[s1e1] Last Day Access

Rather than focusing on immediate explosions, the episode uses a haunting score by Max Richter to build a sense of "beautiful dread".

The tone is set immediately in S1E1 (“Last Day”), less by the cold open in Yemen and more by the credits sequence that follows it. TV Obsessive [S1E1] Last Day

A weary Sheriff on the verge of retirement who investigates a massive, inexplicable crater in a cornfield. Rather than focusing on immediate explosions, the episode

The "invasion" is initially secondary to the personal crises—infidelity, retirement, and forbidden love—of the people experiencing it. Critical Reception Rather than focusing on immediate explosions

The show spends significant time on characters who may not survive the hour, making the audience unsure of who the true protagonists are.