Science Officer Ash
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Ash (ID# 111/C2/01X) was the science officer on the commercial towing vessel Nostromo in the 1979 science fiction film Alien. He was played by actor Ian Holm.
[edit] Background
As Science Officer, Ash had the final say on everything related to the Weyland-Yutani Company Science Division. This included medical treatment, biological research, and investigation of any possible intelligent life forms encountered. He abruptly replaced the previous science officer, whom Captain Dallas had shipped out with six times before, just as the Nostromo left Thedus for its return journey to Earth. Ash was generally quiet, well-mannered, and well-spoken. Although Warrant Officer Ellen Ripley was suspicious of him, the rest of the crew treated Ash like any other crew member. Over Ripley's objections, Dallas entrusted Ash with all science decisions.
[edit] Events
When the ship's computer, Mother, awakened the crew after receiving an alien distress call, it was Ash who pressed the point of investigating the call, pointing out that failure to do so would result in the forfeiture of all the crew's shares.
While several members of the crew were investigating the source of the distress call on the surface of a planetoid, Ripley discovered that the signal appeared to be a warning, and was about to go after her crewmembers, who may have been in danger, when Ash stopped her by saying that by the time she got there they would know if the signal was a warning or not.
Ash violated the Science Division's basic quarantine law (24 hours for decontamination) by opening the main hatch, allowing Kane to enter the ship with the "facehugger" attached to him. Later, he would nonchalantly claim as justification that he was acting on a direct order for Dallas, but when Ripley reminds him that she was the acting command officer at the time, Ash relents, admitting that he took matters into his own hands.
Ash apparently ignored Parker's suggestion to freeze Kane's body (which, presumably would have also frozen the creature's life cycle) and also attempted to discourage Dallas in his decision to cut the facehugger from Kane, on the grounds that it may have resulted in Kane's death, as the parasite was feeding him oxygen.
However, the true reason behind Ash's behaviour was Special Order 937—Science Officer Eyes Only, embedded within the ship's computer, with which Ash was constantly "collating." Unknown to the other six Nostromo crewmembers, Ash was really an android (Hyperdyne Systems 120/A2) planted on their vessel to carry out the Company's secret mission detailed in Special Order 937:
- SPECIAL ORDER 937: "NOSTROMO REROUTED TO NEW COORDINATES. INVESTIGATE LIFE FORM. GATHER SPECIMEN. PRIORITY ONE.
INSURE RETURN OF ORGANISM FOR ANALYSIS. ALL OTHER CONSIDERATIONS SECONDARY. CREW EXPENDABLE."
The "organism" was, of course, the titular Alien. When Ripley assumed command and eventually discovered Special Order 937, Ash attempted to kill her to keep her silent. Despite Ash's superior robotic strength, he was eventually outnumbered and overwhelmed by Lambert and Parker, who decapitated him, although his body continued to struggle.
Rather than "killing" him, the decapitation rendered Ash in "negative capacity" for operation. Thus, he was plugged back in and questioned by the three remaining crewmembers (the remainder had been either killed or captured by the alien). Ash spoke of his admiration for the species: "A perfect organism... structural perfection.... I admire its purity. A survivor unclouded by conscience, remorse, or delusions of morality." He parted with the words: "I can't lie to you about your chances, but (smirkingly) you have my sympathies." Afterwards Ash was rendered permanently inoperative when Parker incinerated him with a flamethrower unit.
Though Ash had given valid information and vital assistance to the crew, he had also been protecting the alien from the beginning. In fact, every action taken by Ash was designed to get the alien on board the Nostromo for the return trip to Earth. In a way, Ash was "protecting them from each other", so as to minimize any damage brought on by inter-species contact. Like the Nostromo itself, Ash and all other crewmembers' official whereabouts remained unknown for the next 57 years. He was missing and presumed destroyed from 2122 until 2179, when the off-course Narcissus escape ship was detected by the deep-salvage team and picked up (providing the explanation for the missing Nostromo, which had mysteriously vanished without a trace).
