Specimen teaser:
https://www.facebook.com/alienanthology/videos/1569065813238313/ (https://www.facebook.com/alienanthology/videos/1569065813238313/)
Looks good, except for the dog.
And why is the dog not going apesh#t? There's an alien nearby.
I am most excited for this one.
Here's a YouTube upload of the teaser in the proper aspect ratio:
https://youtu.be/okvMQ2EXhfk (https://youtu.be/okvMQ2EXhfk)
He created it.
Why is the alien drool seemingly dissolving the floor?
Quote from: stu on Apr 03, 2019, 07:50:05 PM
Why is the alien drool seemingly dissolving the floor?
Because Styrofoam is the future.
Love the atmosphere and the cinematography of this short.
Perhaps with the alien drool they're taking inspiration from the Runner which could spit acid.
The queen's also melted the floor.
I thought it was due to her wounds after Ripley shooting at her.
Pretty sure it was wounded. The spitting thing didn't happen 'till the later movies. And on that, the Runner and Res Aliens spit acid (somehow) but they don't drool it. The Alien in this short might be injured or something.
She's not bleeding from anywhere we see.
It's really only used to give an effect to the audience of an "Oh f**k!" moment after we think Ripley and co have made it back safely. Seeing it isn't really important. But up to that point, it's established they bleed acid, so it could be something as little as a paper cut, as demonstrated with the incision Ash gives the facehugger in the first film.
Jumping on board for this. Looks interesting. That girl looks like Lambert with the cart.
Interesting, hope it's good.
Looks great! Very atmospheric.
No quadrupedal Alien though? Aw.
I know, no chance because of the budget.
After enjoying the first for what it was, I'm looking forward to this one too.
https://youtu.be/wKl-fU3WC7s (https://youtu.be/wKl-fU3WC7s)
WOW! Really good short film. Just excellent. Suspense, horror, unexpected turn. I like it!
Poor dog!
Hey, that was good! Loved the twist ending.
You did good.
Nice short. Lovely Cinematography, loved how quickly we related to the main character. Plus, love you Maggie! Good doggo.
Dashing doggo, powerful pupper.
Really enjoyed this one, clever little idea nicely carried out and a very good dog as well!
I kept wondering why the dog didn't get hugged. Glad they explained it.
Liked it a lot. They nailed the atmosphere and cinematography. I felt like last week, that one seemed to go quite fast but this was about the right length.
It was OK.
This one felt more like an Alien movie. Great ending too!
I really liked this.
Wow!!! Well done. For a short it was f**king fantastic.:)
A step up from last week's short in every way. I liked 'Containment,' but it still felt like a fan film, trying too hard to belong in the Alien universe. Been there, done that. 'Specimen,' on the other hand, shows how the franchise can and should branch out beyond Ripley and the colonial marines. This film feels comfortable creating its own world, in which the nightmare creature is then introduced and horror ensues. I smiled when the montage started with the rock music. "Finally," I thought, "a filmmaker is trying a new direction that truly feels modern, and yet still feels like Alien." Studios cling to original elements way too long (looking at you, Indiana Jones!). Give the franchise to new, young filmmakers, and let them have the freedom to bring the horror back to Alien. Great job, crew of 'Specimen'!
First one was good, this one was much better.
That was awesome! Loved the twist.
This was great! I liked "Containment"... but that one felt way too rushed. This one was perfectly paced and kept me on the edge of my seat. Maggie was definitely a good dog (and what a great addition to the mythos branching out in that direction).
Oscar for the mutt. Not bad short.
So it's National Geographic's Mars meets Alien 3.
I like it. Very doable as a show, if you're listening Disney.
Vastly superior short over last week, in all categories. Very professional.
I want more of this.
Great atmosphere and cinematography. This one felt longer than the last. Which is definitely a good thing. The Dog was great and the main character relatable.
However, the Facehugger cgi was a little too dodgy for me. Especially the long shot at the end.
The CGI's great for £30,000.
Quote from: The Old One on Apr 05, 2019, 10:54:08 PM
The CGI's great for £30,000.
For the money? Maybe, I wouldn't know off hand.
For me personally? It's too obviously fake and computer generated.
I would try and do this point by point but F*** I love this short.
This is really good, leave it to the Alien and Predator franchises to have the best doggos out there in science-fiction. From the music montage, hitting the damn facehugger with a shovel and that reveal, more of this please. I'd love to see more of this I love this short A++.
Pretty good. Pretty good!!
This one was better. Facehugger cgi looked a little weird, wish they would focus a little more on the aliens appearing. AVP Redemption was made with like 500 dolars and still managed to make the facehuggers look alright for the most part.
Yeah, this was a good short. Much better than Containment in every way.
Disliked last week's short for a variety of reasons (mainly a lack of originality), but this was very good indeed. Great cinematography, and both the lead and the doggy put in a great performance. Found myself a little tense watching it as she creeped through the building hearing the sounds of the dog and the facehugger in the background. Thought the actress who played the lead really sold the short, think she could hold down an entire feature.
Scores so far...
Containment - 3/10
Specimen - 8.5/10
Really enjoyed this one! Very well done all things considered.
This short was excellent! I really enjoyed the lead and the dog in this. Being a dog owner there is just something unsettling about your dog barking into the darkness. I also enjoyed when she removed her headphones and the sirens were blaring! I loved the callback to the original Alien with the lead walking down a dark corridor with the steam billowing in the back ground.Great job!
Brilliant, I'd have been super proud to make something like this.
The whole way through I thought they were going bust the lore right open (quick Alien etc) because it was a short, but they nailed it.
9/10.
Loved it!Great atmosphere and design all together. Nothing new except...well...the ending part says it all. I hope this will one day make it to feature length!
Aww, c'mon. This is what a real companion is like...
Spoiler
(https://www.herocollector.com/uploads/media/Doctor-Who-k9-launch.jpg)
I mean the puppy at the bottom, not the one on the left ;D
TC
So the dog was an android of sorts...?
The skin on it's head came off because it bit or scratched the facehugger...?
Confused.
The budget was 30,000 dollars
This was pretty great, I liked it a lot more than the first short. It set itself up for some tropes and cliches, and then surprised me by sidestepping them pretty effectively.
This was a marked improvement. Seeing the actual creature was a plus.
Sound design was incredibly heavy handed but not a deal breaker.
why did she strike the dog with the shovel?
very good the best so far
Not bad for a human.
Quote from: oduodu on Apr 06, 2019, 07:52:10 AM
why did she strike the dog with the shovel?
very good the best so far
Spoiler
Put it out of its misery
That was f**king STELLAR!
This one felt way very unique. Loved the setting, the set, the editing, the pop song, the twist, everything.
This one was truly something special.
10/10
Quote from: dHunter333 on Apr 06, 2019, 03:55:40 AM
So the dog was an android of sorts...?
The skin on it's head came off because it bit or scratched the facehugger...?
Confused.
The dog attacked the facehugger and got wounded by the acidic blood. The facehugger may have also clawed the dog's face in self-defense.
Nice, but (maybe) the ending would have been much heavier (and it would make more sense) if it was a real dog.
The same ending, just change the colour from white to red...
That was great - genuine suspense.
Very, very good.
Quote from: xxx on Apr 06, 2019, 10:24:04 AM
Nice, but (maybe) the ending would have been much heavier (and it would make more sense) if it was a real dog.
The same ending, just change the colour from white to red...
How does a real dog make more sense?
A real dog would've been facehugged.
Likely, a real dog would have bit the facehugger as well. Then the result would have been the same. There is also the possibility that the dog's gag reflex would have prevented it from biting the FH. Who knows? I much prefer it the way it is. Candroid. Clever.
We know what happens when a facehugger attacks an aggressive real dog.
Quote from: SM on Apr 06, 2019, 10:50:50 AM
Quote from: xxx on Apr 06, 2019, 10:24:04 AM
Nice, but (maybe) the ending would have been much heavier (and it would make more sense) if it was a real dog.
The same ending, just change the colour from white to red...
How does a real dog make more sense?
A real dog would've been facehugged.
Well, (thanks P.O. for the dog biology point of wiew - the snouthugger would definitelly got bitten, and the acid would do its part)
but I thought more about the reason of having the (robo)dog there. He is evidently expendable ("no names") and at the end the guy asked about the hugger "what is that" - so they dont know about aliens, but have the nonhugable robot just to be sure?
Are there another health hazardous materials/organisms for the (robo)dog to defend people from?
They mention another "Specimen" outbreak at the beginning, so I'm guessing yes.
Much better than the last.
Quote from: xxx on Apr 06, 2019, 11:52:54 AM
Quote from: SM on Apr 06, 2019, 10:50:50 AM
Quote from: xxx on Apr 06, 2019, 10:24:04 AM
Nice, but (maybe) the ending would have been much heavier (and it would make more sense) if it was a real dog.
The same ending, just change the colour from white to red...
How does a real dog make more sense?
A real dog would've been facehugged.
Well, (thanks P.O. for the dog biology point of wiew - the snouthugger would definitelly got bitten, and the acid would do its part)
but I thought more about the reason of having the (robo)dog there. He is evidently expendable ("no names") and at the end the guy asked about the hugger "what is that" - so they dont know about aliens, but have the nonhugable robot just to be sure?
Are there another health hazardous materials/organisms for the (robo)dog to defend people from?
It's just a synthetic dog, doesn't mean it was made to counter huggers. Since the whole room is a greenhouse you wouldn't want a real dog in there potentially ruining it.
And it seems like a lonely job, so the dog counts as company while also sniffing out contaminants.
What I wanna know is who stuffed the egg in the barrel in the first place.
"Burke... cough cough ... it was Burke!!!"
I'm interested to know how people have their screens adjusted for brightness when watching this.
For example:
During the Fox logo, can you see a difference between the blackness of the horizontal widescreen bars top and bottom, and the blackness within the logo itself?
How about in the opening matte shot of the distant industrial complex: How much detail can you see in the large rock in the left foreground? Is it the same black as the black bars; barely distinguishable texture; or easy to see texture?
TC
Quote from: SiL on Apr 06, 2019, 11:54:50 AM
They mention another "Specimen" outbreak at the beginning, so I'm guessing yes.
Would make sense, thx :)
but still the last sentence form the guy....is unnecessarily confusing...
I believe it's misleading terminology, as "Bug Hunt" is.
The "specimen outbreak" mentioned near the beginning is a plant virus, stowaway earth insects or E.T insects. Etcetera.
(My opinion.)
Yeah, I don't think "specimen" specifically refers to an Alien, but it could be some other thing that a dog would be useful for. Even if it was just the dog's superior sense of smell.
best ALIEN movie after "Aliens"
This was good, but a robot dog like that makes no sense. If you have the tech to build something that smells as good as a dog, then just make it hand-held. Or attached to a drone that flies around sniffing things.
Or if you're insistent on it looking like dog, then give it the ability to speak, instead of trying to communicate through barks?
One small touch I was expecting (but didn't happen) was
Spoiler
I was hoping that after the wounded facehugger gets stabbed by the shovel for the first time, that there'd be acid damage on the shovel
.
Love the location, evocative of Outland and Aliens/Alien³ all at once; whilst being it's own thing.
This one was great!
Loved the atmosphere, the suspense, the effects... everything. Plus, I've always wanted to see a non-humanoid synth; I think variations on the robots are a great untapped vein for Alien-verse mythology, and this short demonstrates that as well.
Pretty decent!! Enjoyed the tension, the acting was great....nice little twist at the end..... hoping they all remain at this level 👍
That was really good, considerably better than the first one. Lead actress was a lot more convincing. Twist ending with the dog was neat too, and explained the niggle I had that a pooch was winning a fight with a Facehugger.
Only real gripe was the slightly ropey CGI, but that's to be expected on a project like this and it's honestly a minor quibble.
Quote from: Xenomrph on Apr 06, 2019, 01:47:03 PMOne small touch I was expecting (but didn't happen) was
Spoiler
I was hoping that after the wounded facehugger gets stabbed by the shovel for the first time, that there'd be acid damage on the shovel
Ditto.
Quote from: Ronoc on Apr 06, 2019, 01:45:03 PMThis was good, but a robot dog like that makes no sense. If you have the tech to build something that smells as good as a dog, then just make it hand-held. Or attached to a drone that flies around sniffing things.
Or if you're insistent on it looking like dog, then give it the ability to speak, instead of trying to communicate through barks?
There could be any number of reasons you'd want a dog. Pest control, or as someone already mentioned, companionship for the staff. Seemed perfectly reasonable to me.
Budget, although; "The acid oxidises after the creatures death completely neutralizing it."
Quote from: The Old One on Apr 06, 2019, 03:44:14 PM
Budget, although; "The acid oxidises after the creatures death completely neutralizing it."
It's not terribly expensive to cut the tip off a shovel and put some chemicals on it to make it steam. Especially if you already have the shovel.
And the Facehugger was still alive at the time, it was moving.
For all the reasons that have already been mentioned, this one was fantastic! It was so good it made me want to watch it again immediately. Bravo to everyone involved. Great usage of the time. Felt a lot longer, the lead was really good, very compelling, the twist was genius and explained the problem between the dog and facehugger.
Emotional, compelling, tense, satisfying yet still leaving me wanting more. Simple, but original. Original without going crazy with the lore. I'm so thrilled we got something like this. Smartly made.
Don't think I posted any thoughts on this one, but I seriously enjoyed this. Really well shot, very tense throughout, and some pretty interesting sound design. There's a lot more to this one than Containment. The world that the characters inhabit here feels more real and functional. I also like that its twist kind of subverts what you would expect from a fan film (the WY rep was just as in the dark as everyone else and not trying to take the specimen, the android served a dedicated purpose in the greenhouse that wasn't just "Secure Alien for my WY overlords," etc).
Sure, the CGI on the Facehugger was dodgy and I would have liked to have seen a bit of the acid blood's effect on the shovel. But whatever.
I am very pleased with this one.
Quote from: HuDaFuK on Apr 06, 2019, 03:38:50 PM
That was really good, considerably better than the first one. Lead actress was a lot more convincing. Twist ending with the dog was neat too, and explained the niggle I had that a pooch was winning a fight with a Facehugger.
Only real gripe was the slightly ropey CGI, but that's to be expected on a project like this and it's honestly a minor quibble.
Quote from: Xenomrph on Apr 06, 2019, 01:47:03 PMOne small touch I was expecting (but didn't happen) was
Spoiler
I was hoping that after the wounded facehugger gets stabbed by the shovel for the first time, that there'd be acid damage on the shovel
Ditto.
Quote from: Ronoc on Apr 06, 2019, 01:45:03 PMThis was good, but a robot dog like that makes no sense. If you have the tech to build something that smells as good as a dog, then just make it hand-held. Or attached to a drone that flies around sniffing things.
Or if you're insistent on it looking like dog, then give it the ability to speak, instead of trying to communicate through barks?
There could be any number of reasons you'd want a dog. Pest control, or as someone already mentioned, companionship for the staff. Seemed perfectly reasonable to me.
Yeah, but it wasn't a dog.
Why would you build something that sophisticated, yet not improve on a dog? Like I said, give it ability to speak, a pair of hands growing out of it's chest, wings?
Synths must be expensive, otherwise they'd be everywhere. Or else who needs a power loader, when you can make giant intelligent super-strong four-armed gorillas to take orders and move crap around in warehouses?
A dog? We already have those...
Fantastic short! Whereas "Containment" felt like a trailer for a film we'll never see, "Specimen" was a complete and satisfying experience. Well done.
"You people made me this way, because you're more comfortable interacting with your own kind."
I imagine the (identical sentiment) idea's applicable to human and animal companionship.
Replicants, if you will. ;)
If I had to guess, "Maggie" and any other AI-K9s were likely constructed with recreation in mind, as pets. Not for actual labor.
This particular greenhouse facility is probably not exactly sitting high on WY's list of valuable projects to dump resources into, so why install a fully operational MU/TH/UR system or a Bishop droid that probably cost top dollar to monitor for potential contagions, infestations, etc. when you can ship over a few of these dog units that are cheap and disposable? Doubles as a companion for the presumably bare-minimum staff working at the facility, and WY gets to check off some boxes on their list.
Quote from: HuDaFuK on Apr 06, 2019, 03:45:37 PM
Quote from: The Old One on Apr 06, 2019, 03:44:14 PM
Budget, although; "The acid oxidises after the creatures death completely neutralizing it."
It's not terribly expensive to cut the tip off a shovel and put some chemicals on it to make it steam. Especially if you already have the shovel.
And the Facehugger was still alive at the time, it was moving.
That, and the acid doesn't neutralize the very picosecond the facehugger dies. :P
Also, you can't just slap wings on a dog and expect it to fly; it may be a robot, but it still has to obey the laws of physics.
That was really good. Was glued to the screen watching this one.
QuoteAre there another health hazardous materials/organisms for the (robo)dog to defend people from?
It's a guard dog.
Do actual contemporary guard dogs guard us from Aliens?
Quote from: SM on Apr 06, 2019, 09:11:21 PM
QuoteAre there another health hazardous materials/organisms for the (robo)dog to defend people from?
It's a guard dog.
Do actual contemporary guard dogs guard us from Aliens?
And to further that point, the film explicitly spells out that there was a previous contagion let loose in the facility before the Alien egg ever arrived.
Liked it allot. Much, much better then the first one.
Quote from: SM on Apr 06, 2019, 09:11:21 PM
QuoteAre there another health hazardous materials/organisms for the (robo)dog to defend people from?
It's a guard dog.
Do actual contemporary guard dogs guard us from Aliens?
There are plenty of reasons to have a synthetic dog doing all sorts of duties. I have no issue with that being a synthetic dog.
Quote from: SM on Apr 06, 2019, 11:22:57 AM
We know what happens when a facehugger attacks an aggressive real dog.
Ha! Alien 3 totally skipped my mind. You're right.
But it underscores another fact that Alien 3 was Removed from the likelihood of reality. It is way more likely that a dog would bite a face hugger, unless it somehow puts the dog to sleep very quickly. (Which it might). If I remember correctly, that dog's mouth did have some minimal acid damage.
The truth is that the face-hugger is anthropomorphic. It is designed to match a human face and head. There are many animals that it will be incompatible with. Sometimes on account of their physical attributes, and sometimes on account of their behaviours.
It isn't a dog in the better cut of Alien 3 anyways. ;)
Check out their awesome poster too. I haven't seen this anywhere on social media.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt10135070/ (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt10135070/)
Coooool!
It's like a poppy plant.
(https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMDM1MmU1OGMtOWZlMi00ZTY5LWIxMjMtYjMyNjhjYmZiZWMzXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNTMzMDQ3MzE@._V1_SY1000_CR0,0,674,1000_AL_.jpg)
The poster's fantastic and the fact the Facehugger puts people to sleep by dispersing a chemical agent
when it attaches to the face makes infection of humanoids and non-humanoids a non-issue.
I feel like I've seen that artwork before and I can't place it...
I liked this one more than containment. It felt less llike a low budget showreel and more like an actual alien short.
Yes, I didn't feel anything in this film pulling me out of the illusion. It was well crafted.
Quote from: The Old One on Apr 07, 2019, 12:30:56 AM
the fact the Facehugger puts people to sleep by dispersing a chemical agent
This got brought up in another thread, but there are sources where this doesn't happen (whether you accept them as "canon" is up to you).
Will go against the grain here. Poorly made short. I'd take Containment over this easily.
Quote from: The Old One on Apr 07, 2019, 12:30:56 AM
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMDM1MmU1OGMtOWZlMi00ZTY5LWIxMjMtYjMyNjhjYmZiZWMzXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNTMzMDQ3MzE@._V1_SY1000_CR0,0,674,1000_AL_.jpg
The poster's fantastic and the fact the Facehugger puts people to sleep by dispersing a chemical agent
when it attaches to the face makes infection of humanoids and non-humanoids a non-issue.
It's definitely the one to beat. If it gets better than this, these shorts will be a resounding success. My faith that an alien series is doable has been rekindled.
Quote from: Voodoo Magic on Apr 07, 2019, 03:35:18 AM
Will go against the grain here. Poorly made short. I'd take Containment over this easily.
I think they're both just right for their individual purposes, and I like them both.
But it's a hard argument to make that this was poorly made.
Quote from: Voodoo Magic on Apr 07, 2019, 03:35:18 AM
Will go against the grain here. Poorly made short. I'd take Containment over this easily.
I like
Specimen more because as a short it successfully hits so many more buttons than
Containment.
But a short is a very different animal than a drawn-out feature length movie. So if I was to choose a writer/director team to work on a full length film I would be inclined to go for Reading. I think there are indications that he naturally has a bigger vision more suited to the scope of a feature length movie.
First thing on his list of improvements is to partner up with a more imaginative writer.
TC
Does anyone know where on the timeline these shorts go?
Quote from: Huggs on Apr 07, 2019, 04:20:06 AM
But it's a hard argument to make that this was poorly made.
I second that. I get not liking, but curious to hear why it's poorly made.
Quote from: TC on Apr 07, 2019, 05:18:58 AM
But a short is a very different animal than a drawn-out feature length movie. So if I was to choose a writer/director team to work on a full length film I would be inclined to go for Reading. I think there are indications that he naturally has a bigger vision more suited to the scope of a feature length movie.
On the flipside, I'm wary of a team that can't muster much tension or drama in 9 minutes of screen time.
Is even worse than the previous one.
Quote from: Nightmare Asylum on Apr 07, 2019, 01:25:00 AM
I feel like I've seen that artwork before and I can't place it...
Yeah, that's an existing poster from a while back. An alternative one for Alien if memory serves.
Quote from: Ed209 on Apr 07, 2019, 06:15:02 AM
Does anyone know where on the timeline these shorts go?
Neither has included a year so we don't know for sure, but Containment is definitely set closer to Alien than Aliens since it uses the original Alien/Alien: Covenant Weyland-Yutani logo. Specimen uses the Aliens/Alien 3 version, so it must be set closer to that point.
Quote from: Huggs on Apr 07, 2019, 04:20:06 AM
Quote from: Voodoo Magic on Apr 07, 2019, 03:35:18 AM
Will go against the grain here. Poorly made short. I'd take Containment over this easily.
I think they're both just right for their individual purposes, and I like them both.
But it's a hard argument to make that this was poorly made.
In terms of not a single ounce of tension or horror was established, yes it was. I like the synthetic dog like the next person, but this director was not right for Alien in my opinion. The editing, camera angles, were always counterproductive to establishing tensity. Ever see a mediocre horror film where the characters are going through the creepy what's-that-noise motions in the dark, but you're feeling nothing as a viewer? I've watched too many of them.
I'd be interested in seeing the talent behind this short making a drama or comedy, but with horror, for me, it's a hard pass.
"DOOM" the Negative Nancy.
Quote from: Voodoo Magic on Apr 07, 2019, 11:32:41 AM
In terms of not a single ounce of tension or horror was established, yes it was.
There are plenty of people who disagree with that assessment, though -- they found it suspenseful and tense.
Quote from: The Old One on Apr 07, 2019, 11:52:58 AM
"DOOM" the Negative Nancy.
;D
Quote from: SiL on Apr 07, 2019, 11:53:20 AM
Quote from: Voodoo Magic on Apr 07, 2019, 11:32:41 AM
In terms of not a single ounce of tension or horror was established, yes it was.
There are plenty of people who disagree with that assessment, though -- they found it suspenseful and tense.
There are plenty of people saying how great of a film Captain Marvel is too.
¯\_(ツ)_/¯
As always, it's just one fan's opinion over here.
You didn't say you didn't like it, but, you said it was poorly made. "Poorly made" can be qualified, "I didn't like it/find it scary" is an opinion.
It sucks you didn't feel anything -- but that doesn't necessarily mean it's poorly made. I can find plenty of people who think Alien isn't the least bit scary.
(For the record I'm not trying to say you're wrong for not liking it, and I'm not saying you're wrong for thinking it's poorly made, but it feels like you're saying you don't think it's well made because you don't like it, not because of any actual critique of the filmmaking. I was just genuinely curious to hear what you felt fell flat with the actual filmmaking.)
I'm not quantifying "poorly made" in the terms of production values i.e. set design, camera and editing equipment used, money spent or actors hired, etc. but simply in achieving its goal in creating tension, as being an effective horror short.
Quote from: Voodoo Magic on Apr 07, 2019, 12:17:10 PM
I'm not quantifying "poorly made" in the terms of production values i.e. set design, camera and editing equipment used, money spent or actors hired, etc. but simply in achieving its goal in creating tension, as being an effective horror short.
OK, but those are all the things most people mean when they say "poorly made". So you don't think it was
actually poorly made, you just think it was ineffective?
Does "well made poop" suffice?
Not producing the desired effect i.e. ineffective would equate to poorly made in my book, but I don't really want to get stuck in semantics. Agree or disagree, at this point I believe everyone knows clearly what the teddy bear meant / where the teddy bear stands.
Cheers! :)
I agree with Voodoo Magic. this was by the numbers. Even Ridley Scott can't put the lightning back in the bottle. But the robot dog was a very nice touch. It shows an evolution of the narrative, from a situation where hostile organisms were largely unknown to a situation where hostile organisms are a fact of life. And somebody at WY sent those folks a xeno egg. How thoughtful. :laugh:
Negative.
It's all execution baby.
Quote from: XenoHunter99 on Apr 07, 2019, 02:45:41 PM
And somebody at WY sent those folks a xeno egg. How thoughtful. :laugh:
Seems to me that the egg was being shipped to another WY station (bio-weapons presumably) but made a quick stop en route along the way at this WY greenhouse installation (illegally, I might add, since it was smuggled in with the soil samples). It was probably the fastest route the egg could have taken without drawing any direct attention to it on a direct route... until Maggie intervened. Clearly nobody in the greenhouse staff knew what it was or expected its arrival.
I can go along with that. But if the sender had any idea what was being sent, I hope they would have put it in cryo for the trip!
You're awesome Kelsey Taylor!
She is, the short is great
No, it's joi.
(https://thumbs.gfycat.com/CoordinatedDistortedIaerismetalmark-size_restricted.gif)
Quote from: The Old One on Apr 07, 2019, 06:14:04 PM
No, it's joi.
(https://thumbs.gfycat.com/CoordinatedDistortedIaerismetalmark-size_restricted.gif)
Umm. Do
not look up joi in the urban dictionary, whatever you do.
Original, classy.
Quote from: The Old One on Apr 07, 2019, 06:22:08 PM
Original, classy.
Hey I didn't make it up!
And Huggsy taught me you can't spell classy without assy.
True.
Quote from: Voodoo Magic on Apr 07, 2019, 06:19:24 PM
Quote from: The Old One on Apr 07, 2019, 06:14:04 PM
No, it's joi.
(https://thumbs.gfycat.com/CoordinatedDistortedIaerismetalmark-size_restricted.gif)
Umm. Do not look up joi in the urban dictionary, whatever you do.
"I'm glad you said it"
Does Joi give Joi to K?
It's about all she can do in that particular department.
Holographic technology can be a pain.
All. No?
(https://media.giphy.com/media/xUOwFT9vuJWIDHR1bG/giphy.gif)
Quote from: The Old One on Apr 07, 2019, 07:16:58 PM
All. No?
https://media.giphy.com/media/xUOwFT9vuJWIDHR1bG/giphy.gif
Unfortunately it is all. That's just a well tailored person suit. ;)
Quote
But it underscores another fact that Alien 3 was Removed from the likelihood of reality.
What?
Something, something Sulaco Alien stowaway, something, something Sulaco electrical inferno.
"It was electrical, in the...subflooring"
It was with us all the way.
Honestly the short, bestows hope for the future of the series upon myself. Genuinely.
"And then her heart changed, or at least she understood it;
and the winter passed, and the sun shone upon her."
The king of semantics.
Quote from: SiL on Apr 07, 2019, 09:16:49 PM
Quote from: Voodoo Magic on Apr 07, 2019, 02:35:11 PM
Does "well made poop" suffice?
Much better!
QuoteNot producing the desired effect i.e. ineffective would equate to poorly made in my book,
It didn't produce the desired effect in you, but it did in many others. Just cos I can find people who don't think Alien is scary or Life of Brian is funny or Die Hard is exciting doesn't make those movies poorly made.
Or to flip it around, just because there are some people who think AvPR is scary doesn't mean it's well made :D
But yes, I get what you mean.
That said, one thing that I'd say is poorly made is the sound design. Way too heavy handed, especially when the face hugger finally appeared.
The sound design was "poorly made"? I
honestly found it to be fine. Just because you found it too heavy handed doesn't mean the rest of us found it heavy handed and was poorly made, automatically meaning the sound mix was bad. Just because it didn't produce the desired effect to
you doesn't make it poorly made!
You make it too easy. :laugh:
Quote from: The Old One on Apr 07, 2019, 09:10:38 PM
Honestly the short, bestows hope for the future of the series upon myself. Genuinely.
How come? What gets you about it?
The simultaneous creative and consistent nature, the spirit of it is passionate.
Perhaps because a Female Director instead of a Male Director for once awarded it a fresh perspective? I don't know.
Still life in it yet cinematically.
I had deleted the post for the semantics but hey -
Quote from: Voodoo Magic on Apr 07, 2019, 09:29:38 PM
The sound design was "poorly made"? I honestly found it to be fine. Just because you found it too heavy handed doesn't mean the rest of us found it heavy handed and was poorly made, automatically meaning the sound mix was bad. Just because it didn't produce the desired effect to you doesn't make it poorly made!
You make it too easy. :laugh:
That's great if you didn't mind it, but many of the audio effects don't sit in the mix very well, such as when she touches the slime or basically anything the face hugger does. When the hugger and dog are fighting off camera it sounds like they just lowered the volume, rather than have the sound come from further away in the environment. These are examples of poor craftsmanship in the sound design, but can still produce results which many people may not mind :)
Quote from: SiL on Apr 07, 2019, 09:39:12 PM
I had deleted the post for the semantics but hey -
Quote from: Voodoo Magic on Apr 07, 2019, 09:29:38 PM
The sound design was "poorly made"? I honestly found it to be fine. Just because you found it too heavy handed doesn't mean the rest of us found it heavy handed and was poorly made, automatically meaning the sound mix was bad. Just because it didn't produce the desired effect to you doesn't make it poorly made!
You make it too easy. :laugh:
That's great if you didn't mind it, but many of the audio effects don't sit in the mix very well, such as when she touches the slime or basically anything the face hugger does. When the hugger and dog are fighting off camera it sounds like they just lowered the volume, rather than have the sound come from further away in the environment. These are examples of poor craftsmanship in the sound design, but can still produce results which many people may not mind :)
I wouldn't expect much from these in the audio department. One of the steps a character took in the last one sounded like she had a 200lb sack of potatoes for a foot.
Yeah, sound is pretty much the most important thing for immersion but almost always the last thing short filmmakers prioritise.
Quote from: SiL on Apr 07, 2019, 09:39:12 PM
I had deleted the post for the semantics but hey -
After I replied I guess.
Quote from: SiL on Apr 07, 2019, 09:39:12 PM
Quote from: Voodoo Magic on Apr 07, 2019, 09:29:38 PM
The sound design was "poorly made"? I honestly found it to be fine. Just because you found it too heavy handed doesn't mean the rest of us found it heavy handed and was poorly made, automatically meaning the sound mix was bad. Just because it didn't produce the desired effect to you doesn't make it poorly made!
You make it too easy. :laugh:
That's great if you didn't mind it, but many of the audio effects don't sit in the mix very well, such as when she touches the slime or basically anything the face hugger does. When the hugger and dog are fighting off camera it sounds like they just lowered the volume, rather than have the sound come from further away in the environment. These are examples of poor craftsmanship in the sound design, but can still produce results which many people may not mind :)
That's the thing. Calling something poorly made. You were doing the very thing you were criticizing me for. Sound mix for you. Camera placement and editing for me. While mostly no one else complained about any of the three.
I honestly hope pointing this out will encourage you to cut people more slack in the future. Cheers.
Quote from: Voodoo Magic on Apr 07, 2019, 09:50:24 PM
Quote from: SiL on Apr 07, 2019, 09:39:12 PM
I had deleted the post for the semantics but hey -
After I replied I guess.
Before, actually.
QuoteThat's the thing. Calling something poorly made. You were doing the very thing you were criticizing me for. Sound mix for you. Camera placement and editing for me. While mostly no one else complained about any of the three.
I honestly hope pointing this out will encourage you to cut people more slack in the future. Cheers.
What? I said it was poorly made and
gave examples of poor craftsmanship in the work - in how it was made, hence poorly
made. You said it was poorly made and said "I didn't find it scary". They're not the same thing.
I wasn't criticising you, period, let alone for saying it was poorly made? I gave repeated examples of how a film not working for someone doesn't necessarily mean it's poorly made and was just curious if you had actual critique of the filmmaking.
What about the camera placement and editing didn't you like? What did you think was poor about it?
Quote from: SiL on Apr 07, 2019, 10:00:36 PM
Quote from: Voodoo Magic on Apr 07, 2019, 09:50:24 PM
Quote from: SiL on Apr 07, 2019, 09:39:12 PM
I had deleted the post for the semantics but hey -
After I replied I guess.
Before, actually.
:P
QuoteQuoteThat's the thing. Calling something poorly made. You were doing the very thing you were criticizing me for. Sound mix for you. Camera placement and editing for me. While mostly no one else complained about any of the three.
I honestly hope pointing this out will encourage you to cut people more slack in the future. Cheers.
What? I said it was poorly made and gave examples of poor craftsmanship in the work - in how it was made, hence poorly made. You said it was poorly made and said "I didn't find it scary". They're not the same thing.
Oy. "I didn't find it scary" - Is that your quote? It certainly wasn't mine.
QuoteI wasn't criticising you, period, let alone for saying it was poorly made? I gave repeated examples of how a film not working for someone doesn't necessarily mean it's poorly made and was just curious if you had actual critique of the filmmaking.
Alrighty then.
Quote from: SM on Apr 07, 2019, 08:38:50 PM
Quote
But it underscores another fact that Alien 3 was Removed from the likelihood of reality.
What?
The film was millions of miles away from what would likely happen in real life, even factoring in all the requisite sci-fi trappings.
-unlikely that an alien egg would be on the sulaco.
-unlikely that the crew of Sulaco wouldn't do a multi-redundancy check for Alien life forms.
-unlikely that the EEV would end up on a prison planet which happens to be nearby.
-unlikely that the EEV would land right by the penal colony as the medic walks by.
-unlikely that the dog / face hugger interaction would have yielded the results in the film. Most likely, it would have ended just like in Alien: Specimen.
Retcon it.
It's sci-fi horror. Nothing about any of them would likely happen in real life.
Alien 3 was made. Its on film. Its a done deal. Has been since 1992.
It's never going away.
Lets not forget that ACM canonized Alien 3.
-There wasn't. There was stowaways.
-There was. They're unsuccessful, evidently.
-The ship likely redirected to the nearest inhabited planet as a result of the electrical fire.
-Incorrect. The Specimen situation- the target is artificial.
The Facehugger puts organisms to sleep by dispersing a chemical agent
when it attaches to the face meaning infection of humanoids and non-humanoids a non-issue.
Quote
The likelihood of her, out of 7.55+ Billion people, going back
AGAIN to fight or meet the Alien in any capacity is near nil.
It would actually be more likely that Ellen Ripley &Co go home,
perfectly fine and never hear from the Alien again.
OR
She gets f**ked over by an Alien whilst still in proximity to them.
I know which one better serves the series thematically, narratively and cinematically.
Quote from: Voodoo Magic on Apr 07, 2019, 11:05:17 PM
Oy. "I didn't find it scary" - Is that your quote? It certainly wasn't mine.
QuoteIn terms of not a single ounce of tension or horror was established, yes it was.
I mean I paraphrased, sure, but it
is what you said -- it lacked tension and horror, ergo, it wasn't scary.
As for the posts above --
What does any of this short have to do with A3? ???
Nothing, just grasping at straws.
I actually desire discussion regarding Alien Specimen, it's throughrally excellent.
I loved the location exterior, and the interior environment's refreshingly colourful.
I liked how they used actual locations. I think they got more out of their budget with it.
The CG hugger was a bit cheap, but at least they showed the damn thing! I think having the hugger sounds always feel like they were right next to the character -- but her not reacting half the time -- kind'a took the edge off towards the end, and the sounds of the dog and hugger fighting could've been made to sound more aggressive or desperate.
The dog looked really good from my first viewing.
Do you mean interior on a planet environment? Cos every Alien film takes place in an interior :P
So, is this supposed to take place during an era when the aliens are just another bug that everyone knows about?
The brief said it had to take its cues from the original film, I don't think it specified anything else.
No, I meant the garden environment visually. & The utilisation of the Alien amongst the foliage.
And no, I don't believe they knew what the Alien was, and aside from the Acid blood
the Alien Julie fought wouldn't seem all that remarkable, big ol' spider.
Aliens in foliage is something I've wanted to see for a long time, but it's not really present here. The hugger gets whacked into a bush and that's about it.
Quote from: SiL on Apr 07, 2019, 11:45:11 PM
Quote from: Voodoo Magic on Apr 07, 2019, 11:05:17 PM
Oy. "I didn't find it scary" - Is that your quote? It certainly wasn't mine.
QuoteIn terms of not a single ounce of tension or horror was established, yes it was.
I mean I paraphrased, sure, but it is what you said -- it lacked tension and horror, ergo, it wasn't scary.
Yeah, you paraphrased, sure, ergo using quotes was incorrect and bad form.
Here's another real quote of mine: "The editing, camera angles, were always counterproductive to establishing tensity." And it's my opinion.
Quote from: Perfect-Organism on Apr 07, 2019, 11:26:27 PM
Quote from: SM on Apr 07, 2019, 08:38:50 PM
Quote
But it underscores another fact that Alien 3 was Removed from the likelihood of reality.
What?
The film was millions of miles away from what would likely happen in real life, even factoring in all the requisite sci-fi trappings.
-unlikely that an alien egg would be on the sulaco.
-unlikely that the crew of Sulaco wouldn't do a multi-redundancy check for Alien life forms.
-unlikely that the EEV would end up on a prison planet which happens to be nearby.
-unlikely that the EEV would land right by the penal colony as the medic walks by.
-unlikely that the dog / face hugger interaction would have yielded the results in the film. Most likely, it would have ended just like in Alien: Specimen.
Retcon it.
What?
Quote from: Voodoo Magic on Apr 08, 2019, 12:42:42 AM
Yeah, you paraphrased, sure, ergo using quotes was incorrect and bad form.
It was neither? I regularly use quotation marks for paraphrasing because on the forum if I wanted to do a direct quote I'd
Quoteuse the quote function
I don't understand why you're getting so upset about this? It's not like I completely twisted the meaning of your words or put up a straw man argument, I just paraphrased your exact wording and kept the meaning. If it bothers you so much I won't do it again ???
QuoteHere's another real quote of mine: "The editing, camera angles, were always counterproductive to establishing tensity." And it's my opinion.
Damn dude, I'm just trying to see if you've got specific examples because I'm interesting in seeing it from your perspective. Why are you so cagey and defensive about it? This is a discussion board, people are going to ask you to elaborate from time to time.
Both of the shorts with female directors were the strongest imo, Ore is coming soon
Quote from: SM on Apr 08, 2019, 12:47:38 AM
Quote from: Perfect-Organism on Apr 07, 2019, 11:26:27 PM
Quote from: SM on Apr 07, 2019, 08:38:50 PM
Quote
But it underscores another fact that Alien 3 was Removed from the likelihood of reality.
What?
The film was millions of miles away from what would likely happen in real life, even factoring in all the requisite sci-fi trappings.
-unlikely that an alien egg would be on the sulaco.
-unlikely that the crew of Sulaco wouldn't do a multi-redundancy check for Alien life forms.
-unlikely that the EEV would end up on a prison planet which happens to be nearby.
-unlikely that the EEV would land right by the penal colony as the medic walks by.
-unlikely that the dog / face hugger interaction would have yielded the results in the film. Most likely, it would have ended just like in Alien: Specimen.
Retcon it.
What?
Presumably you don't agree. Which is fine. Feel free to share your perspective.
Or you could just ask for a bite of his Big Kahuna Burger.
Only on this site could we delve into timeline questions and motives on a short movie.
Also I don't understand the Dog counter points. The Dog is literally the entire plot point of the short from start to end , not the Alien.
Quote from: SiL on Apr 08, 2019, 01:02:57 AM
Quote from: Voodoo Magic on Apr 08, 2019, 12:42:42 AM
Yeah, you paraphrased, sure, ergo using quotes was incorrect and bad form.
It was neither? I regularly use quotation marks for paraphrasing because on the forum if I wanted to do a direct quote I'd
Quoteuse the quote function
I don't understand why you're getting so upset about this? It's not like I completely twisted the meaning of your words or put up a straw man argument, I just paraphrased your exact wording and kept the meaning. If it bothers you so much I won't do it again ???
QuoteHere's another real quote of mine: "The editing, camera angles, were always counterproductive to establishing tensity." And it's my opinion.
Damn dude, I'm just trying to see if you've got specific examples because I'm interesting in seeing it from your perspective. Why are you so cagey and defensive about it? This is a discussion board, people are going to ask you to elaborate from time to time.
Ex-squeeze me?
Quote from: Highland on Apr 08, 2019, 02:19:09 AM
Only on this site could we delve into timeline questions and motives on a short movie.
:laugh:
You know us all to well brother!
The AVPG community enjoys repeats apparently, lol.
We can't help but dissect.
Otherwise it just won't make sense.
Lady in this short obviously didn't like dogs. Maybe they should have starred a cat. A cyborg cat...
That was really good! Jolene Anderson really delivered I thought, even when the montage song pulled me right out of it, her performance made it work, couple of things that could have gone better but all in all I really enjoyed this one
Gripes:
Over reliance on atmosphere shredding facehugger sound fx that sounded out of place to me
Facehugger that inexplicably hangs around for the money shot raised an eyebrow for me
Acid for blood, why hasn't that shovel disintegrated? Especially since it's 'spit' just melted the ground.
Main character could have shown a tad more fear, surprisingly cool given the circumstances.
Still I enjoyed the atmosphere and she did a great job of fleshing out her character, with very limited time I still got a good feel for the main character. This one could have been a tad longer, I think might have worked better to up the tension
Quote from: morseman on Apr 08, 2019, 07:00:51 AM
Over reliance on atmosphere shredding facehugger sound fx that sounded out of place to me
Yaaass.
The worst for me was when they played the very distinct sound of the facehugger emerging from the egg in the original film, and the facehugger -- stayed off-screen and did nothing? Putting a sound so inextricably related to an attack off-screen and signalling nothing was just a lazy move.
Squeaky Alien. lol
I was this close to picking "Squeaky Alien" as my username here.
I knew I'd seen Jolene Anderson before.
(https://i.imgur.com/nqJO9eK.png)
Spoopy.
Quote from: The Old One on Apr 08, 2019, 02:44:55 PM
(https://i.imgur.com/nqJO9eK.png)
Spoopy.
Jungle Hugger
The facehugger acted confused and disoriented, which is puzzling.
I actually think the previous short was better, the spaceship and space shots was amazing and clear storyline and I would had loved to see what had happened onboard the main ship previously.
But I dont get how they onboard the escape pod cant remember if they got facehugged or not, should be pretty clear as in previous movies several hosts know and remember getting facehugged.
Also why the f**k both of the other survivors just panics and dont try to catch the chestburster, its not a full grown xeno and very weak, but no....
Would had myself hunt it down, break its neck and voila we are safe. There is nowhere it can hide on the ship and would take hours for it to grow up and it also would need to cocoon itself like the runner in alien 3 to reach adulthood. Find and kill it.
From the after credits shot I presume she was also facehugged earlier as I cant see how that chestburster could overpower a full grown woman.
This short movie:
I liked it but some things I noted or cant make sense of:
I always theorised the facehugger can spit small amounts of acid, hence in alien it managed to get inside kanes helmet, else it would never got inside and no movie, nice confirmation on that.
But why in hell is the acid white and not green?
Also the white substance coming out from the barrel the facehugger was inside, what was that? The eggs dont look like that, can only guess the company tried to secure the facehugger with some substance. Couldnt be this movies version of lots of acid....
Only way a dog could beat a facehugger and bite it to death would been if the dog is an android, else the facehugger would had gotten it. But also there: why is the acid remains and the acid on the dog white?! Should be green/yellowish like in previous movies and that amount of acid would had eaten through the floor easily. Also that shovel would had melted.
Quote from: judge death on Apr 08, 2019, 06:27:01 PMBut I dont get how they onboard the escape pod cant remember if they got facehugged or not, should be pretty clear as in previous movies several hosts know and remember getting facehugged.
Kane didn't. Ripley didn't. Purvis didn't.
Quote from: judge death on Apr 08, 2019, 06:27:01 PMOnly way a dog could beat a facehugger and bite it to death would been if the dog is an android, else the facehugger would had gotten it. But also there: why is the acid remains and the acid on the dog white?! Should be green/yellowish like in previous movies and that amount of acid would had eaten through the floor easily. Also that shovel would had melted.
The dog
is an android.
You mean the thing that looks like a dog is an andoid.
Quote from: judge death on Apr 08, 2019, 06:27:01 PM
I always theorised the facehugger can spit small amounts of acid, hence in alien it managed to get inside kanes helmet, else it would never got inside and no movie, nice confirmation on that.
But why in hell is the acid white and not green?
Kradan, it's time to create an acid spit thread!
(https://www.avpgalaxy.net/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fvignette3.wikia.nocookie.net%2Faliens%2Fimages%2F7%2F74%2FAcid_Spit.gif%2Frevision%2Flatest%3Fcb%3D20150104052845&hash=a83cf29113ef25519985f992f585240fa7a65223)
Quote from: Voodoo Magic on Apr 08, 2019, 06:47:45 PMYou mean the thing that looks like a dog is an andoid.
It prefers the term "artificial muttley".
Quote from: HuDaFuK on Apr 08, 2019, 06:49:35 PM
Quote from: Voodoo Magic on Apr 08, 2019, 06:47:45 PMYou mean the thing that looks like a dog is an andoid.
It prefers the term "artificial muttley".
So it giggles and helicopter flies with its tail? Where do I pre-order??? ;D
Quote from: dHunter333 on Apr 06, 2019, 03:55:40 AM
So the dog was an android of sorts...?
The skin on it's head came off because it bit or scratched the facehugger...?
Confused.
Quite the shock that it was artificial, hence I guess the line about not giving it a name.
Yes I think we are meant to infer the AI dog bite into the face hugger, and yes all sorts of plot holes from that notion, but hey 10 minute short, they nailed it, looking forward to the next one.
Pleased the whole "speciman" wasn't what I thought it was going to be ;D
Quote from: judge death on Apr 08, 2019, 06:27:01 PM
I always theorised the facehugger can spit small amounts of acid, hence in alien it managed to get inside kanes helmet, else it would never got inside and no movie, nice confirmation on that.
That's what the facehugger does in the movie novelization.
Quote from: judge death on Apr 08, 2019, 06:27:01 PM
I actually think the previous short was better,
I do too. Even with its problems. :)
Quote from: HuDaFuK on Apr 08, 2019, 06:35:22 PM
Quote from: judge death on Apr 08, 2019, 06:27:01 PMBut I dont get how they onboard the escape pod cant remember if they got facehugged or not, should be pretty clear as in previous movies several hosts know and remember getting facehugged.
Kane didn't. Ripley didn't. Purvis didn't.
Quote from: judge death on Apr 08, 2019, 06:27:01 PMOnly way a dog could beat a facehugger and bite it to death would been if the dog is an android, else the facehugger would had gotten it. But also there: why is the acid remains and the acid on the dog white?! Should be green/yellowish like in previous movies and that amount of acid would had eaten through the floor easily. Also that shovel would had melted.
The dog is an android.
In Aliens when Ripley is in the room with the weyland and higher up people she tells them what Kane explained after he got back to the ship, like he saw thousands of eggs in there and details he never said over the radio in the derelight ship, and also could remember he was in there and that he couldnt breath and somewhat memories. In ripley and purvis cases theyw ere asleep when the facehugger struck. In Aliens the surviving woman in the hive seemed to know very well what had happened to her, and then we have all the expanded universe.
That is what I meant with the dog is an android, it was a give away to me way before the ending the dog isnt a normal dog due to the reasons I said. :)
Still no one can explain why the acid is white, heck its not normal for xenomorphs to have white blood, different breed of xenomorph?
DALLAS
"Do you remember what happened on the planet."
KANE
"Just some horrible dream, about... smothering.
Where are we?"
The acid is colourless, (Budget) the dissolved floor's white.
The new EU corroborates the memory loss idea.
Quote from: ScaryMinds on Apr 08, 2019, 06:55:18 PMYes I think we are meant to infer the AI dog bite into the face hugger, and yes all sorts of plot holes from that notion, but hey 10 minute short, they nailed it, looking forward to the next one.
What plot holes? Like the fact the dog's entire face got dissolved?
Quote from: judge death on Apr 08, 2019, 07:24:25 PMIn Aliens when Ripley is in the room with the weyland and higher up people she tells them what Kane explained after he got back to the ship, like he saw thousands of eggs in there and details he never said over the radio in the derelight ship, and also could remember he was in there and that he couldnt breath and somewhat memories.
Kane says there are loads of eggs
before he is Facehugged, over the radio to Dallas and Lambert. The fact that got mistranslated as "thousands" in the sequel is the fault of the second film's script. As Old One says, Kane quite definitively states he has no idea what happened to him inside the derelict afterwards.
Quote from: judge death on Apr 08, 2019, 07:24:25 PMIn ripley and purvis cases theyw ere asleep when the facehugger struck. In Aliens the surviving woman in the hive seemed to know very well what had happened to her, and then we have all the expanded universe.
I'll give you Ripley, but we see the captured colonists aren't in hypersleep when they're 'hugged in
Resurrection. And the woman in
Aliens knew bad shit was happening because she'd presumably seen Chestbursters rip out of others while stuck to the wall down there.
Quote from: judge death on Apr 08, 2019, 07:24:25 PMStill no one can explain why the acid is white, heck its not normal for xenomorphs to have white blood, different breed of xenomorph?
The acid isn't white. That's the android gloop from the dog.
The only acid we see is the stuff that melts the floor, and that's clear.
I give these shorts the same sort of free pass I give any fan movie. I like the woman writing "Do Not Open" in blood on the window, and I like the robot dog as hostile organism sniffer. Hats off to what these folks achieved. Look forward to seeing the rest.
Quote from: HuDaFuK on Apr 08, 2019, 08:13:14 PM
Quote from: ScaryMinds on Apr 08, 2019, 06:55:18 PMYes I think we are meant to infer the AI dog bite into the face hugger, and yes all sorts of plot holes from that notion, but hey 10 minute short, they nailed it, looking forward to the next one.
What plot holes? Like the fact the dog's entire face got dissolved?
Quote from: judge death on Apr 08, 2019, 07:24:25 PMIn Aliens when Ripley is in the room with the weyland and higher up people she tells them what Kane explained after he got back to the ship, like he saw thousands of eggs in there and details he never said over the radio in the derelight ship, and also could remember he was in there and that he couldnt breath and somewhat memories.
Kane says there are loads of eggs before he is Facehugged, over the radio to Dallas and Lambert. The fact that got mistranslated as "thousands" in the sequel is the fault of the second film's script. As Old One says, Kane quite definitively states he has no idea what happened to him inside the derelict afterwards.
Quote from: judge death on Apr 08, 2019, 07:24:25 PMIn ripley and purvis cases theyw ere asleep when the facehugger struck. In Aliens the surviving woman in the hive seemed to know very well what had happened to her, and then we have all the expanded universe.
I'll give you Ripley, but we see the captured colonists aren't in hypersleep when they're 'hugged in Resurrection. And the woman in Aliens knew bad shit was happening because she'd presumably seen Chestbursters rip out of others while stuck to the wall down there.
Quote from: judge death on Apr 08, 2019, 07:24:25 PMStill no one can explain why the acid is white, heck its not normal for xenomorphs to have white blood, different breed of xenomorph?
The acid isn't white. That's the android gloop from the dog.
The only acid we see is the stuff that melts the floor, and that's clear.
^ All that.
Plus there needs to be a law against people using 'plot hole' for things that aren't...
Quote from: HuDaFuK on Apr 08, 2019, 08:13:14 PM
The acid isn't white. That's the android gloop from the dog.
Android gloop?
;D
Quote from: Huggs on Apr 08, 2019, 11:08:12 PM
Quote from: Voodoo Magic on Apr 08, 2019, 11:06:31 PM
Quote from: HuDaFuK on Apr 08, 2019, 08:13:14 PM
The acid isn't white. That's the android gloop from the dog.
Android gloop?
;D
Any kin to Augustus?
Always assumed the Gloop family would get into the food industry, not synthetic puppy manufacturing.
The facehugger isn't dripping acid it's been injured by the dog.
Quote from: Voodoo Magic on Apr 08, 2019, 11:06:31 PMAndroid gloop?
;D
I'm unfamiliar with the technical term :)
Quote from: HuDaFuK on Apr 09, 2019, 08:15:09 AM
Quote from: Voodoo Magic on Apr 08, 2019, 11:06:31 PMAndroid gloop?
;D
I'm unfamiliar with the technical term :)
Me too. I just loved what you picked! :)
I'm no expert but "synthetic blood" may be the technical term, probably? They have artificial, synthetic organs so it probably can be referred to as blood.
The white goo.
Gooze
Mother's Milk
Quote from: Huggs on Apr 09, 2019, 05:05:53 PM
Gooze
Mother's Milk
In all seriousness, that would be fitting, considering all the mother imagery in Alien.
Quote from: Voodoo Magic on Apr 09, 2019, 05:41:49 PM
Quote from: Huggs on Apr 09, 2019, 05:05:53 PM
Gooze
Mother's Milk
In all seriousness, that would be fitting, considering all the mother imagery in Alien.
Huh, androids being another representation of motherly imagery? I might get that.
For the original Alien, it's suggesting a particular sexual white fluid.
As the Alien is &
The Alien and the Android are on the same page after all.
They are both enemies of the protagonist.
Quote from: Samhain13 on Apr 09, 2019, 05:58:32 PM
Quote from: Voodoo Magic on Apr 09, 2019, 05:41:49 PM
Quote from: Huggs on Apr 09, 2019, 05:05:53 PM
Gooze
Mother's Milk
In all seriousness, that would be fitting, considering all the mother imagery in Alien.
Huh, androids being another representation of motherly imagery? I might get that.
Well, I was just thinking the milk blood... but okay!
Now all we need is an Android Queen.... ;)
(https://media1.giphy.com/media/2a2l2juMEoFri/giphy.gif?cid=19f5b51a5cacde096f677a7777768b2f)
Quote from: The Old One on Apr 09, 2019, 06:05:08 PM
I don't believe it's meant to invocate that particular white fluid, but the other one.
As the Alien.
Considering all the mother imagery in Alien. The eggs. The life moving inside. The umbilical chord like tail. The pregnancy and birth. The ovarian looking room with the MU-TH-UR terminal. The fact they call it "Mother". The milk for blood.
It can be taken both ways I think.
Violation imagery, the safe turned unsafe.
Whilst the interior appearance is safe and warm-
MUTHUR betrays the protagonist and friends, after all.
Quote from: The Old One on Apr 09, 2019, 06:10:52 PM
Violation imagery, the safe turned unsafe.
MUTHUR betrays them, after all.
Doesn't change my mind. Nor do you need to. :)
Quote from: The Old One on Apr 09, 2019, 06:05:08 PM
I don't believe it's meant to invocate that particular white fluid, but the other one.
As the Alien.
For ALIEN, but the prequels? Hmm... my views on David's character arc go well with the mother symbolism.
Quote from: Samhain13 on Apr 09, 2019, 06:17:31 PM
Quote from: The Old One on Apr 09, 2019, 06:05:08 PM
I don't believe it's meant to invocate that particular white fluid, but the other one.
As the Alien.
For ALIEN, but the prequels? Hmm... my views on David's character arc go well with that symbolism.
(https://media0.giphy.com/media/qNVxHbXqddutq/giphy.gif?cid=19f5b51a5cace22e5277736859e59a35)
I know, I'm just saying Alien's about the perversion of Motherhood and Fatherhood, subtextually.
Aliens takes it and makes it text, the good about procreation and parenthood, Mother Ripley versus Mother Alien.
Alien³ takes it and makes it text, again, but Ripley's now a literal forced insemination victim. (& AIDs allegory.)
I think some of that too. I see that on the prequels as well.
Of course, David's a impotent rapist.
Who had been forced into an motherly housewife condition by Peter Weyland since birth. Now wanting to be the father, as his programing predisposes him to, but since his body was limited he has to look for an unnatural form of Fatherhood. Forcing humans to play the part of mother to the aliens as revenge for what was forced to him.
From a perversion of Motherhood to one of Fatherhood. That's all David can ever be.
The ultimate humiliation is the idea the misattributed creation's the reality.
Lord Byron creating the poem.
David Weyland creating the Alien.
"To compose something so majestic, one could die happy... if one died."
"When one note is off, it eventually destroys the whole symphony, David."
David's true impotence revealed.
Quote from: SM on Apr 08, 2019, 08:57:38 PM
Plus there needs to be a law against people using 'plot hole' for things that aren't...
Would vote for politicians on this platform alone.
Really enjoyed Specimen, way betting than the first one which I thought was a bit naff. Great atmosphere and really well shot. Loved the twist at the end too, I didn't see that coming at all.
Hope the rest are as good if not better than this one.
Loved this one! Way better than the first!
It's excellent alright.
Ya. It's really good. It's got attitude, has the feel of a movie, and has a great twist at the end.
Alien: Specimen
Cinematography 3/5
Some bold lighting choices to have so much blackness in frame. Nice.
Acting 3/5
Very good. The fun, music montage worked well for character, and something new for an Alien film.
Production Design 3/5
Functional. I would have liked to have seen a wide shot of the interior of the greenhouse that establishes a more distinctly sci-fi setting (probably with a matte painting). And I feel like some ground fog would have added a touch of spookiness, as though from condensation from the plants.
Story 4/5
Some unfortunate repetitive beats: Being confronted by the spilled barrel twice; sneaking through the foliage in the dark in pursuit of Maggie.
Direction 4/5
I've shown the film to a few people and everyone says that the twist ending is that Maggie is a robot. But what's most interesting to me is what they think of Julie's character. Most people describe her as fun and caring and that she and Maggie have a bond of friendship. I used to think that too, but I've watched the film a few times now and that is not the way the ending is directed. Julie has no such feelings for Maggie, because she knows all along that Maggie is a robot (and, presumably, robots aren't friendship-worthy). The evidence for this? Look at Julie's behaviour when she comes across the aftermath of the fight.
Does she rush to Maggie's assistance? No. Instead she relishes the task of finishing off the face-hugger.
With Maggie in her death throes, does Julie look distraught? No. In fact, Maggie's condition makes Julie more annoyed than anything else.
Does Julie comfort Maggie as she is dying? No. Julie stands and observes from a distance and says a few words of appreciation ("you did good"), but is there sorrow or sympathy as she says this? Not really.
And look at the low angle camera, designed to make Julie look dominant and aggressive. Is that appropriate for a touching farewell scene? Of course not.
How does Julie euthanise Maggie? She could have reached into her back pocket for a remote control and flipped the power switch off and we could have watched as a little red light dims out - a tranquil end for a faithful companion. But no, she puts Maggie down with a violent, decapitating finishing move! The director made a rather strange choice there, if the scene was supposed to be that of a friend saying goodbye to her bestie, don't you think?
Then why the scene earlier in the film with Julie bopping out to her iPod and clearly designed to endear her to us? It's a ruse, plain and simple. And Julie throwing a balled up wad of paper for Maggie to play with? Yet another ruse, a red herring to reinforce the twist ending - that is, the real twist ending. Namely: Julie is a cold hearted bitch! Ha! Well done, Kelsey Taylor.
Overall 4/5
Enjoyable and mostly satisfying. Mostly.
TC
I really enjoyed this one. They managed to find a pretty nice location for this one. Loved seeing a bit more greenery in an Alien short (it's honestly one of the things I loved in Covenant, found it refreshing). And while I do actually like that quick shot of the hugger on the leave, it's a shame we haven't seen more of the Aliens infecting greenery areas and moving about in them.
And while the CG wasn't exactly studio level, I think it looked great for these low budget pieces. I think there needs to be a level of reality checking in terms of the money and resources that they had for these things.
I know it's always going to be a challenge getting much of a connection with the characters in 10 minutes but I loved the little tricks. Music always works a wonder with me for some reason. One of the stronger ones for me.
Yeah, I thought the musical montage was a really neat way to help you engage with the character in a minimal amount of time.
Music taste or distaste, even- is relatable.
This was the best short out of the three for me.
https://twitter.com/Carapace777/status/1118548834953482240?s=19
Studio Yutani Interview with Kelsey: https://yutani.studio/2019/04/18/creative-kelsey-taylor-director-of-alien-specimen/
Haven't had the chance to read through it yet.
We're sorting one out with Kelsey too. Questions sent off for text based with Ore's directors/writers, I'm editing an audio one for Alien: Alone's director/writer too. :)
Nice!
I didn't like this short film >:(
Quote from: @AsetAbdikhanov on Apr 18, 2019, 12:54:23 PM
I didn't like this short film >:(
I have a new friend! ;D
Quote from: Corporal Hicks on Apr 18, 2019, 08:57:43 AM
Studio Yutani Interview with Kelsey: https://yutani.studio/2019/04/18/creative-kelsey-taylor-director-of-alien-specimen/
Haven't had the chance to read through it yet.
We're sorting one out with Kelsey too. Questions sent off for text based with Ore's directors/writers, I'm editing an audio one for Alien: Alone's director/writer too. :)
Excellent, really nice to hear from Kelsey, since her short is easily the best of the three so far.
Very cool to hear she likes Alien 3, too 8)
Looking forward to your interviews Hicks!
https://tongal.com/blog/community-interview/creator-interview-director-kelsey-taylor-on-the-making-of-alien-specimen
Fantastic, I love BTS.
Here's the interview I did with Kelsey for HN Entertainment
https://twitter.com/HNEsocial/status/1121463467108700162
Thank you. :)
RidgeTop's interview with Kelsey is now up :)
https://www.avpgalaxy.net/website/interviews/kelsey-taylor/
https://www.instagram.com/p/BwcVUNZlogN/
Specimen was OK but i felt it was a little disrespectful to the creature itself. Facehugger was just running around and killed by a shovel in the end. I didn't get the feeling it was a real threat to main character.
I liked dog synth idea though and feel pretty bad about it dying in the end. It was sad. :-[
Quote from: Corporal Hicks on May 05, 2019, 03:40:25 PM
https://www.instagram.com/p/BwzUtJEl5UG/
Did anybody noticed Russian signature on dog sketch?
Да, товарищ.
My new favourite Synthetic is definitely Maggie.
I like Hope best right now honestly. Most of my favorite bits of the franchise in one character.
Hope's not half-bad, I wouldn't say she's good either though- morally. lol
I think Hope is by far the most interesting droid character. She's dealing with issues such as aging and loneliness. Her actions are not beneficial to humans. But then, she was made by humans. And we humans have boundless capacity for cruelty and ill-will toward each other. It's really no wonder she can easily sacrifice a person so that her pet survives.
Indeed.
But the idea of a Synthetic animal is fantastic world-building.
As a practical consideration, it makes sense to have robotic animals - dogs, cats, whatever. They don't need food or a vet. They don't make a mess. Jones could have been synthetic. I don't recall seeing a litter pan or a food bowl for him. But then, I didn't see a bathroom on the Nostromo, either. There must be one somewhere. If WY is supplying robotic pets, there must be a lot of them around. Otherwise, they would likely be expensive.
Quote from: The Old One on May 17, 2019, 01:03:25 PM
Indeed.
But the idea of a Synthetic animal is fantastic world-building.
If you want to get real Ellison style dark with it, imagine that they're made from the same sort of line as the full human style synths, with the same capacity for thought, but none of the physical bits that allow them to express it. I imagine WY is a pretty cheap place, they'd probably give little thought to popping an off the shelf human-ish mind into a machine built like a dog. Easier cheaper and so what if it suffers so long as it works.
Perhaps, but that's pure "grimdark"- even for Alien.
Quote from: The Old One on May 18, 2019, 01:34:25 AM
Perhaps, but that's pure "grimdark"- even for Alien.
I'm a big fan of that, in a series where the two major forces on a characters life are corporate greed that sees you as nothing but a commodity and a cosmic being that wants to shove itself down your throat to turn your chest into a womb--- it's all pretty grimdark.
The distinguishing goodness comes from work-a-days pushing back with little more than hope and determination-- and mostly losing.
But I always like to look for the worst aspects :)
That's why the synthetic dog concept is nonsense.
Quote from: Nrmiller on May 18, 2019, 01:09:45 AM
Quote from: The Old One on May 17, 2019, 01:03:25 PM
Indeed.
But the idea of a Synthetic animal is fantastic world-building.
If you want to get real Ellison style dark with it, imagine that they're made from the same sort of line as the full human style synths, with the same capacity for thought, but none of the physical bits that allow them to express it. I imagine WY is a pretty cheap place, they'd probably give little thought to popping an off the shelf human-ish mind into a machine built like a dog. Easier cheaper and so what if it suffers so long as it works.
We're getting into the ol' Blade Runner/Alien combined universe topic again.
You will recall Animoid Row from Blade Runner, (and Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep) where Deckard likes to browse the various android animals for sale. And if you've played Westwood's game Blade Runner, you might remember that McCoy, the Blade Runner in that story, has a replicant dog called... Maggie.
Personally, Ash as an android has always bothered me in one respect, which is that the tech that underlies his manufacture seems out of place with the rest of the tech, or I should say, low tech, that makes up the rest of the Nostromo; chunky knobs and dials and levers and steam valves and so on, whereas Ash is fluids and glass beads and limp spaghetti.
TC
Probably because Synthetics
are grown, much as Replicants are.
And it's far from nonsense, as far as the universe of Alien is concerned.
Quote from: Nrmiller on May 18, 2019, 01:09:45 AM
Quote from: The Old One on May 17, 2019, 01:03:25 PM
Indeed.
But the idea of a Synthetic animal is fantastic world-building.
If you want to get real Ellison style dark with it, imagine that they're made from the same sort of line as the full human style synths, with the same capacity for thought, but none of the physical bits that allow them to express it. I imagine WY is a pretty cheap place, they'd probably give little thought to popping an off the shelf human-ish mind into a machine built like a dog. Easier cheaper and so what if it suffers so long as it works.
Damn, that's dark. I love it.
Quote from: Nrmiller on May 18, 2019, 01:09:45 AM
If you want to get real Ellison style dark with it, imagine that they're made from the same sort of line as the full human style synths, with the same capacity for thought, but none of the physical bits that allow them to express it. I imagine WY is a pretty cheap place, they'd probably give little thought to popping an off the shelf human-ish mind into a machine built like a dog. Easier cheaper and so what if it suffers so long as it works.
Do you mean
Harlan Ellison-style dark?
Then that would be synthetic canine Maggie as Blood, the telepathic dog from Ellison's book
A Boy And His Dog, who helps his friend Vic hunt down women to rape and cannibalise as food in a post-apocalyptic world of the future.
I'll pass on that one.
TC
It's not nonsense that they can make them, is nonsense that they bother to. Unless it's a significant improvement over a real dog, there'd be no point. And the one in that story seemed no superior to any old dog.
If you have to grow them as DNA dictates, but can 'program' them later, then for security, or sense of smell, gotta go bear...
Quote from: The Old One on May 18, 2019, 04:34:02 AM
Probably because Synthetics
are grown, much as Replicants are.
And it's far from nonsense, as far as the universe of Alien is concerned.
Seemed.
Probably has enhanced precision, replaceable parts and an extended lifespan.
Quote from: TC on May 18, 2019, 12:54:57 PM
Quote from: Nrmiller on May 18, 2019, 01:09:45 AM
If you want to get real Ellison style dark with it, imagine that they're made from the same sort of line as the full human style synths, with the same capacity for thought, but none of the physical bits that allow them to express it. I imagine WY is a pretty cheap place, they'd probably give little thought to popping an off the shelf human-ish mind into a machine built like a dog. Easier cheaper and so what if it suffers so long as it works.
Do you mean Harlan Ellison-style dark?
Then that would be synthetic canine Maggie as Blood, the telepathic dog from Ellison's book A Boy And His Dog, who helps his friend Vic hunt down women to rape and cannibalise as food in a post-apocalyptic world of the future.
I'll pass on that one.
TC
More the existential nihilism of I Have No Mouth. A human level intelligence stuck in a canine form. Unable to understand or express its own limitations.
Not saying that is in this short, or even mildly hinted at, just stringing and extrapolating from the general capitalist driven laziness of corporate greed shoved into overdrive by WY.
One of my favourite books and videogames.
Quote from: The Old One on May 19, 2019, 05:47:26 AM
One of my favourite books and videogames.
I Have No Mouth And I Must Scream was made into a video game? Sounds crazy as f**k! I suppose I should just Google it, but why don't you just tell us how that one played? (Let me guess: no win scenarios all round. Depressing much?)
TC
No, you can win and you can lose horrifically.
Quote from: Ronoc on May 18, 2019, 03:40:50 PM
It's not nonsense that they can make them, is nonsense that they bother to. Unless it's a significant improvement over a real dog, there'd be no point. And the one in that story seemed no superior to any old dog.
If you have to grow them as DNA dictates, but can 'program' them later, then for security, or sense of smell, gotta go bear...
Quote from: The Old One on May 18, 2019, 04:34:02 AM
Probably because Synthetics
are grown, much as Replicants are.
And it's far from nonsense, as far as the universe of Alien is concerned.
The bear idea is a good counterargument actually. And yeah, it does seem like too much work to make a robo dog like that. Just lets not forget one thing. It's the future, so as long as power sources have improved and manufacturing is at an all time high, you can literally make anything you want.
Synthetics can live longer probably, if not indefinitely. They don't get sick, maybe it turns out that it's cheaper to power a robo dog than feed an actual one. Maybe some people just like the company of dogs more than creepy fake humans and synthetic bears.
In a crazy out of control capitalist world, any and all whims will be satisfied eventually if they are profitable.
Quote from: Nrmiller on May 19, 2019, 05:43:13 AM
Quote from: TC on May 18, 2019, 12:54:57 PM
Quote from: Nrmiller on May 18, 2019, 01:09:45 AM
If you want to get real Ellison style dark with it, imagine that they're made from the same sort of line as the full human style synths, with the same capacity for thought, but none of the physical bits that allow them to express it. I imagine WY is a pretty cheap place, they'd probably give little thought to popping an off the shelf human-ish mind into a machine built like a dog. Easier cheaper and so what if it suffers so long as it works.
Do you mean Harlan Ellison-style dark?
Then that would be synthetic canine Maggie as Blood, the telepathic dog from Ellison's book A Boy And His Dog, who helps his friend Vic hunt down women to rape and cannibalise as food in a post-apocalyptic world of the future.
I'll pass on that one.
TC
More the existential nihilism of I Have No Mouth. A human level intelligence stuck in a canine form. Unable to understand or express its own limitations.
Not saying that is in this short, or even mildly hinted at, just stringing and extrapolating from the general capitalist driven laziness of corporate greed shoved into overdrive by WY.
That's some Black Mirror level of wrong. Like it. I can get behind it. Could make sense if written carefully. It would have to be either a secret from the public, or somehow the public must be convinced that there is no suffering happening here. Still, eventually like in Black Mirror, people will find out about that, rights activists will pop up and things will be resolved. And then the Autons... :laugh:
There's a good story hidden in this proposal IMO
Quote from: Ronoc on May 18, 2019, 03:40:50 PMIt's not nonsense that they can make them, is nonsense that they bother to. Unless it's a significant improvement over a real dog, there'd be no point.
No point, except you don't need to feed it or walk it, it can work 24/7 without sleep, it isn't susceptible to disease or, to a degree, ageing, and is presumably stronger and more durable than a real dog, all of which would make it a better guard dog. Case in point - experience suggests a real dog wouldn't have been able to fight off the Facehugger, but Maggie could.
They'd also be far easier to ship out to a distant colony, as it wouldn't need hypersleep or supplies for the trip.
So it seems to me like there are plenty of good reasons to make them.
All of this ^
It's practical.
Maybe, but I still think if you have the science to improve something out of all sight, you'd aim higher than a dog.
What you've said is all good and well for a recreational dog. For a working animal, being a dog looks like a purely aesthetic choice. You'd at least have to have some place on him to plug in a voice box. And give him some degree of that human-level AI that WY have developed...
The girl in this story might have appreciated that
Quote from: HuDaFuK on May 19, 2019, 05:12:16 PM
Quote from: Ronoc on May 18, 2019, 03:40:50 PMIt's not nonsense that they can make them, is nonsense that they bother to. Unless it's a significant improvement over a real dog, there'd be no point.
No point, except you don't need to feed it or walk it, it can work 24/7 without sleep, it isn't susceptible to disease or, to a degree, ageing, and is presumably stronger and more durable than a real dog, all of which would make it a better guard dog. Case in point - experience suggests a real dog wouldn't have been able to fight off the Facehugger, but Maggie could.
They'd also be far easier to ship out to a distant colony, as it wouldn't need hypersleep or supplies for the trip.
So it seems to me like there are plenty of good reasons to make them.
Quote from: Ronoc on May 21, 2019, 09:20:32 AMWhat you've said is all good and well for a recreational dog. For a working animal, being a dog looks like a purely aesthetic choice. You'd at least have to have some place on him to plug in a voice box. And give him some degree of that human-level AI that WY have developed...
Dogs have a longstanding, close-knit social relationship with humans. "Dogs are a man's best friend" etc. There's a perfectly valid argument that W-Y or whoever makes them would prefer to imitate the real thing as closely as possible rather than create a super robo-mutt. If it can speak, for example, is even a dog any more?
If androids like Bishop are seemingly designed to imitate humans as accurately as possible, why not Maggie a real dog?
Regardless, the long-distance transport argument alone makes synthetic dogs perfectly valid if you ask me. How much would it cost to ship five real dogs to LV-426 as opposed to putting five synthetics in the cargo hold?
Yeah, I agree.
Maggie rules.
She's a working dog it seems, and in that case she's a tool, but seems to be suboptimal for the task.
So what if she's not "even a dog anymore". That's not why she's there I'd imagine.
A tractor beats a team of horses, and a snowmobile beats huskies at what they do, no matter how much people like horses and dogs.
Quote from: HuDaFuK on May 21, 2019, 09:36:39 AM
Quote from: Ronoc on May 21, 2019, 09:20:32 AMWhat you've said is all good and well for a recreational dog. For a working animal, being a dog looks like a purely aesthetic choice. You'd at least have to have some place on him to plug in a voice box. And give him some degree of that human-level AI that WY have developed...
Dogs have a longstanding, close-knit social relationship with humans. "Dogs are a man's best friend" etc. There's a perfectly valid argument that W-Y or whoever makes them would prefer to imitate the real thing as closely as possible rather than create a super robo-mutt. If it can speak, for example, is even a dog any more?
If androids like Bishop are seemingly designed to imitate humans as accurately as possible, why not Maggie a real dog?
Regardless, the long-distance transport argument alone makes synthetic dogs perfectly valid if you ask me. How much would it cost to ship five real dogs to LV-426 as opposed to putting five synthetics in the cargo hold?
Doesn't appear ineffectual.
Maggie wins, and is apparently good at the job.
Not ineffectual, suboptimal.
Unless they are dirt cheap to produce
Quote from: Erik Lehnsherr on May 22, 2019, 12:47:42 PM
Doesn't appear ineffectual.
Maggie wins, and is apparently good at the job.
Perhaps they are.
Remember when VCRs first came out and they were ludicrously expensive?
Remember when LCD TVs first came out and they were ludicrously expensive?
Remember when mobile phones first came out and they were ludicrously expensive...
Indeed.
Hang on, aren't we talking about plausibility here? As in, how well what's presented to us in fiction matches up with reality?
In which case, this
Quote from: Erik Lehnsherr on May 22, 2019, 12:47:42 PM
Doesn't appear ineffectual.
Maggie wins, and is apparently good at the job.
is nonsense. You are arguing that Maggie is plausible because in the story she is 'effectual.' Well, of course the writer is going to make Maggie 'effectual' - it would be problematic to his own story if he wrote her any other way.
Your line of reasoning is like arguing faster-than-light spaceships are plausible because there's one called the Nostromo that travels faster than light. (We all understand the difference between fiction and reality, don't we?)
What might be more useful is to take a more specialised definition of 'plausible' in which we examine how well a story invention fits in with the rest of the story-world.
For example, a spider man that can walk on walls is not plausible in a story-world like, say, that which exists in a Merchant Ivory film; but would be completely plausible in a story-world in which radioactive spider-bites confer superpowers rather than radiation sickness, and goblin men hurl pumpkin bombs at people.
So are android sniffer dogs at all in keeping with the rest of the Alien 'verse, as we know it?
Ronoc makes a good point when he says that in the real world mechanised tractors have displaced draught horses and snowmobiles have displaced husky dogs. Like it or not, these are facts. But putting the real world aside for the moment; in the Alien 'verse that we all know and love can we imagine that elsewhere on Planet LV-492 colonial farmers are tilling their fields with ploughs pulled by android-horses, and perhaps closer to the poles other colonists are crossing snowy terrain not on snowmobiles but on android-husky drawn sleds?
Well, everyone can decide this answer for him or herself, but for me the notion seems rather odd.
I would certainly have scratched my head and wondered WTF if the Jarden family had hitched a horse-drawn wagon up to a team of android horses before pulling out of Hadley's Hope on the way to the derelict.
TC
Quote from: TC on May 24, 2019, 11:25:58 AM
In the Alien 'verse that we all know and love can we imagine that elsewhere on Planet LV-492 colonial farmers are tilling their fields with ploughs pulled by android-horses, and perhaps closer to the poles other colonists are crossing snowy terrain not on snowmobiles but on android-husky drawn sleds?
Sounds fantastic, would go well with the Vincent Ward artificial planet idea.
But following the line of logic, consider Bishop as military hardware.
You could do better than the human form, but they didn't for a reason.
As stated in Prometheus, comfort.
I imagine the Dog companion is no different,
psychologically they do make a point of showing our Gardner is isolated.
By far the best, hope Director Kelsey Taylor returns to Alien at some point. Although Containment, Alone and Ore are all good, this is the only one that doesn't feel like a fanfilm.
I agree, very authentic.
I've got a theory, each of the films represent a stage in the life cycle intentionally or unintentionally, for example I believe this film ultimately represents:. The Egg and Facehugger
By far the best of the lot honestly, I'd jump out of my skin if Kelsey Taylor got the chance to create a film, first place.