Falling Skies is an American science fiction post-apocalyptic dramatic television series created by Robert Rodat and executive produced by Steven Spielberg. The series stars Noah Wyle as Tom Mason, a former Boston University history professor who becomes the second-in-command of the 2nd Massachusetts Militia Regiment, a group of civilians and fighters fleeing postapocalyptic Boston following an alien invasion that devastated the planet six months before the events of season 1.
The series, a production of DreamWorks Television—and from 2014 to 2015, being a production from Spielberg's Amblin Television and Warner Bros. Television—is broadcast in the United States on the cable channel TNT, and in Canada on Super Channel (first-run broadcasts) and on Space (second-run broadcasts on a one-year delay). The series premiered on June 19, 2011. On July 18, 2014, TNT renewed the show for a 10-episode fifth and final season, which started on June 28, 2015 and concluded on August 30, 2015.
Series overview[]
- Main article: List of Falling Skies episodes
Falling Skies begins six months after a global invasion by extraterrestrials, where in only days, the invaders neutralized the world's power grid and technology, defeated and largely destroyed all the world's militaries, and killed over 90% of the human population by destroying all of the world's major cities and capitals.
The aliens include mechanical attack drones called "Mechs"; a species of light brown-skinned six-legged beings known as "Skitters" that appear to control the mechs; and a mysterious species known as the Overlords, or "Espheni", presumably the actual engineers of the invasion and the masters of the Skitters.
The aliens' objectives are not explained until season 4. They plan to extract helium-3 from Earth's moon to power their technology, and to use humanity as an enslaved front-line army in their war with another alien race. To do this, the aliens round up children between the ages of 8 and 18 and attach a biomechanical mind control harness to their spines. Forcibly removing it generally kills the child, but midway through season 1, a surgical method is developed that allows a harness to be safely removed, leaving in place the "spikes" that connected the harness to the spinal column. In Season 5, it is revealed through an Espheni communication device—which Ben can interact with by touching it, due to having the spikes—that there is a being superior to the Overlords, known as "the Queen. In the series finale, the Queen explains that the invasion upon which the entire series is based is the result of a prior Espheni attempt to invade Earth, the only habitable planet in this galaxy and thus of immeasurable strategic importance. Her beloved daughter led that invasion, but the Espheni underestimated humanity and the invasion was stopped. The Queen's daughter was killed and the Queen swore to wipe out humanity in revenge.
The story follows a group of survivors who band together to fight back. They call themselves the Second Mass, an allusion to the historical regiment from the Continental Army. The group is led by retired United States Army Captain Dan Weaver. Boston University history professor Tom Mason is second in command and must put his extensive knowledge of military history into practice while searching for his son Ben.[3][4]
At the end of season 2, a new alien race known as the Volm are introduced. Led by a Volm nicknamed Cochise by Tom Mason, the Volm are another species who the Espheni conquered in their galactic expansion, and who want to destroy the Espheni in revenge. While more Volm forces arrive at the end of season 3, an attack on the Volm across the galaxy causes all but Cochise and a small team of Volm to abandon the Earth. Cochise and his soldiers continue to aid humanity in their war with the Espheni despite the lack of support from their superiors, notably Cochise's father.
In season 4, a devastating Espheni counterattack relegates humanity to Espheni-controlled ghettos across the planet. Meanwhile, Tom's half-Espheni daughter Alexis continues to grow and develop psychic powers due to her heritage. After the 2nd Mass eventually escape the ghettos, another attack severely depletes their numbers. Learning of a power core on the Moon that controls all Espheni technology, Tom and Alexis launch an attack on the power core using a captured Espheni aircraft. Alexis sacrifices herself to destroy the power core and Tom is left lost in space, but the Espheni war machine is left crippled with the loss of their air support and mechanized servants.
In season 5, Tom is rescued by the Espheni's ancient enemy, the Dornia, who guide him into finding his inner warrior to defeat the Espheni once and for all. Returned to Earth, Tom rallies humanity into a global resistance that will march on major Espheni bases all over the world. Tom leads the militias in the United States in a march on the Espheni base in Washington, D.C. With the help of an Espheni communications device, humanity learns that the Espheni serve a previously-unknown queen who comes to planets when victory is assured and the Espheni are moving from invasion to occupation. Indeed, while in Washington, Tom spots signs of the Espheni moving in on Earth. Tracking the queen to the ruins of the Lincoln Memorial, Tom confronts her alone and she informs him of the true reason for the invasion. Tom manages to infect the Espheni Queen with a Dornia bioweapon, killing her and spreading the bioweapon throughout the Espheni species. The Espheni are destroyed and the Earth is freed. Months later, humanity is united and makes plans to elect a new leader. When Tom is offered the job, he refuses it.
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