The fate of the protagonist family in the series, the Bowmans, is left up in the air as they spent the first two seasons in an alien-controlled colony in Los Angeles, California and the third season in a colony in Seattle, Washington. The humans in the colonies are being used as pawns by the invaders in an inter-galactic war they are apart to be a part of. Unfortunately, we never get the payoff of this storyline.
Colony is another example of an ambitious set of storytellers who never quite found the proper home for their show. It was likely an expensive series to produce, with a large amount of special effects and set pieces. This has always been an ominous dichotomy when producing science-fiction: viewers want to see brilliant, dystopian depictions that the genre is capable of displaying, but the lack of belief from the network executives snuffs out all the potential for the audience to enjoy.
The Acting Was Really Good
Josh Holloway and Sarah Wayne Callies are no strangers to hit TV. Holloway starred on Lostand Callies on The Walking Dead and Prison Break. Their chemistry as a couple who is hiding secrets from one another in the middle of the apocalypse was an interesting one with a lot of growth potential, especially because the audience knew things about each person that neither character did early on in the series.
The wildcard character in the series was Alan Snyder (Peter Jacobson). Snyder was chosen by the alien invaders as the human leader of the Los Angeles colony, the person who would do the bidding of the invaders on the ground level. The topic of humans being used as vessels for alien control is one that is discussed in this show exquisitely, as Snyder doesn’t appear to have any leadership qualities at first glance. As we learn more about his ability to wriggle his way out of any precarious situation, along with his lack of loyalty towards other people, it’s no surprise he became one of the pieces being used to control humanity by the invaders.
These characters were quite complicated as the layers got pulled back more and more each season, and the acting by each of the leads was really something that should have gotten more credit.
Colony Explored A Different Side of Dystopian Alien Fiction
Many alien shows and movies decide to take the angle of showing how humans overcome an alien invasion the moment it happens. We see the invaders taking over the planet. We see the people who have the strength and the skills to survive the deadly attacks, and we see who the leaders of the aliens are. Colony decided to take an entirely different route in their version of post-apocalyptic dystopia.