Falling Skies – “Sanctuary (Part 1)” – review

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Going into this episode knowing it was to be “Part 1,” I figured it would be the first in the season to end in a grim fashion. So far most episodes have ended on happyish notes, and it felt like it was time for something different to really get this show rolling. Unfortunately, the beginning of the episode didn’t instill a lot of confidence in me. The opening with the family attacking and robbing Anne felt silly, despite how important it ultimately became later. It’s not that the action itself didn’t make sense (I’d be creeped out by those harness kids, too), it was the way it was played out. It just didn’t feel right to me.

The robbery leads to the introductory of the new military character Terry Clayton (Henry Czerny). He comes on to the scene, acting like a classy guy with good intentions, spouting off about relocating the children to a safer place. About halfway through the episode, I started getting a different vibe. I’m not sure if it came directly from Clayton, or if it was the distrust the civilians had with his plan, but I knew something was going to go wrong with the so-called “sanctuary.” But I wasn’t immediately prepared for Clayton’s betrayal. It wasn’t hard to figure out he was handing children over to the Skitters, but it was still a good twist.

Anne received a bit of gun training from Margaret after the robbery. It was good to have Moon Bloodgood’s character learn to finally use a weapon. I know she can kick butt like the rest of them, and it’s about time her character stretched out a bit.

I was happy to see Jimmy return to prominence for the episode. He’s underused right now, and it feels like it’s because the character is very underdeveloped and there’s uncertainty with what to do with him. They made good use of him for “Sanctuary (Part 1),” though. The material was solid, and him being hunted by the Scitter was just creepy enough that it worked. And his breakdown with Weaver was perfect, especially the way Weaver understood Jimmy’s emotions but couldn’t immediately hold the sobbing Jimmy.

I still feel really good with the stream of information we get from episode to episode about the Skitters. It’s not too little or too much; just steady answers. Yet it also brings up more questions, but not in an obnoxious way. Like why did Ben adjust more quickly than Ricky? What’s up with Ben in general?

I’ve made no attempt to hide my liking for the Pope character. He disappeared a couple episodes back, and I’ve been eagerly awaiting his return. Almost like it was just for me, “Santuary (Part 1)” ended with the reveal that Clayton had Pope as a prisoner. There couldn’t have been a better way to get me excited for “Part 2.”