"The Final Fate of Carter Burke": Concludes ALIENS' Alternate Ending with a Bloodbath

Summary Carter Burke tries to redeem himself after causing a Xenomorph outbreak, but his efforts are too little, too late.

In a grim turn of events, Weyland-Yutani employees are caught by Xenomorphs, leading to a bloodbath on the mining asteroid where they live and work.

Despite a possible heroic sacrifice, Carter Burke's fate is sealed due to his own villainous actions, ending in tragedy.

Warning: Contains SPOILERS for What If...? Aliens #5! Aliens has recently taken a page from Marvel Comics’ playbook by telling its own ‘What If?’ story, giving fans a world where Carter Burke - the despicable Weyland-Yutani executive from 1986’s Aliens - survives the events of that film, crafting a tale surrounding what happens next. And now, that story has finally reached its conclusion, revealing that the new final fate of Carter Burke ends in a bloodbath.

In What If...? Aliens #5 by Paul Reiser, Leon Reiser, Adam F. Goldberg, Hans Rodionoff, Biran Volk-Weiss, and Guiu Vilanova, Carter Burke and his daughter, Brie, are evacuating the asteroid mining station on which they work and live. Burke accidentally caused a Xenomorph outbreak on the asteroid, and now everyone’s lives are in danger - including his and his daughter’s. Unfortunately, Burke’s remorseful efforts are too little, too late.

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As the Weyland-Yutani employees make their way to the ships, they quickly learn that the docking bay has become infested with Xenomorphs. As they make a run for it, the aliens easily catch each one of them, tearing most to shreds and capturing the others for incubation. Meanwhile, Carter and Brie are searching for another WY executive - Yutani’s son, in fact - as he’s kidnapped Carter’s wife, who’s being kept in cryo-sleep. During their search, the two Burkes come across the bloodbath that became of the employees, which is a grim look at what awaits them.

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What If...? Aliens Proves Carter Burke is Always Destined to be an Alien Villain

This What If? miniseries was Carter Burke’s one and only shot at redemption. Sure, he became the most hated man in the galaxy (since Weyland-Yutani blamed Hadley’s Hope on him), but he still had his family, his job, and - most importantly - his life. Burke could have learned from his unforgivable mistakes on Hadley’s Hope, but instead, he once more tried to use the Xenomorph species for his own gain, and once more, it ended in bloodshed.

Even if Burke somehow makes it off this asteroid, the fact of the matter is, his life is - once again - already over. Burke will have to face justice for all the people he threw into the shredder. Or, at the very least, he’ll be quietly killed by Weyland-Yutani when the company covers up what happened there. That's if he's not killed by the Xenomorphs themselves, just as he originally was in Aliens, bringing the well-deserved tragedy of his story full-circle.

Carter Burke Has 1 Last Chance to Be a Hero in Alien (But It Still Won’t Redeem Him)

In all likelihood, Carter Burke will be killed by the Xenomorphs that he let loose on this asteroid mining station, but that doesn’t mean he has to die a coward. In fact, the only reason he and Brie hadn’t left already at this point is because they’re trying to save Carter’s wife, Brie’s mother. Therefore, it’s possible that, when this issue reaches its final panels, Carter will sacrifice himself to stop the Xenomorphs and save his wife and daughter, allowing him to die a hero. Unfortunately, that still won’t be enough to redeem him.

While he may have had good intentions, this entire ordeal is completely Burke’s fault. He brought the first Ovomorph to the mining station, he unleashed the Facehugger, and he directly caused the deaths of all his employees. If Burke dies sacrificing himself to save his daughter and wife, it will be as a direct result of his own borderline villainous actions. Therefore, no matter his exact fate, this What If? tale has already revealed how Carter Burke’s story will end: the same as it did in Aliens.

What If...? Aliens #5 by 20th Century Studios is available now.

Aliens: What If?... #5 (2024) Writer: Leon Reiser

Artist: Guiu Vilanova

Colorist: Yen Nitro

Letterer: VC's Clayton Cowles

Cover Artist: Phil Noto