Alexander Apone

"All right, sweethearts, what are you waiting for? Breakfast in bed? Another glorious day in the Corps. A day in the Marine Corps is like a day on the farm. Every meal's a banquet. Every paycheck a fortune. Every formation a parade. I LOVE the Corps!"

―Sgt. Apone (from Aliens)

Al Apone
Biographical Information
Rank	Gunnery Sergeant
Serial number	A19/TQ4.0.32751E8
Affiliation	USCM
Status	K.I.A. as of June, 2179.
Physical Description
Species	Human
Gender	Male
Hair color	Black
Eye color	Brown
Other Information
Portrayed by	Al Matthews

Gunnery Sergeant Al Apone was a member of the United States Colonial Marine Corps, part of 2nd Battalion Bravo Team. He was the senior non-commissioned officer with the combat unit deployed to LV-426 aboard the USS Sulaco in 2179, to investigate the sudden loss of contact with the colony of Hadley's Hope. He subsequently perished as a result of the Xenomorph infestation at the colony.

Despite a sometimes antagonistic relationship with some of the Marines under his command, notably Private Hudson, Apone was greatly respected by his men. He was taken by the Aliens in the Hive during the early stages of the operation, and was presumably subsequently impregnated with a Chestburster.

Biography

Early life

Al Apone was born in Detroit, Michigan on 2nd September 2137. Little is known about his early life or how, why and when he joined the USCM. He later achieved the rank of Gunnery Sergeant.

Mission to LV-426

"It's a rescue mission, you'll love it. There's some juicy colonists' daughters we have to rescue from their virginity."

―Apone, regarding the mission (from Aliens)

Apone was second in command of the detachment sent to Acheron LV-426, under Lieutenant Gorman. During the initial stages of the operation, he assumed nominal command of First Squad, superseding Private Hudson. Apone was one of the few Marines that Ellen Ripley became sociable with prior to the mission, joking with him over the relocation of cargo on board the USS Sulaco; Apone, in turn, appreciated her efforts to help despite not being a Marine.

Sergeant Apone inside the Marine APC.

When the Sulaco reached LV-426, Apone readied his men for the drop in typically boisterous fashion before taking his place on board the unit's APC for the drop to the planet's surface. After breaking up Hudson's attempts to embarrass Ripley, Apone led his men into the colony complex. Despite finding evidence of a firefight, the colony was deserted save for Newt, and Apone insisted they had missed the fight.

Entering the Hive

"Nobody touch nothin'."

―Apone, to his men inside the Hive (from Aliens)

The Marines quickly discovered the colonists were apparently gathered inside the Atmosphere Processor, and the squad set off to investigate. After entering the Processor, Apone and his men found themselves within the Hive.

Apone torching the Chestburster.

As they progressed further into the structure, Apone received orders from Gorman that he should confiscate ammunition from everyone and deactivate the squad's Smartguns to prevent gunfire damaging the Processor's reactor. Apone began to protest, but was quickly overruled; despite being at odds with the order, he respected the chain of command and passed it on to his men, collecting their ammunition and giving Private Frost the duty of carrying it. Soon afterwards, Apone and the Marines, now armed only with sidearms and a handful of Incinerators, discovered the colonists cocooned in the Hive, including one woman, Mary, who was still alive. Almost immediately, a Chestburster erupted from her body; Apone requestioned Frost's flamethrower, and he and Dietrich quickly torched the Chestburster.

The Chestburster's dying screeches woke the Hive, and soon Apone and his men found themselves surrounded by advancing Warriors. In the chaos of the resulting ambush, Apone was dragged away by a Xenomorph as Gorman tried to command Apone to lay down suppression fire with the incinerators and fall back by squad to the APC. The survivors who escaped the ambush later discovered that Apone had not been killed in the attack, but was presumably being used as a host for a Chestburster inside the Hive. It remains unclear whether he died from the Chestburster, or whether he was killed by the detonation of the Atmosphere Processor's reactor.

Personality and Traits

"What do you want me to do, fetch your slippers for you?"
"Gee, would you, sir? I'd like that."
"Look into my eye."

―Apone and Hudson, sharing some early morning banter (from Aliens)

Apone was passionate leader who had as much love for the USCM itself as he did the personnel under his command. While Gorman was ostensibly the senior officer aboard the Sulaco, in practice it was clear that Apone was the real leader in the unit; when he was taken inside the Hive, order among the remaining Marines rapidly disintegrated. He was strict but fair and commanded a great deal of respect from his men due to both his effectiveness as a leader and his generally light-hearted attitude. He considered the safety of his men was a priority, and he would not hesitate to question an order that he felt compromised that safety, although ultimately he would always defer to the chain of command.

Apone knew the men under his command well and could often be found laughing and sharing private jokes with his troops, even Private Hudson, with whom he often had confrontations as a result of the latter's sarcastic and insubordinate personality. Despite this jovial attitude, Apone was quick to punish any insubordination or disobedience, or put a stop to any joking that had gone too far. He was typically seen with a cigar in his mouth (even going so far as to sleep with one next to him in his cryo tube so that it would be close at hand when he woke). Unlike many of the other men in the unit, who were at best indifferent towards Ripley owing to her lack of military experience, Apone did his best to make her feel welcome, even asking her how she might be able to assist them in preparing for the mission.

Equipment

Apone's scanner.

Like the rest of the men under his command, Apone was outfitted with standard issue M3 Pattern Personal Armor and an M10 Pattern Ballistic Helmet, with a TNR Shoulder Lamp attachment for illumination.

He carried an M41A Pulse Rifle as his personal weapon, but also used Frost's M240 Incinerator Unit while in the Hive on Acheron, slinging his M41A over his right shoulder. Additionally, he carried a Heckler & Koch VP70 in a fabric holster, which was attached to his right grenade strap. Apone also had a long range visual scanner used to recon the colony during the squad's arrival.

Trivia

• Apone actor Al Matthews was a real-life Marine before becoming an actor. He served with the United States Marine Corps during the Vietnam War, receiving thirteen combat awards and decorations including two Purple Hearts. When hired for Aliens, he used his personal military experience to help guide the other actors through the process of portraying believable Marines, and based the character of Apone very much on himself.
• In the comic Aliens: Newt's Tale, Wierzbowski is taken alive to be cocooned during the ambush instead of Apone. In the film's novelization, it is Crowe who is taken in his stead.
• Apone had an action figure of him made in the Kenner line of Alien toys.
• Apone appears as a bonus multiplayer skin in the video game Aliens: Colonial Marines.
• His name bears a striking similarity to Al Capone; however, this is merely coincidence, as — with the exception of Dwayne Hicks — each of the Marine characters in Aliens simply took their first name from the actor/actress portraying them.
• There are fairly obvious similarities between Apone and Sergeant Major Avery Johnson of the Halo franchise. Halo's developer, Bungie, has acknowledged this comparison and admitted that they in fact based Johnson on Apone.
• In Aliens, Apone can be seen wearing a Masonic ring.
• In the Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare mission "Crew Expendable", Captain Price will say, "Check your corners! Move. Check those corners!" The line and the manner in which Price says it are very similar Apone's dialogue when the Marines enter the Atmosphere Processor in Aliens ("Check those corners. Check those corners!"). Price says the line just after Gaz draws his shotgun and says, "I like to keep this for close encounters," another obvious reference to dialogue from Hicks in Aliens.
• Several lines of Apone's dialogue later inspired the titles of trophies/achievements in the 2010 video game Aliens vs. Predator, including "I LOVE the Corps!".
• Similarly, several of the trophies/achievements in Aliens: Colonial Marines are named after dialogue spoken by Apone, including "Another Glorious Day in the Corps", "Still Got a Job to Do", "Lean and Mean" and "I Love the Corps!".

Appearances

• Aliens/novel (First appearance)
• Aliens: Newt's Tale
• Aliens: Nightmare Asylum (indirect mention)
• Alien Trilogy
• Aliens: Colonial Marines (video game, multiplayer only)

Gallery

The cast celebrating Al Matthews' birthday.

Behind the scenes image of Apone.

Promotional image of Apone's multiplayer model skin in Aliens: Colonial Marines.

"Look into my eye."

Apone as he appears in the Kenner comics.

Ditto.

Apone with his watch clearly visible.

Apone, as he appears in Alien Trilogy.