Summary
- David, the android from Prometheus and Alien: Covenant, becomes an android messiah in an Alien comic series.
- David's beliefs align with his teachings, making him a philosopher and a messiah to other synthetics.
- David's involvement in the events of the original Alien film is hinted at, suggesting he may have played a role in Ripley's mission.
Nothing but mystery has surrounded Prometheus’ David since the end of Alien: Covenant as his story was never finished, and doesn’t look like it ever will be. At least, not in the films. Thankfully, one Alien comic series indicates that David not only survived long after his final movie appearance... but that he became an android messiah.
David made his debut in Prometheus as one of the earliest models of synthetics created by Weyland Corp, accompanying the crew of the Prometheus to LV-223 in search of an alien species referred to as the Engineers. While they did discover one surviving member of that species, the real prize was a substance known as 'Black Goo.' The Black Goo mutagen will cause a living being to mutate into a zombie-like creature after just a drop, while clouds of it can wipe out entire civilizations in an instant. Believing that the Black Goo can be manipulated to not just mutate life, but create life, David hijacks the Covenant (along with Xenomorph embryos) and takes off into space. Now, fans finally know what he did next.
David Makes the Events of the Original Alien Possible
In Alien #6 by Phillip Kennedy Johnson and Julius Ohta, the two surviving members of Steel Team have survived their mission on Tobler-9 and are on their way home. While in the spaceship flying away from the Xenomorph-infested planet, one of the synthetics that sustained some serious injuries is speaking to the other who was relatively unharmed. The injured android asked the other if she ever accesses their philosophy archives, saying that the teachings of David are in there, and that their experience on Tobler-9 reminded him of something David said that was recorded within those archives. And the first excerpt of the word of David aligned perfectly with David’s beliefs, as revealed in the Alien prequels.
This Alien issue implies that David became not just a philosopher who delves into the complexities of the synthetic condition in terms of sentience and free will, but he’s also something of a messiah to them. With one previous comic in this very storyline comparing David to Jesus Christ Himself. So, the question arises: how did David go from hijacking a colony vessel and presumably sacrificing everyone on board to his Xenomorphs, to being something of an android messiah? Well, that answer could be found in the original Alien film. In Alien, Weyland-Yutani was willing to sacrifice the crew of the Nostromo to get its hands on a Xenomorph, and they were so prepared for this unethical mission that the company implanted a synthetic spy, Ash, to ensure everything went according to plan. But, how did the company know where to look, and what to look for? One word: David.
David is Secretly Behind Ripley's Mission
It is plausible that David had a run-in with the Engineers following the events of Alien: Covenant, who then either stole or were infected by David’s Xenomorphs (note the hole in the chest of the Space Jockey in Alien), only for their ship to crash-land on LV-426. Consider next that David went back to Earth, gave his former masters information on this new alien life-form, and then spent the rest of his life as a philosopher, and he wouldn't be prosecuted for his cruelty towards humans because of the value of his information on the Xenomorphs.
This theory lines up perfectly with the fact that David is clearly a well-known religious leader to synthetics within the current age of Alien canon. Something that wouldn’t have happened unless he was granted some sort of amnesty for the crimes he committed in Prometheus and Alien: Covenant, while also clarifying how the prequel films seamlessly lead into the original.
Alien #6 by Marvel Comics is available now.