Wow, an enzyme that can work for anyone on anything, regardless of species-specific biology? That's quite an impressive technological leap, even given 400 years.

I'm loving the double dose of Drive each week. Things are moving at a good pace now and I can't wait for the next update.

Hmmm... I was thinking you come across a whole heap of interesting/useful natural adaptations when you're a (Junior Adjutant) Emperial Xenobiologist.
And some can be collected and traded!

Well, the difficulty of some kind of universal enzyme isn't just from the user's perspective, it's also from the potential food's perspective. Different life-bearing planets won't necessarily develop the same proteins and sugars during the course of natural evolution. So even if your body could break down alien food into its component parts, you wouldn't necessarily be able to get any nutrition from it. In fact, it wouldn't even necessarily be safe, since alien proteins and sugars could possibly be toxic to your system.

So we're talking about an enzyme that not only works on any being, but also allows anything organic to be eaten safely regardless of its normal effects. That's impressively wide-ranging.

Nobody else thinks it was AWFUL suspicious just how desperately she jumped in with that enzyme? As though she REALLY wanted the ship "abandoned"... (even if she isn't staying behind).

Ok yeah, I'm sure everyone noticed it - but what do you THINK about it??

Oh yes, especially considering left-handed and right-handed sugars, hydrocarbons and EEK! Arsenic-based life forms!
But... to read the strip quite closely...
Orla implies it will work for the freighter captain, on anything organic. She doesn't actually state it'll work for any being.
Nosh's desires (and ours?) notwithstanding.

Still, hella impressive, I agree!

-jumped in and stepped right on the Captain's "What if." Huh.

MAYBE the enzyme is just nearing its expiration date. Use it or lose it, eh?

Or she's extra curious to see how well it works on Cap'n Flathead's species.

Or she's eager to get to the 6 Moons O' Slaughter. (Sounds soo fun. Can't spell it without "laughter" after all)

The Moons of Slaughter reminded me of something from David Tenant's Doctor Who. I think the episode was "The Stolen Earth" and Doctor Who was just figuring out how and why the earth had been stolen in the first place... along with a whole bunch of other significant planets... including... the... Lost Moon of Poosh!

I didn't really give it much thought at the time, but I certainly noticed her enthusiasm. Considering that we know she's an imperial mole, it does come across as suspicious. But we may be reading too much into that. After all, her secret status notwithstanding, she presumably wants to save the human race as much as anyone else aboard the ship. Maybe she just really wants to get to Slaughter to look for clues about Skitter's people.