Aliens is a great movie.

But Aliens Special Edition sucks.

I don't care that Ripley has a daughter. In fact, her relationship with Newt is weakened when we discover that she is only playing surrogate mommy as some dime-store self-help therapy. When Newt is admired for being a survivor like Ripley, we find their relationship mutual, complex and adult. When Newt becomes Ripley's kid, we feel like we just switched on Lifetime.

Aliens shows us how a few excised scenes can strengthen the narrative, and how too many details about a character can make you want to puke.