Alien Planet

***Alien Planet*** is a docufiction television special based on the book *Expedition* by Wayne Barlowe, who also acts as one of the film's executive producers. It explores the book's imagined extraterrestrial life of the fictional planet Darwin IV in the style of a nature documentary, albeit with scientists and science fiction figures discussing the planet as it had actually been discovered, and comment on life on the planet or make general statements on life on Earth or out in the universe. The film was simulcast on the Discovery Channel and Discovery HD Theater on May 14, 2005, as a way to kick off the network's Space Week.

## Plot

An interstellar spacecraft called *Von Braun* leaves Earth's orbit and begins traveling at twenty percent the speed of light (37,000 miles/s), reaching the planet Darwin IV within 42 years. Upon reaching orbit, it deploys the *Darwin Reconnaissance Order* to look for potential landing sites for the probes. The first probe, *Balboa*, fails to unfold one of its wings and explodes along with its lifting body transport during entry. The two backup probes, *Leonardo da Vinci* (Leo) and *Isaac Newton* (Ike) are more successful in landing on the planet and begin to learn more about the bizarre indigenous lifeforms, including an apparently sapient species.

The robotic probes sent out to research on Darwin IV are called Horus Probes. Each Probe consists of an 8-foot (2.4 m) high, 40-foot (12 m) long inflatable, hydrogen-filled balloon, which is covered in solar receptors, a computer 'brain', a 'head' covered in sensors, and several smaller robots that can be sent to dangerous places too dangerous for the probes themselves. The probes have a limited degree of artificial intelligence similar to the processing power of a 4-year-old. A supercomputer in the orbiting *Van Braun* does all of the real thinking. The probes are programmed with different personalities; Ike is more cautious, while Leo is a risk-taker. The two probes are also equipped with a holographic message that will be projected to any sentient life found on Darwin.

After the two probes inflate their gasbags, they encounter a voracious Arrowtongue and watch it pursue a Gyrosprinter, which easily outmaneuvers the larger predator. That night, the probes find the wreckage of Balboa and are ordered to split up, Ike studying the plant life while Leo goes after big game. Ike's voyage takes him to one of Darwin IV's pocket forests, where he encounters a flock of Trunk Suckers and their predator, the Daggerwrist. A hurricane hits and forces Ike to launch weather balloons.

Leo goes to the mountain ranges and finds a herd of Unths engaged in rutting-like behavior. Afterwards, he finds a pair of Bladderhorns engaging in combat. Leo tries to communicate with one of the creatures, but the animal is scared off by a sonic ping and Leo is knocked out by an unseen creature. Ike ventures to the planet's meadows and gullies, encountering massive Grovebacks and a herd of Literalopes, which are preyed upon by a pair of Skewers, the planet's top ariel predator. The *Von Braun* orders Ike to halt his mission to find Leo as well as his attacker. Ike's route takes him across perilous terrain in its quest for Leo. As it embarks on its journey, it witnesses one of the Grovebacks fall victim to a swarm of Beach Quills. Ike then finds a pack of Prongheads hunting a Gyrosprinter, crosses the Amoebic Sea (which fails to attack Ike), and encounters a herd of giant Sea Striders.

After an encounter with a Skewer, which is killed by a spear, Ike manages to locate Leo and encounters the newly discovered floating Eosapien. Ike communicates with the Eosapien tribe and discovers that they are truly intelligent. Ike launches a camera disk, either to record the moment or "access the threat", when a third Eosapien arrives; however, one of the Eosapiens mistakes it as an attack and destroys the camera disk. The wrecked disk records the Eosapien tribe carrying Ike away before shutting down.

Throughout the special, commentary from various people are featured discussing the details behind the fictional world of Darwin IV and the likelihood of extraterrestrial life.