Throughout the entirety of the ever-expanding Alien universe, there have been some inconsistencies in terms of the timeline and the information that characters should be aware of but inexplicably aren’t–for instance, the existence of the Xenomorph species (because seriously, how many times can the Xenomorphs be considered ‘unknown alien life forms’). However, all the frustration associated with those inconsistencies were completely explained away upon the inclusion of the ‘Big Deletion’ in the Alien mythos–something that becomes the perfect solution to that previously unfixable canon.
The Alien universe was created by Ridley Scott in the 1979 film Alien, a film that would spawn three sequels, two prequels, and two spin-off crossover movies (AvP)–though it didn’t stop there. The world of Alien was so popular, it became more deeply explored through novels, video games, and–of course–comic series. While these dives into the Alien mythos through movies, comics, and books were fun explorations of Xenomorph lore, the series of events that weaved through every addition started to get a little muddled. It seemed like at the start of every story, humans were encountering Xenomorphs for the first time despite the fact that they should have extensive knowledge of this species by now, especially once humanity starts setting up colonies all over the galaxy–and now, fans know exactly why that is.
In Alien vs Predator: Thrill of the Hunt by Mike Kennedy, Roger Robinson, and Dustin Weaver, a team of space-faring humans are descending upon an alien planet, and according to one of them, it is the first time humans have done so in over a hundred years. While knowing that comes with its fair amount of anxiety, the other traveler tells their partner to look at what they’re doing in a less heavy and significant light. Before the events of the comic, humanity had colonies all over the galaxy–with Weyland-Yutani's "Building Better Worlds" initiative being a big part of that–so while it has been some time since another one was established, planet-hopping is not something new to humanity. However, what’s more interesting than the fact that this is one of the first descents on a new world for over a hundred years is the reason why that is the case, and this issue attributes it to something called ‘The Big Deletion’.
The Big Deletion Explains Why Xenomorphs are a Perpetual Mystery
Based on the information given in this comic, the Big Deletion is an event that occurred after a man-made info-weapon–or an intelligent virus–infected every data system across the cosmos, sending humanity back centuries in terms of technological advancement. The fallout of the Big Deletion took more than a hundred years to come back from–giving previous Alien stories the perfect alibi for their stand-alone structure. Most extended universe Alien stories were only loosely connected to the overall narrative as most opted to tell their own story without being held back by established canon. One great example of this is the collection of anthology shorts called Aliens: Bug Hunt where seemingly every story in the collection had people encountering Xenomorphs for the first time. The same can also be said for many Dark Horse comics, with that publisher releasing a number of Alien tales that saw the Earth overrun with Xenomorphs or depicting a Xenomorph Civil War–yet whenever a new comic was to be published, those stories were either quickly resolved or completely forgotten.
The Big Deletion is a brilliant maneuver for the Alien extended universe as it grants each story told under the Alien banner complete autonomy since it could have either taken place within the time span of the Big Deletion’s fallout or have happened before the Big Deletion and was erased from history. Either way, with the plethora of contradicting story arcs and the frustrating lack of knowledge about the Xenomorphs within the established universe, Alien’s ‘Big Deletion’ was the perfect solution to its unfixable canon.