ALIEN: EARTH Episode 3 Review – “Metamorphosis” Delivers a Brutal, Brilliant Xenomorph Showdown

I’ve been loving Noah Hawley’s Alien: Earth and it has been experimenting with its identity since its premiere, shifting tones and influences almost like it’s mutating along with the alien creatures at its center.

The first two episodes carried the haunted, atmospheric DNA of Ridley Scott’s 1979 classic, but the third episode, “Metamorphosis” feels like the series taking a massive leap forward. The third chapter doesn’t just lean into the franchise’s legacy; it sharpens it into something fresh, terrifying, and very human.

What makes “Metamorphosis” stand out is its structure. The episode unfolds as a series of escalating hunts where different Xenomorph forms tear through the dispatch crew, each kill highlighting why this monster remains the ultimate predator.

The set pieces are as nerve-shredding as anything in the films, and they lock the characters into what feels like a high-tech haunted house. Watching Wendy and Hermit navigate that nightmare while undergoing their own transformations adds a human layer to the carnage, grounding the horror in their evolving dynamic.

The title isn’t just about the Xenomorph lifecycle, it’s about everyone caught in its shadow. Alien: Earth uses this idea of transformation to explore identity, loyalty, and survival in fascinating ways.

What separates man from machine when both can be programmed to obey? And if loyalty strips away choice, is humanity still intact? These questions ripple through Wendy, Hermit, Kirsh, and even Morrow, making the episode feel just as much about inner battles as external ones.

There’s also something unsettling and brilliant in how the show frames memory. Each episode opening with fragmented clips from the previous installment feels like a system rebooting, reinforcing how fragile consciousness is, whether human or synthetic.

The Xenomorph, meanwhile, thrives on organic material to evolve, which makes flesh itself a liability. It’s a chilling juxtaposition: the future may belong to hybrids and synthetics, while humans are reduced to fuel for monsters.

That said, “Metamorphosis” isn’t all philosophy, it’s loaded with action and raw terror. The Wendy/Hermit face-off with a Xenomorph is the show’s biggest moment yet, a sequence that channels iconic franchise energy without feeling recycled.

Wendy even gets her own “Get away from her, you bitch” beat, but with the refreshing twist of her openly admitting she has no idea what she’s doing. It’s messy, chaotic heroism, and it makes her triumph feel earned. Her bond with Hermit is now one of the series’ strongest anchors.

Character work also shines here. Timothy Olyphant brings nuance to Kirsh, his robotic detachment cracking just enough to reveal depth, especially during his tense standoff with Babou Ceesay’s Morrow. Olyphant’s mechanical yet pained delivery captures a character torn between function and feeling.

Elsewhere, Boy Kavalier gets more definition, Curly emerges as a rival to Wendy, and Morrow himself becomes a chillingly human villain. His claim that the Xenomorph is “his life’s greatest work” makes him feel less like Bishop and more like an Engineer disciple—driven by creation, not morality.

The episode also teases a subtler, more insidious infection beyond the Xenomorph’s physical threat. Trusted characters are compromised, their loyalties hacked, creating a kind of psychic hive mind that’s even scarier than chestbursters.

It’s not just about who gets killed anymore, it’s about who can still be trusted. That creeping paranoia seeps into the episode’s final stretch and hints at an even darker path for the season ahead.

By the time the episode ends, it’s clear that “Metamorphosis” is Alien: Earth at its most confident. It juggles horror, action, and big existential questions without dropping the ball, while still leaving the future terrifyingly uncertain.

Wendy and Hermit may have conquered one monster, but the threat of what’s coming, both human and alien, is only growing. If the first two episodes felt like the show finding its footing, “Metamorphosis” is the moment it spreads its wings.