One of my all-time favourite films receives analysis beyond the silver screen.
Novelization (June 1986)
Alan Dean Foster's effort was based on James Cameron's screenplay (completed on 28 February 1985) and described much of what would appear in Special Edition.
Written word also included the majority of scenes from script either shot or ultimately cut, including marines showering together, Jonesy and the bird, Gorman stung by alien's barbed tail and Bishop encountering beastie inside conduit.
Tribute:
For H. R. Giger.
Master of the sinister airbrush.
Who reveals more about us than we wish to know.
From ADF and points west.
This time it's more...!
About half of additional footage was included when heavily censored TV version debuted on CBS in 1989.
Ripley learning about her daughter's death, all robot sentry scenes and Ripley and Hicks exchanging first names were edited back in.
Extended version was first released in all its full-length glory on LaserDisc in 1991.
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| 'Special Wide Screen Collector's Edition' |
Curious title.
At the time, watching films on defunct medium was the dog's bollocks, as picture quality was much sharper than VHS, with surround sound and bonus features coming as standard.
We could also jump to an individual frame of video by simply entering respective number on remote's keypad, a perfect tool for those interested in noting continuity errors, anachronisms and so forth.
However, CAV (constant angular velocity) or Standard Play discs could only store just over 30 minutes on each side, meaning films required a minimum of two discs.
At 154 minutes, feature presentation came on four (three dedicated to film).
Cue a lot of inconvenient exercise.
(Laughs).
As a side note, early DVDs had the same problem.
By spinning slower, CLV (constant linear velocity) or Extended Play discs improved matters, with a single disc storing up to 2 hours.
Encore Entertainment released another version in 1996.
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| CLV Special Edition only had three discs and lacked the bonuses of CAV counterpart. |
Rewinding to 1992.
I personally owned the more accessible VHS tape, with back art telling a 'white lie'.
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| Aliens: The Special Edition is a version of this classic movie which has never been seen before. It contains 17 minutes of extra footage restored to the original film by its director James Cameron. |
As already established - not true.
More appropriately:
Aliens: Special Edition is a version of this classic movie which has never been seen before on VHS.
Oh well.
Aliens: Newt's Tale
Two-piece Dark Horse adaptation was very late to the party, but more than welcome.
Book One (June 1992)
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| Opening is effectively Newt experiencing total recall (as her worst nightmare). |
21 June, 2179
Time: 1109
 |
| Newt's parents Russ and Annie discover the Derelict. |
Time: 1256
 |
| Upon seeing facehugger attached to daddy, Newt screams hysterically. |
Carrie Henn was very good at this...
Unlike Special Edition which immediately cuts to Gorman and Burke visiting Ripley on 5 July, 2179, the aftermath is a visual first.
25 hours later
23 June, 2179
Time: 1637
Attack on Hadley's Hope
26 June, 2179
Time: 1411
So Timmy died trying to save mother.
Good stuff.
Christopher Golden's 2014 novel Alien: River of Pain primarily describes how doomed colony was decimated by xenomorph menace, which provided source of dates/times.
Days pass...
27 July, 2179
Time: 1003
Story picks up just before Newt is found and when River of Pain ends.
Book One concludes after marines flee the Hive.
A few lines of dialogue appear exclusively, and would eventually be included as deleted scenes in Blu-ray boxset Alien Anthology (2010), ntbcw 2012 budget release of same name, which omitted bonus discs.
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| Drake: "Let her go man, who cares?" |
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| After Newt tries to bite Hicks (again), Corporal remarks: "Hope the kid don't have rabies." |
Book Two (July 1992)
Film's plot is closely observed, depicting some impressive action.
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| Ripley rescues Newt and finds Burke cocooned. To 'help himself', she hands despicable company man a grenade. |
As per novel, Ripley climbs ladders and stairs to escape the Queen.
Final conflict
Back on the Sulaco.
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| Facehugger crawling on cryotube sets up the events of Alien³. |
Before we go any further, Aliens: Outbreak (1988), Nightmare Asylum (1989) and Earth War (1990) continued the story of Cameron's film, but after David Fincher fucked everything up, Dark Horse changed Hicks and Newt to Wilks and Billie in re-prints to keep comics relevant.
Anyway.
So once again, we're supposed to buy that prior to facing Ripley, her Majesty secretly laid an 'emergency' egg while hiding in drop ship's landing gear.
ABSOLUTE BULLSHIT.
The beginning of three-part comic adaptation (also published June-July 1992) is unique, and never made it to either cut or novel.
EEV crash-lands in Fury 161's drink, and after Newt meets a watery grave, immature Queen emerges from now non-viable host's mouth and transfers to Ripley, where it remains until climax.
Like theatrical version, another facehugger implants embryo inside unsuspecting dog (called Sparky rather than Spike).
What's next?
Find out soon.
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