Mr. October

Ugh!!! The level this show works at is mind numbing. There's a bunch of half thought ideas mashed into a template that simply doesn't work.

"Hey Let's have the alien who is quite clearly a man in a costume rip a room full of people into chunks of meat".

Cool, let's do that.

"Hey let's have a spacecraft crash into a building. But the spacecraft will land beautifully intact and nothing will be damaged, except for a continuous stream of sparks coming from nowhere and a bunch of small fires bubbling in the background, cos that looks cool".

Cool, let's do that.

"Hey let's have a character do the Amélie hair cut and for no reason have a samurai sword strapped to her back".

Cool, Let's do that.

It makes no sense except on a children's cartoon level and the direction is obviously style over substance but there isn't much style to it either.

It's just distressingly flawed on so many levels.

Consider this to be my review of the series so far, since the first two episodes came out together.

Right up top I will say this seems to me like one of the better entries into the franchise, even surpassing the latest Alien: Romulus movie. It is quite clear that the people working on these movies were big fans of the original movies. The sets, costumes and overall production design are very reminiscent of the original movie. What is very reminiscent of the first movie as well are the opening scenes which felt as if I were watching a remake of the original movie.

The movie doesn't mess around and gets right to action fairly fast. The first episode felt longer than an hour not because I felt bored, but simply so many things had happened. The action might even feel off-putting to some (as I've already seen in negative reviews). The Xenomorph gets plenty of room to be brutal leading to some interesting set pieces, even if those might seem as fanservice to some. Personally I am keeping an open mind for now, there is the majority of the plot still in front of us.

Some quick notes:

The artistic choice to have kids in enhanced bodies be the main team inside the ship seems weird to me, but let's see what they do with this setup.

Timothy Olyphant is great in his role. I fear his character is unlikely to see the end of the series, but I am enjoying his scenes so far.

It kept feeling weird that the rescue team would arrive heavily armed, but I guess if their goal was the inside of the ship all along, than that could be understandable. A bit distracting at first though. Does real Army at Earth wear weapons for rescue missions after similar events?

In the year 2120, alongside humans, cyborgs (people with both biological and artificial components) and synthetics (humanoid robots with artificial intelligence) exist. But everything changes when Prodigy unleashes a new technological advancement: hybrids (humanoid robots imbued with human consciousness). The first hybrid prototype, named Wendy, marks a new dawn in the race for immortality. After the Weyland-Yutani spaceship crashes into Prodigy City, Wendy and the other hybrids encounter mysterious life forms more terrifying than anyone could ever have imagined.

But first, the positives. After watching two episodes, you have to conclude that the sets look fantastic. The opening scene, which manages to imitate the atmosphere of Alien 1978 fairly well, is unfortunately not continued in a longer scene with more depth. We get transitions to Earth and more or less cuts where a lot of the story is skipped.

Unfortunately, there are also some negative aspects. Goldsmith's traditional soundtrack is sorely missed, and at times, the film even switches to a kind of rock music that completely ruins the atmosphere and saps the tension.

Furthermore, the characters don't always react logically to the horror they witness, often too apathetically or almost indifferently, as if what they see is practically normal.

We see this especially when the young rescue worker walks through the ship, encounters the alien several times, experiences the greatest horror but still carries on as if nothing special has really happened instead of being in shock, compare that to the original Alien in which the crew members react in a much more human way, traumatized and panicked.

The series seems promising but it could go either way and I have a feeling that one small mistake could ruin the whole series.

Mr October continues where Neverland left off, with effective character introductions and moves the action and threat slightly beyond its original location.

For me, the highlights are the scenes involving Wendy and Joe. The filmmakers have achieved my investment in these characters, which feels important for what is to come.

Certain other characters are not as likeable, and one in particular feels like he is being set up for grisly demise at the hands of a foreign body. How, or if, this comes to pass is likely to be a source of interest as the story unfolds.

If you are watching for the Xenomorph spectacle, you will likely not be disappointed, as it offers plenty of creature effects and associated horror sequences. Seeing the unknowing characters facing what we already know is always entertaining. Plus, it has an unknown quantity of non-xenomorph alien lifeforms that adds a further level of intrigue.

Generally, the visuals are high quality. The design, tone (and themes) are as reminiscent of Bladerunner, as they are of the Alien and Aliens movies. This should please fans of Ridley Scott's and James Cameron's work.

Knowing what Noah Hawley is capable of, I'm wondering how such plot holes, non-existing character development and general emptiness could take place.

As for the direction, there is no tension and nothing appealing despite the high budget displayed on screen.

There is absolutely no soul in these first two episodes.