The Ripley (also known in the novel as byrus) are a complex parasitoid alien macro virus that appear in the Stephen King novel Dreamcatcher (as well as the film based on the novel).
The adult aliens are snake-like beings with legs, while the younger aliens (nicknamed shit-weasels because they can be created in a host organism's stomach and escape by eating their host's body between the stomach and anus) are legless, smaller versions of the adult alien. Both the adult and young aliens have a mouth that consists of a slit on the underside of the head that goes down the length of the worm. The mouth lips separate to reveal hundreds of teeth that can bite through steel.
Their name is a reference to Ellen Ripley, main character in the Aliens series of films, in which the aliens reproduced in a similar manner but bursting out of the chest instead.
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MusicOMH: The Talented Mr Ripley - Review by Michael Hubbard.
Meta Description: [ The Talented Mr Ripley: musicOMH.com reviews The Talented Mr Ripley, starring Matt Damon, Gwyneth Paltrow, Jude Law, Jack Davenport and Cate Blanchett and directed by Anthony Minghella from the novel by Patricia Highsmith. ]
PopMatters: Talented Mr. Ripley - Review of the film by Cynthia Fuchs.
Sam Vaknin: Talented Mr. Ripley - Review of the film by Dr. Sam Vaknin.
Meta Description: [ Ripley the psychopath meets Greenleaf the narcissist - A study in psychopatholgy ]
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