Cooper

The Alien, is an extraterrestial alien creature from another world. It is far more advanced and intelligent compared to humans, and it uses advanced technology, the August Craft, to move through space. In 1958 he crash lands on Earth. Captured by the military, he is placed in a holding cell for observation and studying. He is later transported to another military base near Lillian, Ohio. On the way to the base, the train gets derailed and the creature escapes. He soon begins wreak havoc as he builds up and reconstructs his lost ship, in 1979 in Lillian, Ohio in the movie Super 8

Characteristics

Smsuper8-568x590 — J.J. Abrams approved this fan art of the alien. (Source)

Body

The alien has six limbs and generally moves similar to a spider, but can also stand up tall on it's two hind legs. It has two long jointed arms that are capable of grabbing objects and throwing them long distances, and can also use its six limbs to climb. It is small enough to fit into a train car, and was confirmed male in the movie. It can breath on Earth, but is subterranean and prefers to live underground.

Abilities

The alien has telepathic abilities, but can only communicate with humans that it has physically touched. The creature has a connection with Thomas Woodward, who got attacked by the creature during feeding time whilst it was in the captivity of the U.S. Air Force. It can also understand human reasoning, but his time in captivity has made him angry and violent toward humans. The alien is a carnivore and eats all types of meat, including humans. It sometimes collects humans and keeps them alive but unconscious in his underground cavern. It is also very intelligent and collects machines which it hoards in its cave, while it searches for its cubes to rebuild the August Craft. The alien can also telekinetically control weapons and make them misfire. It seems to interfere with electrical fields, as the power flickers when he is near. In addition, when the military battles the creature in the town, the alien interferes with the sensors and guidance systems, jamming them, causing the missiles to misfire and land onto the ground.

Animals are afraid of the monster, as most local dogs in Lillian ran away to other counties.

History on Earth

The creature had for some unknown reason been near the direction of Earth, when it crash landed on Earth in 1958. The U.S. Airforce captured it and imprisoned it to study and observe it, as well as its ship. During this time they kept it in a cage and fed it meat, but it managed to attack Thomas Woodward. The Airforce also recovered his ship, which they discovered was made of small white cubes bound together via eltromagneticism. For some unknown reason, in 1979 the alien was being transported in a train to another facility and passed through Lillian, Ohio. Woodward had somehow learned of the train's schedule and drove his truck on the tracks, causing the train to crash and the monster to escape.

It ran loose through Lillian, kidnapping some people and eating others. It stole engines, microwaves, power lines, and other mechanical items and kept them in an underground cavern with entry holes in the cemetery and under some houses. The U.S. Airforce pursued the alien, going as far as evacuating the town by making the excuse of Operation: Walkman, where a massive forest fire burned throughout the outside land area. They brought the cubes in trucks into the town's center, hoping to lure it into a trap. It managed to out-power them. Using electromagnetivity, he drew all the cubes and other metallic items toward the water tower, where the cubes reassembled into his ship. He then boarded his ship and left Earth for his home.

Is the Super 8 monster the Cloverfield monster?

Cloverfield monster comparison — *Super 8* alien (left) vs. *Cloverfield* monster (right)

In numerous interviews, J.J. Abrams has stated that the alien in Super 8 has absolutely nothing to do with the monster in the 2008 film Cloverfield which he also produced. The monsters both have similarities, but he has stated that they are not the same creature, nor are they the same type of creature. Film stills and models released show they have different faces and bodies. (Source)

Names

Cooper (codename given during production)
Aqua

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