<transcript>

(Inside the alien 'derelict' or 'Juggernaut' spacecraft)

1. 'More or less, the vessel was the shape of a 'U'. Kane repeated over and over, "It's a ship for sure." One says, "It looks like plastic, eh?" Kane replies, "Yeah, maybe even bone."
2. Dallas notes, "Still no life signs—or light."
3. 'Dallas walked on through the thick century old dust--then--' "What's this then? (stopping to look at a leathery, egg-shaped object on the floor. "It's damaged."

Commentary Below

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Looks like plastic. Maybe even... bone [07]

Ooh... we're getting nearer to the action now readers - pretty briskly. But good God, I was reading the novelisation again last night - and it DRAGS. Now maybe the writer was making anticipation the greater part of the pleasure but I'm at page 46 and they haven't even left the ship yet.

Art Notes

I wouldn't see this for a while either

The drawing has advanced on this and the next couple of pages but I still hadn't seen either the film or the HEAVYMETAL Presents: ALIEN the Illustrated Story. The eggs in panel 3 are still based solely on a photo from the novel. Speaking of which, reader Iain Snell was good enough to scan those photos for me and email them over. If you click back through the pages so far, you'll see that they've been retrospectively added. Including Ripley's strangely disembodied head. Added thanks to Iain for promoting Alien age 11 and Star Wars age 9 over on the 2000ad forums.

Real Bone - Euk

It seems that when they were constructing the sets they incorporated casts from real bones into them - ordered in by H.R. Giger, freshly boiled, from the abattoir. Artist Giger - anxious that his (nightmarish) visions weren't being brought to reality - got right in there, sleeves rolled up, molding plasticine over the ghastly skeletal formations, airbrushing away (He later apologised for being a pain in the arse for the rest of the crew in his ALIEN Film Design book. But sometimes that's what it takes).

Whatcha readin' a book for?

A typical Bessbrook scene

Just quoting the late Bill Hicks there. When I was up in Bessbrook in Northern Ireland visiting relatives I bought the novelisation. So exciting. My cousins would blow every penny they could get on sweets and assorted crap from the corner shop and munch, chew and guzzle away day in, day out. We'd never seen this before. Dad recalls often feeling nauseous watching the piles of sugary stuff they'd put away in one sitting in Granny and Grandad's house. Then, they'd either beg for more money off the nearest adult or set off on pop-bottle-finding expeditions around the village that could be redeemed for a few pennies and immediately spent on more sweets (No, I'm not exaggerating). Enterprising. Dad says the worst bit was watching one cousin munching a giant, rock-hard gobstopper. Now there's horror!

I spent my money, instead, on a book. I devoured the book. Word went around that I was reading a book. My cousin Mark asked me about the book, and I said I'd finished it in 2 days.