Alien Resurrection - Novelization

[Corporal Hicks]

I was wondering what folk's thoughts on this were - yes, I'm looking at you SM & Kimarhi. I just finished reading this and I personally loved it. It was definately on par with Alan Dean Foster's novels and it filled in ALOT of the gaps from the movie. I really enjoyed alot of the backstory and some of the deviations from the film were fun. Like them finding an actual Aliens hive prior to the Waste Tank stuff.

What was of particular notice - and motivation to buy the novel - was the idea of some of it being told from the Aliens POV. It had the potential to be really dodgy - Sissthello'sssthtt anyone? - but I thought it pulled it together quite nicely. I loved how the Aliens and Ripley both had similar inner thoughts due to all the genetic crossovers and memory and etc.

Wasn't overly keen on how Ripley was written though. I really liked Sigourney's portrayal in the film. In this she is written to be far more brooding. But I did enjoy the inner workings of her mind.

Anyway, opinions?

[SM]

Yeah I liked it.  Especially the bit where Gediman muses about bits of the history between Alien3 and Resurrection that makes every DH comic null and void.    (Yeah alright that was a tad nasty...)  Richardson must've been tearing his hair out when he read it.

The Alien reading english I initially didn't mind it, then it bothered me a bit after a while.  These days - I'd have to read it again to see what I think.  But overall I quite enjoyed it.  I quite liked the irony of Perez being so anal about hygiene and soldiers worrying about tiny insects being on board - only to be all done in by monsters resembling giant insects.

[Corporal Hicks]

I quite liked the irony of Perez being so anal about hygiene and soldiers worrying about tiny insects being on board - only to be all done in by monsters resembling giant insects.

That was one thing I really enjoyed. Distephano's backstory in this. I mean, didn't we only ever hear his name once in the entire film? It was really nice to actually see him do stuff and learn about him in the novel.

[SM]

We hear his name three times if memory serves.

[Thedus]

One of my favorite aspects of this book - and it's a very small thing - is that Ripley 8 had dorsal spines which had to be surgically removed.  This was only touched on in the film, and I would have loved to have seen this on-screen.  Sadly, all we saw were the scars on her back when she was in the holding cell after the operation/embryo retrieval.

If this had been included it would have really helped solidify here non-human nature.

[Corporal Hicks]

That was definately one of the really interesting aspects. And another reason I think it edged out the film as well.

[The Ultimate Predator]

I was wondering what folk's thoughts on this were - yes, I'm looking at you SM & Kimarhi. I just finished reading this and I personally loved it. It was definately on par with Alan Dean Foster's novels and it filled in ALOT of the gaps from the movie. I really enjoyed alot of the backstory and some of the deviations from the film were fun. Like them finding an actual Aliens hive prior to the Waste Tank stuff.

What was of particular notice - and motivation to buy the novel - was the idea of some of it being told from the Aliens POV. It had the potential to be really dodgy - Sissthello'sssthtt anyone? - but I thought it pulled it together quite nicely. I loved how the Aliens and Ripley both had similar inner thoughts due to all the genetic crossovers and memory and etc.

Wasn't overly keen on how Ripley was written though. I really liked Sigourney's portrayal in the film. In this she is written to be far more brooding. But I did enjoy the inner workings of her mind.

Anyway, opinions?

Read it a long time ago. In fact, I read it before I had seen any of the alien films. I enjoyed it a lot more than the film. Indeed, when reading it doesn't it strike you as one of those un-filmable stories? Because there is no doubt in my mind that Jean-Pierre Jeunet is a great director, and its still shite.

[Alien5]

Definitely thought the novel was a great read. I especially liked how the novel explained Ripley's thoughts on the Newborn and ultimately deciding to kill it. It made me understand why Ripley cried about killing it, the fact that it was an emotinal bond along the same lines as Newt and her own daughter Amanda and ultimately having to exterminate it. It was a nice read and I wish they would have incorporated a lot of that in the movie. Perhaps, it would have given the movie more depth and given fans something more than what was originally thought.

[Kimarhi]

I thought it was okay at the time I read it.  Which was along time ago.  I did love the Alien warrior bits, but I'd never like to see the idea done on film. It was more interesting reading the author's interpretation of their mind.

The aliens ability to read came from Ripley I imagine.  That door swung both ways.

Maybe I'll pick it up again.