LINDA
Real Name: Linda
Identity/Class: Extraterrestrial
clone of alternate
reality (Earth-47920) being
Occupation: Courier, freedom fighter, smuggler
Group Membership: Formerly the Collector's zoo (Shocket, Taylor, numerous others)
Affiliations: Biggs, Donna, Gatherer D-3X, the Guardians of the Galaxy (Drax/Arthur Douglas, Groot, Rocket Raccoon, Star-Lord/Kitty Pryde, Thing/Ben Grimm, Venom/"Flash" Thompson), Hei Hei, Hellcat (Patsy Walker), Howard the Duck, Angie Huang, Multo, the Oracle of Omega, May Parker, Scout (Roberta), Shocket, the Silver Surfer (Norrin Radd), Tara Tam, Taylor
Enemies: The Collector (Taneleer
Tivan), Commander K'Rolf, the Gatherers (7-X9, others), Jarax, the
Stranger, Wez,
the Wizard (Bentley Wittman)
Known Relatives: D-3X (adoptive father,
deceased), Shocket
(adoptive sister)
Aliases: Artifact#G5-19-2E31 (see comments), "Grumpus," "Lin-duh"
Base of Operations: Mobile throughout space;
formerly the Thundertrek spaceship; the planet Souqlon;
the Collector's zoo on the planet Collecton
First Appearance: (in shadow, unidentified)
Howard the Duck IV#5 (October, 2015);
(fully seen, unidentified) Howard the Duck V#1
(January, 2016);
(fully seen, identified) Howard the Duck V#2
(February, 2016)
Powers/Abilities: Linda does not possess any
superhuman powers but she is quite tech-savvy, having been raised for
over two decades piloting spaceships.
She often carries a small,
handheld scanning device that allows her to analyze and track targets.
She has on rare occasions used energy blasters.
Linda is a skilled smuggler, known as one of the best in the business.
Linda formerly had full access to
the Thundertrek spaceship that was capable of traversing through outer
space. It was equipped with advanced computer systems and shields
capable of at least partially blocking teleportation signals.
Height: Unrevealed (approximately 2'3")
Weight: Unrevealed (approximately 40lbs.)
Eyes: Red
Feathers: White
History:
(Howard the Duck V#2 (fb) - BTS) - Linda was an
artificially created
clone of the alternate reality humanoid duck Howard the Duck, made as a
mate for Howard the Duck while Howard was a captive of the Elder of the
Universe known as the Collector. After her creation, Linda was placed
in an incubator until she could be artificially aged to maturity.
(Howard the Duck V#2 (fb)) - Following a large
breakout in the Collector's zoo that included both Howard the Duck and
Rocket Raccoon, the still-young Linda and female Rocket Raccoon clone
Shocket were taken out of incubation and placed in the custody of
Gatherer D-3X until such a time that the escapees could be apprehended.
D-3X insisted he was not a Nurturer and asked why the two could not
remain in incubation but he was told Linda and Shocket had reached the
maximum incubation age and that he had to care for them until it could
be decided what to do with them. Noticing that Linda was reading Yes, I Gather: A Gatherer's Journey
by X-16, D-3X smiled and wondered aloud what he was going to do with
them before Shocket bit down on his head.
Four
months later, Linda was playing Symbiotag with Taylor and a few other
zoo children. When she was tagged "it," Linda looked up at Shocket in a
tree and asked why she was not playing. Shocket claimed she was playing
and was just really good, prompting Linda to return to the game despite
feeling like a loner. That night at dinner, D-3X noticed Linda seeming
grumpy and she asked why no one else there looked like her and Shocket.
D-3X assured Linda that her and Shocket were special and they just had
to find others like them to bring to the zoo. Shocket attempted to
comfort Linda and Linda asked what would happen if they couldn't find
others like them. A bit later, D-3X woke up the sleeping Linda and
Shocket after receiving orders to bring them in for testing. D-3X did
as ordered but when Linda and Shocket were strapped down, he questioned
the doctor if it was necessary to put Linda and Shocket through the
situation. The doctor assured D-3X Linda and Shocket would be safe but
ushered him out of the room as he prepared an injection for the two
girls. The sleeping Linda soon woke up and asked Shocket what was going
on. Shocket explained they were there for tests but when the doctor's
"assistant" mentioned freezing the two girls, Linda grabbed an ink pen
from Shocket's pocket and used it to stab the lizard-like "assistant."
The "assistant" responded by backhanding Linda, angering Shocket, and
D-3X soon returned to rescue the two girls. Successfully retrieving
Linda and Shocket, D-3X promised to figure things out. The escape alarm
quickly sounded and D-3X took Linda and Shocket to a spacecraft, flying
it out of the zoo and claiming to his superiors that he was chasing off
the supposed escapees.
Three months
later, the
now-scarred Linda and Shocket with D-3X were on the planet Souqlon when
one of the Collector's Gatherers arrived searching for Linda and
Shocket. In an effort to protect Linda and Shocket, D-3X placed an
Infiniberry in the Gatherer's pocket then accused him of stealing to
draw authorities to keep the Gatherer busy. D-3X then ushered Linda and
Shocket into a back alley, where the alien Multo was waiting for them
to send them back in time for a nominal fee. Multo explained that the
farthest she could send them back in time was twenty-five years before
D-3X led the girls into the ship. D-3X managed to successfully travel
into the past with Linda and Shocket mere seconds before the Gatherer
caught up to them. Arriving in the past, D-3X and the girls were
immediately confronted by the Silver Surfer, who sensed the temporal
activity in their area. Revealing the situation that had led them
there, D-3X assured the Silver Surfer that he was destined to help
others, prompting the Surfer to leave D-3X, Linda and Shocket behind to
continue his then-duties as Galactus' herald.
In the next twenty years, Linda
grew up to become a smuggler alongside Shocket. Following a trip
through the Tranta system to deliver a crate of uru zirconia Silver
Surfer figurines, Linda and Shocket were confronted by Jarax, who was
angry that the figurines' boxes had been damaged in trip there.
Assuring Jarax that they were the best smugglers in the business, Linda
suggested Jarax only pay them seventy-five percent of their original
fee to account for printing new boxes and they would call it even.
Jarax reluctantly agreed and D-3X soon ushered the girls back into
their ship so they could make it to Rylon-7
in six hours. Recognizing the older D-3X as the man who had captured
his parents, Jarax shot D-3X and a panicked Linda struggled to pull
D-3X into their ship to escape Jarax. Once in the air, Linda ordered
Shocket to stop D-3X's bleeding and assured D-3X that they were going
to Hornby-9
to get him medical attention. As he died, D-3X remarked that they
appeared to have caught up to their past and he apologized for never
getting back to their world, prompting Linda to reply that he was their
world.
(Howard the Duck V#2 (fb) - BTS) - Having caught up
to their time period of origin, Linda and Shocket devised a plan to
escape the universe and bring the Collector's zoo with them. As part of
the implementation of this plan, Linda and Shocket were told the
all-seeing Oracle of Omega could help them acquire a device that could
help them escape the universe.
(Howard the Duck IV#5 (fb) - BTS) - Linda and Shocket visited the Oracle of Omega and paid her a tribute in exchange for information.
(Howard the Duck IV#5) - When the Oracle of Omega created a scrying pool and revealed that the time Linda and Shocket had been waiting for was almost upon them, an annoyed Linda reminded the Oracle that they had paid for exact times and locations. The Oracle of Omega asked the duo for patience, assuring them that the key would be revealed as the pool displayed an image of Howard the Duck.
(Howard the Duck V#2 (fb)) - Linda informed the
Oracle of Omega how her father D-3X had bought them twenty-five years
but the Collector would now be after them once more now that time had
caught up to them. Shocket then admitted they had to leave the universe
and Linda added they were planning to take the Collector's zoo with
them. She then explained how they had been told the Oracle of Omega
could help them. The Oracle of Omega, familiar with Linda and Shocket's
plight, explained that they needed a Nexus of Realities and, while it
was normally stationary, it would soon gain the ability to travel in
the most unlikely of ways.
(Howard the Duck V#1) - Arriving in Citrusville, Florida in the middle of a battle between Howard the Duck, Tara Tam, the Wizard and Titania, Shocket blasted the Wizard as Linda informed them all that they had traveled a long way for the Living Nexus, much to the confusion of Howard the Duck.
(Howard the Duck V#2 - BTS) - One of the Collector's Gatherers reported to the Collector that three of his former captives (Howard the Duck, Linda and Shocket) had been found on Earth in the state of Florida and the Collector ordered them collected.
(Howard the Duck V#3 (fb)) - Linda scanned Howard as the
confused
Howard asked if Linda had called him the Living Nexus. Linda responded
by summoning her and Shocket's Thundertrek spaceship. When Tara Tam
came to Howard's defense, Shocket shot her, prompting Linda to ask why
Shocket always had to escalate their situations. Linda then tried to
assure Howard that they didn't want to keep shooting at them and she
asked Howard to come with them. Before Howard could make a decision,
the revived Wizard took Howard hostage but when the Wizard expressed a
desire to go home, he was instantly transported back home, leaving
Linda to explain how Howard had recently bonded with the Nexus of All
Realities during an attempt to return to his home reality. Upon hearing
that he had become a mobile living Nexus, Howard asked what was wrong
with his life and who Linda was. Linda explained how they were
gender-altered clones of Howard and Rocket Raccoon from the Collector's
zoo and how they wished to use Howard's newfound Nexus powers to free
those imprisoned in the Collector's zoo. Having experienced the zoo
first-hand, Howard agreed to help Linda and Shocket and Howard, Tara
Tam, Linda and Shocket were soon rocketing into space in the
Thundertrek.
The foursome were subsequently attacked by the Collector's Gatherer 7-X9, who sought Linda and Shocket, and then Skrull Commander K'Rolf, who sought the living Nexus that was Howard the Duck. Realizing that the Skrulls were after Howard, Linda began maneuvering the Thundertrek to avoid all of the spaceships until they came upon an extremely large ship that took out Gatherer 7-X9 and Commander K'Rolf. The large ship quickly caught the Thundertrek in a tractor beam and it teleported Howard from Linda, Shocket and Tara. Seconds before Howard was teleported away, he came up with a plan to use his Nexus powers to transport Linda, Shocket and Tara away to get help then surrender himself as a distraction. While the ship's owner, the Stranger, revealed his presence to Howard and expressed his interest in keeping Howard captive in an effort to use his Nexus powers to create his own universe for study, the Stranger realized Howard's allies might try to mount a rescue and he destroyed the Thundertrek, completely unaware that Howard had teleported Linda, Shocket and Tara Tam aboard the Guardians of the Galaxy's ship.
(Howard the Duck V#4) - Teaming with the Guardians of the
Galaxy,
Linda, Shocket and Tara Tam tracked Howard the Duck to Galactus, who
sought to study Howard and possibly use his Nexus powers to leave the
universe. Linda remained in the Guardians' ship as the Thing attempted
to rescue Howard and she watched as the Silver Surfer bestowed a
portion of his Power Cosmic onto Howard in an effort to allow Howard to
free himself from the swarms of alien ships who all sought to utilize
him. The Thing ultimately managed to get Howard to enter the Guardians'
ship, where he reunited with Tara Tam, Linda and Shocket. After the
ship's engines went dead and Howard provided a Power Cosmic surfboard
push, Linda asked Howard what their plan was, reminding him of their
plan to free those in the Collector's zoo, and Howard assured Linda he
was still onboard with her plan. He then revealed that his surfboard
was taking the ship to Collecton to enact Linda's plan. A short time
later, as they all approached the planet Collecton, the Collector
recaptured Howard from the Guardians' ship.
(Howard the Duck V#5) - Linda and Rocket Raccoon struggled to
maintain their course as the Guardian of the Galaxy Venom plugged the
holes in the ship with his alien symbiote. As Venom struggled to hold
the ship together, Linda remarked that Venom would have to maintain it
for long since they were about to crash land on Collecton. Following
the crash, most of the Guardians exited the ship to battle the
Collector's Gatherers while Linda suggested Tara Tam and Shocket follow
her to track down Howard the Duck. The trio then ventured further into
the Collector's zoo and along the way, Linda was spotted by Taylor, who
recognized the older Linda. Linda freed Taylor and his family and
assured them that she was there to take them home. When she mentioned
that the Collector was being taken care of, Shocket made the "death"
motion with her hands and Linda commented to Shocket that Taylor's
understood her meaning. As Shocket freed more prisoners, Linda led them
out of the zoo and into the battlefield where the Guardians were still
fighting the Collector's Gatherers. Howard then began using his Nexus
powers to transport the former prisoners away but when the angry
Collector attacked Howard anew, Linda and Shocket fired on the
Collector. Recognizing Linda and Shocket as his former "artifacts," the
Collector commented that their returning perhaps made the day not a
total loss, at which point Howard the Duck grabbed the Collector's legs
and used his Nexus powers to transport the Collector away. With the
battle finally over, Linda and Shocket shared a sisterly hug.
Four hours later, after Howard had successfully
transported the Collector's former prisoners away to safety, Linda and
Shocket asked if they could utilize Howard's powers before he was
separated from the Nexus of All Realities. Asked where they planned to
go, Linda admitted they didn't know since they had spent their entire
lives on the run. When Linda remarked that they needed to learn to live
without having to look over their shoulders, Shocket chimed in that
their first stop should be Mirvos-12
to get a new spaceship. Linda then hugged the Nexus-powered Howard and
thanked him as Howard transported both Linda and Shocket away from
Collecton.
(Howard the Duck V#9 - BTS) - As Howard the Duck battled the extradimensional Mojo, who remarked on paying specialists to make Howard's life more interesting, the alien Sparkitects, who had been manipulating Howard's life, grew concerned as they viewed monitors showing various beings from Howard's life, including Linda, Shocket and many others.
(Howard the Duck V#10 - BTS) - Linda and the other beings from
Howard's life remained on the monitors as the Sparkitects Chipp
and Jho
panicked over their deal with Mojo being made public.
(War of the Realms: War Scrolls#1 / 4) - During the War of the
Realms worldwide event, Howard the Duck held an Event Refugee party in
his private investigation offices that both Linda and Shocket attended.
At the party, they mingled with Howard's assistant, May Parker.
Comments: Created by Chip Zdarsky, Joe
Quinones, Joe Rivera and Pablo Rivera.
The Collector referred to Shocket
and Linda as Artifacts#G5-19-2E30 & G5-19-2E31 but it was not clear
which of those designations applied to Shocket and which applied to
Linda. I chose G5-19-2E30 for Shocket and G5-19-2E31 for Linda, mainly
due to Shocket being on the left and Linda being on the right when the
Collector mentioned the numerical designations and I was simply reading
left to right. It's entirely possible that the numbers were actually
swapped.
Profile by Proto-Man.
CLARIFICATIONS:
Linda should be distinguished from:
| --Howard the Duck V#3d |
| --Howard the Duck V#3d, |
| --Howard the Duck V#2 (#2
(fb), #3d, |
Appearances:
Howard the Duck IV#5 (October, 2015) - Chip Zdarsky (writer), Joe
Quinones (pencils), Joe Rivera, Paolo Rivera (inks), Wil Moss (editor)
Howard the Duck V#1 (January, 2016) - 1st story - Chip Zdarsky
(writer), Joe Quinones (pencils), Joe Rivera (inks), Wil Moss (editor)
Howard the Duck V#2 (February, 2016) - "Our World" story - Chip Zdarsky
(writer), Veronica Fish (art), Wil Moss (editor)
Howard the Duck V#3 (March, 2016) - "Deep Space Whine" story - Chip
Zdarsky (writer), Joe Quinones (pencils, colors), Joe Rivera (inks),
Wil Moss (editor)
Howard the Duck V#4 (April, 2016) - Chip Zdarsky (writer), Joe Quinones
(pencils, colors), Joe Rivera, Rick Magyar (inks), Wil Moss (editor)
Howard the Duck V#5 (May, 2016) - Chip Zdarsky (writer), Joe Quinones
(pencils), Joe Rivera, Goran Sudzuka (inks), Wil Moss (editor)
Howard the Duck V#9 (September, 2016) - Chip Zdarsky (writer), Joe
Quinones (pencils, inks), Joe Rivera, Paolo Rivera, Marc Deering
(inks), Wil Moss (editor)
Howard the Duck V#10 (October, 2016) - Chip Zdarsky (writer), Joe
Quinones (pencils, inks), Joe Rivera, Marc Deering (inks), Wil Moss
(editor)
War of the Realms: War Scrolls#1 (June, 2019) - "Waugh of the Realms"
story - Chip Zdarsky (writer), Joe Quinones (pencils, inks), Joe Rivera
(inks), Wil Moss (editor)
First posted: 07/15/2025
Last updated: 07/15/2025
Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.
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Commander K'Rolf
Gatherer 7-X9
Thundertrek