TNT's newest drama is Falling Skies. Produced by Steven Spielberg, it is the story about a group of humans trying to survive six months after the Earth has been taken over by aliens, All the major cities and military bases have been destroyed, most of the population is dead. Survivors band together, but are forced to split up, as large gatherings attract unwanted attention from the new rulers of the planet. The fight seems hopeless, as the 2nd Massachusetts, which comprises almost all of the main characters of the show, packs up to leave Boston.
By the time the first episode is over, a lot has gone down. Weaver (Will Patton, 24, The Agency), the leader of the 2nd, sets up camp at an abandoned high school. How long this will work for them is uncertain, but at least the military and civilians are operating on more equal footing. See, Weaver is a military guy, and he's not all that sympathetic to the non-soldiers of the group, often seeing them as a liability, even though he swears to protect them. When camping in a neighborhood, he lets the soliders sleep in the houses, but makes the civilians stay outside in tents. It's a duality that makes his character a bit unpredictable. What is clear, though, is Weaver will do his best to make sure mankind survives.
But setting up a camp of nearly three hundred may not be the wisest idea. After all, there are between three and four thousand humans gathered in one settlement when Falling Skies begins. The leader of them all, Porter (Dale Dye, Saving Private Ryan, Band of Brothers), splits them up into smaller units because he fears the alien invaders will soon be able find their large camp. Three hundred is still a lot, and as the malicious creatures run out of humans to find in the cities, it shouldn't take long to locate that many people moving together along a road.
What is unknown is the aliens' motivation for the take over. They destroy major cities and set traps to lure and kill humans in grocery stores, and yet, they are not hunting down or keeping a look out for packs moving along roadways. They also enslave teenagers, including Ben (Connor Jessup, The Saddle Club), the son of Weaver's second in command, Tom Mason (Noah Wyle, ER, The Librarian movies), with some kind of mechanical harness. So extermination is not their primary goal, but they show no remorse about killing any people they come in contact with.
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