ALF unanswered questions

[greattvtowatch]

How many unanswered questions about ALF can you name.
Let's begin.
1. How far was Melmac away from Earth ?
2. How long was ALF traveling in space before he crashed into the tanner's backyard ?

Anybody have any other unanswered questions. List them here.

[Ninjadragon5]

those are good questions, I think it was mentioned in one episode melmac was in the Andromeda galaxy which the neighboring galaxy next to the milky way and also if I remember correctly it was mentioned he traveled in space for a year before he crash landed on earth.
now my questions:
1. how did the Ochmoneks did not hear the crash as well when ALF crashed into their roof and also not notice a spaceship sticking out on their roof?
2. how did the tanners get ALF's spaceship off the roof in the first place?
3. how come his spaceship only damaged part the garage and not the rest of the house?

[samstokes80]

Yes, it is mentioned that Melmac is in the Andromeda galaxy, meaning that it was at least 2.5 million light-years away. I do also recall that ALF was in space for a year.

In response to Ninjadragon5's questions:

1) I always thought it was strange that no one else witnessed the landing. Perhaps everyone around was too distracted by whatever it was that knocked out the power (an EMP perhaps?). If I remember correctly, I think the Ochmonek's ask what the spaceship is during the garage sale episode ("The Gambler"). I don't remember what they said, though. It must be visible though, as the movie set decorator sees it and rents it from them for his movie.

2) That's a very good question. It was stuck in the roof at least until "The Gambler" (the garage sale episode). I assume the set decorator hired a crane to transport it to the movie set. I don't remember them ever actually showing the spaceship again after the first episode (although they show cargo containers and other items that ALF retrieves from his ship).

3) On some of the exterior shots, it appears that the garage is slightly away from the house and towards the rear of the house. Also, after it crashes, there is a bunch of smoke shooting downward, which is presumably from a retrorocket being used to slow the ship's descent. It must have helped, otherwise the garage would have been pulverized along with ALF and the Tanners!

[Ninjadragon5]

1. yeah, I always found that odd too, for noisy neighbors they really obvious to such things the light going off and a loud crash and a spaceship sticking out of a roof.

2. I always assumed that some how the tanners got his spaceship off the roof and hide it in the garage there after( like how it is in the ALF comics) because leaving it on the roof for a long while is bond to get attention and the ochmonek's and the movie set director just happened to see it because of the garage sale, so the garage door might have been left open. but your right, we never really do see the spaceship after the first episode, which made me wonder what happened to it?

3. yeah that is a good point, it does look like the garage is away from the house and ALF probably would do something to help himself slow his descent somehow, otherwise yeah, ALF and the tanners would of be blown to oblivion.

[robodog]

I don't think we're meant to think much about the whereabouts of Alf's ship. Doing so brings up too many logic problems. Because it would be nearly impossible for the Tanners to get it down without hiring someone to do it which would raise too many questions about it's origins. If left embedded in the roof it would also raise too many questions. For example In the first episode when the Alien Task Force guy comes snooping around, why didn't he notice the alien spacecraft sticking out of the garage? And why don't the neighbors notice?

They were also taking a bit of a chance by renting the ship out as a movie prop in that one episode. Because if anyone who knew their stuff regarding mechanics got a good look at it they'd probably realize it was more than a fiberglass prop and then the government would come a'knocking at the Tanner's door. And chances are anyone involved with film special effects would know enough about how props work to know the ship wasn't one. But theTanners were desperate for money at that point so they can kind of be forgiven for taking the chance. Plus they did have Alf's blessing.

[greattvtowatch]

Here's another one.
What is Alf's girlfriend Rhonda last name ?

[Ninjadragon5]

I don't think we're meant to think much about the whereabouts of Alf's ship. Doing so brings up too many logic problems. Because it would be nearly impossible for the Tanners to get it down without hiring someone to do it which would raise too many questions about it's origins. If left embedded in the roof it would also raise too many questions. For example In the first episode when the Alien Task Force guy comes snooping around, why didn't he notice the alien spacecraft sticking out of the garage? And why don't the neighbors notice?

They were also taking a bit of a chance by renting the ship out as a movie prop in that one episode. Because if anyone who knew their stuff regarding mechanics got a good look at it they'd probably realize it was more than a fiberglass prop and then the government would come a'knocking at the Tanner's door. And chances are anyone involved with film special effects would know enough about how props work to know the ship wasn't one. But theTanners were desperate for money at that point so they can kind of be forgiven for taking the chance. Plus they did have Alf's blessing.

yeah, the more I think about it, the more I realize the show as a lot of problems logically wise, but it is a sitcom show from the 80s,they would not expect you to pay attention to things like that. I wonder how they are going to address that in the movie,if it's a remake.

yeah, it was a huge risk to take for the tanners to let that movie director take his ship because he could easily figure out it's not a prop, but they were desperate to get out the deep trouble alf caused.

[Ninjadragon5]

Here's another one.
What is Alf's girlfriend Rhonda last name ?

that is a good question, I don't think we even found out her last name.

[greattvtowatch]

If you thought the last one was tough, try this one.

Where was Alf at when Melmac exploded ? If Melmac was 2 million light years away from earth and even if Alf ship had light speed capabilites traveling 186,000 miles per second, it would take him 2 million years to arrive here, so where was he.

[samstokes80]

To my knowledge, Rhonda's last name has never been revealed.


As far as the question of the insurmountable distance from Melmac to Earth, it is true that even at light-speed it would take an incredibly long time, however a lot of sci-fi shows allow for faster than light travel, such as the Enterprise's warp speeds, or Stargate that opens wormholes that allow immediate travel over great distances. It's possible that Melmacians had some sort of technology like that.

[Ninjadragon5]

yeah, that is another thing that is big question on my mind, how the heck did ALF get from melmac to earth in a year when it is 2 million light years away?
but It think samstrokes80 is right, if the melcanians had vessels that can travel through space, I'm pretty sure they figured out how to travel through space from planet to planet without it taking millions years to get there.

[greattvtowatch]

Time for another Unanswered Question.

When Alf's Spaceship entered Earth's atmosphere and was steaking through the sky to finally land in the Tanner's garage.
Did all the Sky Watchers, SETI employees and astronomers take the night off and didn't see anything ?

[Ninjadragon5]

yeah, that is a very good question too. what about the alien task force? for a secret government agency the scans the skies of any hint of alien transmissions, alf's ship seemed to slip right under their noses.
gives the question how could willie's short wave radio pick up the signal from alf's ship, but not the alien task force?

[greattvtowatch]

Here's one that's interesting.
In the episode "Baby you can drive my car", Alf sells all the plumbing in his spaceship which was made out of gold and bought Lynn a $90,000.00 car and he uses the rest to invest in a mango farm.

Question: how could he do that, You just can't leave a box of 20-50 pounds of gold sitting on your porch and have your broker stop by and pick it up and sell it for you without asking who are you, where did you get the gold and why does it look like bathroom pipes. Any Answers from anyone.

[greattvtowatch]

OK,
maybe the last question was a little too hard to anyone to answer, so here's an easier one.
How many pounds of gold did Alf have in order to buy Lynn a $90,000 car if gold back in 1986 was $380.00 an ounce.

[Ninjadragon5]

Here's one that's interesting.
In the episode "Baby you can drive my car", Alf sells all the plumbing in his spaceship which was made out of gold and bought Lynn a $90,000.00 car and he uses the rest to invest in a mango farm.

Question: how could he do that, You just can't leave a box of 20-50 pounds of gold sitting on your porch and have your broker stop by and pick it up and sell it for you without asking who are you, where did you get the gold and why does it look like bathroom pipes. Any Answers from anyone.

alf could have made negotiations with the broker over the phone and could have shipped his car parts to the broker, but how you ship something like that is beyond me. further more I like to know how he got the car in the driveway without being seen.

[greattvtowatch]

Hello Again,
It's time for another Unanswered Question. (somebody might be able to answer this one)
If ALF returned for season 5, what would the episodes be like. Would it be anything like Project: ALF only with the Tanner family or it would be totally different. Remember this is a network 30 mins. Sitcom not a Star filled TV movie.

[Ninjadragon5]

that is hard to say, I heard that paul was going to make the 5th season similar to the movie where ALF lives at the base and cause mischief and madam for the military personal at the base and later by the end of the season it was either going to returned to the tanners or rhonda and skip would rescue him, but honesty I don't think that would of hold the same charm as ALF with the tanners. personally, I would liked it better with just ALF and tanners like the rest of the series.

I would imagine it like this, ALF would mostly live at the base, but he would get to the tanners every once in while to insure them he is okay and to keep ALF from slipping into a critical depression from being lonely most of the time. and if that truly was the last season, ALF would successfully get rescue by rhonda and skip by the end of the season and would finally be back with own kind.

[greattvtowatch]

That's a good answer. Now to answer my own question, Here's how it could have went. For the first ten episodes or more, Alf lives at the Army base doing whatever he does there and the Tanners makes appeareances here and there when they comes down to the base to visit Alf or talking on the phone with him,
then the base commander decides Alf would be better off living with the tanners then on the base before he indirectly starts World War III with all his madcap antics so one day a big package arrive at the Tanners front porch and inside it is Alf with Official Government orders that Alf won't be bother with by Alien task force anymore or any other branch of the U.S. government, as long they keep him off of their hair.