Roswell, New Mexico reframes the Roswell crash as an aftermath of belonging

Collider reports that the CW series Roswell, New Mexico treats the Roswell crash as an ongoing aftermath rather than a mystery to be solved.

The show opens with Max Evans (Nathan Parsons) already identified as an alien whose powers saved Liz Ortecho (Jeanine Mason) years earlier but left persistent consequences. Max works as a deputy sheriff and frequently pays for using his abilities, often left drained and changed; Michael (Michael Vlamis) and Isobel (Lily Cowles) are written as people who manage exposure and trust as a matter of survival, with volatility and control presented as the residue of living undocumented.

The series draws on the 1947 account in which debris recovered near Roswell was initially announced by the U.S. Army as a “flying disc” and then reclassified as a weather balloon, and it shows the cover-up folded into family histories, town politics and policing. Unlike the 1990s adaptation, the CW version restores Liz’s Mexican American background from Melinda Metz’s Roswell High books and makes her parents’ immigration status central to how she understands secrecy and authority. The show is listed as running 2019–2022, with Carina Adly MacKenzie as creator and showrunner and writers including Carina Adly MacKenzie, Jeanine Mason, Nathan Parsons and Michael Vlamis.

Key Topics

Culture, Roswell New Mexico, Roswell Crash, Max Evans, Liz Ortecho, Carina Adly Mackenzie