Ridley Scott's Xenomorph is the only justifiably humanoid alien to me

This post is taken directly from my personal blog:

http://clarkelspencer.oucreate.com 

The concept of the humanoid alien (and more specifically, alien) must've began with the depiction of "Grays" 100 or so years ago. "Grays," the kind of aliens you'd see on The X-Files or on Roswell propaganda, are characterized by large heads, large black eyes, a thin frame, and-or course-gray skin. So, why is this? Some will tell you it's because humans "evolved" from them, or vice versa. A reason that's grounded in the reality that aliens aren't real is that their appearance is familiar, as well as easily portrayed by human actors in film and TV. In this post, I'd like to discuss the only alien known to me whose humanoid form is justified: the Xenomorph from Ridley Scott's 1979 movie, "Alien."

While one can say that the Xenomorph is humanoid because it suits (pun) the human actor wearing the costume, the movie's mythology actually justifies its appearance.

Simply put, the Xenomorph takes the form of its host, which, in every movie in the Alien universe-prequels included-except Alien 3 (in which it is a dog/ox), is a human (let's forget about its tail for the sake of this argument). Now, while the reason for this is not explicitly stated in the movies, I can assume there's some DVD special features that do.

Take the Facehugger. It survived just as easily on the Nostromo's shuttle as it did in the derelict ship, meaning it's able to adapt to atmospheric changes. It also somehow knew to feed Kane oxygen/air after it hugged his face. Once it was in the med bay, its skin had hardened to silicone, which Ash observed.

Now, back to the Xenomorph. I'll venture a guess that it takes the form of its host because its host was already suited to survive in that environment. Also, the fact that an alien parasite looks like you is unnerving enough as it is. On the film-making side, its humanoid form also reinforces the sexual themes such as oral impregnation throughout the movie. The movie is, after all, "body horror."

"Alien" is my favorite movie for both the justification of the Xenomorph's humanoid form, as well as all of the mythology the movie-makers were able to squeeze into 100-some-odd minutes (the derelict ship and its pilot, etc.).

Speaking of "Alien," if you're wondering where the word "Nostromo" comes from, it's the title/name of the main character of an early 1900s book of the same name. I have not gotten around to reading the book, but I understand its plot of government conspiracy influenced that seen in "Alien," albeit in South America, not in space.