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[Alex11]

Plus he can stand & crouch around eggs which don't open.

The facehuggers knew about his plot armor.

Anyway, I dunno why I'm having this feeling that Wendy is gonna fight the Xeno one on one, I just don't want to see marvel style superhumans fighting aliens.

 

[OmegaSupreme]

"it presents itself as flora but could be fauna" wtf? They're just staring at that thing for 10 minutes doing nothing? The modern music kills me too. Tool is the last thing you should hear in a alien series.

 

[Ulysses 31]

 

[reinking]

I am entertained. I am just watching it with the mind set as if The CW did an Aliens spinoff.

 

[T8SC]

The facehuggers knew about his plot armor.

Anyway, I dunno why I'm having this feeling that Wendy is gonna fight the Xeno one on one, I just don't want to see marvel style superhumans fighting aliens.

Let's hope not, but it's Disney afterall.

I know there's several episodes left so it may get explained but this event of the starship crashing into Earth, with mass media coverage, seems like something people on the Nostromo would know about (And all the company bods in Aliens), yet the alien is a surprise to them. Or perhaps they're in hyper sleep whilst this is all taking place. Guess we'll wait & see how it fits into the first movie, as apparently it's going to be explained.

 

[MachRc]

Search and Rescue! [Pulls out pulse rifles]

The jump from the cliff that would have destroyed any canon synths/cyborg

The "Halo" super human kids angle.

It is fun to watch. I imagine they crashed the ship to pass containment/check that they smash through?

 

[Alex11]

Let's hope not, but it's Disney afterall.

I know there's several episodes left so it may get explained but this event of the starship crashing into Earth, with mass media coverage, seems like something people on the Nostromo would know about (And all the company bods in Aliens), yet the alien is a surprise to them. Or perhaps they're in hyper sleep whilst this is all taking place. Guess we'll wait & see how it fits into the first movie, as apparently it's going to be explained.

Yeah, I'm guessing Nostromo has already departed, as for people knowing, I think here they have a loophole. After all, the Nostromo crew, the marines, they were expendable and not very important, Ash knew more than we saw, Burke as well, Weyland-Yutani even more, they surely kept it all a secret between the higher ups and the most loyal members. I mean, this is just my understanding.

Hawley did say in an interview something along the lines that the Nostromo is going to be mentioned or contacted.

IDK, he also praises the OG Alien for the slow burn and the twists, so maybe we're in for some big surprises, still, it doesn't excuse the dumb stuff.

 

[Sledge]

I'm genuinely enjoying how bonkers this show is -- you literally never know what the next scene is going to contain: Stock member-berries, kids-to-androids, our CEO is L from Death Note let's-conduct-our-most-seriious-conversation-upside-down-with-our-tablet-between-our-feet, body horror nicked from The Thing or maybe Little Shop of Horrors who knows because forget about the weird plant for now, bizarre editing, it is retro-future oh no wait it isn't actually, SEND IN THE KIDS!, whatever you do don't quarantine the SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH SPACESHIP from the get-go like normal people, SCARLET PIMPERNEL!, there's something about being attacked by a ravenous alien that really makes me want to contemplate baseball, ICE AGE!

Alien Earth is to the Alien franchise what the 60s Batman TV show was to that franchise -- essentially random, off-kilter excess that can only have come about through the copious abuse of drugs. I don't know how the fuck this got made but I'm glad it did.

 

[kpopSuperstar]

What a fuck was his plan? lock himself in an elevator with the alien? I thought that bag would hold the alien but it was as strong as a paper bag.

 

[Grildon Tundy]

I imagine they crashed the ship to pass containment/check that they smash through?

Interesting theory. Why would Yutani crash their ship into Prodigy city? Mass destruction via bioweapon? That is kind of their goal with xenos, I suppose.

 

[Sonik]

wrong thread

 

[Kacho]

So far so good. I like it.

 

[Kitbash]

there's something about being attacked by a ravenous alien that really makes me want to contemplate baseball

Well then, you're in luck! Because the one apartment door you happened to knock on during your search & rescue efforts happens to be the home of someone with an entire room dedicated to 20th century baseball. The perfect audio/visual installation for you to find, given you were named after a 20th century baseball player and you need to be talking out loud to your dad for the next part of the scene to work.

And then the writer adds "What are the odds?" to the dialogue as if that makes it any better. So dumb.

 

[Alex11]

What a fuck was his plan? lock himself in an elevator with the alien? I thought that bag would hold the alien but it was as strong as a paper bag.

There are so many wrongs in this scene it's baffling.
- As you said, what the fuck was this plan, be with the gun always ready and stun the Xeno every time it rips that "bag" all the way to the containment cage? lol
- Not one of those - trained? I assume - security officers noticed the alien hand sticking out.
- Xeno just standing there not killing the cyborg that just attacked it and then just runs off to kill others because reasons. If the reason is the Xeno senses fear now, we obviously see the cyborg being afraid.

But hey, it looks cool and the Xeno rips through them like fucking Homelander.

 

[Kacho]

Stinkfist outta nowhere lol

The show is way more bonkers than I was expecting. In a good way. I like that they added other hostile alien species to the mix. Feels fresh. I want to know more about the eye creature.

The alien is fucking ruthless. Love that we finally get to see it being a killing machine.

I was worried I'd hate the brother sister subplot based on what I read, but it's fine. The hug he gave her pulled at my heart strings a bit, likely because I have a little sister I care about so I can relate.

Timothy Olyphant was a solid choice. He elevates the show.

 

[Revolutionary]

First 8 or so minutes of the first episode were actually REALLY good and promising... but it gets worse and worse with nearly every passing minute.

Got a good laugh out of this scene though:

 

[Alex11]

First 8 or so minutes of the first episode were actually REALLY good and promising... but it gets worse and worse with nearly every passing minute.

Got a good laugh out of this scene though:

That's some amateur level type of stuff here, it doesn't look like it's even moving, it's like it's being pulled like a dummy on a wheeled cart.
It's like those stand in props that later get replaced with CGI only they forgot to do it.

 

[Alex11]

This is the modern cinema of spectacle over substance, whatever looks good sticks. Comparing to the OG, where the Xeno behaves the same way with all its kills.

Not that it matters that much the ratings, but the fans are already doing this.

I don't know what happened in not even a day with the score on RT, but in no fucking way this show beats Alien and Aliens.

 

[Ulysses 31]

 

[Grildon Tundy]

I don't know what happened in not even a day with the score on RT, but in no fucking way this show beats Alien and Aliens.

I think the show has mass appeal, and is well-enough made, so critics could be giving it half-hearted recommendations, but that count the same as full endorsements on Rotten Tomatoes.

Surely it doesn't outrank Alien / Aliens on Metacritic or IMDB, where it takes discrete review score into account?

 

[Alex11]

I think the show has mass appeal, and is well-enough made, so critics could be giving it half-hearted recommendations, but that count the same as full endorsements on Rotten Tomatoes.

Surely it doesn't outrank Alien / Aliens on Metacritic or IMDB, where it takes discrete review score into account?

These are as of now the scores on IMDB and MC:

But the weird thing is the evolution of the rating, it opened on RT with critic score of 92 went to 93, then yesterday was 87 and today 96, I don't know, I don't pay too much importance to critics anymore, but still.

Even so, from the most Alien movies/show since Prometheus, Alien Earth has the biggest difference between critic and user score on both RT and MC.

 

[DragoonKain]

I finally caught up. I enjoyed most of the first two episodes(until the final 20 minutes, get to that in a minute). The one complaint I had was I'm just not buying the boy genius character. Feels very cliched, very smaller budget sci fi movie obsessed tech head. Reminds me of the tech genius from the movie Upgrade(if you haven't seen it, do it, it's really fun). But other than that I thought it was fun. Then the final 20 minutes of episode 2 went off the rails. Very sappy, cheesy, took me out of the atmosphere, the setting, the tension. Very cheesy dialogue and felt super network TV-ish. It's hard to escape this being a TV budget than a movie. The visuals and stuff won't be as good of the movies, but I'm ok with that if it excels in other areas. This did for the most part to me until the final 20 minutes. I didn't think it was amazing or anything. But I was generally enjoying myself. But please don't turn this into where I think it's heading. Like a sci fi drama. It needs to be a thriller first and foremost for Alien to work.

 

[spookyfish]

What a fuck was his plan? lock himself in an elevator with the alien? I thought that bag would hold the alien but it was as strong as a paper bag.

He would taze it again, I guess? But he shouldn't worry -- the xeno is so stupid that it doesn't take one-half a second to take out the one person that hurt it -- while his back is turned.

 

[kpopSuperstar]

He would taze it again, I guess? But he shouldn't worry -- the xeno is so stupid that it doesn't take one-half a second to take out the one person that hurt it -- while his back is turned.

But he was dragging the bag around, he wasn't aiming at it, it could have popped out at any time.

And where was he going? he knew soldiers should have been storming the place, and any lobby is the most likely place they would be.

 

[Alex11]

Not mine, from reddit.

 

[Alex11]

However I look at it, the collected specimens plot renders null the whole of Alien.

It says mission length 65 years, ok, so then they knew about the Xeno prior to the events of the OG.

So it doesn't make sense to reroute some space truckers to collect the same alien again if they already sent a perfectly equipped crew to capture not only the Xeno, but 4 different ones as well.

 

[Ulysses 31]

However I look at it, the collected specimens plot renders null the whole of Alien.

It says mission length 65 years, ok, so then they knew about the Xeno prior to the events of the OG.

So it doesn't make sense to reroute some space truckers to collect the same alien again if they already sent a perfectly equipped crew to capture not only the Xeno, but 4 different ones as well.

 

[Alex11]

It does seem this way doesn't it?

Maybe I'm just wasting my energy on this, but you know I really don't have that many franchises that I care about.
And usually don't watch movies just for the sake of watching movies or that I'm bored, so maybe that's why I'm worked up about this.

Alien franchise is my favourite, the few rest that I had I pretty much accepted that they're not for me anymore.

So maybe it's time I do the same with this as well, only Isolation 2 may be something, after all it's the best sequel to Alien and Aliens.

 

[The Goddamn Mike]

That's some amateur level type of stuff here, it doesn't look like it's even moving, it's like it's being pulled like a dummy on a wheeled cart.
It's like those stand in props that later get replaced with CGI only they forgot to do it.

The moonwalk thing is just a silly aping of shots from the original film - which work in that context, but not here. It does look goofy, but I'm not hung up on it.

So maybe it's time I do the same with this as well, only Isolation 2 may be something, after all it's the best sequel to Alien and Aliens.

I rewatched the first three films after viewing the two episodes of this and, yes: the films are far superior to whatever Alien: Earth is supposed to be (no surprise).

Yet, although I'm not a fan of this show at all, I think Resurrection is the real low point. Subjective, of course, but: I believe Prometheus is actually good, despite the whack-a-do characters, and Covenant isn't so terrible if you lower your expectations (I've forgiven that film a number of its sins after a few re-watches). So, don't give up. This show could get better - even if not until a subsequent season - or maybe we get a new film or a different show which is actually good. Alien: Earth is bad; it could be a lot worse...and it won't be the end of "the franchise."

On the Isolation front: I've had this in my library for years and have never gotten around to it. Definitely worth playing, then? Can it be completed in a few sittings?

 

[Sledge]

I think Resurrection is the real low point

Resurrection is a guilty pleasure of mine. I had a VCD player add-on for my PSX (omg -- perfectly still frames when you pause!) and got the film on import. I always thought it would be cool to get some stories about the crew of the Betty prior to the movie, which of course I did eventually -- kind of -- as Resurrection's quippy space-outlaws are pure proto-Firefly. But as special a place as it has in my heart, you are absolutely right.

I tend to just set the quality stuff aside in its own bubble. For me the Alien Franchise is the original two films and maybe The Cold Forge. I'll consume the other stuff and often enjoy aspects of it, but I treat it as expanded universe claptrap: Weightless.

 

[jason10mm]

I dig this show despite its flaws.

I hope we get more of that original crew, there were some smoking hot chicks in it and the pervy android MUST be explained!

Show is gratuitously gory and I love it.

 

[The Goddamn Mike]

Resurrection is a guilty pleasure of mine. I had a VCD player add-on for my PSX (omg -- perfectly still frames when you pause!) and got the film on import. I always thought it would be cool to get some stories about the crew of the Betty prior to the movie, which of course I did eventually -- kind of -- as Resurrection's quippy space-outlaws are pure proto-Firefly. But as special a place as it has in my heart, you are absolutely right.

I tend to just set the quality stuff aside in its own bubble. For me the Alien Franchise is the original two films and maybe The Cold Forge. I'll consume the other stuff and often enjoy aspects of it, but I treat it as expanded universe claptrap: Weightless.

A good way to look at it. VCD? I had to look up the add-on, as I didn't know it existed. Nice!

Resurrection is definitely a very pretty film and there is something of an interesting story buried under the visuals. Agreed on the Firefly comment - and this is probably my biggest problem with Resurrection, outside of "French director gonna be French." Whedon's style of dialogue/banter, for me, at least, just doesn't fit in the Alien universe. I would have liked to see his original ending, though. If I remember, correctly, there was to be a battle with a fairly large, traditional-looking xenomorph in a junkyard on Earth after the ship lands, rather than the existing confrontation with the hybrid.

I, myself, love Alien 3 (the special edition version) and get a cocked-eyebrow from most Alien fans when I express that. I could write an essay it, but short version: I think it's the appropriate end to Ripley's story; she makes the ultimate sacrifice - after having lost so much - and the special edition has the balls to have her do it without the queen bursting out of her chest.

So, to this point:

I dig this show despite its flaws.

I hope we get more of that original crew, there were some smoking hot chicks in it and the pervy android MUST be explained!

Show is gratuitously gory and I love it.

Yeah, absolutely. Obviously, if you dig it, dig it for whatever reason, so long as it entertains YOU. Alien: Earth isn't for me, but that's due to baggage I'm bringing into it. I'm really digging Foundation, not having read the books (no baggage), and the Asimov fans probably think that one is shit.

Since they are going all-in on the gore, though, I would like some more competent, actual shots of the xenomorph killing...as opposed to the aftermath bits we're getting now (oh, look: another room full of body parts). As to the original crew: I will bet money on a flashback episode - I don't see how the show can avoid it.

 

[Alex11]

The moonwalk thing is just a silly aping of shots from the original film - which work in that context, but not here. It does look goofy, but I'm not hung up on it.

Yeah, I guessed they wanted to replicate those scenes and movements, even so, they weren't that goofy. As you said, we need to take into consideration the context.

Those scenes looked like that, there was a man in suit because of budget constraints, Ridley said that in a shot by shot commentary of Alien they wanted to do so much more with the Xeno but they couldn't afford it.

I rewatched the first three films after viewing the two episodes of this and, yes: the films are far superior to whatever Alien: Earth is supposed to be (no surprise).

Yet, although I'm not a fan of this show at all, I think Resurrection is the real low point.

I would have to respectfully disagree and say the low point for me are the AVP movies. Resurrection is close 2nd, but it's entertaining, it's like a comic book movie, silly, fun, I view it like a "what if?"

Subjective, of course, but: I believe Prometheus is actually good, despite the whack-a-do characters, and Covenant isn't so terrible if you lower your expectations (I've forgiven that film a number of its sins after a few re-watches).

You know, Prometheus isn't as bad as most make it to be, it also has the same questions with synthetics and souls and what it means to be a human and yet in Earth the critics view it entirely different than in Prometheus.
Also in Prometheus, Weyland had a more interesting motivation than this Boy muppet and his "Oh, I want to talk to someone smarter than me", wow, what a mindblowing motivation and goal.

Covenant I enjoyed as well, at least the movie is dark, I said it multiple times, Ridley had the balls to kill all characters, to deliver a dark ending. He fucked it all up and destroyed all the Alien mythos with that David creating the Xeno stuff.

So, don't give up. This show could get better - even if not until a subsequent season - or maybe we get a new film or a different show which is actually good. Alien: Earth is bad; it could be a lot worse...and it won't be the end of "the franchise."

I've given up a long time ago, I just had a tiny bit of hope left, I think Earth is my stop. It's clear they're making these for another type of viewer, they all say they're fans of the first two movies, but they only take surface level stuff from those, aesthetics and whatnot and not the things that matter. Thinking that putting a Xeno that mows down everything and giving a retro futuristic coat of paint is what an Alien movie makes.

Of course it could get better, but doubt it, even the franchise, especially after seeing the Predator trailer, they want to unify the franchises more than ever, I don't like it one bit.
If people enjoy this and what comes, it's good as well, I don't mind it at all.

On the Isolation front: I've had this in my library for years and have never gotten around to it. Definitely worth playing, then? Can it be completed in a few sittings?

It's a masterpiece if you're an Alien fan and more than that an Alien and Aliens fan, but more so the OG. It's a 15-20 hrs game, I usually take longer than average.

If I take the fan out of the mix, objectively as a game it's great, I don't really play these types of survival games where you mostly need to run and hide.

Some say it drags a bit towards the end, I don't agree, also for some the behaviour of the Xeno is a minus because it doesn't have fixed paths and reacts to how you play, again, couldn't disagree more.
I say disagree, but I understand the frustration and the validity of these being negatives.

 

[Chiggs]

It's kind of a mess, honestly.

• Visual effects range from good to garbage.
• Some interesting concepts that aren't so great when acted out by humans on a set (child minds in synthetic adult bodies).
• Idiotic "red shirt" characters that forget how to use their weapons, despite being in positions where using them would be the norm.
• Some of the actors are flat-out bad, or are just poor fits for their part.

I have very low expectations at this point.

 

[poppabk]

Thought this was really good. Not sure why everyone is obsessed with nit-picking the plot. The original Alien and especially Aliens don't really make a lick of sense - in fact this partially fixes them. The Alien isn't really that impressive that it would actually be a real threat as a weapon. Its still just an an animal - it barely defeated an unarmed crew over several hours in the first movie - and in the second there had to be multiple plot contrivances to prevent the small squad of marines from just being able to massacre the Aliens.
In this at least one single Alien is a literal human killing machine and made to seem like a threat. Of course it still gets easily laser tased.

 

[Ecotic]

I was pretty disappointed after the reviews seemed so positive. The biggest problem for me is it's hard to know what's happening at any given moment, and why it's happening. Character actions and motivations are all over the place or nonsensical. Sometimes the tech clearly tries to replicate the 1979 look like Romulus did so well, then at other times everything looks like it did in Prometheus. And a squad of soldiers with rifles is now useless because the xenormorph can kill 10 people simultaneously and no one can get a shot off.

 

[Alex11]

Thought this was really good. Not sure why everyone is obsessed with nit-picking the plot. The original Alien and especially Aliens don't really make a lick of sense - in fact this partially fixes them. The Alien isn't really that impressive that it would actually be a real threat as a weapon. Its still just an an animal - it barely defeated an unarmed crew over several hours in the first movie - and in the second there had to be multiple plot contrivances to prevent the small squad of marines from just being able to massacre the Aliens.
In this at least one single Alien is a literal human killing machine and made to seem like a threat. Of course it still gets easily laser tased.

The Xeno if it's a bio-weapon isn't supposed to fight like a soldier, that's partially what Cameron did with it. In open field, just ground, sure, they would be dead.
It's a life form that adapts to everything, no air, no food, no matter the temperature and it hides and who's to say that was its final form.

In Aliens, the marines were ambushed, the Xenos cut the power, they found an alternate way when they barricaded themselves, and when the marines shot them, almost everyone was burned by the acid sooner or later. To exterminate a hive of them, they either shot them and risked a whole, especially if in space or just heavy bombardment.

 

[Lloyd Frontera]

And what's the rationale behind sending synths with volatile child minds and no experience to the crash site?

yeah exactly

 

[poppabk]

yeah exactly

How can anyone watch how our current batch of plutocrats (Musk, Bezos, Zuckerberg etc) make decisions and then be surprised by any decision these ones make is honestly shocking to me. He just wants to see what happens for the slight buzz of actual human emotion it gives him.

 

[Dr.D00p]

Didn't like this at all.

...and the city and overall aesthetic just seemed like a rip off of Mega City One from 2012s Judge Dredd.

 

[Alex11]

To take a pause from all my negative thoughts of the show I remembered this original design that Giger made for Alien 3.

Random Cool: Here is Giger’s Unused Xenomorph From ‘Alien 3’

David Fincher’s Alien 3 doesn’t get nearly enough appreciation, in my mind. It had a troubled and rocky production that was still salvaged into a really solid and enjoyable movie. Sure, there are some flaws but the atmosphere is unbeatable, Sigourney Weaver plays Ripley with an intensity not yet...

bloody-disgusting.com

Hearing him talk about the design and if he got his way it would have been a traumatizing mindfuck of a movie.

 

[Blackage]

Did anyone else pick up on the fact they kind of found a way to make Stranger Things: Aliens edition, by making 6 of the main char we'll be following children, but without actual child actors, like 5 of them are adults doing child coded acting.

This reminds me of CW's flash where they had his daughter Nora played Jessica Parker Kennedy acting like a child despite her being 30+ and tits out on Black Sails, it's rather distracting.

 

[John Bilbo]

To take a pause from all my negative thoughts of the show I remembered this original design that Giger made for Alien 3.

Random Cool: Here is Giger’s Unused Xenomorph From ‘Alien 3’

David Fincher’s Alien 3 doesn’t get nearly enough appreciation, in my mind. It had a troubled and rocky production that was still salvaged into a really solid and enjoyable movie. Sure, there are some flaws but the atmosphere is unbeatable, Sigourney Weaver plays Ripley with an intensity not yet...

bloody-disgusting.com

Hearing him talk about the design and if he got his way it would have been a traumatizing mindfuck of a movie.

That was interesting! Thank you.

 

[jason10mm]

Did anyone else pick up on the fact they kind of found a way to make Stranger Things: Aliens edition, by making 6 of the main char we'll be following children, but without actual child actors, like 5 of them are adults doing child coded acting.

This reminds me of CW's flash where they had his daughter Nora played Jessica Parker Kennedy acting like a child despite her being 30+ and tits out on Black Sails, it's rather distracting.

yummmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm, good times

I miss that show, and shows like it. Was hoping Spartacus Ashur would relaunch it but maybe not.

 

[jason10mm]

Did anyone else pick up on the fact they kind of found a way to make Stranger Things: Aliens edition, by making 6 of the main char we'll be following children, but without actual child actors, like 5 of them are adults doing child coded acting.

This reminds me of CW's flash where they had his daughter Nora played Jessica Parker Kennedy acting like a child despite her being 30+ and tits out on Black Sails, it's rather distracting.

I wish they didn't just handwave the entire consciousness transferal process.

What exactly did they transfer? Is there a quantum link for consciousness or was it just a set of memories to make a replica? What happened to the biological body and brain?

There are some great sci-fi books that really dive into this notion and what it means for "being alive" but I feel like they are just gonna gloss right over it. How much of maturity is biologic versus just time of existence? I'd assume a synth body is cold, static, and kinda terrifying compared to being in a bio body. No hunger, never being tired, no emotional physiologic response, its straight horrible.

 

[The Goddamn Mike]

I wish they didn't just handwave the entire consciousness transferal process.

What exactly did they transfer? Is there a quantum link for consciousness or was it just a set of memories to make a replica? What happened to the biological body and brain?

"You're going to live forever because you're special! [Contemplation] Well, a copy of you is going to live forever..."

"What happens to my body?"

"Uh...there are incinerators around here somewhere. [Hand-waiving] Don't worry about it. You're special!"

"Ok, but...will I be 'me?'"

"As far as everyone else is concerned: sure."

 

[Nocty]

why did the alien not kill the cyborg guy? it sniffed him and just fucked off?

 

[Dr Cowley]

why did the alien not kill the cyborg guy? it sniffed him and just fucked off?

I'm sure one charecter said they sense fear which is how they hunt. Sounds dumb I may have imagined it

 

[Alex11]

why did the alien not kill the cyborg guy? it sniffed him and just fucked off?

The Xeno read the script is my best guess, it knows it will have a chance later.

This is a watch don't ask questions show, I mean, why also the Xeno didn't let Wendy's brother get facehugged at the end?

 

[NeverYouMind]

And what's the rationale behind sending synths with volatile child minds and no experience to the crash site?

It seems like he is pushing their limits to trigger adaptations which would only be possible with the supercomputers inside their cyborg bodies. He has no concern for ethics and his motivation is selfishly pushing human evolution with his technology to create a generation of humanoids that surpass his intelligence.