Flatworm Jim was the original pilot of the "Steel Duck." A six-foot-tall intelligent flatworm, Jim’s usefulness was cut short when he was injured, resulting in three versions -- good, bad and a two-headed neutral version. All three (or four) now live on Ralph’s asteroid tending to over 6 million hamsters.
Fred the Monkey was Ralph‘s last foray into augmenting lab animals for other purposes. Fred accidentally jettisoned himself in an emergency escape pod, sending him back to Ralph’s asteroid, where he and the rest of the original crew were created.
Mayberry Melonpool is the television-addicted, somewhat clumsy, not-all-that-intelligent Captain of the "Steel Duck." Oh yeah, and he's obsessed with getting a date. In short, he doesn't have a lot going for him.
Sammy the Hammy is a genetic experiment gone horribly awry. Sammy is part of the ship’s equipment (he’s the engine) as well as a member of the crew. For this reason, Ralph never bothered giving him a name and he remained known as “Hamster 42” for much of his life.
I didn’t really want to say anything, but… It just looks like this ship is waaaaay to small. Given the size of the stairs going in, it’s practically a shuttlecraft. It doesn’t seem to fit with what we have seen for the ship’s interior.
The perspective is a little off in this shot, but the ship is still the same size as it’s always been. I’m working on the perspective but it’s never been my strong suit.
The Steel Duck is 108 feet long and maybe 3 stories off the ground. The Bridge is about 12 feet around. The gangplank doesn’t actually hit the ground in real life — but almost does.
Keep in mind that even though they say that Sammy is five feet tall (because it’s funnier) — he’s actually closer to about 3 feet tall, making 108 feet seem a lot larger.
Wow…love this strip. Great visual impact thanks to the choice of layout. Feels like part of a Sunday strip even though it’s not.
Seeing the fine ship again brings a tear to my eye 🙂
Well, he’s right, it does look like “A” steel duck. Perhaps the third such steel duck I have seen…
Now that you mention it…
Ship’s looking pretty good there.
*puts on pinstripe suit, sunglasses, and adopts a specific sort of stereotypical accent*
Be a real shame if something happened to it.
I didn’t really want to say anything, but… It just looks like this ship is waaaaay to small. Given the size of the stairs going in, it’s practically a shuttlecraft. It doesn’t seem to fit with what we have seen for the ship’s interior.
The perspective is a little off in this shot, but the ship is still the same size as it’s always been. I’m working on the perspective but it’s never been my strong suit.
The Steel Duck is 108 feet long and maybe 3 stories off the ground. The Bridge is about 12 feet around. The gangplank doesn’t actually hit the ground in real life — but almost does.
Keep in mind that even though they say that Sammy is five feet tall (because it’s funnier) — he’s actually closer to about 3 feet tall, making 108 feet seem a lot larger.
Une “Space Quest” homage, peut-estre? “Aluminum Mallard”?
Naw. the “Steel Duck” probably predates that. It’s been around in one form or another since about 1983.