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This 2016 Alien Invasion Thriller Is One of the Best Sci-Fi Shows You Might've Missed

Josh Holloway and Sarah Wayne Callies led this smart and scary sci-fi series.

By Tara Bennett

A lot of great sci-fi series experience the pain of earning excellent reviews during their run but ultimately get lost in the abundance of alternate programming, leading to their early demise. A recent example is USA Network's Colony, an original sci-fi drama from Carlton Cuse (Lost) and Ryan Condal (House of the Dragon). 

With all three seasons now streaming on Peacock, Colony remains as timely as it was when it first premiered in January 2016. The series posited the worst-case scenario of an alien invasion of Earth, where they take over the globe and subjugate humanity, using Collaborator humans to help them rule under a military regime known as the Transitional Authority.

The aliens, who have come to be known as "Hosts," keep their overall goals secretive. But the humans who survived their initial violent invasion have combined resources to create an informal network of Resistance hubs in order to find lost loved ones, protect what's left of humanity, and most importantly, to fight back. 

Both history buffs, Cuse and Condal created the series based on what actually happened in France when the Nazi regime occupied Paris during WWII. While they both love sci-fi storytelling, they ultimately wanted to explore what humans do when their whole way of life is changed and threatened forever. Some quickly sided with the enemy to gain protection and power, while others went underground to fight back using insurgent, guerrilla warfare to make the occupier's lives as miserable as possible.

While Colony never got the eyes it deserved during its three-season run, streaming has given the series a new life, and we've got plenty of reasons to recommend it as one of the best original sci-fi dramas of the last decade. 

Genre veterans Josh Holloway and Sarah Wayne Callies lead Colony cast

If you loved Sawyer on Lost or Lori Grimes on The Walking Dead, then Colony is right up your alley. Josh Holloway and Sarah Wayne Callies are the co-leads of Colony, playing married parents, Will and Katie Bowman. In the wake of the alien occupation of Los Angeles a year prior, the Bowman's and their two kids — teen Bram (Alex Neustaedter) and young Gracie (Isabella Crovetti) — are still trying to figure out how to exist in this new world order.

Worse, the Bowman's still can't find their missing third child, Charlie (Jacob Buster), who was on a field trip when the invasion occurred and got stuck behind the huge wall the aliens erected in Santa Monica. Increasingly desperate, each member of the family pursues what they think is the best course of action to eventually find and free Charlie, while staying off the radar of the human Collaborators working with the aliens. 

Even if you don't love overtly sci-fi shows, Colony also works like a grounded drama as it explores the realities that come from foreign occupations. Inspired from events that happened in real occupations throughout history, it tackles hot button issues like the humans who sell each other out to gain power, the controversies around resistances that form and keep hope alive, and even the ground-level heroes who rise from the ashes. 

One of the strengths of Colony was that showrunners Cuse and Condal cast actors from well-received dramas and theater to populate this dystopian future. In the core ensemble, Peter Jacobson (The Goldfinch) played the sell-out Proxy Snyder; Tory Kittles (The Equalizer) played heroic Resistance fighter, Eric Broussard; Adrian Pasdar (Heroes) played another human who turned Collaborator, Nolan Burgess; and the late, great Carl Weathers played Will's former cop partner, Beau. 

In special guest or recurring roles, Colony also featured Kathy Baker, Bethany Joy Lenz, Graham McTavish, Laura Innes, and even Wayne Brady.

SYFY WIRE's Official Colony podcast covers every episode with the cast and crew

Last but not least, SYFY WIRE produced Colony's official podcast for all three seasons of the series. Every episode featured some mix of the co-creator/showrunners Cuse and Condal, and co-showrunner, Wes Tooke, guiding fans through the episode's themes, big character moments, and set pieces. The podcast also welcomed special guests from the cast and crew to talk about making the episodes, with plenty of juicy behind-the-scenes stories. 

Colony: The Official Podcast is available on all podcast platforms to stream or download. Watch an episode of Colony on Peacock and then listen to the podcast to get the deeper story on the themes and metaphors woven into the narrative.

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