Drama
Alien: Earth
FX’s ‘Alien: Earth’ is just the latest graphically violent entry in the already graphically violent ‘Alien’ franchise.
You might call Charleston Tucker the world’s most exclusive book editor.
She only edits one book, and that book only has one reader. But the contents of the presidential daily briefing book on matters of national security are so explosive that they can, and do, impact national and international affairs for days or weeks or lifetimes. Everything the president of the United States needs to know is in that book. And, as such, what Charlie decides to include or exclude is of inestimable importance.
Which might make the free world wish she didn’t, y’know, sleep around with strangers quite so much.
State of Affairs, an NBC political thriller, is all about the myriad threats the U.S. may face from all corners of the globe. But it’s also all about Charlie—a briskly efficient CIA agent who not only has one of the government’s most important jobs, but also has an out-of-control personal life. And every episode, it seems, will ask viewers to imagine what might happen should one occupation bleed into the other.
Psychologists might say Charlie has her reasons for misbehaving—as damaging as that misbehavior might be. She was once engaged to a guy named Aaron Payton: soldier, humanitarian and son of President Constance Payton. But Aaron was killed during a mission in Kabul—one that both Charlie and Pres. Payton were a part of—and now Charlie deadens her loss through the sensate pleasures of sex, alcohol and bad behavior. But there’s something else at work, too—something that Charlie’s therapist suspects but doesn’t understand quite yet. Charlie and Aaron’s mission was more dark and troubling than is commonly known. And something horrible took place in a culminating firefight that Charlie can’t yet admit to (or even remember).
This storyline—just what happened in Kabul and why—is one that will drag on throughout the season and perhaps longer. But it will surely take a back seat at times to State of Affairs’ crisis-of-the-week concept. Terrorists are threatening innocent Americans in Oman. Reactionaries are rioting in Manila. Someone’s trying to smuggle a bomb into San Francisco. And always, always, the CIA is looking for ways to bring down the radical cell that killed Aaron and threatens American security.
“I am going to end every single one of their lives,” Charlie vows to President Payton.
“That’s my girl,” the POTUS responds. “His [Aaron’s] death will make killers out of both of us.”
With that said, it shouldn’t surprise viewers that the morality of State of Affairs is … murky. In the political intelligence realm, Charlie and her co-workers make questionable decisions based on imperfect information. They consider making deals with less-than-ideal international partners and weigh the importance of missions on skewed scales. Should they save the lives of innocents here if it means sacrificing a promising intel lead there? Should the American people be told? Should the president herself be told? Lies are offered. Dark decisions are made. Bullets are fired. People die in pools of their own blood.
All that, of course, is standard operating procedure for these kinds of thrillers. We’re supposed to weigh motives and wade through muddy ethical waters as we decide who, if anyone, is “right.” That’s part of their pull.
Most such shows, then, simply don’t have the time or inclination to get too salacious on the side. Alas, the same cannot be said of State of Affairs. While Charlie’s irresponsible actions are called out for being irresponsible, they’re still shown in all their irresponsible HD color. We see her kissing, stripping and in bed with any number of fleet-footed lovers. We watch them share drinks and trade coarse come-ons.
When it comes to the state of State of Affairs, it’s a little too fond of “Show Me” for us to stay in a state of acceptance.
“Pilot”
Charlie picks up a guy in a bar: The two down shots, then make out in a dimly lit hallway, stripping down to underwear for sex. Later, the two are seen in bed. When Charlie’s therapist calls her out for her “reckless personal life” and being “sexually irresponsible,” Charlie says “Don’t get all judge-y, Doc. I like to have a good time,” adding that there’s nothing wrong with that. Then she lets loose a zinger of a double entendre about orgasms. In flashback, we see Charlie share a bed with Aaron. She walks around in her underwear.
We see part of the firefight in Kabul. Bullets whiz and whine. Explosions rock the camera. Charlie is covered in blood, and we see Aaron get shot. Video footage shows what leads up to an execution (implied to be by decapitation). Another captive, his face bloody, is also seen being threatened with a large knife. U.S. soldiers shoot several terrorists as they rescue an innocent man (the footage rendered in the typical green night-vision manner). We hear explicit threats made about gutting a man.
Charlie and her team lie and evade law enforcement. People drink Scotch. They say “a–” and “d–n” (two or three times each), “h—” (a half-dozen times), and “b–tard” and “p—ed” (once each). Charlie seems to say the f-word, which is largely obscured when she bangs on a table. God’s name is misused a few times.
Paul Asay has been part of the Plugged In staff since 2007, watching and reviewing roughly 15 quintillion movies and television shows. He’s written for a number of other publications, too, including Time, The Washington Post and Christianity Today. The author of several books, Paul loves to find spirituality in unexpected places, including popular entertainment, and he loves all things superhero. His vices include James Bond films, Mountain Dew and terrible B-grade movies. He’s married, has two children and a neurotic dog, runs marathons on occasion and hopes to someday own his own tuxedo. Feel free to follow him on Twitter @AsayPaul.
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