Alien’s Horrific New Kaiju Gets Official Name in Franchise Canon

Warning: Contains SPOILERS for Alien Vol. 4 #4!Alien continues to add increasingly horrific creatures to the franchise lore that match the visceral terror conveyed by the original Xenomorph, and this time, the series has absolutely outdone itself. An alien Kaiju has been introduced in the most recent addition to the Alien mythos, one with no direct ties to the classic Xenomorph aside from an inherent hatred of that entire species. And now, this new giant alien monster has gotten an official name in Alien canon.

In Alien Vol. 4 #4 by Declan Shalvey and Andrea Broccardo, Zasha has finally found her synthetic father figure, Dayton, on the ice moon LV-695. Together, they take down the Weyland-Yutani operative that was threatening their lives. Plus, these two were the latest to keep Weyland-Yutani from obtaining sensitive information about the Xenomorph, which is a victory that would even make Ellen Ripley herself proud.

During that conflict, the Weyland-Yutani crew that came to this world for the official reason of securing a lost WY vessel accidentally awakened not only a horde of Xenomorphs and white Xenomorph variants, but also a monstrous beast that slumbered beneath the icy depths. This kaiju was introduced in the last issue, but it wasn’t until this one that it finally got a name: Winterbeast.

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Winterbeast is the Ultimate Payoff for This Most Recent Alien Era

Alien Vol. 3/Alien Annual 2023 #1

This issue marked the epic conclusion to a story that began in Alien Vol. 3/Alien Annual 2023 #1. Following Alien‘s war between Xenomorphs and an unknown alien species on the ice moon of LV-695, the Xenomorphs infect practically every member of that species, creating white Xenomorph variants. Rather than joining the ranks of the original Xenomorphs, however, these white Xenomorphs started a colony of their own, separate from both the original alien species and the invading Xenomorphs.

This war – which was fully chronicled in Alien Annual 2023 #1 – ended with the Xenomorphs, the white Xenomorphs, and the surviving unknown aliens going into stasis. That is, until the events of Alien Vol. 3, when human activity in this world awakens the hordes of Xenomorphs and their white variants. However, the cosmic horror of slumbering monsters on far-off worlds didn’t reach its peak until the introduction of Winterbeast, as it truly encapsulated the terror of a Great Old One in the more Lovecraftian sense.

Alien’s Winterbeast May Have Given Life to Something Far More Terrifying

Winterbeast was a Xenomorph host all along!

By the end of the issue, as the Xenomorphs and white Xenomorphs are tearing each other apart while the Winterbeast crushes them indiscriminately, it’s revealed that the Winterbeast had been impregnated by a Xenomorph, and that it was a host to a white Xenomorph variant. The final panel featuring the Winterbeast shows it giving life to a white Xenomorph that was nearly the size of the Winterbeast itself – and it was only an infant. This indicates that the white Xenomorph the Winterbeast gave life to will grow to become insanely massive, far larger than the Winterbeast was.

The fate of this new white Xenomorph is unclear at the moment. Its death was implied, but Xenomorphs are famous for their adaptability and resilience. More than likely, this white Xenomorph titan survived the bomb that Weyland-Yutani ship dropped on the moon at the end of the issue, and is ready to be officially introduced as the series’ biggest threat (literally). But, until then, this kaiju fills that particular role in Alien canon, making it all the more fitting that it got an official name as opposed to remaining an anonymous monster.

AlienVol. 4 #4 by 20th Century Studios is available now.