In Alien 3, the ship that is sent to retrieve Ripley and the alien inside her is called the USCSS Patna. Patna is the name of a ship in Joseph Conrad’s novel Lord Jim. In this novel, the Patna is sinking. Rather than trying to save the ship’s passengers first, the captain thinks only of saving himself. Here, the themes of betrayal and selfishness match with how the Weyland-Yutani corporation is depicted. In the Alien films, there are plenty of people in mortal peril, yet Weyland-Yutani only cares about exploiting the xenomorph life form for their own benefit. In Alien 3, the Patna is not sent to rescue the prisoners or Ripley. It is only being sent to secure the lifeform. As far as they are concerned, Ripley and the inmates are expendable. In parallel to how Conrad’s most famous novels end, Alien 3 sees the death of its main protagonist. Ripley does the only thing she can in the situation, sacrificing herself to prevent the xenomorph from getting into the hands of Weyland-Yutani. She also ensures that humanity will remain safe, and in many ways this action invokes the sacrifice of Jesus Christ – especially given the plot of the following film.
In Alien: Resurrection, the ship is named the USM Auriga. The Auriga is named after the constellation. One of the stories behind the constellation is Hippolytus, who like Ripley, is resurrected. This ship name and film title reflect another important topic in the franchise, which is religion. Alien 3 takes place on a prison world that is run more like a monastery than a penitentiary. The inmates are all violent offenders who have all come to this place to try and live out their lives together in peace. They are lost souls, cast aside by humanity, and they turn to religion for solace. In an original concept for Alien 3 the film did in fact take place in a religious sanctuary, and the appearance of the xenomorph would become a real life reenactment of good vs. evil. But this struggle, of evil incarnate, is something that makes all of the Alien films successful. The xenomorph is fear, and pain, and ultimately death.
Like Prometheus, Alien: Covenant is named after the main ship. Covenant is an interesting title for the ship as it seems to fit in well with the themes of the franchise. Covenant could refer to religious agreements, such as the promises made to humanity by God in the Bible, pursuant to several behavioral conditions. With Prometheus’ reveal of the Engineer’s being our creator, the seeds of conflict have already been planted. By naming the ship and the film after this principle, we get the idea that humanity isn’t living up to their side of the agreement and could be dealing with the “consequences”. Betrayal and greed could very well be involved.
