235. What Are the Scariest Stories About Aliens Among Us?

Most fantasy fans don’t truly believe that dragons lurk in caves or the Fae are dancing in the woods by moonlight. But if you’re a sci-fi or horror fan, you might truly believe that real creatures from space have come to Earth for nefarious ends. Or that they might dwell among us today. Now that we might know the name of the U.S. Pentagon’s secret UFO or UAP program, let’s consider: what are the scariest alien stories? And why do so many fans want to be scared by these narratives about unearthly beings on Earth?

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Concession stand

• This is the ninth part in our occasional series Armies of the Aliens.
• If we don’t mention your favorite alien theory, perhaps we did before.
• As of this recording, extraterrestrial species have not been officially confirmed.
• All of our stories about aliens, therefore, are based on imagination—not an actual species.
• So, we’re going to focus on what all these fictional species reflect about humanity’s view of itself, the world, and even God.

Quotes and notes

• Zack on Parker J. Cole’s podcast The Write Stuff: “When Faith Meets UFOs: A Christian Perspective on The Immaculate Constellation”
• Pentagon holds briefing as Israel says they killed Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar
• Michael Shellenberger tweet on Oct. 8, 2024
  

1. Wicked aliens can invade your personal space.

• Many alien movies are very simple: a horror creature chases people in some kind of haunted house.
• These stories prey on our primal fears of the unknown, our disgust with the horrible, and the dread of the superior.
• H. P. Lovecraft is the inspiration of many of these stories of cosmic horror.
• This type of alien is seen in movies like Alien, Predator, The Thing, Viru