# Ben 10: Alien Force
**Ben 10: Alien Force** is an American animated television series that ran on [Cartoon Network](https://www.edgepedia.org/cartoon-network) from April 18, 2008 to 2010, serving as the sequel to the 2005 series *Ben 10*. It follows Ben Tennyson at age 15, five years after the original series, as he puts the alien-transforming Omnitrix back on to fight the DNAliens and the Highbreed while searching for his missing grandfather Max.[1](https://www.metacritic.com/tv/ben-10-alien-force/) • [2](https://www.justwatch.com/us/tv-show/ben-10-alien-force)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Original run | Premiered April 18, 2008 on Cartoon Network; three seasons, 46 episodes, ending in 2010[1](https://www.metacritic.com/tv/ben-10-alien-force/) • [2](https://www.justwatch.com/us/tv-show/ben-10-alien-force) |
| Premise | Ben Tennyson, now 15, dons the Omnitrix again with a new set of 10 alien forms; with Gwen and reformed enemy Kevin Levin he fights the DNAliens and Highbreed and searches for Grandpa Max[2](https://www.justwatch.com/us/tv-show/ben-10-alien-force) |
| Creative team | Created by Man of Action (Joe Casey, Joe Kelly, Duncan Rouleau, Steven T. Seagle); Dwayne McDuffie as story editor and producer; Glen Murakami as producer[3](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1192169/fullcredits/) |
| Voice cast | Yuri Lowenthal (Ben), Ashley Johnson (Gwen), Greg Cipes (Kevin), Dee Bradley Baker (most of Ben's aliens)[2](https://www.justwatch.com/us/tv-show/ben-10-alien-force) • [4](https://ben10.fandom.com/wiki/Ben_10%3A_Alien_Force_%28TV_Series%29) |
| Format | Animated action-adventure, TV-Y7 rating, 23-minute episodes[2](https://www.justwatch.com/us/tv-show/ben-10-alien-force) |
| Reception | IMDb score 7.6/10 from about 20,000 users; Metacritic user score 7.7 (generally favorable)[5](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1192169) • [1](https://www.metacritic.com/tv/ben-10-alien-force/) |
| Awards | Daytime Emmy Awards: Metacritic lists 1 win and 3 nominations, while IMDb lists 1 win and 2 nominations[1](https://www.metacritic.com/tv/ben-10-alien-force/) • [5](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1192169) |
| Legacy | Positive reviews and ratings led directly to the sequel series *Ben 10: Ultimate Alien*[4](https://ben10.fandom.com/wiki/Ben_10%3A_Alien_Force_%28TV_Series%29) |
## Premise and structure
The series picks up five years after the original show. Ben Tennyson, who took off the Omnitrix after defeating his nemesis, is living a normal life until he learns that his grandfather Max is missing. He rejoins his cousin Gwen and, in a notable change, teams up with former enemy Kevin Levin. The Omnitrix has recalibrated, giving Ben ten new alien forms rather than his original roster, and the season-long threats are the DNAliens, body-snatching aliens operating in Ben's hometown, and the Highbreed, who aim to destroy all other life.[2](https://www.justwatch.com/us/tv-show/ben-10-alien-force) • [6](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/tv-reviews/ben-10-alien-force) • [7](https://ben10verse.fandom.com/wiki/Omnitrix)
The show ran for 46 episodes across three seasons: 13 episodes in season 1 (2008), 13 in season 2 (2008–2009), and 20 in season 3 (2009–2010), closing with the two-part finale "The Final Battle".[2](https://www.justwatch.com/us/tv-show/ben-10-alien-force) • [8](https://cartoonnetwork.fandom.com/wiki/Ben_10%3A_Alien_Force_episode_list) Season 2 introduced Albedo, a Galvan stuck in Ben's human form with a copy of the Omnitrix, and season 2's "War of the Worlds" two-parter took the team to the Highbreed homeworld.[8](https://cartoonnetwork.fandom.com/wiki/Ben_10%3A_Alien_Force_episode_list)
## Development
Cartoon Network put the sequel into development after the original series ended, asking animation producer Glen Murakami, known for *[Teen Titans](https://www.edgepedia.org/teen-titans-tv-series)*, to helm it; Murakami in turn brought in writer [Dwayne McDuffie](https://www.edgepedia.org/dwayne-mcduffie), whose credits included *Justice League Unlimited* and *Teen Titans*, as story editor.[9](https://ben10.fandom.com/wiki/Ben_10%3A_Alien_Force_%28TV_Series%29/Early_Development) • [10](https://www.tvguide.com/news/cartoon-networks-ben-11844/) The project was announced on February 14, 2007 under the working title *Ben 10: Hero Generation*, with an early series bible that already outlined the first season's plot, though with the DNAliens and Highbreed effectively bearing each other's names.[9](https://ben10.fandom.com/wiki/Ben_10%3A_Alien_Force_%28TV_Series%29/Early_Development)
**Aging up the hero was a deliberate network decision.** Man of Action, the collective that created the franchise, said the studio wanted [Ben 10](https://www.edgepedia.org/ben-10) rebranded and reinvented to keep its growing audience longer, and that market research suggested children prefer characters older than themselves. Man of Action had largely moved on to *Generator Rex* and had less involvement in this series, though they still reviewed the material.[9](https://ben10.fandom.com/wiki/Ben_10%3A_Alien_Force_%28TV_Series%29/Early_Development) Cartoon Network's Michael Ouweleen, senior vice president for development and creative direction, framed the change as a chance to watch a superhero grow rather than introduce a villain of the week.[10](https://www.tvguide.com/news/cartoon-networks-ben-11844/)
The network also mandated that most of the new aliens be humanoid with a strong superhero build, and it rejected early monster-based designs by production designer Eric Canete as inappropriate for children. By April 22, 2008, season 1 was in post-production with scripting and voice acting complete.[9](https://ben10.fandom.com/wiki/Ben_10%3A_Alien_Force_%28TV_Series%29/Early_Development)
## Tone and style
Alien Force shifted the franchise toward a darker, more serialized register. Much of the series takes place at night, a choice the producers made to create a greater sense of mystery.[11](https://www.broadcastnow.co.uk/how-we---made-ben-10-into-a-15-year-old/2009581.article) Common Sense Media describes a show packed with action and alien transformations but with more violence than the original, including battles in which characters are seriously injured or die, and rates it for ages 8 and up.[6](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/tv-reviews/ben-10-alien-force) The transformation sequences also changed visually, rendered as a green and black X-ray effect showing Ben's skeleton, and Alien Force was the first series in the franchise to animate transformation sequences for an Omnitrix user other than Ben, with Albedo's introduction.[12](https://ben10.fandom.com/wiki/Transformation_Sequences)
## Reception
Initial fan reaction to the changes was mixed, with many original-series fans objecting to the older Ben and the loss of the summer road-trip lightness, but the series drew positive reviews and successful ratings and led to the production of *Ben 10: Ultimate Alien*.[4](https://ben10.fandom.com/wiki/Ben_10%3A_Alien_Force_%28TV_Series%29) Retrospective fan discussion commonly treats the first two seasons as the high point, praising the story-driven structure and character development while criticizing season 3's characterization of Ben and the large number of retcons to the original series.[13](https://comicvine.gamespot.com/forums/gen-discussion-1/better-show-ben-10-or-ben-10-alien-force-1856728/) • [14](https://ben10.fandom.com/f/p/4400000000003944291) On Metacritic the show holds a user score of 7.7 based on 48 ratings, with 81 percent positive; no critic reviews are aggregated for the series there.[1](https://www.metacritic.com/tv/ben-10-alien-force/) Rotten Tomatoes lists one critic review for season 1 at 84 percent on the Tomatometer.[15](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/ben_10_alien_force/s01)
## Tie-in media
The series spawned several video games of generally poor reception. The Wii game *Ben 10: Alien Force* scored 45 on Metacritic, rated generally unfavorable, with critics calling it uninspired and lazy; IGN gave it 40.[16](https://www.metacritic.com/game/ben-10-alien-force/critic-reviews/?platform=wii) A mobile version was reviewed as a slow, unoriginal Breakout clone.[17](https://www.pocketgamer.com/ben-10-alien-force/review/) *Ben 10: Alien Force – The Rise of Hex* for Wii and [Xbox 360](https://www.edgepedia.org/xbox-360) averaged 49 percent across critic ratings.[18](https://www.mobygames.com/game/47387/ben-10-alien-force-the-rise-of-hex/reviews/) A live-action television movie set in the Alien Force era, *[Ben 10: Alien Swarm](https://www.edgepedia.org/ben-10-alien-swarm)*, was released in 2009.[19](https://crossbinge.com/adaptations/ben-10)
## Availability
In the United States the series can currently be streamed on [YouTube TV](https://www.edgepedia.org/youtube-tv), bought on Amazon Video, the Apple TV Store, and Fandango at Home, and streamed free on Spectrum On Demand; it ranked 2,969th on the [JustWatch](https://www.edgepedia.org/justwatch) daily streaming charts at the time of that listing.[2](https://www.justwatch.com/us/tv-show/ben-10-alien-force)
## References
1. [Ben 10: Alien Force Reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/tv/ben-10-alien-force/)
2. [Ben 10: Alien Force, JustWatch](https://www.justwatch.com/us/tv-show/ben-10-alien-force)
3. [Ben 10: Alien Force Full Cast & Crew, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1192169/fullcredits/)
4. [Ben 10: Alien Force, Ben 10 Wiki (Fandom)](https://ben10.fandom.com/wiki/Ben_10%3A_Alien_Force_%28TV_Series%29)
5. [Ben 10: Alien Force, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1192169)
6. [Ben 10: Alien Force Parents' Guide, Common Sense Media](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/tv-reviews/ben-10-alien-force)
7. [Omnitrix, Ben 10 Universe Wiki (Fandom)](https://ben10verse.fandom.com/wiki/Omnitrix)
8. [Ben 10: Alien Force episode list, Cartoon Network Wiki (Fandom)](https://cartoonnetwork.fandom.com/wiki/Ben_10%3A_Alien_Force_episode_list)
9. [Ben 10: Alien Force/Early Development, Ben 10 Wiki (Fandom)](https://ben10.fandom.com/wiki/Ben_10%3A_Alien_Force_%28TV_Series%29/Early_Development)
10. [Cartoon Network's Ben 10 Grows Up, TV Guide](https://www.tvguide.com/news/cartoon-networks-ben-11844/)
11. [How We Made Ben 10 into a 15-Year-Old, Broadcast](https://www.broadcastnow.co.uk/how-we---made-ben-10-into-a-15-year-old/2009581.article)
12. [Transformation Sequences, Ben 10 Wiki (Fandom)](https://ben10.fandom.com/wiki/Transformation_Sequences)
13. [Better Show? Ben 10 or Ben 10 Alien Force, Comic Vine forums](https://comicvine.gamespot.com/forums/gen-discussion-1/better-show-ben-10-or-ben-10-alien-force-1856728/)
14. [What are your opinions on Alien Force?, Ben 10 Wiki forums (Fandom)](https://ben10.fandom.com/f/p/4400000000003944291)
15. [Ben 10: Alien Force: Season 1, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/ben_10_alien_force/s01)
16. [Ben 10: Alien Force Wii Critic Reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/game/ben-10-alien-force/critic-reviews/?platform=wii)
17. [Ben 10: Alien Force Review, Pocket Gamer](https://www.pocketgamer.com/ben-10-alien-force/review/)
18. [Ben 10: Alien Force – The Rise of Hex Reviews, MobyGames](https://www.mobygames.com/game/47387/ben-10-alien-force-the-rise-of-hex/reviews/)
19. [Every Version of Ben 10, CrossBinge](https://crossbinge.com/adaptations/ben-10)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Series and fictional screen worlds › Scripted television and comedy series › Animated television series (individual series) › Children's animated adventure and fantasy series › Superhero and action-adventure series*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 19, 2026; Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 19, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license