make your skin crawl. Add in corporate scheming, a creepy trillionaire named Boy Kavalier (Samuel Blenkin), and a synthetic named Kirsh (Timothy Olyphant), and you’ve got a recipe for chaos. The eight-episode season, which dropped its first two episodes on** FX and Hulu on August 12, 2025**, aims to mix Alien’s classic horror with new lore about hybrids, synths, and humanity’s greed.

The Good: Scary as Hell, with Stellar Vibes

When Alien: Earth works, it works. The xenomorphs are back and as terrifying as ever—those shiny, acid-dripping nightmares haven’t lost their edge. Hawley nails the franchise’s retro-futuristic aesthetic, with smoky ship interiors, CRT monitors, and a gritty ‘70s vibe that feels ripped straight from the original Alien. The production design is top-notch, from the Maginot’s claustrophobic halls to Earth’s dystopian, corporate-run cities. One scene in episode four, with a new creature doing something so gnarly I won’t spoil it, had me checking under the couch for facehuggers. It’s the kind of primal, caveman-brain fear the franchise does best.

Sydney Chandler as Wendy is a standout. She’s got this quiet intensity, balancing vulnerability and badassery as a hybrid wrestling with what it means to be human. Her scenes with Alex Lawther’s Hermit, her medic brother, carry real emotional weight, especially when they’re digging into their shared past. Timothy Olyphant’s Kirsh is another highlight—his synthetic is creepy yet charismatic, like a less unhinged version of Prometheus’s David. Babou Ceesay as Morrow, a cyborg security officer, steals scenes with his stoic unraveling, and his slow-burn arc is one of the season’s best surprises.

The show’s ambition is another plus. Hawley dives into big themes—corporate greed, the ethics of synthetic humans, and what makes us human—while keeping the gore and jump scares coming. The first two episodes set a strong tone, with a mix of suspense and gruesome kills that feel like a love letter to Alien and Aliens. There’s a moment where a TV on the Radio needle drop pairs with a haunting shot of Wendy staring at the sea, and it’s pure cinematic magic. The special effects, blending CGI and practical, are mostly stellar, especially the new creatures, which add fresh horror without overshadowing the xenomorphs.

The Not-So-Good: Too Much, Too Messy

Here’s where it gets messy. Alien: Earth tries to do way too much. You’ve got Wendy’s hybrid drama, Hermit’s family issues, Boy Kavalier’s immortality quest, corporate power plays, new alien species, and a half-dozen side plots. It’s like Hawley threw every cool idea into a blender and forgot to hit puree. The result? A show that’s thrilling in moments but often feels like it’s losing the plot. By episode three, the pacing drags as it sets up all these threads, and it’s not until the back half that things start clicking—only to rush toward a chaotic finale that doesn’t fully satisfy. The narrative can feel disjointed, especially with the season’s slow-burn approach. Critics have noted it takes until episode four or five to really hit its stride, and even then, some storylines—like the crow-related murders—feel tacked on or underexplained. The show’s attempt to balance Alien’s minimalist horror with a sprawling TV epic doesn’t always gel. It’s less “less is more” and more “more is confusing.” There’s also a weird tonal issue: the show wants to be a gritty horror flick, a philosophical sci-fi drama, and a corporate satire, but it doesn’t always nail the transitions.

Another gripe? The music. While the score itself is solid, every episode ends with a jarring hard rock track—think Tool or Metallica—that feels out of place. There’s no in-story reason for these needle drops, and they clash with the retro-futuristic vibe. It’s like the show’s screaming, “Hey, we’re edgy!” when it doesn’t need to. And don’t get me started on some of the immersion-breaking references, like nods to Peter Pan or, weirdly, Ice Age. This is Alien, not a Pixar flick—stick to the cassette futurism, please.

The human villain angle, while intriguing, doesn’t fully land either. The show pushes the idea that mankind’s greed and hubris are scarier than xenomorphs, which is a cool concept, but it gets muddled. Boy Kavalier’s “trillionaire creep” vibe is fun but leans cartoonish, and the corporate scheming feels like a Westworld rerun at times. Plus, some plot holes bugged me—like why send kids in synthetic bodies to a crash site with no hazmat protocols? Or why no one on Earth notices a massive ship hurtling toward them? It’s lazy writing that undercuts the tension.

The Cast and Cameos: Mostly Hits, Some Misses

The ensemble is a strength, but not everyone gets their due. Essie Davis as Dame Sylvia adds some gravitas, but her role feels undercooked. Samuel Blenkin’s Boy Kavalier is suitably slimy, though his arc veers into over-the-top villainy by the end. The supporting cast, like the Prodigy soldiers, gets lost in the shuffle, and some characters feel like they’re there just to die messily. Cameos are sparse, but there’s a brief appearance from a big-name actor (no spoilers) that feels like a stunt rather than a story boost. On the plus side, the new aliens are creepy enough to steal scenes, with one in particular becoming the season’s breakout star.

The Big Picture: A Bold Swing That Doesn’t Quite Connect

So, does Alien: Earth live up to the hype? Kinda. It’s got the scares, the vibes, and a killer cast, with Chandler and Olyphant carrying the show through its rough patches. The xenomorphs are still nightmare fuel, and the retro aesthetic is a love letter to the franchise’s roots. But the overstuffed plot, uneven pacing, and tonal wobbles keep it from being the game-changer it wants to be. It’s more Andor than Aliens—ambitious and smart but not always as gripping as it should be. The finale teases a Season 2, and with Hawley’s track record, there’s hope he’ll tighten things up next time.

If you’re a diehard Alien fan, you’ll eat up the gore and nostalgia, even if the story leaves you scratching your head. If you’re new to the franchise, it’s a decent entry point,

but don’t expect the lean, mean terror of the original films. Grab a drink, dim the lights, and enjoy the creepy bits—just don’t expect a perfect landing.

Final Verdict: Alien: Earth Season 1 is a bold, scary, and sometimes brilliant addition to the franchise, but its cluttered story and tonal missteps make it more of a near-miss than a home run. Worth a watch for the vibes and Chandler’s star turn, but it’s not quite the xenomorph-level classic it aims to be.