Well, you’ve done it, friends. The inaugural Alien Day and 24-hour Ultimate Trivia Contest taking place on April 26 (for the planet LV-426) is officially over, in the books. Did you enjoy celebrating the franchise of Xenomorph supremacy with us? We sure had a great time. We hope many of you won one of the various prizes and got to experience the communal joy of talking about chestbursters, facehuggers, and the statuesque badassery of one Ellen Ripley, played by the powerhouse of Sigourney Weaver. Did you know she got an Oscar nomination for playing Ripley in 1986’s Aliens? Cuz she did.

As cool as the alien creatures look, the saga wouldn’t have been what it is if not for Ripley. In Alien, she was a character original written to be a male but then a woman was cast with nothing really changed. In the course of that movie, she went from a by-the-book paper-pusher to solo hero. In the sequel, Ripley became a true badass as James Cameron upped the character’s maternal side by having her take care of Newt among a squad full of chest-beating marines who were way out of their league. By the end of that movie, she’s the only thing standing between an Alien queen and a child.

While Alien 3 and Alien: Resurrection shifted the focus slightly, Ripley remains the first and best version of a capable, sensitive, and intelligent heroine, something which Prometheus kept and we hope Alien: Covenant will continue. It wouldn’t be the Alien franchise without it!

Tell us all about your Alien Day activities in the comments below!

Image: 20th Century Fox

Kyle Anderson is the Associate Editor for Nerdist. Follow him on Twitter!