Alien: Earth episode 6 brutally kills key character – with horrifying implications

The latest episode of the prequel series, written by Noah Hawley, caught up with events at the Neverland facility after the flashback in episode 5.

Kirsh (Timothy Olyphant) is called away from Neverland but, in his absence, he enlists Tootles (Kit Young) to look after the alien specimens.

However, of course, Tootles is only a child. So when he steps into the cage, he struggles to keep it open and the door locks behind him. Unable to escape, he's brutally killed by the nest of alien flies, with his eyes being plucked out of his skull in gruesome scenes.

In a chilling moment as Tootles dies, we hear a line read from JM Barrie's Peter Pan: "The boys on the island vary, of course, in numbers, according as they get killed and so on; and when they seem to be growing up, which is against the rules, Peter thins them out."

After Tootles's horrifying death, the characters are also faced with a chilling truth – that death spares no one, and no one is safe on the island. After all, the Lost Boys were under the impression that they were pretty much invincible and now they've been faced with stark proof that they're not.

Speaking to Variety, actor Young opened up about that realisation, saying: "It’s utter panic, because everything that Prodigy is building the hybrids on is a lie.

"All of these corporations are trying to achieve immortality through very different methods, and with Prodigy, it’s with these bodies. The stakes go way up for all the other Lost Boys, especially with Wendy [Sydney Chandler], knowing that really no one is safe."

It's a truth that Hermit independently discovers when he asks Arthur for the truth shortly after his firing: is his sister safe? While Arthur lies in front of the cameras, he surreptitiously shows Hermit a message on his screen, telling him to get Wendy/Marcy out of there and giving him the code to the boat.

As for whether they'll make it out alive? We've got two more episodes to find out.

New episodes of Alien: Earth are available to stream on Disney+ every Wednesday. You can sign up to Disney+ for £4.99 a month or £89.90 a year now.

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