Smartship Friday
Encyclopedia
Smartship Friday is a fictional starship in the Marvel Universe
. It first appeared in Power Pack #1 (Aug 1984) and was created by Louise Simonson
and June Brigman
.
Aelfyre Whitemane
owned this “smartship”, which named itself Friday after the character from Robinson Crusoe
. A smartship is a starship which is controlled by a computer system so advanced that it is effectively sentient, with a human-like personality.
After Whitemane was fatally wounded and had transferred his superhuman abilities into the four children who would become Power Pack
, Friday devoted itself to their service, adopting the role of mentor to the fledgling superheroes. Power Pack often argued over the use of gender-specific pronouns for Friday (possibly prompted by Friday's constant statements of maternal love towards the children), speculating that though an artificial intelligence (and thus sexless) he/she may or may not have been female, but no decision was reached amongst themselves or by Friday one way or another.
Friday was also used by the New Warriors
during the period when Alex Power
was a member of the team, but was destroyed in that series' final issue. The artificial intelligence was later restored to another - more advanced - starship.
Friday delivered Alex Power to the Fantastic Four's headquarters when Alex joined the Future Foundation.
In the Marvel Adventures line of comics, Friday's voice was revealed to be identical to that of film actress Rosalind Russell
Marvel Universe
The Marvel Universe is the shared fictional universe where most comic book titles and other media published by Marvel Entertainment take place, including those featuring Marvel's most familiar characters, such as Spider-Man, the Hulk, the X-Men, and the Avengers.The Marvel Universe is further...
. It first appeared in Power Pack #1 (Aug 1984) and was created by Louise Simonson
Louise Simonson
Louise Simonson, born Mary Louise Alexander , is an American comic book writer and editor. She is best known for her work on comic book titles such as Power Pack, X-Factor, New Mutants, Superman: The Man of Steel, and Steel...
and June Brigman
June Brigman
June Brigman is an American comic book artist and illustrator. She is best known for creating the pre-teen superhero characters Power Pack with writer Louise Simonson in 1984...
.
Fictional history
The KymellianKymellian
The Kymellians are a fictional extraterrestrial race that have appeared in many Marvel Comics. They were introduced in Power Pack #1 .-Fictional biography:...
Aelfyre Whitemane
Aelfyre Whitemane
Aelfyre Whitemane was a fictional character in the Marvel Universe. His first and only appearance was in Power Pack #1 in 1984.Aelfyre Whitemane, commonly referred to as Whitey, was a Kymellian xenologist with a love of Earth culture and books...
owned this “smartship”, which named itself Friday after the character from Robinson Crusoe
Robinson Crusoe
Robinson Crusoe is a novel by Daniel Defoe that was first published in 1719. Epistolary, confessional, and didactic in form, the book is a fictional autobiography of the title character—a castaway who spends 28 years on a remote tropical island near Trinidad, encountering cannibals, captives, and...
. A smartship is a starship which is controlled by a computer system so advanced that it is effectively sentient, with a human-like personality.
After Whitemane was fatally wounded and had transferred his superhuman abilities into the four children who would become Power Pack
Power Pack
Power Pack is a fictional team of comic book superheroes consisting of four young siblings who appear in books published by Marvel Comics. They were created by writer Louise Simonson and artist June Brigman and first appeared in their own series in 1984. The series lasted 62 issues...
, Friday devoted itself to their service, adopting the role of mentor to the fledgling superheroes. Power Pack often argued over the use of gender-specific pronouns for Friday (possibly prompted by Friday's constant statements of maternal love towards the children), speculating that though an artificial intelligence (and thus sexless) he/she may or may not have been female, but no decision was reached amongst themselves or by Friday one way or another.
Friday was also used by the New Warriors
New Warriors
The New Warriors is a Marvel Comics superhero team, traditionally consisting of young adult heroes. They first appeared in The Mighty Thor #411 .-General publication history:...
during the period when Alex Power
Alex Power
Alexander "Alex" Power is a fictional character in the Marvel Universe. He first appeared in Power Pack #1 and was created by Louise Simonson and June Brigman.-Publication history:...
was a member of the team, but was destroyed in that series' final issue. The artificial intelligence was later restored to another - more advanced - starship.
Friday delivered Alex Power to the Fantastic Four's headquarters when Alex joined the Future Foundation.
Marvel Adventures
Friday was and remains a regular cast member of the Marvel Adventures line of successful Power Pack children's digest collections, which feature the most recognisable (and lucrative) versions of the characters from their long and varied publication history. Because of the team's youthful status in these books, Friday's role is often that of a baffled, but well-meaning mentor, and its physical appearance is identical to its original body before it was destroyed in New Warriors #75.In the Marvel Adventures line of comics, Friday's voice was revealed to be identical to that of film actress Rosalind Russell
Rosalind Russell
Rosalind Russell was an American actress of stage and screen, perhaps best known for her role as a fast-talking newspaper reporter in the Howard Hawks screwball comedy His Girl Friday, as well as the role of Mame Dennis in the film Auntie Mame...