The Aliens
Series title against a concrete wall
Genre
Created byFintan Ryan
Directed by
  • Jonathan van Tulleken
  • Lawrence Gough
Starring
Opening theme"Alive & Amplified" by The Mooney Suzuki
ComposerVince Pope
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original languageEnglish
No. of series1
No. of episodes6
Production
Executive producers
  • Petra Fried
  • Matt Jarvis
  • Murray Ferguson
ProducerCharlie Leech
Running time46 minutes
Production companyClerkenwell Films
Original release
NetworkE4
Release8 March (2016-03-08) –
12 April 2016 (2016-04-12)

The Aliens is a British science fiction television series created by Fintan Ryan. It is set 40 years after aliens land in the Irish Sea and are reluctantly integrated into British society in the fictional city of Troy. Border guard Lewis Garvey, played by Michael Socha, is caught up in the criminal underbelly of Troy as he learns he is himself half-alien.[1][2]

The six-episode series also stars Michaela Coel, Michael Smiley and Jim Howick, and is produced by Clerkenwell Films for E4. The first episode was released on 8 March 2016.[3][4] Ryan had previously written BBC shows Never Better and In the Flesh.[1]

Overview

Coel told Radio Times that The Aliens addresses "urgent contemporary concerns" not limited to racism; during the filming of the series at Nu Boyana Film Studios in Bulgaria, she reported she experienced racist attacks.[5] Speaking to The Guardian's Gabriel Tate, Ryan acknowledged links with the show's narrative and the ongoing European migrant crisis: "With immigrants, there's a colonial history that leaves you in debt to them. Here, we don't owe them [the aliens] anything, but they've landed on our planet and we've got to do something with them."[3]

Viral marketing for The Aliens was organised by Channel 4's in-house creative agency 4Creative. Centred on the slogan "Fight Human Oppression", the faux-political campaign interrupted several Channel 4 shows throughout February 2016. It also appeared on radio and cinema, interrupting DCM's usual ident.[6] Shots featured a female member of the "Alien League" asking the viewer for help "fighting human oppression", before being wrestled away.[7]

Broadcast

Following its April conclusion, the show also aired on Space in Canada in May.[8] It concluded on 8 June 2016. In Germany, ZDFneo aired the show in October 2016.

Cast and characters

Episodes

No.TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air date
1"Episode 1"Jonathan van TullekenFintan Ryan8 March 2016 (2016-03-08)
Lewis is a border guard at the checkpoint that patrols the wall that surrounds the area of the city where the aliens are allowed to live. After a chance encounter with a mysterious alien Lilyhot, his life is thrown into turmoil.[9]
2"Episode 2"Jonathan van TullekenFintan Ryan15 March 2016 (2016-03-15)
Lilyhot convinces Lewis to help his father break out of prison and get safely to Troy.
3"Episode 3"Jonathan van TullekenFintan Ryan22 March 2016 (2016-03-22)
Lilyhot wants to start a gang-war in Troy. Meanwhile, Lewis reluctantly agrees to smuggle drugs through the checkpoint.
4"Episode 4"Lawrence Gough[10]Fintan Ryan29 March 2016 (2016-03-29)
With his suspicions about Lewis growing, Truss follows him into Troy discovering that Lewis is half-alien.
5"Episode 5"Lawrence Gough[10]Joe Brown and Fintan Ryan5 April 2016 (2016-04-05)
Dominic is forced to become a hitman, while Lewis is blaming himself for what happened to Truss.
6"Episode 6"Lawrence Gough[10]Fintan Ryan12 April 2016 (2016-04-12)
Lewis realises he has to bring the conflict to an end.

Reception

The List's Brian Donaldson compared the show to the 2015 Humans, and wrote that "from almost its opening scene, The Aliens dives headlong into the issues it wants to tackle... politicians talking about building walls is barely off the news just now and The Aliens taps right into this."[2] Tim Dowling of The Guardian called "Tremendous fun."[11]

Channel 4 announced in May 2016 that The Aliens would not be renewed for a second series.[12]

References

  1. 1 2 "Aliens: Derby actor Michael Socha to star as half-human, half-alien, in new TV series". Derby Telegraph. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 4 March 2016.
  2. 1 2 "TV review: The Aliens, E4". The List. Retrieved 4 March 2016.
  3. 1 2 Tate, Gabriel (2 March 2016). "Dog whistles, dishwasher tablets and narcotic fur: behind the scenes of sci-fi drama The Aliens". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 4 March 2016.
  4. ↑ NME.COM. "E4's 'The Aliens': Sci-Fi Goes Gangster | NME.COM". NME.COM. Retrieved 4 March 2016.
  5. ↑ "Chewing Gum star Michaela Coel experienced 'racist attack' while filming The Aliens in Bulgaria". RadioTimes. Retrieved 4 March 2016.
  6. ↑ "DCM's cinema ad interrupted by The Aliens in Channel 4 takeover". www.campaignlive.co.uk. Retrieved 4 March 2016.
  7. ↑ "'The Aliens' fight human oppression in anticipation of E4's new show". The Drum. Retrieved 4 March 2016.
  8. ↑ "U.K. hit The Aliens to premiere in Canada on May 4". 15 April 2016.
  9. ↑ "The Aliens". Channel 4. Retrieved 6 October 2020.
  10. 1 2 3 "Michael Socha and Michaela Coel star in E4's Aliens (w/t)". Channel 4. 2 September 2016. Retrieved 11 April 2016.
  11. ↑ Dowling, Tim (9 March 2016). "The Aliens review: otherworldly fun from the makers of Misfits". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 20 March 2016.
  12. ↑ "Channel 4 axes Michaela Coel and Michael Socha drama The Aliens". RadioTimes. Retrieved 3 May 2017.
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