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Aliens: The Original Years Omnibus #3
Aliens: The Original Years Omnibus Vol. 3
More tales of Alien horror! A team of soldiers must reclaim an overrun space station! Bug hunter extraordinaire Herk Mondo returns! Can pirates defeat Aliens with...a pig? An Alien stalks a religious settlement with a dark secret! A contaminated xenomorph egg spreads disease and death! A surveyor must determine if an Alien attack is real, or all in his head! A rescue specialist investigates the Aliens’ past! Will a new strikeforce give mankind a fighting chance? And what lurks in a massive and ancient necropolis? a special jam story with more than forty amazing artists! Collecting BERSERKER #1-4, MONDO HEAT, LOVESICK, PIG, ALIENS SPECIAL, HAVOC #1-2, PURGE, ALCHEMY #1-3, ALIEN RESURRECTION #1-2, KIDNAPPED #1-3, SURVIVAL #1-3, GLASS CORRIDOR, STALKER, WRAITH, APOCALYPSE — THE DESTROYING ANGELS #1-4, XENOGENESIS #1-4 and ALIENS (2009) #1-4 — plus material from DARK HORSE COMICS #22-24; DARK HORSE PRESENTS (1986) #101-102, #117, #121, #140 and ANNUAL 1997; A DECADE OF DARK HORSE #3 and FREE COMIC BOOK DAY 2009: ALIENS.
1008 pages, Hardcover
First published November 22, 2022
21 people are currently reading
84 people want to read
About the author
John Wagner
1,293 books191 followersJohn Wagner is a comics writer who was born in Pennsylvania in 1949 and moved to Scotland as a boy. Alongside Pat Mills, Wagner was responsible for revitalising British boys' comics in the 1970s, and has continued to be a leading light in British comics ever since. He is best known for his work on 2000 AD, for which he created Judge Dredd. He is noted for his taut, violent thrillers and his black humour. Among his pseudonyms are The best known are John Howard, T.B. Grover, Mike Stott, Keef Ripley, Rick Clark and Brian Skuter. (Wikipedia)
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
November 4, 2023
(Zero spoiler review) 2.5/5
Man, talk about a nose dive in quality. The first two volumes, although weighed down with the occasional bland and very skippable story, the amount of hits vs misses always favoured the latter, and generally made for a pretty strong reading experience. Sadly on volume three is like the hot-dog of the Aliens comics, with all the shit left over swept up off the floor and sold to chumps like me who neither foresaw nor expected such a significant dip in quality, both story-wise, but unfortunately artistically as well.
There are a few solid little numbers here, although hot damn, you've got to dig for them. Far too many times I found myself utterly dumfounded or disinterested a few pages in, and made the choice to skip forward to the next story. That said, there were still plenty of middling stories I stuck it out to the end for.
Ultimately, the handful of half decent stories aside, there is nothing here that demands a re-read whatsoever. It's made me very apprehensive over whether to pick up volume four or not. A completed omnibus set be damned if it's going to be this disappointing. 2.5/5
OmniBen.
Man, talk about a nose dive in quality. The first two volumes, although weighed down with the occasional bland and very skippable story, the amount of hits vs misses always favoured the latter, and generally made for a pretty strong reading experience. Sadly on volume three is like the hot-dog of the Aliens comics, with all the shit left over swept up off the floor and sold to chumps like me who neither foresaw nor expected such a significant dip in quality, both story-wise, but unfortunately artistically as well.
There are a few solid little numbers here, although hot damn, you've got to dig for them. Far too many times I found myself utterly dumfounded or disinterested a few pages in, and made the choice to skip forward to the next story. That said, there were still plenty of middling stories I stuck it out to the end for.
Ultimately, the handful of half decent stories aside, there is nothing here that demands a re-read whatsoever. It's made me very apprehensive over whether to pick up volume four or not. A completed omnibus set be damned if it's going to be this disappointing. 2.5/5
OmniBen.
December 28, 2022
Breaks my heart but this Volume is even worse than the second one.
The major issue with this volume for me is not one single story is a 5 star. You get a few that scrape by with a 3 or 4 star, but none impressed me to the point I was blown away. Some solid one shots, or goofy one shots that worked on a entertainment level, but as far as actual plot and characters, none of these did much.
It's the 90's. Alot of bad comics were made then.
And this is no exception. A ton of really bland, over the top, titties popping out for no reason, dumb plotlines that barely made sense half the time. I reviewed most of them individually but more than half of this was a mess at best, terrible more than not. I couldn't stand some of the art either in some stories.
A weak overall Omnibus and I'm really hoping volume 4, the final one, steps it up.
The major issue with this volume for me is not one single story is a 5 star. You get a few that scrape by with a 3 or 4 star, but none impressed me to the point I was blown away. Some solid one shots, or goofy one shots that worked on a entertainment level, but as far as actual plot and characters, none of these did much.
It's the 90's. Alot of bad comics were made then.
And this is no exception. A ton of really bland, over the top, titties popping out for no reason, dumb plotlines that barely made sense half the time. I reviewed most of them individually but more than half of this was a mess at best, terrible more than not. I couldn't stand some of the art either in some stories.
A weak overall Omnibus and I'm really hoping volume 4, the final one, steps it up.
January 31, 2023
My personal favorite era of Aliens comics! It was great revisiting some old favorites and reading several I had missed when they came out.
April 27, 2025
Going into Aliens: The Original Years Omnibus Volume 3, I’ll admit — I half-expected a drop-off. Just like in movie trilogies, the third installment often sees a dip in production quality, storytelling focus, and overall audience satisfaction. Sadly, this collection falls right into that pattern. While there are still some moments worth appreciating, this volume has a much higher ratio of forgettable to memorable stories compared to the first two.
Spanning a wide range of late '90s Alien tales, this omnibus covers everything from bug-hunt action and pirate hijinks to moody psychological horror. But the consistency that carried the earlier volumes starts to break down here. Many of the stories feel rushed, thin, or tonally off, and the art swings wildly from great to downright rough. Even with the omnibus' solid physical quality—tight binding, sharp reproduction—the material inside makes for a far bumpier reading experience.
There are still some strong visual highlights that stand out. Richard Corben brings his unmistakable style to "Aliens: Alchemy", with his heavy lines and rubbery, exaggerated anatomy giving the story a surreal, grotesque quality. Gene Colan’s contribution to Dark Horse Presents #117 feels almost like a painting done with a pencil—full of deep shadows, flowing movement, and a hazy, dreamlike atmosphere. Guy Davis’ work on "Aliens: Survival" offers rough, kinetic linework that heightens the tension and unease, while Francisco Solano López’s "Aliens: Kidnapped" uses a more classic, European comics style—clean, crisp, and highly expressive—which helps sell the weirdness of that particular tale. These artists manage to inject some life into a collection that desperately needs it.
But even with those bright spots, the overall experience is weighed down by the sheer volume of mediocre material. Many stories feel shallow, poorly thought-out, or stylistically at odds with the core horror of the franchise. It’s no surprise that after this stretch, Dark Horse put the Alien comics line on ice for about a decade—there’s a real sense of burnout here, both creatively and commercially. The break, combined with the several unresolved storylines, leaves this omnibus feeling less like a strong finish and more like a fizzle.
In the end, Aliens: The Original Years Omnibus Volume 3 is worth having if you’re a completist or an Aliens die-hard, but it’s easily the weakest of the Original Years sets. Thankfully, Volume 4 promises the modern-era stories, and I’m hoping that shift brings the kind of quality rebound this series deserves.
Spanning a wide range of late '90s Alien tales, this omnibus covers everything from bug-hunt action and pirate hijinks to moody psychological horror. But the consistency that carried the earlier volumes starts to break down here. Many of the stories feel rushed, thin, or tonally off, and the art swings wildly from great to downright rough. Even with the omnibus' solid physical quality—tight binding, sharp reproduction—the material inside makes for a far bumpier reading experience.
There are still some strong visual highlights that stand out. Richard Corben brings his unmistakable style to "Aliens: Alchemy", with his heavy lines and rubbery, exaggerated anatomy giving the story a surreal, grotesque quality. Gene Colan’s contribution to Dark Horse Presents #117 feels almost like a painting done with a pencil—full of deep shadows, flowing movement, and a hazy, dreamlike atmosphere. Guy Davis’ work on "Aliens: Survival" offers rough, kinetic linework that heightens the tension and unease, while Francisco Solano López’s "Aliens: Kidnapped" uses a more classic, European comics style—clean, crisp, and highly expressive—which helps sell the weirdness of that particular tale. These artists manage to inject some life into a collection that desperately needs it.
But even with those bright spots, the overall experience is weighed down by the sheer volume of mediocre material. Many stories feel shallow, poorly thought-out, or stylistically at odds with the core horror of the franchise. It’s no surprise that after this stretch, Dark Horse put the Alien comics line on ice for about a decade—there’s a real sense of burnout here, both creatively and commercially. The break, combined with the several unresolved storylines, leaves this omnibus feeling less like a strong finish and more like a fizzle.
In the end, Aliens: The Original Years Omnibus Volume 3 is worth having if you’re a completist or an Aliens die-hard, but it’s easily the weakest of the Original Years sets. Thankfully, Volume 4 promises the modern-era stories, and I’m hoping that shift brings the kind of quality rebound this series deserves.
October 3, 2024
Noticeable Decline in Story Quality
There’s some good stories in this collection, but it mostly consists of mediocre writing combined with a dip in art quality too. Unfortunately, this collection probably has highest density of mediocre to bad stories of the four original years volumes.
The best stories and art are probably from Aliens Apocalypse Destroying Angels and Aliens (2013). Other than those, there’s a fun Mondo Pest story, Glass Corridor, and maybe a few more that are good.
Unfortunately, the majority of this collection isn’t on par with the previous collections- art or writing wise. Many of the stories are just too dumb, poorly made, stylistically too off, and just aren’t scary. Maybe Dark Horse saw the decline translated into sales, which led to the 10 year break of Alien comics from 1999-2009. I don’t know. That break occurs in this collection and hurts this set of stories further because several threads from 1999 were left unresolved.
Overall, I would give this collection a 3.5/5, mostly due to the excellent Apocalypse Destroying Angels and a few other good Aliens stories.
There’s some good stories in this collection, but it mostly consists of mediocre writing combined with a dip in art quality too. Unfortunately, this collection probably has highest density of mediocre to bad stories of the four original years volumes.
The best stories and art are probably from Aliens Apocalypse Destroying Angels and Aliens (2013). Other than those, there’s a fun Mondo Pest story, Glass Corridor, and maybe a few more that are good.
Unfortunately, the majority of this collection isn’t on par with the previous collections- art or writing wise. Many of the stories are just too dumb, poorly made, stylistically too off, and just aren’t scary. Maybe Dark Horse saw the decline translated into sales, which led to the 10 year break of Alien comics from 1999-2009. I don’t know. That break occurs in this collection and hurts this set of stories further because several threads from 1999 were left unresolved.
Overall, I would give this collection a 3.5/5, mostly due to the excellent Apocalypse Destroying Angels and a few other good Aliens stories.
October 13, 2023
Este tomo es el que más flojo me ha resultado de los 4. Como suele pasar en el mundo de los cómics se llega a los 90 y llegan las basuradas. Algunas de las historias desmerecen mucho en cuanto a dibujo y guión. No todo es malo y algunas historias se salvan de la quema.
A destacar Berseker, donde un grupo de marines es enviado en diferentes misiones a destruir nidos alien. Su técnica es la siguiente: Un marine se deja coger sin oponer resistencia y cuando lo llevan al nido los demás entran en acción, y eso incluye a uno que va hasta las trancas de droga y dirige un robot petado de ametralladoras. Muy Aliens de Cameron.
Pig, donde unos tipos ponen a un cerdo como cebo para Aliens pero la jugada saldrá mal.
Los angeles destructores, con un mesias que vive entre aliens en un planeta y donde aparecen los ingenieros. Parece una precuela de Prometheus.
Havoc, donde multitud de artistas dibujan una página del comic. Entre ellos están gente del cómic underground como Sergio Aragones y Peter Bagge. Es muy curioso.
A destacar Berseker, donde un grupo de marines es enviado en diferentes misiones a destruir nidos alien. Su técnica es la siguiente: Un marine se deja coger sin oponer resistencia y cuando lo llevan al nido los demás entran en acción, y eso incluye a uno que va hasta las trancas de droga y dirige un robot petado de ametralladoras. Muy Aliens de Cameron.
Pig, donde unos tipos ponen a un cerdo como cebo para Aliens pero la jugada saldrá mal.
Los angeles destructores, con un mesias que vive entre aliens en un planeta y donde aparecen los ingenieros. Parece una precuela de Prometheus.
Havoc, donde multitud de artistas dibujan una página del comic. Entre ellos están gente del cómic underground como Sergio Aragones y Peter Bagge. Es muy curioso.
March 19, 2024
While the Original Years series has delivered some great moments thus far, Volume 3 falls short of expectations. It seems that Dark Horse faced challenges in maintaining the momentum of the franchise at this stage. Despite some redeeming qualities, this installment lacks the same level of excitement found in previous volumes. As I embark on Volume 4, I hope to see a resurgence in quality storytelling and engagement.
October 13, 2024
More Alien(s) goodness, with the third omnibus. Its not as good as the second omnibus, but it has again some serious talent attached to it. Mark Verheiden, John Wagner, Ron Marz, Chuck Dixon, Mike W. Barr, Nancy Collins and John Arcudi. Its very cool to see Eduardo Risso drawing Aliens! I think that is a great match.
August 3, 2025
5 stars!
Wonderful. Beautiful. Great omnibus full of mostly great stories. Some I didn't care for but the majority of stories were top tier. Read from book 1. Its worth it every page just on art alone.
Wonderful. Beautiful. Great omnibus full of mostly great stories. Some I didn't care for but the majority of stories were top tier. Read from book 1. Its worth it every page just on art alone.
January 13, 2024
Some stories were good, others were really just Meh.
Had some fun with the book, but would not recommend it to other people.
Had some fun with the book, but would not recommend it to other people.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews