...when there weren't any Americans around back then? I mean, come on, you can't stretch suspension of disbelief THAT far...
sharewhen there weren't any Americans around back then?
I´m Commander Shepard and Liara is the hottest girl in the galaxy.share
Just because the queen alien came to America this time, doesn't mean it was only Americans she was angry with... She was angry with the whole human race. She only came to America because Tom was causing the biggest problem for her kind.
shareUhhhhh... Excuse me, but there were plenty of NATIVE Americans here 1500 years ago.
shareUhm no way...those native americans are nothing like the Real Patriotic Americans...Come on...think with your head, buddy=))
The native americans were just saving and renting the place for the Bringers of Freedom! Hoorah!!
Yes, but those aren't real Americans. Those came from Europe.
shareI get what you are saying. Even if it were not Americans, how would the population of any country in, say the 6th century A.D., be able to fight off one tenth of the forces they brought to this show? I mean, they travelled the galaxy in technology more than we have today. Horse drawn chariots would not be suitable for interstellar excursions. The intelligence and resoursefulness of ancient Greece, France, Rome, Sumaria, Persia or Siam still were struggling with a Flat Earth and the Black Plague.
Your critics here focused on America bashing and not the meanning behind your words.
uhhh... i'm pretty sure the OP was joking.
You're all Wrong.
Guys, this thread is exactly in line with the Falling Skies theme. I doubt the OP is really a nationalistic chestthumper. Just watch the finale again, it's full of America *beep* Yeah imagery and music.
The glory of the USA and it's special chosen people - and the person Tom Mason in particular - has been a big part of FS since it's inception.
I could have believed it if they provided just a teensy bit more exposition. For instance, the queen could have pointed out that they were naïve about the abilities of humans to fight. They relied instead on their natural bug powers or whatever. In other words, they were unarmed, thinking they could just crush whatever opposition the humans presented. Something like that. Just because aliens posses superior technology it does not mean they are without flaw and don't make massive mistakes. That's an interesting idea.
I wish the ethics of all this were brought into play a little bit too. The queen was mad that earlier humans had killed her daughter? Well, that's a bit absurd given that her daughter's intent was to wipe out the human race. A little more profundity on that issue would have been helpful.
As unsatisfying as things got with this finale, I always liked this show because of Weaver and Tom. I also always found the Ben storyline interesting (he should have ended up with Maggie). I wish they could have allowed these guys some real victories that we could cheer for (there seemed to be some in the making). The American Revolution motifs, and often unabashedly, unashamedly American symbolism was really compelling. They completely turned their backs on these ideals in the finale, imo, by presenting some kind of John Lennon's "Imagine" utopian ideal.
As far as Pope, this was a very confused storyline. Wasn't he introduced as the leader of a gang who was holding Maggie against her will as a sex slave, basically? That alone crosses a moral line that is very hard to return from. So, the intent seemed to be to create a human villain, a la the Joker, that would help raise the stakes every week. But then it seemed like they tried to Sawyer-ize the character (a la Lost). Yes, Pope is damaged goods, they seemed to say, but he is redeemable and ultimately, lovable. Then Pope went completely bananas this season and that became too much to ask an already patient audience. Who was this guy supposed to be anyway? A complete schizo? His turn at the end practically invalidated all we had invested in him until that point.
And the whole alien super weapon capsule thing was just too deus ex machina.
Guess who was introduced as a racist redneck loner and became more popular than the main character, to then quickly abandon his bad guy ways and become a valued group member? Daryl Dixon. That's what Pope was probably supposed to be.
shareAs said the final episode didn't give too much background information of the former queen's death 1500 years earlier.
It is possible that the Espheni of those days arrived to Earth in smaller numbers than in the future. The queen could've been a part of some sort of a small hunting party completely unaware of humanity's killer instincts and capabilities even as primitive spearmen.
If the Espheni had arrived in smaller numbers and were largely unprepared, then perhaps this sort of a big underestimate of human capabilities led to the death of the queen.
If they could lose to Tom Mason and company, most of whom never seen war in their lives let alone participated in one, and never lived outside the comforts of cities, they can surely lose to people who actually lived all their lives in the wild and excel in crude and rough jungle warfare that Mason and company were fighting.
There is nothing Mason and company did that they wouldn't have done better.
~Luca Brasi sleeps with the fishes~
* My alternate ending idea *
I feel that this is exactly the point Tom was trying to make throughout the entire series. The will of human kind is not something determined by numbers, power or even the tools they wield. It's something determined by their emotions of love, pride, desperation and despair. This was the base concept behind Falling Skies and one of the reasons it was so successful in gathering it's cult following.
We all watched as the 2nd Mass struggled with survival against all odds. It drew us into a world that we would normally consider a nightmare. Along the way we developed attachments to the characters that relate to ourselves and those around us, all the while feeling more and more like we should be standing along side the 2nd Mass in their fight.
Throughout the series we are exposed to concepts taken from human history (POWs, Slaves, Propaganda, Brainwashing and, later on, turning on trusted allies under overwhelming stress turned to resentment). These concepts are the key behind understanding the message of this story. Personally, I feel they really dropped the ball in making Season 5 the finale, however I do understand and agree with their reasons.
Assuming that everything pans out pretty much the same throughout the entirety of Season 5, here is how I would have liked to see it end:
- Pope leaves, the Espheni promise him Tom (Revenge)
- 2nd Mass is decimated before reaching DC, Anne dies bringing Tom Masons story full circle (begins with losing Rebecca and ends by losing Anne)
- Tom succumbs to grief (Rage, Primal instinct) and marches into DC alone and unobstructed to confront the Queen.
- Weaver attempts to rally the remaining 2nd Mass (As this is his family now)
- The remaining Masons go after Tom.
- Instead of the Queen, Tom finds Pope, drawn out dialog begins.
- Matt, Ben and Hal arrive in time to see Pope mortally wound Tom.
- Here is something I feel is important - Matt kills Pope (The complete and final corruption of innocence).
- Queen arrives, kills Tom, breaks Hals back, advances on Matt, Ben uses his spikes to hold the Queen off so Matt can use the weapon.
- Recap: Anne dies, Weaver lives, Tom dies, Hal is confined to wheelchair again, Ben lives, Matt ends the war and goes on to follow in his fathers footsteps as leader of the 2nd Mass and later becomes President of the New United States.
Bottom line is: It's not realistic if there's a happy ending!