‘Falling Skies’ series finale reaction: One twist almost changed ending’s entire tone…

We’ve had a little bit of time to assess the “Falling Skies” series finale in our head since it first aired Sunday night on TNT, and at the moment we are feeling almost more torn on it than we even were last night. The show did do a variety of different things right, but there were some significant problems at the same time. The biggest one? There just wasn’t enough money in the budget or time to deliver something as conclusive as we wanted.

Then again, the ending that we received is better, at least to us, than one left on the cutting room floor. Speaking to TVLine via email, executive producer David Eick explained that there was one final twist that was not included in the show that allowed the show to retain a little bit of a happier end:

“In the original outline, after Tom crushed the vial to release the Dorniya critter to kill the Queen, we see the critter scurry away. Later, after Tom’s big speech, the camera soars to the heavens — “We are not alone” — but then it zooms back down, all the way back to the Lincoln Memorial, now deserted, as that little Dorniya critter patters off into the night. However, we ultimately decided to end on a hopeful versus ominous note…”

While we really did not love the finale’s treatment of Anne or Pope, can you imagine how the internet would have reacted to the idea that the 2nd Mass really could not celebrate their victory in the way that we would have wanted? We imagine revolts. After so much pain and suffering for these characters, we’re happy for a little more of a peaceful end to the story.