One of the most crucial factors in an on-going
film series is continuity, whether it be in
excruciating detail, or at least in a way
that is generally familiar to fans.
That's not to say different entries in a series
shouldn't be different, in fact, one of the
best things about the Alien series is that
each entry is distinct in its own way and
is a different, unique experience.
It is hard to deny, though, that Prometheus,
taking place close to 30 years before the
events of Alien, has raised some questions
amongst fans in regards to its continuity
involving the technology at the disposal of
the respective ships and crews.
The Nostromo, while proven to be an expensive
vehicle, was fairly modest when you compare
it to what the Prometheus had to offer.
From Cryostasis Hypersleep Chambers with Neuro-Visual
Links to Alpha Readers, to the the medpods
capable of a myriad of surgeries at a simple
click of the button, to the availability of
Parameter Uplink Spectragraph Devices, or,
PUPS, there seemed to be no limited supply
of advanced technology made available for
Project Prometheus.
So, why was all this incredible technology
available in the world of Prometheus, but
nowhere to be found in Alien?
Perhaps the easiest way to answer it is to
step back from the actual lore and simply
justify it by saying that, well, the movies
themselves are close to 30 years apart, so,
of course, Ridley Scott would take advantage
of modern special effects technology to tell
his new story within the universe.
It's kind of a cop-out answer, but, fair enough,
to an extent, but we have to keep in mind
that modern special effects don't necessarily
cancel out the need for continuity.
I suppose there's no greater example of this
than the Star Wars series.
One of the most irking things to many fans
is how the prequel series displayed such an
array of advanced technology, using wall-to-wall
special effects, that, at the end of it all,
didn't quite feel like it matched up with
the original movies that they were supposed
to lead into.
One of the most charming and innovative aspects
to the original Star Wars film was how the
universe looked lived-in, it looked like it
had existed for a long time, and felt...true,
in a sense.
Meanwhile the prequel series had environments
and vehicles and even characters that felt
freshly processed right off of a computer
CGI program.
For many people, this caused an unconscious,
or, maybe not-so-unsconscious, unease, and
it didn't feel like the same world they had
become accustom to.
Then, of course, we can now consider the newest
entries, like The Force Awakens, which is
a sequel to the original trilogy, and Rogue
One, which was a prequel that literally took
place moments before the first Star Wars film.
The clear difference between those and George
Lucas' prequel trilogy is that they felt consistent
with the original, beloved movies.
They had the latest special effects technology
at their disposal.
They had enormous budgets, unimaginably larger
than what would have been available for the
production of the first Star Wars film in
1977, but they remained tonally and aesthetically
similar to the universe, and it wasn't at
the risk of excluding cool special effects,
either, so it can be done.
And to just shrug and say, well, Prometheus
is a newer movie than Alien so of course it
has better effects and more advanced technology
than Alien, doesn't necessarily close the
issue.
I do believe, however, that when it comes
to the story of the Alien series as a whole,
a heavy consideration must lie in the sole
purpose of each ship's mission, both of which
are vastly different, and most certainly,
would require different technology.
Project Prometheus was extremely ambitious
- to say the least - its purpose being to
find the creators of human life itself.
It was a scientific exploration, and it required
the most advanced technology in that field
available.
Not to mention, the founder of the Weyland
Corporation himself was aboard, acting as
a secret member of this mission, so naturally,
its funding and its resources would be almost
limitless.
Their purpose was to explore and analyze possible
far off alien life, and they were prepared
to do just that.
By comparison, the Nostromo was meant to deliver
cargo from point A to point B. Their resources
were well-funded, but not excessively, and
not beyond what was required of their towing
mission.
While they were required to set down on LV-426
to investigate the beacon, that was not the
purpose of their mission, so when we see the
crew equipped with EVA suits that look as
if they've seen better days, we can reasonably
assume they were only made available just
in case they were needed.
They had not set out to explore new life and
new planets, so we can also reasonably assume
that there would be no need to any advanced
mapping technology.
And even if we consider the computer screens
and the MUTHUR interface itself, it doesn't
look top-of-the-line by any means, if the
"truckers in space" concept that had been
the sentiment to Alien from its earliest stages,
it also makes enough sense that a spacetug
just simply wouldn't need anything especially
elaborate.
The USCSS Prometheus made its maiden voyage
for Project Prometheus...everything was new,
top-of-the-line, and high-priority.
The Nostromo had been around for some time,
and had likely seen its fair share of other
voyages before the events of Alien, and its
mission was somewhat routine.
I feel that in these respects, the jarring
differences in technology has some justification.
Personally, I've never been too bothered about
the technological inconsistencies between
movies and at the very least I don't think
it's anywhere near as close to the vast and
downright distracting differences between
the original Star Wars trilogy and the prequel
trilogy, though I know there are many Alien
fans out there who fear Ridley Scott has been
turning to the same dark side where George
Lucas found himself.
What do you think?
Are you distracted by the differences in technology
between Prometheus and Alien?
Do you feel the differences between the missions
themselves is a good enough justification,
or do you think they are different for other
reasons?
Share your thoughts with me below.
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