Quote from: Immortan Jonesy on Nov 23, 2023, 10:28:55 PMI agree with the racism in the pseudoscientific hypotheses of ancient astronauts in real life, but I don't think that was Ridley's intention at all. The man just used the trope to tell his story, like Anderson did in AVP.
The concept doesn't bother me at all when it's used in fiction, like in Quatermass and the Pit for example.
The thing is that it's an outdated trope that needs to die due to it's racist origin. Why keep this idea in the public mind in the first place when it comes from a terrible viewpoint ya know? It's also the same reason why I dislike that same trope in AVP. Keeps us too connected to humanoid aliens, (Ex; Predators and Engineers) and that racist tone in the films, as how these civilizations needed Predator help to create pyramids and other things but european folks needed no such thing?
Like I know Anderson never intended that in the first place as well, and I do agree that Ridley at least isn't like that either, it just sucks that underlining mention is even there in the first place. It's also understandable that due to executive meddling, Anderson was forced to take the story on Earth as well, so I can see why he drew that trope for storytelling.
You got me intrigued at the two films you mentioned. Guess if it's done right, maybe it can work. Just that most of the time its not so perhaps these two can turn those expectations over.
Quote from: Immortan Jonesy on Nov 23, 2023, 10:28:55 PMRegarding the Space Jockeys (or Pilots), there is no damage that cannot be repaired with future instalments; as happened recently with Aliens: Dark Descent or even the Alien RPG from Free League.
Personally, I like Engineers. They remind me of those creepy humanoids from Giger art, and I think they can subsist in the same universe with the Space Jockeys as separate entities.
I mean yeah eventually things have mended thanks to A:DD and the RPG but the fact that this was presented in the first place and had to take years later after release for things to be patched up. It wasn't even a neat idea but poorly executed, its rather an idea that should have been rejected on the table.