Alien's real unsung star was Jones the cat.

[ErikB]

For all of the crazy happenings between the alien and the crew members if you think about it it was really Jones the cat on the original "Alien" that played some of the most vital roles both against and for the crew.

Jones gives their motion detectors the first false reading and after scaring the hell out of them and racing off it is the hunt for Jones that lures Brett into the encounter with the now full sized alien.

Later Ripley is delayed in her cryo sleep because of trying to settle down Jones and the cat draws the alien's attention spurring Ripley into action.

While he might not have been the show stopper, the cat set up the scene for a lot of tension and the ultimate survival of the last person. Hats off to Jones the cat.

 

[J Riff]

Good Kitty! You warn me if there's a big spacebug in the house. .. Kitty? ... KittEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE..*

 

[Cat's Cradle]

Hah! Interesting thought, Erik! Also, Ripley goes back to retrieve Jonesey after hearing him on the ship's intercom (my wife and I - cat lovers both - always say we'd have gone back for a kitty under similar circumstances...easy to say when we'll - hopefully - never be in that sort of situation.). CC

 

[ErikB]

The cat made all the difference. It speaks to us. Plus I don't think Ridley Scott would have gotten as good a reaction if the cat had died or been left behind.

Most people are okay with the six humans dying. But not the cat!

 

[BAYLOR]

My problem with Jones is that he saw the Alien sneaking up on Brett and didn't try to save him. He just sat there and watched.

 

[Toby Frost]

Also, the Alien had the chance to kill Jones when it looked at him in his box. I have a suspicion that it recognised a kindred spirit.

"Once I've eaten most of the crew you can finish them off."
"Cheers mate. Is it still canned food if they're in spacesuits?"

 

[BAYLOR]

Also, the Alien had the chance to kill Jones when it looked at him in his box. I have a suspicion that it recognised a kindred spirit.

"Once I've eaten most of the crew you can finish them off."
"Cheers mate. Is it still canned food if they're in spacesuits?"

Thats why you reply on a cat to save your life because it has it's own agenda.

 

[ErikB]

To be fair Baylor Jones DID try to warn Brett. When the cat looks past you with wide eyes hissing and your reaction is to stand there trying to placate the cat before finally turning around that's not on the cat. It hid, it hissed and stared past Brett, it was not like Jones could speak English and say,

"Hey yo Brett, the reason I'm hiding out in between these big cylinders and hissing at something behind you is because there's a big alien just behind you dude! Ya might want to hide or run. Just saying!"

That fail was all on Brett. Jones warned in cat. Human, a bit slow to put two and two together...

 

[Dan Jones]

It just wouldn't have been the same film if Jones had been a chimpanzee, would it?

 

[ErikB]

It just wouldn't have been the same film if Jones had been a chimpanzee, would it?

Yeah because then you'd see all those criticisms from the "Planet of the Apes" folks when Ripley yells at the alien "Get your damn hands off of my ape!"

LOL.

 

[BAYLOR]

It just wouldn't have been the same film if Jones had been a chimpanzee, would it?

For some reason The Show Lancelot Link Secret Chimp come to mind.

 

[HanaBi]

My problem with Jones is that he saw the Alien sneaking up on Brett and didn't try to save him. He just sat there and watched.

That's my issue with cats in general: they're very aloof and have their own agenda. It's like he's saying to some of the doomed crew members "This is what happens when you offer me Whiskers and not Royal Canin! See ya!"

I guess the real strapline for Alien should have been "No one in space can hear a meow"

 

[ErikB]

I like how the alien is deemed in some way the cat's revenge for bad food choices. LOL

They (cats) do have their own agenda and while I am more of a dog person in many ways myself, I'll be the first to admit that though I love dogs a bit more than cats, a dog would have attacked (in most cases) and died defending a crew member.

Whereas that cat's "agenda" and independence is what makes it a survivor. The cat is is like, "sorry dude, I'm hiding out, I got my own problems and in case you have not noticed we have a hungry big predator on the loose on this ship!"

In fact its that same "up yours, I do what I want!" attitude that not only allows Jones to escape the human fate, but also to warn Ripley when she screws up his plan by confining him in a travel carrier box. He draws in the alien because he's irritated and frustrated with the confinement.

So sometimes that aloof behavior is a good thing. Like when you're trapped on a ship with six people and an android with an agenda. LOL.

 

[HanaBi]

Can't recall now, but did Jonesy survive the 57 years lost in space with Ripley when she was picked up in Aliens?

 

[Paul_C]

Can't recall now, but did Jonesy survive the 57 years lost in space with Ripley when she was picked up in Aliens?

from Wikipedia: "She and the cat are in cryosleep for fifty-seven years, until they are rescued. Jones remains Ripley's pet for the duration of her new employment until she departs on the Sulaco, leaving him behind"

 

[BAYLOR]

Jones didn't have much in the dialogue to remember.

 

[HanaBi]

from Wikipedia: "She and the cat are in cryosleep for fifty-seven years, until they are rescued. Jones remains Ripley's pet for the duration of her new employment until she departs on the Sulaco, leaving him behind"

Just as well he was grounded, otherwise he could have been an accessory to further horrific murders in Aliens, while he stood there with that familiar "whatever!" expression on his chops