What Prometheus Could/Should Have Been...Part 2

Alright folks, here's my brief (hopefully) follow-up to the last journal. Part II: What I liked about the final film of "Prometheus", and how it should have been melded with elements of "Alien: Engineers". The first subject mentioned in all the following "versus" points, will be the one I prefer. 

1. Black Goo vs. Scarabs


In "Prometheus", the Engineers use a substance, officially known as Chemical A0-3959X.91-15, to create life. As shown on the official sites promoting the movie, the chemical has different effects when either inhaled or ingested, which varies depending on what living thing is doing said actions. When ingested by the Engineers, the substance breaks them down to their very DNA, and allows said DNA to initiate an evolutionary process that yields life. It's unknown whether it would do the same to a human, as the one who ingested it, Dr. Charles Holloway, was in such excruciating pain from the act that he chose death. Since the Engineer at the beginning of the film seemed to be suffering under similar circumstances, Holloway was probably also going to be broken down to his very DNA. Maybe this is what the Engineers intended: the death of humans would yield new life to take their place, as jump-started by the chemical.

However, if inhaled, the chemical seems to turn said inhaler into a zombie-like mutant, personified by Fifield's transformation. This too, could have been an alternate way of wiping out the human race as intended by the Engineers, by good ol' zombie apocalypse, after a fashion at least. The chemical has the same effect on other species that inhale it, such as Predators, as demonstrated in the comic "Fire and Stone", as well as Xenos, showing that the idea of the Xenos being bio-weapons, like Spaihts' script revealed, was ultimately changed. But who's to say that bio-weapons can't still be affected? After all, they are still biological.

But now to get to the nitty-gritty of this point. As opposed to the chemical in the final film, in Spaihts script, the Engineers used scarab beetles whose bite initiated the DNA deconstruction/evolution. Interesting, especially since their bite was shown to have turned a primitive woman (most likely very simian-looking) more human-like thanks to having previously bitten an Engineer (that or having been engineered to do so). My problem with the Scarabs is that they probably would have evoked memories of the "Mummy" franchise, since they were done so well there. Also, the chemical, as pointed out by fans of the AVP extended universe, has many similar effects to Royal Jelly (secreted by a Xeno Queen). So, could it be safe to assume that the chemical is either reproduced by Queens, or did it come from them? As you can see, the "Black Goo" yields more interesting possibilities for the AVP Universe at large, hence my preference for it.

2. Ambiguous David vs. Villainous David


By all accounts, the David from "Alien: Engineers" was far more villainous than the final version, going so far as to hold down Elizabeth Shaw (then know as Jocelyn Watts) while a Facehugger did its sinister business. This is somewhat retained in the final film, as David purposely puts a drop of the black goo in a glass of booze that he gives to Charlie. However, it's also important to point out that ever since their first meeting, Charlie childishly picks on David, whose being artificial seems to bother or even scare the disgruntled young scientist. As such, the android, who appears to have some semblance of emotions, is doing so to get back at Charlie, not only for his personal bullying of David, but also for his irritating sense of impatience and impulsiveness. If we were to retain my favorite part of the "Engineers" script, the variety of Xenos, the scene with David and Charlie wouldn't be able to exist, since in the "Engineers" script Charlie is attacked by an Octo-Hugger, which based on concept art, actually enters the host, and turns into the Beluga Chestburster, rather than implant it. A way around this is that also in the Spaihts script, a character named Chance (likely a mercenary awoken from cryosleep by Vickers) is impregnated by a regular Facehugger, and the resulting Xeno that comes from him is brutally killed by an Engineer. We could have an Octo-Hugger attack the Chance character, and have another Beluga Xeno in the script (that, or one could attack Elizabeth when she's with David in the pyramid, thereby replacing all the classic Xeno appearances in the script). Thereby allowing David's "take this" moment to still happen, only now the drop of goo would create a Beluga Chestburster. I only present these alternate scenarios, because I like the scene in question, as well as many others featuring David, as it makes his character journey all the more unique, and he's not just a simple evil robot doing Company orders, like Ash. If anything, as some fans have proposed, David's (and other androids) existence serves as a third faction that could prove dangerous to both Engineers and Humans, as evidenced by the reaction of the one in the Juggernaut ship. That could be an interesting direction to take the future of the franchise in...

3. Weyland as Vickers' father on board the Prometheus vs. Weyland on the Space-Station


In the "Engineers" script, Elli and Charlie actually visit Weyland on a space-station (not unlike Elysium from the film of the same name), and ask for his investment of resources to help find the Engineers. In said script, he shows interest based on the possible financial benefits that any newly discovered technology will bring. His covert mission to receive immortality from the Engineers isn't included in this version, neither is the fact that he is Vickers' father. Both of these later additions are preferable to his "one and done" appearance in the original script, for the following reasons: The selfish pursuit of immortality by Weyland helps cement the legacy of the Weyland-Yutani corporation's ongoing quest for power, at the expense of lives. And secondly, having the cold, bitchy Vickers be his progeny helps define that theme and character trait further. For the observant viewer, you'll find that David is basically a male version of Vickers, which shows and is heavily implied that Weyland wanted a son, instead of a daughter, and it is this resentment between the two that defines their relationship. It also adds layers to David, as despite being created as a alternative to Weyland's actual child, David's being a robot still isn't good enough for Weyland, and it is in part for this reason that David seems so curious as to where he stands in terms of worth, as not only does he get picked on by Charlie for his being synthetic, but he's still not good enough for his creator. And in viewing the venomous relationship between Weyland and Vickers, David assumes that "everyone" wants to see their parents dead, because Vickers (technically David's "sister") clearly wants to, and in his own way, David perhaps does as well. So, in essence, the additional presence of Weyland and his familial connection to Vickers makes for far more intriguing drama, and further development for my preferred version of David. 



There you have it everyone. Not too brief, but still a rundown of the three things I liked most about the final version of "Prometheus". There were minor things here and there that I'd also adjust, like the title for instance, but in all, these were the biggies.