Alien Romulus Teaser Trailer!

[BlueMarsalis79]

The Pathogen during Alien Covenant's depiction; a spore that enters through just any orifice, kills you or results in a gangly pale translucent skinned humanoid with barely any discernable features save for sonetimes back spikes, a tail, a pointed head and a goblin shark like pharyngeal jaw. They only kill things.

It is without that sexual component, even the method of incubation comes across more like a parasitic coincidence, than something with a deliberate analogue. If you want that stuff with the Pathogen's representation you have to get much more convoluted with something like Prometheus.

On top of being deeply psychosexual the Alien causes amnesia and takes a longer time to incubate allowing farther spread of itself, the Facehugger's able to be independent but creation of a Chestburster's consistent, it can perpetuate itself infinitely through a hive structure that it is able to use as camouflage and it uses acid for blood.

Even half aside not featured in that film it is imbued with some pretty clear advantages.

[SiL]

The prequels are fairly consistent that the pathogen creates things that are capable of reproducing.

As a movie threat, the Alien has no advantages over the pathogen or pathogen created things outside of acid blood. It has restraints introduced that make it less threatening and less destructive than the alternatives.

If nostalgia weren't at play what we see in Covenant doesn't sell the Alien as anything special.

[The Cruentus]

That's more like it.

You should have said "do it, give in to the dark side" 

[Corporal Hicks]

It's my biggest issue with the black goo and its various creations. Why bother with the Alien any more? Outside of nostalgia it's honestly kind of lame in comparison. I said in another thread if it weren't for brand recognition the audience would think the Alien is proof David is shithouse at making things.

"Look at my life's work! Something with a really cumbersome life cycle compared to the thing I made it out of, but this time with acid blood!"

This is where I struggle because I like the idea of the Aliens being some revenge/spite/rape monster specifically designed for mankind by David, and it's cumbersome to ensure more discomfort/pain/etc.

But I also really hate David designing the Aliens. So it's just a lose-lose for me.

[BlueMarsalis79]

After ten years on 16EG14 nothing remains outside of the original virus according to David and what we obviously see with the Neomorph stuff.

Most of the crew also do not get infected because after deployment the Pathogen had no means to spread and perpetuate itself, it is all dead, and the spores themselves have barely any range despite being planet wide in dispersal.

Unlike what we see in the film after Oram dies, the other Facehuggers in the vicinity actively seek out hosts, and when one gets a host the longer incubation time means the Alien escapes the planet.

That and the acid blood makes it superior just in the context of that one film.

[Wweyland]

It's my biggest issue with the black goo and its various creations. Why bother with the Alien any more? Outside of nostalgia it's honestly kind of lame in comparison. I said in another thread if it weren't for brand recognition the audience would think the Alien is proof David is shithouse at making things.

"Look at my life's work! Something with a really cumbersome life cycle compared to the thing I made it out of, but this time with acid blood!"

But but look at the great design!

[Corporal Hicks]

Unlike what we see in the film after Oram dies, the other Facehuggers in the vicinity actively seek out hosts, and when one gets a host the longer incubation time means the Alien escapes the planet.

That and the acid blood makes it superior just in the context of that one film.

That is fair, but depends on intent I suppose. As a bioweapon, quicker gestation time results in quicker combat and the faster life cycle means the deployers don't have to deal with cleaning up the creatures themselves. As something to punish humanity, allowing it to spread is better suited to ensure maximum exposure.

[The Cruentus]

Also the fact that even if David did use up the original stuff, the payload that was dropped still seemingly decimated most if not the entire planet. I think a character mentions being unable to hear any wildlife or something. So it renders Aliens obsolete really.

[SiL]

After ten years on 16EG14 nothing remains outside of the original virus according to David and what we obviously see with the Neomorph stuff.

Aliens would also eradicate all the native wildlife and leave themselves dormant and waiting, like the spores.

Unlike what we see in the film after Oram dies, the other Facehuggers in the vicinity actively seek out hosts,

Only one does, in response to someone else entering the room. Facehuggers generally wait for things to come to them -- just like the spores.

the longer incubation time means the Alien escapes the planet.

Eh, you're overselling this. The Covenant was en route, there's not long between him being infected and them taking off.

Facehuggers also normally stay on for quite a while, which immobilises the host for the duration, so they can only be moved if something moves them. After the facehugger comes off there's usually not much time before the Alien is born.

[BlueMarsalis79]

I think we are both correct from certain perspectives as pointed out.

Depends on the media, we do not see in Alien Covenant itself, Monolith's AVP showed the Aliens farming but if we consider Aliens the film's depiction they seemingly keep producing ad infinitum.

Imagine if the entrance to the crashed Juggernaut did not house Pods but Eggs, if Motes could chase people up the stairs like Facehuggers, I believe you might have a greater number of Neomorphs than Aliens.

Just in Alien Covenant though we are shown the Facehugger does not need to stay on long but the Alien Chestburster still has several hours of development required.

[SiL]

if we consider Aliens the film's depiction they seemingly keep producing ad infinitum.

They can only produce with hosts. The Aliens colony was down to one potential hosts until the marines arrived.

Imagine if the entrance to the crashed Juggernaut did not house Pods but Eggs, if Motes could chase people up the stairs like Facehuggers, I believe you might have a greater number of Neomorphs than Aliens.

People would see the eggs sooner and be wary.

You can also shoot face huggers, you can't shoot motes. And who says the motes can't go upstairs? The ones that get Ledward coalesce and fly into his ear. They clearly have autonomous motion, they don't just blow around in the breeze.

[Still Collating...]

While I completely agree with SiL that the Pathogen tends to make the Alien obsolete (especially if not constrained by any rules like some comics, games and novels tend to go...), one excuse I find for an advantage of an Alien over the Pathogen is that a Facehugger can melt through any helmet and and get you. The motes wouldn't be able to go through good masks, Hazmat suits etc.

Still, that's bit of a reach. Creatives keep on forgetting that there have been good stories in these recent years without the Pathogen... For all of the strangeness that Noah's show might bring, I like that he's at least not gonna include Scott's stuff which I hope means no Pathogen there.

[Immortan Jonesy]

While I completely agree with SiL that the Pathogen tends to make the Alien obsolete (especially if not constrained by any rules like some comics, games and novels tend to go...), one excuse I find for an advantage of an Alien over the Pathogen is that a Facehugger can melt through any helmet and and get you. The motes wouldn't be able to go through good masks, Hazmat suits etc.

Even if the pathogen were a byproduct of the Alien (that is, David is not the creator) it would be something like the weaponization of the Xenomorph by the Engineers

[The Cruentus]

if we consider Aliens the film's depiction they seemingly keep producing ad infinitum.

They can only produce with hosts. The Aliens colony was down to one potential hosts until the marines arrived.

Imagine if the entrance to the crashed Juggernaut did not house Pods but Eggs, if Motes could chase people up the stairs like Facehuggers, I believe you might have a greater number of Neomorphs than Aliens.

People would see the eggs sooner and be wary.

You can also shoot face huggers, you can't shoot motes. And who says the motes can't go upstairs? The ones that get Ledward coalesce and fly into his ear. They clearly have autonomous motion, they don't just blow around in the breeze.

Yep. 156 Colonists out of 158 dead by the time the marines arrived, 1 more died in the processor. So there was only really between 100 to 150ish odd aliens give or take. Some colonists were probably outright killed so not all them became hosts.

[BlueMarsalis79]

I meant the Queen showed no signs of stopping to be clear.