STAR-CROSSED Recap: Crash Landing

Pilots are hard. It’s difficult to get all of your characters out there and the tone of your show covered in 60 minutes. Star-Crossed didn’t do too badly.

The facts first, the aliens landed in September of 2014. They were getting away from a dying planet when they crash landed on Earth near Baton Rouge. Things don’t go well and we take it as an invasion.

In the midst of all of this we are introduced to Emery. She is six and hears something in the backyard shed. She goes to check it out and finds Roman hiding. Because she’s a child with no prejudice she brings him a blanket and keeps him hidden. In the morning she brings him something to eat. They hang out, do some cat’s cradle but unfortunately the military comes for him. He is shot and Emery is pulled away.

Next thing you know it is ten years later and Emery is all grown up. She is heading back to school for the first time in four years. She has been in the hospital with an immune deficiency disease. Wouldn’t you know this also coincides with a test program where seven of the Atrian (alien) teens will be integrated into the high school. The Atrian people have been living in the Sector – think concentration camp because humans just cannot learn from our mistakes/history. It’s all fear what you don’t understand.

The integration goes how you might suspect, not well. No one seems to want the kids there and the kids don’t want to be there. As Roman quips, “I wish we were the kind of aliens that carried ray guns.” Emery is having a slightly better day. She catches the eye of Grayson who is an attractive popular kid.

Next day at school Roman talks to Emery. He realizes who she is but she doesn’t know he is the boy from the shed. The whole lunchroom is watching them talk and as Roman walks away School Bully (I feel I should get to know his name but not yet) feels the need to get into Roman’s face. Name calling ensues but Roman handles it with veiled sarcasm and humor.

Later that day Emery tells her friend Julia, who is in the hospital, about the day’s events. It turns out Julia is pretty sick, chemo isn’t working and she is in need of a bone marrow transplant which doesn’t seem likely. Emery pulls Julia out of the hospital and they go to the Sector where they hear there is a plant being grown there that has almost magical medicinal powers.

For some reason they feel they can just walk down the middle of the street like it’s nothing. It isn’t long before someone gets in their way and offers to help them, although the offer doesn’t look friendly. This prompts a fight and an alarm/guards/etc…thankfully Roman shows up and herds the girls to a rooftop. They tell Roman about this magical plant they heard about and he tells them it is really only their version of saffron, they use it for cooking, but humans are so gullible they will believe anything. He apologizes when he realizes Julia is sick. Julia takes it really well though, she is just glad she got to see the Sector. She is obsessed with all things Atrian.

Roman takes his sweatshirt off for Julia who is shivering and Emery gets a look at his stomach where he has a scar. A scar right where that little kid from the shed was shot. She figures out who he is. She thought he was dead all these years. He thanks her for everything she did back then before he helps sneak them out of the gates.

The next day one of the school bullies is all over Roman’s sister and when Roman tries to break it up they get into a fight. Guards are quick to intervene. The rest of the Atrian teens are livid. They are going to crash the farmhouse party that night and send the humans a message. Roman finds out what the other kids are going to do and sneaks out as well to stop them.

Roman is much more diplomatic than the other kids. I figure it is because his Dad is the leader of the Atrians and has wanted peace between their people since the crash.

At the farmhouse Grayson and Emery are having a chat when the Atrian guys shows up. The Atrian kid knocks School Bully out and says this is what happens if they keep messing with them. Roman shows up and is about to put a stop to it when the cops arrive. Kids scatter, Emery falls, Roman goes back for her and they take off together into the surrounding woods. The human kids are not amused by this but they take off in the other direction.

In a convenient clearing Roman takes Emery’s hand and almost kisses her when a call from her Mom interrupts them. The call is about Julia so she points Roman towards the Sector and takes off.

At the hospital Julia is on a breathing machine. Emery sits at her side and cries while Roman watches hidden in the dark hall. When Emery goes out to cry in the waiting room area Roman sneaks in and sits on Julia’s bed. He takes the plant he swore was only saffron and stabs it into his arm. His veins glow, he takes a syringe of the “blood” and puts it into Julia’s IV.

Meanwhile Roman’s Dad is at the Sector looking for him and in an accidental confrontation Emery’s Dad, who happens to be Commander of the SEU (Sector Enforcement Unit) shoots and kills Roman’s Dad.

When Emery gets back into Julie’s hospital room she sees the “saffron” plant on the floor and Julia sitting up and feeling perfectly fine.

What did you think of Star-Crossed? I’m curious to see where they are going to go with this. Is it going to be a show about social injustice, with some Romeo and Juliet forbidden love thrown in or…what?

Star-Crossed airs Monday 8/9c on The CW