Oolite Bulletins

Another clue: both films are connected to this novel (not itself a science fiction novel, I should say) in the same way ...

Disembodied wrote:

OK: what classic novel connects the first two Alien films, and how? (i.e. Alien and Aliens, I'm not counting a pile of prequel yad like Prometheus - Ridely Scott clearly can't be trusted with a big budget ...)

I'm guessing Heart of Darkness by Conrad which has a ship called Nostromo.

Nope ... you're getting warm, but not correct (and the ship in Heart of Darkness is called the Nellie).

In that case, it must be Nostromo by Conrad - which also mentions Sulaco, I think.

Cody wrote:

In that case, it must be Nostromo by Conrad - which also mentions Sulaco, I think.

That's the one! The ship in Alien is called Nostromo, after Conrad's novel of the same name. And the ship in Aliens is called the Sulaco, which is the name of the fictitious South American town where Conrad's Nostromo is set.

It's been a very long time since I read any Conrad, so I had to dig for the Sulaco link. Back with a new question shortly!

Back to Conrad for a sec - Apocalypse Now is heavily hooked into Heart of Darkness.

It's difficult to be certain that I haven't asked this before: in which novel does a marooned Earthman join a subspace caravan in search of a starship?

Disembodied wrote:

Cody wrote:

In that case, it must be Nostromo by Conrad - which also mentions Sulaco, I think.

That's the one! The ship in Alien is called Nostromo, after Conrad's novel of the same name. And the ship in Aliens is called the Sulaco, which is the name of the fictitious South American town where Conrad's Nostromo is set.

Damn - that's what I get for not checking my facts!

Clue the second: it's a one-off novel (I think) from the 80's, and was rather obscure - but has recently been revised and re-released.

Clue the third: the stranded Earthman's friend is an alien, a type of intelligent cat with some unusual abilities.

Supplemental: the alien is known as an Aircat; subspace caravans are hauled by waybeasts.

Is it The Shadow of the Ship by Robert Wilfred Franson?

It is indeed The Shadow of the Ship - a strange novel, but well worth a read, especially the revised edition (it seems).

Cody wrote:

It is indeed The Shadow of the Ship - a strange novel, but well worth a read, especially the revised edition (it seems).

I didn't knew it.

Maybe easy: "In which movie, adapted from a novel, men are used as pets, or exterminated if found in the wild, by giant blue aliens?"

L.Ron Hubbard??? Battlefield Earth. dont think they are blue though...

Sounds like 'Yellow submarine' to me