What if the ALIEN franchise had gone differently?

[CelticPredator]

**** Hicks. That ****er is dead and gone.

 

[Ace of Knaves]

Hicks is no ****er, you ****!!!

Ahhh anyway, he'll be back as Cable, just you watch.

 

[CelticPredator]

No, I loooove Teh Behin....but Hicks...eh. He's OK. But he's dead...lets move on.

 

[BillyZaned]

No, I loooove Teh Behin....but Hicks...eh. He's OK. But he's dead...lets move on.

I said the same thing about Jesus to Christians... doesn't work

 

[Ace of Knaves]

Trying saying that about Mohammed to Muslims. Ahh that would be pretty funny actually

 

[[A]]

No, I loooove Teh Behin....but Hicks...eh. He's OK. But he's dead...lets move on.

I said the same thing about Jesus to Christians... doesn't work

 

[Doctor Jones]

Billy, I love your idea. I love the idea of Hicks and Ripley's stories being separate. Hicks trying to escape being held in a prison and Ripley trying to com to terms with what's right. I would of loved to see that for Alien 3.

And to answer the question I saw the theatrical. I just thought out of all places why a prison planet? Earth would of been so much better. It seems pretty damn logical if you ask me. And I think Hicks and Newt's stories should of continued. It would make us care more about them if we learned about Earth and its demise to the aliens. And more great character interaction. It would be interesting to see a relationship with Hicks and Ripley, but maybe that could never happen. Hicks might give it a wink or something to indicate, but Ripley rejects it. Ripley just replies, "We have a job to do."

 

[CelticPredator]

But that's not the point of the series. Alien was not a happy tale. Alien 3 did the best thing possible. This is Ripley's tale, not Newts, not Hicks' tale.

People just clammor for Aliens 2...big epic battles, all that crap. But this is not a epic series.

Plus, I read the "earth battle" crap, and it just wasnt all that interesting. The Aliens are scarier if they're stalking, killing, and raping people. Not jumping and screeching.

Want that crap? Watch AvP. Plus, you get earth based battles....yey.

 

[Soapy]

But that's not the point of the series. Alien was not a happy tale. Alien 3 did the best thing possible. This is Ripley's tale, not Newts, not Hicks' tale.

People just clammor for Aliens 2...big epic battles, all that crap. But this is not a epic series.

Plus, I read the "earth battle" crap, and it just wasnt all that interesting. The Aliens are scarier if they're stalking, killing, and raping people. Not jumping and screeching.

Want that crap? Watch AvP. Plus, you get earth based battles....yey.

Yeah. It seems like most people wanted something like Starship Troopers or Halo or something like that. And I have to admit, I do see the appeal of seeing an all out human vs xeno war, but personally I think that belongs more in the realm of expanded universe fiction; Comic books, novels, video games and such.

And by the way for those of you who basically wanted "Aliens 2" then you should probably check out the game Aliens: Colonial Marines that comes out next year.

http://www.gearboxsoftware.com/games/aliens/

 

[I SEE SPIDEY]

As a fan of Alien and Aliens, I was extremely disappointed by Fincher's Alien 3, and I wonder what might have been if Cameron had not quitted the franchise and got the opportunity to continue the story of Ripley, Col. Hicks, and that little orphan girl. Instead, we got an asylum full of bald-headed inmates and a dog alien. Alien 3 and X-Men 3 are two of the biggest "what might have been?" disappointments in the cinematic history.

Perfect way to explain Alien 3. Funny and oh so perfect.

With the exception of the X3 comment.

 

[rorybreaker]

I always thought they could have ended / followed up alien resurection with Ripley finally making it to Earth alien free after the epic struggle...

Only to find it already over run by aliens. Starting a whole new chapter / battle.

 

[Ace of Knaves]

But that's not the point of the series. Alien was not a happy tale. Alien 3 did the best thing possible. This is Ripley's tale, not Newts, not Hicks' tale.

People just clammor for Aliens 2...big epic battles, all that crap. But this is not a epic series.

Plus, I read the "earth battle" crap, and it just wasnt all that interesting. The Aliens are scarier if they're stalking, killing, and raping people. Not jumping and screeching.

Want that crap? Watch AvP. Plus, you get earth based battles....yey.

Completely agreed.

I don't get the hate with Alien 3. It showed balls to end things on a sour note. And reverted back to that impending feeling of dread and helplessness from the first Alien.

The Alien franchise isn't a action franchise, it's sci fi/horror/ Alien 3 fitted that mold.

 

[BillyZaned]

Billy, I love your idea. I love the idea of Hicks and Ripley's stories being separate. Hicks trying to escape being held in a prison and Ripley trying to com to terms with what's right. I would of loved to see that for Alien 3.

And to answer the question I saw the theatrical. I just thought out of all places why a prison planet? Earth would of been so much better. It seems pretty damn logical if you ask me. And I think Hicks and Newt's stories should of continued. It would make us care more about them if we learned about Earth and its demise to the aliens. And more great character interaction. It would be interesting to see a relationship with Hicks and Ripley, but maybe that could never happen. Hicks might give it a wink or something to indicate, but Ripley rejects it. Ripley just replies, "We have a job to do."

my story ends with Ripley confessing her sins to Hicks... basically, it comes full circle for Ripley, she becomes what she tried to stop... and she did it to have a family with Newt.... you have to remember that ripley was torn up in Aliens after learning her daughter died, and Newt became her new daughter in Aliens. She is offered a chance, and chance at a normal life, to live with Newt, all she has to do is help the company obtain the Xenomorph. The women is worn out, and emotionaly unstable... she beleived her only option was helping the company, for her sake, as well as Newts.

The story ends very bleakly... the world is on it's way to being wiped out... the world leaders, richest citizens, and the Weyland Yutani corp now resides on a moon base, as well as the Weyland Yutani orbiting space station......

and the story, IMO, mixes Alien and Aliens... while, there are plenty of Aliens, they are not weakened like they were in Aliens. Hicks, along with the guards and prisoners are lightly armed, and have limited ammo.

But, the Aliens fans get what they want at the ground station in Montana... while the base was in a great place, a nearly unpopulated area, the Alien scouts eventually detect the base, and the potential hosts.

The scout scene is awesome, you get guards spotting Alien scouts in the distint fields. They hope that the Aliens don't dpot the base, but they eventually do. A chase proceeds with armored cars and helicopters chasing after the Aliens, trying to take them out before they get back to their nest.... but of course, they miss one Alien... and as they try to catch the creature they go a little too far... the men in the amored car chase the Alien up a hill, and as they come down the top, you get the scene where the camera pulls back from teh car front down the hill, and there stand thousands of Aliens... all around a new queen... they are taking her to a new spot..... the base..

 

[BillyZaned]

Completely agreed.

I don't get the hate with Alien 3. It showed balls to end things on a sour note. And reverted back to that impending feeling of dread and helplessness from the first Alien.

The Alien franchise isn't a action franchise, it's sci fi/horror/ Alien 3 fitted that mold.

I'm not argueing you with the bleakness... or the fact that it didn't take place on earth....

In the first two films, you get characters you come to know, and route for... you don't want Hudson, or Vasquez to die in Aliens, and when they do, it feels like you get the air knocked out of you.

In Alien 3... they take away two characters you came to love, right away. And your left with one. As the story goes on, there is maybe only 1, that being Dr. Clemens, that you come to like, but he dies half way through. What your left with is a bunch of inmates, that have no defining aspects to them, they all look alike, and sound alike. You don't like one of them... so, when the Alien is picking them off in the tunnels... you don't care.... all you care about is Ripley, but they take that fear away by having the Alien not want to kill her...

the first two films, are not only great creature features, but feature great characters that you get to know, and become invested in. Alien 3 took that all away...

 

[Ace of Knaves]

Yea I understand that.

But also what about Dillon? The black guy who saved Ripley from being raped? Who refused to kill her when she realized the alien was in her? Who then goes and sacrifices himself so Ripley can get away? He was a great character and it was a great performance by the dude that played him.

And some of those cockneys were funny. Especially Morse, constantly whinging and making wise cracks, reminded me of Hudson.

 

[Raiden]

Completely agreed.

I don't get the hate with Alien 3. It showed balls to end things on a sour note. And reverted back to that impending feeling of dread and helplessness from the first Alien.

The Alien franchise isn't a action franchise, it's sci fi/horror/ Alien 3 fitted that mold.

James Cameron had, to his credit, created two compelling characters in Aliens with Col. Hicks and Newt (that little girl). The fact that these two were very interesting and fans clamored to see them in the sequel is a testimony of their popularity. You can still have a bleak, sullen story in Alien 3 without writing them out of the story. And for those people who claimed Alien 3 is a great movie: aside from Ripley, what other character(s) do you guys remember from that sequel? I for one cannot name even one. And to this day I still consider Aliens to be a vastly better movie than Alien 3, and it's not even close.

 

[Ace of Knaves]

So you think Aliens is better than Alien 3? Well that isn't really saying much considering Aliens is widely considered on of the best sci fi films ever made.

And if you read my above post I mentioned the black dude Dillon. He was a great character. And then there is Dr Clemons who was pretty interesting and had a dark secret. 87, the one everyone took the piss out of but in the end sacrificed himself so Ripley could throw herself into the furnace. And Morse the whinging little ****er who also showed what he could do at the very end by aiding Ripley.

Sure a lot of the characters weren't that memorable, but I don't think they were intended to be, not like the bad ass marines in Aliens. The marines were larger than life characters, they were supposed to be.

 

[BillyZaned]

So you think Aliens is better than Alien 3? Well that isn't really saying much considering Aliens is widely considered on of the best sci fi films ever made.

And if you read my above post I mentioned the black dude Dillon. He was a great character. And then there is Dr Clemons who was pretty interesting and had a dark secret. 87, the one everyone took the piss out of but in the end sacrificed himself so Ripley could throw herself into the furnace. And Morse the whinging little ****er who also showed what he could do at the very end by aiding Ripley.

Sure a lot of the characters weren't that memorable, but I don't think they were intended to be, not like the bad ass marines in Aliens. The marines were larger than life characters, they were supposed to be.

but that's the thing.... you call Dillon, the black dude... I say Apone, and you know who I'm talking about, I don't have to say "the main black guy".... and even Apone, who had little screen time, was more developed then Dillon...

Clemens was a good character, but he didn't deserve to die half way through...

and 87, he didn't sacrafice himself to save ripley... he just went "you f'n andriod" and hit Bishop's II ear off... he had no reason to do that, unless they were pushing the point that he really was that dumb... but, it just comes off that they wanted only one survivor and they had to quick dispatch him.

and even if the characters were not meant to be memroble... the question of "why" comes to mind... Alien had clearly defined characters, and so did Aliens... and those were main reasons why those films worked....

 

[Nathan]

Well, it was a Prison Planet, what did you expect? The characters were supposed to be scum, you're not supposed to like a complex full of rapists and murderers.

 

[Ace of Knaves]

Well Alien was a small tight knit group.

Aliens was a group of soldiers and the only ones who got decent screen time and development were Hicks, Hudson, Vasquez, Drake, Apone and Gorman.

Alien 3 was a prison planet with 20 odd blokes there. You can't expect them all to get decent screen time and development. Same way you can't expect ALL the marines in Aliens to get development.

Alien 3 isn't a brilliant film, but it isn't some giant turd like some people make it out to be, IMO.

 

[Ace of Knaves]

Well, it was a Prison Planet, what did you expect? The characters were supposed to be scum, you're not supposed to like a complex full of rapists and murderers.

Well yea exactly.

 

[lzzy]

I still think they should have ditched Ripley in Alien3 ...

 

[BillyZaned]

I know they painted themselves into a corner with Newt... she obviously would have aged 6 years, so there's no way to explain here "age" difference if she was in teh film.... but having Newt and Hicks intertwined into the film would have made it more interesting... adding that family aspect we got with Aliens....

If I could have taken the script to Alien 3, and molded it to include them. I would have done this.

The Marine ship, something happens aboard, causing a massive electrical fire... the ship is lost for years. During that time, the cryo chambers were opened, and the three of them and half of Bishop basically lived on the ship, alone, hoping for the chance that they might get picked up. Bishop is confined to a wheel chair aparatus.
This will also account for Newt aging, since they were lost for years.

the ship is running low on supplys, and Hicks and Ripley are contimplating suicide. But, Bishop, over hearing the idea, quickly identifies a planet coming up. According to his internal programing, he knows that this planet houses a lead works facility. His Data is old, but there's still a chance there still might be people living there.

Now, mind you, during this time, Bishop has been distint, and Ripley is concerned that all a sudden, Bishop identifys this planet, when he could have before, but didn't for some reason.

They board the drop ship, leave to this planet below. They soon discover it's been converted to a prison planet, and self sustaining one (no ships coming in, nor leaving).

When they land, Bishop is hard pressed to want to contact the company for evact. Little did they know that, Bishop all this time, has actually kept a few face huggers on ice (internal programing dictated him to save atleast two face huggers incase all else failed). While on the planet, a riot insues when two inmates try to rape both Ripley and Newt, Hicks ends up saving the day, and critically injures both inmates. Bishop acting as a doctor, takes both inmates and impregnates them using the facehuggers. He tells everyone that they were critically injured and the best place for them to be is in the cryo tubes untill help comes. That way, there is no chance of discovering the facehuggers by the prisoners, or Ripley or Hicks.

Also during this time, Ripley is hurting, turns out she's preggos by Hicks. So now you have Hicks, trying to protect Ripley, Newt and their unborn child, from the threat of the prisoners.

Later, two fellow inmates get to the cryo tubes, and decide to off both the prisoners, since they are super religious, they feel these men must pay for their crimes with their lives. As they are opened, two aliens burst out of the chest. Both inmates, see this, and run away beleiving the alien is actually the devil in pyshical form.

 

[BillyZaned]

Well, it was a Prison Planet, what did you expect? The characters were supposed to be scum, you're not supposed to like a complex full of rapists and murderers.

then, WHY.... why do it there.... like I said, the first two films had character development... why sacrafice that... and yes, they could have made these characters alot my sympathetic...

instead of having them inmates... change them to lead workers, who were left behing to man the facility....

 

[Ace of Knaves]

Now that is pretty interesting.

But the Aliens show a bit late don't you think? Or would that be like, in the first half of the film?