On June 8th, it will reach the 5 year anniversary of the release of Prometheus (in the States at least, it released a week early overseas). This was the movie that changed everything for the better or for the worse, depending on your point of view. Until I slowly worked my way into the hive of Alien fandom, I was unaware of the vicious divide that this movie caused. I’ve now debated and argued about Prometheus more than I care to for in one lifetime. It’s faults are inarguable, but this movie left me with some fond memories which are worth reflecting upon. 

Prometheus was the first movie in the Alien franchise that was released in the heavy internet age. I was able to follow its creation intently from beginning to end. After Resurrection and the two AvP movies my excitement had been smothered. There was next to no media released anymore. No books, no comics, no movies. Nothing. Once I discovered that this was going to be a prequel to Alien, my excitement only heightened. Ridley Scott wanted to explore the Space Jockey and the crashed Derelict, which has (and remains) a huge obsession of mine. Unfortunately, during development the movie had shifted from an official prequel and took a different direction. It was no longer an official “Alien” movie, it was now called “Prometheus”. Suffice to say, I was disappointed but remained opened to the idea of a story “in the Alien universe” or a “side-quel”, whatever you want to call the final product.

The trailers and viral marketing had me raring to go by the movie release date. I organized a few of my friends and we decided on a 3-D midnight showing. After the two hours and four minutes ended, I was somehow both disappointed and impressed. I did not get my prequel, but I got to see a different part of the Alien universe. It wasn’t about survival, war, or isolation. It was about creation and our introduction to the Engineers. The Space Jockey wasn’t some giant alien race as I had imagined or how it was portrayed in the comics. This revelation was initially a disappointment, but I quickly enjoyed their addition to the mythos. We all expected something from the Space Jockey (we still might get it, who knows at this point) and were thrown a curveball. If Ridley gave us exactly what was in the comics or what we wanted, what’s the point? The mystery surrounding the Engineers and their motives created a new wrinkle.

So with the movie’s release, it wasn’t long before my friends, coworkers, and social media buddies went to see it as well…largely due to my nudging. I lost count of the amount times we exchanged theories and ideas about Prometheus. While unbeknownst to me, the fandom was furious and calling for Ridley’s head (feelings that remain a discussion for another day) we were busy focusing on the good. The shift to philosophy, creation, and religion grabbed us, even if none of us are huge followers of any of them. After years of my fandom locked away in cryosleep, it was back.

I then discovered that Dark Horse Comics were releasing a new set of crossover comics, Fire and Stone. Thanks to Twitter, I became friends/networked with Kareem Ali of HulkingReviewer.com. We usually spent our time complaining about the Knicks until it turned into a oppurtunity. My love for writing had disappeared when my chances of turning it into a career had reduced to nothing.  I stopped looking for places to hone my craft, but I’ve always had a passion for writing reviews. Kareem decided to give me the keys to every review of Fire and Stone, and I ran with it. Dark Horse even used some of my quotes on the main page. I could’t believe it, I’m now reviewing comics I once read as a kid and my words are on their site. Prometheus helped me open that door.

The Prometheus blu-ray remains one of my favorites to this day. The behind the scenes features are a must-watch. You see what happened during production and how the movie shifted in focus. Of course, I immediately attached myself to the deleted/alternate scenes. Thanks to this blog, I was finally able to break it down for an audience other than my own.

While there is a large horde of fans that have nothing but life scarring memories of Prometheus, for me it was a game changer. The dominoes that fell after it’s released have not been what the fans wanted, but I’ve learned to embrace the good in the face of it all. Thank you all for reading and listening. Big things have small beginnings indeed.

As always, don’t forget to like the blog on Facebook, follow on Twitter (@xenomorphing426).

For your audio pleasure, like Perfect Organism on Facebook!