Warning: Spoilers ahead forResident Alienseason 4, episode 3, “Ties That Bind.“Resident Alienseason 4, episode 3, “Ties That Bind,” marks the death of a promising new character, just one episode after the exit of another underutilized figure. While I expected the latest death to happen eventually, I’m very surprised it has taken place so soon. The deaths of both characters in question have been bold writing choices, but I think they’re examples of wasted potential. I’m at least thankful the coreResident Aliencasthas remained intact, but the show’s mishandling of its recent guest stars is disappointing.
Set one month after theend ofResident Alienseason 3, season 4 has allowed all the cliffhangers from last year to breathe and evolve. By doing this, characters both new and old started the latest run of episodes in new positions that seemed as though they were going to be rewardingly slow-burning. Although the untimelydeath of Jinkx Monsoon’s Brucein episode 2 made sense from a canonical perspective, the latest character exit is far less satisfying and makes far less sense given how much they could have brought to the story.
Resident Alien Season 4 Killed The Mantid In Episode 3, Just 1 Week After Bruce’s Death
Heather’s return meant the the Mantid’s exit
Bruce died inResident Alienseason 4, episode 2, “The Lonely Man,” and the process answered a series-long question of what exactly happens to the Greys if they stay on Earth for too long. As it turns out, they dissolve into a puddle of goop after about a day and a half on the human homeworld.Bruce’s story seemed like it was just getting going, but apparently, the writers had other ideas, and he lasted just two episodes. In episode 3, the Mantid followed in Bruce’s footsteps by dying onscreen with just three appearances on the show.
Voiced by Clancy Brown, the Mantid debuted inResident Alienseason 3’s finale, “Homecoming.” He wasn’t the episode’s primary focus, but it was clear he was being set up as the next big antagonist for Harry and his friends to fight.Resident Alienseason 4’s first two episodes certainly paid off this tease, but “Ties That Bind” took a sharp left turn whenHeather (Edit Patterson) returned and tore the Mantid to shredsin front of everyone.
While I guess the Mantid may have survived Heather’s attack, the scene was made out to be a little too savage to make this possible.
Clancy Brown’s character felt like the perfect new villain to keep things fresh, but his death would seem to prevent him from causing any further problems. It would have been great to see him last for much longer than he did, and his introduction in “Homecoming” now feels unnecessarily poignant. That said, the trail of headless bodies he left in his wake is sure to continue to haunt the narrative.
The Deaths Of Bruce & The Mantid Both Hurt Resident Alien In The Same Way
The Greys are back to being the show’s only real threat
Resident Alien’s Grey Alienshave been one of the show’s longest-running villains for a while, and although they’re still a convincing threat, they’re also getting a little stale. They’ve been portrayed for too long as a faceless mass of beings, although one of them briefly having the voice ofStar Trek’s George Takei did make them more engaging for a bit.Bruce had a name and a distinctive personality to set him apart from the rest of his race, so I thought the show would have kept him around for longer and used him to freshen up the Greys.
Bruce’s early exit hurt the show because now the Greys are just back to being a generally nefarious collective. The Mantid’s death, just two episodes into season 4, also concerns the Greys. He was the perfect sort of villain to shoulder some of the Greys' long-running villainy, and presented a different, lower-stakes sort of threat to complement the Greys' Earth-conquering goals. With the Mantid gone, the Greys are back to beingResident Alien’s only real big bad, which could easily get boring.
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