Resident Alien- The Complete Series Blu-ray Review
Alan Tudyk deserves better.
Based on the Dark Horse comic book series, “Resident Alien” is a 2021 sci-fi comedy series that ran for 4 seasons. The series revolves around an alien who crash lands on Earth, kills a human Doctor (Harry) and takes his place in the small town of Patience, Colorado. Harry the alien’s initial mission was to destroy humanity, but he ends up trying to save it. Throughout the series, there are plots involving Harry’s spaceship being taken by the military, the death of a local (Sam), an octopus named 42, Alien’s technology, the neighboring town of Jessup, the real Harry’s family and past, an alien baby, the future, alien races (the Greys, Blue Avians, Mantids, and Alpha Draconians), an alien threat to Earth, Harry developing a romance with Blue Avian Heather, Joseph (a Grey-human hybrid), and The Galactic Housing Council.
Harry the alien isn’t the only character here as the townspeople of Patience play a major role in the series. Among the main characters are Max (The Mayor’s son who has the ability to see Harry is an alien), Sheriff (Mike), Deputy Liv, Mayor Ben, Asta (Doctor’s assistant), D’arcy (pub owner), Kate (Ben’s wife and Max’s mom), Lisa (Government agent who works for a General McCallister), David (Air Force Officer), Jay (Asta’s daughter put up for adoption), and Sahar (Max’s friend).
Created by Chris Sheridan, “Resident Alien” starts off as a promising sci-fi comedy that is full of murder, mystery, intrigue, small town drama, aliens, and dark comedy, but it never quite pans out like you hope it would. Alan Tudyk (who plays Harry the alien) tries his very best to carry the show on his back and is indeed the best part of the entire series. Anytime he’s on screen and anytime the series focuses on Harry the alien (or really anything alien or sci-fi oriented), the show is engaging. Whenever the series focuses on small town soap opera style drama, it’s decidedly less interesting. Yes, it’s trying to be subversive and quirky with its blend of genres (alien and small town dramas), but it never finds the right balance. “Resident Alien” suffers from having far too many human characters who bog down the show. The amount of human character subplots in this series is frankly exhausting and it pulls focus away from what makes the show work (AKA Harry). Everything from the Asta-Jay drama to the Mayor’s marriage just feels like a drag to get through. As such, the show begins to stall out, spin its wheels, and get stuck in cycles (like Harry attempting to keep his alien identity a secret from humans).
Even though Alan Tudyk is hysterical and has certified himself as a sci-fi movie and TV legend, his grand performance is not enough to save “Resident Alien” from standing out in a sea of better TV sci-fi comedy shows like “Mork And Mindy” and “Third Rock From The Sun.” With all of that said the series has developed a devoted fanbase and is bound to appeal to find new fans along the way.
Video/Audio:
Presentation: 1.78:1 1080p. How does it look? This is the best the SyFy/USA series has looked. Fans will be pleased by the pristine transfers.
Audio Track: 5.1 DTS-HD MA. How does it sound? The 5.1 tracks deliver the goods each season.
The lone extras are deleted scenes from seasons 2 and 3.
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