Resident Alien (TV series)

Resident Alien is an American science fiction mystery comedy-drama television series created by Chris Sheridan, based on the comic book of the same title by Peter Hogan and Steve Parkhouse, that premiered its 10-episode first season on January 27, 2021, on Syfy. The series stars Alan Tudyk in the title role. In March 2021, the series was renewed for a second season which premiered on January 26, 2022.[2][3] The second season is set to consist of 16 episodes, split into two eight-episode parts, with the second half premiering in mid-2022.[4][5]

Resident Alien
Genre
Created byChris Sheridan
Based on
Starring
Opening theme"Bilgewater" by Brown Bird[1]
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons2
No. of episodes18
Production
Executive producers
Production locationsDelta, British Columbia, Canada
Running time43–46 minutes
Production companies
Release
Original networkSyfy
Original releaseJanuary 27, 2021 (2021-01-27) –
present (present)
The alien language as seen in the series, which is actually Esperanto written in a right-to-left script. This phrase in season 1, episode 1 translates to "four months ago".

Premise

After crash-landing on Earth, an alien sent to wipe out humanity kills and takes on the identity of a vacationing pathology physician. He is asked to do an autopsy on the town's doctor, who has died in unknown circumstances. He wrestles with the moral dilemma of his secret mission, while also dealing with a nine-year-old boy who can see his true appearance.[6]

Cast and characters

Main
  • Alan Tudyk as "Harry", the titular alien with an unpronounceable birth name who has crash-landed on Earth, killed Dr. Harry Vanderspeigle, and assumed his identity. He has been sent to Earth to destroy the human race, believing that this would benefit the planet, but he spends the series struggling with the moral ambiguity of his mission after absorbing the human quality of emotions. He is fascinated by humans and has learned how to speak English, as well as how to masquerade as a medical examiner, from watching reruns of Law & Order. Although he attempts to blend in with people, he consistently stands out because of his misunderstandings of social cues and awkward speech and behavioral patterns. As the series progresses, he learns more about human interactions and involuntarily develops human emotions and attachments while in disguise. He possesses superhuman strength, durability, and agility as well as advanced intelligence and shapeshifting abilities. Stuntman Keith Arbuthnot plays the alien in his true form: an androgynous, humanoid Octopodiformes being.
    • Tudyk also portrays the original Dr. Harry Vanderspeigle, a corrupt doctor and assassin involved with a crime syndicate.
  • Sara Tomko as Asta Twelvetrees, the assistant to the town doctor and a member of the Ute Native American tribe. In high school, she had an abusive relationship with a classmate named Jimmy and gave up their daughter Jay for adoption. She is the first adult to learn Harry’s secret.
  • Corey Reynolds as Mike Thompson, the town's sheriff, who asks people to call him Big Black. He masks his insecurities by trying to control every situation. His career as a police officer in Washington, D.C., ended as a result of the death of his partner.
  • Alice Wetterlund as D'Arcy Bloom, the owner of the town bar, local mountaineering expert, avalanche safety inspector, and Asta's best friend. After a skiing accident at the Olympics, she returned to her hometown, and now spends her days tending bar and making questionable life choices. She is attracted to both Harry and Ben.
  • Levi Fiehler as Ben Hawthorne, the town's young mayor. He is charming but childlike, and his wife, Kate, is dominant in their relationship. He dated D'Arcy in junior high and high school, and they still seem interested in each other. He is a hobbyist candlemaker, but his work goes unappreciated.
  • Judah Prehn as Max Hawthorne, the mayor’s son and the only resident of Patience who can see Harry's true form. He can also see the "green glow" emitted by alien technology. Harry repeatedly threatens to kill him and tries to get him to move away, but he eventually warms to the boy, believing that he can help him in his mission.
  • Elizabeth Bowen as Liv Baker, the deputy to Sheriff Mike. She is underappreciated and ignored by the sheriff, and ends up doing police work behind his back. After she briefly quits the force, Sheriff Mike, with some help, comes to recognize her skills and the two make up and begin to work together more closely. (season 2, recurring season 1)

Recurring
  • Ben Cotton as Jimmy, Asta's abusive ex-husband and Jay's father.
  • Meredith Garretson as Kate Hawthorne, the mayor's wife, who works as a schoolteacher and is the mother of Max Hawthorne, who sees Harry's true form.
  • Gracelyn Awad Rinke as Sahar, Max Hawthorne's friend and classmate. An adventurous girl and a devout Muslim, Sahar joins Max in his efforts to help Harry after he convinces her that Harry is an alien.
  • Kaylayla Raine as Jay, a surly teenage girl who works part-time for the doctor. She discovers that coworker Asta is her biological mother.
  • Deborah Finkel as Abigail Hodges, the wife of Dr. Sam Hodges.
  • Jenna Lamia as Judy Cooper, who works at the bowling alley. She is sexually adventurous and often trades barbs with D'Arcy.
  • Gary Farmer as Dan Twelvetrees, Asta's adoptive father and a Vietnam veteran, who owns the town's diner, which he has named in honor of Joe, a friend and fellow soldier he lost in the war.
  • Diana Bang as Nurse Ellen Cho, who is disrespectful to most everyone she encounters, none more so than Asta, whose name she knowingly mispronounces.
  • Mandell Maughan as Lisa Casper, a sociopathic woman who works for General McCallister. She has no problem killing anyone she encounters and looks forward to her next kill. Like McCallister, she secretly works for an unknown organization dedicated to hunting extraterrestrials. She meets her end in "Escape from New York" when, during a fight with Harry, he dangles her out of a train window and an oncoming train from the opposite track decapitates her.
  • Alex Barima as Lieutenant David Logan, who works for General McCallister. After piecing together clues about Harry's crash landing, General McCallister recruits him to find the alien before her superiors do. He is unfortunately partnered with Lisa Casper and is tormented by her. He is killed by an alien disguised as a human sniper in "Alien Dinner Party".
  • Alvin Sanders as Lewis Thompson, the sheriff's ailing father.
  • Sarah Podemski as Kayla, Asta's cousin and close friend who is a mother and a lawyer.
  • Elvy Yost as Isabelle, the real Harry's estranged wife and a British artist who won her husband over at a New York City art exhibition.
  • Linda Hamilton as General McCallister, a high-ranking U.S. military officer who secretly works for an unknown organization dedicated to hunting extraterrestrials. During her childhood, McCallister saw a spacecraft firsthand, and she has spent her life seeking more proof that aliens exist.
  • Michael Cassidy as Ethan Stone, who replaces Harry as the new town doctor. He is abducted by the General McCallister's agents after Max Hawthorne tells them that the alien is the "town doctor" but released after McCallister confirms he is human.
  • Nathan Fillion as the voice of 42, an octopus in a restaurant tank with which Harry has a telepathic conversation. Their conversation suggests that Harry's species and octopuses are closely related, something Harry himself later states to Asta, and is further reinforced when Harry describes his own alien species as a kind of Octopodiformes. After Harry gets amnesia after crash-landing back on Earth, 42 restores his memory and also begins talking to Asta. Harry breaks 42 out of the restaurant after he tells him that others of his kind will come to complete the job that he couldn't. He then gives 42 a new residence in a tank inside his cabin. 42 dies when Harry leaves a dog he has kidnapped in the tank and the dog mortally wounds him, leaving Harry to fulfill 42's last request: to be cooked and eaten.[lower-alpha 1]

Guest stars
  • Terry O'Quinn as Peter Bach, an "alien experiencer" who hosts a popular podcast about UFOs. He and his wife came into contact with extraterrestrials 30 years ago, when their unborn son was abducted. He can see Harry's real form as well.
  • Giorgio A. Tsoukalos as himself. In season 1, episode 9, Harry hides in his room at a UFO convention, and they have a meaningful conversation about ancient aliens.
  • Alex Borstein as Carlyn, a laser physicist and cousin of Kate Hawthorne, who gets romantically involved with Harry.[7]
  • Maxim Roy as Violinda Darvell, an owner and operator of a prestigious art gallery in New York, romantically involved with the artist (which is also an alien) "Goliath".

Episodes

Series overview
SeasonEpisodesOriginally aired
First airedLast aired
110January 27, 2021 (2021-01-27)March 31, 2021 (2021-03-31)
216[4]8January 26, 2022 (2022-01-26)March 16, 2022 (2022-03-16)
8[4]Mid-2022 (Mid-2022)[8]2022 (2022)[8]

Season 1 (2021)
No.
overall		No. in
season		TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air dateU.S. viewers
(millions)
11"Pilot"David DobkinTeleplay by : Chris SheridanJanuary 27, 2021 (2021-01-27)1.08[9]
An alien spacecraft is struck by lightning and crash-lands near the rural town of Patience, Colorado. Its pilot, whose real name is unpronounceable by humans, was on a mission to wipe out human life on Earth. Stranded, he must blend in by assuming human form and the identity of Dr. Harry Vanderspeigle, whom he killed upon encountering. For months, Harry has been searching the mountains for his device that will wipe out humanity and fishing the lake for Dr. Vanderspeigle's corpse. Harry is asked by Sherriff Mike and Deputy Liv to examine the body of Sam Hodges, the town doctor, and his behavior is off-putting but accepted. He even takes on the doctor's job with help from the head nurse Asta Twelvetrees, but he learns his true identity can be seen by Max, Mayor Ben Hawthorne's young son. After drinking heavily in order to fit in, Harry attempts unsuccessfully to kill Max. The next day, Harry rescues Asta from her abusive ex-husband Jimmy while they are moving her things out of his house, and Asta confides in Harry that she gave up her and Jimmy's child for adoption when she was 16. Originally attributing Sam's death to suicide, Harry reexamines the body at the funeral and concludes he was poisoned. Harry confides in Asta that one of the mourners must be the killer. Beginning his first shift as the new town doctor, Harry discovers his first patient is Max.
22"Homesick"Robert Duncan McNeillChris SheridanFebruary 3, 2021 (2021-02-03)1.22[10]
Max runs screaming out of the clinic after Harry tries to behead him with a bone saw. With encouragement from Liv, Max distributes hand-drawn posters of Harry's alien form, and Harry ponders ways to kill him. D'Arcy Bloom, the town bartender, goes on a date with Harry and describes the accident that ended her skiing career. Inspired, Harry cuts the brakes on Max's bicycle, but the resulting accident only causes a wound requiring stitches on Max's arm. Harry and Max verbally spar during the procedure. With help from her father Dan, Asta comes to terms with Sam's death. Feeling homesick, Harry starts gathering supplies to repair his ship, including mining tellurium, which has levitation properties. Meanwhile, a man falls from a snowy cliff while taking a selfie but is suspended by an unseen force mid-fall; he is later discovered by Lisa Casper and David Logan, still suspended and frozen to death above what appears to be a piece of Harry's crashed ship.
33"Secrets"Robert Duncan McNeillNjeri BrownFebruary 10, 2021 (2021-02-10)[lower-alpha 2]0.88[12]
When a fisherman finds the real Harry's foot in the lake, Harry submits a baby's foreskin as a skin sample to avoid a DNA match. While the authorities scour the lake for the rest of the corpse, Harry hides it in his freezer after it washes up on the shore. Meanwhile, Ben's wife Kate struggles to figure out what to do about Max's extraterrestrial claims, which no one believes except for his classmate Sahar. Asta and D'Arcy attend what turns out to be a high school party, where Asta discovers one of Sam's prescription pads was stolen and used to sell drugs to students. She finds part-time clinic employee Jay semiconscious at the party and drops her off home, and a flashback reveals Jay was the baby she gave away. D'Arcy flirts at Harry, who is oblivious. Lisa and David chat with a cowboy who witnessed Harry in his alien form months ago, and Lisa murders him after learning that he is planning on publishing a book about it.
44"Birds of a Feather"Jay ChandrasekharTazbah ChavezFebruary 17, 2021 (2021-02-17)1.02[13]
Ben and Kate invite Harry to dinner to convince Max that he is normal. Unfortunately, Harry invites D'Arcy, who gets drunk and discusses her childhood romance with Ben. As they dine, Sahar steals Harry's house keys and has copies made. Liv vents her professional frustrations to D'Arcy, who encourages her to stand up to Mike. Harry meets Asta's family and blurts out that Jay is the daughter she gave up for adoption. Despite Asta's anguish, this news brings her and Dan closer together. Max and Sahar break into Harry's cabin but are knocked unconscious by alien technology, and Harry discovers them. As he is carrying them out of the cabin, the real Harry's wife Isabelle suddenly appears.
55"Love Language"Jay ChandrasekharSarah BeckettFebruary 24, 2021 (2021-02-24)1.24[14]
A flashback reveals how the real Harry met his wife Isabelle at an art exhibition. After Harry sneaks Max and Sahar back into their homes, he signs papers to divorce Isabelle, who is hurt and baffled by his behavior. D'Arcy and Isabelle share their romantic woes, not realizing they are talking about the same man. When Ben and Kate learn Max broke into Harry's cabin, Harry encourages them to send Max to an out-of-state institution. However, Sahar convinces Harry and Max to agree to a truce. Jay discovers Asta is her mother and quits the clinic. Harry gradually warms to Isabelle. Mike receives toxicology results that prove Sam was poisoned.
66"Sexy Beast"Jennifer PhangEmily Eslami & Jeffrey NievesMarch 3, 2021 (2021-03-03)1.20[15]
Harry becomes jealous upon meeting Ethan Stone, the handsome and virtuous new town doctor, until he dislocates Ethan's shoulder while arm-wrestling. Harry repeatedly drugs Isabelle unconscious so he can search for his device. He tells Mike about the stolen prescription pad, and Liv remains on the ball with the investigation while Mike makes a fool of himself grilling a teenage suspect. During a girls' bowling night, Asta accuses Jimmy of stealing the prescription pads. A flashback reveals the story of General Eleanor Wright, who saw a UFO when she was a child. Fifty years later, after Harry's spaceship blipped on military surveillance, Wright recruited Lisa and David for a covert investigation which eventually leads them to Harry's invisible spaceship where they wait for him to return. The spaceship is taken to a military bunker, and just as Harry realizes his ship is missing, a vehicle bears down on him.
77"The Green Glow"Jennifer PhangElias BenavidezMarch 10, 2021 (2021-03-10)1.07[16]
The driver is revealed to be Isabelle, who has discovered that Harry has been drugging her. Realizing they are being watched, Harry loudly says he needed space from her and throws off Lisa and David. Furious, Isabelle returns to New York. This, the loss of his job, and the loss of his spaceship drives Harry into depression. In a drug- and alcohol-induced blackout, Harry dreams the real Harry's corpse attacks him for killing him and taunts him for failing in his mission. To cheer up Harry, Asta and D'Arcy get him high, and he ends up telepathically conversing with an octopus cousin in a tank at a Japanese restaurant. Jimmy leads Mike and Liv to the stolen prescription pads and the high school janitor who was selling them, but when Mike fails to acknowledge Liv's role in single-handedly apprehending the culprit, she tells him off and quits. Harry tells Ben and Kate that he misdiagnosed Max, and they decide not to send him away. In return, Max uses his ability to see the green glow emitted by Harry's device to locate it on a glacier. When Harry reaches it, his ship activates, and David pinpoints Harry's location. Fearing for Harry's safety, Asta and D'Arcy arrive on the glacier, and the ground gives way beneath their feet.
88"End of the World As We Know It"Shannon KohliChristian TaylorMarch 17, 2021 (2021-03-17)1.27[17]
D'Arcy is knocked unconscious as Asta and Harry find themselves deep in a crevasse of the glacier. Harry's leg is wounded, making him unable to conceal his identity, but Asta nobly steps up to tend to his medical needs and search for his lost device (which Harry says is a radio). Meanwhile, Ben on Mike's advice tries to be more assertive on his anniversary, but Kate is less than impressed. Lisa and David enter town to find the alien and discover one of Max's posters. D'Arcy recovers and pulls Harry and Asta out of the crevasse, but Asta abandons her at the hospital and drives Harry to Dan's diner. Harry's wound is infected, and he resigns himself to death until Asta reveals she found his device, and he resolves to complete his mission as Dan amputates his leg.
99"Welcome Aliens"Shannon KohliNastaran DibaiMarch 24, 2021 (2021-03-24)1.16[18]
As Harry's leg regenerates, he discovers that his device is broken. In need of a metal used to make trackers that the gray aliens implant in human abductees, he and Asta visit an alien experiencer convention. After several experiencers share their harrowing stories, Asta goes onstage and shares her positive experience, though another attendee later warns her that her alien might be a "Christopher Columbus". After Harry nearly removes a BB pellet from a phony experiencer, he acquires a tracker from alien hunter Peter Bach, who is also able to see through Harry's genetic cloak and whose unborn son was abducted by gray aliens 30 years prior. Meanwhile, David and Lisa pose as a couple and have dinner with the Hawthornes to get closer to Max. Using Liv's murder board, Mike arrests Abigail Hodges, Sam's widow, who had been having an affair and (as a beautician) had access to botulinum toxins used for botox injections. He swallows his pride and, during karaoke, invites Liv back onto the force. Troubled by Asta's behavior and absence, D'Arcy breaks into Harry's cabin and discovers the corpse of the real Dr. Vanderspeigle.
1010"Heroes of Patience"Robert Duncan McNeillChris SheridanMarch 31, 2021 (2021-03-31)1.14[19]
In a flashback, the real Harry poisons Sam's insulin hours before being killed by Harry himself. D’Arcy tells Mike and Liv about the real Harry’s corpse, but Harry has already hidden it in the cabin’s loft. Liv then finds one of the real Harry’s boots on the lake shore, leading to Harry becoming a person of interest. With his device operational again, Harry hesitates to activate it, visiting a pizzeria and placing a bulk order. He imagines the corpse taunting him about forming emotional connections and scolding him for taking them from him. Harry tests his device on the corpse, disintegrating it, but burns his finger and fears he is now human enough for the device to kill him. When Liv visits the clinic to compare the severed foot with the recovered boot, Asta deduces that Harry killed the real Dr. Vanderspeigle. She confronts Harry and tells him they are no longer friends. Heartbroken, Harry activates his device. Lisa and David hold Max and Sahar hostage, only to be beaten and chased away by Ben and Kate. The agents then capture Ethan since Max told them the alien was the 'town doctor', and Lisa and General McCallister abandon David, revealing that they work for a secret organization. D'Arcy comforts Jay after she confides in her that Asta is her mother, and they confront Jimmy, warning him to stay away from Asta before releasing the brakes on his parked truck. Harry finds his ship and plans to drop the device from space, but he sees Asta and Max held captive by government troops and fights to save them. Asta convinces Harry to spare humanity, and he leaves to dispose of his device in space. En route to his home planet, he finds Max has stowed away.

Season 2 (2022)
No.
overall		No. in
season		TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air date [20]U.S. viewers
(millions)
Part 1
111"Old Friends"Robert Duncan McNeillChris SheridanJanuary 26, 2022 (2022-01-26)1.36[21]
Harry awakes in a hospital after being found walking down the road with a head injury, and naked. Harry cannot remember any recent details, but remembers he is an alien sent to Earth to eradicate all human life, making the hospital staff believe he is insane. Asta visits Ben at home, not knowing what has become of Max and Harry. Max shows Asta the invisible ship, which has crashed in the baseball field. Asta finds Harry, who now believes he is Lennie Briscoe from Law & Order, and takes him back to the sushi restaurant in an attempt to jog his memory. 42, the live-tank octopus who can also communicate telepathically with Asta, restores Harry’s memory, and Harry takes 42 home, as octopi are closely related to his alien species. At the cabin, Max confronts Harry about how the alien shielded him during the crash while returning to Earth. Max says this proves Harry loves him like a father would. Harry angrily throws Max out, claiming he is responsible for being stuck on Earth, though he is secretly concerned he is becoming more human. The next morning, Max finds he has grown chest hair overnight. Meanwhile, Mike and Liv follow up on the severed foot at Harry’s home, and conclude his front door has been replaced after a struggle. The Sheriff also privately observes an anniversary of a dead ex-partner.
122"The Wire"Robert Duncan McNeillSarah BeckettFebruary 2, 2022 (2022-02-02)1.04[22]
Max has taken a piece from Harry's "survival kit", which is causing Max’s hair growth including a beard. The neighboring town, Jessup, advertises their tourism as being better than Patience’s, as there are no ‘severed feet’ in Jessup. Severed-foot vandalism appears on town signs, and "murder tours" begin. Aware his planet may send more of his species to eradicate Earth, Harry begins experiencing nightmares and transforms a survival kit piece into an underground bunker. Asta gets Harry invited to the Sheriff's poker game to make more friends, hoping Harry will find more reasons besides her to save humanity. At the game, Harry learns the real Harry almost sold his cabin 6 years ago but changed his mind. The Sheriff and deputy continue their surveillance of Harry, seeing him removing large amounts of dirt from his house. Through their investigation they find the realtor who listed the cabin, who tells them the original Harry was selling the cabin to pay a $500,000 debt, which he suddenly paid in cash. They also learn Harry was disciplined at work for being in areas where the same toxin that killed the Patience Doctor is stored. Harry shows Asta the bunker, and she is horrified to learn more aliens will come to destroy Earth. She gets Harry to agree to contact his planet just before the Sheriff arrives to question Harry. He avoids discovery by using a piece from his survival kit to disguise himself as Asta.
133"Girls' Night"Shannon KohliJenna LamiaFebruary 9, 2022 (2022-02-09)1.09[23]
24 years ago at a summer camp, the young Liv witnesses a flash of light in the sky implied to be an alien spacecraft. In the present, Mike and Liv confront Harry, who avoids arrest using superhuman athleticism, erases their memories of the encounter, and makes them think the FBI has taken over the Sam Hodges murder investigation. To compete with Jessup's mayor, Ben films a commercial presenting Patience's tourism as pleasant. Max and Sahar confront Harry about the advance-aging effects of one of Harry's survival kit pieces on Max. Asta, D'Arcy, Kate, and several friends go out for a girls' night, accompanied by Kate's cousin Carlyn, a laser physicist fascinated by Harry's partially-constructed homeworld contact device but unaware of its alien origins. At the bar, Harry and Carlyn connect romantically, although Harry wants to swipe her ID badge to enter her laboratory and steal a key component to complete the device. Asta chides him, and he leaves the bar in humiliation. The ladies sneak into Ben's office and learn that women in Patience are underpaid compared to men, so they threaten to kidnap Ben if he does not resolve this. The next day, Asta finds Harry has taken control of Carlyn's body by shapeshifting into her likeness and leaving her real, unconscious body in bed. Harry enters the laser lab, steals the needed component, and repeatedly throws Carlyn's boss around the room for an unwelcome advance. D'Arcy drops signs demanding equal pay from a helicopter, much to the ladies' delight. Ben, feeling guilty about the night he and D'Arcy kissed, almost tells Kate the truth but instead tells her about bringing the gender pay gap issue to the attention of the town assembly.
144"Radio Harry"Shannon KohliTommy PicoFebruary 16, 2022 (2022-02-16)1.02[24]
While Harry prepares to take his completed communication device to a mountain peak to achieve optimum communication, Max and Sahar tell Asta that they suspect the device is another explosive. Asta and Dan accompany Harry on his hike to ensure he isn't lying, only to be joined by two of Asta's cousins, Kayla and Drew. While Dan keeps them entertained, Harry and Asta reach their destination, and Harry activates his device, explaining that he intends to keep his people from invading Earth for 50 years, as he is only interested in sparing Asta from mass extinction. Though Asta is infuriated, she receives an urgent call from Big Leroy, another member of her tribe. After Harry assists Leroy's wife, Sunny, in the birth of her son, he reconciles with Asta and realizes how much humans value each other's lives. Asta, feeling Jay will never be her daughter, visits Jimmy, and they embrace. Meanwhile, Liv talks with D'Arcy about her recently lost memory and sets up a date between Mike and a woman named Judy, but Mike hesitates to talk to Judy about the mistake that cost him his career as a police officer in Washington, D.C. D'Arcy's parents visit and ask her about her life, with which he is not happy. Ben and Kate confront Mitch Green, the mayor of Jessup, about his smear campaign against Patience at a restaurant. Two men capture a psychiatrist and take him to a secret facility full of humans suspected as aliens operated by General McCallister, who discovers Dr. Ethan Stone is not an alien as she had assumed. Back at the cabin, Harry receives a mysterious phone number from New York City, which Lisa intercepts and reports to General McCallister.
155"Family Day"Lea ThompsonBiniam BizunehFebruary 23, 2022 (2022-02-23)0.90[25]
Harry discovers via Mike that the original Harry had with his first wife before Isabelle a degenerate daughter named Liza, who ran away from a camp for troubled teens to visit her father in Patience. He kidnaps Murphy, one of the dogs Sahar walks for her neighbors, demanding that she and Max return the survival kit piece, unaware it is now in the hands of David, who learns of its gravity-defying effects. While Harry struggles to bond with Liza, D'Arcy confronts Asta about her night at Jimmy's house. At a Family Day gathering in a park, Harry finally connects with Liza and places a positive memory in Mike's head to replace the blanked-out memory of his attempt to arrest him; Asta enters a chili pepper eating contest opposite D'Arcy to impress Jay; and Max and his schoolmates perform a grotesque play about the town's famed 59 miners who died to save one. The next day, as Liza bids a heartfelt goodbye, Harry realizes how much he misses his own family and feels prepared to leave for New York. Liv confides to Mike her belief that an alien erased their memories.
166"An Alien in New York"Lea ThompsonElias BenavidezMarch 2, 2022 (2022-03-02)0.96[26]
A flashback reveals that the original Harry and Dr. Hodges were involved in stealing money from a charity event in New York. In the present, Sahar tells Harry that his survival kit piece was taken by David, so Harry attempts to return Murphy the dog to her, only to find that Murphy has mortally wounded 42 the octopus. After he mournfully cooks and eats 42, Harry travels with Asta to the New York pizza parlor from whence the mysterious phone number came. Across the street corner, they find a mural with the word "Goliath" written in Harry's language. This leads Harry to locate other murals across the city and pinpoint the art gallery of Goliath, a member of his kind. During a gala at the gallery, he and Asta speak with Violinda Darvell, the Brazilian-born operator, who knows who Harry is and asks Asta how long she has known his secret. One of the party guests gives Harry a tablet of LSD, which he ingests, causing him to hallucinate and lose control over his human form as he wanders into the streets. Liv talks to Mike about her alien theories, which he dismisses, although he later opens up to her about losing Jesse, his partner, back in Washington, D.C. With Kate and Max out of town, D'Arcy helps Ben with confidence about making his own decisions, and she spends the night in Max's bedroom.
177"Escape From New York"Claudia YarmyEmily Eslami & Jeffrey NievesMarch 9, 2022 (2022-03-09)0.98[27]
Violinda takes Asta to a secret room in Goliath's gallery, where she has preserved Goliath's fossilized corpse. Asta then catches up with Harry, still on an LSD trip, and restores his senses with ice. Harry is heartbroken to learn of Goliath's demise, but when Asta tells him she saw Goliath's corpse, he rushes her back to the gallery and smashes the corpse, revealing an alien egg inside. Violinda confesses that Goliath used her DNA to impregnate himself, causing him to fossilize; and Harry promises to care for the half-alien, half-human baby. In Patience, Kate confronts Ben about putting up a sign she doesn't like in their house, unaware D'Arcy encouraged him to do so; D'Arcy and Kate discuss whether the latter may be pregnant again. Ben dismisses the elderly Dr. Smallwood from her position as Patience's new town doctor after she mistakenly misdiagnoses him with cancer during his annual check-up, with Nurse Ellen recommending that he re-hire Harry. Liv posts a UFO video to the Internet, only to be ridiculed by online trolls. Lisa, who followed Harry to New York, gives chase out of the gallery and kills two men who recognize Harry, one of whom has a name tag identifying him as Alex Ogilvie of the Galvan/Powell Group. On a train out of the city, Lisa corners Harry, having followed a trail of liquid leaked by the egg, and they battle until Harry dangles her out of a shattered window. An oncoming train from the opposite track decapitates Lisa. At the diner, Dan talks to Mike about how he lost a friend named Joe during an ambush mission in the Vietnam War and named the diner in his honor. Having surmised that Abigail Hodges did not murder her husband, being unable to sell his possessions at a yard sale for sentiment reasons, Mike and Liv search Sam's office for clues concerning motive for his murder; inspired by detective novels left to him from Sam, Mike and Liv discover a list of names (including Galvan/Powell) hidden behind a picture frame. Back at the cabin, Asta tells Dan about Goliath and the egg. Harry plans to store the egg in his bunker, but he and the Twelvetreeses are greeted by several friends, who throw him a surprise birthday party as the egg starts to hatch.
188"Alien Dinner Party"Claudia YarmyChris SheridanMarch 16, 2022 (2022-03-16)1.10[28]
General McCallister confronts David in a forest about his alien survival kit piece but flees when a sniper, who blinks in an alien-like manner, kills David. Shortly after arriving home to a surprise party, Harry puts the bag with the alien egg in his bunker. Harry explains to Asta that after an alien baby hatches, it eats any high calorie food it can find, including humans; Asta tries to get rid of the house guests but Harry keeps the party going due to the promise of pie. Harry goes to the basement to check on the egg and discovers it has already hatched and the alien baby is missing. D'Arcy helps Kate take a pregnancy test in the bathroom. Later, D'Arcy mentions she went rock climbing with Ben, and Mike lets it slip that she kissed Ben. Kate becomes angry with Ben for not telling her he spent time with D'Arcy while she was gone and tells him she is pregnant. Jay requests that Asta spend her upcoming 18th birthday with her. Asta goes to the cabin's bathroom and discovers the alien baby in the toilet, and it runs out the window. Meanwhile, Max and Sahar escape from Nurse Ellen, who is doing a poor job babysitting them, to warn Harry that the government is looking for him. Arriving at Harry's house, they observe the alien baby eat a racoon. After Asta informs Harry that the baby alien ran out the window, he goes outside to look for it. After hearing the baby chitter, Liv's memories begin to return. The baby forms a telepathic link with Harry and gives him a vision from Goliath, who informs him that their species is not trying to kill humanity but wants to stop another alien species that is planning on conquering Earth. A mysterious man who ordered the original Harry to kill Dr. Hodges arrives and shoots the current Harry, ending the telepathic link while the alien baby jumps into the lake. Asta shoots the man with one of Harry's guns.

Production

Development

On May 31, 2018, Syfy announced that the TV adaptation of Resident Alien was given a pilot order with Chris Sheridan as the show creator and Universal Cable Productions, Dark Horse Entertainment, and Amblin Television developing the pilot.[6] On February 28, 2019, Syfy gave a series order with production starting in Vancouver, and David Dobkin directing and serving as an executive producer for the pilot.[29] Robert Duncan McNeill executive produced and was producing director for the remaining episodes.[2] On March 17, 2021, Syfy renewed the series for a second season,[2] which premiered on January 26, 2022.[3]

Casting

On September 20, 2018, Alan Tudyk was cast as the main character "Dr. Harry Vanderspeigle" in the pilot, along with Sara Tomko, Corey Reynolds, Alice Wetterlund, and Levi Fiehler.[30] On January 31, 2020, Linda Hamilton, Mandell Maughan, and Alex Barima were cast in the recurring roles in the series.[31] On February 12, 2020, Elizabeth Bowen was cast in the recurring role of Deputy Sheriff Liv Baker in the series.[32]

Filming

Principal photography for the first season began on September 10, 2020, and concluded on October 14, 2020, in Delta, British Columbia, Canada.[33] Filming for the second season began on August 3, 2021, and concluded on April 1, 2022.[34] Filming for the first half of the second season took place in Ladysmith, British Columbia, with filming for the second half taking place from February 27, 2022.[35]

Release

On February 13, 2020, Syfy announced that the series would premiere in summer 2020.[36] However, on October 9, 2020, the premiere was moved to January 2021,[37] specifically January 27 in the United States.[38] Internationally, the series premiered in Canada on CTV Sci-Fi Channel on January 27, 2021,[39] and in the United Kingdom on Sky One the following day.[40]

Reception

Critical response

For the first season, review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reported a "certified fresh" approval rating of 94% based on 31 critic reviews, with an average rating of 7.79/10. The website's critics consensus reads, "Resident Alien takes a minute to settle into its skin, but once it does it finds fresh humor in a familiar framework and proves a perfect showcase for Alan Tudyk's singular comedic skills".[41] Metacritic gave the first season a weighted average score of 70 out of 100 based on 15 critic reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[42]

Season 1
Viewership and ratings per episode of Resident Alien
No. Title Air dateRating
(18–49)		Viewers
(millions)		DVR
(18–49)		DVR viewers
(millions)		Total
(18–49)		Total viewers
(millions)
1 "Pilot" January 27, 20210.21.08[9]N/AN/AN/AN/A
2 "Homesick" February 3, 20210.21.22[10]0.31.550.52.77[43][lower-alpha 3]
3 "Secrets" February 10, 20210.20.88[12]N/A1.23N/A2.10[44]
4 "Birds of a Feather" February 17, 20210.21.02[13]0.41.910.62.92[45]
5 "Love Language" February 24, 20210.21.24[14]0.41.870.63.11[46]
6 "Sexy Beast" March 3, 20210.21.20[15]0.42.110.63.31[47]
7 "The Green Glow" March 10, 20210.21.07[16]0.31.900.52.97[48]
8 "End of the World As We Know It" March 17, 20210.21.27[17]N/AN/AN/AN/A
9 "Welcome Aliens" March 24, 20210.21.16[18]N/AN/AN/AN/A
10 "Heroes of Patience" March 31, 20210.11.14[19]N/AN/AN/AN/A

Season 2
Viewership and ratings per episode of Resident Alien
No. Title Air dateRating
(18–49)		Viewers
(millions)		DVR
(18–49)		DVR viewers
(millions)		Total
(18–49)		Total viewers
(millions)
1 "Old Friends" January 26, 20220.21.36[21]TBDTBDTBDTBD
2 "The Wire" February 2, 20220.11.04[22]TBDTBDTBDTBD
3 "Girls' Night" February 9, 20220.21.09[23]TBDTBDTBDTBD
4 "Radio Harry" February 16, 20220.11.02[24]TBDTBDTBDTBD
5 "Family Day" February 23, 20220.10.90[25]TBDTBDTBDTBD
6 "An Alien in New York" March 2, 20220.10.96[26]TBDTBDTBDTBD
7 "Escape From New York" March 9, 20220.10.98[27]TBDTBDTBDTBD
8 "Alien Dinner Party" March 16, 20220.21.10[28]TBDTBDTBDTBD

Accolades
Award Date of ceremony Category Recipient(s) Result Ref(s)
Hollywood Critics Association TV Awards August 22, 2021 Best Cable Series, Comedy Resident Alien Won [49][50]
Best Actor in a Broadcast Network or Cable Series, Comedy Alan Tudyk Nominated
Best Supporting Actor in a Broadcast Network or Cable Series, Comedy Corey Reynolds Nominated
Best Supporting Actress in a Broadcast Network or Cable Series, Comedy Alice Wetterlund Nominated
Dragon Awards September 5, 2021 Best Science Fiction or Fantasy TV Series Resident Alien Nominated [51]

Notes
  1. Fillion co-starred with Tudyk in the 2003 series Firefly and its concluding film Serenity. Fillion and Tudyk also worked together in Tudyk's web series Con Man.
  2. The episode was released on February 3, 2021, on syfy.com.[11]
  3. Live +7 ratings were not available, so Live +3 ratings have been used instead.

References
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