History Series / AlienNation

* ForeignCussWord: Inverted, in that in the Tenctonese language, "Sykes" roughly translates as "excrement cranium".

* UnusualEuphemism: The aliens use the term "sykes", which is later revealed to literally translate as "excrement cranium". Coincidentally, the main human character is named [[InMyLanguageThatSoundsLike Sykes]]...

* ScienceIsBad: In episode 2, the criminal was a human scientist who was extracting a gland from his Newcomer patients in order to reverse aging in his human ones, which killed the Newcomers. At the end of the episode Matt burns his research, invoking this trope in combination with HumansAreBastards, saying essentially that while a more ethical scientist could probably have done something good with it, he couldn't trust that someone couldn't have used it to do something worse

* HumansAreBastards: A lot of them are racist towards the Newcomers.
** The Tectonese aren't necessarily any better and the racism not only goes both ways, but exists within their own species.

* CardCarryingVillain: Many members of the Kleezantsun were portrayed in the series as [[EatsBabies baby-eating]] [[CompleteMonster monsters]], and few have regrets about their past (or present) misdeeds.
** While uncommon, pentinent Kleezantsun do exist. In one episode, George speaks with a pentinent Kleezantsun woman who wears a headscarf to indicate her atoning status.

* CardCarryingVillain: Every single member of the Kleezantsun ever portrayed in the series is a [[EatsBabies baby-eating]] CompleteMonster, and absolutely none of them have regrets about their past (or present) misdeeds.

* BitchInSheepsClothing: Betty Ross is a successful entrepreneur and pillar of the Newcomer community. In fact, she's a ruthless drug kingpin. But the real kicker is that she's one of the Overseers.

* DesperatelyLookingForAPuposeInLife: Buck. So much.

* BizarreAlienBiology: The basis for 1/4 of the show's humor. Newcomers can't get near saltwater, it's like taking a bath in battery acid for them. They blink when they sneeze. Partway through a pregnancy, the female transfers the natal pod to the male. They have a third gender called Binnaum, who are necessary for catalyzing a pregnancy. Binnaums offer a high-demand service, but make up a very small percentage of the population.

* TooDumbToLive: The guy who tries to seduce Emily in the third TV movie. This is idiotic to begin with, given that sexually experienced inter-species couples need months of classes to have sex safely. But wait, it gets better, when after getting her to come to his house, he goes to the next room to have a phone conversation in which he brags about how he's going to "bag the slag"; Emily, like all Newcomers, has superhearing. Oops. But the kicker? After she finds out what he's up to, he assaults here, despite the fact that A: she has superstrength, and B: her ''father is a cop''.

* TooDumbToLive: The guy who tries to seduce Emily in the third TV movie. This is idiotic to begin with, given that sexually experienced inter-species couples need months of classes to have sex safely. But wait, it gets better, when after getting her to come to his house, he goes to the next room to have a phone conversation in which he brags about how he's going to "bag the slag"; Emily, like all Newcomers, has superhearing. Oops. But the kicker? After she finds out what he's up to, he assaults here, despite the fact that A: she has superstrength, and B: he ''father is a cop''.

* ChuckCunnighamSyndrome: In the pilot, Emily is befriended by Molly, daughter of the Francisco's neighbor. Despite appearing in the opening credits in the first half of the series, Molly never appears again.

* TooDumbTooLive: The guy who tries to seduce Emily in the third TV movie. This is idiotic to begin with, given that sexually experienced inter-species couples need months of classes to have sex safely. But wait, it gets better, when after getting her to come to his house, he goes to the next room to have a phone conversation in which he brags about how he's going to "bag the slag"; Emily, like all Newcomers, has superhearing. Oops. But the kicker? After she finds out what he's up to, he assaults here, despite the fact that A: she has superstrength, and B: he ''father is a cop''.

** In the last few episodes of the series, Buck becomes close with a socially active teacher; in the series finale, they begin an affair. Not only is this never brought up again, in the second TV-movie, Buck is joining protests against against human/Newcomer mating.

* ChuckCunnighamSyndrom: In the pilot, Emily is befriended by Molly, daughter of the Francisco's neighbor. Despite appearing in the opening credits in the first half of the series, Molly never appears again.

The Newcomers had two personal names, the one that they were given by their parents or former masters, and an "Earth name" handed out by the immigration service. With 250,000 names to distribute, some of them are quite odd. George's name was originally "Sam Francisco", but he changed it at Matt's request. Other odd Newcomer names: "Dallas Fort-Worth", "Polly Wannacracker", "Thomas and Alva Edison".

* CompleteMonster: A lot of the Overseers come off this way.

* DomesticAbuse: George is guilty of this. He throws Buck around and almost strikes him. Later, he's physically rough with Emily as well as yelling at her while he tries to wash off an overseer mark she made on her wrist. Yelling at a child is usually non-abusive, but in the second case, Emily hadn't intentionally done anything wrong. It was akin to a human child realising that people are scared of/dislike the Nazi swastika or KKK hood and reasoning that it one of them would make a good costume.