9 Things to Know About 'Falling Skies' Season 3

The weary and scarred characters of TNT's "Falling Skies" have been battling aliens for two seasons. But everything changes when a new alien race descends on them — the Volm come in peace.

When Season 3 of "Falling Skies" premieres June 9 at 9 PM, resistance leader Tom Mason (Noah Wyle) and his 2nd Mass crew of soldiers are actually safe. (Well, safer.) They're building a home in Charleston and with the help of the Volm, fighting and winning against the evil Espheni aliens.

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But could this just be the calm before the really big storm? Yahoo! TV chatted with the cast on the show's Vancouver set about the new world order, new characters, and new romances. Check out what they had to say!

Watch a clip from the premiere:

1. Season 3 hits the fast-forward button.

Season 2 ended on one major cliffhanger, with a new alien species emerging from their ships. The new season does not pick up where it left off, though.

"We employ a bit of a time jump," Wyle explained. "The first episode starts seven months after the finale, so a lot has happened in the interim. This new race of beings called the Volm have landed, proven themselves to be trustworthy, and pitched an alliance with the humans to fight their common enemy, the Espheni, the Overloads of Skitters, we met last year."

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2. The new aliens want to be friends.

As Wyle said, Tom Mason makes an alliance with the Volm, who seem friendly … for now.

"We make an analogy to World War II and the alliance that was started between the United States and the Soviet Union. They weren't the best partners, but they were the partners that were available and most effective to side against Germany," Wyle said. "You have to make a deal with the devil sometimes, and we're hoping that this doesn't come back and haunt us."

3. Hello, Mr. President!

The 2nd Mass is still hunkered down in Charleston, and as the main representative in the Volm alliance, Tom takes on a new job.

"I got a bit of a promotion. I've gone from civic leader to President of the new United States of America," Wyle said, adding with a laugh, "There's a learning curve to power."

No longer on the run, the people in the city begin to build a life for themselves that isn't just about survival.

As Sarah Carter (Maggie) explained, "We're at the beginning stages of creating a culture, a society, a political system … We're really trying to build a new narrative."

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Of course, with that comes "the growing pains of any fledgling democracy and a little bit of power struggles, and the decisions and stuff that need to be made," pointed out Colin Cunningham, who plays wily gang leader John Pope.

4. It's all in the eyes with the Volm.

While it may seem surprising that any humans would willingly ally with aliens, the cast members said the Volm's eyes are what make them look trustworthy.

"My character has a more sympathetic face, and it does come from his eyes," said Doug Jones, who embodies Volm leader Cochise. "And his demeanor is very friendly. He has a diplomatic demeanor, even though he's kind of a warrior. He's seen a lot of battles in his day."

Luckily for Jones, it only takes two hours to put on the makeup and costume. "I look very classic alien-y," he said. "[Producer Steven] Spielberg would be proud."

5. A mad scientist lights it up.

Robert Sean Leonard ("House") joins the cast in Season 3 as an eccentric scientist who's living underground in Charleston.

"He's a little bit Chris Lloyd in 'Back to the Future' — just a little bit," Leonard described. "He's a bit of a misanthrope. He lives underground, he basically lights Charleston — he's in charge of their electrical grid."

Electricity may intrigue Dr. Kadar — but other people don't.

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"He really doesn't care about Earth or the future of humanity. He might care about something in the next five minutes, if Noah's character needs him to solve a mathematical problem, but I don't think he's got his hat in the ring on a big scale," Leonard said.

"He's given up a little bit. I think he's done."

6. Tom becomes a dad again.

After learning girlfriend Anne (Moon Bloodgood) was pregnant at the end of last season, the couple welcomes a baby girl!

"It's good for the entire community to see that life continues, that there's another generation and something worth fighting for," Wyle said.

7. Hal and Maggie are still together, but there's trouble in paradise.

Our favorite young couple is going strong, despite Hal's (Drew Roy) "injury" (which was really an eye worm that infiltrated his brain). Now, he's recovered enough to sit in a wheelchair, which changes the power dynamic in the relationship. "We have this deep bond between each other. At the same time, there's a lot of strain," said Roy. "She has to put a lot of attention into me. Hal's suffering from these nightmares and waking up in cold sweats. There's a lot on Maggie's plate."

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Even as Hal is dealing with the effects of the eye worm, he also has to battle a different monster — the green-eyed kind. "There are some new characters introduced; we've got new relationships," Carter teased. "There's a little jealousy happening with Hal, because Maggie has started to fight on the front lines with another young, gorgeous guy."

8. Hal's not the only Mason boy with a love interest (sort of).

Connor Jessup's Ben has a new friend this season — a new girl friend. But not girlfriend (yet).

"We're close friends," Jessup said of the character, whose name is Denny. They bond over the fact that they were both once harnessed by the Skitters. Then they learn that the effects of that could be reversed.

"[But] I would lose all my abilities, including being able to communicate with the Skitters, and all the things that helped the war effort in the last seven months. So, Denny and I have to weigh the pros and cons. Do we do this and go back to being normal, which we've talked about for the last two seasons, or do we take the hit and help the fight?" Jessup said.

"We may have divergent opinions on what to do and that causes tension."

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9. Meanwhile, little bro Matt is experiencing some teen angst.

With Tom busy being president and with his new daughter, Matt (Maxim Knight) has a little more license to act out.

"I'm a neglected teenager, that makes me go a little angsty," Knight said with a grin. "I team up with some punk friends and we go around blowing up buildings and doing crazy stuff."

"Falling Skies" returns Sunday, 6/9 at 9 PM on TNT.