A3 Alien Chewing on its dead victims.

[Meathead320]

Any one else notice this behavior?

I take it from the theatrical version, that the Alien did have a Rottweiler for a host.

To me SE is only canon in places where it does not contradict the theatrical version.

In other words, Alien3 SE can be used for reference, all except for the OX host.

We have never seen an Alien actively chewing its victim after killing it before, or since, and it is a curious phenomenon.

This was actually in the theatrical version too, come to think of it.

Was this just a behavioral tendency, so ingrained into canine DNA that the Alien picked up on it? The behavior of "chewing"?

It did not look like the Alien was feeding from its victim, just continuing to bite it aggressively.

[Nightmare]

i believe aliens have to feed, thats probably what it was doing, or since he came from a dog, could be just some strange characteristic he took from the host...

[Meathead320]

i believe aliens have to feed, thats probably what it was doing, or since he came from a dog, could be just some strange characteristic he took from the host...

Normal Alien would still have moved him before it started to feed.

All other encounters the Alien did not mess with the victim that long, either dead or alive carried them off.

Then we see the A3 Dog Alien Nawing on a guy.

1. It was feeding.

or

2. Was chewing like an angry dog.

[Ballzanya]

Well its aggressive tendency to bite could have been amplified by its dna reflex. After all a dog can bite a lot harder than a human and would tend to go apeshit on something a little more. We don't necessarily see it eating anyone, but instead the inner jaw just goes to town on people's flesh.
I would assume it would also chomp down with its normal jaw when eating unless , they are more for show which doesn't really make sense. It makes sense that the inner jaw is the primary weapon for killing, but not for eating.  I doubt they are vestigial teeth just there from the dna reflex, taken from the host, or remnants of when a creature the alien evovled from did not have the inner jaw and only used that one.

[SM]

He was just making sure.

[Meathead320]

unless , they are more for show which doesn't really make sense

No, and they have been seen from time to time trying to bite at things with the primary jaws.

The AVP Queen took quite the chomp at Lex durring their chase for example.

[The Chibi Kiriyama]

I think it was just a matter of the Alien letting loose some of that viscious personality upon the victims. It could have had to do with the host, but I definitely don't think it was to feed. It looked more like intentional mutilation.

EDIT: Hmm...strike that argument. While it did look like intentional mutilation, maybe the Alien is truly carnivorous in nature.

[SM]

The host aspect tends to fall down when you take into account that the original host was an ox.

INT.  TUNNEL.

KEVIN rounds a corner and sees it.

The ALIEN absently chewing the cud while standing on all fours over the body of VINCENT.

KEVIN

Come on!  Come and get me ya f**ker!!

The ALIEN looks at him for a moment-

-then goes back to it's chewing.

KEVIN

This thing is really not interested!!!

[The Chibi Kiriyama]

The host aspect tends to fall down when you take into account that the original host was an ox.

But didn't he mention that it only occurs in the theatrical version? My copy of the Quadrilogy's at home, so I can't verify that...

[Irritator]

The host aspect tends to fall down when you take into account that the original host was an ox.

Special Edition contradicts the theatrical version, so it can't be really taken into account.

And it makes really little sense, the dog as a host explains the Alien's unusual behaviour. Occam's razor, please.

[The Necronoir]

I think there are two ways you can look at this: either this particular alien is behaving in a way we've never seen before, or it's simply doing something we've never seen before.

I tend to think it's probably the latter, as I don't believe the aliens behaviour would be affected by host traits (besides the means of movement and other things dictated by physical characteristics. As to what it's doing and why, I think it's prudent to examine the situation.

We have a single alien acting in a situation where it is outnumbered, just as in the first movie, however what makes this instance radically different is the imminent arrival of a new queen. As we know, this prompts the alien to act in a protective manner toward the host but, if you think about it  logically, it doesn't make sense for it to want to kill the other humans indiscriminately. The survival of the species would be far better ensured if the queen could safely achieve maturity with as many viable host specimens left. A single queen and warrior surrounded by a cache of eggs, relying on chance to provide future hosts, is not a good recipe for survival.

For this reason I think what we're seeing is the alien doing something to its victims which would immobilise them for an extended period of time without killing them, either with some sort of venom or toxin or something relating to the hive material. We know that a cocoon seen, similar to that cut from the first movie, was planned for Alien 3, so I'm more inclined toward the latter. If the hive is created through the growth of spore-like organisms secreted by glands in the alien's mouth it would make sense for it to create a great number of superficial wounds on the victim within which it could propagate.

Fairly technical, I know, but it's an idea I find compelling.

[Harkus]

i'm pretty sure it killed them all though and didn't just immobilize them.

[The Necronoir]

Without going into the whole 'Are headbites lethal?/Was the cocooned Brett still alive?' discussion, I'll simply reply that it's be no means certain that all or even any of them are dead.

[Nightmare]

I think there are two ways you can look at this: either this particular alien is behaving in a way we've never seen before, or it's simply doing something we've never seen before.

I tend to think it's probably the latter, as I don't believe the aliens behaviour would be affected by host traits (besides the means of movement and other things dictated by physical characteristics. As to what it's doing and why, I think it's prudent to examine the situation.

We have a single alien acting in a situation where it is outnumbered, just as in the first movie, however what makes this instance radically different is the imminent arrival of a new queen. As we know, this prompts the alien to act in a protective manner toward the host but, if you think about it  logically, it doesn't make sense for it to want to kill the other humans indiscriminately. The survival of the species would be far better ensured if the queen could safely achieve maturity with as many viable host specimens left. A single queen and warrior surrounded by a cache of eggs, relying on chance to provide future hosts, is not a good recipe for survival.

For this reason I think what we're seeing is the alien doing something to its victims which would immobilise them for an extended period of time without killing them, either with some sort of venom or toxin or something relating to the hive material. We know that a cocoon seen, similar to that cut from the first movie, was planned for Alien 3, so I'm more inclined toward the latter. If the hive is created through the growth of spore-like organisms secreted by glands in the alien's mouth it would make sense for it to create a great number of superficial wounds on the victim within which it could propagate.

Fairly technical, I know, but it's an idea I find compelling.

i love that theory!

anyway, feeding, now that i think about it looks unlickley....inner jaw uses the hole mouth space, and i dont see any opening on it, how would the food go to the creatures "stomach" (suposing they have one)?

if they feed i dont think it will be like big pieces of meath, maybe some sort of liquid substance (acid on food?)

[SM]

Special Edition contradicts the theatrical version, so it can't be really taken into account.

Of course it can.  We know from a production standpoint that Fincher wanted this thing to be really vicious - yet right throughout production it was bred from an ox.  The viciousness didn't come from ox.  You can make an argument from what's in the final film, but not taking all the other aspects into account.

Especially the other films where we see Aliens wantonly killing people.  An Alien could simply be vicious, because that's what it is.  Kane didn't show any signs of doing unspeakable things to Lambert, but look at what happened to her.