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Alien Nation #1
The Day of Descent
The long-awaited first, original novel based on the critically acclaimed television show. Part SF and part hard-hitting police drama, Alien Nation introduces the Tenctonese, an alien race of former slaves who land in the California desert and, by the year 1995, comprise the world's newest and strangest group of immigrants: the "Newcomers".
First published January 1, 1993
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December 21, 2024
Before your precious "Firefly" was cancelled prematurely, Fox Channel axed the fantastic "Alien Nation". Fox went on to become notorious for killing great sci-fi shows within their first seasons, but "Alien Nation" was the O.G. They even realized their mistake and released TV movies throughout the '90s, continuing the story of the Newcomers in a sort of second season.
This franchise was started by Sci-Fi TV God Rockne S. O'Bannon (Farscape, SeaQuest, et al) in the '80s with the release of the James Caan vehicle of the same name. The TV show was better. The creator of the TV show wanted to tap a little more into the family life of the landed slaves as they adapted to life on Earth since he thought that was the most interesting part of the movie. The main scenario the movie has in common with the TV show is that it all takes place after the landing. All you ever get to know was that opening line: "This was the scene five years ago, over the Mojave desert..." as they show you a glimpse of the descending spaceship. This book finally allows you to see life on the ship and the inciting incidents that lead to the Newcomers arriving on Earth.
The writers of this novel are probably better known to "Star Trek" fans as prolific producers of Trek books. They really know how to capture the voices of the characters for which they are writing, which is on display again here. The only thing I didn't really care for was that Sikes got really smart when it came to astronomy. He always seemed like a Luddite to all things science in the show and the movie, so it didn't really jibe. I also thought it was a little cheesy that everyone from the show had such a big role in the events of the revolt and the landing. I liked thinking that Sikes and Francisco were two random elements forced together and I think that was mostly what the original writer had in mind too. But these writers had to give everyone the viewers cared about something important to do since the only people who were going to read this wanted to know more about what happened outside the show (like me).
The book was fun and entertaining but it was definitely made just for the fans. If you have no idea what I'm yammering on about, go pick up your "Firefly" action figures and play out season two again.
This franchise was started by Sci-Fi TV God Rockne S. O'Bannon (Farscape, SeaQuest, et al) in the '80s with the release of the James Caan vehicle of the same name. The TV show was better. The creator of the TV show wanted to tap a little more into the family life of the landed slaves as they adapted to life on Earth since he thought that was the most interesting part of the movie. The main scenario the movie has in common with the TV show is that it all takes place after the landing. All you ever get to know was that opening line: "This was the scene five years ago, over the Mojave desert..." as they show you a glimpse of the descending spaceship. This book finally allows you to see life on the ship and the inciting incidents that lead to the Newcomers arriving on Earth.
The writers of this novel are probably better known to "Star Trek" fans as prolific producers of Trek books. They really know how to capture the voices of the characters for which they are writing, which is on display again here. The only thing I didn't really care for was that Sikes got really smart when it came to astronomy. He always seemed like a Luddite to all things science in the show and the movie, so it didn't really jibe. I also thought it was a little cheesy that everyone from the show had such a big role in the events of the revolt and the landing. I liked thinking that Sikes and Francisco were two random elements forced together and I think that was mostly what the original writer had in mind too. But these writers had to give everyone the viewers cared about something important to do since the only people who were going to read this wanted to know more about what happened outside the show (like me).
The book was fun and entertaining but it was definitely made just for the fans. If you have no idea what I'm yammering on about, go pick up your "Firefly" action figures and play out season two again.
April 23, 2025
Nobody but me and Neill Blomkamp remembers Alien Nation now, but I recently rewatched my DVDs and it really had more promise than it knew what to do with. This novel, written after the series was cancelled but before the first of the TV movies came out, doesn't seem to be aware of that, or of any part of what it was trying to do or really of much of what happened in the show at all.
It nominally picks up right where the cliffhanger finale left off, but really spends all of its time in a flashback to the events leading up to the ship's landing, five years before the start of the series, dividing its time between Sykes (as his name was spelled in the original movie, rather than Sikes as in the show—the authors' introduction claims to want the harmonise the two canons), who is a rookie cop who for no real reason becomes one of the first humans to become aware of the approaching ship and welcome the Tenctonese when it finally lands, and the situation on the ship itself, where a rebellion involving almost all of the main Tenctonese cast is now responsible for the ship coming down in the first place, with Buck, who is now a member of the Kleezantsunjugend and has the personality he had after all of his character development at the end of the series despite having to be ten years old (a fact the authors eventually remember), playing a pivotal role. Almost none of it, from Sykes' partner being Angie Perez rather than Bill Tuggle to everyone on the ship just being fully aware of the Kleezantsun and the working of the gas, is compatible with the actual show or the movie, of course.
I know this tendency to tie every possible event to the established characters as if there isn't anyone else in the world is almost universal in this genre of garbage throwaway novels that attached themselves like barnacles to almost any TV- or movie-based sci-fi franchise in the '80s and '90s—the Reeves-Stevenses' claim to fame otherwise is Star Trek novels, unsurprisingly—and I appreciate that it's more difficult to get canon straight in a time when checking anything meant having to invest in a stack of VHS tapes. That doesn't mean this isn't absolute horse shit.
It nominally picks up right where the cliffhanger finale left off, but really spends all of its time in a flashback to the events leading up to the ship's landing, five years before the start of the series, dividing its time between Sykes (as his name was spelled in the original movie, rather than Sikes as in the show—the authors' introduction claims to want the harmonise the two canons), who is a rookie cop who for no real reason becomes one of the first humans to become aware of the approaching ship and welcome the Tenctonese when it finally lands, and the situation on the ship itself, where a rebellion involving almost all of the main Tenctonese cast is now responsible for the ship coming down in the first place, with Buck, who is now a member of the Kleezantsunjugend and has the personality he had after all of his character development at the end of the series despite having to be ten years old (a fact the authors eventually remember), playing a pivotal role. Almost none of it, from Sykes' partner being Angie Perez rather than Bill Tuggle to everyone on the ship just being fully aware of the Kleezantsun and the working of the gas, is compatible with the actual show or the movie, of course.
I know this tendency to tie every possible event to the established characters as if there isn't anyone else in the world is almost universal in this genre of garbage throwaway novels that attached themselves like barnacles to almost any TV- or movie-based sci-fi franchise in the '80s and '90s—the Reeves-Stevenses' claim to fame otherwise is Star Trek novels, unsurprisingly—and I appreciate that it's more difficult to get canon straight in a time when checking anything meant having to invest in a stack of VHS tapes. That doesn't mean this isn't absolute horse shit.
July 18, 2012
I loved the Alien Nation TV show, which was cancelled after only one season, and on a huge cliffhanger. So it was very exiting when they published a few novels based on the series. Most of them were novelizations of the 4 screenplays that had been written but not filmed (including the conclusion to the cliffhanger) and were eventually made into tv movies. But this one was not. It starts out in the few minutes after the cliffhanger ending, in the time between that ending and the resolution to it (book #2) but is primarily a flashback--to how the Tenctonese came to crash land on Earth, the role of the various members of the Francisco family in that, and also what human Matt Sikes was doing and discovering as a new detective during the days up to the crash.
I read this back in 1993 when it first came out, but had forgotten almost all the details, so it was really neat to read again. The writing is great, and the story and characters developed in such a way as to be truthful to the characters and scenarios in the show but also continuing to develop them and enhance their back stories. Now I really want to go back and watch the shows!
I read this back in 1993 when it first came out, but had forgotten almost all the details, so it was really neat to read again. The writing is great, and the story and characters developed in such a way as to be truthful to the characters and scenarios in the show but also continuing to develop them and enhance their back stories. Now I really want to go back and watch the shows!
January 17, 2016
This is sort of a bridge novel, taking place immediately after the last TV episode where Emily and Susan are in the hospital after being exposed to a deadly virus by the Purists.
The book has three themes going, skipping from one theme to another. The part relating to the hospital is the smallest; the second theme takes place on the slaveship itself, going into the background of what was going on and revealing a lot about George, Susan and Buck, and how important Uncle Moodri was at the time.
A third theme, related to the hospital one, has Matt and Cathy talking and Sikes tells her that he actually knew that their ship was coming. This leads into a discussion of his first investigation as a detective, which concerned an elderly man who had an interest in astronomy and was murdered in his car.
Another theme, although not one that takes a lot of time to cover, relates to Sikes relationship to his then-still-wife and his daughter.
It manages to blend the themes quite well. The novel also includes various small bits and pieces of information that are quite interesting. For example, it seems that the slaveship was at a distance of three billion miles from our sun when the events of the novel take place. This would place the ship just beyond the orbit of Neptune.
The earth's mass is .87 that of Tencton. (This might help explain why the Tenctonese are stronger than humans since they evolved on a planet with a slightly greater gravity than earth's. Their bodies would have evolved in relation to that gravity, so earth's lesser gravity would make them naturally stronger, the same way Superman was supposed to be stronger since Krypton had a greater gravity than Earth.)
The elders know that the earth is producing electromagnetic waves which indicate the possibility of intelligent tool-users. (Which is a confusing part for me. If the elders know the earth has intelligent life then certainly the ones running the ship would know and would have sent out some kind of a probe or something. It's established in the story that ships pass by the earth regularly, and that fact even shows up in one of the TV episodes.)
Buck was apparently studying to become an Overseer; they had their own group of youth, much as the Nazi movement had its own youth corps.
Grazer, a detective also at the time, helps Sikes try to figure out why the old man was murdered. (Note; the book is copyrighted 1993, so a number of things that happen involving computers (on Earth), would seem rather dated by now).
It's revealed that the reason the Overseers were not controlled by the “holy gas” was that their tattoos contained a substance that was released over time which nullified the effect of the gas. We also learn there were passageways on the ship that the Overseers did not know about.
While Sikes is talking to an astronomy professor he learns that the object (the ship) is about three miles across.
We go to a scene on the ship where Susan and George are brutalized by the Overseers.
Cathy's Tenctonese name is Gelana. Buck talks to an elder who tells him about the coming revolt and wants Buck to take an active role. Sikes talks to Theo to get his advice about the investigation he's currently on.
Sikes is investigating further but Amy, the woman astronomer, has gone missing. Sikes realizes that it is possible she killed the professor.
On the ship, Moodri meets with other conspirators. It looks like their plan will fail since Buck does not understand how evil the Overseers are. The plan is to have Buck insert some kind of key into a machine on the bridge to cause the cargo (slaves) part of the ship to be separated and send the rest of the ship, including Moodri, on an uncontrolled flight elsewhere.
Moodri's plan using Buck is scrapped and another plan put into place.
Sikes and his partner Angela Perez (Theo is now in undercover vice) work with Grazer on the case and it appears like it's a government-sanctioned murder. Grazer will continue to work with them and Matt is calling in Theo (Theo) now that it looks like it will involve the government.
On the ship, George manages to kill an Overseer.
At the station Theo advices Sikes and the others to not pursue the case, to simply turn it over to the Captain and let him turn it over to the FBI. Sikes is attacked when he gets him with Kirby, his daughter.
The book makes a reference to various “tribes” of Tenctonese on their home planet.
George realizes the rebellion on the ship is going to happen very soon. George and his brother are captured (and this leads into the episode where they were used for The Game.)
On the ship things go from bad to worse as Moodri finds out George and his brother have been captured and eight of twenty members of a rebel assault team are dead already. Moodri talks to Buck.
It turns out Amy, the missing astronomer, is involved in Sike's kidnapping. They also have Grazer and Angie. She and the others involved explained that they want to keep the fact that the object is manned a secret since any time an advanced civilization encounters a less-advanced civilization, the less-advanced one is, in essence, destroyed or at least severely damaged.( This is actually true, not just part of the story, and is even today used as a warning about what would happen if the Earth actually encounters aliens. In the U.S., in point of fact, if an alien spaceship landed and you were to talk to the alien, assuming that was possible, you would be violating the law and could be arrested!)
One the ship Moodri talks to Bulk about an ancient civilization on their home planet and that the Tenctonese were genetically engineered. Cathy is taking an active part in helping the rebellion also.
George recalls a time on the ship when he and his brother might have seen one of the beings who was actually in control of the ships and the Overseers. The scene then shifts to the events in The Game, where George and his brother were being held in a cell outside the game room.
Moodri retrieves a key from a tank of salt water without the water hurting him. Meanwhile George's brother is taken into the game room. Buck is being taken to the bridge of the ship. George is taken into the game.
Buck puts the key into the slot to start whatever is supposed to happen.
Sikes and the others are still being held by the killer and the crazy astronomer Amy. Theo manages to get a group together and they rescue Sikes and the others.
On the ship alarms are going off and everything is in chaos. Explosions and fire rock the bridge as an Overseer tries to get the children who were visiting (including Buck) to safety. Moodri is planning to send messages to the rest of the slave fleet that the ship he's on is out of control and all have been lost, making sure no rescue ships would be sent.
Instead of Moodri, though, a different elder turns out to be the one to remain behind. George comes very close to death in the game, but ends up being released by another player as the chaos builds.
The cargo disk separates from the main ship. The star drive portion of the ship goes into hyperspace (or something), to be lost forever. The cargo disk, after some more of the rebellion plans are put into effect, heads towards Earth.
Sikes and Theo talk. Amy and the murderer are still acting tough but Sikes tells them they are going to be booked and nothing will stop that. Then Theo tells Sikes that the object is heading towards the Earth, not away from it.
Buck finds out that the Overseers are able to conceal their tattoos and that there are emergency beacons on the cargo ship that they can activate to bring other ships. When the ship lands people stream off it as quickly as they can, using 64 different ramps as exits. The elders have set up a plan to try and stop the Overseers from bringing their equipment out of the ship.
George is one of the last to leave the ship and when he gets about a mile away the ship blows up.
Trenches were dug around the area where the Newcomers are and are filled with gasoline and set on fire to pen the Newcomers in. Theo and Sikes have both been suspended and Sike's daughter has been sent to a school in Switzerland, with Sike's ex-wife charging him with child endangerment. B-52s were overflying the area, carrying nuclear weapons. The murderer was set free as he knew he would be. Theo and Sikes have been volunteered to go to the quarantine area.
Sikes considers quitting the police force but Theo doesn't want him to.
Many of the Overseers were killed the first day by the other Newcomers. The children are the ones during the first few days who are able to figure what food that is dropped from the helicopters is edible and what isn't and they help to make sure everyone has something that they can eat and drink safely.
One of the Overseers finds Buck and tells him to help him find one of the beacons.
There's an interesting misinterpretation of a human song by the Newcomers. George finds Cathy (although he doesn't actually know her.) Then Cathy leads him to Susan. Sikes and Theo are on the perimeter of the area but they are going to be promoted to an area more further in.
Sikes and Theo attend a military briefing on the aliens. All the police and others at the briefing are told they are being paired with Newcomers to work with them.
An Overseer takes Buck to find the beacons and kills two humans. Theo and Sikes are driving a Newcomer woman around to find stray Newcomers. They pick up the Overseer and Buck, not knowing that the Overseer has one of the beacons.
A really great fight scene ensues between Sikes and the Overseer, with George playing a part.
The book has three themes going, skipping from one theme to another. The part relating to the hospital is the smallest; the second theme takes place on the slaveship itself, going into the background of what was going on and revealing a lot about George, Susan and Buck, and how important Uncle Moodri was at the time.
A third theme, related to the hospital one, has Matt and Cathy talking and Sikes tells her that he actually knew that their ship was coming. This leads into a discussion of his first investigation as a detective, which concerned an elderly man who had an interest in astronomy and was murdered in his car.
Another theme, although not one that takes a lot of time to cover, relates to Sikes relationship to his then-still-wife and his daughter.
It manages to blend the themes quite well. The novel also includes various small bits and pieces of information that are quite interesting. For example, it seems that the slaveship was at a distance of three billion miles from our sun when the events of the novel take place. This would place the ship just beyond the orbit of Neptune.
The earth's mass is .87 that of Tencton. (This might help explain why the Tenctonese are stronger than humans since they evolved on a planet with a slightly greater gravity than earth's. Their bodies would have evolved in relation to that gravity, so earth's lesser gravity would make them naturally stronger, the same way Superman was supposed to be stronger since Krypton had a greater gravity than Earth.)
The elders know that the earth is producing electromagnetic waves which indicate the possibility of intelligent tool-users. (Which is a confusing part for me. If the elders know the earth has intelligent life then certainly the ones running the ship would know and would have sent out some kind of a probe or something. It's established in the story that ships pass by the earth regularly, and that fact even shows up in one of the TV episodes.)
Buck was apparently studying to become an Overseer; they had their own group of youth, much as the Nazi movement had its own youth corps.
Grazer, a detective also at the time, helps Sikes try to figure out why the old man was murdered. (Note; the book is copyrighted 1993, so a number of things that happen involving computers (on Earth), would seem rather dated by now).
It's revealed that the reason the Overseers were not controlled by the “holy gas” was that their tattoos contained a substance that was released over time which nullified the effect of the gas. We also learn there were passageways on the ship that the Overseers did not know about.
While Sikes is talking to an astronomy professor he learns that the object (the ship) is about three miles across.
We go to a scene on the ship where Susan and George are brutalized by the Overseers.
Cathy's Tenctonese name is Gelana. Buck talks to an elder who tells him about the coming revolt and wants Buck to take an active role. Sikes talks to Theo to get his advice about the investigation he's currently on.
Sikes is investigating further but Amy, the woman astronomer, has gone missing. Sikes realizes that it is possible she killed the professor.
On the ship, Moodri meets with other conspirators. It looks like their plan will fail since Buck does not understand how evil the Overseers are. The plan is to have Buck insert some kind of key into a machine on the bridge to cause the cargo (slaves) part of the ship to be separated and send the rest of the ship, including Moodri, on an uncontrolled flight elsewhere.
Moodri's plan using Buck is scrapped and another plan put into place.
Sikes and his partner Angela Perez (Theo is now in undercover vice) work with Grazer on the case and it appears like it's a government-sanctioned murder. Grazer will continue to work with them and Matt is calling in Theo (Theo) now that it looks like it will involve the government.
On the ship, George manages to kill an Overseer.
At the station Theo advices Sikes and the others to not pursue the case, to simply turn it over to the Captain and let him turn it over to the FBI. Sikes is attacked when he gets him with Kirby, his daughter.
The book makes a reference to various “tribes” of Tenctonese on their home planet.
George realizes the rebellion on the ship is going to happen very soon. George and his brother are captured (and this leads into the episode where they were used for The Game.)
On the ship things go from bad to worse as Moodri finds out George and his brother have been captured and eight of twenty members of a rebel assault team are dead already. Moodri talks to Buck.
It turns out Amy, the missing astronomer, is involved in Sike's kidnapping. They also have Grazer and Angie. She and the others involved explained that they want to keep the fact that the object is manned a secret since any time an advanced civilization encounters a less-advanced civilization, the less-advanced one is, in essence, destroyed or at least severely damaged.( This is actually true, not just part of the story, and is even today used as a warning about what would happen if the Earth actually encounters aliens. In the U.S., in point of fact, if an alien spaceship landed and you were to talk to the alien, assuming that was possible, you would be violating the law and could be arrested!)
One the ship Moodri talks to Bulk about an ancient civilization on their home planet and that the Tenctonese were genetically engineered. Cathy is taking an active part in helping the rebellion also.
George recalls a time on the ship when he and his brother might have seen one of the beings who was actually in control of the ships and the Overseers. The scene then shifts to the events in The Game, where George and his brother were being held in a cell outside the game room.
Moodri retrieves a key from a tank of salt water without the water hurting him. Meanwhile George's brother is taken into the game room. Buck is being taken to the bridge of the ship. George is taken into the game.
Buck puts the key into the slot to start whatever is supposed to happen.
Sikes and the others are still being held by the killer and the crazy astronomer Amy. Theo manages to get a group together and they rescue Sikes and the others.
On the ship alarms are going off and everything is in chaos. Explosions and fire rock the bridge as an Overseer tries to get the children who were visiting (including Buck) to safety. Moodri is planning to send messages to the rest of the slave fleet that the ship he's on is out of control and all have been lost, making sure no rescue ships would be sent.
Instead of Moodri, though, a different elder turns out to be the one to remain behind. George comes very close to death in the game, but ends up being released by another player as the chaos builds.
The cargo disk separates from the main ship. The star drive portion of the ship goes into hyperspace (or something), to be lost forever. The cargo disk, after some more of the rebellion plans are put into effect, heads towards Earth.
Sikes and Theo talk. Amy and the murderer are still acting tough but Sikes tells them they are going to be booked and nothing will stop that. Then Theo tells Sikes that the object is heading towards the Earth, not away from it.
Buck finds out that the Overseers are able to conceal their tattoos and that there are emergency beacons on the cargo ship that they can activate to bring other ships. When the ship lands people stream off it as quickly as they can, using 64 different ramps as exits. The elders have set up a plan to try and stop the Overseers from bringing their equipment out of the ship.
George is one of the last to leave the ship and when he gets about a mile away the ship blows up.
Trenches were dug around the area where the Newcomers are and are filled with gasoline and set on fire to pen the Newcomers in. Theo and Sikes have both been suspended and Sike's daughter has been sent to a school in Switzerland, with Sike's ex-wife charging him with child endangerment. B-52s were overflying the area, carrying nuclear weapons. The murderer was set free as he knew he would be. Theo and Sikes have been volunteered to go to the quarantine area.
Sikes considers quitting the police force but Theo doesn't want him to.
Many of the Overseers were killed the first day by the other Newcomers. The children are the ones during the first few days who are able to figure what food that is dropped from the helicopters is edible and what isn't and they help to make sure everyone has something that they can eat and drink safely.
One of the Overseers finds Buck and tells him to help him find one of the beacons.
There's an interesting misinterpretation of a human song by the Newcomers. George finds Cathy (although he doesn't actually know her.) Then Cathy leads him to Susan. Sikes and Theo are on the perimeter of the area but they are going to be promoted to an area more further in.
Sikes and Theo attend a military briefing on the aliens. All the police and others at the briefing are told they are being paired with Newcomers to work with them.
An Overseer takes Buck to find the beacons and kills two humans. Theo and Sikes are driving a Newcomer woman around to find stray Newcomers. They pick up the Overseer and Buck, not knowing that the Overseer has one of the beacons.
A really great fight scene ensues between Sikes and the Overseer, with George playing a part.
April 1, 2025
I really enjoyed this but the sequences on the ship were a little disappointing. It had been established in the series that there wasn’t any kind of revolt on board and to include characters in the revolt that had categorically stated there wasn’t any kind of revolt or resistance was a little disappointing. The way they deal with George in the game was opposing to how it was dealt with in the series as well which was a shame.
However, the earth bound storylines were brilliant. It was great seeing Sikes on his first case as a detective and there was some really fantastic detective storytelling. The part where Sikes walks the crime scene was really good. It was a shame we didn’t get Tuggs in the book though given how important he was to Sikes, it would have been nice to have him as his partner instead of a brand new character that could have just as easily been Tuggs.
However, the earth bound storylines were brilliant. It was great seeing Sikes on his first case as a detective and there was some really fantastic detective storytelling. The part where Sikes walks the crime scene was really good. It was a shame we didn’t get Tuggs in the book though given how important he was to Sikes, it would have been nice to have him as his partner instead of a brand new character that could have just as easily been Tuggs.
February 19, 2018
First encounters, and a fine job of it. A great series.
March 4, 2024
Alien Nation was one of my favourite shows that wad cancelled far too early. The book, as a prequel, is a look into the world of slavery survived by the Tecton people.
February 9, 2016
I was a fan of the series, so I enjoyed this book. It was well written, an easy read, and a page turner.
It's a prequel to the start of the TV series.
It was great learning more about the ship, and how the Tenctonese got to Earth. Gives a little more history about the Tenctonese as well.
I will be checking out book 2 as well.
It's a prequel to the start of the TV series.
It was great learning more about the ship, and how the Tenctonese got to Earth. Gives a little more history about the Tenctonese as well.
I will be checking out book 2 as well.
April 5, 2015
If you were a fan of the show you will love this prequel novel.
September 19, 2014
Good book adaptation of the movie/TV series. Recommended
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews