Falling Skies: A Discussion (Spoilers)

[Skgoa]

I didn't think the kid died last week, I guess I was the only one to notice but he looked like he was gasping after his father took the harness off.

Oh, I thought that was him dying.

[CaptainChewbacca]

Well he was gasping, but they didn't show him STOP gasping. On television, if someone dies they always make it clear for dramatic purposes. If you're not sure, they're alive.

[Skgoa]

After watching the latest episode, I really have to say this: Falling Skies' big weakness is it's predictability. Once again, I knew from a few minutes in what this episode's plot and big reveal were going to be.

[CaptainChewbacca]

The big twist actually caught me by surprise. It was nice to see Pope again, I'm guessing he's going to save the day.

Also, I'm a ibt surprised it took like... 2 days for someone to come up with a derrogatory slur for the harness kids. There's only a dozen or so, but we hate them already?

[Guardsman Bass]

After watching the latest episode, I really have to say this: Falling Skies' big weakness is it's predictability. Once again, I knew from a few minutes in what this episode's plot and big reveal were going to be.

Exactly. As soon as the plan to send the kids with a stranger somewhere else for safety showed up, my first thought was "the guy is a collaborator/etc who is going to hand them over the Skitters". Sure enough, that was the case - although I didn't expect to see Pope again so soon.

That said, I want to see how it's resolved.

[loomer]

Something tells me Pope is going to break free and save the day. The man hates Skitters - you can just imagine how he must feel about willing collaborators.

[CaptainChewbacca]

I'm still waiting for the Pope moment I saw in the series trailer where
Spoiler

He makes a bullet tipped with mek armor that punches a fist-sized hole through a mek.

[Ahriman238]

I thought something was up with the guy from the 7th, but my mind didn't jump straight to 'collaborater.' Probably because this is the first time we've seen one, i'd sort of assumed the alien's shoot-to-kill policy extended to all adults.

Now I'm curious how he made contact, and what precisely they are giving him. The most obvious answer is that he was being completly sincere about his unit being wiped out, they just let him go in exchange for bringing back kids to harness. This brings up the question of whether or not the 14 other people at the farmhouse are in on it or not.

Yeah, I had a bit of a facepalm moment when the guy in the lunchline calls Ben a 'razorback' and starts making trouble. I kind of expected him to start a riot of angry parents with missing kids, all fighting each other to get to kick his ass. And he blames they kids they rescued for bringing down an attack on them? Well, people do crazy things when they're stressed, see the man who tried to steal medicine at gunpoint.

[TOSDOC]

After watching this one more than any other episode, I just don't think Weaver is up to this job. He's a (former?) captain in the army and should know some basic procedures which should have prevented a lot of the incidents:

One or more guards for sensitive areas such as drugs, ammunition, and even food and water are certainly called for here. Substance abuse and theft certainly occur even under normal conditions, not to mention conditions like these. I don't want to guess how much some of these people might be contemplating chemical bliss or suicide after all the pain they're going through. I know he said the civilians were Tom's responsibility, but posting guards would still be (ex?) military jurisdiction. (EDIT--guards for alien POW's too. Would have saved Harris' miserable ass...)

With children being of particular interest to the enemy, letting them go off like that looked like lambs to the slaughter--dispatching a messenger to Colonel Porter to inform him of their current situation and get a confirm of orders from the 7th Mass would have saved everyone a lot of grief.

When he said Jimmy was "a good fighter" in the pilot, I expected Jimmy to be less panicked, but now we've seen two incidents where Jimmy, while being very brave, is still too young to be on the front lines yet, and I keep wondering why Weaver cuts him so much slack to participate in such a role. Jimmy might remind Weaver of a friend or family from the past to get so close to the Captain, but now he's getting emotionally involved and that's kinda dangerous as well as against what we've seen of Weaver's character previously.

The strain's getting to him.

Fixing some stuff like this wouldn't make the show any less dramatic in my opinion, but now I feel like the show's characters are committing errors just for the sake of drama, and it could be better written than that.

I didn't like the Razorback epithet either.

[Guardsman Bass]

Anyone else still watching this? I watched some of the episode, fast-forwarding through everything but the "collaborator" storyline.

It was okay, but I disliked the ending. The collaborators are unrepentant about selling other people's children to the skitters, and the 2nd Mass just allows them to walk off without their weapons? I find that very unlikely. Not to mention dangerous, since you just know that they're going to show up in a future episode to screw over the 2nd Mass in some way (as well as going back to their child-trading ways once they find new weapons).

[Darksider]

Yeah. I thought letting them live was stupid too. If I were in charge, I would've shot them all.

Also, It looks like the first kid who got de-harnessed is still "possessed" by the skitters, but not Noah Wylie's son. I wonder what makes them different.

[CaptainChewbacca]

The first kid may have been in the harness longer, or it might be that due to his illness his mind was less developed than Wylie's kid.

Its unsettling that he considers himself to be not human, though.

[Darksider]

I'm not sure if it's him considering himself not human, or if he's possessed by a skitter over long distance. If they can control the kids who've been de-harnessed, then the 2nd Mass is fucked. Imagine the skitters using "turned" kids to locate the camp, then using them as human shields during their attack. The 2nd would be completely demoralized.

[NecronLord]

I was expecting them to interrogate/torture those guys, learn when the next skitter rendevous would be, and be waiting with command-detonated landmines and a massive ambush.

[Darksider]

I was expecting them to interrogate/torture those guys, learn when the next skitter rendevous would be, and be waiting with command-detonated landmines and a massive ambush.

That would also have been an intelligent response. Unfortunately, Weaver is in charge and he does not appear to be the brightest bulb in the box. I think porter might've goofed when he put him in charge instead of Mason.

[MaiazuruX]

That would also have been an intelligent response. Unfortunately, Weaver is in charge and he does not appear to be the brightest bulb in the box. I think porter might've goofed when he put him in charge instead of Mason.

I didn't see Mason say anything at any point about Weaver's decision here.

People keep saying Mason would be a better overall leader than Weaver, but I just don't see it. Mason is too much of an idealist to make big, tough decisions. If the situation calls for it, Weaver will save the many at the expense of the few, which is logical given their situation. Mason would try to save EVERYBODY. Which is noble, but not suited to a group on the run from a more powerful foe.

[CaptainChewbacca]

Of course, setting land mines and taking out a skitter patrol would draw a LOT of attention to the area, and the people would inevitably tell them where they could find the 2nd mass. An ambush would be cathartic, but it would also be a 'last hurrah'.

Next week looks promising, we appear to be getting ready for another campaign in the war against the skitters.

[NecronLord]

Of course, setting land mines and taking out a skitter patrol would draw a LOT of attention to the area, and the people would inevitably tell them where they could find the 2nd mass. An ambush would be cathartic, but it would also be a 'last hurrah'.

If the rest of the resistance groups are any cop at all, that kind of thing would be quite routine.

And retaliation would fall on the known human site in the area, which is to say, the collaborators' one.

[Minischoles]

Of course, setting land mines and taking out a skitter patrol would draw a LOT of attention to the area, and the people would inevitably tell them where they could find the 2nd mass. An ambush would be cathartic, but it would also be a 'last hurrah'.

If the rest of the resistance groups are any cop at all, that kind of thing would be quite routine.

And retaliation would fall on the known human site in the area, which is to say, the collaborators' one.

Yeah for a Guerilla force, they really don't do much fighting or ambushes, no IEDs or such. I know they're not strictly a completely military force, but I was expecting a little more from them - especially if it's supposed to be our world but different, you've got an entire population that's spent the last decade learning how effective IEDs and ambushes can be.

The latest episode felt so off to me, too much sugary sweet parts and then the just letting the collaborators go with a stern 'don't do that again', instead of executing them. The next looks interesting, but so far i've been pretty disappointed with the series as a whole.

[Solauren]

I've always wanted to see Live Action Neogi.

And now I have.

Good series so far. Can't wait to see the Deathspiders....

(And don't tell me know on was the similiarities)

[Guardsman Bass]

Of course, setting land mines and taking out a skitter patrol would draw a LOT of attention to the area, and the people would inevitably tell them where they could find the 2nd mass. An ambush would be cathartic, but it would also be a 'last hurrah'.

If the rest of the resistance groups are any cop at all, that kind of thing would be quite routine.

And retaliation would fall on the known human site in the area, which is to say, the collaborators' one.

Yeah for a Guerilla force, they really don't do much fighting or ambushes, no IEDs or such. I know they're not strictly a completely military force, but I was expecting a little more from them - especially if it's supposed to be our world but different, you've got an entire population that's spent the last decade learning how effective IEDs and ambushes can be.

I agree. You'd think that IEDs and such would be great against the Skitters. They go around unarmored and unarmed, and their walkers stomp around on two legs (meaning that you only need to take out one of the legs to temporarily knock it out of action).

[Solauren]

The second we heard a Skitter saw humans didn't deserve their children, I figured the 'harnesses' were turning the kids into Skitter-hybrids or full Skitters. It's also possible the Mechs are acting as the final incubator for the Skitters, but I'm not sure how likely that is.

In effect, each 'controller' Skitter is controlling it's own future 'offspring'. This also lines up with the 'nesting' behaviour we saw in the one that controlled Noah Wylde's kids group.

My guess is the Harnesses are bio-chemical computers that 'upload' the needed mental changes into the host creature, while also starting bio-chemical and genetic changes. This would explain how Ricky was cured of his health problems (who wants to alter sick aliens into your offspring?), and how Ben is now in much better physical condition then he was previously.

Also, it explains the slave labor. Making them work speeds up the process, and let's the harness work on their nervous system. It would also cull out the weak potiental offspring/converts, and it's an efficient use of them.

[CaptainChewbacca]

I think the reason they aren't ambushing aliens and fighting back much yet is they don't have a reliable way to take out a mek. All the ones we've seen get taken out required luck and a LOT of explosives, and they might not have the resources to do that many times. I have a feeling next week is going to change things, though.

[TOSDOC]

I think the reason they aren't ambushing aliens and fighting back much yet is they don't have a reliable way to take out a mek. All the ones we've seen get taken out required luck and a LOT of explosives, and they might not have the resources to do that many times. I have a feeling next week is going to change things, though.

You can't wait for Pope's bullet scene, huh? That'll be like Ham Tyler's coming in with the teflon bullets.

I think Weaver should have taken more than just the collaborators' guns--their swiss army knives, food, and teddy bears would have been good too. Make them move far away just to continue to survive. He just looked to be too tired of killing humans instead of aliens, and I can't blame him for that.

[Ahriman238]

Keep in mind that killing random aliens and mechs is not the mission of the 2nd Mass. at this time. They were trying that in Boston at the beginning and it wasn't working, which is why they broke up the resistance.

Right now, the 2nd's objectives are 1.) survive and remain combat-effective until such time as they can rejoin the others in a more effective resistance movement. 2.) gather information on the aliens and 3.) protect the 200 civilian refugees that accompanied them out of the city.

I'm a touch confused that more of the refugees aren't grabbing guns and offering to stand a post, but I suspect at least a few of them want to be ready to run if and when the group gets overrun, and being on the front line would make that difficult.