The Aliens in the original AvP

[EJA]

In the very first Aliens versus Predator story, Prey, the Predators seed the Alien eggs on the planet Ryushi and allow the embryos to gestate inside large herd animals that are farmed by the human colonists. They don't hatch from human hosts. Why, then, do the Aliens resemble the more semi-humanoid type from the first two movies??

[Corporal Hicks]

The DNA reflex wasn't a thing at that point.

[The Old One]

This ^ &

In a general sense I believe Aliens should be athletic and unnervingly humanoid.

Not ungainly and large, even the Alien Queen is humanoid/arachnoid and moves with finesse.

[EJA]

The DNA reflex wasn't a thing at that point.

True; at the time the story was first written it made sense. But how to reconcile it with what we now know from subsequent films where the Aliens take on the physical attributes of whatever lifeform they gestate inside?

[Samhain13]

It was done before Alien 3, which started the aliens look like their hosts thing.

But how to reconcile it with what we now know from subsequent films where the Aliens take on the physical attributes of whatever lifeform they gestate inside?

Just ignore it. Plothole, continuity issue... whatever you call it. The "engineer" on ALIEN was like 15 foot tall, in Prometheus they were rectonned to be like almost half of that. How do you reconcile that? Or how fast the facehugger impregnated the second guy on Covenant? Ignore. If the directors can do it, so can we. I have a harder time reconciling ALIEN with the prequels than with AVP Prey.

[Xenomrph]

The DNA reflex wasn't a thing at that point.

Not entirely accurate - it didn't have an official name yet, but both Scott and Cameron mentioned the idea of the Alien taking the traits of the host when making their respective movies.

If I remember right, AvP Extinction featured Rynth and included a sorta-retcon in the Bestiary that for reasons unknown, Rynth-born Aliens were humanoid, as if either Rynth were very genetically similar to humans for some reason, or Rynth DNA didn't affect DNA Reflex.

If Rynth are genetically similar to humans, maybe they were made by Engineers, too?

[Corporal Hicks]

It's been an idea since the first film ("if it'd have come out the cat") but it wasn't a widely known or used thing at that point 

[Immortan Jonesy]

If Rynth are genetically similar to humans, maybe they were made by Engineers, too?

Well, Engineers have prehistoric-looking animals in their home world, so who knows. From David's lab:

[HuDaFuK]

the first film.

Not entirely accurate - it didn't have an official name yet, but both Scott and Cameron mentioned the idea of the Alien taking the traits of the host when making their respective movies.

Yeah, it was a concept all the way back when they made the first movie, it was just never depicted until the third film.

But you can't expect the people in comics to be as obsessive as us and know that Also I'm not sure it was mentioned at all until various documentaries that came out long after the early comic series.

[SM]

It was mentioned in the Warren movie mag that came out with Alien.

[Frosty Venom]

As Xenomorphs are more adaptable to their environment when they take on the characteristics of their host, perhaps this clan of Yautja found a way to stop the DNA Reflex so as to more easily control infestations.

[The Cruentus]

It may just be a preference thing on part of the artists, the first two Alien appearances are iconic, so they are used in comics even if the host is not human.

[The Old One]

That's true.

It may indeed be purely artistic, as are the digitrade legs in Isolation.