B次元官网网址淩esident Alien,B次元官网网址� a new Syfy series that caught the attention of veteran TV critic Rob Owen and approving viewers, is evidence that inventive shows exist outside premium cable and streaming services.

B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 been a while since thereB次元官网网址檚 been a cable show, a basic cable show on USA or Syfy or another one of those channels, thatB次元官网网址檚 struck me as something I would go back and give another look,B次元官网网址� Owen, a Pittsburgh Tribune-Review columnist, said of the comic book-inspired series that arrived in January.

Shot in the Greater Vancouver area, and in Ladysmith on Vancouver Island, the hour-long dramedy about an extraterrestrial being stuck in a small town, B次元官网网址淩esident AlienB次元官网网址� gained early traction in the ratings. It pulled in a bigger audience for its second episode than its first, a rarity in the peak-TV era of dizzying decisions about whatB次元官网网址檚 worth your time and money.

The numbers are on a modest scale but with promise enough to gladden the heart of SyfyB次元官网网址檚 parent company, NBCUniversal, which gave the series a robust blastoff that included a NBC network promotional spot starring a UFO.

B次元官网网址淲e launch shows all the time and we want to pretend that every show can be the next big hit,B次元官网网址� said NBCUniversal executive Jeff Bader, who heads its TV programming strategy group. B次元官网网址淏ut itB次元官网网址檚 actually rare that you have a show that people seem to respond to B次元官网网址� and this is one of those shows.B次元官网网址�

The Rotten Tomatoes website tallied robust approval from critics and viewers, both in the 90th percentile. B次元官网网址淩esident AlienB次元官网网址� airs 10 p.m. EST Wednesday.

A key element: Alan TudykB次元官网网址檚 deftly layered comic performance as stranded alien Capt. Ha Re, who takes a crash course in human conduct and speech from B次元官网网址淟aw & OrderB次元官网网址� reruns. His otherworldly appearance is mostly cloaked with the appearance of an Earthling he killed, the memorably named Dr. Harry Vanderspeigle.

Tudyk (B次元官网网址淔irefly,B次元官网网址� B次元官网网址淪uburgatoryB次元官网网址� and numerous TV and movie voice roles) milks such abundant nuance out of HarryB次元官网网址檚 often heavy-lidded, deadpan expression that it begs comparison to the master, classic film star Buster Keaton.

Series creator Chris Sheridan gladly raves about TudykB次元官网网址檚 work, but he was determined that the quirky residents of fictional Patience, Colorado, be as compelling as the alien in their midst. The cast includes Sara Tomko (B次元官网网址淪neaky PeteB次元官网网址�) as Asta Twelvetrees, assistant to Vanderspeigle; Corey Reynolds (B次元官网网址淪elmaB次元官网网址�) as town sheriff Mike Thompson, and Judah Prehn as Max, the boy who sees Harry as the menacing interloper he is. (Spoiler alert: Ha ReB次元官网网址檚 mission is to wipe out humans.)

B次元官网网址淚f the alien never showed in Patience, there was enough going on in town and the characters are three-dimensional enough that people would want to watch it,B次元官网网址� Sheridan said. B次元官网网址淭hen if you take that and drop this alien layer over the top of it you have something real that the alien is observing.B次元官网网址�

The showB次元官网网址檚 escapist comedy and HarryB次元官网网址檚 grudging attitude shift toward Earthlings suit a pandemic-weary country grappling with political and social divisions, Sheridan said.

Superficially, B次元官网网址渋t looks like itB次元官网网址檚 just a show about an alien coming down and trying to destroy people,B次元官网网址� he said. B次元官网网址淏ut when you really follow it, it becomes a show about unity and how humans are stronger when they work together, and how connected we all are.B次元官网网址�

For TV critic Owen, B次元官网网址淩esident AlienB次元官网网址� recalls the B次元官网网址淏lue SkyB次元官网网址� label that USA Network, SyfyB次元官网网址檚 NBCUniversal cable sibling, gave its lighthearted dramas that aired circa 2005 to 2016. Among them: B次元官网网址淧sychB次元官网网址� and B次元官网网址淪uits,B次元官网网址� the latter now best known for co-starring future Duchess of Sussex Meghan Markle.

Such B次元官网网址淏lue-Sky DNAB次元官网网址� largely vanished from basic cable as it gravitated toward darker dramas, Owen said, with B次元官网网址淢r. RobotB次元官网网址� an example of subsequent efforts to compete in a TV world flooded by edgy fare on streaming platforms.

So how can a series on a niche channel like Syfy compete? With the heft of Comcast-subsidiary NBCUniversal behind it. The creative strengths of B次元官网网址淩esident AlienB次元官网网址� aside, its promising start demonstrates that even the right series at the right time benefits from a juggernaut promotional and scheduling effort.

Pre-pandemic, the series enjoyed a fall 2019 preview at New York Comic Con, an early-bird approach to stoking enthusiasm employed by other movie and TV projects. In January, NFL Sports was enlisted to air a series trailer during the Baltimore-Buffalo NFL playoff game. Preceding the clip: a narrator announcement of a B次元官网网址渟pecial flyoverB次元官网网址� B次元官网网址� not by a Stealth jet, but a visual effects-generated UFO swooping over Bills Stadium.

Then came repeated airings of the pilot, including a whopping 10 times on Syfy and a simulcast on USA, and showings on NBCUniversalB次元官网网址檚 E! and Bravo channels to introduce the series to different TV audiences.

In ratings for the first two episodes of B次元官网网址淩esident AlienB次元官网网址� in their initial Syfy airings combined with the next three days B次元官网网址� an extended window that media companies say more accurately reflects todayB次元官网网址檚 on-demand viewing B次元官网网址� the second episode drew 581,000 more viewers than the first (2.765 million vs. 2.184 million). ThatB次元官网网址檚 the biggest week-over-week increase for a cable or broadcast drama debut since B次元官网网址淥utlanderB次元官网网址� in 2014.

With the sci-fi genre a growing part of all TV platforms (B次元官网网址淭he MandalorianB次元官网网址� on Disney+ among the examples), could that be a key part of the appeal?

B次元官网网址淚 think that contributes,B次元官网网址� Bader said. B次元官网网址淏ut thereB次元官网网址檚 something different with this show, because Syfy has launched other genre shows that have not launched like this. So thereB次元官网网址檚 just something in this that people are liking.B次元官网网址�

Lynn Elber, The Associated Press