What made you a fan?

[Local Trouble]

nihilism is for losers even if the universe is an uncaring shit heap.

 

[BlueMarsalis79]

[MetalAlien]

[Spicy-Nugget937]

My fiancé @Acid_Reign161 got me into the movies! 

[Russutja of the HOTU Clan]

Oddly enough, it was Aliens vs. Predator: Extinction on the PlayStation 2.  Shortly after saw Predator 2 (Yes, Predator 2 first) and then AvP in the theater.

[Scorched Vuvalini]

I must have been aware of the franchise beforehand, but my interest didn't actually start to get piqued until the pre-release promotional cycle for Alien³. The trailers always lingered on that infamous shot of the Dragon lingering a hair's-breadth away from a terrified Ripley, and, without having any idea of the context, there was something so mysterious and... sensual about it. I also recall Nintendo Power magazine, in anticipation of the inevitable tie-in games, having one of its monthly contents be themed around the movie, where the top prize was a visit to the set (I believe). One of the promo photos they used on the relevant pages was one of those rare shots of the Dragon posed against the backdrop of flame, and I remember thinking about that image a lot.

That didn't immediately lead to anything, but it certainly planted the seed. Maybe a couple of years later (judging from dates on old drawings I've saved), through a series of events I have completely forgotten, I must have finally rented the original trilogy. That firmly secured me as a fan for life. I didn't waste much time getting the trilogy VHS box set (eventually replaced with Quadrilogy and then Anthology) and snagging a copy of the Giger's Alien book. The latter was at our nearest Waldenbooks, I remember. They also had one of the Necronomicons but, alas, it was a bit beyond my budget at the time, and I'm not sure I was quite ready to have my mind stretched that far either. (Naturally, though, I wish I had picked it up when the chance was there...)

[D8ton_Cracka]

The original Alien movie definitely is what hooked me. I use to just sit and wait for the commercial advertising the movie to play. I knew it would be something great. lol

[TliciousX]

Born in '71, and have fairly clear memories of exactly where I was standing on my elementary school playground when some other 8 year old BREATHLESSLY described what he had seen in the theater.  I became immediately obsessed.  I knew there was NO WAY my parents would let me see this movie; I didn't even ask.  I bided my time until the Alan Dean Foster novelization came out, and even that I had to kind of sneak past my mother in the bookstore.  I read it over and over again.  It wasn't until the film came out on VHS, and my parents were out of town for a week, that I found the chance to con my sweet naïve babysitting grandmother into thinking that this was an OK thing for me to rent from the local video store. 

My memory is a bit thin, but according to online research the VHS release was in 1985, putting me at 14 years old before I finally got to watch the film.  I had to wait until I was absolutely certain my grandmother was asleep, creep into the living room, carefully load the VHS tape into the machine, and watched the movie pretty much nose-to-screen with the volume turned down so that I wouldn't be caught.

In case you hadn't caught on yet, I had been VERY sheltered from violent and horrific films up to this point.  This was my first.  And of course I had been prepped, I had read the novel many times, knew all the story beats, I knew what was coming.

Still... MAGIC.  I was transformed.  The perfect alchemy of watching the 'forbidden fruit' of Ridley Scott's masterpiece, as a young teenager, alone in a dark room in the dead of night where I feared making the slightest noise, was most possibly the most perfect introduction to this universe than could possibly be.

True story.   

[BugHunter2503]

They were franchises I was aware of, as a kid in the 90s, but never allowed to watch. Given all the early movies had 18 certificates in the UK, my parents ensured that as kids, my brother and myself didn't see them. As an older teen, my dad finally introduced me to the Alien quadrilogy box set, and I think the Predator movies (only 1 and 2 back then, with AvP having been out for a short while) after.

It was the Alien franchise I invested in far more. As AvP was rated 15, and I was 15/16, I saw that, and loved it (despite the general consensus, I still find it a decent movie; I watch the extended edition, and it's a lot better than the theatrical version). So it really came more from my dad, introducing it to me at an age where not only could I handle the horror, but also understand the themes, particularly in the Alien series, where the real villain is unchecked capitalism, rather than the alien creatures.

I was hooked ever since. I enjoy them all, and have my gripes about them as we all do, but that first Monday night when I saw Alien for the first time just had me in its grasp, and has never let go.

[Acidforblood75]

Alien was just such a great movie and aliens just took things up a notch. Having an alien queen sealed the deal for me and was hooked on the whole premise.

I love arnie movies so predator was something I loved instantly. Great supporting cast too and quite funny in places.

[XenoKisses]

It all started with an unsuspecting young mother showing her 4 years old daughter (around 2001-2002) the Alien movies one day, just to realise that for her factory-defective 'offspring', the most favoured characters in the movie are the Xenomorphs.

Who knew.

It's safe to say that as a child, I couldn't properly understand them as much as I do now. If I try to recall what I've felt towards them back then, I'd say: curiosity, fascination, excitement and even a form of "awe" (not fear).
I did have a great fun seeing them on screen and I do remember being mad or sad if I've seen them being killed - I've felt the polar opposite when they took down crew members. As "strange" (?) as it is, I've developed a quite active dislike towards Ripley's character at such a young age, and as time passed and I managed to understand more of the Xenomorphs and the plot; it only got more solid in my head. I'm not a hater, but if I'd have to say my most disliked character of all time, it'd be Ripley.

While I love both the Alien, Predator and Alien vs. Predator franchise, I'd say, Xenomorphs has been always my No.1 favourites. I admire them for multiple reasons, besides, in a strange way, I've noticed a lot of "in-common" between me and them, that I find inspiring and familiar.

What can I say; they doesn't feel as "alien" to me as "alien" I feel myself among humans.