Just before the Colony Season 3 finales aired, USA Network announced the cancellation. The chances that the conclusion would be satisfactory then appeared very limited. How, in one episode, were the writers suddenly going to give us an ending after spending all these episodes laying the groundwork for what was going to be a much different Season 4?
It was indeed a question of the future with a lot of setting up, but this season 3 has picked up by first taking care of all the bits of intrigue from the previous two seasons that remained. It was thus necessary to address the problem of the famous equipment stolen from the hosts, but also the camp of the resistance fighters in the forest and the case of the captured Alien.
The Bowmans are in the wild with Snyder. When the enemy gets too close, they hit the road again and eventually find the resistance fighters. As many tragedies as revelations follow, a few seeds are planted so that the chapter that closes can lead to the next.
Colony used the colony of Los Angeles to serve as a metaphor for the Nazi occupation, which sadly made it possible to talk about contemporary matters. Nevertheless, the approach has had its day and the series had to renew its focus.
So that’s what the second half of Season 3 is looking to do, with the help of a new colony. The Bowmans’ twists and turns continue in Seattle, but there is no way to repeat what has already happened. The writers set up a different conjuncture and explore new avenues to speak much more explicitly about today’s society – especially with its questioning of the profile of the people who run us, of what people are willing to ignore to maintaining the illusion of security and how one propaganda can hide another.
That said, at this point Colony does not set out to deliver a political discourse in the foreground. It is always a question of fleshing out the subject while focusing on the characters. The Bowman family is suffering like never before and is gradually breaking up. The stakes are as much on this as on the war. The two axes connect in fact at the end to present us with a New World.
The series was indeed in transition. Screenwriters who have always been stingy on revelations when it comes to talking about invaders and their motivations end up emptying their bags. This is a change that does not go unnoticed because it puts what is at stake into perspective.
This is where Alan Snyder emerges as the most complex character in the series. He’s never really honest, but he’s not always bad. He is capable of the worst to survive, but he is also not afraid to make difficult decisions for the good of all. He is on the bad side, without being a stranger to the good. It characterizes what has allowed Colony never to sink into simplicity.
In itself, it’s unfortunate that the series doesn’t come to a close, leaving us with a situation that drastically shakes up the status quo. We are faced with too many unknowns and that is unfortunate. There is little reason to see her again knowing there is no real end. Despite everything, it must be recognized that, although the direction taken in season 3 was not as interesting as in the previous one, Colony always went ahead, not resting on his achievements and constantly trying to say relevant things. She succeeded where others like the “V” remake or Falling Skies who dabbled in similar topics have failed miserably.
The colony is not ending in the best possible way or with its strongest season, but we can’t regret watching it.
