How Alien: Earth changes Xenomorphs? Details explored 

The Alien franchise has always explored evolution, and Alien: Earth ipushes this further with the Xenomorphs. Noah Hawley has been clear that he prioritized his artistic vision in the latest Disney and FX series rather than strictly adhering to the existing franchise mythology.

This sentiment, it appears, lies at the heart of the new series, especially with the Xenomorph mythology. Alien: Earth introduces a lot of new information into the Xenomorph mythology, but these additions only serve to enrich the plot and the franchise as a whole.

Keep reading to find out how Hawley’s Alien: Earth changes the Xenomorphs.

Hawley adds a lot of new information to the Xenomorph canon in Alien: Earth

With any long-standing fandom, questions about canon will always plague a new addition. However, Alien: Earth takes this to another level with the Xenomorphs. All previous assumptions about these creatures must be reconsidered in light of the new information.

The biggest question that arises with the creatures is their level of intelligence. Before Alien: Earth, these creatures, despite having some basic problem-solving capability, were unable to perform anything too complex. This time around, however, we get to see a somewhat more intelligent creature rather than one that only kills and makes babies.

Although the Xenomorph remains a deadly predator, Alien: Earth shows it kills mainly for survival and can sometimes resist its primal instincts. Instead of killing, the creature examines the world around it with curiosity, as seen in the calm interaction with Dame Sylvia.

The next aspect of Alien: Earth, which calls out the preconceived “facts” about the creatures, is their manner of interaction. Before the FX series, it was widely assumed that the creatures could not talk and used pheromones or telepathy to communicate with each other. However, the series has added to our understanding by revealing that these creatures can talk and have a language based on a series of guttural clicks and whirs.

The third episode of Alien: Earth featured Wendy hearing the living facehugger’s cries when it was being dissected by Krish and doubling over in pain. The later episodes explore Wendy’s unique ability as a synthetic body to hear the Xenomorphs. We even find her communicating with them using her artificial vocal cords. Wendy being able to communicate with the creatures means she can also control them, marking a significant update in the franchise.

We also find the Xenomorphs on all fours in the show, something that hasn’t happened before in the franchise. Additionally, another interesting aspect of the series was the ending, where Wendy’s Xenomorph and Arthur Sylvia’s Xenomorph seem to bond for a moment. This suggests that the younger specimen was seeking shelter and security from the older one. This is somewhat contrary to the general belief that the creatures are horrifyingly self-reliant.

Finally, another aspect where the show differs from the existing canon is the assumption that the Xenomorph gestates in the digestive tract of its host during its life cycle. In the series, however, Krish dissects a facehugger Xenomorph to find an embryo that has been gestating in its host’s lungs and functions not much differently than a tadpole.

These changes to Xenomorph mythology, though radical, enrich the franchise and make the creatures more terrifying and intriguing.

Evolution has always defined the franchise, whether in the creatures themselves or the creative vision behind them, and Hawley has introduced some of its most striking developments.

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