Normally, when two powerful forces meet, you only need to worry about which of them wins. But as we’ve learned with the Alien vs. Predator films, whoever wins, we lose. But could you survive a clash of these extraterrestrial titans? This handy infographic from Stephen Taubman helps you figure out your chances. It also gives helpful advice if you end up running into either side, like curling into the fetal position and peeing all over yourself if you meet a Predator. Good advice! Unfortunately, given the rest of the infographic, your odds aren’t so good even if you follow all proper protocol. Game over, man! Game over! Read more…
So that’s pretty much that. Ridley Scott announced today that his planned Alien prequel is dead, but he’s making a new film with ideas from the abandoned project. The new film, titled Prometheus, is being penned by Scott and Damon Lindelof, and Scott extolls its “unique, large and provocative” ideas. According to Scott, the film has “Alien DNA,” though he means in terms of concept and scope, not that actual xenomorph DNA will figure into the plot somehow. Fox, to their credit, has backed Scott’s plan and given the film a March 9th, 2012 release date.
Posted by Michael Sacco on Dec 10, 2010 in Cinema, Horror
Word was that Ridley Scott’s long-planned prequel to the sci-fi classic Alien had been pushed back to 2013 or 2014 at best, or shelved at worst. But it looks like it’s finally happening, with production slated to begin in March and a promise of old-school claustrophobia and horror. There’s even casting going on, with some notable hopefuls, including Michelle Yeoh. Sounds good so far! The only weird thing is the actual title, which is “Paradise,” though we’re not sure if it’s just Paradise or whether it’ll be called Alien: Paradise or something along those lines. Kind of an odd name for an Alien movie, but maybe it’s supposed to be ironic. Read more…
Posted by Tim Sheehy on Nov 30, 2010 in Cinema, Horror
So you want to be a bald space marine? If that’s the case, you’ll need one of these — that, and the $900 it’ll cost you to buy it. Sounds like a bit much, but when it comes to faithful replicas of our favorite hollywood props, it usually is. This particular prop happens to be a replica of the M41-A pulse rifle from the sci-fi classic Aliens. Of course, you won’t stand a chance against a real alien, let alone one that bleeds acid, but at least you’d look pretty awesome carrying one of these around. Weighing in at a solid 15 pounds, it features a collapsible shoulder stock, pump action underbarrel, and a working LCD ammo display that requires some AA batteries. You’d think for $900 they’d make it a lithium battery, but I guess that’d be asking too much. At least it comes with a nice mount and plaque for when you’re done playing with it. If you’re crazy enough to drop the cash for this, ThinkGeek currently has them in stock.
Posted by Michael Pinto on May 17, 2010 in Science
Not too long ago Stephen Hawking caused quite a stir by stating that contacting aliens was a bad idea as they may not be friendly — I guess you can call that the “It’s a Cookbook!” school of thought. However defending the aliens in this clip is Neuroscientist Gary Lynch who feels that a higher level of intelligence would have a more benevolent view of humans (more of a Spielberg approach with Close Encounters of the Third Kind or E.T.).
Posted by Michael Pinto on Jan 29, 2010 in Science
This interesting video clip author Wade Davis attempts to answer the question of what would alien anthropologists think of humans? His answer is that they might be impressed with our technology but not with our social structures. Actually my guess is that they might also see us a technologically backwards as a species that could achieve interstellar space travel would be eons ahead of what we think of as cutting edge.
Posted by Michael Pinto on Jan 27, 2010 in Science
I think an octopus is about as different as you can get from being a human — eight legs, lives underwater and a hard beak at the center. Yet this video shows clear evidence that they’re quite bright creatures who are quite capable of using tools. This makes me realize that as humans we might have a bias towards thinking that only humanoid creatures have intelligence — and often the worst offenders I see are science fiction films. Read more…
Update: My apologies! I was looking at the 1:30 mark and they seemed to be UFO hunting (i.e. “We’re investigating a meteor!”) by well informedsources tell me that there were no aliens in the comic book that the film is based upon. Read more…
Speck and Spock is a conjoined alien created by Lindsey Banker — I really love the sense of humor in her work, I’d love to see these creatures turned into puppets. Her store on Etsy is called Adopt An Alien, and each of Lindsey’s critters comes with a birth certificate: Read more…
I’ve seen so many tin toy robot sin my day so it’s a nice break to see a retro plaything that’s based on War of the Worlds for a change. This Martian Invader tin wind-up toy is available from zerotoys.com and harkens back to yesteryear with a fanboy affordable price of $13.95. Found via nerdapproved.com.
