Space: Above and Beyond

S01E12: Who Monitors the Birds?

Stranded and practically defenseless on an alien world, Hawkes accepts an assassination assignment that's supposed to buy him an immediate Honorable Discharge from the Marines.

Overview

Set in the years 2063–2064, the show focuses on the "Wildcards", members of the United States Marine Corps Space Aviator Cavalry, 58th Squadron. They are stationed on the space carrier USS Saratoga, and act as infantry and pilots of SA-43 Endo/Exo-Atmospheric Attack Jet fighters.

Episodes

Pilot

S01E01 Pilot

September 24, 1995 6.0 91 min
In the year 2063, the final frontier is a battle field. An earth united in peace takes its first steps toward interplanetary colonization, only to be threatened by an enigmatic alien race. Enter the 58th...
The Farthest Man from Home

S01E02 The Farthest Man from Home

October 1, 1995 7.5 45 min
When the USS Saratoga passes close to the planet, Vesta Colony, where the Earth colonist were attacked, West goes AWOL and flies down to the planet in hopes that his girlfriend, Kylen, somehow survived.
The Dark Side of the Sun

S01E03 The Dark Side of the Sun

October 8, 1995 7.0 45 min
Nightmares come to life for Shane when a sentry-duty assignment on an asteroid leads the 58th into a bloody confrontation with a battalion of rogue androids, among which are the AI's who murdered her parents.
Mutiny

S01E04 Mutiny

October 15, 1995 7.5 45 min
When mutiny erupts aboard a civilian cargo ship carrying 200 In Vitro embryos, Cooper faces a difficult decision-should he protect his fellow soldiers, or join forces with the rebellious Tanks?
Ray Butts

S01E05 Ray Butts

October 22, 1995 8.0 45 min
The Saratoga has a mysterious new passenger: a battle-scarred special-forces commando whose classified mission directives put the 58th at his disposal, even if it means leading them to certain disaster.
Eyes

S01E06 Eyes

November 5, 1995 6.7 45 min
The Saratoga becomes a pressure cooker of violence and political intrigue when an assassination on Earth forces a delegation of UN officials to use the craft as the site of an important conference.
The Enemy

S01E07 The Enemy

November 12, 1995 8.0 45 min
The soldiers of the 58th become their own worst enemies when a routine supply mission goes awry, leaving them stranded in alien territory and suffering from the effects of a mysterious Chig weapon.
Hostile Visit (1)

S01E08 Hostile Visit (1)

November 19, 1995 8.0 45 min
A commandeered alien battleship provides the 58th with information about an important Chig outpost, giving the Earth forces an opportunity to make a Trojan-horse attack against the enemy-if the 58th can learn to fly the...
Choice or Chance (2)

S01E09 Choice or Chance (2)

November 26, 1995 7.0 45 min
After narrowly escaping the crippled alien battleship, the 58th finds itself imprisoned in the catacombs of a Chig penal colony. While Wang suffers in an alien torture chamber, Nathan encounters someone he'd only dreamed of...
Stay with the Dead

S01E10 Stay with the Dead

December 3, 1995 7.0 45 min
A failed rescue mission leaves the 58th presumed dead, except for Nathan, who lands in the hospital, where a nagging memory that his comrades are still alive is passed off as a result of suffering...
The River of Stars

S01E11 The River of Stars

December 17, 1995 7.5 45 min
Christmas Eve finds the 58th in dire straits: its transport vehicle, damaged in battle, is hurtling uncontrolled into enemy territory and the pilots must struggle to stay alive with no power, no weapons, and no...
Who Monitors the Birds?

S01E12 Who Monitors the Birds?

January 7, 1996 7.5 45 min
Stranded and practically defenseless on an alien world, Hawkes accepts an assassination assignment that's supposed to buy him an immediate Honorable Discharge from the Marines.
Level of Necessity

S01E13 Level of Necessity

January 14, 1996 8.0 45 min
The 58th enters the tunnels to try to find and destroy a Chig ammo dump. In the tunnels on the way to the ammo dump, Lubin is killed, and Damphousse predicts that one more of...
Never No More (1)

S01E14 Never No More (1)

February 4, 1996 8.0 45 min
Shane risks her life when she volunteers to fight an enemy spacecraft with another squadron, led by a former boyfriend whose new love was killed during a mission.
The Angriest Angel (2)

S01E15 The Angriest Angel (2)

February 11, 1996 6.5 45 min
McQueen seeks reinstatement of his pilot status so he can fly what could be a suicide mission: find and destroy a seemingly invincible Chig super-bomber.
Toy Soldiers

S01E16 Toy Soldiers

February 18, 1996 8.0 45 min
West discovers that his brother has enlisted in the Corps and is serving under a young, gung-ho lieutenant who's so determined to make a name for himself as a soldier, that he will risk endangering...
Dear Earth

S01E17 Dear Earth

March 3, 1996 7.5 45 min
The members of the 58th receive letters from home, some with good news, some with bad, while McQueen and Cooper are ordered to cooperate in a TV documentary about In Vitroes serving in the United...
Pearly

S01E18 Pearly

March 24, 1996 7.5 45 min
On a planet overrun with Chigs, the 58th retreat with a tank driver of the US 7th Cavalry upon a tank named "Pearly". They encounter the eccentric Major Cyril MacKendrick, sole survivor of a battalion...
R&R

S01E19 R&R

April 12, 1996 8.0 45 min
The exhausted Wild Cards are granted R&R aboard the Bacchus, a pleasure ship where it's said anything can, and does, happen.
Stardust

S01E20 Stardust

April 19, 1996 8.0 45 min
A mysterious group of extremely high-ranking officers disembark on the Saratoga and the 58th are ordered to escort an unresponsive space APC. The mysterious APC suddenly locks on their Hammerheads and opens fire.
Sugar Dirt

S01E21 Sugar Dirt

April 20, 1996 8.0 45 min
When Commodore Ross sees there's an opportunity to launch a potentially crippling offensive against the Chigs. Forced to abandon the 58th on a barren planet, Ross leaves the marines to fend for themselves with little...
And If They Lay Us Down to Rest...

S01E22 And If They Lay Us Down to Rest...

May 26, 1996 8.5 45 min
The 58th is deployed to a seemingly barren moon to make final preparations for a major offensive by the Earth forces, but when they arrive they discover that the moon is home to an unknown...
...Tell Our Moms We Done Our Best

S01E23 ...Tell Our Moms We Done Our Best

June 2, 1996 7.0 45 min
While peace talks on the USS Saratoga go awry, the disgraced 58th are sent to retrieve POWs trapped in a crippled Space APC. Several enemy space fighters attack and the 58th take heavy losses. It...

Cast

Morgan Weisser
Morgan Weisser
Nathan West
Kristen Cloke
Kristen Cloke
Shane Vansen
Rodney Rowland
Rodney Rowland
Cooper Hawkes
Joel de la Fuente
Joel de la Fuente
Paul Wang
Lanei Chapman
Lanei Chapman
Vanessa Damphousse
James Morrison
James Morrison
T. C. McQueen

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