@Michelle Johnston How do I give you guys stars or XP for you're answers?

@Apacheizm

Thank you for your good vibes I do not honestly know but Chris can I am sure explain. 

Over recent days I have been thinking about "What the Covenant meet on Paradise ?"

I feel certain if one looks at it in this way we can get some sense of what happens to Shaw and David and Paradise. What we need to know is down to two things :-

1) What "state" David is in.

2) What has he learned since his arrival and how far has the evolving creature they find moved on.

David is a big idea and I am sure the Goo and Shaw are tied into the answer. 

You could spend a considerable amount of viewer time on a complex back story which involves David being responsible for Paradise Lost or you tease out what he has learned from the  ruined civilisation and its experiments that he came upon and set up a future question - the hierarchy. Its very easy for me to see the latter being more likely and I am sure the evolution of the evolving creature is tied up with David and David now is tied up with Shaw. You then have a very person focused story which creates the ingredients for the Covenant who appear in the first act to come into. What will be really fascinating is to see:-

1) How far the Engineers had got with the evolving creature.

2) Who David is now.

3) To what extent Shaw is involved in" David Now". (I must stress I am someone who finds symbolism in the short of the mysterious woman's wrapped head with someone wearing Davids utilitarian clothes looking on).  

Indeed Michelle its a very open and interesting set of questions and one where the Synopsis holds a lot of clues.

Prometheus 2 was setting up for something different,  the source's supposed information on Pandemonium seemed to fit and expand upon this....  however Alien Covenant we are now arriving at the aftermath of what ever happened between David and Shaw leaving LV-223 and arriving on Paradise.  

We cant be sure how little or much we see into what happened in those 10 years.    The Space Jockey did not tell us what happened to him and his cargo.. it was a set of clues of the Aftermath.....   and so maybe after the fact clues and a few flash backs is all thats needed to tease us to whats going on...

Ridley did tease that there is some big idea with David that related to how he is put back together but then Ridley is very vague like the source is with information and so could put a few red herrings.

If i can remember i think he said that there is a big idea for how we see David in one piece again.... this could however mean as far as the David's Doppelganger.

We have to assume that there is no way David could fly the Engineer Ship to Paradise, and then remain the only survivor and thing that the Covenant Crew discover if David is in TWO PARTS 

Its safe to assume that perhaps Shaw is maybe placed into Cryo-Sleep once David is ready to set off, and we have to remember David is manipulative and persuasive and Shaw has to take his words for it, she cant understand the Engineers Technology or Language not like David can and so what ever interpretations he passes on she has to accept, regardless if they are a bluff.

If David has some Agenda and Plan, and big idea and a awake Shaw may get in the way of those plans, it would be ideal for him to suggest the only way Shaw can survive the trip to get her answers is trust him and go into Cryo-Sleep.

Once she does and if David is back together in some way, then basically that Ship is under his full control to go where ever and when ever he wishes.

Ignoring Prometheus 2 and ideas that was being pushed,  the FACT we have now is that the Crew of the Covenant only finds David 8 , there is no Shaw or Engineers.

However Rapace has shot a weeks worth of scenes, and thats under 7% of total shooting time, which means she maybe plays a small role....   

While the Synopsis has no Engineers, we dont know if we would see any as in real time because they are not going to give every detail away... but we see that one scene of disaster that shows what i think has to be Engineers or a related race.    This does not look like a Scene set after the Covenant arrive as its a Scene with maybe hundred beings and so its logical this is a Flash Back Scene.... is it a Scene of after David arrives or some other in the Ancient Past?

We cant be sure but it no doubt is some scene to tell the narrative in a visual way, like the Sacrificial Scene from Prometheus.

And so Shaws role could be likewise we get a Flash Back of her Fate?

I will assume Ridley and Fox are going with David and Daniels to carry on the story in a sequel and i cant see Shaw playing a role in the next few movies....   But she wanted answers, she wanted to know WHY!

Why create us, why visit us, why leave star maps that lead to place that carried death and why create such a horrific biological agent to be used on us... what was they thinking.

Surely they cant throw Shaws character and Agenda out.... but if those Answers are sinister and nothing like she would have hoped for and if she is used in some way that shows her the true Agenda... then she becomes a big part of the Plot Device.

I dont think Shaw has a happy ending, i dont think she would truly just be killed... i think her FATE leads to that something Evolving on Paradise and her role in it also provides her answers.

Trying to tie into all the Mythos.....  and maybe the Annunaki Tale could provide a clue...

This is just a assumption and i am less than 50/50 on this...  But if these Engineers are just as David is to us, but these Engineers got fed up of their role under their creators... they rebelled and either sub-created to have some other race take their place in the Agenda and Purpose of the Engineers... or their creators sub-created a replacement.

So if the Engineers where Tools for some Sinister Project, and so Shaws Answers would be merely that Mankind was created to replace the Engineers as Sacrifices to create something else..... 

Then something like this if Shaw fore fills that Evil Agenda, she gets to know FIRST HAND why we was created.... She gets her answers by taking part in what was planned for us and what our real role was intended for...

This allows her to get her answers and be a part of those answers and then part of the plot as far as what is evolving on Paradise.

This could be wrong, but i think something similar is a potential idea, its one that could work within the context of the whole Franchise.....  It also fits in with the Sources comments "she technically does not die"

However it is somewhat similar to the AVP Plot, in that our role was merely to pro-create the greatest Hunt/Prey for the Predators..... but i think it somewhat could apply but i think in a deeper and less simple way as that.

Davids big idea is very specific. Ridley is asked a rhetorical question so he gets his head back ? and his reply is its better than that its a big idea .. and I am not telling you. For me its some kind of transformative experience where he is both machine and mankind and he can then unlock the key to the evolving (re -evolving) creature particularly with the black goo infected reproductive capacity of Shaw being at hand.   

Exactly and thats what i was hinting at and should have mentioned but i have a number of times in the past.... This big idea which is connected to David being in One Piece has to be more than David having his head re-attached be it quick fix by Shaw or who ever does a decent job.

I was drawn with Davids Character to being similar to Pinocchio  and i would go as far to say that when i saw Prometheus Trailers, i analyzed them a lot and i was drawn to David 8 being Transcended into something else.

I was thinking.... i they really going for a straight prequel in a way that the events lead to Alien... i hoped not.. as the Space Jockey and Xeno was Ancient....  but seeing the Trailers etc, and especially the scene of someone standing over Shaw (Engineer) i assumed it was David.  And David would be able to do a Pinocchio and become a real boy.... in part... but doing so and getting his wish would leave him open to getting Face Hugged from Shaws Baby.... and this would give us the Space Jockey and why the Xeno was Bio-Mechanical.

I soon realized i was wrong when the last trailers hit and showed the Engineer in more detail in the Pilot Room and then i saw a blonde head on the floor.... and yep at this moment i knew it was not Vickers and that David does not become the Birth Machine for the Xeno or the Space Jockey itself.

I dont know if he (David 8 ) has some big idea now, which could be closer to that...

For me it has to be one of 3 things...

1) David is not simply stitched back together but something much more, he is evolved.

2) The other David is what Ridley means and so he was leading us astray.... and its the maybe not so synthetic David (Doppelganger) on the Covenant who is the big idea, a Synthetic Construct maybe like Elden in Fire and Stone and maybe my original theory could apply to this David.

3) Maybe some big role as far as Shaw, she is connected to this big idea, but i feel Ridleys Comment about being back together that is a big idea... is something connected to a Fassbender Character.

I am thinking maybe David Re-creates the event of the Trilobite with Shaw, and its victim is the Synthetic Construct David Doppelganger that provides us with maybe the Xenomorph... as Ridley hinted we would find out when, why and how its Bio-Mechanical.....

But we know Humans get Chest Busted too and maybe they produce something different, so in effect we get Two kinds of Monsters still as the Source claimed... only these ones are different to those the Source claimed...

Which i think would be one from a past event flash back maybe 2 thousand years ago, and another in time frame of between 2104 and 2122

@BD

A substantial part of the life cycle ritual is the notion of hosting. Prometheus reinforced this notion in several ways with the prot hosting worm, which actually was following the mutagens footprint but without the carrier, and then the trilobite. Shaw did not birth a deacon she birthed a creature that was a planter.  

If a Trilobite overcame a synthetic would it create a Xeno, as opposed to a trilobite overcoming an Engineer and creating a Deacon?   

Is it possible there is a character on board the Covenant that is intended as a host for the Trilobite such as plot devise Benjamin Rigby or David 8 not keen on this "new" David decides he should disappear the latter feels more tentpole than the former where we know the hosts will come from humankind anyway. 

David 8 has three tools to play with his mechanical body, Shaw's body which may or may not be invested with the mutagens reproductive repair and the Black Goo. If there are more Trilobites I am betting on Shaw being the source. 

For me I can see the Xeno creation I can see Shaw's role but I have to say I am foxed on the big idea and hope to remain so until next summer !  

Indeed Michelle...

I think its intrigues me when Ridley says we will find out "WHY the Xenomorph was Bio-Mechanical"

And its what is he teasing with this?  some event from the next movie will lead to this?    Prometheus we saw Xeno DNA but it was more ORGANIC we saw the Derelict DNA within the Juggernaught and Outpost but these were more NON-ORGANIC  So there has to be a connection a Merger of DNA that leads to our Xenomorph and Derelict being Bio-Mechanical compared to the more Organic Monsters in Prometheus and more Synthetic Ships/Technology.

Ridley could be leading us with a red herring.... in teasing maybe could the Xenomorph Mechanics come from adding a Synthetic to the mix....  This may appear to much likely for people who are on here... but the General Public would not think about it much and so if its revealed that a Android is needed to make the Xenomorph then the Public would be like WOW... now that makes sense... never saw that coming.

Where as we would have...

Its interesting to see where they are going with it all, and what they would include from Prometheus as far as connections and clues, because i for one feel the LV-223 Outbreak thousands of years ago, the length of time the Engineer was in Cryo-sleep and his Chest Busted Crew Members and the Mural and Fresco's show me that some part of the Xenomorph Origins and Evolution is something from the very past...... The Egg Fresco being very important...  Ridley had championed that the Derelict and Cargo had been on LV-426 for Thousands of years.

Which means a Event post Prometheus or Alien Covenant in context of 2094 ==> 2122 could not account for the Derelict.

But we dont know if they would change this now, they could do as there is nothing as far as clues within watching just the MOVIES that shows us the Derelicts True Age... But i felt Prometheus Outpost and Outbreak (inc Mural and Fresco's) had been there a long long time.

I dont think Ridley would go the route of showing us the Xenomorph in Alien Covenant, its been done to death as far as the Monster we have all come to see and love....

Ridley has said Alien Covenant is Part 1 of a 2-3 Part Prequel that leads to Alien and with Alien 5 maybe coming out with a passing of the Torch to Newt ... que Alien 6

Thats a lot of Movies to cover the Xenomorph..

So i think Alien Covenant will start to sow the seeds, and maybe at the end we get clues about something that could become the Xenomorph....   and why its Bio-Mechanical.

Because when i look at the released image of the (or at least one of) the Monsters in Alien Covenant it does not appear to have the Bio-Mechanical Look that the 1979 Alien had.

It appears to be more Biological...

Ridley has said very categorically the egg/chestbuster/big boy are in. All the T-shirt and cap releases celebrate a fully formed Zeno. 

On the question of how far had the mutagen evolved at the time of Prometheus this is one of these issues one can get in knots over given the evolution of the script.

It was left ambiguous and ambiguous enough for us to fill in our thoughts but that leaves room for Covenant to re-clarify what we all saw in Prometheus and the same applies to Alien. My view is people will leave the cinema will come out with a very simple message just as one does with the Martian. "So thats how and why the "m f. er" was created and that will sell seats. I would be exceptionally surprised if he goes all metaphorical again.      

So its going to be interesting with what we see....

They have gone from no Xenomorphs, to now we get every form of the Life Cycle,  Egg, Face Huger, Chest Buster and the Big Boy/Chap.......  but this could be similar Biology and not the exact Xenomorph as each movie has messed about with the Designs some what, and Blomkamps Concepts even gave us a different Egg/Face Huger and Big Boy....

And so it could be the Life Cycle thats the same but not the same Monster..... a Horse, Dog, Cat, Cow and Human all have the same Life Cycle but we are different.... a Lizard, Snake and Fish dont have the same Cycle as Mammals.

So it will be interesting.....

The Source hinted at something different but again we cant take what was said as being 100% or even 0%

Regardless of how interesting and deeper their clues was, which was TWO Different but similar Organisms via TWO different events in maybe TWO different Timelines...

The Mural had Xeno DNA, it had the TWO other unused Giger Face Hugger Concepts but was this a Easter Egg, the Fresco had a Creature with some Xeno DNA and then its likely this was holding the Xeno Egg.

Spaights draft showed us and then Ridley confirmed the idea that there was 8 different Xenomorph Monsters.

As far as Covenant goes and what we shall see,  something related is Evolving on Paradise by the time the Covenant Crew arrive.... has this ORGANISM been evolving for up to 10 years?  or much Longer?  Ridley said they (Engineers) created it, but in the same interview/comments he refereed to why would they create such Evil Biology and so the They Created it could just be about the Biological Tool that can be used to create it.

The Source  hinted that in order to (Re-Create) the Xenomorph all you needed was the Knowledge and Tools and David has both, so this could show us a Re-creation and this still means the Derelict Xeno could be from the past, but showing how its Re-Created could show us how the Original had occurred and answer those questions without needing to see the events of the past.

They hinted that the Deacon had a lot of evolving to become a Xenomorph,  they said that in context to Paradise Lost Poem and the Prometheus sequel that without Sin there would be no Xenomorph i would assume they mean the Daughter of Satan rather than the Actions that Contributed Sin against God?

They hinted that some of the Fallen Angels being turned into Serpents was seen as Freedom from Bondage and so maybe the Serpent/Xenomorph is connected?

They also said that the events of LV-223 and LV-426 are very much connected in the scheme of things and so indeed the locations and goings on LV-223 are not Coincidental.

But alas.... i cant say for sure if the Source was in anyway telling even a fraction of the truth....  only time would tell and who knows what U-Turn they have made since.

If i do take what they say on board, with Shaw's omission from the Synopsis and small time on set  (7% of days of total shooting).

Then if the Deacon has to Evolve to become a Xenomorph, what is part of that Evolution and if David is to Re-Create we know that Shaw was involved in the Creation of the Deacon.

David only needs to repeat the Experiment... but there is no Holloway?   Who is to say that all Holloway was is a way to Transferred the Material that was in the Top of the Ampoule that David had on his finger "Big things have small beginnings"

This would maybe fit with the Mystery Holloway Eye Worm, and this unused prop...

This shows there was a connection..... those Mosquito Larvae looking Worm Parasites do look like the Eye Worm.

If the Top of the Urn Ampoules contained thousands of Nano Worms like these, we have to remember Sperm looks like Tiny Tadpole Organisms under the Microscope and so maybe its these Worms and not Holloways Sperm that Fertilized Shaws Egg

Could Spaights Nano-Scarabs had been Evolved to Nano-Worms?

If this is in anyway true....

Then indeed David has all the Tools to Re-Create a Deacon using Shaw... only with a Human Host for the Trilobite we would get something smaller, but what with a Synthetic Construct?

If this is the way that the Deacon/Xenomorph can be re-created then we maybe dont need Shaw as the Covenant has a number of couples...

And so when i look at the Sources comments, apply them to Covenant and the Beat the Chest Buster Scene....  i cant help but wonder could the above theory be true...  and lead to another Trillobite like Shaws... only what if no one knew about Shaws Baby.....  no doubt it would have Chest Busted from her?  

If we apply this to the Covenants couples and re-introduce Spaights Love Scene Chest Buster... maybe this is what we are in store for?

Exactly...

I dont think we would get Spoon Fed,  and maybe we wont see the 1979 Xenomorph until at the end....  but i think they would give us enough that people wont leave not knowing what the connections would be with Alien.

I still dont think we will see the 1979 Xenomorph until the very end, even though we are going to see Aliens Chest Busting and chasing people and killing them off. 

Maybe we would see them... but with another 1-2 Movies after Alien Covenant are they going to reveal the Xenomorph two 3rds of the way into this movie or earlier and then have Alien Covenants sequels be about the same Monster with Alien 5 and possible Alien 6 also to feature the same Monster?

The Clothing and other items the Production/Art Crew have been given that depict the 1979 Xenomorph and Face Huger are interesting, but would Ridley reveal so in your face the BIG PLOT POINT of the Movie?

We know they are trying to provide us more clues that are more direct this time, and we are going to see them all, (Egg, Face Huger, Chest Buster etc) but then to also have the designs on the Production Crews Clothes and Caps that matches the Original 1979 version.

Leaves nothing to suspense, i wander if Ridley is using these as a Red Herring?

Because when i look at the only officially released image of the Monster (or one of them) from Alien Covenant, its anatomy based only off the hand is different to the Xenomorphs.  Only Slightly but still different.

Here we have mans Evolution.... at each stage our Procreation Cycle is the same... so a Life Cycle of any of these would be the same.... yet the 2nd or 3rd evolutionary step above would look somewhat different to Mankind.

I think this is what we would see in Alien Covenant something very related... but not the same.... but right at the end we then see the seeds sowed that give us more of something related to the 1979 Monster...  

So that the sequel has something to carry on with and evolve, as i dont think the next movie will go "here is the birth of the Xenomorph" i think it would show seeds and something related but then allow for a evolution that can be explored in the next movie after.

I think the point re evolution on paradise is interesting when you take into account the type of support actors that they are drafting in, ie acrobatic, fit/strong.

What it in addition to the Xenomorph the 'humans' on the planet have also evolved to be able to evade/fight them?  You would have to be pretty agile to get away from them.  

I've never thought of that... Humans who evolved to rival the Xenomorph threat. That's actually brilliant! Life is about survival and animals constantly adapt and evolve to combat threats, rivals and each other. This concept never even occurred to me.

Bio-mechanical, does that imply that maybe it gets crossed with an Android like David at some point?

If one of the Davids is a human in Covenant, perhaps he is Weyland's son (Vickers secret twin brother she never knew about).

When people say "biomechanical" I don't know what they mean. The engineers have great technology such as organic suits etc... but they are just suits. The Xenomorphs are a product of the mutagen affecting a native species. A Xenomorph is not an actual species itself. Its just a host infected with black goo. Xenomorphs are not biomechanical. the black goo itself might have nano tech in it but the hosts (xenomorphs) are not biomechanical.

There is no such thing as a Biomechanical species. That's ridiculous. Also, because I see this way too often. People seem to not understand the scope of the universe and carelessly throw around terms like intergalactic etc... There is no way that the life can cross galaxies, period. Not even robots could do it. Anyone who says they can doesn't understand how far away galaxies are from one another (unless they were ripping eachother apart stuck together). 1 galaxy has enough stars in it and space, that it could host ALL scifi movies ever made and never own world or spaceship would ever overlap into the territory of another. StarTrek and StarWars are both ridiculous and unbelievable, that's why I like the Alien movies which have a lot more realism.

Even the movie Interstellar screwed this up with the black guy saying that its a wormhole to another galaxy.....then why is the movie not called Intergalactic? Sometimes I really feel like we're being screwed by very non-intelligent writers who should be fired....people who have no clue about Astronomy or astro physics.

Hi all,

Been a while for me, but here goes...

The trailer looks stunning - a return to horror & the unexplained.

I've been a modest fanboy of the films since "A L I E N" scared the sh*t out of me in my early teens...I've a few books on the original movie & I been fortunate enough to stumble upon Giger's gallery in Gruyere. That being said, I do lack the depth of knowledge on the franchise many of you have. But here goes...

It appeared to me that many of the ideas that were intended for the original "A L I E N" movie that were cut due to story or financial considerations (the temple, the fresco's, etc.) were used in "Prometheus".

Having read Jon Spaihts screenplay for "Prometheus", & being aware of Damon Lindelofs revisions, it appears to me that many of his (Mr Spaihts) ideas for that film may appear in "Alien:Covenant", so my very, very, very broad brush synopsis is...

David (with his head somehow reconnected) has continued the work of the Engineers, due (in variable proportions) to his disappointment in the explanation of his own creation ("We built you because we could") & having developed a God complex...not unlike his creators.

The Covenant is just in the wrong place at the wrong time and pay the price for Davids "Weird Science" project.

I'm sure there is much more to it than that, but its a start.

Welcome aboard... and indeed i dont think thats a theory that can be to far from what we would be seeing.

Thanks BigDave, my analysis is certainly less forensic than yours (having read your original post), but I'm hoping I'm on the right path.

While I realise we may see some aspects reinvented, what I'd really like to see is a larger story arc that takes us from "Prometheus" (as flawed a film as it may or may not be) through to "A L I E N", with lots of plot twists & red herrings, bringing us to a fulfilling* link/conclusion.

At the risk of invoking much anger, I believe it's been done successfully with a number of MARVEL film franchises (sometimes to my pleasant surprise), so I hope these films can do the same.

*Fulfilling does not mean happy &/or unambiguous...

Wouldn't it make sense that the colonists would have children with them too? They're young couples right? I hear there are embryos aboard, if that's true then there has to be some technology in mind to carry them to term. No one is growing adult humans here. That being said wouldn't these couples be very parentally sound? That might fit with the whole covenant theme and title.

Has David 8 gone HAL 9000?

Just a thought (and those of you of the MTV generation or younger may wish to research 2001: A Space Odyssey)...

As a continuation of the ambiguity/indifference David appeared to have towards the majority of his human crew mates in "Prometheus", is David suffering from a conflict in programmed directives (work with & protect the crew vs discover stuff & report to Weyland), leading him to create his own solutions, as did HAL 9000 in 2001 (tell the crew every thing except the stuff we programmed you not to tell them)? This would also align with Ash's programming in "A L I E N".

I suspect that any such story arc was an afterthought, but it would be a nice touch.

Ps; If the adults are in the "Freezerinos" (thanks Brett), could they be considered hosts?

That would be interesting...

As far as Children... i think maybe yes...

Depends how many Colonist there are... i heard 200, then the IMDB leaks and 4Chan said 2000, and half Embryos..... 

So who knows...

We have to consider the Covenant Crew we see in the movie are not young... half of them are at the Age they would need to think about making Babies ASP really.

I would think a Mission with the Prime Directive of being groups of couples with the AIM to Procreate and then raise Children and Teach that Generation to be able to go on and produce the next..

Would all ideally have to be 20-30 years old.

So yes as some are older.... it could make sense they already have Children on board.

I've been reading all the posts I can find and have an idea. They say Shaw may be only doing a cameo in this movie and there are two more prequels to complete up to the original Alien movie. Devastation of the Covenant crew will abound and just as the movie ends, Shaw with personal made ragged clothing will appear returning from an exploration trip. Just in time to be in the next prequel! It's been done before as a plot trick!

i am back after 2 years

@BigDave Do you think Alien: Covenant will explore the origins of the green crystal from Prometheus? Sorry I couldn't get a better picture, its only shown briefly.

on the subject of the folk in cryo on the covenant, id agree theyr age range would be between 20-30. couples ready to start a family but who also have something to contribute such as nurses, engineers, construction workers, farmers etc. it wouldn't make a lot of sense to bring children with them as the adults r going to be extremely busy. that's only my take on it if I was setting up the mission. children could become a distraction. though it depends on what cargo the covenant has onboard. plausible it has pre-fabricated structures designed for theyr needs on a short term basis. and what function would the covenant play after landing? would it be able to function as a living space, school, hospital for any length of time? or is it seen as a resource to be stripped down once a suitable planet has been found?

@Seraphis 

Originally it was the Sacrificial Bowl from the opening Scene, which lead to a theory for me that they did the same kind of Sacrifice on something related to the Xeno... and its broken down material was re-weaponized into the Urns.

But as with Elders Scene, and cut down of Engineers scenes.. they had changed a lot post shooting...

and the Crystal with no explanation was the result.

The Source i had in Febuary 2015 had teased that on Paradise there was a Obelisk that was black, but it was not stone not quite, it looked Grown and had roots attached and a Green Glow in the center and was to be the in-context...  Re-take of the Tree that bore the Forbidden Fruit in the Garden of Eden and also the Fire in Prometheus and also in a way Gold in other cultures the Gods wanted.

And so its teased then that the LV-223 Engineers had Stole this Fire/Fruit and so in this case if the Source was correct..

Then this Crystal could be a Shard taken from the Obelisk and its from this the Engineers obtain the Creation Tool Goo.

The Source seemed to tease that in regards to other cultures and Gold that the Gods sort is to be something different and that the Gold is not Gold... but in loose context its obtained how Gold is in Ancient Mythos like the Emerald Tablets.

Which again i think points to the Green Crystal and thus the Gold is the Substance the Sacrificial Engineers used. Which is obtained from the Crystal...

But we dont know if the Source was correct or if thats Changed now with Logans Re-write.

Well the 4Chan leaks seem to say that the Ship has Embryos... and so these Couples are not here to procreate because they have Embryos in storage..

Makes no sense at all... what they gonna do?

Test Tube Grow the Embryos to Humans? Then why need couples? 

Plant the Embryos inside the Females once they have found and set up a new Colony?  this seems odd.... why not just have sex and get pregnant?  Why not have Frozen Sperm?  The only way this works is with a twist and those colonist get implanted with non-human Embryos.

So i am not so sure really... i would imagine they are there to set up a New World and then Procreate on it.... due to age of some of them it would make more sense if they already have some Children on board but we cant be sure.

@claudius

Welcome back

@WildGoose

I am not sure how they will tackle Shaw... i would think she would be wrote off as far as timeline goes...

The movie was set to feature and be about David and Shaw and what they find on Paradise... the Source i had said this is what they was doing but that Shaw wont play a big role.. she get some answers, but they wont be what she wanted and she will be incapacitated and Technically Not Dead.

Seems AC is arriving at the aftermath and so AC is like a Prometheus 3 or Prometheus 2.5

Which could be in part true.. because Ridley Scott said they are going to the story in Alien, the Why, When and how... this movie will BACK INTO Alien and they are coming in at it from the Rear End/Door?

Maybe this is kind of like what they did with Star Wars... we had the first 3 movies... then the next 3 was prequels... backing into the first movie..

Maybe thus they would be going 10 years after Prometheus but then in latter movies in some sense we will see a kind of backing into Alien... as far as setting in the past...  and not a direct Prometheus 2094 ---> Alien Covenant ---> 2104 (Alien Eggs made) ---> Alien Covenant sequel ---> Space Jockey Event set between year 2104 and 2122...

Nope... i think it will go backwards..

I suppose there are multiple paths possible for the plot in AC? For example:

The Juggernaut (which David and Shaw leave LV-223 in): What’s in the cargo hold?

• Urns with the mutagen (the black goo)?
• Eggs (perhaps different kinds which Spaihts suggests)?
• The Deacon (David returns to LV-223 for some reason)?

The trip to Paradise (which we will be presented with in a prequel novel): What happened during this trip?

• Shaw was persuaded by David to repair him (get his head back on)?
• Shaw was put in cryo-sleep?
• David used what was in the cargo hold and experimented with Shaw?

On paradise

• The engineers are long gone (in connection to the outbreak on LV-223) and all that is left of their culture are ruins? The ruins might still contain egg or black goo-chambers . . . Or there are nothing left?
• Some engineers are still there when David and Shaw crash land? Judging by the reaction of the engineer on LV-223 they wouldn’t greet them . . . They kill Shaw and spare David (since he’s a synthetic)? David later kills everyone through his stealthy experiments?
• All the monsters are created from what is already on Paradise through an old outbreak (eggs, black goo, fungi with spores)?
• David creates it all (or some of it)?

David

• David is “evil” (or without empathy) which we could see in Prometheus?
• David has changed (developed) and become more human (a soul, morality etc)?

We will find out in may, though. :)

I would love to see more insight of the engineers which could be expanded with use of the galaxy map to provide more details about their origins. However I am concerned about the synopsis which states  - 'whose sole inhabitant is the “synthetic” David, survivor of the doomed Prometheus expedition'... I just hope there is more to this film and things add up properly this time and it isn't one big experiment with David as the creator of the genetically modified goo. Perhaps now that he has mastered their language he is communicating with the engineers planet and some how working with them but has an evil twist - we know he's not going to be good! 

I think what we're going to learn, at least I hope, in Alien: Covenant is that the Engineers were taking the black goo to Earth to create Xenomorphs using humans as their lab rats. The reason, possibly, is that they extract the black goo from Xenomorph eggs. Perhaps it helps them have an extended life, or they're using it for some other purpose(s). Humans are simply a step in the evolutionary chain, which is directed by the engineers. 

If you look at Fifield's transformation when exposed to the goo, he is turning into a Xenomorph or something akin to it. If you've seen the alternate Fifield attack scene you will see this very clearly. 

Something else I noticed in the scene at the end when the Engineer is awakened. When he is bent over it appears that his body is undergoing a change. The darkened blood vessels appear on the side of his face/head. This is the same thing that happened to the engineer at the beginning of the movie. He's been infected, but was fortunate enough to stop the spread of it, unlike his comrades in the other cryo units.

So, here's how the story could go. The Engineers discovered the Xenomorphs long ago, but the Xenomorphs were on the verge of extinction. They discovered that the black substance in the eggs could give them an extended life. The Engineers created humans to act as hosts for the black goo, which in turn would create more Xenomorphs. They would wait for the transformation, swoop down and steal the eggs, and extract the black substance. I may be pulling this out of my a$$. It wouldn't be the first time. :-)