The Soldier Bug are the main antagonists in the 1997 film, Starship Troopers. The Soldier Bug are the main aggressive force in the film. A hostile, non-technological insectoid species known as Arachnids which are commonly known as "Bugs". Bugs are savage killers provoked merely by the presence of humans. While a single Soldier Bug is quite capeable of killing a man on its own, the main threat is the shear numbers which make up a swarm. While susceptible to small arms fire their unrelenting mass attacks provide an constant assault which can only be slowed by large human forces or deployment of low yield nukes.
Appearance
The Soldier Bug also known as 'Warrior' Bugs or "Rippers" possess an insect-like body but are not 'true' arachnids. They have four legs ending in sharp dagger-like points (some have front legs which have four dagger tips on each). Large mandibles extend forward having one large point on the top jaw and ending with two large points on the lower jaw. There are two additional sharp tipped appendages on either side of its head just behind its eyes. Its rear head is bulky and extends into a tapered cranium. Mostly greenish in color, Soldier Bugs also have bright colored stripes and mottled patches on them from bright orange and red to dull yellows.
Powers and Abilities
The Soldier Bug possess the following powers and abilities:
- Piercing & slashing
- Biting, grasping and throwing
- Swarming and rampaging
- Impervious to small arms weapons unless concentrated assault
- Fast movement and reflexes
- Hive minded and coordinated attacks
Fate
The Soldier Bug are susceptible to massive gunfire attacks to their core components. Concentrated gunfire rips their bodies to pieces. Swarms are defeated using low yield nukes or aerial bombardment. While many Soldier Bugs are killed during the film, their numbers are so great many survive.
Trivia
Ref: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120201/trivia
- Most of the arachnids appearing on film are CGI but a few life-sized, robotic models were built. However, during the battle scenes, the actors wound up looking at director Paul Verhoeven himself who would stand in front of them and jump and scream to elicit their reactions.
- More ammunition was used in this film than in any previous movie.
- An actual Bug from the movie was exhibited in the entry of the main gallery at the 1997 World Science Fiction Convention held in San Antonio, TX over Labor Day Weekend.
- 17 gallons of fake blood were used throughout the movie.
- The design of the bugs are slightly revised from an unused monster design for Tremors II: Aftershocks (1996).
- Because the movie originated from an unrelated script, with names and superficial details from the novel being added retroactively, there are many significant differences between the original book and the film.
- The name "Arachnid" derived from spider in Greek, apparently originated from "Pseudo-Arachnids", the giant spiders from the novel. None of the arachnid species resemble a spider by far, however it's meant to be a racial slur against the enemy and it doesn't have to be taxonomically correct.
- Humans degrade the Bug Warriors, saying the Bug Warrior "...isn't too smart". On Fed-Net, Carl shows how to kill a Bug Warrior by shooting the nerve stem. This shows how to kill a single Bug, but not how to kill an entire, coordinated, army of Bugs.
- Loosely based on Robert A. Heinlein's 1959 novel of the same name.
Photo Gallery
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