Although I’m on record saying that the first episode is easily the weakest of the two-part premiere, the episode’s handling of this disgusting booger creature isn’t that terrible. It helps that the show seems fully aware of how silly this is — the creature’s origins are that it’s literally designed to appease a child’s imagination — and that it takes the time to properly engage with how things seem from the creature’s perspective. The episode’s climax revolves not around killing it, but recognizing its tragic backstory and choosing to save its life. Sure, the creature is as close as one could ever get to being objectively ugly, but that doesn’t mean it’s undeserving of love. 

It all ties in pretty nicely to the episode’s themes of radical acceptance, as well as a fitting conclusion to the episode’s criticisms of pro-life movements, which it was remarkably unsubtle about in its earlier scenes. “Space Babies” strongly critiques a futuristic space government for giving life to multiple unique space babies and then not bothering at all with taking care of them after they’re born; for Americans at least, it’s an approach that feels awfully familiar in a post-Roe v. Wade world. 

It’s also a messy metaphor for children who are disowned or neglected by their parents for reasons outside their control. If you’re not prepared to take care of your kid no matter who they turn out to be, the episode argues, then you’re not prepared to be a parent. It’s a heartwarming message, one that at least partially makes up for how much the alien might ruin our appetites. The return of RTD might mean the return of his ill-advised alien designs, but at least the inherent kindness of his initial run is still here too.