1950s Aliens

Advanced alien technology is used
to build a wise-cracking robot.
Will the robot get the girl?

Back in March, I abandoned all hope of finding any interesting space aliens in new films that are being released in 2020.

Searching the 1950s
The 2020 Search for Interesting Aliens (SIHA) is going retro. Nominated for the most interesting aliens from films of the 1950s are:

1) The Krell. I can't remember the first time I saw Forbidden Planet. I was very young and its ancient aliens, the Krell, made a big impression on me. Sadly, we never get to meet the Krell because they destroyed themselves long ago. However, they left behind advanced technology that Dr. Edward Morbius gets to play around with.

brain boost

Optical Mind Probe
One remnant of the Krell is a brain-booster technology that can give you improved cognitive skills. However, when used on a human, this alien technology turned Dr. Morbius into a 1950s vintage mad scientist who killed all his companions on the original expedition to the Krell home world.

Now star-ship C-57D arrives from Earth. Will the dangerous technology of the Krell be spread to Earth? Is the fate of Humanity to be the same as that of the Krell?

Stranger

What is the dangerous Krell technology that now threatens human civilization? A way of amplifying someone's thoughts and turning them into a manifested electromagnetic entity. From Dr. Morbius' subconscious comes a monster that terrorized the crew of starship C-57D.

2) Venusians. The people of Venus have long been watching television. By watching television shows from Earth, the Venusians have learned about Earthly civilization and so, in the Stranger from Venus, the aliens can speak every human language.

Artificial life: Gort and Klaatu

Has the Stranger from Venus (sadly, he has no name) been using the Krell brain-boost technology? No. The Venusians are telepathic and they can instantly transform thoughts into any spoken language.

Sadly, the Venusians have watched so much Earthly television that they have become stupid. They think the distance between Earth and Venus can best be measured in millions of light-years.

3) Master of His Domain. If aliens ever do reach Earth, chances are they will be in the form of an artificial lifeform that can survive the challenges if interstellar travel. In The Day the Earth Stood Still, the Master is a klunky robot who makes use of a humanoid probe (Klaatu) to investigate human society.

Day 2

After being shot, the Klaatu probe can be quickly healed using repair nanites. Since no other interaction between aliens and humans is possible (in the 1950s, the censors would not allow Patricia Neal to have sex with aliens), poor Klaatu gets shot multiple times, but even when "dead", the Master can bring the Klaatu probe back to "life".

The 2008 remake. I'm in favor of updating old Sci Fi stories for new generations of science fiction fans. The 2008 film is a worthy update, but too long with too many needless special effects and not enough information about the aliens.

meta-Earthlings

4) The Zagons. The aliens of This Island Earth come in several flavors with most screen time given to the fair-haired Metalunans who are quite similar to we humans, but with bigger frontal lobes. Sadly, no, that is not a boob joke.

Energy Crisis. The evil Zagons are at war with the unfortunate Metalunans. Even-though the Metalunans have advanced technology, they don't understand physics. The Metalunans travel across vast interstellar distances and kidnap Earthly scientists because they want Faith Domergue to use superior human scientific abilities to discover how to convert lead into uranium, which will allow the Metalunans to defeat the Zagons.

Other absurdities in the story include a "thermal barrier" that surrounds planet Earth and taxes the air conditioning system of the Metalunan spaceship.

A Metaluna Mutant (right).

The Zagons are the coolest aliens in the galaxy because they come from a comet. Rather than use regulation 1950s Sci Fi disintegration rays to blast the Metalunans, the Zagons hurl big meteors at Metaluna, reducing the planet to a type of Swiss Cheese™ that was gloriously depicted on the Big Screen by advanced 1950s Hollywood special FX.

Sadly, images of the Zagons all ended up on the cutting room floor, but there was one 1950s monster that made the final cut (see the image to the right). Given the available technology for depicting aliens in films during the 1950s, it was probably best to keep your space aliens off screen.

Robby: How many females do you need?

The Winner
In November, I announced the winner of the 2020 retro-SIHA award for the best Hollywood aliens of the 1950s.

Next: an alternate Foundation

Visit the Gallery of Sci Fi Posters