The third episode of Noah Hawley's Alien: Earth has left fans of the franchise with quite a lot to discuss, including the introduction of a Xenomorph "tadpole" that can be artificially inseminated (for lack of a better term) into a host organ, Wendy's mysterious (psychic?) connection to the aliens, some liberties with the lore, and an intense Xeno/Hybrid battle - with the latter emerging victorious.
Spoilers follow.
"Metamorphosis" picks up immediately after last week's cliffhanger, as Wendy tracks down her brother Joe, aka Hermit, to find that he's been cocooned by the Xenomorph in anticipation of the eggs hatching and the Facehuggers searching for a host.
As they attempt to escape. Hermit is impaled by the creature's tail, but Wendy manages to incapacitate the advancing Xeno before it can land a killing blow.
Hybrids seem to be just as physically strong (perhaps stronger) than a Xenomorph, and Wendy is ultimately able to kill her enemy by slicing its head clean off. She takes damage in the process, however, and when she finally revives towards the end of the episode, she is able to hear (feel?) Kirsh dissecting a Facehugger and extracting a tiny tadpole-like creature, which is then introduced to Hermit's surgically-removed lung.
It seems we are going to witness a first for this franchise: A non-lethal Chest-Burster "birth."
Check out the Wendy/Xeno fight scene below.
“When the mysterious deep space research vessel USCSS Maginot crash-lands on Earth, “Wendy” (Sydney Chandler) and a ragtag group of tactical soldiers make a fateful discovery that puts them face-to-face with the planet’s greatest threat.”
“In the year 2120, the Earth is governed by five corporations: Prodigy, Weyland-Yutani, Lynch, Dynamic and Threshold. In this Corporate Era, cyborgs (humans with both biological and artificial parts) and synthetics (humanoid robots with artificial intelligence) exist alongside humans. But the game is changed when the wunderkind Founder and CEO of Prodigy Corporation unlocks a new technological advancement: hybrids (humanoid robots infused with human consciousness). The first hybrid prototype named “Wendy” marks a new dawn in the race for immortality. After Weyland-Yutani’s spaceship collides into Prodigy City, “Wendy” and the other hybrids encounter mysterious life forms more terrifying than anyone could have ever imagined.”
Alien: Earth stars Sydney Chandler, Alex Lawther, Timothy Olyphant, Essie Davis, Samuel Blenkin, Babou Ceesay, David Rysdahl, Adrian Edmondson, Adarsh Gourav, Jonathan Ajayi, Erana James, Lily Newmark, Diem Camille, and Moe Bar-El.
The show's supporting cast includes Richa Moorjani, Karen Aldridge, Andy Yu, Enzo Cilenti, Max Rinehart, Amir Boutrous, Victoria Masoma, Tom Moya, Michael Smiley, Jamie Bisping and Tanapol Chuksrida.