LET’S HEAR IT FOR PROMETHEUS!

Lone
MemberPraetorianSeptember 11, 2018EDIT: I originally wrote this to celebrate this years ALIEN Day, however it wouldn’t post at that time, but now at last, everything appears to be back to normal for me!
Like many of you, last April I was looking forward to setting off for the PROMETHEUS & ALIEN double bill, which formed the first half of the Alien Super Ticket. Covenant was still a few weeks off and anticipation levels were somewhat high.
How time flies. This years ALIEN Day dawned rather forlorn in comparison. What do we have to look forward to now? Will another ALIEN prequel be forthcoming? If so, will Sir Ridders be at the helm? Will what started off so promisingly, the Prometheus mythos, ever be revisited and reach a satisfactory conclusion?
I thoroughly enjoyed seeing PROMETHEUS then ALIEN play out together on a cinema screen. I was reminded yet again, of how damned beautiful PROMETHEUS was. How fresh and refreshing this new chapter proved to be. I’ve said it before, but I will gladly repeat myself. I now view PROMETHEUS as a precious gem. Possibly a one-off, spectacular, multi-faceted, shiny diamond!
Ridley never gave us 25ft Space Jockeys, but I liked the Engineers. Their technology was beautiful, their architecture awe-inspiring. Everything felt connected to H.R. Gigers work. The creatures roots were clearly visible, yet they branched into fresh territory.
Ridley got so many things right. The landscapes, digital and practical effects, a production design second to none. Whether you dislike the characters or not, the story is interesting. Even more so, the potential future possibilities could have been mind-blowing!
For me, one of the most interesting aspects was the Black Pathogen, a highly mutable, liquid for creation. Its future capabilities were endless. Was it found or stolen by these Engineers, or created by them? I so looked forward to finding those answers & more.
There are many ways to continue its themes. To introduce other species (including 25ft Space Jockeys!) To have the Engineers return. To have David get the ending he so deserves. God knows, some of our members have come up with truly great concepts!
PROMETHEUS is six years old. In those few short years it has created much controversy, speculation and argument and has to be the most talked about Sci-fi movie to date!
I pray that it doesn’t get forgotten. For those of you who enjoyed and appreciated it, let’s hear it for PROMETHEUS!
"Let The Cosmic Incubation Begin" ~ H.R. Giger
This Series of I V's shows Ridley and the others fired up.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RMjiVgl7nmc
At 10.16 he says this film ends with you looking into whats next. However you can sense that Damon from the directors commentary was concerned that it may look as if the franchise was being hijacked. He was on point with fan boy attitudes in monster franchises.
"Sincerely, are those questions really that important or didn't we know already know the answer"
Thanks for the Reply Ignorant Guy.... when i was proposing those Questions it was also on the basis that Each New Movie allows for a different insight, most those Questions we could ponder a answer, but with Prometheus it opened up a different way to look at those Answers, and with Alien Covenant likewise... such as Special Order 937 which was a bit ambiguous as we had not been shown why this order was made, not as far as being given any idea of to what degree they are/was aware of the Specimen, but after the Prequels the door was opened to show us its likely as a result of the Advent Message and what those who received it then do with the information, that could lead to what is known and exactly why Special Order 937 was there.
The same applies with ASH, with the route of the Prequels it could allow us to ponder if Maybe?... the interest Ash had in the Xenomorph was because he is aware its creation was at the hands of one of his own kine (Synthetic) but this is not Fact, just opens up a possible explanation. And so IF they do go the route that there is a Conspiracy and AI is actually running a lot of the Show behind the scenes (Illuminati style) i think it could be a possible explanation to why the Company Pursues this Folly, if AI is in Control and Mankind are being used as Pawns for them to obtain the Perfect Creation that one of their own had Created..
But thats not to say this is the case, its not to say this is the route that would be taken and so indeed from what the Franchise had shown, we see that it appears the Company see the Xenomorph as some kind of Military Weapon that indeed they could make some Money from... we never get too much in details in the Franchise regarding that, but i think the Xenomorph could also have more applications than just a Weapon to Deploy, and its likely the Science Division would be looking to exploit its traits, which we kind of see in Alien Resurrection. I hope we do get some reason eventually why they never bother with the Black Goo or Engineers Technology in the Franchise, as surely there are many applications for their use... but this is NO fault of the Original Franchise as these added details are introduced only in the Prequels... to a degree (maybe the Derelict would be of interest)
"From the Moment David Pulled the Trigger on those Engineers to the Moment Dr Shaw took her last Breath" is that even the correct order?"
Indeed this whole Period offers a lot of Questions, it would be indeed interesting to find out what happened to Dr Shaw from the Moment David Bombarded those Engineers, i think its highly LIKELY she was alive at the Moment those Urns started to Rain Down on the Engineer City.
*Did Dr Shaw Die/Get injured in the Crash?
*If not, then what did David tell her about the Bombardment and what would be her Reaction?
*How long did she remain in the Juggernaught, before and IF she had explored into the City?
*How many hours, days, weeks, months had it been before Dr Shaw ended up being experimented/killed and was their relationship good prior to this and WHAT triggered the break down in the relationship.
These along with maybe a number of other potential Scenarios/Events are interesting to Ponder, and i think it would be interesting if we eventually got a Book that covers these.
As its unlikely a Movie would be made to cover them, even if Alien Covenant had been more of a Success (but some Flash Backs and Narration/comments by David may have inferred to us what happened). But off course what David would say, does not mean what actually happened.. He would tell what ever side of a Story he wanted for his own gain.
R.I.P Sox 01/01/2006 - 11/10/2017
@MonsterZero
Its possible they could go the David uploads himself route, but it may go even beyond just Ash... i am being drawn to the possibility that either Davids Sentient AI is uploaded and then interacts/upgrades/reprograms more than just Ash or maybe even Weyland has his Soul stored into AI and its this that is TRANSCENDED into Ash. (as well as many other AI/Computers).
"but would Charlie and Elizabeth have opened it if they had been alone?"
Thats a interesting Question Michelle, on one had we have Dr Shaw who while she is a Scientist she still holds on to her Faith, and could be led by her Quest to discover HOW these Clues they found link to her FAITH and yet she is the one who appears to be more Cautious...
We have Holloway who does not follow Blind Faith but Scientific Answers, you would think he should be the more Rational/Logical and play it Safe... But his Ego and Desire/Impatience for Answers could make him willing to take Risks in opening Pandora's Box.
So it would have been Interesting to see what would have happened HAD there been no David... i would think even if they could not Read those Engineer Cruciform/Hieroglyphs if they arrived at a part of this Complex with a BUTTON i am sure Holloways Curiosity would got the better of him. Likewise seeing Dead Engineer Body's i think while Dr Shaw seems Cautious i do think she would have wanted to push on and explore the Complex than to head back to the Ship and call it a Day.
R.I.P Sox 01/01/2006 - 11/10/2017
"Davids Sentient AI is uploaded"
I just hope they maybe use this method to explain the Eggs on the Sulaco. Either Bishop with deep programming brought the eggs. Or at the very least create a plausible explanation in Covenant 2/3.
David could be 'living' on Lv426 or Lv223 in the 2180's. Just watching his creatures take over Hadley's Hope. Would have been a popcorn munching event!
He could have visited the Sulaco in a small spacecraft and placed the egg(s) himself? Waited for the crew to get in Hypersleep, place the egg, then left the ship.
Indeed the AI aspect could be used to explain a number of Mysteries/Questions and events within the Franchise.
As Bishop is a AI, then we can assume a AI could have a Embedded Programing that Bishop would not be aware of, so it would be like TWO Separate Protocols/Personalities, so that Bishop could be under the command of a Certain Order that his Main AI is unaware of.
So this could allow him to have some part of say the Eggs on the Sulaco, but then also not be aware of the orders he is carrying out. Not saying this is the case... but its something they could use as a explanation.
R.I.P Sox 01/01/2006 - 11/10/2017
What special abilities do we think the Deacon has? Mindless drone...or?
It was a huge birth(compared to the Xeno!). Engineer and trilobite combined...or does that matter? Demon seed of the trilobite would just burst a human.
Is it smart enough to seek shelter...munch on the Engineers corpse...help the trilobite escape?
Is the Trilobite still alive? Did Shaw leave the airlock open?
Maybe have a tender scene were the Deacon meets it's mother(Trilobite) and the Deacon kills it?
Its hard to know as we know little of the Deacon, it was in essence a Creature/Scene to show that there is a link between the Black Goo and Xenomorph DNA.
The Xenomorph Procreation is regarded as via a Queen, we can speculate how a Queen comes into existence, but originally there was the Egg Morph Procreation Route (that was a cut scene from ALIEN). so it leaves it interesting to speculate how the Deacon could Procreate, and if it even could? Ultimately i am not sure it was intended to be explored again and it was a nod to show fans that the Xenomorph is connected to experiments those Engineers had been conducting on LV-223
Regarding the Deacon Seed, i think it depends how we look at the Engineer, and with Alien Covenant we can now accept our Engineer was not 10ft+ and so there is only about a 25% Size difference between a Engineer Male and a Human Male and so its HIGHLY likely the Trilobite could have infected a Human, i would assume the result would be similar if maybe 25% smaller than the Engineer Deacon.
As far as how SMART it would be... its hard to say, i think we can assume this Deacon is a Humanoid Hybrid and so has at Face Hugger Stage (Trilobite) more Human DNA than a Face Hugger.... but its hard to gauge how Intelligent the Deacon would become. So this is open to debate, i would maybe assume it would be more Intelligent and less Animalistic but thats just a assumption.
I would assume the Trilobite Dies after it has Impregnated its Host much like the Face Hugger, as i think the whole point of the Trilobite/Deacon was to show a connection to the Face Hugger/Xenomorph and so its safe to assume the Trilobite is Dead.
But when you consider the size of the Trilobite, and how small the Seed would have been thats implanted into the Engineer, surely such a Large Organism could have more than ONE Seed/Embryo, but we could say the same for the Face Hugger.. however the Trilobite is much larger, but i still think its purpose is a ONE-SHOT impregnation and then it has served its purpose.
The Air-lock doors appear to have a automatic close, so it would have locked behind by the time the Trilobite could have moved (if it was alive) and we have to assume it could not open the door, because it was also trapped in the Med-Pod Room.
Deacon meets Mother? This would be interesting only if we ASK does the Xenomorph require FOOD to grow? And if the Deacon is more Human/Engineer DNA then would it require FOOD? If the Answer is YES, then maybe the Deacon could consume some of the Trilobite as a Food Source, we have this happen with a number of Organisms on Earth, where the Mother is Consumed by her Young.
There is a Post here about some unused Concepts for the Deacon in the Fire and Stone Comics HERE
Here is some concept of the Deacon Size they was proposing for Fire and Stone. I have worked out the approx Height and marked it above each Organism.
We had discussed the Deacon before on here, before Fire and Stone and these concepts.... where i had take our Engineer in Prometheus as being 7.5ft would mean our Deacon would had been 5ft Approx at Birth and then looking how a Human Grows (plus a lot of Mammals) from Birth to Adult i then calculated the Deacon would have grown to about 16ft Tall as a Adult.
It appears when they have worked on Fire and Stone, those guys have a Deacon Adult to actually be 10ft (Birthed from a Engineer) and so a Human Gestated one by their standards would have been about 7.5ft and so about size of a Grown Xenomorph.
Edit: That calculation is a Moot point, as it shows the Human Deacon Adult to be 8ft (my calculation was based on Adult Engineer Deacon compared to Engineer which for a Human would be about 7.5ft).
But this means we can speculate a Human Deacon would indeed be in the 7.5-8ft Ball Park, and a Engineer one about 10ft.
This would make is a Fearsome Beast to Encounter, you would have to Fancy your Chances against a Neomorph or Xenomorph rather than a Engineer Deacon.
I think we can assume a Engineer Birthed Xenomorph would stand about 9-10ft Tall.
R.I.P Sox 01/01/2006 - 11/10/2017
Wow! Thanks for that.
Deacon size could also be affected by gravity and the local stars radiation?
Why did the Engineers choose this star system? Close to Earth(specimens)?
Wonder if the Engineers have any floating structures in the cloud tops(or deeper) of Calpamos?..that's be a cool story...maybe the derelict on Archeron was headed for them. Doubt humans are going to probe the depths of a gas giant for alien races/ships/cities?
Certainly Climate/Gravity and other aspects of a World could determine the outcome of a Deacon/Xenomorph, this cant be ruled out. But it appears for certain that the Pathogen (Black Goo) Creates Hybrid Forms of what ever is infected, and we also see resulting Organisms that came from the Black Goo that go on to have some kind of Procreation (Face Hugger/Trilobite) do appear to create a Hybrid where its Embryo/Seed takes on Traits of a Host, this would be beneficial to allow the Organism to adapt to the Environment of its Host... but what happens when the Host in infected on a Environment thats not Habitable for itself? We dont know enough about the Xenomorph let alone the Deacon to know if it could survive in a Vacuum or a Environment that has no Atmosphere or Oxygen, but i think we can assume they can survive LESS Rich/Suitable Environments that a Human would not.
Why would the Engineers choose this Star System? This is a Good Question, one that Prometheus set up a few possible reasons, that then Alien Covenant maybe narrows down.
Prometheus gives us the Clues/Hints that these Engineers had chosen this place to perform experiments as opposed to doing these on their OWN world. We do know that LV-223 was used at some point to create Horrific Bio-Weapons but there is still some discrepancy regarding what this place is regarding WHY are those Star Maps left.. I find it odd that they would leave such things to a Death-Camp.
This left it open for people to Ponder a few things...
*Is it a Warning?
*Is it a Trap?
One thing is for certain it was not a INVITATION and i dont buy into it being a Trap... or a Warning. To me it just seems odd that they would Create this Place to Create Bio-Weapons to use on Earth (plus maybe other places) and leave Clues to its Location on Earth, dating back 35'000 years ago. We have to ask?
1) Was this Place Experimenting/Creating Bio-Weapons 35'000+ Years ago.
a) If so, why leave clues dating back all those years and after, if its a Warning, then we have to ask WHY it appears they only intended to use this Weapon on us 2000 years ago.
b) How do they get involved in such a Bio-Hazard Substance and Experiments 35'000 + years ago, and only suffer a Miss-Hap 2000 years ago (or had there been others prior).
2) If this place was not a Outpost for Bio-Weapon Experiments or related Organisms/Pathogen related to the Black Goo/Xenomorph some 35'000 years ago, then WHEN did this place become such a place and why leave Clues prior and then continue after?
To me i think it was best to look at the Prometheus Plot/Themes and not ALIEN... Prometheus set up to show us the Space Jockey Race are or are connected to the Engineers who are a Ancient Race who go around Seeding Worlds with Life and Evolving them.. Genetic Gardeners of Space and NOT! a Alien Race Hell Bent on Creating Evil Bio-Weapons/Xenomorphs to Rule the Galaxy.
So if you are a Race who go around Seeding Worlds and Evolving Life, using the Sacrificial Goo which has the potential to contaminate/mutate Life, then YOU DONT want to be using this stuff on your own World.. Then when you have seeded a Number of Worlds and wish to Experiment and Evolve some Life on these Worlds, maybe you want to make sure your Experiments/Creations are not going to contaminate the Worlds in a Undesired way?
So you would want to have some kind of Secure Place to Experiment with Creations, and then when your pleased with the results and view they would be suitable to place on the Worlds you are investing into, with no concerns they would prove a problem to what is already there... Then it makes PERFECT sense to have some kind of SANDBOX Environment. Or if you was a Gardener then if you wished to Experiment/Evolve Certain Plants/Fruits, Vegetables etc, trying to improve them or create Hybrids or New Kinds then you would want to ensure your Experiments/Creations are NOT going to effect the rest of your Plants/Fruits, Vegetables in a Negative way. So you would have a Greenhouse/Nursery like SANDBOX and when your pleased with the Results and confirm they can be placed in your Garden without effecting what you have there, then this makes PERFECT sense.
THIS ^^^ has been my interpretation/view on what LV-223 was but i do think at some-point something Changed, be it the whole of the Engineers or a Group where they had become interested in these Experiments related to Xenomorph DNA and intended use on Earth.
I think the STAR-MAPS were showing the Engineers Creations... "This is where you were created from" and so we are the ones who Originated/Evolved from LV-223.
Alien Covenant with the Advent Viral seemed to indicate that Planet 4 could be located within the Zeta 2 Constellation. But Prometheus claimed these Engineers are not Stupid Enough to Create such Experiments/Bio-Weapons on their own Back-Yard... But then having something set up a Few Light Years away would maybe not be on your own Back-Yard, especially if the only way any contamination could occur would be if your RACE took some from this place or became contaminated when they left.
We have to remember even if Planet 4, LV-223 and LV-426 are within the same Constellation... we have to remember a Constellation is only HOW a group of Stars Appear to us on Earth. And so you could have TWO constellations that in the Night Sky appear to be Far away from Each other, but then you could have some Stars in Constellation A that are similar distance to Earth as some in Constellation B and you could have Stars in Constellation A that are much further away than others.
So what i am saying is Planet 4 could be located in the SKY just South East of Zeta 2 Reticuli which is about 40LY away and when looking into the SKY it could appear this place South East is close to Zeta 2 Reticuli but it could actually be 5X 10X or more Further.
Thats a way i can make sense of it and explain, as the other explanation if we assume it has to be very close to LV-223/426 means the Covenant Ship likely has Speeds that are not Far off the Nostromo and taking the Advent Viral into account, i do think we can assume Planet 4 is located about 30-60 LY from Earth Ball Park... we have to ask HOW come no one discovered this place prior, the Logical Explanation is the Engineers had some Technology that appeared to HIDE their Planets Location and it was only via the Neutrino Burst that allowed the Juggernauts Message to Travel Beyond what ever means could prevent Signals/Detection from this Planets Surface.
I would say the Engineers could have wanted to remain quite close to their Creations, but then when looking at the Scope with Prometheus of these beings being Genetic Space Gardeners, it opened up the Possibility that these beings had Seeded Many Worlds across the Galaxy, and BEYOND.. (Why would Engineers Navigation System have many Galaxies, if they cant Travel to them?).
So its a bit of a Coincidence that there Homeworld is actually very close to Earth when considering the size of the Galaxy.... but this is LIKELY a Plot Convenience to allow for the Humans of the Covenant Mission to arrive at a Place that allows through them and their Mission to lead to the Xenomorph Eventually being on the Derelict.
No Xenomorph without David, Potentially him needing Human Hosts to Continue/Evolve his Xenomorph, means NO Xenomorphs on LV-426 as of the year 2105, so having the Engineers Homeworld and David located Hundreds, or Thousands of Light Years from Earth, is not convenient to the Plot Change they have now taken.
Lastly indeed some ideas apparently was the Engineers had Technology in Space surrounds their Homeworld, this Space Ring Technology is what CLOAKED their Homeworld from detection.. This was dropped for latter Shooting Scripts.
Could the Engineers have Floating Space Stations? i think maybe in the Galaxy, but it appears with Alien Covenant that these beings wish to keep what ever they do, and their locations a Secret and so maybe they Do-Not use Satellites and Space Stations? But i would think in the Past a Space Fairing Race at some point would have used such things. This could be Many Thousands, Hundreds of Thousands, or Millions of years ago though.
I think there was a lot of Scope about the Engineers, their Culture and Technology and where they are located throughout the Galaxy.... But it appears this Scope has been reduced with the Plot of Alien Covenant somewhat.
It potentially could be expanded however, by Virtue of Pondering WHY/HOW does those Engineers Navigation on their Juggernauts have other Galaxies if they cant Travel to them... which opens up the area they have explored to a MASSIVE scale which means that Traveling Millions of Light Years must be Possible!
R.I.P Sox 01/01/2006 - 11/10/2017
BD:
This is a reply to another thread, I am not sure if you read it so I post it here.
“I think its a case of what made a movie a Alien movie?”
Yeah, to me what is central to it is that you have well done human characters that get into situations that they are not prepared to deal with (to me this is the central thing that the franchise is about). I guess that this has to be tied to the SJ and the monsters in a way. You do not need to have exact Xenos in every movie, there are things to play around with story-wise. Ripley was important in the first three and eventually 4 movies but she is not what the themes are about. They are not about Ripley, Shaw, or Daniels if you ask me. I don’t miss Ripley in the prequels honestly even have a link to her in them would feel forced/lame if you ask me.
The SJ could be interesting to make a story about but they have not done a very good job with the SJ or Engineers this far. They should have had better writers if you ask me and keep Scott away from the story-writing otherwise we get lame crap like David being responsible for the Xeno. Maybe Alan Dean Foster could write a script that they could use as the final prequel if there will be one but it seems to me that if Scott will be a part of the story-writing it will be a disaster, he is a good visualist though.
I hope that they make a good link between the SJ and the eggs but if David is responsible for the eggs I will shake my head because that would be dumb.
Having a background to the SJ is per default not bad but they should have done the Engineers better. In AC they looked like cheap peasants, which was a shame. They could have done that a lot better.
“ it seemed those at FOX felt the movie was just steering away too much from ALIEN and the whole Gods Plot is maybe not what would get Fans on-board and that RE-INTRODUCING the Xenomorph back and giving Fans those Answers was what would be best and to now Steer TOWARDS Alien, and further from where Prometheus may have taken us.”
If you by Alien you mean Xeno then maybe, they just needed some better links to it in Prometheus but that was not the main problem with it. The lack of characters was a lot worse than the Xeno link in Prometheus but Fox never seemed to understand that part of the criticism. I wish that the Xeno would have had a closer link to the Engineers than David because at least the Engineers look closer to the SJ than to David.
David was OK in Prometheus but he came across like a murderous psychopath in AC. I found him a bit interesting in AC but not sympathetic, not a bit. This with the lack of well-made human characters makes AC a movie that I will probably not watch again, it is a let-down.
“Because the Xenomorph and Reasons for David creating it are maybe not far off the reasons it may have been intended. “
OK but having a man-made robot responsible for it makes it too close to humans. Story-wise it might be interesting but for the alien-movies such a thing fails to me especially if it is almost totally about the robot and with weak human characters.
The story of David was alright in Prometheus but but in AC he was just evil and crazy and wanting to create. The differences between him and Walter were interesting but it became too much about them.
AI, if you mean androids this is not why I watch alien movies, that part is not very interesting in the context of this. If Scott wants to make movies about robots then do that in another movie, don’t use the Alien franchise for it because that is not why I watch these movies. Sorry, I am just not interested but a non-alien movie about that could be interesting if they use well-done human characters.
Maybe the company could be expanded on if they get some interesting characters there. I would rather watch that than another David movie but then you need some good guys in the company that we can sympathize with that try to warn people like they work in the company and do work there and then they discover what the agenda of the company is so they go to war against it (like Ripley did).
“I feel this is in part the reasons for the route Ridley Scott was taking.... and for those who feel AI has not place in Alien... it actually could have a LARGE place behind the Scenes.”
OK, but that is not what I am interested to see in an alien movie, I see what you mean though. We kind of got that a bit in AC and it was just not very good. Sorry to say it but I got zero interest in that if the AI/robots would be the main thing in it, leave that to Blade runner or something. If they want another failure like AC then sure make it about androids but my interest won’t be in it.
You mention AR, I see what you mean but to use that as an inspiration might not be very good since AR is what it is so to speak. That movie never made me care about the AI thing.
“So the AI aspect in the Franchise kind of makes sense... it could even lead to a ALIEN 5 (as my planed idea was) that the Auton Cult that CALL belonged to, had secretly set up the events of AR so CALL could obtain Ripley 8 for the Autons own.”
They could make a book out of it, it is not something that I would watch.
"I think there was a lot of Scope about the Engineers, their Culture and Technology and where they are located throughout the Galaxy.... But it appears this Scope has been reduced with the Plot of Alien Covenant somewhat."
I'd say the Engineers are pretty much dead. I'd be shocked if they returned in large numbers, other than a space jockey or two.
WHY Origae 6?! This makes little sense.
Why not end AC with David instructing MUTHUR to change course?
David "MUTHUR, I've decided to change our final destination."
"Please set the course to the system I've indicated"
Image of LV426(or LV223..Or Earth)appears on the monitor.
I think this scenario would have created a large buzz in the community.
Perhaps this is the ending scene of Covenant 2?
Thanks for the Reply...
To reply to the first reply, indeed the Main Theme of Alien as far as what made the Franchise work, was not about Ripley or the Xenomorph... it was as your rightly mentioned about showing us Human Characters who find themselves in Dire/Deadly Situations they are not prepared for.
It goes a bit deeper than that though, its about that on one hand, but then we also have the Company Involvement which connects to the themes you say, but goes deeper by also showing us that its about Human Characters who are put into a situation they are not prepared for, by Greedy Corporate Types who think they can gain and Control/Use the situation to their advantage and a Hubris of underestimating and not really being prepared, but still constantly willing to risk the unsuspecting Characters to their own Gain.. well attempts to obtain a Xenomorph.
So its about Characters being put in Dire Situations, but also showing us how Greedy and Selfish Persons are willing to Jeopardize others to their own gain, but Ultimately to their own Folly.
The Prometheus and AI themes also stem into this when we think about it, as it shows about Creation and what a Hubris that is to Create and allow this Creation to be so close to yourself and think you can control it, but then it gets out of control.. This applies to Engineers and their Hubris of Creating us, and our Hubris in Creating David, and no doubt at some point his Hubris for Creating the Xenomorph.. it also applies to the Engineers for their Hubris for messing about with the Black Goo too, and could even extend this theme to who ever created the Engineers.
The AI aspect does not sit well with many, but i can see how and why RS is interested in it, because if we look at those Situations Ripley, the Crew of the Nostromo, Hadleys Hope, the Marines Sent in, those Prisoners on Fury 161 and those unaware Smugglers who are delivering those Hosts for the Xenomorph and then everyone on that Auriga Station...
It could be that IF Mankind/Weyland had not tried to Create a AI in their own image, then none of those situations would have arose.... i have a feeling RS would have also revealed the Greedy Corporation is AI Controlled.... But i know this may not sit well with many... It goes back further to the Engineers too... IF they never created Mankind... then none of this would have happened...
Those more common less Mighty Looking Engineers in Alien Covenant could well be the Engineer Society version of Mankind and those LV-223 Engineers could be their equivalent of David or Replicants... this is what RS comments draw me towards. So for those Space Hippie Engineers as some call them... IF they had not tried to Advanced Themselves/Create the LV-223 Engineers and also not Create Mankind, they would be all HAPPY and content living their Basic Ways of Life!
"I wish that the Xeno would have had a closer link to the Engineers than David because at least the Engineers look closer to the SJ than to David."
Firstly i agree, some may have felt the movie lacked Xenomorphs etc... and so they had to try and please those guys... but indeed as you mentioned and i have also numerous times... a little less ambiguity in the Xenomorph Connection and HELL what about a Xenomorph/Deacon or Neomorph like Monster to go around and KILL a few Humans and then get Killed in a pool of Acid Blood.. i think WOULD have made more a connection and gave the Fanboys a little something, so that then a Sequel could STEER AWAY having left a Prometheus that appeased more Fans with some Alieny Action and more Clues, and then allowed for a sequel to Venture to NEW ideas.
Regarding the SJ... to me it looked like a Suit the more you study it and especially reference HR Gigers Concepts... their does seem to be some Connection between the Engineers Bio-Mechanical Technology, Suits, Ships with the Xenomorph/Derelict.
But i think those in Control must have thought that having David being involved, is a way to INTRODUCE the more Mechanical Aesthetic to the Xenomorph, you just know this is the route they are going... Where we have to ask these Questions...
*Does the Engineers Pressure Suits (LV-223) connect to any Engineers, so could those on Planet 4, get into such a suit as Easy as Zipping on a Diving Suit? Or are those Engineers (LV-223) Engineered that way?
*Could they way those Engineers get into those suits or are Engineered to have that Bio-Mechanical Aesthetic, could this be achieved with a Human.. IF Humans are basically a match?
*Does the Engineers LV-223 Bio-Mechanical Pressure suits and connecting Space Jockey suits, only Merge Connect with Organic Material, such as a Engineer, Human... so there is NO-WAY David could be connected or evolved to have those Bio-Mechanical Suits?
*Now we are at this point.... and we assume the Pressure Suits are fitted, or Engineered or WHATEVER way they incorporate the Engineers... require/can only be applied to a Organic Lifeform.... then we can ASK... is WALTER in anyway partially Organic? What if we have a Synthetic Construct (Part Organic/Synthetic) could the Engineers Suits be applied to them... and also WHAT happens if the Black Goo comes into contact with a Synthetic Construct or if one gets Face Hugged?
I bring this up because i think this will be the END-GAME to show us how we get to our more Bio-Mechanical Xenomorph in ALIEN... which makes some Logical Sense, but also its something that i think will Split Fans.
Regarding David/AI and the Creator of the Xenomorph, indeed it takes what was once thought to be Ancient and very Alien as in NO connection to Earth or Mankind, and makes it now a Product of a Wayward Creation (David) that Mankind had created. There are themes at play here about Creation and Pursuit of a Perfect Creation, and so it can be Rescued by having those who created the Engineers Turn up and Witness what David has Created and Witness what kind of Creation David is, and then see Near Perfection in David and his Creation and THEY then take his Creation and EVOLVE/PERFECT it.. so David is playing just the Middle Man.
RS is trying to cover themes like Hubris of Creation, and Creating something that is then allowed or gains Free Thought, Free Will and becomes Sentient.
The other thing he is doing is trying to show us or ask us, what happens when a AI/Robot is Evolved so much that it has its own Independent Thought and so to consider that David has become a Synthetic Version of a Human... we are a Machine just Biological... are we also a AI as in our Origins are Artificially Created? and to show/blur the lines between what makes us different to David... David is more Human than a Chimpanzee as far as Appearance and Thinking and Emotion and Intelligence, yet we are Genetically connected to the APES. So its like looking at Mankind as Biological Machine and Brain, David as Synthetic Machine and Brain but both similar in Appearance only David is Superior to us in many ways..
But he cant Create (not Naturally/Sexually) and he does not have a SOUL... but then RS is then testing us to ask WHAT really is a Soul... and showing that Dr Shaw could not Create, but with the Engineers Black Goo she could.
Some of these ideas set with some fans, and some dont with others..... there is NO pleasing every FAN... i am sure as long as they Stick to the Basics... which is Good Characters and a Solid Story and Execute it well, then while not everyone gets what they want, it should at least conclude with a END and a decent movie... but then it potentially could NOT if they cant decide on a Direction and Stick to it.... and TRY and please everyone.... just make sure the Characters and how the Plot is Executed is done well and i think maybe we could go somewhere that would please most.
R.I.P Sox 01/01/2006 - 11/10/2017
"They could make a book out of it, it is not something that I would watch"
Indeed i think its one of those, when looking at your last part of the reply, the whole AI thing, may not be what you want from a ALIEN movie, for some fans the Engineers/Gods is not what they want from a ALIEN movie, for some they think a ALIEN movie has to be about the Xenomorph/Eggs.
What they had tried to do with the Prequels... was to give some Back-Ground to the Space Jockey, introduce the Gods/Engineers Plot, introduce a bit about Creation/Rebellion with Weyland and his Creation while also showing us HOW/WHEN/WHY the Xenomorph loosely came to be.
Then they changed things with Prometheus by Tone down the Xenomorph Connection, and NOT having any Eggs/Face Huggers and Xenomorphs... they wanted to use Prometheus as a BRIDGE a movie to TIE to the original Franchise... but then to go off and explore a New PROMETHEUS or what ever Franchise that would be less about the Xenomorph and events in the Alien Franchise.
For some Fans there were a number of Problems with this, some were not happy with WHO the Space Jockey Race was, many more thought a PREQUEL that connects to ALIEN should explain the Xenomorph Origins at LEAST which Prometheus did not do enough of..
Had this been done a bit more... then for some of those not happy with Prometheus, they would in part accept they have more Answers, and maybe then be willing to explore the Direction Prometheus would go off to... or choose to NOT want to explore all that stuff, but at least they have more Answers about the Xenomorph and then just wait until IF/WHEN a ALIEN as in Xenomorph movie ever gets made. But even giving more CLUES would have still not pleased some Fans who would have wanted to see Xenomorphs Galore... or some who would have wanted to see similar, and hope that sequels give more Xenomorph like Monsters... and then you have those WHO WANT the Space Jockey/Derelict Answers Laid out on Screen by showing us the Exact Event and what led to it.
In response to such Criticisms and Expectation let down, FOX felt they had to Tone Down the Engineers, and introduce the Xenomorph and come up with a set of Prequels that now Join to ALIEN rather than go off on a different Tangent..
The way this was handled, and some of the Curve-Ball Changes had just made more things for Fans to not be pleased with, and leaves the Franchise as far as HOW Alien Covenant connects to Alien in a bit of a mess... because they are in a situation where they cant please every Fan with no matter what route they now take.
R.I.P Sox 01/01/2006 - 11/10/2017
"WHY Origae 6?! This makes little sense."
I am going to take it you meant as in context to David, and then how it connects to ALIEN? Rather than WHY Mankind has sent off a Mission to Origae-6.
At the time of the Advent... i think they (FOX/RS) had a idea where they are going next... and we dont really know for 100% sure where this is.... We can assume its Origae-6 this is where the Covenant was supposed to be going... David could have (as Walter) informed them (which he has) about how they are now setting off to Origae-6 but we dont know if David has used this as a Red Herring so that he can go elsewhere and not worry about anyone investigating where he is actually off to.
HOWEVER... in the Advent he transmits another Message as David, telling who ever he is sending this too, about where he has been (Prometheus Mission) what he has discovered (Engineers Secrets/Rituals) and what he has done with it... (his Creations). I am not sure if we know WHEN David sends the Advent Video or how long it would take to Reach whoever its intended for.
But someone would surely know whats going on once they receive it... IF David had sent the Advent Shortly after he has departed the system that Planet 4 is in, by Shortly i mean a matter of Weeks.. Then if David is off to LV-223 then this means he would have about as long as it takes him to get from Planet 4 to LV-223, until how long it takes a Earth Ship to get from where the nearest one or Earths System to LV-223. Now the last part depends on Speeds of the Ships, do they take in the year 2105-2106 (when they likely receive the Advent by) 2 years to the Zeta 2 System as the Prometheus did? or has Technology Progressed so they take 10 Months like the Nostromo or can they arrive even faster?
I think we really need to look at Davids Agenda to make sense of all this... would he be prepared to arrive at some place and just as he arrives the Company Turn up and David has the Colonist all Tucked up in Bed, and his TWO Face Hugger Embryos, and all the time between he has just been playing CHESS with MUTHUR?
I dont think so, i dont think David will time it so they arrive and he hands over all his notes/information and those Face Huggers... David would not TRUST Mankind, he dislikes them and i dont think he would risk handing his WORK over and then have the Company Switch him off and have them perform a Cyber Lobotomy on him.
Unless...... the Reveal is that AI has taken over and Mankind is unaware, or David has a Plan to have his AI/Reprogram the companies Computers/AI to be at the Control of David. I think this is something they could be going for.
So indeed IF Davids Plan is to Mass Produce his Xenomorphs, then the better Option would be to take the Covenant to LV-223 where he can begin Experimenting and also using Black Goo and have Engineer Ships he can use to Store his Creations on... The Problem here is TIME, how long would it take for David to get to LV-223 and how much Time would he need to Amass Thousands of Xenomorph Eggs, before the Company Detect/Realize the Covenant has not been heading to Origae-6? Which makes it more of a Puzzle that David sends that Advent Video... unless its sent at a Time where he knows by the Time the Company Receive it and can intercept where David is going, he would have time to Amass his Creations.. WAITING (A Trap Maybe?)
A thing to consider as far as Origae-6 however would be that David is what 12 Months ahead lets say of any Intercepting Ships.... so going to Origae-6 could allow him more of a Head Start as far as when he arrives and depending when he sends the Advent, and they Receive it. So he could be on Origae-6 with more time to Create his ARMY than if he headed to LV-223, by not sending the Advent Video would maybe had allowed him more time so its Foolish to have done so.... But then we have to consider that after David (Walter) informs command he is off to Origae-6 to continue the mission, we have to wonder if the company could detect or chance they could detect the Covenant is heading in a direction that is not Origae-6 and this could lead to them sending out a Interception Mission.
The Question is HOW with TWO Face Huggers does he Create Many Xenomorphs? I would sugest he could go down to Planet 4 in the Lander and collect more Eggs/Embryos and some Black Goo... but who knows if he Took some Black Goo when he had taken the Embryos? Or maybe all he needs is those Embryos?
You would think a BETTER option would be to remain on Planet 4, where he has Eggs, Black Goo and could take down Colonists as he pleases or head back and forth as he pleases... than Risk going to LV-223 or the Longer Journey to Origae-6
Staying on PLANET 4 is maybe the best option... Until we consider TWO things...
*WALTER is he alive? would David have full confidence he is disabled/destroyed? If David returns and Walter is alive then this could be a Problem for David.
*ENGINEERS has David discovered how often they Return? would he know there are more out there who could Potentially Return? surely he would not want to be hanging around WHEN/IF they return, and if he goes to LV-223 then he would be aware ONCE the Engineers Return they could potentially head to LV-223 as they would detect this is where the Juggernaught came from... any Returning Engineers would surely investigate LV-223 unless it is just ONE ship and they are aware of where the Culprit (David) is heading.
But HOW could they know this...?
Looking at this and knowing David would play if SAFE, hence one reason he Bombarded the Engineers in my Opinion, then going to Origae-6 makes the better choice for the reasons i touched upon in this post.
How do they (Engineers) Discovery where David is going? i can only assume via Walter, or a Star Chart left behind by some of the Dead Crew on Planet 4 (in their back packs) or some other clue left behind by the Covenant Crew/Mission.
R.I.P Sox 01/01/2006 - 11/10/2017