I was watching Alien again and i noticed how human it behaved obviously programmed so to fulfill it mission. Now when it tried to kill Ripley, it behaved not so much as a broken robot but as a psychopath. It took almost sick delight in toying with Ripley. It could have snapped her neck in one blow but it didn't. It behaved like a deranged madman.

I think it had the behaviour patterns of a psycho implanted into it that took over when it had to eliminate someone. What do you think?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ipfcH1fx ... dded#at=33

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http://www.richarddaborn.com
Now a member of the Freebooters, another Pirate about! Aaar!
A12/TQ0.0.72138F1 ECG Daborn, R RustiSwordz South East England-UK
'In Space, there is no Horse'

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Ian-Holm-Alie ... 51987b1f14

Heres a brilliant picture ive never seen before for sale on Ebay of the above scene.

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http://www.richarddaborn.com
Now a member of the Freebooters, another Pirate about! Aaar!
A12/TQ0.0.72138F1 ECG Daborn, R RustiSwordz South East England-UK
'In Space, there is no Horse'

It is my understanding that there was a little more to the beginning of the Ripley/Ash confrontation-

Ash closes the door on Ripley to which she demands "Ash will you open the door!"

She approaches him, but for some reason (unseen by we the viewer) her nose is already bleeding, and ash has his white blood trickling from his head. But they haven't touched each other at this point.

So there had to be more than the two of them spontaneously sporting bleeding wounds. I believe Ripley and Ash exchanged blows (causing the visible injuries). Ripley may have hit Ash over the head with something-

The blow to Ash's noggin may have flip a "crazy" switch (or shorted out the "sane" circuit if you catch my drift)- he really does act out of control- making guttural verbal noises as he attempts to "rape" Ripley orally with (of all things) a rolled up adult magazine!

So I don't believe the behaviour was "implanted", but rather a result of an injury that did not make the final cut of the scene.

My 2 cents.


Kevin

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I told you I'd shoot, but you didn't believe me! WHY DIDN'T YOU BELIEVE ME!?!

I thought that was to do with the partially filmed yet never finished airlock scene? The depressurization from acid melting through the 'lock caused the nosebleed.

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http://www.richarddaborn.com
Now a member of the Freebooters, another Pirate about! Aaar!
A12/TQ0.0.72138F1 ECG Daborn, R RustiSwordz South East England-UK
'In Space, there is no Horse'

Ash's "bleeding" I'd always attributed to Ripley smashing Ash into Mother.

My interpretation has always been this (which differs somewhat from e.g. the novelisation):
When Ash approaches Ripley in Mother's terminal chamber and offers an explanation, he is perfectly rational. He offers no malevolence, apart from the obvious ("you're all going to be killed by the Alien, and I don't care"). It seems he actually would have tried to explain, had he had a chance.
Instead, in a fit of rage, Ripley smashes him into the wall.
This causes some damage (as evidenced by the bleeding), which causes Ash to simply break, run amuck, out of control of any rational behaviour mode — his face goes blank, he stops talking, only emitting random noises. He doesn't even try to actually kill Ripley as such, but rather rolls a magazine (in a way that to me can best only be described as "neurotic") and ... for want of anything better to do it seems, starts ramming it down her throat.
Not rational, not even mocking, just ... random.

When Parker reconnects him, he's rational again, so whatever nut Riply shook loose seems to be back in place.

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Not bad, for a human.

oh god - that's the instance of simulated rape I always forget!

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Sgt. Jake Tucker - 13th Regt. 1st Batt. Freebooters.

I have to correct what I just said about the two of them "not touching each other yet".

Ripley did push Ash back against the wall during her outburst about Ash offering an "explanation."

However I didn't find it to be violent enough to cause Ash's head to start bleeding. And I still think Ripley's nose wasn't bleeding when she sat down at the MUTHR console. (Mind you I'm a wee bit too lazy to throw the movie in right now. )

When was the missing airlock scene supoosed to take place? I know that there is the deleted scene of Ripley and Lambert trying to blow the Alien out the airlock (with Parker giving directions over the com system)- is this the one you mean?


Kevin

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I told you I'd shoot, but you didn't believe me! WHY DIDN'T YOU BELIEVE ME!?!

Don't forget the older models were always a bit twitchy and didn't have the behaviour inhibertors the new ones do.

Oh and to add to the "rape", the magazine is actually a porno, just adds a little something extra to the mix...

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AKA: Simon

That's the one, Kevin. It was only partially filmed - the 'Airlock' portion of the sequence was never filmed. The whole sequence begins with the 'filmed' scene of Ripley and Lambert entering the Bridge, and getting the panicked message from Parker over the intercom.
This scene was to take place immediately after the scene where Ripley, Ash, Parker and Lambert are in the Galley after Dallas has dissappeared in the Airduct. Parker leaves the room to refuel the incinerators then Ash, leaving Ripley and Lambert. It is on his way to refuel that Parker sees the Alien next to an Airlock.

It'll be interesting to see how Michael Fassbender plays the android 'David' in Prometheus, as at that point again androids, sorry, artificial persons are not equipped with behavioral inhibitors as 88reaper88 notes.

Never trust someone who's blood is jizz.

SAS

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Alan T. Alien
1st Lt Smith, SA "Sidewinder"
A13/TQ1.4.19720EX CMA
Founder of UKCM 13th Regt. 1st Batt. Freebooters
Founder of Special Armaments Section (Heavy Weapons)
"People don't understand. people like me"

That white "blood" always creeped me out. Actually, to me it was far wierder than the xenomorph ever was.

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Another glorious day in the Corps! A day in the Marine Corps is like a day on the farm. Every meal's a banquet! Every paycheck a fortune! Every formation a parade! I LOVE the Corps! - Sgt. Apone

It's funny- when I was a wee lad and watched ALIEN for the first time I thought the "blood" was something else...

There is a scene early on (I think when Ash is studying the dead facehugger) where Ash drinks a glass of milk.

When Parker clocks Ash in the head the first time (trying to get him off Ripley) and Ash is spinning around spewing white blood out of his mouth, I though he was just throwing up the milk he was fond of drinking.


They really did choose some bizarre things for Ash's innards; never would have imagined that android technology would include grapes and spagetti.


Kevin

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I told you I'd shoot, but you didn't believe me! WHY DIDN'T YOU BELIEVE ME!?!

I always wondered if it was really milk...

For Ash's behaviour, I think that there was some inward conflict (3 laws of robotics) that did not make him kill Ripley rapidly as suggested above !

You raise a pretty good point about Asimov's Laws.

(My opinion of course)

Ash was prepared to allow the entire crew to die to protect the Alien (either by the Alien killing them, or Ash killing them himself). So the first Law is out the window.

I would imagine that because the Company sent in Ash to protect the Alien at all costs, that either Ash was not programmed with Asimov's Laws, or the Company disabled the First Law. You can't have your "inside man" disobeying its orders because of a Law to protect humans.

You could say that Asimov's Laws are meant to synthetically give a machine "morals". I wouldn't say that Ash's "crazy" behaviour was because he was conflicted as it would mean that he didn't "want" to kill Ripley.

For me Ash is the true antagonist in the film; the truly "evil" character. The Alien kills simply because of instinct and self preservation. While incredibly dangerous, it is neutral on the "Good and Evil" scale. Ash on the other hand is willing to do deplorable things.

(Of course this is how he was programmed, he has no free will either. )

If nothing else, for me Ash is the "face of the faceless Company", who put profit above lives. It is completely fitting that Ash "smirks" when he tells them "you're all dead."


Kevin

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I told you I'd shoot, but you didn't believe me! WHY DIDN'T YOU BELIEVE ME!?!