In Flight; Alien: Earth

“I don’t know if this counts as a successful thriller or not. Clearly, it works to the extent that the viewer is invested enough to be discomfited along with the characters. Equally clearly, the choking airlessness of it all is … not entertaining, especially with a script that dispenses necessary information in as unadorned a manner as possible.”
Lucy Mangan, The Guardian

“With five episodes to come, In Flight’s trajectory feels like it could take any number of directions. Taxi and take-off have been smooth – all signs point to a highly entertaining landing.”
Emily Watkins, The i

“It was a slight surprise to find In Flight is not really an airborne thriller — it’s set mostly down on the ground. Was that a disappointment? Not really; thanks to Snakes on a Plane, those kinds of dramas are nearly impossible to take seriously. In Flight is more an itchily tense set of impossible dilemmas, of dark conversations muttered in shadowy rooms.”
James Jackson, The Times

“Stuart Martin’s sinister presence gives In Flight an edge of menace, leaving us genuinely fearful for Jo’s safety. But she doesn’t make it easy for us to warm to her.”
Christopher Stevens, Daily Mail

“Channel 4 doesn’t have a great track record when it comes to drama, but this one is a cut above their usual fare and could sit just as happily on ITV primetime or Netflix. Although Netflix would definitely have thrown some more money at it – the production values are a bit cheap and dreary. For a series set in various international locations, you never get the sense that it’s being filmed anywhere other than a cold European country.”
Anita Singh, The Telegraph

“Whether it’s a padded corridor filmed at a 10-degree angle, a landscape of jagged concrete and raining sparks, a wriggling creepy-crawly from space or just the look in someone’s jaded eye, the series always has a way of making us feel like helpless prey being circled. Something gloriously horrific is just around the corner.”
Jack Seale, The Guardian

“Scary, action-packed and often grotesque, it is infused with the bleak spirit of the Ridley Scott blockbuster while refusing to be overawed by it… Noah Hawley has, in other words, done a remarkable job of retaining the look and atmosphere of a sci-fi classic while taking the story in a different direction – a mash-up that makes Alien: Earth feel like the best sort of homecoming.”
Ed Power, The Telegraph

“Alien: Earth is a triumph… Hawley has introduced elements that make this very much his own show. There is horror and action aplenty, but Alien: Earth also raises questions about AI and corporate responsibility that feel very relevant today.”
Neil Armstrong, The i

“Rather than allowing these monsters to run too amok, the showrunner Noah Hawley knows to keep the action tight in more hermetically enclosed locations where, as ever, the production design is part of the perverse pleasure.”
James Jackson, The Times