TV Verdict

“So when are the little green men coming to Eureka?” Carter asks when he sees an “Aliens Welcome” sign at Cafe Diem in Eureka #312, “It’s Not Easy Being Green.” Sooner than Carter thinks, it turns out. The expected “little green men” are the Area 51 bowling team, in town for a match against arch rival Eureka.

The unexpected “little green men” are Eureka’s bowlers, led by Fargo, who have been doused with gamma rays by Area 51 team leader Bismarck in the battle of pranks between the two teams. It’s bad timing: Eureka’s star bowler, ex-PBA champ Big Ed Fowler, turns up dead, and Carter figures out that Fowler’s “pet” is a green blob–Carter calls it “Spot”–that feeds on radiation.

Meanwhile, a pregnant Lexi’s trying to scare off Duncan, the father, but he just won’t go away. The epidemiologist stays in town to whip up a special “beauty cream” that counteracts the greening rays and heads over to Carter’s smart house to talk things over with Lexi, just in time to get attacked by Spot. Good thing Carter’s figured out that the “beauty cream” is what’s going to put Spot on the spot, and come up with a special delivery: a bowling ball full of the stuff.

It’s amazing what all uses nuclear reactors in Eureka, as Carter finds out when he and Henry try to round up all the stray power sources for a laser telescope. Among the uses: a sporty car, a barbecue, and Carter’s house, S.A.R.A.H. Tonight’s Eureka seems more like a framework for little gags like that. There’s also a good action scene in which Carter chases Spot with a freeze gun, only to find that getting rid of the green thing won’t be as easy as in The Blob.

In an ominous ending, Allison’s making plans for a possible military response to alien visitors, something Tess obviously doesn’t approve of.