The terrifying Xenomorphs from the Alien franchise have essentially been introduced to Star Wars canon by none other than Darth Vader. The Star Wars universe has been no stranger to incorporating its own version of legendary sci-fi creatures to their ever-expanding galaxy. Whether it be a direct inclusion of E.T.’s people in The Phantom Menace or creating Star Wars‘ own version of Dune‘s Sandworms in Splinter of the Mind’s Eye, the franchise has found ways to pay homage to some of the best known characters in the genre. Now, another famous creature that has haunted the nightmares of fans everywhere has been introduced to the galaxy far, far away…but it looks like it may be no match for the Empire’s most fearsome figure.
Star Wars: Darth Vader – Black, White and Red #2 features a story by David Pepose and Alessandro Vitti called “The Endless Mercy” in which Vader and some of his stormtroopers investigate a drifting ship. The starcraft was home to a doctor named Sera Lemare and her crew, where she was working on “a bioweapon being developed in secret,” but now it appears to be abandoned. However, it doesn’t take long for Vader and his crew to realize they’re not alone as creepy alien lifeforms known as Z’Rakkon begin to attack and abduct them. While at first they appear to be just an ordinary space species that are common in the Star Wars universe, the connections to Alien and the Xenomorphs become more apparent as Vader is taken to their lair.
The culture of these creatures is startling close to how the Xenomorphs multiply and ensure their survival. They both keep their prey alive and glued to walls to incubate their young in their hosts. When it’s time for the new offspring to emerge, they burst forward through the host’s chest just like the chestbursters do in Alien. They even have a Queen that oversees everything in the form of Lemare becoming a hybrid Z’Rakkon creature. There are occasional differences between the two that set the Star Wars version apart from the Xenomorphs, such as the fact that the host of these chestbursters end up becoming Z’Rakkons themselves and not just an incubator that dies after the egg hatches. Still, it’s very clear that Alien was a huge inspiration when it comes to their design.
Darth Vader Proves He Can Easily Defeat Xenomorphs
What’s interesting about this version of Alien‘s monster is that they have one weakness that they don’t see coming. As Vader is about to succumb to becoming a Z’Rakkon, his connection to the dark side of the Force actually kills the creature within him and his connection to the Hive Mind. In essence, the dark side is so powerful that he can destroy Xenomorphs should he ever get affected by a Facehugger. It’s astounding to see what was once considered the Perfect Organism be so easily destroyed by someone like Darth Vader.
The very beginning of “The Endless Mercy” actually features a quote by Vader where he declares himself to be “the perfect killing machine.” While many readers would expect him to eat those words as he faces off against the Z’Rakkon, he actually ends up proving it with his ties to the Dark Side. Since the Z’Rakkon are essentially the Xenomorphs from Alien, this proves that they would be no match for Darth Vader should their paths ever cross, and while this is likely as close as the two franchises will get to a crossover, this is still an exhilarating way to showcase how the two would face off.
Source: screenrant
