Falling Skies/Characters

Falling Skies

Main

Tom Mason (Noah Wyle)

A former history professor, Tom lost his wife early on in the invasion, and he was left alone to keep his three sons safe. He joined the Massachusetts Milita with his sons, but his second oldest son Ben was captured and put into a harness when the invasion began. He serves as Weaver's second in command of the 2nd Massachusetts, and spends any free time attempting to locate Ben.

Action Survivor
Badass Bookworm: Taught college-level American History, and fought a Skitter one-on-one and won.
The Smart Guy

Hal Mason (Drew Roy)

Tom's oldest son, Hal became a scout for the 2nd Massachusetts alongside girlfriend Karen.

Matt Mason (Maxim Knight)

Tom's youngest son, Matt is too young to fight, and stays at the camp with the rest of the civilians.

Bratty Half-Pint
Morality Pet: Shows signs of becoming one to Pope.

Ben Mason (Connor Jessup)

Tom's second oldest son, Ben was captured by the aliens and put into a harness while fighting for the 2nd Massachusetts.

Anne Glass (Moon Bloodgood)

A civilian doctor, Anne was a pediatrician before the invasion, and now does her best to treat the civilians and soldiers of the 2nd Massachusetts.

Daniel Weaver (Will Patton)

A veteran of Operation Desert Storm, Weaver is placed in charge of the 2nd Massachusetts. He has little regard for the needs of the civilians with the unit, viewing them as a hindrance to fighting the aliens.

A Father to His Men: A harsh, tough father, but still…
Badass
The Captain
Jerk with a Heart of Gold: While a good person and primarily concerned with the good of the group as a whole, he tends to put the welfare and comfort of his fighters first.
- His Hidden Heart of Gold is best shown with his interactions with Jimmy, the 13 year old fighter, who he treats as a soldier and a child.
Hidden Depths
Sanity Slippage

Karen Nadler (Jessy Schram)

A scout with the 2nd Massachusetts, Karen is dating Hal.

Action Girl
Army Scout
Biker Babe
Clingy Jealous Girl: Automatically suspected Lourdes of coming on to Hal when the other girl was being friendly.

Margaret (Sarah Carter)

Action Girl
Broken Bird: Due to her rape by Pope's brother, not to mention the general crapsackiness of the world's current situation. She also had cancer when she was 16.
Deadpan Snarker: Moreso than Hal.
The Stoic

Lourdes (Seychelle Gabriel)

A religious member of the 2nd Mass.

Dai (Peter Shinkoda)

A soldier with the 2nd Massachusetts, Dai is good friends with Tom.

Badass
The Lancer: to Tom, when Hal isn’t around.
- Number Two: Though he and Hal both act as the Lancer, Dai seems closer to this role for Tom.
Third Person Person: In "Grace", when he's "high as a freakin' kite".

Anthony (Mpho Koaho)

A former Boston cop and a member of Tom’s team.

Badass

John Pope (Colin Cunningham)

The leader of a gang of racists and rapists, John captured Tom and his squad in an effort to get the 2nd Massachusetts .50 caliber machine gun and food stores, but failed and was captured by them.

Affably Evil
Badass: He killed a skitter one on one.
Blood Knight: Don't make him choose between killing Skitters and anything else. You might regret it.
Ensemble Darkhorse: Compare the tropes under his name to the tropes for the other characters.
Even Evil Has Standards: He is disgusted by the fact that some humans actully make deals with the Skitters.
Hidden Depths: He's a surprisingly good chef, and seems very well-read.
Jerkass
The Nicknamer: He almost never uses anyone's real name, preferring to give nicknames such as:
- Tom Mason: "Papa Smurf".
- Karen Nadler: "Sexy Freedom Fighter Girl".
- Hal Mason: "Strapping Young Man".
- Anthony: "Black Gangbanger".
- Dai: "Oriental of Some Sort".
- Weaver: "El Capitan", and "Supreme Allied Commander of the 2nd Massechussetts".
- Margaret: "Little Miss Midwife With A Heart Of Gold".
- Matt Manson: "Little Prince Of The 2nd Mass".
- Ben and Hal: "Little Princelets"
Pet the Dog: Becoming the chef for the resistance.
Supreme Chef
Token Evil Teammate

Recurring

Jimmy Boland (Dylan Authors)

A 13-year-old soldier who fights with the 2nd Mass.

Colonel Porter (Dale Dye)

The overall leader of the Massachusetts Militia.

Cool Old Guy
Reasonable Authority Figure
Typecasting: Have you ever seen Dye play a non-military character? Justified since he actually was a Marine captain in Vietnam.

Uncle Scott (Bruce Gray)

Anne’s uncle and a biology teacher.

Dr Michael Harris (Steven Weber)

A medical surgeon and old friend of Tom.

Mike Thompson

A soldier for the 2nd Mass.

Rick Thompson

Mike's formerly harnassed son.

Creepy Child
Heel Realization: Looks like it.

Terry Clayton (Henry Czerny)

Leader of the surviving 7th Mass.