I know Gorman was an epic fail (as a leader, not a character), but from a tactical standpoint, what should he have done? I'm curious to know what alternate actions would have been more successful (without "cheating" and saying they would bug out as soon as they realized the colonists were gone...ie using knowledge of events as a viewer to affect outcome).
shareSame results everytime. Lets say the Xenos Nests were inside the caves planet now the Gorman would totally have have a less stressful time without the Nuclear Reactor above anyone.
You gotta stay in your seats until the Sulaco reaches the terminal!
Certainly before going into the Atmospheric Processor he, or someone in the platoon, should have asked what was in the area around the colonists' transponders. That way they would have known what the risks of discharging their weapons would have.
shareshould have asked what was in the area
Sent Bisho in
The greatest trick the Devil played was convincing people he didn't exist.....
I'm sure they would had send Bishop in but Bishop not being payed by the hour!
You gotta stay in your seats until the Sulaco reaches the terminal!
He was being rented by the hour!!!
The greatest trick the Devil played was convincing people he didn't exist.....
Bishop should just have done everything single handedly.
share[deleted]
Gorman made a huge blunder having the marines go on after he ordered them to remove their magazines from their weapons; he left them virtually defenseless. He should have had all the marines withdraw from the complex immediately and send in Bishop to survey sub level three and the nuclear reactor. Once he received confirmation that all the colonists were dead, they should've evacuated the planet like Ripley said later in the film and nuked the colony and alien ship.
Even if Ferro and Spunkmeyer were still killed in the drop shop crash, the APC and its transmitter would be intact because it never got wrecked. So they could've pulled back to a safe location away from the colony and called in the second drop ship for evac. Actually, with a full complement of marines, they probably could've still saved Ferro and Spunkmeyer or at least killed the alien that got them and secured the first drop ship.
Aside from Burke, nobody caused more trouble for the mission than Gorman. He was as inept a military leader as Lt. Wolfe from Platoon.
I know we didn't see any, but wouldn't they have some kind of robotic equipment (not Bishop) to go and scout things out such as the police use, or drones, or even those flying things they had in Prometheus? Why send the troops out without getting some recon first?
shareLike others have said, it's mindboggling that he sent his entire force into the reactor without even knowing it was a reactor. How could you commit your forces without first doing even basic recon?
shareI like to think that Burke rigged the mission and deliberately had Gorman assigned as mission controller, despite (or maybe because of) the latter's inexperience (he seems too passive for a leader and doesn't put his foot down until the Marines protest about the ammunition/reactor situation).
shareThat's actually a great theory.
However, it also begs the question -- why take Ripley along? If the company was scheming to get its hands on an alien, and if Burke was the evil genius puppetmaster taking Gorman along as the useful idiot, then Ripley can only screw that plan up. She is, after all, the sole survivor of the last encounter with the xenomorphs and is fairly strong-willed, opinionated, and completely outside the chain of command. The anti-Gorman, if you will. So if I'm Burke, then I pick her brain for as much as I can get out of her on Earth but I keep her way the hell away from LV-426.
It's quite possible Burke rigged it for Gorman to be the leader of the mission. I think he took Ripkey because I don't think he went there with the intention of bringing one back at first. I don't think he actually knew what to expect when he got there, and his main concern was covering his ass. Once there, his plan changed to bring one back. He also could have been facing pressure from the Company to bring her along. They didn't know what to expect either, so they added her expertise as being the only person to ever see a xenomorph. But he got Gorman to be leader knowing he could manipulate him. I was always curious as to why this was the first time Gorman and the crew worked together. Who was their last Lieutinant, and why wasn't he there? Do they typically get new Lieutinants for each mission? I would think not, which gives the idea of Burke scheming to make it happen even more cred.
shareIn one of the earlier drafts of the script (not sure about the final draft), the Marines were typically led by Apone (a Sergeant), bringing in a Lieutenant only in an extreme case.
shareHowever, it also begs the question -- why take Ripley along?
I certainly think that Gorman should have pulled his team out as soon as he realised that they couldn't fire their standard weapons and sent in a smaller force with flamers, sidearms and Hick's shotgun.
I feel for him in a way. He shouldn't have been put in that position by his superiors and his training would rightly struggle in an environment where he can't use his usual assault rifles.
Let's be honest, if he'd been any good the story would have suffered and Ripley wouldn't have been able to take charge.
His character deserves respect though for going back to Vasquez who did get a little bullet drunk at the end and could have moved along a little quicker (I mean why shoot the door and put more holes in it?) and the wonderful death scene with the grenade.
Small moves Ellie, small moves