Written by Alan Dean Foster
Published by TitanBooks, London, 2017
ISBN: 9781785654763
Alien Covenant Origins is a prequel set during the year leading up to the departure of the USCSS Covenant from Earth’s orbit. This means that it’s set between Prometheus and Alien Covenant. It’s also the only novel in the franchise that doesn’t include any aliens. I’ve been saying for a while that the Alien universe is big and interesting enough to feature stories without the titular aliens. Does Origins prove me right or is it a disappointment? Let’s find out!
The crew of the USCSS Covenant are preparing to undertake humanities first colony mission outside of our solar system. Meanwhile a shadowy cult is plotting to make sure that humanity never leaves the safety of our home system. They are headed up by Duncan Fields, known to his followers as the prophet. He suffers from what he believes are prophetic dreams of horrific demons waiting for humanity beyond our solar system. The issues with this are the same as all prophecies within stories outside of maybe only Dune. We never understand the why and how of Duncan Fields’ prophetic dreams. This is because, simply put, there is no reason why the prophet gets the visions that he gets. Visions that we, as a reader, know to be true because of the many stories in this universe set after this one. The only real reason why these visions exist are plot convenience. Because without them, there would be no conflict and therefore, no story. These visions are simply put, a lazy writing technique. They also introduce a mystical element into a universe that is otherwise grounded in realism. All of this drags this story down.
"Monsters. Horrible clawing things. Waiting for me. Waiting for all of us."
Extract from Alien Covenant Origins by Alan Dean Foster
It's not all bad, as the advantage of this story being a prequel to Alien Covenant is that we get to spend more time with the crew of the titular ship. It was great learning more about these characters and their personal reasons for joining the Covenant mission. The disadvantage of this story being a prequel is that there can be no stakes or tension. We know that the Covenant mission leaves Earth for Origae-6, and that all the crew survive, because we’ve seen them in Alien Covenant. This means that we’re never afraid for the lives of our main cast or the colony mission itself. This one problem makes Origins the worst thing a story can possibly be. Boring. Without knowing the finer details, I knew that the Prophet and the Earth Savers would be stopped. Knowing this, I felt very little motivation to keep reading.
The best thing about this story is the world building. I’m aware that this won’t be enough for most readers, but I love getting to see more of this universe. We get to experience how overpopulated and polluted our home world has become at the start of the next millennium. London is covered with a thick smog that makes it difficult to see the building across the street. The Mediterranean southern shore is covered in solar power farms all the way back to Ouarzazate. Yet this still isn’t enough to provide clean energy to the world. Breathing fresh air has become a luxury only those with expensive air filters can enjoy. Every major city on the planet has become dangerously crowded. Earth is struggling to support humanities bloated population. Based on the condition of Earth at this point in the timeline It’s no wonder the Covenant mission was able to gain 2000 colonists. We also get to learn more about the merger between the Yutani and Weyland corporations. About how Hideo Yutani was able to buyout Weyland after the disappearance of its founder, Peter Weyland. We also learn of the tension between the two halves of the now singular company. This was all information I enjoyed learning. For me, at least, this made the novel worth reading. I fear for most others though, it won’t be enough.
Ultimately Alien Covenant Origins is a disappointment. I was excited to read a story that broke away from the franchises over reliance on scary aliens. This novel had so much potential, but it was all wasted. This is a prequel that feels pointless and worst of all, boring.
⭐☆☆☆☆
