The Alien and Jockeys, Biomechanical…or just Biomechanical looking?

The Borg of STAR TREK...biomechanical, the Alien of Acheron...non-biomechanical. Unless of course, it receives an artificial heart transplant. ~N

@arbordoli I have some issues with both of the designs in the pics. I like the front end of the two on the bottom, and the back end of the top pic. So, I guess I like something in between the two. Cool pics though... ~N

I agree with you N. I look at the alien as a silicon based organic life-form with acid for blood (and for defense- sometimes offense when spat or when one sacrifices itself to solve a problem like escaping or releasing a queen). Yes, totally organic....and very beautiful in its design.

I totally agree about the original design with the smooth, jelly-filled, barely transluscent carapace........and thank the Gods they didn't go with a human skull stuck on the end of a banana look.

I have mixed feelings about it. Here is Giger's 1979 Alien which was recently remade in 2007 and auctioned off. http://www.gadgetmadness.com/2007/04/02/buy-the-1979-original-alien-suit-by-h-r-giger/ Now, do you remember ASH and Bishop when they were decapitated had tubes exposed that looked like they were ringed or ribbed (for her pleasure). You can see that the Alien has that look to it with it's extrusion on it's back and veins or arteries running through out it's body especially below the neck line. It's arms also have that look. We can also see the orginal Alien had exposed ribs much like the space jockey does. Perhaps is it 100% pure organic but I also think much of it resembles an androids internal components. To be more percise the Alien tubes look more like washing machine drainage hose [img]http://www.anderson-retail.co.uk/index.php?act=viewProd&productId=1159[/img]

Oh...the human skull is there...just behind that semi-transluscent fore-skull, watching...ever watching. Kane's son. N

[img]http://www.starstore.com/acatalog/Alien-bust-giger-1-01.jpg[/img] [img]http://www.starstore.com/acatalog/alien-bust-giger-e.jpg[/img] [img]http://www.starstore.com/acatalog/Alien-prop-replica-01.jpg[/img] [img]http://www.starstore.com/acatalog/alien-prop-1-e.jpg[/img] Which one looks better?

@BioShock Speaking of tubes, have you ever noticed the one that gets jerked loose from the Alien's head when it's struggling to get free of Ripley's steam blast in the shuttle, near the end of the original '79 ALIEN? Oops! Talk about a wardrobe malfunction! HA! N

Depends what you mean by organic? Metal is organic everything physical in the universe is organic if you mean its formed of elements and stuff. Metal isnt just a solid lump its an intricate design of so much more hence Liquid metal mercury (something that can be solid and liquid at the same time). Is it possible for fleshy cell like matter to be connected in unison with metalic technological matter. In human terms 2012 A.D no way but if your a superior race with 1 billion years of technology behind you Peace of cake. Its like going back 2000 years to guys giving sermons on mounts with clay tablets and saying to them you can show them how to give sermons on mounts with liquid crystal high res graphic ipads, they would look at you and go "how the hell did that get built" your answer "2000 years of research" Biotech, Nano tech is the ability to crack open a molecule and reprogram it so that instead of a cells producing a body that just fleshy it could produce a body with sulphuric blood, metallic parts ingrained in its flesh and so forth, its beyond our thinking today but in 2000 years will be a peace of cake.

Ah, my old "suit not 'suit' " friend.... Let's discuss please. Is the space-jockey all organic (i.e. not wearing a suit) -or- is he an organic creature wearing an inorganic suit? Support your answer. Go. Don't mean to hijack your thread, N, but I'd like to stretch your topic to include not just the Xeno, but their creators as well...if that's cool.

The above pics look like a cross between that thing pulled from Shaw and a human head @ Neurion I'll watch it again, never noticed the malfunction!

Well, from my point of view…non-organic means non-living. Ya know? No life in it! At least, not anymore. Most lumps of metal are not alive…most, though I know of a few that have a heartbeat.

Well of course the Engineers are Organic... If by Space Jockeys you mean the suit that goes over the engineers, it's most likely bio-mechanical. It somehow corresponds to it's function. Maybe it goes over the Engineer who has to occupy the chair, because the entire room becomes a vacuum, and there is no air? It breathes for them? More than likely it correlates to it's function. As for the Xenomorphs, organic. A Bio-Organic Weapon. However, after watching Alien, initially, i thought that there was some epic origin to the Xenomorphs. Natural origin. But that seems like wishful thinking. Oh well...

When I first watched Alien about 14 years ago I didn't think of the alien as being biomechanical. I sort of thought the mechanical look of the alien was a result of it's enviorenment. The Nostromo is a mechanical enviornment. The alien having an exo-skeleton shaped with tubes, hoses, and a metalic finish is the equivilent to an insect that lives in the trees and has wings shaped like a leaf. The scene that made me think of this is the one in the escape pod where the alien is hiding in the wall amongst the pipes. You didn't even know it was there until it moved. Now I know on earth it takes a millenia for this kind of evolution to take place but given the alien can grow to 8 feet in a matter of hours and is silicon based allready shows us that earth-rules don't apply.

Naw, it's alright...go right ahead an hijack away...or off. HA! Ya know what? Ridley's already started jerkin' around with my own personal imaginings of the SJs, so I just don't know anymore. guess I figure that the Jockey's are completely organic, and the suits are mechanical or some bio/mech hybrid. ~N

@ abordoli ...L-O-L @ my "suit" post.... You misunderstood. I meant...ok, ok...Im confused. When people say "Space Jockey" nowadays, are they referring to the thing on the seat from the first film that is also making an appearance in Prometheus? Or, the Engineers...? Damn it, all... Alright, alright...Anyway... Basically what i was trying to say was: The suit...eer...Space Jockey *facepalm* uuughh... (They really should have officially named these things a while ago) Is actually a suit that the Engineers go INTO, to operate that telescope/cannon/chair thing. It responds to whatever it's purpose is. I imagine it allows for breathing in a vacuum, and it's a bio-mech/organic suit that forms OVER the user once they sit in place. I always interpreted it that way when i saw the tube coming out of the mask area. I'm content on it being a suit. No way in hell you're gonna sit down, and be able to walk around with that thing after the fact. Not a chance. Clearly, from the footage in the trailer, you see it wrapping itself around the engineer that's under it.(let's just assume it's an engineer...My only logical guess, humans aren't worthy :) The chair is a main feature/function of the ship. Either directly relating to the ship, or one of it's features (bio-engineering going on aboard the ship). The room, also, if you'll notice, is HUGE. It's possible the entire room depressurizes, and goes into a complete vacuum state...For...Some reason...I have no freakin' idea. **ALSO: IMPORTANT** For all those of you who are not sure what passes for organic. People here are talking about Organic LIFE. AKA: What falls under the principles/rules of C H N O P S (pronounced Schnapps, like the drink, i refer to it as CHNOPS myself...Just easy that way. If you've watched Nova you'd understand) ...anyway... Carbon, Nitrogen, Oxygen, Phosphorus, Sulfur. The building blocks of Organic life, as we know it. The basis for organic life. It's what we, ourselves, are made of.

"I agree with you N. I look at the alien as a silicon based organic life-form with acid for blood (and for defense- sometimes offense when spat or when one sacrifices itself to solve a problem like escaping or releasing a queen). Yes, totally organic....and very beautiful in its design." How do you explain it's growth rate? I mean it must have incorporate inorganic materials to have had grown that size so quickly in the Nostromo, hinting to an either artificial construct eating away at the fuses of the ship (Parker talks to Ripley about fuses going out shortly after's Kane death) or a very good stomach.

Talking all hypothetically within this fictional universe of course: Well, we know that the Xeno grows like a crab, multing its exoskelton except we don't see large amounts of the multed shell (does it eat it like a crab does?). Now, if the Xeno is silicon based then I start to think of crystals and crystalline growth and having had Grow-Your-Own-Crystal kits, I have witnessed exponential growth rates with seemingly small amounts of reagents. I think this is the process by which the Xeno might grow at an accelerated rate. So what would a silicon-based lifeform need as food (reagents) to grow because we know it doesn't eat us carbon-based lifeforms (we're much too valuable as a raw-material for its reproductive process, facehugger or Dallas-eggsicle)? What has been in most of the environments that is silicon-based? Glass? Well that certainly works for Alien, Aliens, Alien3 and Alien R, but this isn't the case with AvP1/2, unless the Predators stored the necessary accelerants in AvP1. But in AvP 2, we've got Xeno's growing willy-nilly. We saw some in the sewers, some in the forest. Not really a good place for accelerants. So maybe, the Xeno's accelerants are not external, but internal already present and like that insulation foam in a spray can they have the means within themselves to self-inflate (while rapidly shedding). It's like the lycans that I saw in Underworld: Awakening. A couple were huge. From where did they obtain this extra mass. The hulk in the Avengers movie I saw. Where does he get his extra mass? Well with him it's got something to do with the gamma radiation stuff. So, if it works for lycans and the hulk, why can't we have the same suspension of disbelief with the Xenos? Seems only fair....

@Neurion: Totally with you. As Giger said..he felt as an artist and person exposed to external risks of life. He tried to implement this to his style of art. He said he figured thoses biomechanoids as sensitive creatures that have to protect themselves with an external skeleton, suit, armory...robot like externally. The fact that his design was picked for the 1979 movie, was due to its uniqueness. The book wouldn't really describe a biomechanoid being exactly I believe...To me it was what it was. Not biomechanical. On the other hand..we have the words of Sir Ridley Scott himself: there are a lot of biomechanoid creatures in Prometheues...some pretty new and groundbreaking too. Maybe he wanted to honour and hold true the cinematographic biomechanoid style of the alien of 1979? He would have too...

@Neurion: Totally with you. As Giger said..he felt as an artist and person exposed to external risks of life. He tried to implement this to his style of art. He said he figured thoses biomechanoids as sensitive creatures that have to protect themselves with an external skeleton, suit, armory...robot like externally. The fact that his design was picked for the 1979 movie, was due to its uniqueness. The book wouldn't really describe a biomechanoid being exactly I believe...To me it was what it was. Not biomechanical. On the other hand..we have the words of Sir Ridley Scott himself: there are a lot of biomechanoid creatures in Prometheues...some pretty new and groundbreaking too. Maybe he wanted to honour and hold true the cinematographic biomechanoid style of the alien of 1979? He would have too...