DISCLAIMER: This recap of Resident Alien episode “Homesick” is laden with more spoilers than the number of human things Harry has researched on the internet. Siri, what does “Okay, boomer” mean? You’ve been warned. Proceed at your own peril.
Welcome back, superior extraterrestrial beings! Resident Alien‘s second outing managed to comedically top the pilot, which I didn’t think would be possible. It’s rare that I immediately warm to a show so early in its first season, but I’m a simple gal. I see Alan Tudyk in a sci-fi comedy, I watch Alan Tudyk in said sci-fi comedy. Tudyk’s performance in “Homesick” made me cackle multiple times. Literally cackle like an overexaggerated cartoon witch. He’s a comedic genius. While the dialogue is clever, I feel it’s the nuances he imbues into his work that elevates it. Not only that but the Resident Alien supporting cast is fantastic. I already love them like my nonexistent children.
Ready to delve into “Homesick”? Let’s get to it.
Now, we open with a hiker trekking through a snowy tundra. Harry (Tudyk) is providing riveting narration. Hiker man stops to take a selfie. Suddenly, he tumbles off a treacherous cliffside. See, this is why I never take selfies. However, he doesn’t hit the ground. He’s levitating above … something. Hiker man is unable to move from his floating position. He calls for help.
Next, Harry finds a puzzle piece from his shipwreck that reads “Full Extinction Event” in his native tongue. He’s a step closer to pinpointing the elusive object that’s critical to the success of his mission. Operation: Decimate Earth. But first — normal human work. He has to go be a doctor. Harry’s in the medical office in town for his first day on the job. He’s supposed to tend to Max (Judah Prehn), who just so happens to be Mayor Hawthorne’s son. Max can see that Harry is really an alien. Max cuts their appointment short by fleeing the scene, utterly frightened out of his gourd. Asta (Sara Tomko) tries to figure out why Max left, but Harry chalks it up to silly boy things.
Meanwhile, Max is hiding under a bench outside. Ben (Levi Fiehler) and his wife Kate (Meredith Garretson) are trying to coax him out. Kate wants him to march back into Harry’s office to finish his checkup. Ben offers to take his son to work with him instead. When Ben and Max arrive at the mayor’s headquarters, we see Sheriff Mike (Corey Reynolds) and Deputy Liv (Elizabeth Bowen) have already set up shop. Apparently, one building serves a dual purpose as the mayor’s office and a police station.
Sheriff Mike refuses to move his boxes because he needs to do serious police work. Said boxes contain evidence. There’s still Dr. Sam’s murder to contend with, which won’t solve itself. Max blurts out that he believes Harry is behind the good doctor’s killing. Mike appears eager to listen until he learns that Max thinks Harry is an actual alien. He chastises Max for lying to a police officer. Liv offers her artistic abilities to sketch the extraterrestrial being in question.
Later, we see Harry is struggling with his first day. He was under the impression that he could simply Google “how to remove a wart” and that would be the end of that. He’d be a well-equipped doctor. However, humans have more issues than just pesky warts. For example, Harry had to stick his fingers up a woman’s no-no for an exam. This scene is hysterical. Harry accidentally snapping a photo of the lady’s parts while he’s researching gynecological exams is pure gold.
Next, Harry’s day gets progressively worse as his bedside manner, well, also gets worse. A sympathetic physician he is not. With Asta’s guidance, he’s finally able to properly comfort a woman who found a lump in her breast. Then he nonchalantly refers to her breast as a “tit.” I’m glad I wasn’t drinking anything at that moment, otherwise, I would’ve spat all over my laptop screen.
Harry and Asta visit the latter’s father Dan (Gary Farmer) at a restaurant. Dan pulls Asta aside and reveals that he has a weird feeling about Harry. Well, in that he doesn’t feel anything about good ol’ Dr. Vanderspeigle. Harry’s a blank slate. We see Harry awkwardly shoving fries into his mouth. Admittedly, there is no wrong way to eat fries.
Then, Harry finds a flurry of posters featuring his alien mug. They were drawn by Liv, who really does have a knack for sketching. He hurries home and proceeds to pack his belongings. Time to skip town. But then he reminisces about how difficult it was to train the current human husk he’s inhabiting. The montage that follows is pure zaniness. Harry learning how to brush his teeth. How to walk. Even how to eat. Tudyk is so damn funny. He forgoes the leaving idea.
Later, Harry feigns a child’s voice and calls Max. He pretends to be the kid’s friend Elvis from school. Not Presley. Harry claims he “saw” the handsome alien from those posters boarding a bus. He’s no longer in Patience, Colorado. Unfortunately, Max doesn’t believe him and he identifies Harry. Harry compares his appearance to that of a “young Jerry Orbach,” which obviously goes over the boy’s head. The Law & Order references are in abundance and I am here for them. Max tells Harry that he’s screwed. He can’t kill Max without risking exposure. If only he, an intellectual extraterrestrial, could outsmart a child. If only.
Next, Harry finds Asta’s niece sitting on the floor in the doctor’s office. He’s perplexed by the baby. Harry gently pokes her with a crutch and is taken aback to discover that children have laugh buttons. Who knew? When night falls, Harry moseys on over to the pub. He finds D’arcy (Alice Wetterlund) hard at work tending bar. They discuss murder and how to make said murder look like an accident. Harry guffaws very normally and not in a peculiar manner. D’arcy asks him out on a date to go bowling the next night, which Harry accepts without really knowing what it means. He’s too preoccupied with thoughts of killing nosy kids.
In fact, he’s even cooking up murder scenarios in his noggin the following day amid his therapy session with Ben. A child’s shoe is always left in the wake of his imaginative destruction. Symbolism. He appears to be jotting down notes while Ben bares all, but they’re really a slew of horrific doodles. Suddenly, Dr. Sam’s widow storms into the room with Asta in tow. She asks Harry if he believes her dearly departed husband was poisoned. Then, she barges into her late loved one’s office and begins packing up his things. Asta attempts to foil her efforts. She wants to leave Sam’s space intact. Harry urges them to be quiet because he’s trying to be a doctor.
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Later, Asta confronts Sheriff Mike and Deputy Liv. She reveals that Sam’s widow is trying to move his belongings. They could be crucial for a murder investigation. Asta truly thinks he was killed. Asta and Mike proceed to bicker while Harry daydreams about human emotions and how weird they are.
Flashback time! We see Harry crash-landing on Earth four months prior. He’s hungry. So, where does one go when they’re positively starving? To a barn! Harry spots a cow. However, instead of consuming the beast, he begins sucking on its teets. It’s an image that’ll be forever engraved on my eyeballs. An alien drinking milk straight from a cow’s udder.
Then, Harry meets with D’arcy for their bowling date. He has no idea what bowling is. D’arcy encounters Judy (Jenna Lamia), the woman that Harry examined. In a gynecological manner, of course. Judy and D’arcy trade barbs while the former hands out bowling shoes. But then all is well as they discuss attending a bonfire together. Harry and D’arcy prepare to bowl it up when they spot Mike. He’s dressed in his finest sporting regalia and ready to play. Mike bowls a strike. Next, D’arcy does the same. Now it’s Harry’s turn to throw a ball on some wood. He tries to mimic those around him. Unfortunately, he tosses the ball back and it smacks Mike in the family jewels. Hard.
After their short-lived game, Harry and D’arcy sit down for hotdogs. She regales him with a story about her skiing days. He only partially listens. D’arcy says something that triggers Harry’s alien noodle. He should cut the brakes on Max’s bike! It’ll look like an accident, but it was really murder! Harry abruptly leaves in the middle of the date to do just that. He surreptitiously cuts the brakes on the boy’s bike.
Later, the following day, Harry appears to be getting the hang of this bedside manner thing. He manages to get the town curmudgeon to love him. Huzzah! Ben wanders in with Max’s coat. Harry is under the impression that the kid perished in a tragic bicycle accident of his devising. But alas, Max is alive. He just needs stitches. What unfurls next is a battle of wits. Max rises to the top, leaving Harry with an untied shoe. Not to mention, a still-breathing kid who knows who he really is.
Meanwhile, Asta is having dinner at home with her father. Dan mentions that Asta should cut her hair in honor of Dr. Sam since she’s still in mourning. Asta hands him the scissors and he chops off some of her locks. It’s a beautifully heartfelt scene. The next morning, we see Asta sitting in the late doctor’s office. She’s recalling the last time she ever spoke to him. He asked if she wanted to play a card game, but she declined so she could go home. That night he was murdered. Harry walks in. Asta reveals that Dan isn’t her real father. He took her in when she was a baby after her mom left. She felt like she could tell Dr. Sam everything. Now, he’s gone.
Harry asks her if she wants to play cards. Asta accepts the invite despite Harry’s disdain for card games. Later, we see him heading inside the mine. He discovers that tellurium lives within said mine. He gets to work on crafting something akin to the device he misplaced. Asta burns scrubs in another ceremony to release Dr. Sam’s spirit.
Our resident alien’s mini device is practically complete. He sticks an apple above a small disc and it levitates. Harry learns to identify a human emotion that he currently feels — loneliness. He was also able to feel Asta’s grief earlier. He’s growing!
Then, we return to the unfortunate hiker man’s floating predicament. Well, he’s dead. But his carcass levitates on along with a pair of deceased crows. The camera pans downward at the reason for the perished man’s floating — a large black disc. That’s Harry’s lost object meant to aid him in destroying the world!
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“Homesick” is just plain fun. It truly encapsulates the kookiness of Alan Tudyk. While he obviously steals the show, the rest of the players are holding their own. I love that, right off the bat, these supporting characters already harbor distinct and unique personalities. Tomko injects Asta with pure sweetness. Reynolds doesn’t miss a comedic beat as Sheriff Mike. Bowen is the perfect opposite of Reynold’s boisterousness. Fiehler is great as the nervous, anxious mayor. Wetterlund plays the brash D’arcy like a pro. Overall, I’m really enjoying Resident Alien. And the cliffhanger is a nice tease of what’s to come.
Do you think Harry will locate that large disc any time soon? Will he really want to decimate Earth after connecting with Asta? Does Harry actually resemble a young Jerry Orbach? Wait, I can answer that last one: no. Join me next week as I recap Resident Alien, here on Geek Girl Authority.
Resident Alien airs Wednesdays at 10 pm on your Syfy affiliate.
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What I do: I'm GGA's Managing Editor, a Senior Contributor, and Press Coordinator. I manage, contribute, and coordinate. Sometimes all at once. Joking aside, I oversee day-to-day operations for GGA, write, edit, and assess interview opportunities/press events.
Who I am: Before moving to Los Angeles after studying theater in college, I was born and raised in Amish country, Ohio. No, I am not Amish, even if I sometimes sport a modest bonnet.
Bylines in: Tell-Tale TV, Culturess, Sideshow Collectibles, and inkMend on Medium.
Critic: Rotten Tomatoes, CherryPicks, and the Hollywood Creative Alliance.
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