Resident Alien: Bye Bye Birdie

Harry: Why are you here?
General McCallister: I came to see how you're doing. Were you getting dressed? Undressed? Or is this just how it is now?

Episode description: “Harry hits rock bottom, Kate begins seeing the truth, and Mike helps Liv face her greatest fear.”

Heather, as the Greys have threatened to kill both Harry and her family, agrees to fulfill their demands: get some of Harry’s DNA to them and to break up with Harry and to leave the planet without him. Actually, the latter demand makes little sense, because the Greys would stand a better chance of succeeding in their goals if Harry were to leave Earth. Maybe they don’t think Heather would be able to keep quiet about what she was doing. But I think it’s because the writers want to focus on the core relationship of the series: Harry and Asta. They are not romantic together, but they do love each other.

At any rate, the Greys’ demands lead to many comic moments. First, how does Heather get Harry’s DNA? She cleans his gills, which both makes sense but is also a visual treat. She has to lie, too, and Edi Paterson does an amazing job bobbing her head, the "tell" she is not telling the truth.

Then, the breakup itself takes hilarious directions. I loved Arlo the pigeon. When Heather finally goes, Asta gets a desperate message from Harry. Asta and D’arcy try to help Harry, but as he knows they are actually pleased by the event, their sympathy is unconvincing. Asta contacts General McCallister, who arrives with an emu (a rental named Patricia) as Harry clearly has a type. Harry is attracted to the bird, which seems weird, but he’s had a different relationship with other animals, such as the dog who told him how to behave on Earth when he first landed. In a way, Harry is extremely tolerant.

Heather’s delivery of the Harry’s gill DNA to Joseph the Grey is also funny. Joseph may be a good-looking guy (a potential toothpaste model) but his communications with others is misunderstood more than other conversations. Possibly it goes awry as Heather and Joseph are speaking human English, which is certainly not Heather’s mother tongue and may not even be Joseph’s. Anyway, the conversation goes on long enough for their interaction to get caught on camera as Judy happens to be passing by. Asta and D’arcy show this to Harry, who realizes that Heather did not just break up with him – she betrayed him.

Despite their shared mission to save the planet, Asta and D’arcy are at odds with each other. D’arcy’s right in that Asta doesn’t know how to be a responsible parent, and it’s good that Asta is now faced with the reality of an eighteen year old as opposed to just romanticizing the situation. D’arcy still resents how long it took for Asta and Harry to tell her their big secret, and Asta finally says why: D’arcy is a loose cannon.

D’arcy has a point that she can be responsible and she is who you should turn to in an emergency, like when you just killed someone dangerous in self-defense or when the women need to get equal pay or when you are stuck in a crevasse. But she has done other things, such as releasing the parking brake on Jimmy’s truck and letting it into traffic, endangering everyone. She drinks and drugs a lot. She even talked about defecating once in someone’s car (and she chose to poop in the wrong car).

But she was right to tell Ben he is being abducted by aliens, and that decision was made after she gave it some thought. And she is dedicated, watching his house at night.

On to other characters! Mike and Dan are so good together. I like the idea of them ice fishing together – but what an easy scene to film! Take a shot of an ice shack but do the rest inside a studio. When Dan explains Mike’s problem with respect to relationships to him, Mike resolves to do something about it. I guess you’d expect a sheriff to be forthright about confronting difficult situations, because that is what sheriffs are expected to do.

Speaking of Sheriff Mike, I like how supportive he is of Liv in order for her to confront issues. Maybe he makes things too much about himself, but he does tell her she is the strongest person he knows (I don't quite see that) and he goes with her to help her stand up to her nasty Nana (love the term "shy-knuckle"). Liv gets a lot off her chest and it turns out Grandma Patty can dish it out but she can’t take it. She has a heart attack. Yeah, we’re not sorry.

And Kate! Kate makes a huge step forward by going to the experience group and finally confessing her fears and her apprehensions.

Title musings. “Bye Bye Birdie” is the title of the episode, and it is just right, as the Blue Avian breaks up with Harry and leaves. However, another possible interpretation is that by Kate's coming clean about the owl sightings in the experiencer group, she is taking the first step to stopping them. The title works.

Bits and pieces

We get glimpses of the baby alien, who has returned to Earth and is very pissed off at Harry.

Love how Harry is in his underwear, with a blue boa around his neck. Boas – the accessory, not the snake, although the accessory was named for the snake – are supposed to be made of feathers. That one looked artificial, though.

We’ve heard more than once that Asta is sloppy and that D’arcy is tidier. Somehow this does not seem to be in line with their characters. Oh, well, no one would call me tidy. I wonder if I’m more like Asta or D’arcy?

Joseph asks why the Greys are losing to “you guys” – which implies, at least, the Blue Avians are doing better than the Greys. If so, why didn’t Heather contact some Blue Avians and get help? But that would take the plot in an inconvenient direction.

Quotes

Heather: Stop right there and do not read it, because I'm gonna take this out, and if I don't come right back, that's just because I ran out to get cigarettes.
Harry: But you do not even smoke. I love that you try new things.

D’arcy: Aliens? That's crazy. No, I just – checking up on you. If that keeps aliens away, then great.
Ben: I was not abducted by aliens, so you need to go home before Kate comes out and starts asking questions.
D’arcy: Fine. Hey, would you toss my water bottle for me?
Ben: Did you piss in it?
D'arcy: You know I did.

Asta: Let's say you witness an abduction. How exactly are you gonna stop it?
D’arcy: Baseball bat. I've seen pictures of Greys on the internet. Their long necks, their heads are just right in my strike zone.

Harry: It's over. Now my life is over.
Asta: Oh, I'm so sorry, Harry.
Harry: Do not lie. You're happy. The red-haired one is trying not to smile.
D’arcy: It seems like you know my name by now.

Mike: Her kid's right. What kind of man has somebody special then just... just pushes her away?
Dan: The kind of man that lost his mom when he was young and raised by his father. You got attached to these notions of masculinity. So take it easy on yourself. It's not your fault. Now can we fish?
Mike: You're the one who wanted to talk.

General McCallister: The guy said her name is Patricia. I thought maybe she could help you get over your girlfriend. No judgment. Everyone has their thing.
Harry: I am offended that you think you can replace the love of my life with just some random bird. No offense. This has nothing to do with you. You're very attractive.

Joseph: Niece and knees, very different.
Heather: How so?
Joseph: Niece is a little girl or a city in France. I don't break knees.
Judy: I'm here on the scene, watching Asta's boyfriend and Harry's girlfriend having a rendezvous.
Heather: Both of them sound like my sister's girl child.
Joseph: You have a niece called knees?
Heather: Yeah. She's my niece.
Joseph: How are we losing to you people?

Mike: OK, look, my point is, we're shaped by the people who raise us. And the people around you weren't very supportive. In fact, they actively held you down. Now, you are the strongest person I know, except when you're around your Grandma Patty. You need to stand up to her.

Liv: I can't knock. I'm too nervous. This always happens when I come here.
Mike: It's OK. You just got yourself a little case of "shy-knuckle." I'll be with you the whole way. Go ahead, make a fist.

Kate: I used to like where I live. But now – I mean, I love our – our home, but – but I don't feel safe there. I mean, I even tried to convince my husband to sell our house. But I – I think it's bigger than that. Like, I think I'm not safe anywhere. And I just feel like I'm going crazy.

Overall rating

I laughed and laughed. Four out of four blue boas.

Victoria Grossack loves math, birds, Greek mythology, Jane Austen and great storytelling in many forms.