If you had a chance to make a reboot of Alien, what would you change? and by changes I mean things like fictional setting, characters or even stuff from the Alien itself; such as the life cycle. I'm curious ;D
I would confirm that David did not create the Xenomorph and introduce the Space Jockey as the creator of the Engineers.
Quote from: Frosty Venom on Jun 30, 2019, 05:27:28 AM
I would confirm that David did not create the Xenomorph and introduce the Space Jockey as the creator of the Engineers.
I'd cover that bitch in evidence of David's meddling.
It wouldn't be a hard reboot but it would pretty much gloss over the existing films potentially even set in a later period. I would also ignore and in some cases contradict the prequels seeing as all they served to do was talk about religion to the point the series went up its own ass and make the universe even smaller.
I would have the Alien reintroduced as being an existing species and maybe even redo the Space jockey itself rather than just being a big albino guy. Maybe start with a flashback of them stumbling onto the creature and we witness the aftermath of the encounter (or it even plays out in the set dressing with murals or still active computers). That it's not just their own planet that gets overrun, but every planet they hold, and there is no one direct thing to blame. The Jockey's are just in the wrong place at the wrong time and they through a variety of means brought it home and elsewhere. It's a threat that is just a highly efficient animal. It's not man-made be it created by WY or WY through David, it's just an animal. Nature is just really scary.
I'd give Parker his d@mn bonus.
I to would imply that the SJ were their own species. Same basic setup but mess around with the cast so that Ripley wouldn't necessarily be the last survivor.
Could still keep the engineers if that is your thing but have the engineers being to the space jockeys what humans were to the engineers.
I'd also try to make the universe bigger and more biomech with the Alien being only part of the menace. Scott complained about the Alien losing all its steam after so many sequels. I don't disagree, but there are tons of other things that fit that universe besides the Android angle.
The creatures we got in the two prequels are too fleshy.
Don't care for the "Engineers aren't Space Jockies" thing.
Me neither, to be honest. Too much of an ass pull, IMO.
The damage is done.
Besides the obvious size difference between the engineer in Prometheus and the SJ in Alien it is clear that the franchise meant to stick with the Engineers through thick and thin.
They just suck. So bad.
The thought of a bald giant albino white man would be a good representation of the SJ we see in Alien deserves to be obliterated with a reboot. At this point a complete restart is the only thing that could save the franchise.
It is now too far away from what it once was.
Covenant wasn't bad. It just wasn't franchise saving good either.
Am disappoint.
Restart soon.
Quote from: Local Trouble on Jul 01, 2019, 01:59:48 AM
Me neither, to be honest. Too much of an ass pull, IMO.
The damage is done.
This is what it comes down to. Regroup and move on, don't insist on a secondary layer of cosmic dumbassery.
With a covenant sequel.
Reboots suck.
And every meal's a banquet.
A reboot sounds like a good option because it's a clean slate, which is always appealing, but how do you know it would be good? Considering the way the current industry is, it sounds just as risky. Personally, I don't think the original Alien needs a reboot. And I think Covenant is good enough to get a sequel.
Quote from: Kimarhi on Jul 01, 2019, 01:28:41 AM
I to would imply that the SJ were their own species. Same basic setup but mess around with the cast so that Ripley wouldn't necessarily be the last survivor.
Could still keep the engineers if that is your thing but have the engineers being to the space jockeys what humans were to the engineers.
I'd also try to make the universe bigger and more biomech with the Alien being only part of the menace. Scott complained about the Alien losing all its steam after so many sequels. I don't disagree, but there are tons of other things that fit that universe besides the Android angle.
The creatures we got in the two prequels are too fleshy.
Probably all of you are going to hate it or find it ridiculous, but how about an adaptation of Dan O'bannon's Alien plus some changes:
You can make a great design if you want, but the Space Jockey was just a generic extraterrestrial being and the first victim of the Alien. It's just a prelude to what is about to happen to the characters, and no relationship between the two species is required. The Derelict is found stranded in the middle of space by the Nostromo's crew, near a strange formation of asteroids.
(https://i.imgur.com/MwBEcOm.jpg)
After the discovery of a pyramid-shaped symbol drawn by the Space Jockey, the crew leaves the alien ship and begin to explore the asteroid field. Once there, they find the fragments of the Old Ones' home world and an ancient pyramid.
(https://i.imgur.com/4GAywWP.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/INo6bIl.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/fq1pdJw.jpg)
Inside the pyramid everything is biomechanical in design, and Big Chap is a teenage/middle state, so to speak; of an intelligent organism. At the end of the story one can appreciate the final metamorphosis and shape of the Alien. But of course, the site "Alien Explorations" explained it better:
"Expanding on this in the original conception of the Alien race, the inhabitants of the planetoid are seen as tough and primitive, and with an extremely complicated sexual cycle. Reproduction was very difficult for them and had therefore become central to their religion. And this pyramid was a temple to reproduction. The inhabitants of this world had three entirely different stages in it's life-cycle which are featured as very stylised hieroglyphs on the wall of the birthing temple."(https://i.imgur.com/e5elbkz.jpg)
I'd only replace the octopus-like monster with the beautefull Giger's beast, plus the final state or "evolution" of Big Chap with Giger vibes as well, and the interiors of the temple with the biomechanical aesthetic. The true life cycle of the creature involves eggmorphing. The Queen is an abomination created with military purpose in a research facility by Weyland Yutani. The latter fits with an Aliens reboot, though.
(https://i.imgur.com/QtUcP3O.jpg)
Quote from: Local Trouble on Jul 01, 2019, 01:59:48 AM
Me neither, to be honest. Too much of an ass pull, IMO.
The damage is done.
The franchise survived to AVPR, though. I don't think it's that easy
Quote from: Nostromo on Jul 01, 2019, 09:02:07 PM
Reboots suck.
And every meal's a banquet.
Some reboots are fine, like: 2006's Casino Royale, 2009's Star Trek, 2011's Rise of the Planet of the Apes, 2012's Dredd, 2014's Godzilla and 2017's Kong: Skull Island (Peter Jackson's King Kong was better, but that one was a remake).
I agree the damage is probably done as far as Engineers go. What if the original SJ is something they worship or revere and it's why the make stuff in it's image? I'm not sure it would be worth it to try and adjust it further, but a 3rd faction may not be a bad idea with a quality writing team.
Quote from: PsyKore on Jul 02, 2019, 01:22:49 AM
A reboot sounds like a good option because it's a clean slate, which is always appealing, but how do you know it would be good? Considering the way the current industry is, it sounds just as risky. Personally, I don't think the original Alien needs a reboot. And I think Covenant is good enough to get a sequel.
Never know unless you try.
Also if it sucks it will just leave the series in the same status it is already in.
Quote from: Kimarhi on Jul 02, 2019, 02:37:46 PM
Quote from: PsyKore on Jul 02, 2019, 01:22:49 AM
A reboot sounds like a good option because it's a clean slate, which is always appealing, but how do you know it would be good? Considering the way the current industry is, it sounds just as risky. Personally, I don't think the original Alien needs a reboot. And I think Covenant is good enough to get a sequel.
Never know unless you try.
While I can dig the Engineer as a separate entity from the biomechanical Space Jockey, and a creator/creation relationship similar to Engineer/Human or Human/Android; what you guys are suggesting is more like a retcon and not a real reboot. You kinda like or accept the Engineers as part of the Alien lore, but you just don't want to them to be the Space Jockeys.
Quote from: Kimarhi on Jul 02, 2019, 02:37:46 PM
Also if it sucks it will just leave the series in the same status it is already in.
Yup, it's not like the last instalment of the franchise was Alien, Aliens or Alien 3. So, I agree.
Also, I would like the Alien as the tip of the iceberg of cosmic horror. Maybe there are worse things there, who knows.
"Reboot" for some reasons sounds bad to me. :-\
Quote from: Immortan Jonesy on Jul 02, 2019, 03:57:21 PM
what you guys are suggesting is more like a retcon and not a real reboot. You kinda like or accept the Engineers as part of the Alien lore, but you just don't want to them to be the Space Jockeys.
I used to think there were just remakes and reboots. Things were much simpler back in the old days. Now there's these "hard" and "soft" reboots, I'm not sure I completely grasp the intricacies of it all.
The
Westworld TV show meets my exact definition of a reboot. It has the same basic premise as the original movie, but beyond that it's a completely new narrative. The same with the newer 2004
Battlestar Galactica, and last year's
Lost in Space. The Andrew Garfield
Spider-mans and now the Tom Holland
Spider-mans also qualify as unequivocal reboots: re-cast characters, re-telling of key story points (i.e. spider-man's origin), but mostly new narratives.
Imagine what the Alien series would be like if you had to rewrite the whole lot from scratch as an expansive and cohesive TV show structured more like, say,
Game of Thrones, rather than simply splicing the movie stories together. Would you really start with the origins of the xeno? Wouldn't it make more sense to reveal that mystery at the end of the timeline?
TC
Quote from: Kimarhi on Jul 02, 2019, 02:37:46 PM
Quote from: PsyKore on Jul 02, 2019, 01:22:49 AM
A reboot sounds like a good option because it's a clean slate, which is always appealing, but how do you know it would be good? Considering the way the current industry is, it sounds just as risky. Personally, I don't think the original Alien needs a reboot. And I think Covenant is good enough to get a sequel.
Never know unless you try.
Also if it sucks it will just leave the series in the same status it is already in.
True.
#teamreboot
Does making movies that have literally nothing to do with any of the previous other than the titular creature, space, and WY count as rebooting? Because that's what I've been wanting them to do for decades, and the prequels are honestly, pretty close to.
I don't think they count as rebooting. No Predator films continue a story from a previous film, but none of them reboot the franchise either.
Rebooting can also be starting a long dormant franchise again too - like Predators did.
Quote from: TC on Jul 02, 2019, 04:49:44 PM
Quote from: Immortan Jonesy on Jul 02, 2019, 03:57:21 PM
what you guys are suggesting is more like a retcon and not a real reboot. You kinda like or accept the Engineers as part of the Alien lore, but you just don't want to them to be the Space Jockeys.
I used to think there were just remakes and reboots. Things were much simpler back in the old days. Now there's these "hard" and "soft" reboots, I'm not sure I completely grasp the intricacies of it all.
The Westworld TV show meets my exact definition of a reboot. It has the same basic premise as the original movie, but beyond that it's a completely new narrative. The same with the newer 2004 Battlestar Galactica, and last year's Lost in Space. The Andrew Garfield Spider-mans and now the Tom Holland Spider-mans also qualify as unequivocal reboots: re-cast characters, re-telling of key story points (i.e. spider-man's origin), but mostly new narratives.
Imagine what the Alien series would be like if you had to rewrite the whole lot from scratch as an expansive and cohesive TV show structured more like, say, Game of Thrones, rather than simply splicing the movie stories together. Would you really start with the origins of the xeno? Wouldn't it make more sense to reveal that mystery at the end of the timeline?
TC
I'm not an expert either. These are probably just euphemisms and not real concepts (god damn millennials! I'm one of them, though :-X). Anyway, from my understanding a real reboot is like a reset from scratch, or as SM says with the intention of starting a new franchise. You can ignore the previous continuity, create new characters and stories and keep the Alien in them. On the other hand, the so called soft reboot is a story that recognizes some of the events of previous installments of the franchise. But at the same time; it contradicts, re-imagines or ignores other less acclaimed elements or events in different ways, such as: retro continuity or re-contextualization of previous lore. IMO, an example of this is the alleged Blommkamp's retcon over Alien 3 (which is kinda debunked now, but still): Alien & Aliens are being recognized, but Alien 3 is being contradicted due to the resurrection of Hicks and Newt. Also, it's an hypothetical soft reboot because it's not a fresh start from scratch, but more like an alternate sequel to Aliens.
I could be wrong, though ;D
Also, you are bringing good examples of genuine reboots, from Westworld to Spiderman.
Quote from: Kimarhi on Jul 02, 2019, 10:57:46 PM
#teamreboot
#teammakethespacejockeygreatagain
Quote from: [cancerblack] on Jul 03, 2019, 09:14:49 PM
Does making movies that have literally nothing to do with any of the previous other than the titular creature, space, and WY count as rebooting? Because that's what I've been wanting them to do for decades, and the prequels are honestly, pretty close to.
Well, supposedly they wanted to get away from the Alien and statements like:
"although the film shares "strands of Alien's DNA, so to speak", and takes place in the same universe,
Prometheus explores its own mythology and ideas".or
Damon Lindelof: "Ridley Scott and I talked at great length during the story process of the first movie about what subsequent movies would be if Prometheus were to be successful. And I think that the movie ended in a very specific way that hinted at, or strongly implied that there were going to be continuing adventures worthy of writing stories. What those stories would be would not necessarily usurp or transcend the Alien franchise as we saw it because we know that the Nostromo hasn't come along yet. So the idea was to set up a universe that... Is it a prequel? Okay. If that's what we want to call it, sure.
But the sequel to this movie is not Alien. The sequel to this movie is this other thing." Seems to suggest that this was one of the original plans: create a new franchise. But Ridley changed his mind, and we got Covenant instead, wich it's not a bad thing by any means, and probably they never had a clear idea of how to continue the Pormetheus narrative anyway, so :P.
I wish they had a clear idea for Prometheus' narrative in the first place.
They did. Once upon a time. :'( It had some issues but I still preferred Spaihts' scripts that we saw.
I'm in team Reboot with a TV series. I've always thought the universe itself was rich enough to have other stuff going on besides Xenos (dare I say Yautja here) to sustain a narrative over x-amount of seasons.
I've cited Event Horizon and Outland before, but the point is - if these were episodes in an AlienVerse show, would there be tonal eyebrows raised at how out-of-step they were with the established universe? I don't think so myself, but on the other hand I've read on here that the idea of an Aliens show that didn't focus solely on the Xenos might not fly.
I think it would, I'd love to see all those genres thrown into the mix - the cops, the soldiers, the spooks, the suits... it could be really cool
....(or it might end up as AvPs answer to Caprica).
An Alien TV show needs to be centred on the Aliens.
An AvP show would provide a broader scope.
Quote from: Immortan Jonesy on Jul 02, 2019, 03:38:15 AM
You can make a great design if you want, but the Space Jockey was just a generic extraterrestrial being and the first victim of the Alien. It's just a prelude to what is about to happen to the characters, and no relationship between the two species is required. The Derelict is found stranded in the middle of space by the Nostromo's crew, near a strange formation of asteroids.
...
After the discovery of a pyramid-shaped symbol drawn by the Space Jockey, the crew leaves the alien ship and begin to explore the asteroid field. Once there, they find the fragments of the Old Ones' home world and an ancient pyramid.
...
Inside the pyramid everything is biomechanical in design, and Big Chap is a teenage/middle state, so to speak; of an intelligent organism. At the end of the story one can appreciate the final metamorphosis and shape of the Alien. But of course, the site "Alien Explorations" explained it better:
"Expanding on this in the original conception of the Alien race, the inhabitants of the planetoid are seen as tough and primitive, and with an extremely complicated sexual cycle. Reproduction was very difficult for them and had therefore become central to their religion. And this pyramid was a temple to reproduction. The inhabitants of this world had three entirely different stages in it's life-cycle which are featured as very stylised hieroglyphs on the wall of the birthing temple."
...
I'd only replace the octopus-like monster with the beautefull Giger's beast, plus the final state or "evolution" of Big Chap with Giger vibes as well, and the interiors of the temple with the biomechanical aesthetic. The true life cycle of the creature involves eggmorphing. The Queen is an abomination created with military purpose in a research facility by Weyland Yutani. The latter fits with an Aliens reboot, though.
Hey! That's cool. :)
Now I'll have a go...
Here's a reboot idea, this one for a TV series. But first, some thoughts, following on from preceding posts:
Remember
The X-Files? (which I think has been mentioned in relation to this topic before). Ultimately that entire series is held together by its mytharc, the story of the impending alien colonisation of Earth, even though there were many other side stories that filled out each season. And sometimes stories that seemed to be unrelated or only tenuously connected (the black oil, the bee virus, the secret cabal of scheming industrialists), turned out to be part of the mytharc after all.
An
Alien TV show could follow the same format - the overarching storyline being the discovery of the origins of the xenomorph.
So even if there are episodes that don't feature an actual xenomorph onscreen, as long as their presence is there to motivate events and characters, I think it could still work. It might even be preferable to use the xenomorphs this way, because if every episode features the xeno then you run the risk of overusing them to the point where they lose impact (there's a reason why the Daleks only show up once per season of
Dr Who).
OK. So in my imaginary
Alien TV series, I'm going to make one of the new protagonists a bit like Sean Connery's Federal Marshall from
Outland. (Maybe he could be played by William Hope, who played the Marshall in
Alien Isolation.) From his office on Thedus, he has to field all sorts of mysterious distress calls and emergencies the likes of which he's never experienced before. This is because this region of space has only recently been opened to human exploration, and unlike every other part of the galaxy humans have visited, this one shows signs of having been inhabited by an intelligent, space-faring species at some time in the past. To assist the Marshall in his work, he deputises a Colonial Administration exobiologist called Dr Elizabeth Shaw. (And there I've got my Mulder and Scully of the show.)
To further spice up the story, I'm putting a reboot of the movie events into the background. So while the Marshall is dealing with a case of Working Joes running amok on some space station, he hears a report that one of Weyland-Yutani's space-freighter refineries just blew up. And in another episode when he and Dr Shaw are investigating a hibernation-ship that suddenly appears after being lost for 50 years, he receives a call for assistance from a colony called Hadley's Hope which is experiencing a sinister case of child abductions.
Into the mix I'll throw in the corporate warfare between rival tech companies Weyland-Yutani, Seegson, Con-Am and Tyrell, as well as the social upheaval of robot and AI technology, clones, and colonial tribalism. And I guess I'll chuck in a military story or two for good measure.
So there's plenty of opportunity for conflict and drama, requiring investigation from our stalwart heroes. And by the end of the first season, once you've added all the episodes together, I'll have Dr Shaw summarise the mytharc so far: that the xenomorph is an artificially engineered organism, seeded in this corner of the galaxy at some time in the past by a technologically superior alien race, for some mysterious purpose. What is this purpose, where is the alien race now, and are they returning any time soon?
And so to season two...
TC
Quote from: The Old One on Jul 04, 2019, 06:04:05 AM
I wish they had a clear idea for Prometheus' narrative in the first place.
You're demanding too much. Just enjoy beatiful images ;D
No reboot. And the idea of a TV show is great, no it doesn't need to be centred around the Alien contrary to what some people believe. The universe is interesting enough on it's own.
Just title it something applicable.
"Periplous" for instance.
Quote from: SM on Jul 04, 2019, 10:51:49 AM
An Alien TV show needs to be centred on the Aliens.
Otherwise it runs the risk of being like the Godzilla anime on Netflix.
Spoiler
Quote from: MoonRightRomantic on Jul 06, 2019, 07:06:24 PM
Firstly, I would kick Scott to the curb. He's out of his league and his interference is ruining the franchise.
I would ignore everything beyond the first two movies, except maybe as Ripley's and David's nightmares, like the latest Halloween sequel did. I'd pull a Force Awakens to replace the previous cast with new young actors, like a recast Newt. If Weaver, Henrickson or Biehn died prior to filming, I'd just mention that they died peacefully and that Bishop was phased out. Rebecca Jordan would still be the hero, because nostalgia is money. Maybe for fanservice I'd introduce Amanda Ripley's grandson as a love interest.
Giger biomechanics and 70s/80s retrofuturism would in full play, because those are hallmarks of the only good two movies. For continuity and, also, nostalgia is money.
To raise the stakes and ensure future movies, I'd make the aliens intelligent a la the original concepts; that is, combine them and the engineers/jockeys/whatever into the same species. The creatures we see are feral children engineered to fight a civil war, but the smart ones grow the spaceships.
As a little nod, LV426 was xenoformed by black goo leaking from the egg bomber (the goo is the basis of the alien tech, like the goo in District 9), resulting in the grotesque rock formations and those alien fossils from the never filmed scenes.
David returns as a loony robot acting on behalf of the greedy company who thinks he can control the aliens and use their tech to revolutionize civilization. He gets gutted by the smart aliens, but helpfully informs Jordan how to stop the lead alien before its juggernaut full of eggs reaches Earth.
David remains the villain for as long as Fassbender's contract lasts, because Fassbender is awesome. Jordan remains the heroine, because this series needs a strong female protagonist. Not a line of disposable f**k toys for David to play with.
Again, f**k Scott. f**k him to hell. Dear God, I pray that he dies ASAP before his next box office bomb kills this franchise for good.
Parody or immense stupidity?
"Nostalgia is money."
Is a dead giveaway of parody I think.
Alongside several hallmarks of the type of self proclaimed intelligent person that thinks they know best for the franchise but actually don't.
You see this kind of garbage everywhere on YouTube.
Go ahead, rate the Alien franchise's continued existence above the life of a real human being. lol
Quote from: MoonRightRomantic on Jul 06, 2019, 07:06:24 PM
Again, f**k Scott. f**k him to hell. Dear God, I pray that he dies ASAP before his next box office bomb kills this franchise for good.
First and only warning. No wishing death on anyone on this board. If I see it again, you'll be banned.
Quote from: MoonRightRomantic on Jul 06, 2019, 07:06:24 PM
Again, f**k Scott. f**k him to hell. Dear God, I pray that he dies ASAP before his next box office bomb kills this franchise for good.
(https://media1.tenor.com/images/6b0639a69a4e1a8ed35a906492951cab/tenor.gif?itemid=9281930)
Yeesh.jpeg @all of it.
First of all, I want to say thanks to @MoonRightRomantic for inspiring me to use the ignore feature for first time.
(https://i.imgur.com/nY6SuNd.gif)
Now back on topic, I think TC's idea for a TV series is Top Tier 8)
Quote from: TC on Jul 04, 2019, 02:00:38 PM
Quote from: Immortan Jonesy on Jul 02, 2019, 03:38:15 AM
You can make a great design if you want, but the Space Jockey was just a generic extraterrestrial being and the first victim of the Alien. It's just a prelude to what is about to happen to the characters, and no relationship between the two species is required. The Derelict is found stranded in the middle of space by the Nostromo's crew, near a strange formation of asteroids.
...
After the discovery of a pyramid-shaped symbol drawn by the Space Jockey, the crew leaves the alien ship and begin to explore the asteroid field. Once there, they find the fragments of the Old Ones' home world and an ancient pyramid.
...
Inside the pyramid everything is biomechanical in design, and Big Chap is a teenage/middle state, so to speak; of an intelligent organism. At the end of the story one can appreciate the final metamorphosis and shape of the Alien. But of course, the site "Alien Explorations" explained it better:
"Expanding on this in the original conception of the Alien race, the inhabitants of the planetoid are seen as tough and primitive, and with an extremely complicated sexual cycle. Reproduction was very difficult for them and had therefore become central to their religion. And this pyramid was a temple to reproduction. The inhabitants of this world had three entirely different stages in it's life-cycle which are featured as very stylised hieroglyphs on the wall of the birthing temple."
...
I'd only replace the octopus-like monster with the beautefull Giger's beast, plus the final state or "evolution" of Big Chap with Giger vibes as well, and the interiors of the temple with the biomechanical aesthetic. The true life cycle of the creature involves eggmorphing. The Queen is an abomination created with military purpose in a research facility by Weyland Yutani. The latter fits with an Aliens reboot, though.
Hey! That's cool. :)
Now I'll have a go...
Here's a reboot idea, this one for a TV series. But first, some thoughts, following on from preceding posts:
Remember The X-Files? (which I think has been mentioned in relation to this topic before). Ultimately that entire series is held together by its mytharc, the story of the impending alien colonisation of Earth, even though there were many other side stories that filled out each season. And sometimes stories that seemed to be unrelated or only tenuously connected (the black oil, the bee virus, the secret cabal of scheming industrialists), turned out to be part of the mytharc after all.
An Alien TV show could follow the same format - the overarching storyline being the discovery of the origins of the xenomorph.
So even if there are episodes that don't feature an actual xenomorph onscreen, as long as their presence is there to motivate events and characters, I think it could still work. It might even be preferable to use the xenomorphs this way, because if every episode features the xeno then you run the risk of overusing them to the point where they lose impact (there's a reason why the Daleks only show up once per season of Dr Who).
OK. So in my imaginary Alien TV series, I'm going to make one of the new protagonists a bit like Sean Connery's Federal Marshall from Outland. (Maybe he could be played by William Hope, who played the Marshall in Alien Isolation.) From his office on Thedus, he has to field all sorts of mysterious distress calls and emergencies the likes of which he's never experienced before. This is because this region of space has only recently been opened to human exploration, and unlike every other part of the galaxy humans have visited, this one shows signs of having been inhabited by an intelligent, space-faring species at some time in the past. To assist the Marshall in his work, he deputises a Colonial Administration exobiologist called Dr Elizabeth Shaw. (And there I've got my Mulder and Scully of the show.)
To further spice up the story, I'm putting a reboot of the movie events into the background. So while the Marshall is dealing with a case of Working Joes running amok on some space station, he hears a report that one of Weyland-Yutani's space-freighter refineries just blew up. And in another episode when he and Dr Shaw are investigating a hibernation-ship that suddenly appears after being lost for 50 years, he receives a call for assistance from a colony called Hadley's Hope which is experiencing a sinister case of child abductions.
Into the mix I'll throw in the corporate warfare between rival tech companies Weyland-Yutani, Seegson, Con-Am and Tyrell, as well as the social upheaval of robot and AI technology, clones, and colonial tribalism. And I guess I'll chuck in a military story or two for good measure.
So there's plenty of opportunity for conflict and drama, requiring investigation from our stalwart heroes. And by the end of the first season, once you've added all the episodes together, I'll have Dr Shaw summarise the mytharc so far: that the xenomorph is an artificially engineered organism, seeded in this corner of the galaxy at some time in the past by a technologically superior alien race, for some mysterious purpose. What is this purpose, where is the alien race now, and are they returning any time soon?
And so to season two...
TC
Yes dude that was neat! every single word. We need drama, techno thriller, psychological warfare, corporate espionage, political intrigue, conspiracy and military action (not too much, not too little). Also, there are plenty of mysteries to explore...is there intelligent life beyond Earth? If intelligent aliens exist, why haven't we seen them? Oh look! are you seeing this?...what they're...living machines? space seeders?...but where did they go?
We develop artificial intelligence, but these guys seems to be ahead of that, eons ago. There seems to be a creation of some sort. I'd say this mysterious civilization (if you can call these skeletal-looking artifacts of shapeshifting-metal in that way) has been taken over by one of their creations, long ago.
OK, that was crude :laugh: but I know that you can do it better.
But a very important point that you've made is about over exposition. The last thing an Alien TV series needs is xeno fatigue. You can also experiment with episodes of the "monster of the week" type. While that might be detrimental to the Alien, by monster of the week I don't necessarily mean a new monster in the literal sense of the word, but a non-human threat. The Neomorph was great in Covenant, though.
But overall, I think The X Files is a good role model to craft an Alien TV series. Keep it up. :)
Quote from: SM on Jul 04, 2019, 10:51:49 AM
An AvP show would provide a broader scope.
I hate to admit it but yes, people want French fries & Mountain Dew. I'd say the AVP concept can play as a entertaining media version of that.
Walks in
Quote from: Corporal Hicks on Jul 06, 2019, 07:51:19 PM
Quote from: MoonRightRomantic on Jul 06, 2019, 07:06:24 PM
Again, f**k Scott. f**k him to hell. Dear God, I pray that he dies ASAP before his next box office bomb kills this franchise for good.
First and only warning. No wishing death on anyone on this board. If I see it again, you'll be banned.
Walks out
Quote from: Kradan on Jul 06, 2019, 08:12:33 PM
https://media1.tenor.com/images/6b0639a69a4e1a8ed35a906492951cab/tenor.gif?itemid=9281930
"Hey Crabman"
I always thought that the backstory for LV1201 in the AvP2 campaign was interesting enough for a kind of tv show.
You had the scientist following the SJ telemetry on LV426 back to LV1201, you had expedition 1, you had WY establishing the POC and PODs (with the loss of POD5). I always thought with some touchups you had several interesting ways you could go with such a story.
And essentially you could have every sort of theme encountered in the series or hinted at included.
Young workers looking to work the frontier for adventure and career fulfillment, corporate espionage (just tweak the tomiko storyline a little bit with maybe her brother actually being a spy for another corporation) rogue AI (just have an AI shut down the fence during expedition one and then blame it on the storm) or have it influencing Eisenberg some kind of way.
I think it sets up pretty easy for a series, especially since they were already established on llv1201 a long time before they even encountered their first alien. It wasn't like they jumped right into the fray with the Aliens or preds. They established a spearhead and then slowly the Aliens activated as the conditions on the planet became less extreme.
"Activated" damn, Monolith's AVP lore is top tier.
They sent androids into the hives and couldn't find any life initially, when the storms became less extreme, the hive sent out runners (i guess to look for new hives/prey) and then praetorians.
it was good shit, I loved the worldbuilding of that game, and wish we could get them to do one with modern tech.
Agreed. The full story with all the (corny) dialog was very very engaging. The gameplay is fun, but the story is what drives me in replaying it. Overhearing every bit of dialog, collecting and reading all the notes. AVP2 for the win. If that was adapted well, I could die happy.
I thought the story of Rykov would have made for a great new Predator movie with Dutch in his place, with some obvious adjustments to setting, time period, etc. I just loved how personal Rykov's story was. And it built up nicely towards the end at the final battle.
Quote from: Kimarhi on Jul 07, 2019, 04:51:32 AM
I always thought that the backstory for LV1201 in the AvP2 campaign was interesting enough for a kind of tv show.
You had the scientist following the SJ telemetry on LV426 back to LV1201, you had expedition 1, you had WY establishing the POC and PODs (with the loss of POD5). I always thought with some touchups you had several interesting ways you could go with such a story.
And essentially you could have every sort of theme encountered in the series or hinted at included.
Young workers looking to work the frontier for adventure and career fulfillment, corporate espionage (just tweak the tomiko storyline a little bit with maybe her brother actually being a spy for another corporation) rogue AI (just have an AI shut down the fence during expedition one and then blame it on the storm) or have it influencing Eisenberg some kind of way.
I think it sets up pretty easy for a series, especially since they were already established on llv1201 a long time before they even encountered their first alien. It wasn't like they jumped right into the fray with the Aliens or preds. They established a spearhead and then slowly the Aliens activated as the conditions on the planet became less extreme.
Quote from: Kimarhi on Jul 07, 2019, 07:43:40 AM
They sent androids into the hives and couldn't find any life initially, when the storms became less extreme, the hive sent out runners (i guess to look for new hives/prey) and then praetorians.
it was good shit, I loved the worldbuilding of that game, and wish we could get them to do one with modern tech.
Am I seeing someone that appreciates AVP2 as much as me?
(https://media1.giphy.com/media/MiapFHASKG1Us/giphy.gif)
Quote from: Local Trouble on Jul 06, 2019, 06:12:33 PM
Quote from: SM on Jul 04, 2019, 10:51:49 AM
An Alien TV show needs to be centred on the Aliens.
Otherwise it runs the risk of being like the Godzilla anime on Netflix.
I haven't seen the Godzilla anime, but I can see how the show could easily run out of steam if it's just focused on "beating the Aliens". How sustainable and attention-grabbing could that be in the long-run?
Depends on the story they came up with.
Quote from: Corporal Hicks on Jul 06, 2019, 07:51:19 PMFirst and only warning. No wishing death on anyone on this board. If I see it again, you'll be banned.
I'm sorry. I'm a f**king moron. What I said was f**king evil. Literally evil.
I'm going to delete my account after posting this. It was a mistake for me to join in the first place. I'm sorry for wasting your time.
I wish this franchise had a bright future. Now it's just another rubbish slasher franchise. Although we might delude ourselves otherwise, that's all it's ever going to be. Because Hollywood.
If it wasn't for Hollywood there would be no franchise.
Quote from: MoonRightRomantic on Jul 07, 2019, 09:50:05 PM
I wish this franchise had a bright future. Now it's just another rubbish slasher franchise. Although we might delude ourselves otherwise, that's all it's ever going to be. Because Hollywood.
I wonder where QP thinks the original movie came from.
Quote from: Local Trouble on Jul 07, 2019, 10:08:22 PM
Quote from: MoonRightRomantic on Jul 07, 2019, 09:50:05 PM
I wish this franchise had a bright future. Now it's just another rubbish slasher franchise. Although we might delude ourselves otherwise, that's all it's ever going to be. Because Hollywood.
I wonder where QP thinks the original movie came from.
Hey, Hollywood was great until all those movie people showed up.
So who will Make Hollywood Great Again?
You
The irony being QP advocated for nostalgia pandering, franchise 101.
Quote from: Samhain13 on Jul 07, 2019, 10:24:55 PM
So who will Make Hollywood Great Again?
Not Black and/or Dekker :laugh:
Monolith's AVP adaptation TV Series, do it.
Lead up to it with my "Periplous" idea.
Quote from: The Old One on Jul 07, 2019, 10:30:05 PM
Monolith's AVP adaptation TV Series, do it.
My dream.
Has it ever been adapted into a comic?
There is only AVP2 and its expansion pack Primal Hunt... officially.
Apparently there was an unofficial Hungarian AVP novel based on it. I would still be interested on taking a look at it but I don't think it has been translated so far.
If I ever write fanfanction it would be something AVP2 related, there is a lot of space for backstories there, the facilities there functioned for years before they fell.
Quote from: MoonRightRomantic on Jul 07, 2019, 09:50:05 PM
Quote from: Corporal Hicks on Jul 06, 2019, 07:51:19 PMFirst and only warning. No wishing death on anyone on this board. If I see it again, you'll be banned.
I'm sorry. I'm a f**king moron. What I said was f**king evil. Literally evil.
I'm going to delete my account after posting this. It was a mistake for me to join in the first place. I'm sorry for wasting your time.
I wish this franchise had a bright future. Now it's just another rubbish slasher franchise. Although we might delude ourselves otherwise, that's all it's ever going to be. Because Hollywood.
Everybody post silly shit every now and again.
It'll be alright little buddy.
I want the future past back on track. You know, like when we look at the sky at night. It's that way because what we're doing is looking to the past of our universe. I mean, if a star is located at a distance of a thousand light years from Earth, its light takes a thousand years to reach us and be observed by us. So what we're seeing now happened a long time ago. I dig when a filmmaker shows me the future through the past, as when Scott is using Noir to craft the world we see in Blade Runner, or George Lucas and his concept of a technologically advanced civilization with ancient architecture and clothing (the Naboo in the prequel trilogy). I like the retro-futuristic look of Alien and the Nostromo refinery really looks like a Gothic cathedral in the middle of space, which is kinda chilling. The ancient fears, the cosmic horror, the nightmarish settings, sex finding its way to survive and take over; everything is there. But what is future and what is past? It is like the Engineers civilization, with their biomechanical spacecrafts and hologram technology in total contrast with their monolithic-looking cities and Hellenic clothes. I want something similar but with the current technology and filming techniques. Bring me Alien again, or part of its essence at least. The closest thing was Alien Isolation, but that is a video game. :)
(https://i.imgur.com/j59DbbE.jpg)
Anyway, I liked AVP2 a lot and I have to admit that a TV series or movie based on that particular story has more chances to be successful and commercially profitable.
Quote from: Wysps on Jul 07, 2019, 03:17:41 PM
Quote from: Local Trouble on Jul 06, 2019, 06:12:33 PM
Quote from: SM on Jul 04, 2019, 10:51:49 AM
An Alien TV show needs to be centred on the Aliens.
Otherwise it runs the risk of being like the Godzilla anime on Netflix.
I haven't seen the Godzilla anime, but I can see how the show could easily run out of steam if it's just focused on "beating the Aliens". How sustainable and attention-grabbing could that be in the long-run?
If the story is good, I don't see any problem. Also, the monster's overexposure could subtract impact to the point of being boring, unless you're showing other xeno breeds (without falling into the ridiculous of course). The way you handled the creature is more important, though. That's why the best apparitions of the xenomorph are in Alien, Aliens and Alien 3 and that's why Covenant's xeno was OK at best.
Excellent post Immortan.
Agreed regarding Monolith's AVP and the overexposure of the Alien, hence why I suggested the "Periplous" concept as part of it, the stories of several voyages, people and dangers.
The/one culmination is the LV-1201 story.
Spoiler
(https://i.imgur.com/nVEfGSh.png)
(https://i.imgur.com/KZHhyoj.png)
(https://i.imgur.com/UYK9Y7C.png)
(https://i.imgur.com/9oKfYyl.png)
The RPG has great world-building elements. Before I wasn't so sure how would other faction feel in the universe, but damn do I like the sound of the factions in the RPG. We need more players doing big stuff, not just WY, and they do need different motives and methods. More human drama will fit well with the Alien ripping people to bits.
It's exactly the scenario the universe requires.
I keep having panic attacks whenever I remember that I still haven't pre ordered it. Then I continue to not pre order it. :-\
You've got time.
IIRC the pre-order period ends end of August.
I'll give you incentive [cancerblack] check your email. Peruse.