I don’t think I’ve ever been this anxious about who The Eye – Alien: Earth’s most popular villain – would choose as its next host. And I must confess I ended the season with mixed feelings: relief at getting some answers, frustration at the ones we didn’t get, and a hint of disappointment at feeling like I saw fewer xenomorph scenes than I had hoped for.

Between hits and misses, Wendy shone without so much as a hair out of place. But the ending felt more like a semicolon than a period. And yes, it left me eager for what’s to come – but also a bit “robbed” of the catharsis a proper season finale usually brings.

Let’s get to the recap.

Recap – “The Real Monsters”

Episode 8 closes out the first season with everything we love: brutal action, razor-sharp dialogue, and a nail-biting cliffhanger.

Neverland is in chaos: a Xenomorph is on the loose, the Lost Boys are being punished for their failed escape, and Boy Kavalier has completely lost control of the situation. Wendy, meanwhile, must deal with her brother’s anger for hurting Nibs and step into a role the series has been clearly building her toward: leader, potential “queen” – something that frightens her as much as it empowers her.

Hermit and Morrow, unlikely cellmates, find common ground in their anger at the corporations and manage to escape with Wendy’s help, who seems to have taken her tech powers to the next level. Hermit rushes off to find the Lost Boys, Morrow goes after Kirsh, and their fight is a spectacle worthy of WWE’s Attitude Era – with the kids watching as if it were cable TV.

Wendy, now remotely controlling the xenomorph, is furious at all humans (they are bad, very bad), and like a well-trained dog, the predator does everything its master commands. And what she wants is revenge. Thanks to her, the Lost Boys discover that their bodies are living weapons. They stop being victims and take control of the narrative – this is the real turning point of the season.

Initially angry at Joe for shooting Nibs – because she believes he chose the human soldiers over her and the Lost Boys – Wendy still cares for her brother. Lucky for him, because Kavalier really had programmed Ocellus to pass into a human host. But as Wendy hacks into the circuit and stops it, we still don’t know who the next host will be by the end of the episode. The intelligent alien wisely escapes and remains missing for a long stretch (during which I kept waiting for it to return) until, finally, it crawls up to Arthur’s body on the beach and reanimates him by lodging itself in his eye. It’s disturbing, chilling, and the perfect setup for season two: Arthur is back – but now as a puppet of the alien.

In the last scene, all of the Lost Boys’ enemies – Dame Sylvia, Morrow, Atom, Kirsh (damaged), and Kavalier – are imprisoned, and the hybrids proclaim themselves the rulers of Neverland. Yes, with the support of two Xenomorphs. This makes Kavalier smile – whether out of anger, relief, admiration, or fear. We won’t know until next season.

Strengths and Weaknesses of the Finale

The episode was solid, but it feels as though Alien: Earth chose to “pause” the story rather than wrap it up. Are we really supposed to root for the “good guys” when they’re so much more powerful than the “villains”? Wendy could very well become one of the greatest threats in the entire series, and Noah Hawley brought a sophisticated approach to the Alien universe, blending horror, philosophy, and family drama. Each episode explores this horror world from a fresh perspective. That’s a good thing, right?

I admit Alien: Earth caught me by surprise. The series quickly became a phenomenon among geeks and Alien franchise fans – a club I never really belonged to. For me, its greatest triumph was its impeccable production quality from start to finish. But I missed having a more empathetic heroine, as was the tradition of the franchise. Wendy, for me, was the weakest link – and turning the xenomorph into something close to a “pet” felt like a blow to the mythology that didn’t sit right with me.

Still, the cast is excellent, and there’s plenty of material for season two to tie up all – or at least most – of these loose ends. I don’t know if I’ll be back for the next batch of episodes… but it was one hell of a ride.