[PLMerite]

"Falling Skies lost me when they started bringing in the “Good Aliens” into the plot." True, but the basic truth is that any civilization that has attained interstellar travel can routinely beat the snot out of any civilization that hasn't. Without help from a similarly-advanced civilization, humanity wouldn't stand a chance if they wanted to exterminate us. And in the meantime it would be a pretty boring show about people hiding like rats underground.

What usually loses me is that human-alien hybrid they always come up with.

Unless the alien is a hot Vulcan chick:

[LS]

How about the snake-babe in "V"?

But, to your first point, I think that in fact was the appeal---it was what made "Independence Day" such a good movie, that using good old human brain power, we found a way to defeat the super-smart evil octopi critters.

[tbw2]

Here’s a story precisely about that type of encounter, where humanity had no chance at all
When Time Should Have Stood Still
http://hubpages.com/literature/When-Time-Should-Have-Stood-Still-a-short-story