I think Alien and Blade Runner were flukes

The Counselor was a masterpiece

In which Ridley had no say in the script. He was brought in to do the only thing he knows how, to operate a camera.

Great craftsman, mediocre artist.

I've been saying this for years. If his films outside of the first two were made by someone else, they'd be ripped to shreds.

I actually enjoyed Prometheus. But I have to admit that he pretty much became a "hit or miss" director. I guess he just stopped caring as much after losing Best Director oscar for Gladiator (which I personnaly am not a fan of). I hated Exodus as an example, and really found Counselor confusing (I'm still not sure how exactly do I feel about it). Blade Runner is definitely my favorite movie from him, it was absolutely outstanding. The first Alien was great as well (my second favorite after Alien 2).

Surprised you didn't like Thelma and Louise, Gladiator, Black Hawk Down or American Gangster.

How can someone fluke perfection?

Alien and Blade Runner are practically flawless. You can't stumble into such greatness.

Prometheus is awesome.

How are films like Legend, Thelma & Louise, Gladiator, Black Hawk Down, American Gangster, The Martian, The Last Duel, etc, etc, 'average or crap'?

Ridley Scott is definitely a hit-and-miss director, but have you seen Thema and Louise? Also, I realise you made your post circa 2015, but hopefully you've now had a chance to see the excellent The Martian.

And as others have pointed out here, Kingdom of Heaven has a lot to recommend it.

He's his own storyboard artist and hand draws his own storyboards in detail. Doing that for Alien impressed the studio bosses so much that they actually doubled the budget upon seeing them because they could see a clear vision for the film.

On Blade Runner, he had his back up against the wall for a lot of the shoot. Harrison Ford was getting pissed off with him and so were the crew with his attention to detail. He (thankfully) stubbornly stuck to his vision and did constant re-takes to make every single shot the best it could be. A lot of the time the crew didn't have a clue what he was doing. Not many directors can say they've made a film where every single shot looks incredible and like a work of art you can hang on your wall. Ridley did that with Blade Runner. Even people who find it boring admit it looks stunning.

Fluke had nothing to do with it when it came to Alien and Blade Runner. It was his dedication to them that made them quality.