Alien: Covenant Early Reactions

[The Cruentus]

So without venturing into spoiler territory, I will say that I think I know what the issue might be and I've said it before. The xenomorph as we know it is not intended to exist in Alien Covenant. The aliens we see in it are a precursor or imitation of the true 'big chap'. That would explain differences in what we have come to expect. The next title is said to be called Awakening. What needs to be "awakened" if not once active but now dormant? The true xenomorph. We are just not there yet fellas.

Maybe that was not made clear in the film and people are taking the aliens in Covenant as the definitive Xenomorph, hence pissing in the morning cheerios of a lot of die hard Alien fans (and why casual fans are not aware and just really like the movie for what it is). But Ridley Scott has HIMSELF said that we are not there yet in regards to seeing the true "big chap" xenomorph.

Just my thoughts without having seen it myself, but what sounds like is going on.

I am hoping that the Xenos in Covenant are only replications of true Xenos as well. Casual fans may not care because they are either not as invested in the franchise as we are or are simply not as savvy when it comes to the lore and thus don't know about the Covenant Xenos differences or David creating those versions.

[Robopadna]

The Peter Weyland Files from Prometheus Blu-Ray

Reveal that Peter,David and Weyland's team (except prometheus crew) know about LV-426 Signal before go LV-223

"As fate would have it, Shaw and Holloway's interest in Zeta 2 Reticuli has proven to be mutually beneficial. While the good doctors rely on ancient carvings and primitive cave paintings, my science division's own long range scans have recently detected a faint, almost imperceptible signal emanating from of the lesser moons in that system. And contrary to the findings of shaw and Holloway, which target LV-223 as our primary site of interest, our findings suggest the point of origin could actually be the moon LV-426.

Per standard procedure, we will embed a David 8 unit with the crew. And he will programmed with multiple contingency plans to address and exploit whatever assets we secure on 223. But only David will know about 426 and will ensure that the rest of the crew - including Meredith - learn nothing about the transmission we've recently discovered until the time is right."

also mural on Prometheus movies

While interesting, Ridley will not consider any of that canon with the exception of the deacon, which he included at the end of Prometheus.  The deacon seems to be David's starting point.

[Infected]

Hicks, what is Covenant's rank in your top Alien (Prometheus included). Please 


Covenant is a winner?

I can never pick a favourite out of the original trilogy so it'd go - Alien/s/3, Covenant, Prometheus, Resurrection.

It's just how it is, Winde. Embargo's have been a thing forever. There's likely some strategy involved in it.

Apologies if this has been answered -- but did you get to have your sit down with Ridley and cast, Hicks?

That's tomorrow. 

So in your opinion Alien 3 is better then Covenant??

[The Cruentus]

The Peter Weyland Files from Prometheus Blu-Ray

Reveal that Peter,David and Weyland's team (except prometheus crew) know about LV-426 Signal before go LV-223

"As fate would have it, Shaw and Holloway's interest in Zeta 2 Reticuli has proven to be mutually beneficial. While the good doctors rely on ancient carvings and primitive cave paintings, my science division's own long range scans have recently detected a faint, almost imperceptible signal emanating from of the lesser moons in that system. And contrary to the findings of shaw and Holloway, which target LV-223 as our primary site of interest, our findings suggest the point of origin could actually be the moon LV-426.

Per standard procedure, we will embed a David 8 unit with the crew. And he will programmed with multiple contingency plans to address and exploit whatever assets we secure on 223. But only David will know about 426 and will ensure that the rest of the crew - including Meredith - learn nothing about the transmission we've recently discovered until the time is right."

also mural on Prometheus movies

While interesting, Ridley will not consider any of that canon with the exception of the deacon, which he included at the end of Prometheus.  The deacon seems to be David's starting point.

The Deacon became the mountain in Fire and stone, which is a canon series.

[Corporal Hicks]

So in your opinion Alien 3 is better then Covenant??

It's hard for me to gauge because I know Alien 3 is a mess of a film but I've just always liked it which is why I can never pick a favorite out of the first 3. Objectively, yeah, Covenant is probably a better film. But so is Prometheus. 

[SyntaX]

The Peter Weyland Files from Prometheus Blu-Ray

Reveal that Peter,David and Weyland's team (except prometheus crew) know about LV-426 Signal before go LV-223

"As fate would have it, Shaw and Holloway's interest in Zeta 2 Reticuli has proven to be mutually beneficial. While the good doctors rely on ancient carvings and primitive cave paintings, my science division's own long range scans have recently detected a faint, almost imperceptible signal emanating from of the lesser moons in that system. And contrary to the findings of shaw and Holloway, which target LV-223 as our primary site of interest, our findings suggest the point of origin could actually be the moon LV-426.

Per standard procedure, we will embed a David 8 unit with the crew. And he will programmed with multiple contingency plans to address and exploit whatever assets we secure on 223. But only David will know about 426 and will ensure that the rest of the crew - including Meredith - learn nothing about the transmission we've recently discovered until the time is right."

also mural on Prometheus movies

While interesting, Ridley will not consider any of that canon with the exception of the deacon, which he included at the end of Prometheus.  The deacon seems to be David's starting point.

David has no knowledge of the Deacon.

[Robopadna]

The Peter Weyland Files from Prometheus Blu-Ray

Reveal that Peter,David and Weyland's team (except prometheus crew) know about LV-426 Signal before go LV-223

"As fate would have it, Shaw and Holloway's interest in Zeta 2 Reticuli has proven to be mutually beneficial. While the good doctors rely on ancient carvings and primitive cave paintings, my science division's own long range scans have recently detected a faint, almost imperceptible signal emanating from of the lesser moons in that system. And contrary to the findings of shaw and Holloway, which target LV-223 as our primary site of interest, our findings suggest the point of origin could actually be the moon LV-426.

Per standard procedure, we will embed a David 8 unit with the crew. And he will programmed with multiple contingency plans to address and exploit whatever assets we secure on 223. But only David will know about 426 and will ensure that the rest of the crew - including Meredith - learn nothing about the transmission we've recently discovered until the time is right."

also mural on Prometheus movies

While interesting, Ridley will not consider any of that canon with the exception of the deacon, which he included at the end of Prometheus.  The deacon seems to be David's starting point.

The Deacon became the mountain in Fire and stone, which is a canon series.

That's an assumption and, most importantly, Scott could not care less about the comics.  He barely cares what any of the films but Alien has laid out.  Fox will say whatever (they said Colonial Marines was canon until they then said they essentially didn't care).

David has no knowledge of the Deacon.

He saw the mural he knew what was growing in Shaw.  He examined the accelerant.  It is true that he was not literally standing beside it when it emerged, but he can make some inferences to drive his exploration/assumptions.  I am not saying this would ever be literally called out in the movie (David won't have a journal where he longingly writes about the Deacon) but the steps were pretty clearly laid out in Prometheus.

[The Cruentus]

So in your opinion Alien 3 is better then Covenant??

It's hard for me to gauge because I know Alien 3 is a mess of a film but I've just always liked it which is why I can never pick a favorite out of the first 3. Objectively, yeah, Covenant is probably a better film. But so is Prometheus.

Alien 3 was not the best but considering it came after a movie that raised the bar high and the infamous production problems Alien 3 had, its surprising that it was as good as it was. Magic egg and sucker punch of the intro deaths aside, the film was good, the tone of the film was all about despair and hopelessnes.
If Alien: Covenant is better (in your opinion of course) than Alien 3, Resurrection and Prometheus, then that it gives me some hope but since we all have different opinons and the fact that those movies were not the highest point in the series, I still won't get my hopes too high.

The Peter Weyland Files from Prometheus Blu-Ray

Reveal that Peter,David and Weyland's team (except prometheus crew) know about LV-426 Signal before go LV-223

"As fate would have it, Shaw and Holloway's interest in Zeta 2 Reticuli has proven to be mutually beneficial. While the good doctors rely on ancient carvings and primitive cave paintings, my science division's own long range scans have recently detected a faint, almost imperceptible signal emanating from of the lesser moons in that system. And contrary to the findings of shaw and Holloway, which target LV-223 as our primary site of interest, our findings suggest the point of origin could actually be the moon LV-426.

Per standard procedure, we will embed a David 8 unit with the crew. And he will programmed with multiple contingency plans to address and exploit whatever assets we secure on 223. But only David will know about 426 and will ensure that the rest of the crew - including Meredith - learn nothing about the transmission we've recently discovered until the time is right."

also mural on Prometheus movies

While interesting, Ridley will not consider any of that canon with the exception of the deacon, which he included at the end of Prometheus.  The deacon seems to be David's starting point.

The Deacon became the mountain in Fire and stone, which is a canon series.

That's an assumption and, most importantly, Scott could not care less about the comics.  He barely cares what any of the films but Alien has laid out.  Fox will say whatever (they said Colonial Marines was canon until they then said they essentially didn't care).

David has no knowledge of the Deacon.

He saw the mural he knew what was growing in Shaw.  He examined the accelerant.  It is true that he was not literally standing beside it when it emerged, but he can make some inferences to drive his exploration/assumptions.  I am not saying this would ever be literally called out in the movie (David won't have a journal where he longingly writes about the Deacon) but the steps were pretty clearly laid out in Prometheus.

Fox unfortunately, overules Scott since they hold the rights, and it was mostly the devs that said that about A;CM.

The mural may not been a Deacon, especially when one considers the elaborate events needed to create a Deacon.

[Darth Vile]

I'd be worried if Alien 3 was deemed better than Covenant. Whilst I love its production design, the actors and general cinematography, Alien 3 really is a fine example of executive interference, no central creative control/vision, and a script written on the fly...

[SyntaX]

The Peter Weyland Files from Prometheus Blu-Ray

Reveal that Peter,David and Weyland's team (except prometheus crew) know about LV-426 Signal before go LV-223

"As fate would have it, Shaw and Holloway's interest in Zeta 2 Reticuli has proven to be mutually beneficial. While the good doctors rely on ancient carvings and primitive cave paintings, my science division's own long range scans have recently detected a faint, almost imperceptible signal emanating from of the lesser moons in that system. And contrary to the findings of shaw and Holloway, which target LV-223 as our primary site of interest, our findings suggest the point of origin could actually be the moon LV-426.

Per standard procedure, we will embed a David 8 unit with the crew. And he will programmed with multiple contingency plans to address and exploit whatever assets we secure on 223. But only David will know about 426 and will ensure that the rest of the crew - including Meredith - learn nothing about the transmission we've recently discovered until the time is right."

also mural on Prometheus movies

While interesting, Ridley will not consider any of that canon with the exception of the deacon, which he included at the end of Prometheus.  The deacon seems to be David's starting point.

The Deacon became the mountain in Fire and stone, which is a canon series.

That's an assumption and, most importantly, Scott could not care less about the comics.  He barely cares what any of the films but Alien has laid out.  Fox will say whatever (they said Colonial Marines was canon until they then said they essentially didn't care).

David has no knowledge of the Deacon.

He saw the mural he knew what was growing in Shaw.  He examined the accelerant.  It is true that he was not literally standing beside it when it emerged, but he can make some inferences to drive his exploration/assumptions.  I am not saying this would ever be literally called out in the movie (David won't have a journal where he longingly writes about the Deacon) but the steps were pretty clearly laid out in Prometheus.

What is canon? 

The movies are the only thing that are canon. I don't see the comic books, toys or whatsoever being part of the lore.
As far as I know, David has no knowledge of the Daecon. He only made sure Shaw's boyfriend got infected which, in turn, infected her. He was intrigued by what would come out of Shaw. The outcome of his experiment.

Again, he has no knowledge what would happen if "Tentacle" infected the Engineer.

[Corporal Hicks]

Neither he or Shaw knew it was capable of infecting anyone in the first place.

[Imbrie]

So in your opinion Alien 3 is better then Covenant??

It's hard for me to gauge because I know Alien 3 is a mess of a film but I've just always liked it which is why I can never pick a favorite out of the first 3. Objectively, yeah, Covenant is probably a better film. But so is Prometheus.

Alien 3 was not the best but considering it came after a movie that raised the bar high and the infamous production problems Alien 3 had, its surprising that it was as good as it was. Magic egg and sucker punch of the intro deaths aside, the film was good, the tone of the film was all about despair and hopelessnes.
If Alien: Covenant is better (in your opinion of course) than Alien 3, Resurrection and Prometheus, then that it gives me some hope but since we all have different opinons and the fact that those movies were not the highest point in the series, I still won't get my hopes too high.

The Peter Weyland Files from Prometheus Blu-Ray

Reveal that Peter,David and Weyland's team (except prometheus crew) know about LV-426 Signal before go LV-223

"As fate would have it, Shaw and Holloway's interest in Zeta 2 Reticuli has proven to be mutually beneficial. While the good doctors rely on ancient carvings and primitive cave paintings, my science division's own long range scans have recently detected a faint, almost imperceptible signal emanating from of the lesser moons in that system. And contrary to the findings of shaw and Holloway, which target LV-223 as our primary site of interest, our findings suggest the point of origin could actually be the moon LV-426.

Per standard procedure, we will embed a David 8 unit with the crew. And he will programmed with multiple contingency plans to address and exploit whatever assets we secure on 223. But only David will know about 426 and will ensure that the rest of the crew - including Meredith - learn nothing about the transmission we've recently discovered until the time is right."

also mural on Prometheus movies

While interesting, Ridley will not consider any of that canon with the exception of the deacon, which he included at the end of Prometheus.  The deacon seems to be David's starting point.

The Deacon became the mountain in Fire and stone, which is a canon series.

That's an assumption and, most importantly, Scott could not care less about the comics.  He barely cares what any of the films but Alien has laid out.  Fox will say whatever (they said Colonial Marines was canon until they then said they essentially didn't care).

David has no knowledge of the Deacon.

He saw the mural he knew what was growing in Shaw.  He examined the accelerant.  It is true that he was not literally standing beside it when it emerged, but he can make some inferences to drive his exploration/assumptions.  I am not saying this would ever be literally called out in the movie (David won't have a journal where he longingly writes about the Deacon) but the steps were pretty clearly laid out in Prometheus.

Fox unfortunately, overules Scott since they hold the rights, and it was mostly the devs that said that about A;CM.

The mural may not been a Deacon, especially when one considers the elaborate events needed to create a Deacon.

I really doubt the execs at Fox demanded for Ridley to include a link back to a Blu Ray extra in Covenant in order to demonstrate its canonness.

[Bad Replicant]

Hicks, what is Covenant's rank in your top Alien (Prometheus included). Please 


Covenant is a winner?

I can never pick a favourite out of the original trilogy so it'd go - Alien/s/3, Covenant, Prometheus, Resurrection.

It's just how it is, Winde. Embargo's have been a thing forever. There's likely some strategy involved in it.

Apologies if this has been answered -- but did you get to have your sit down with Ridley and cast, Hicks?

That's tomorrow. 

[SyntaX]

Neither he or Shaw knew it was capable of infecting anyone in the first place.

David knew it was capable of "infecting" an organism the moment it made what's-his-name sick. Shaw still had no knowledge what happened.

[Robopadna]

So in your opinion Alien 3 is better then Covenant??

It's hard for me to gauge because I know Alien 3 is a mess of a film but I've just always liked it which is why I can never pick a favorite out of the first 3. Objectively, yeah, Covenant is probably a better film. But so is Prometheus.

Alien 3 was not the best but considering it came after a movie that raised the bar high and the infamous production problems Alien 3 had, its surprising that it was as good as it was. Magic egg and sucker punch of the intro deaths aside, the film was good, the tone of the film was all about despair and hopelessnes.
If Alien: Covenant is better (in your opinion of course) than Alien 3, Resurrection and Prometheus, then that it gives me some hope but since we all have different opinons and the fact that those movies were not the highest point in the series, I still won't get my hopes too high.

The Peter Weyland Files from Prometheus Blu-Ray

Reveal that Peter,David and Weyland's team (except prometheus crew) know about LV-426 Signal before go LV-223

"As fate would have it, Shaw and Holloway's interest in Zeta 2 Reticuli has proven to be mutually beneficial. While the good doctors rely on ancient carvings and primitive cave paintings, my science division's own long range scans have recently detected a faint, almost imperceptible signal emanating from of the lesser moons in that system. And contrary to the findings of shaw and Holloway, which target LV-223 as our primary site of interest, our findings suggest the point of origin could actually be the moon LV-426.

Per standard procedure, we will embed a David 8 unit with the crew. And he will programmed with multiple contingency plans to address and exploit whatever assets we secure on 223. But only David will know about 426 and will ensure that the rest of the crew - including Meredith - learn nothing about the transmission we've recently discovered until the time is right."

also mural on Prometheus movies

While interesting, Ridley will not consider any of that canon with the exception of the deacon, which he included at the end of Prometheus.  The deacon seems to be David's starting point.

The Deacon became the mountain in Fire and stone, which is a canon series.

That's an assumption and, most importantly, Scott could not care less about the comics.  He barely cares what any of the films but Alien has laid out.  Fox will say whatever (they said Colonial Marines was canon until they then said they essentially didn't care).

David has no knowledge of the Deacon.

He saw the mural he knew what was growing in Shaw.  He examined the accelerant.  It is true that he was not literally standing beside it when it emerged, but he can make some inferences to drive his exploration/assumptions.  I am not saying this would ever be literally called out in the movie (David won't have a journal where he longingly writes about the Deacon) but the steps were pretty clearly laid out in Prometheus.

Fox unfortunately, overules Scott since they hold the rights, and it was mostly the devs that said that about A;CM.

The mural may not been a Deacon, especially when one considers the elaborate events needed to create a Deacon.

What I am saying is, Fox could not care less either.  They will defer to Ridley to do whatever he wants because they think it will make them money.

Fox stamped A:CM with the canon stamp.  The devs can't force them to do it.  Then they realized they didn't really care and were fine if anyone wanted to contradict it so they rescinded it.  But they absolutely did give it the canon status....   until they decided not to.

As fans we get WAY in the weeds about all of these things because we are, well, huge fans of the series and we spent money/time/effort reading and digesting this material so, on a basic level, we want it to mean something.  The reality is that Fox and Ridley don't care much about it and they have an idea for a new trilogy/series single movie they will blatantly contradict the information provided in viral marketing, novels, appendices and comic books (they most likely are largely unaware of what the content of these are and don't have any inclination to read them).