Fans of Alien are well aware that Xenomorphs are incredibly terrifying and violating beasts whose entire existence revolves around the perversion and mutation of their hosts, only to perpetuate the existence of a creature capable of the most grotesque violence imaginable. That being said, the Xenomorphs are secretly the ultimate heroes of the Alien universe–and one comic series proves it.
Xenomorphs were first introduced in 1979’s Alien, and right from the start, the species’ cosmic terror was obvious. The film showed a space-traveling transportation crew of the vessel Nostromo receiving a distress beacon from an unknown world, and due to company protocol, they had to investigate. Those who left the Nostromo to walk on the surface of this world found a derelict alien ship, and inside that ship was a chamber lined with large eggs. When one of the crew members, Kane, took a closer look at one of these eggs, it began to open from the top before a creature leapt out of it and attached itself to his face. This creature (which would become known as a Facehugger) forced its reproductive tendril down Kane’s throat and effectively impregnated him with a Xenomorph. Some time later, the Xenomorph within Kane had grown enough to burst forth from his chest in a birthing process that kills the host and gives life to one of the deadliest creatures in existence–though evidently, also the most unwittingly heroic.
In Aliens vs Predator vs The Terminator #4 by Mark Schultz and Mel Rubi, Riley8 (the Xenomorph/human hybrid clone of the original Ripley) has teamed up with the Predators to go to a Xenomorph-experimentation facility and stop the resurgence of Skynet before the remnants of the psychopathic-AI is able to merge Terminators with Xenomorphs–thus creating the most dangerous race of killers in the cosmos. Unfortunately, they’re too late, and the Terminators have successfully merged with Xenomorphs–though there was still hope for success. If Ripley8 and the Predators are able to stop them here and now, then they won’t spread across the stars and the galaxy would be saved. Unfortunately again, Ripley8 and the Predators are losing–badly. So, in a last-ditch effort for victory, Ripley8 unleashes a horde of dormant Xenomorphs that were kept within this laboratory by the original scientists who built this lab–and these Xenomorphs make quick work of their robotic brethren.
Xenomorphs Stopped the Greatest Threat to the Alien Universe When No One Else Could
Even though the Xenomorphs in this issue didn’t mean to, they prevented the universe from being assimilated into a much more powerful version of Skynet. If the Terminator/Xenomorphs escaped that facility and continued to build their army, there would be nothing that could stop them. Even a small army of Predators with the help of a superhuman Ripley couldn’t stop the Terminator-hybrids, which means that if the Xenomorph-cyborgs were more organized and had greater numbers, they’d be absolutely unstoppable. However, the raw viciousness of the Xenomorphs along with their superior numbers was enough to demolish this small group of Terminator-hybrids before they had a chance to conquer the cosmos–which effectively saved the universe.
So, since the Alien universe would have been doomed without them, the Xenomorphs proved–in just one epic battle, and despite years of horrific villainy–to be the greatest heroes in the history of the franchise.
