"Alien: Earth" (Episode 3 Recap)

The following contains spoilers.

The third episode of Alien: Earth picks up where Wendy pursues the xenomorph that captured Joe D. Hermit (Alex Lawther). Wendy finds Joe inside a refrigerated truck, but Joe warns Wendy that this is a trap. The xenomorph appears and attacks, with Joe suffering an injury to the chest after the xenomorph drives its tail into him. Using a meat hook, Wendy lures the xenomorph into a garage, hoping to trap it inside; however, the xenomorph captures Wendy, and the two are locked inside together. Joe manages to open the locked door, finding a stunned and injured Wendy and a decapitated xenomorph. 

As for the rest of the Lost Boys,  Nibs (Lily Newmark) observes the specimen that attacked her in the previous episode. She begins to remember the time when her previous body was transferred into her synthetic body. She shares her thoughts with Curly (Erana James), wondering why they could not keep their names. Kirsh receives a call from Boy Kavalier, who orders them to collect the five specimens for study and return.

This brings us back to Slightly, who was instructed by Wendy to guard the eggs. He’s reunited with Smee, and the two begin to recount their experiences on the space vessel. Morrow appears and asks the two questions regarding where the ship crashed. Slightly and Smee behave like children, as they express their innocence and playfulness. Observing the two, Morrow knows they are not what they seem, realizing that they are synthetic bodies. Morrow presents the two with a scenario as he downloads data into his body. “When is a machine not a machine?” Morrow asks, covertly placing something on Slighty’s neck. Before Slightly can answer, Kirsh appears. Kirsh notices that one of the eggs starts to open as Morrow moves closer to it. “If you’re not careful, you’re gonna belong to them,” Kirsh warns Morrow. Morrow uses this opportunity to escape. 

Later, Kirsh watches as Wendy and Joe are taken to receive medical attention, while Prodigy seizes the dead xenomorph. They return to Neverland with the specimens and dead xenomorph in tow. Wendy, still unconscious, receives medical attention from Dame Sylvia (Essie Davis) and Arthur Sylvia (David Rysdahl). Boy Kavalier puts Kirsh in charge of the specimens. Slightly and Smee recount their encounter with Morrow to Atom Eins (Adrian Edmonson), who assures them that Morrow will be captured. Speaking of Morrow, he roams the streets of New Siam, placing a call to Yutani and promising them that he intends to complete his mission and retrieve the specimens, returning them to their rightful owner. Morrow manages to communicate with Slightly, hinting that this connection may be the key to how Morrow retrieves the specimens.

Wendy awakens, and the doctors operate on Joe, removing one of his lungs. Wendy walks through the research facility, and she hears a warbling sound. She follows the sound to Kirsh’s workstation, where he examines and dissects the alien egg. Kirsh sedates the alien inside the egg and removes the larva. It seems that Wendy and the specimen share a connection, but it’s not clear how. The episode ends with Wendy collapsing to the floor. Kirsh takes the larva and finds its host in Joe’s lung, while Boy Kavalier quietly observes.

Episode 3 of Alien: Earth is titled “Metamorphosis,” which refers to the process of transformation from an immature form to an adult, involving a noticeable change to the body. Several members of the Lost Boys go through a metamorphosis, so to speak. Nibs questions why they couldn’t they keep their names. Names are markers of identity. After all, Wendy was given the choice to choose her name from Marcy. Nibs grows further disillusioned and realizes that she’s not only stripped of her agency but also someone else’s property.  

When Slightly and Smee recount their events to Atom Eins, they learn of the retinal cameras recording everything through their eyes. This comes as a shock to both Smee and Slightly. Providing them with retinal cameras without their knowledge reveals an ugly truth: their bodies are not their own. Their bodies are the property of Prodigy.  

Unlike Nibs, being artificial does not seem to bother Curly. Rather, she’s determined to prove to Boy Kavalier why he’s wrong in choosing Wendy as his favorite. Boy Kavalier explains that Wendy is his favorite because she was the first. “My dad always threw the first pancake in the trash,” Curly retorts. 

Boy Kavalier chooses to see her ambition as a challenge. If you recall, in episode 2, during his conversation with Dame Sylvia, Boy Kavalier wants to speak with someone smarter than him, with the hopes of having “an interesting fucking conversation.” Though Boy Kavalier was referring to Wendy, he agrees to nurture Curly’s growth for knowledge. 

These conversations with Dame Sylvia and Curly reveal another layer to Boy Kavalier’s character. His accomplishments and the synthetics’ existence highlight his superiority. He’s untouchable. He sees himself as a god because he saved these children’s lives through technological innovation. And, like a god, Boy Kavalier is ready to experiment and create something new using the alien larva and Joe’s lung. 

Complicating this matter is that Boy Kavalier also sees himself as a father. He refers to Wendy and the Lost Boys as his “children,” yet Boy Kavaliar does not embody the best qualities of a father.  After Boy Kavalier tells Curly he will provide her with books and other materials to expand her mind, Curly asks, “Does this mean I’m the favorite now?” to which he replies, “No. But you’re in the race.” With this response, Boy Kavalier encourages the rivalry, as Curly competes for her “father’s love.” Watching the dynamic between Boy Kavalier and Curly, I’m reminded of the Greek creation myth that describes Cronus overthrowing his father and later devouring his own children out of fear that they will overthrow him. After all, Curly shows ambition to achieve beyond what Boy Kavalier has already accomplished, suggesting she may supplant him.