And so ends the first season of Colony – with a bang averted, and a whimper heard. A marriage and a leadership tenure may have ended; a child may have been found and one may be lost. But one thing we know, even when we don’t know much, is that nothing we think we know may be true. And confirmation will have to wait!
The focus on the people, rather than the invaders, really drew me in this season. Other invasion series focused much more on the aliens – Falling Skies gave us several aliens, and the fight against them was front and center. Alien Nation was more about living with the newcomers; V about discovering what they wanted. But Colony’s focus has been how people cope, or don’t, under extraordinary circumstances, how ideals and loyalties determine behavior. We still don’t have any sense at all, despite seeing something we think may be extraterrestrial, of the Visitors. We have no idea what they want, why they’ve gotten rid of large chunks of the population but left an organized structure in place. Do they want a submissive group of worker bees to make something? Do they need a food source, a replacement for a dying home planet? We have no idea. Condal and Cuse haven’t given us ANY clues – and at the moment, that doesn’t matter! What has been fascinating about this series is that you could have made this about a human enemy invasion and occupation, and not much would have to change.
At the end of the season, where are we? If this were a story that was judged on the progress our heroes have made against the enemy, it would be a failure. Fortunately, that’s not the measure we’re using! Things are much worse than at the very beginning of the season. In the first episode, the family, minus Charlie of course, was all together, living relatively comfortably, strong as they could be with the curfew and ever-present fear of being grabbed for what often looked like very minor infractions and being sent to the Factory. But Will had hidden his former career well enough, unlike most of his former co-workers. Gracie and Bram were coping with this strange new world as best as they could. Snyder was secure in his management of the Bloc. We may have thought all along that he was the enemy, and in many ways he was, but it sure sounds like he was the benevolent dictator, trying to do his best for the majority of the population, when other Blocs were run with much less safety, much less provisions, and much more fear.
And by the end, Snyder has been taken away – not literally in chains, but you can see that coming. (Although last night on Twitter, Peter Jacobson posted that he will be back!) The family is completely fractured – they know Charlie’s alive – and healthy, obviously, but Gracie is being recruited and indoctrinated by the Church of the Blessed Alien; Bram’s been caught up by Snyder’s surveillance of the tunnel he and his teacher are using to sneak out of the Bloc; Maddie’s had to sell herself and betray people to keep her son alive. And Katie and Will turned out not to be the rock we thought we could count on – they’re on opposite sides, moving farther and farther away.
No progress has been made against the enemy. All of the battles have been lost, even the ones we thought might have been a win. Resistance members and leaders are dead; the cell is decimated. Carlos is on the moon in the Factory (doing what, and why, we have no idea!!!). The Armory is lost. The big mission to kidnap and learn more about the VIP literally blew up in their faces.
And we can track everything – every problem this season – to the Bowmans! Will made the original decision, without consulting Katie, to try to leave the Bloc to find Charlie, resulting in being forced to work for the Occupation. Feeling pressure to cooperate if he wanted to get Charlie back, he turned out to be too good at his job, and peeled away the layers of the Resistance – Geronimo, Quayle, Broussard, the poster designers, Luis (the voice of Geronimo). And Katie’s actions caused destruction – not alone, certainly, but she bears responsibility for the Visitors nearly turning the Bloc into, as Helena said, “a sheet of glass” like Dallas.
Snyder is trying to make the best of his bad situation, isn’t he! He’s trying to make good use of the all-access transit pass he secured presumably for Quayle – Quayle don’t need it no more! His daughter has no interest in him or anything he may offer – typical kid! I liked her little commune there, though – raising chickens, backyard garden, great music (I think I have a candidate for that commune here at my house, alien invasion or not) – and she’s decided that his poor treatment of her mother (what do you think? I don’t take Snyder for a wife-beater, but a womanizer? that I could see) has negated any parental influence he may have, even if it’s to save her life.
Will is heading off, on his own, after Katie turned away from him. In our conversation with Sarah Wayne Callies this week, she said something interesting – that were the roles reversed, Will would be considered a hero for stepping up to the fight against the occupiers, and Katie would be praised for working to keep her family together. But instead, Katie is vilified for standing up for her principles – she’s fighting to get their world back for everyone, not just to preserve her family. She’s seeing that the young children are getting used to this world – curfews, breadlines, lack of freedom – and believes she is called to fight against that. So she has to go her own route, not loving Will any less, but realizing that this can’t be the reason for her action. And Will has done everything on the opposite side – while Katie is looking at the big picture, Will has been fighting for the smaller view – his family, his children.
How many of you thought Beau would return? Raise your hands – I know you’re out there. I thought so too. Hopefully he’s made it out and is on his way to Big Bear, and with any luck, to his wife! And Jennifer was a big surprise to me – she had seemed like she toed the company line, but you never know with some people! It was a little worrying when Will exposed so much to her – but she proved herself to be an ally. Just goes to show that just because you work for the stronger side doesn’t mean you have to live and breathe the message!
COLONY — “Getaway” Episode 110 — Pictured: (l-r) Josh Holloway as Will Bowman, Kathleen Rose Perkins as Jennifer McMahon — (Photo by: Isabella Vosmikova/USA Network)
Couple of moments from the finale to note – I loved Morgan’s run out into the street to stop the Redhats in the car. “Have you seen my dog?” And then her shock – and Katie’s consolation – when Broussard kills them – this all became very real to her.
Were you waiting for a big alien reveal? But NOOOO! They have impenetrable armor? What’s with that weird head? Some fans suggested that maybe this is either a robotic emissary, or perhaps a bio/mechanical synth creature – of course, it could be an actual alien under there. What do you think?
Heading into Season 2- we know there will be twists and turns we can’t foresee. Carlos is still in the Factory. Will is on his own, looking for Charlie. Maddie’s committed herself, at least for now, to Nolan. Bram’s in danger, caught up in the tunnel sweep. Broussard, Morgan, BB and Eckardt are in the wind. Snyder’s out of office. Katie – how chilling was that final shot? – is under a surveillance we knew nothing about. And the Visitors, whatever they are, are still very much in control. I can’t wait until Colony returns! I’ll bring you any news we get throughout the year.
Did you miss any of the interviews we’ve run over the past few weeks? Here are links to all of them. And NEXT WEEK – I’ve got a special, exclusive chat with creator/showrunner Ryan Condal that you won’t want to miss!
Sarah Wayne Callies (Katie), Part 1 and Part 2
Thora Birch (Morgan)
Ally Walker (Helena), Part 1 and Part 2
Tory Kittles (Broussard), Part 1 and Part 2
Peter Jacobson (Snyder), Part 1 and Part 2
Producer Ryan Condal, Part 1 and Part 2
Keep watching the official website! And don’t forget to go to ColonyTV.com and finish your missions!
Join us on Facebook at Colony: The Resistance to chat about the season!
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