Television series
Resident Alien
An alien assassin crash-lands in small-town Colorado, steals a dead doctor's identity, and gets stuck actually doing the job while plotting humanity's extinction. It's a murder-mystery-of-the-week wrapped around a genuinely tender character study, with Alan Tudyk doing career-best physical comedy as a creature learning empathy against his will. Funny, weirder than it looks, and sneakily moving once it settles in.
If you liked this
Northern Exposure1990
The blueprint for the whole 'displaced professional in a town full of eccentrics' genre, done with warmth, whimsy and genuine philosophical curiosity about what makes a community work.
But Gentle 90s pacing throughout; no crime plot engine, so it can feel meandering if you want momentum.

3rd Rock from the Sun1996
Aliens studying humans by pretending to be one, mining every misunderstanding for comedy — the direct sitcom ancestor of Harry's fish-out-of-water confusion, played broader and sillier.
But Laugh-track multicam sitcom energy, pure silliness with none of the mystery-plot or emotional undertow.

Eureka2006
A small town hiding enormous secrets, a sheriff out of his depth, and sci-fi weirdness disguised as case-of-the-week charm — very close cousin in structure and tone.
But Softer stakes and a shinier, more family-friendly finish than Resident Alien's darker edges.

The wildcard
Something you would not have found on your own.
The Day the Earth Stood Still1951
This is where 'alien judges whether to destroy or save humanity' started — Resident Alien takes the same moral premise and finds the comedy inside it.
The original version of Harry's exact question — an alien visits, studies humanity up close, and has to decide if the species is worth sparing — filmed with stark, serious Cold War dread.
But Slow, talky and stagey by modern standards; black-and-white 1950s pacing with none of the show's jokes.

More like this (8)
The Good Place2016
An outsider forced to actually understand human ethics from scratch, using comedy to ask sincerely whether people deserve saving — the same philosophical spine, dressed as a sitcom.
But Heavier on moral-philosophy lecture-as-joke; less grounded, more high-concept afterlife architecture.

Psych2006
A fraud solving small-town murders while hiding what he really is, powered by a genuinely funny odd-couple partnership — great comfort viewing if you like the case-of-the-week rhythm.
But No sci-fi or existential stakes at all; it's pure breezy procedural comedy.

Schitt's Creek2015
Strangers forced into a small town they don't understand, slowly won over by people they initially despised — the emotional arc rhymes even without a drop of sci-fi.
But No mystery plot, no genre elements — purely character comedy, much softer and sweeter throughout.

Lucifer2016
A powerful outsider posing as an ordinary human, solving crimes while slowly getting attached to the people he was supposed to feel nothing for.
But Glossier procedural format with a will-they-won't-they romance foregrounded much more than mystery or philosophy.

Wilfred2011no page yet
A dark, surreal comedy about a strange, possibly dangerous outsider who nudges a broken human toward connection — similarly unafraid to get uncomfortable under the jokes.
But Much more surreal and psychologically ambiguous; less plot, more mood and unease.
Ted Lasso2020
Another fish out of water winning over a skeptical community despite himself, with the same trick of hiding real emotional weight underneath constant comic charm.
But No genre hook or mystery — it's warm-hearted sports comedy through and through, sincerity dialed way up.

BoJack Horseman2014
Same trick as Harry's arc — a character sent to do damage, wrestling in comic form with whether he deserves redemption — but animated, and pushed far darker.
An animated dark comedy about someone who has done real harm and can't decide whether he's capable of being better, using cartoon absurdity to sneak up on genuine grief and self-loathing.
But Much bleaker and more emotionally punishing; the comedy curdles into something closer to despair.

Under the Skin2014
Strip Resident Alien of every laugh and you get this — the same creature-wearing-a-human-suit premise played at maximum seriousness and dread.
An alien wears human skin to move undetected among people, watching, hunting, slowly destabilized by what she observes — hypnotic, unsettling, almost wordless.
But Glacially slow arthouse film with barely any dialogue or plot; deliberately alienating, zero jokes.

People
Cast
Writing
- Chris SheridanCreator
- Elias BenavidezExecutive Story Editor
- Emily EslamiExecutive Story Editor
- Jeffrey NievesExecutive Story Editor
- Sarah BeckettExecutive Story Editor
- Tommy PicoExecutive Story Editor
- Alex LazarowichStaff Writer
- Biniam BizunehStory Editor
- Emily EslamiStory Editor
- Jeffrey NievesStory Editor
- Kelechi UramaStory Editor
- Tommy PicoStory Editor
Production
- Brittany Lum-ChoAssociate Producer
- Linda JanotaAssociate Producer
- Cherry ChevapravatdumrongCo-Executive Producer
- Christian TaylorCo-Executive Producer
- Nastaran DibaiCo-Executive Producer
- Robert PetroviczCo-Executive Producer
- Brittany Lum-ChoCo-Producer
- Elias BenavidezCo-Producer
- Jamie NeeseCo-Producer
- Jason NeeseCo-Producer
- Sarah BeckettCo-Producer
- Todd LeykampCo-Producer
- Cherry ChevapravatdumrongConsulting Producer
- Donald ToddConsulting Producer
- Chris SheridanExecutive Producer
- Christian TaylorExecutive Producer
- Darryl FrankExecutive Producer
- David DobkinExecutive Producer
- Justin FalveyExecutive Producer
- Keith GoldbergExecutive Producer
- Mike RichardsonExecutive Producer
- Nastaran DibaiExecutive Producer
- Robert Duncan McNeillExecutive Producer
- Alan TudykProducer
- Brian Leslie ParkerProducer
- Elias BenavidezProducer
- Njeri BrownProducer
- Todd LeykampProducer
- Todd PittsonProducer