Following the unexpected cliffhanger in Season 2, Episode 8 of SYFY’s Resident Alien, fans were left wondering whether they could look forward to more episodes. There certainly remains much to explore.

The developments in the titular character’s psychology and his efforts to navigate the personal relationships in which he finds himself promise to provide fertile ground for further exploration, and he faces new threats, including those posed by another alien species. Meanwhile, the prospect that he will be able to establish contact with his home planet has all but evaporated.

Resident Alien Season 3

In March, SYFY indicated that we could expect additional episodes in Season 2 to be released later this summer.

Prior to the announcement, fans may have worried that the dramatic conclusion to episode eight of the second season was intended to serve as a surprise conclusion to the series.

However, this was merely a mid-season cliffhanger, which reflects showrunner Chris Sheridan’s decision to divide the season into two parts.

While fans of the comedy-mystery can anticipate at least eight additional episodes, and perhaps as many as twelve, it remains to be seen whether a third season will be in the works.

What is Resident Alien about?

Spoiler Alert! This article includes spoilers for season 1 and season 2.

Resident Alien is a sci-fi comedy based on the Dark Horse Comics series written by Peter Hogan and illustrated by Steve Parkhouse. The original comic followed extraterrestrial biologist, Captain Hah Re, who crash-landed on earth after being shot down by fighter jet.

As he waits to be rescued, he uses his unique empathic abilities to raise cash and sustain himself. In an effort to dodge government agents, he ends up posing as Dr. Harry Vanderspeigle, a retired doctor, and he purchases a cabin near the remote town of Patience, Colorado.

In the TV show adaptation, the alien, whose name is said to be unpronounceable, has been sent to Earth with the task of destroying humankind. In a departure from the comic book, the original Dr. Vanderspeigle resides in a cabin near the site of the alien’s crash-landing.

Initially lacking any emotional capacity and having no connection to the people he is determined to destroy, the alien murders and steals both the identity and physical appearance of Dr. Vanderspeigle, who is later revealed to have been crooked and nefarious.

During his crash, the alien loses the device that he was to use to wipe out the human race for the sake of the greater good of the planet. Between his efforts to locate this lost equipment, the alien passes the time by learning English from reruns of Law and Order while holed up in the idyllic cabin of the late doctor.

This proves useful, for when the town doctor, Sam Hodges, is later murdered, the local sheriff asks Vanderspeigle to perform the autopsy. This unwelcomed invitation requires the alien to leave his lakeside hideaway and venture into town for the first time.

In a series of hilarious interpersonal faux pas and medical blunders, Vanderspeigle stumbles through this first real test to his adopted persona. However, when the nurse who is assisting him offhandedly remarks that he is a weird guy, the imposter doctor determines that he must make a more concerted effort to blend in and convince the townspeople that he is a perfectly ordinary person.

This proves challenging, leading to additional opportunities for him to reveal just how awkward and out of place he is. Over the course of the series, he finds himself in increasingly sticky situations, and his secret identity is revealed to various people in the small Colorado town in which he has established himself.

Resident Alien is not only a comedy, but also a detective series. As the story develops, the otherwise single-minded Vanderspeigle finds himself drawn into the complex lives of the people whom he comes to know, and he sets out to solve not only the case of the murdered doctor but additional mysteries.

These experiences, and the relationships he forms along the way, lead him to question the morality of his mission. In the most recent season, his life as an imposter — especially the bonds he forms — cause a change to his very being, and he becomes partially human.

The show has received generally favorable reviews in the US, with Rotten Tomatoes giving the first season an aggregate critic rating of 7.8/10 and IMDb reporting a user rating of 8.2/10.

Resident Alien Filming Locations

Although the plot of Resident Alien unfolds in the fictional small Colorado town of Patience, the show has been filmed in picturesque British Columbia, Canada.

Season one was shot on the mainland in the greater Vancouver area, and the first half of season two was shot on Vancouver Island. As many die-hard television fans know, this region has served as the filming location for numerous well-known television shows, including ABC’s Once Upon a Time, CW’s The 100 and Supernatural, and Fox’s Lucifer.

Early in the first season of Resident Alien, the landscape itself is established as something of a character in its own right. The frigid and long winter is as much an antagonist to the alien as the UFO hunters and others who threaten to uncover his identity and expose the nature of his mission.

Moreover, the land serves as a source of spiritual renewal and grounding for Vanderspeigle’s first real friend, the nurse who assists him as he takes up residency in the local clinic.

Resident Alien Cast

Alan Tudyk in Resident Alien Season 2 Feature

Dr. Harry Vanderspeigle, played by Alan Tudyk

Dr. Harry Vanderspeigle, played by Alan Tudyk

Alan Tudyk (known for his portrayal of Tucker in Tucker & Dale vs. Evil) stars as the lead, playing both the real Dr. Harry Vanderspeigle and his alien doppelganger. He also provides the ironic voice-over narration that allows viewers to understand the interior thoughts of the alien and which is a significant source of the show’s humor.

Harry’s first foray into town is at the behest of Corey Reynolds’ character, Sheriff Mike “Big Black” Thompson, a former Washington, DC police officer who recruits Vanderspeigle to perform the autopsy on the deceased Dr. Hodges.

Sara Tomko in Resident Alien Season 2 Promo

Asta Twelvetrees, played by Sara Tomko

Asta Twelvetrees, played by Sara Tomko

Sara Tomko plays Asta Twelvetrees, a Native American and nurse at the local clinic who viewed her employer, Dr. Hodges, as something like a father figure. She has experienced trauma throughout her life, particularly at the hands of her abusive ex-husband Jimmy, played by Ben Cotton.

Their relationship began when she was in high school and his abuse lead her to give up her daughter for adoption.

Elizabeth Bowen in Resident Alien Season 1

Liv Baker, played by Elizabeth Bowen

Liv Baker, played by Elizabeth Bowen

Elizabeth Bowen plays Sheriff Thompson’s awkward and often undervalued deputy, Liv Baker. Although her timidity often prevents her from standing up to Thompson, Deputy Baker is a determined law enforcement officer with the insight of a skilled detective.

After briefly leaving the force out of frustration, she and the sheriff repair their relationship, and he reveals that he keeps her at a distance because he blames himself for the death of his former DC Metro partner.

Levi Fiehler in Resident Alien SYFY

Ben Hawthorne, played by Levi Fiehler

Ben Hawthorne, played by Levi Fiehler

During Vanderspeigle’s first visit to the seemingly quite town of Patience, he meets the young and eager mayor, Ben Hawthorne, played by Levi Fiehler. Later, Hawthorne convinces — or, rather, simply tells — Harry that he will need to fill in for the late Dr. Hodges at the Patience Health Clinic.

Judah Prehn in SYFY's Resident Alien

Max, played by Judah Prehn

Max, played by Judah Prehn

During a passing encounter on the street, Vanderspeigle learns that Hawthorne’s young son, Max, played by Judah Prehn, is one of the rare humans who sees him in his true alien form. This constitutes one of the early sources of conflict in the series. Harry undertakes numerous efforts to neutralize the threat posed by Max before eventually realizing that the boy might be useful to him.

 

Alice Wetterlund in Resident Alien

D’arcy Bloom, played by Alice Wetterlund

D’arcy Bloom, played by Alice Wetterlund

Alice Wetterlund is cast as Asta’s friend, D’Arcy Bloom, the owner of the local watering hole who introduces Vanderspeigle to the pleasures and pains of whiskey. D’Arcy is a former Olympian who returned to Patience, her hometown, after a skiing accident.

Michael Cassidy as Dr. Ethan Stone in Resident Alien

Dr. Ethan Stone, played by Michael Cassidy

Dr. Ethan Stone, played by Michael Cassidy

Although Mayor Hawthorne convinces Vanderspeigle to temporarily fill in as Patience’s resident physician, eventually Dr. Ethan Stone, portrayed by Michael Cassidy, is brought in as Dr. Hodge’s permanent replacement. (Sci-fi fans may recognize Cassidy for his portrayal of Jonathan Walsh on TBS’s short-lived alien comedy, People of Earth.)

A misunderstanding on the part of the government agents investigating the possibility of an alien presence in the town leads to Dr. Stone’s kidnapping. While being held in an off-books black-site prison, Dr. Stone is visited by General McCallister.

Linda Hamilton plays the stern and determined general who is in charge of a covert project to identify aliens. However, she is determined to prevent the operation from becoming another classified project that is buried by the government.

In this regard, she denies that she and her agents are the mysterious “men in black” who secret away aliens and those who have spotted them.

Resident Alien Season 2 Key Art

Resident Alien, SYFY

While the first season of Resident Alien chiefly focuses on the mystery surrounding Dr. Hodge’s murder and thus centers on the town of Patience, the second season considers the circumstances that led to his death, as well as Harry’s efforts to reestablish communication with others of his species.

This takes us into the broader world of the story. Along the way, viewers meet the artist known variously as Goliath and “the Ghost of New York,” played by David Bianchi.

Goliath is an alien of the same species as Harry, and, after crashing in Brazil decades earlier, he established himself as a mysterious, Banksy-style muralist and painter in the Big Apple. Goliath’s surreal works of art, which are portrayed in Season 2, Episode 8, were created by artist Joe Vaux, who is best known for his work as the animation director on Fox’s Family Guy.

Perhaps the most exciting cameo appearance for sci-fi fans is Nathan Fillion’s voice-over work in season two. Fillion provides the telepathic voice of an octopus, whom Harry rescues from a restaurant fish tank and names 42.

It turns out that octopi share an evolutionary ancestor with Vanderspeigle’s species, and, unbeknownst to us mere humans, they have telepathic powers!

Additional cameos include those by Terry O’Quinn, who played John Locke in Lost, and Alex Borstein who, in addition to Joe Vaux, is of Family Guy fame. O’Quinn plays the part of a podcaster who, along with Max Hawthorn, can discern Harry’s alien form. Borstein portrays the cousin of Mayor Harthorne’s wife, Kate.

Where to Watch Resident Alien TV show

You can catch the remaining episodes of Resident Alien, Season 2 on the SYFY Network, beginning this summer. New episodes are available for free for a limited time after release on the network’s website and app.

Although the series is not available on Netflix, Paramount Plus, or standard Hulu accounts, US fans can stream season one and the recent episodes from season two with a premium subscription to Hulu + TV, Peacock, or Sling TV.

Individual episodes can be purchased on YouTube, Prime Video, Google Play, and Vudu.

Is Resident Alien Coming Back?

As of early April, SYFY has neither cancelled nor renewed Resident Alien for a third season. However, in an interview conducted with Parade in which he disclosed his intentions concerning directions for future plot and character development, showrunner Chris Sheridan teased that we can anticipate a third season.

Whether the network shares Sheridan’s optimism is not yet known. Presumably, a decision will be contingent on the success of the second half of season two.

Resident Alien Season 3 Release Date

Resident Alien is renewed for season 3. However, the official release date is not announced by Syfy yet. We are going to update this post once we have an official release date.
(No Ratings Yet)
Loading...
What do you think about this show?
Leave Your Comment (7 comments)! 👋

📆 Winter 2023-24 TV Schedule
Is your favorite show coming back? Check it out in our release dates calendar.

Regardless, fans can expect the next episode of the second season to drop sometime this summer. Followers of the sci-fi comedy-mystery series and Alan Tudky’s lovably awkward Vanderspeigle will have to wait and see what the network decides.

 

Show Information

Network
Show Name
Season3
CancelledNo. Resident Alien is not cancelled.
StatusRenewed
Series Cast
Genres

Conclusion

If you enjoy quirky sci-fi comedy, Resident Alien is sure to satisfy. The series blends deadpan comedy and verbal irony with sci-fi and mystery tropes, making it an entertaining and engaging show. The acting, particularly on the part of Tudyk, is rich, and the development of his extraterrestrial character serves as a meditation on the emotional complexities of our terrestrial lives.

Winter 2023-2024 TV Schedule + Release Dates Calendar
When does your favorite show come back on? Check it out on our winter release dates guide.
March 2024 Release Dates are here!