# 3rd Rock from the Sun (1996)

> Four aliens posing as a Ohio family try to study humanity while their high commander Dick Solomon struggles with his human disguise.

Canonical page: https://ember.film/tv/141

## Facts

- Seasons: 6
- Episodes: 139
- Episode runtime: 22 min
- Status: Ended
- Genres: comedy, science fiction, family
- Created by: Terry Turner, Bonnie Turner
- Network: NBC
- Cast: John Lithgow, Kristen Johnston, Jane Curtin, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, French Stewart, Simbi Khali, Wayne Knight, Elmarie Wendel
- TMDB rating: 7.8/10
- IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0115082/

## Ember's analysis

- Pacing: brisk
- Intensity: mild
- Complexity: simple
- Violence: none
- Tone: witty, breezy, whimsical, comforting, absurd

## What critics say

Audiences broadly rate the sitcom as a warm, witty fish-out-of-water comedy with consistently strong ratings across its run.

## Synopsis

3rd Rock from the Sun (1996-2001) is a US network science fiction sitcom created by Terry Turner and Bonnie Turner for NBC. John Lithgow plays Dick Solomon, the high commander of an alien expedition who lands on Earth and takes human form as a physics professor leading a household in suburban Ohio. He is joined by his crew of fellow aliens, Kristen Johnston as Sally, French Stewart as Harry, and Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Tommy, the eldest of the group who is angrily stuck in a teenager's body. Jane Curtin plays Mary Albright, the human woman who becomes an unlikely figure in their lives. The engine of the show is comedy of misunderstanding: each episode finds the aliens misreading ordinary customs, from school, dating and marriage to the everyday chores of American family life, while Dick tries to keep the mission on track and his crew from exposing themselves. Running for six seasons as a single continuing sitcom with a steady rhythm of twenty-two minute episodes, it stays light, witty and affectionate. Its tone is breezy and whimsical, with a warm streak of family loyalty beneath the slapstick. Fans of Mork and Mindy, ALF and Malcolm in the Middle will find resonance in its outsider humor and domestic chaos.

## Shows like 3rd Rock from the Sun

- [ALF (1986)](https://ember.film/tv/4434)
- [People of Earth (2016)](https://ember.film/tv/59602)
- [Mork & Mindy (1978)](https://ember.film/tv/2425)
- [Lost in Space (2018)](https://ember.film/tv/65677)
- [My Favorite Martian (1963)](https://ember.film/tv/3694)
- [Perfect Strangers (1986)](https://ember.film/tv/1684)
- [Space Goofs (1997)](https://ember.film/tv/10988)
- [Phil of the Future (2004)](https://ember.film/tv/1440)
- [My Parents Are Aliens (1999)](https://ember.film/tv/13619)
- [Malcolm in the Middle (2000)](https://ember.film/tv/1895)

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