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I had been thinking in terms of "new" hybrids I guess, which Prodigy seem to suggest have to be kids for the transfer to work because their minds are still malleable. You raise some interesting points about what they'd be like when they grow up and start to reach their full potential - and yeah, I guess that runs the risk of turning it into a superhero game and definitely makes them NPC material. I'm expecting there to be flaws with this process though, as the series continues.

I quite like the idea of a modifier to Resolve as the kids grow more accustomed to their new bodies. That would start with them susceptible to Stress but slowly make them more likely to get a Keeping Cool result. That seems cleaner than my original suggestion.

The Kid Talents could be based on their speed and reactions rather than their size - Hard To Catch because you have enhanced reflexes is the same as Hard To Catch because you're smaller, for example, but the effect would be the same. You're right that they could theoretically take any Career though, the Kid path isn't necessary, especially if you go with modifications to Stress rolls.

Maybe the C Class is big because its mostly containment systems and laboratories designed to hold multiple specimens? Its a standard sized ship with a BIG "secure" cargo capacity....which obviously didn't work out too well....

I quite like the idea of a modifier to Resolve as the kids grow more accustomed to their new bodies. That would start with them susceptible to Stress but slowly make them more likely to get a Keeping Cool result. That seems cleaner than my original suggestion.

A modifier to Resolve could work if doing this for Evolved Edition, that makes sense. One of the things I dislike about this show (of the many it seems! ) is that I don't really get much of a horror vibe. If someone's going to do a transhumanist story in Alien, then I feel it should play up the more disturbing elements of transhumanism. So for example, as you have the character's Resolve increase I would like to see that reflected in a character becoming less human. To my mind, they really are just simulations and the real person is dead. Lessening susceptibility to normal human emotions as they develop should really be reflected in them becoming more android-like. Presumably at some point they might even learn to modify themselves the same way the scientists were adjusting Wendy's level of emotionality. Imagine that for a horror aspect - that you know that eventually you really will just become a synthetic with unusual memories. Imagine being confronted with an older hybrid when you've been "transferred" to have him saying something like "oh, you're still emotional. That goes away."

The Kid Talents could be based on their speed and reactions rather than their size - Hard To Catch because you have enhanced reflexes is the same as Hard To Catch because you're smaller, for example, but the effect would be the same. You're right that they could theoretically take any Career though, the Kid path isn't necessary, especially if you go with modifications to Stress rolls.

True enough - if someone wants to pick the Kid career for flavour or mechanics, you can rationalise the talents. Totally true and viable. I just don't feel it's necessary that someone have the kid career.

Maybe the C Class is big because its mostly containment systems and laboratories designed to hold multiple specimens? Its a standard sized ship with a BIG "secure" cargo capacity....which obviously didn't work out too well....

Well, you can rationalise a lot of things in the show. But I think we all know the real reason is that Noah Hawley just doesn't care about these details the way we do. It's just a letter to him, not a classification. Funny how someone can be so obsessed with meaningful names on one level (Boy Cavalier? Morrow? And seriously - "Hermit?") and care so little on another.

You seem to be forgetting one detail, MutantFromMars: hybrids are children in spirit but with adult bodies. We can't just consider them as children; but ... we also have to consider the child in them. I like your idea for modifying RESOLVE. Are they more susceptible to stress and do they eventually become more at keeping cool? I don't know. There's something else we need to add, maybe a malfunction table that will get better and better over time. That's something we'll have to think about.

I'd like to bring up another element that no one has discussed yet (I think) and see what you think. Wendy seems to sense the xenomorphs and other creatures (she arrives at the crash site and hears the creatures in her head). I have my own little theory on the subject, and we'll see how it evolves in the next episodes, but there's a bit of Ripley-8 in this, my friends. I think she received the little girl's spirit, yes, but there's something strange about that. She received another spirit or spirits at the same time because the PRODIGY system has one or more errors (that no one has seen yet). She must have received the spirit of someone who had a xenomorph inside them, or she simply received a spirit from a xenomorph. The PRODIGY system fed itself in a xenomorph-infested place with xenomorph spirits. Or the PRODIGY system is an alien system (a system of The Engineers). That's my theory.

Arthur.

If your theory is true, I suspect/hope it'll tie in with the Hannibal Chew stand-in who has been laboriously spraying the (whatever) on the walls throughout the show. An interesting notion to be sure.

You seem to be forgetting one detail, MutantFromMars: hybrids are children in spirit but with adult bodies. We can't just consider them as children; but ... we also have to consider the child in them. I like your idea for modifying RESOLVE. Are they more susceptible to stress and do they eventually become more at keeping cool? I don't know. There's something else we need to add, maybe a malfunction table that will get better and better over time. That's something we'll have to think about.

I'd like to bring up another element that no one has discussed yet (I think) and see what you think. Wendy seems to sense the xenomorphs and other creatures (she arrives at the crash site and hears the creatures in her head). I have my own little theory on the subject, and we'll see how it evolves in the next episodes, but there's a bit of Ripley-8 in this, my friends. I think she received the little girl's spirit, yes, but there's something strange about that. She received another spirit or spirits at the same time because the PRODIGY system has one or more errors (that no one has seen yet). She must have received the spirit of someone who had a xenomorph inside them, or she simply received a spirit from a xenomorph. The PRODIGY system fed itself in a xenomorph-infested place with xenomorph spirits. Or the PRODIGY system is an alien system (a system of The Engineers). That's my theory.

Arthur.

If your theory is true, I suspect/hope it'll tie in with the Hannibal Chew stand-in who has been laboriously spraying the (whatever) on the walls throughout the show. An interesting notion to be sure.

You seem to be forgetting one detail, MutantFromMars: hybrids are children in spirit but with adult bodies. We can't just consider them as children; but ... we also have to consider the child in them. I like your idea for modifying RESOLVE. Are they more susceptible to stress and do they eventually become more at keeping cool? I don't know. There's something else we need to add, maybe a malfunction table that will get better and better over time. That's something we'll have to think about.

I'd like to bring up another element that no one has discussed yet (I think) and see what you think. Wendy seems to sense the xenomorphs and other creatures (she arrives at the crash site and hears the creatures in her head). I have my own little theory on the subject, and we'll see how it evolves in the next episodes, but there's a bit of Ripley-8 in this, my friends. I think she received the little girl's spirit, yes, but there's something strange about that. She received another spirit or spirits at the same time because the PRODIGY system has one or more errors (that no one has seen yet). She must have received the spirit of someone who had a xenomorph inside them, or she simply received a spirit from a xenomorph. The PRODIGY system fed itself in a xenomorph-infested place with xenomorph spirits. Or the PRODIGY system is an alien system (a system of The Engineers). That's my theory.

Arthur.

...

Oh yeah, that guy... we don't know what he's doing in the corridors of the PRODIGY lab... there might indeed be a connection... Boy Kavalier definitely bought his HUMAN-ROBOT transfer system cheaply, and something's not working properly...

Arthur.

Pretty sure that the reason for her being aware of the xenomorphs is because as shown in the first episode, she has super-high frequency hearing. They put that in for a reason and she says "can you hear that?" to the others. We also get a clicking sound when it close-ups on the eggs or when she's sensing them.

Bit of a shame if so because one of the things that has traditionally made the xenomorphs feel alien and inexplicable is the mysteriousness of what they actually perceive and their communication. The RPG and some of the expanded material has toyed with psychic elements, dreams, etc. But it seems they just have hearing above our range. I disliked the xenomorph-POV camera in Covenant for the same reason.

Pretty sure that the reason for her being aware of the xenomorphs is because as shown in the first episode, she has super-high frequency hearing. They put that in for a reason and she says "can you hear that?" to the others. We also get a clicking sound when it close-ups on the eggs or when she's sensing them.

Bit of a shame if so because one of the things that has traditionally made the xenomorphs feel alien and inexplicable is the mysteriousness of what they actually perceive and their communication. The RPG and some of the expanded material has toyed with psychic elements, dreams, etc. But it seems they just have hearing above our range. I disliked the xenomorph-POV camera in Covenant for the same reason.

...

You're probably right, TEEAN, I'm going too far with my theory. Something will happen with PRODIGY, though, and I'm pretty sure there's going to be some form of "youth" revolt against the creator (Boy Kavalier) at some point...

P.S. Wendy has dreams of a Queen Xenomorph (or she communicates with it), that was kind of my theory (I didn't explain that, but I'd thought about it), it'll be nice if it finally comes true...

Arthur.

Wendy's sensory ability was explained in today's episode, some of you are going to be disappointed. And by the end of the episode, some of you are going to be fuming - even I went "hmmm..."

Wendy's sensory ability was explained in today's episode, some of you are going to be disappointed. And by the end of the episode, some of you are going to be fuming - even I went "hmmm..."

...

No, I think the Ripley-8 theory for Wendy still holds... there's definitely xenomorph DNA somewhere inside her (I can't think of any other explanation)... she hears the xenomorphs, and the whole staff seems surprised that she hears something... their HUMAN-SYNTHETIC transfer process with PRODIGY can't be improvisation. They took a contaminated source from somewhere and put it inside Wendy.

(warning spoilers)
Actually, I don't think we learned anything new with the episode... Wendy's dance with the chestburster is rehashed Ripley-8 scripting... it's going to be a museum of horrors in the PRODIGY labs soon...

p.s. the more I think about it... the more influence of Alien 4 Resurrection there is in this series... and one day the creatures will rebel, it's a classic...

p.s.2 the music of the credits at the end annoys me to the highest degree... it is not the Alien universe... I much prefer the intro music... Jerry Goldsmith-esque...

p.s.3 I have another theory, which complements my first, what if ... WEYLAND-YUTANI is behind all this, they would have placed xenomorph DNA in PRODIGY's synthetic children to screw up their process and the company, I'm starting to like this theory ...

Arthur.

That Alien: Earth is written as an analogy to Peter Pan, both in its text and subtext, is hardly a worthy criticism, IMHO. Sure, one might be of the opinion that analogous writing is not to one’s liking – that is quite fair and valid – but attacking writers for using that approach is, I would say, not valid. It is a very common writing tool & story-telling shorthand, and quite popular.

Analogous writing worked well for Se7en (Dante’s Inferno), the very overt WWII French Resistance in Andor s2, The Lion King (Hamlet), just to name a couple. Personally, I find the analogous writing in Alien: Earth very sharp, and it is interesting to follow the writers’ machinations, so to speak.

One thing that interest me greatly in A:E – in addition to the fascinating characters and story arcs – is the fact that for the most part, I have no idea where all this is heading. I mean, it is pretty obvious that the rather peripheral Weyland-Yutani company is going to end up with all of Prodigy’s xeno research, (presumably through Morrow), which will prompt W-Y to redirect Nostromo’s course towards LV-426, tail-ending A:E straight into A. But other than that post-endgame destination, I have no idea how things are going to unfold going forward, and that is pretty cool.

Are there elements of the show worthy of criticism? Sure. For one, the pacing is a little weird (=high drama/action, followed by momentum-crushing dialogue scenes), and there is a LOT of stuff going on in every scene/sequence/shooting location (=somewhat distracting) but to be fair, that is a staple of Ridley Scott film-making, so a staple of the franchise. Moreover, I would have preferred if they hid the creatures and effects in smoke and darkness more, but apparently that is not allowed in the Alien franchise nowadays (=same problem in Alien: Romulus).

But largely, this show is pretty dang fine.

Shout-out to the acting (the people criticizing this show’s acting might have to check their medication), and the stand-out roles of Morrow, Kirsh, Nibs, Wendy, and Boy Kavalier; excellent stuff!