# Prometheus Discussion (spoilers) **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 7, 2012, 11:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prometheus-discussion-spoilers/636980 "2012-10-07T11:51:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2012, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prometheus-discussion-spoilers/636980/81 "2012-10-13T15:36:11Z")
> [@filmore](#): > > Ok. Only 95 more to go šŸ™‚ > > The movie never makes it clear if it is or isnā€™t Earth. The intro sure looked like Earth. I spent the movie thinking it was Earth. Itā€™s not enough to have some vague statement in the middle of the movie. Even if they seeded other planets, that doesnā€™t mean the intro planet wasnā€™t Earth. If itā€™s not Earth, he should have made it clear by having some bizarre alien landscape so the viewers would not misinterpret what they were seeing. Look they filmed those scenes in ICELAND. Fricking ICELAND! Of COURSE it was meant to be another planet ā€¦ have you SEEN Iceland? Itā€™s one of the least Earthlike places on Earth. ---
**Author:** ![Hail\_Ants](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/dc4da7/32.png) [@Hail\_Ants](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hail_Ants)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2012, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prometheus-discussion-spoilers/636980/82 "2012-10-14T02:14:49Z")
Look, itā€™s later revealed that the Engineers have our DNA. So itā€™s implied that they seeded Earth with (their) life. Which means that the opening scene was Earth, or could be Earth, or just represented any Earth-like planet that they did this on. I think the big reason why Ridley Scott tried to deny the whole ā€˜Alien prequelā€™ thing is he didnā€™t want any clunky, fanboy pontificating like weā€™re seeing here! A sign of a good storyteller is not relying on idiot-proof, spoon-fed expositionā€¦ ---
**Author:** ![Ostrya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/35a633/32.png) [@Ostrya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ostrya)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2012, 3:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prometheus-discussion-spoilers/636980/83 "2012-10-14T03:39:37Z")
[quote=ā€œIsamu, post:76, topic:636980ā€] > [@filmore](#): > > [Fictional Science: 100 Glaring Logical Issues With Prometheus](http://wegotthiscovered.com/movies/fictional-science-100-glaring-logical-issues-with-prometheus/) > > Iā€™ve only read 3 pages of it so far, and while it makes a few good points itā€™s mostly nonsense and easily rebuttable: > > **1. What is the planet in the opening sequence? We never find out, and while ambiguity is fine in theory, what few conclusions the viewer can make given subsequent evidence make absolutely no sense. For instance, if we assume that the planet is Earth, major logical issues arise, becauseā€¦** > > Itā€™s not Earth. In the middle of the film itā€™s revealed that the engineers were seeding many planets. > > **2. This cannot be the origin of life on Earth. It is what we are led to believe later on as we learn more about the Engineers, but science tells us that life began hundreds of millions of years ago, and the terrain we see in the opening sequence ā€“ mountains, rivers, snow, etc. ā€“ is consistent with the modern geological era. When life originated on Earth, the planet would look almost entirely different. Even if we just traced humanity back to primates, we would be in a different geological era.** > > Itā€™s not Earth. > > **3. If it is not Earth, what is the point of this scene? The only way this sequence actually serves Prometheus in context is if it depicts the creation event characters discuss later on. But if itā€™s not Earth ā€“ and it cannot, by simple math, be Earth ā€“ then it serves no point in the narrative.** > > Yes, it does. > > **4. If we share a perfect DNA match with the Engineers, why does the sacrificial Engineerā€™s DNA have to reconstitute itself? We see the DNA break up and reform before starting cellular mitosis, but this is not scientifically possible or necessary since Elizabeth Shaw later discovers humans and Engineers share the exact same DNA strands, indicating simple sexual reproduction and environment-based evolution, not complex DNA reconstitution.** > > No one said anything about ā€˜strandsā€™. Itā€™s a DNA ā€˜matchā€™, whatever that means in the context of an advanced future. Whatever the engineer drank is, for all intents and purposes, a magic potion. How are you going to tell us that potions donā€™t work that way? > > **5. There are no thrusters on the Engineersā€™ ship. When the Engineersā€™ spaceship leaves the mysterious planet, we see no propulsion system of any sort that would allow it to fly. Even in futuristic science fiction, the laws of physics should be obeyed.** > > Itā€™s an ā€˜advanced civilizationā€™ capable of travel to other stars so we can assume they have advanced technology that would seem like magic to us. Really, if thatā€™s your complaint, you better stop watching SF altogether. This post (by **Isamu** ) exactly. ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2012, 5:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prometheus-discussion-spoilers/636980/84 "2012-10-14T05:10:48Z")
> [@Suil\_Dubh](#): > > Ouch. > > I can only think of two logical explanations as to why the story writing in ā€œPrometheusā€ failed so badly: > > a) the writers were incompetent / on drugs / on drugs and incompetent / willfully malicious > > or > > b) the whole story was slapped together scene-by-scene as a series of ā€œwhat ifā€™sā€. > > I picture Scott saying something like ā€œOK, for the opening I envision the grey aliens on Earth, about to start the process that gives lifeā€¦ā€ > > ā€¦and Lindenhof interrupting him with: > > "Oh, cool! Waitā€¦ what if instead of ā€œaliensā€, itā€™s only one, and like huh, what if he gets abandoned there by his friends, becauseā€¦ ummā€¦ he has to do something dangerous, like ummā€¦ DRINK POISON TO START LIFE [Scott: Hmm, yeah, interesting] ā€¦and like, ummā€¦ what if like the poison breaks down his DNA and then he disintegrates into like the ocean [Scott: Iā€™m getting a good visual off thatā€¦] > > 72 scenes laterā€¦ > > Lindenhof: ā€¦ and so what if we time it to 2000 years ago, so the first alien was JESUS CHRIST! Wow! Wouldnā€™t that be a head tripā€¦ > > 283 scenes laterā€¦ > > Lindenhof: ā€¦and then what if the crew encounters a similar looking black goo, but like, instead of breaking down their DNA, it turns them into murderous spider-monkey zombiesā€¦ and like what if there were worms and bugs in the temple and they turn intoā€¦ NO WAIT! Letā€™s have them turn into proto-alien tentacle hentai monstersā€¦ and then what if instead of running away THE CREW TRIES TO PLAY WITH THEM! > > Scads of scenes laterā€¦ > > ā€¦and then what if he has sex with herā€¦ BUT THE GOO GIVES HER A NEW STRAIN OF ALIEN BABBYā€¦ > > ā€¦what if WEYLAND WAS IN THE SHIP ALL ALONG! > > ā€¦and what if, my God, no one will see this coming, WHAT IF VICKERS IS AN ALIEN!!1!! [Scott: Errā€¦ Iā€™m not sure that makes anyā€¦] OK, OK we can make her an androidā€¦ OR NOT! WHAT IF WE MAKE IT REALLY AMBIGUOUS !!22!!2! > > _sigh_ > > My personal guess is Explanation b), as there was apparently already a script that had too many ā€œAlienā€ plot elements in it. I can easily envision Lindenhof ā€œwhat offingā€ the Alien eggs into bioweapon containers etc. > > So basically, I think itā€™s pointless to try and wring any sense, coherence, or rationality out of the film, because there was never any there in the first place. Every single plot element was introduced soley to tie one scene into the next with no overall thought towards the bigger picture (pun intended). i will go with Explanation B. I used to write reviews of B movies and softcore movies, and one of the issues I had to deal with was what I called the Comic Book Critics Conundrum. Comic book critics will sometimes write lengthy screeds about the hidden psychological aspects of Glowing Gigantic Man or the aesthetics of death by electro-ray. Some of it can be interesting, insightful and amusing, but on the few occasions Iā€™ve read such work Iā€™ve always had an uneasy awareness that the story being written about is most likely a pile of adolescent testosterone spew and nothing more. Similar pitfalls exist in B-movies. One searches for insight, intelligence, characterization and so forth, but mostly one finds formulaic scripting, acting and direction at best, or the garbled natterings of wasted minds at worst. So, when you find an almost good characterization or halfway decent plotting in a B movie, you have to wonder ā€“ have you found something good or are you projecting qualities into the film that actually donā€™t exist? In the case of ā€œPrometheus,ā€ an A movie, I think all the signs point to a binge of coke-addled blah-blah-blah being the basis for the story. ---
**Author:** ![Hail\_Ants](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/dc4da7/32.png) [@Hail\_Ants](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hail_Ants)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2012, 6:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prometheus-discussion-spoilers/636980/85 "2012-10-14T06:06:55Z")
Bah! I think you guys are all being too judgmental. I think Scott from the start planned this as a trilogy (or two films at least) and all the supposed plot holes were there deliberately. Not thru laziness but simply to, as the old saying goes, leave the audience wanting more. I donā€™t know if itā€™s been referenced yet, but [this YouTube reviewer](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D7CChfYoO_I&feature=related) does a very good job of analyzing the film (from a decidedly non-fanboy, non-comic-book-nerd POV!) In the end he doesnā€™t have all the answers about the film either, but thatā€™s the point! ---
**Author:** ![Grumman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/43a26b/32.png) [@Grumman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grumman)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2012, 6:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prometheus-discussion-spoilers/636980/86 "2012-10-14T06:41:19Z")
> [@Hail\_Ants](#): > > Bah! I think you guys are all being too judgmental. I think Scott from the start planned this as a trilogy (or two films at least) and all the supposed plot holes were there deliberately. Not thru laziness but simply to, as the old saying goes, leave the audience wanting more. Which is completely arse-backwards, at least for me. If you want me to continue with your franchise, make me want _more of the same_, not _more because this one was unsatisfying_. ---
**Author:** ![Isamu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/7c8e57/32.png) [@Isamu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Isamu)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2012, 7:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prometheus-discussion-spoilers/636980/87 "2012-10-14T07:39:43Z")
> [@Hail\_Ants](#): > > Bah! I think you guys are all being too judgmental. I think Scott from the start planned this as a trilogy (or two films at least) and all the supposed plot holes were there deliberately. Not thru laziness but simply to, as the old saying goes, leave the audience wanting more. I donā€™t know if itā€™s been referenced yet, but [this YouTube reviewer](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D7CChfYoO_I&feature=related) does a very good job of analyzing the film (from a decidedly non-fanboy, non-comic-book-nerd POV!) In the end he doesnā€™t have all the answers about the film either, but thatā€™s the point! Yeah me too. Imagine if our original makers were the xenomorphs. But an uncorrupted, benevolent xenomorph. What weā€™ve only seen up until now are corrupted, bastardized forms of them as just killing machines. But the true original xenomorphs and 100 times more powerful, and they are on a mission to wipe out the lesser xenomorphs. That would be fun. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2012, 8:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prometheus-discussion-spoilers/636980/88 "2012-10-14T08:52:23Z")
> [@Hail\_Ants](#): > > Bah! I think you guys are all being too judgmental. I think Scott from the start planned this as a trilogy (or two films at least) and all the supposed plot holes were there deliberately. Not thru laziness but simply to, as the old saying goes, leave the audience wanting more. I donā€™t know if itā€™s been referenced yet, but [this YouTube reviewer](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D7CChfYoO_I&feature=related) does a very good job of analyzing the film (from a decidedly non-fanboy, non-comic-book-nerd POV!) In the end he doesnā€™t have all the answers about the film either, but thatā€™s the point! Iā€™d agree, _if the movie had acknowledged the plot holes_ - like, if one of the characters had said, ā€œHow the hell did they manage to seed Earth 1 billion years ago, and still end up with descendants genetically identical to them?ā€ or, ā€œSo, like, why did they leave us those star maps to a weapons facility?ā€ or, ā€œWhy is Vickers such an idiot?ā€ Barring something like, Occamā€™s Razor leads me to believe that the writers are dumber than they think, rather than smarter. Nobody ever lost money by underestimating the stupidity of Hollywood screenwriters. ---
**Author:** ![Lamia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Lamia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamia)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2012, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prometheus-discussion-spoilers/636980/89 "2012-10-14T15:49:44Z")
> [@Hail\_Ants](#): > > Bah! I think you guys are all being too judgmental. I think Scott from the start planned this as a trilogy (or two films at least) and all the supposed plot holes were there deliberately. Not thru laziness but simply to, as the old saying goes, leave the audience wanting more. I donā€™t know if itā€™s been referenced yet, but [this YouTube reviewer](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D7CChfYoO_I&feature=related) does a very good job of analyzing the film (from a decidedly non-fanboy, non-comic-book-nerd POV!) In the end he doesnā€™t have all the answers about the film either, but thatā€™s the point! As I said in the other thread, if this is true then I think even less of the movie and of Scott. Itā€™s one thing to try and fail to tell a coherent story, and another to deliberately create a story thatā€™s holes in hopes that the saps who paid $8 to see it will cough up another $8-$16 for the sequels. Thatā€™s basically just scamming your audience. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Colossus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.colossus/32/9423_2.png) [@Dr.Colossus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Colossus)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2012, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prometheus-discussion-spoilers/636980/90 "2012-10-14T22:46:04Z")
it canā€™t be the case. i mean, maybe for a few HUGE glaring omissions, maybeā€“ but how is a sequel going to explain why the main point of Vickers was to be a total bitch for no real reason, when no one really liked or respected her, even tho she wasnā€™t just the boss of the company who hired all of themā€“but was de facto president/ceo of said companyā€“which, what CEO does that?! and on that noteā€“since the ACTUAL president/ceo was fakinā€™ being dead for no real reason AND WAS ON THE SAME MISSION, why would SHE go as well? who is running the company while these two idiots are off in hypersleep ā€œhalf a billion milesā€ from earth? and also vickersā€“who probably wasnā€™t a robot but _could_ have been a man (this is my theoryā€“sheā€™s a dude. the whole disdain at the "closest thing to a son comment; the male-only med pod; her strength; the weird sexual tension. think about itā€¦) who runs in a the dumbest way from disaster to an unceremonious deathā€¦? sequel fix that. how is a sequel going to explain why david needed to LEARN stuff through lessons when heā€™s a damn superhuman machine who could just download info? or why a geologist would go to school to learn in and degree in rocks and fossils only to be scared shit-stupid the first nanosecond upon seeing a fossil? or why a biologist would travel ā€œhalf a billion milesā€ across space to look for life but be scared shit-stupid the first nanosecond upon seeing confirmed alien fossils?ā€“but then be shit-brave-stupid the first nanosecond upon seeing a clearly dangerous living alien black-slime dickcobra? ā€“howā€™s a sequel going to explain that the term ā€œhalf a billion millionsā€ doesnā€™t even get them out of our own solar system? this movie is just stupid and bad. it just is. there could be some nitpicks to big stuff that can be made right again w a sequel, but nothing is going to pull this out of the bullshit spiral of stupidity it so willfully dove into. itā€™s just a really cool, pretty, STUPID, illogical movie. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2012, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prometheus-discussion-spoilers/636980/91 "2012-10-14T23:10:04Z")
Maybe itā€™s a satire. ---
**Author:** ![filmore](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/7993a0/32.png) [@filmore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/filmore)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2012, 11:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prometheus-discussion-spoilers/636980/92 "2012-10-14T23:15:31Z")
The problem with explaining all the plot holes in later movies is that the audience may not stick around for the later movies. I was very eager to see Prometheus, but Iā€™m not likely to see any sequels because the first one let me down so much. It was the same for Star Wars prequels (saw 1 in theater, 2 on dvd, no interest in the 3rd) and the Matrix (1 and 2 in theaters, no interest in 3rd). The sequels would have to be phenomenal for me to be interested in seeing them. ---
**Author:** ![Hail\_Ants](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/dc4da7/32.png) [@Hail\_Ants](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hail_Ants)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2012, 2:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prometheus-discussion-spoilers/636980/93 "2012-10-15T02:41:10Z")
> [@filmore](#): > > The problem with explaining all the plot holes in later movies is that the audience may not stick around for the later movies. I was very eager to see Prometheus, but Iā€™m not likely to see any sequels because the first one let me down so much. It was the same for Star Wars prequels (saw 1 in theater, 2 on dvd, no interest in the 3rd) and the Matrix (1 and 2 in theaters, no interest in 3rd). The sequels would have to be phenomenal for me to be interested in seeing them. Well, I donā€™t know what to say other than Ridley Scott is way more of an artist than either George Lucas or the Wachowski bros. Both of them had one huge initial hit, and then just sold their soles for the sequels. šŸ˜ƒ ---
**Author:** ![grude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47774/32.png) [@grude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/grude)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2012, 12:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prometheus-discussion-spoilers/636980/94 "2012-10-17T12:10:10Z")
Well from the ā€œit could have been worseā€ camp does anyone remember how during production there was a rumor from an insider that the Space Jockeys were going to force two male crew members to have sex as an experiment? Everyone was like WTF are you kidding? But now having seen the movie Iā€™m wondering if originally the squid baby/first facehugger came about that way, or if Shaw was originally male? So hey we could have had a movie with heavy christian overtones show us that the origin of the aliens and facehuggers was gay sex, wouldnā€™t that have been great!:eek: The movie had a very tortured production too, Scott flip flopped between ā€œalien prequelā€ and ā€œoriginal storyā€ several times, tons of rewrites and new writers. Probably a miracle it came out as well as it did. ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2012, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prometheus-discussion-spoilers/636980/95 "2012-10-17T15:19:43Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > Maybe itā€™s a satire. I donā€™t know about satire, but Iā€™ve always been kinda bothered by the really gross stupidities the ā€œscientistsā€ indulge in, most especially the scene where the one guy whips off his helmet just because thereā€™s air. That kind of thing was stupid, and widely mocked for being stupid, back when they did it in 1950s SF films. It makes me think they included the scene DELIBERATELY, perhaps as an ā€œin your faceā€ for the sort of SF fan who would find it outrageous. But thereā€™s not a consistent pattern to it. The much more likely theory is that itā€™s actual, likely drug-addled idiocy. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2012, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prometheus-discussion-spoilers/636980/96 "2012-10-17T15:39:36Z")
> [@grude](#): > > Well from the ā€œit could have been worseā€ camp does anyone remember how during production there was a rumor from an insider that the Space Jockeys were going to force two male crew members to have sex as an experiment? Everyone was like WTF are you kidding? But now having seen the movie Iā€™m wondering if originally the squid baby/first facehugger came about that way, or if Shaw was originally male? Squids: a little-known hazard of gay sex. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2012, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prometheus-discussion-spoilers/636980/97 "2012-10-17T16:29:47Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > Squids: a little-known hazard of gay sex. The real tragedy is when the squids are unwanted, because the parents break up. ---
**Author:** ![Hypno-Toad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b2d939/32.png) [@Hypno-Toad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hypno-Toad)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2012, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prometheus-discussion-spoilers/636980/98 "2012-10-17T17:57:32Z")
ā€œCongratulations, Reggie. Itā€™s aā€¦ Squid.ā€ If theyā€™d brought a few Men In Black with them, thereā€™d have been no problems at all. ---
**Author:** ![Grumman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/43a26b/32.png) [@Grumman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grumman)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2012, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prometheus-discussion-spoilers/636980/99 "2012-10-18T02:47:12Z")
> [@Evil\_Captor](#): > > I donā€™t know about satire, but Iā€™ve always been kinda bothered by the really gross stupidities the ā€œscientistsā€ indulge in, most especially the scene where the one guy whips off his helmet just because thereā€™s air. That kind of thing was stupid, and widely mocked for being stupid, back when they did it in 1950s SF films. It makes me think they included the scene DELIBERATELY, perhaps as an ā€œin your faceā€ for the sort of SF fan who would find it outrageous. But thereā€™s not a consistent pattern to it. The much more likely theory is that itā€™s actual, likely drug-addled idiocy. Even if it _was_ satire, it would still be idiocy. The thing about deliberately making a shit movie is that youā€™re still making a shit movie, even if it was on purpose. ---
**Author:** ![Hail\_Ants](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/dc4da7/32.png) [@Hail\_Ants](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hail_Ants)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2012, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prometheus-discussion-spoilers/636980/100 "2012-10-19T00:57:00Z")
> [@Evil\_Captor](#): > > I donā€™t know about satire, but Iā€™ve always been kinda bothered by the really gross stupidities the ā€œscientistsā€ indulge in, most especially the scene where the one guy whips off his helmet just because thereā€™s air. That kind of thing was stupid, and widely mocked for being stupid, back when they did it in 1950s SF films. It makes me think they included the scene DELIBERATELY, perhaps as an ā€œin your faceā€ for the sort of SF fan who would find it outrageous. But thereā€™s not a consistent pattern to it. The much more likely theory is that itā€™s actual, likely drug-addled idiocy. I agree. Hell, even before that scene, after they first land and the black pilot guy says that itā€™ll be dark in less than six hours so the first EVA will have to wait a day and the idiot, over-eager scientists say ā€˜No way man!ā€™ and overrule him. They spent a trillion dollars and how many years to reach that place?! No. You wait another day. Thereā€™s a reason youā€™re supposed to have the pragmatic, sensible, para-military guys in charge of things, not the neo-hippie scientists!! šŸ˜ƒ [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prometheus-discussion-spoilers/636980.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prometheus-discussion-spoilers/636980.md?page=6)