Irken Smeet

Irken Smeet
Zim as newborn smeet.
Homeworld	Irk
Assignment	To serve the Irken Empire
Rank	Baby
Eye Color	Various colors
First appearance	Parent Teacher Night

Smeet is the term commonly used for Irken children and infants.

It is assumed all modern smeets (with a notable, but short-lived exception) are created underground, in large unnamed facilities on their homeworld of Irk.

Creation

The process in which Irken smeets are produced is never fully specified, but it is widely presumed that it is a process similar or identical to cloning or gene banks. Many fans assume that the Control Brains are responsible for the creation of Smeets to keep the Irken population in check, so overpopulation is never an Issue for the Irken Empire. It is also assumed by fans that sexual reproduction was once possible for Irkens in the past, but they instead chose to largely use the current method as it is seemingly more "efficient". However, the price paid was the resulting lack of bonding and pleasure that comes from sexual intercourse.

The Control Brains could also assist in the operation of the facilities in which smeets are made by randomly selecting DNA from two different individuals in order to create an entire new Irken from the DNA donors (thus an Irken—say, Zim—could have a mother and father in that sense), but it has never been confirmed in canon.

Birth

Zim's first words: "I love you, cold, unfeeling robot arm!"

In the episode "Parent Teacher Night" , such a facility is seen in a flashback. Many capsules with a holographic face are inset in a wall, and upon sufficient maturity of the smeet inside, the face turns green and resembles a smile. Then, a machine called "Mr. Plug" unscrews the capsule from the wall, steam (or some other vapor) emitting from the formerly-filled space. This implies that the chambers the capsules sit in are heated, likely to keep the smeet warm before birth.

Following the removal of the capsule, it is broken open, letting the smeet and the fluid inside fall out. Two robot arms swing down, one wielding a presumably unencoded PAK. The PAK is attached in a two-step process where two heated spikes are pressed into the smeet's back, and the PAK being inserted immediately after.

The smeet is then shocked with what is presumably electricity, likely to both jumpstart its PAK and the biological body it is attached to. A robotic voice welcomes the smeet to the world and orders it to report for duty.

After birth

Smeets speak in cute, high-pitched voices soon after the PAK is installed.

Training

Unlike human babies, smeets can speak as soon as they are born, as seen in the depiction of Zim's past in "Parent Teacher Night". They also have imprinting, believing the first thing they see as their "mother" and "father" in a general sense, as also seen in "Parent Teacher Night" when smeet Zim hugs the Cold Unfeeling Robot Arm. Smeets then give their imprinted parent (such as Zim and a future Gaz, as an example) a hug and speak very lovingly to them (after the former speaks to them first). This is also shown in the comics when the newborn, PAKless smeet calls Zim "papa" seconds before the Blerks unfortunately kill him. (On Earth, animals like ducks and geese are primarily known to have imprinting, but other animals like certain bird species and even some mammals may exhibit similar behaviors.)

In the cancelled episode "The Trial", it would have been seen that when they're about two minutes old, the supposed whole of Irken knowledge (likely culture, history, geography, and the like) is uploaded to their PAK and into their brain. It would have also been seen that smeets spend their childhood training in military tactics (as well as being cared for like any other infant or child) until they are old enough to be considered adults. As the episode is unfinished, one is left to assume now that Irken children (hybrid or pure-born) are already born with Irken knowledge.

Zim's smeethood

Concept of Smeet Zim.

Notably, Zim's first words were, "I love you, cold, unfeeling, robot arm!"

The cancelled episode "The Trial" would've shown more scenes from Zim's smeethood, as well as more on some of the Tallest's past. These flashbacks prove that Zim, Red, and Purple actually trained together, and that Zim has been causing planet-wide chaos since he was literally two minutes old when he caused the first of two decade long blackouts.

Also within the episode, it would have been seen that, upon receiving data in the facility he was born in, Zim complained that he wasn't given enough. It would have also been stated that there were many mistakes in his PAK's programming ("40 schmillion", to be precise), which is likely the reason he is considered defective.

Also during the episode, while addressing his name, Zim had also thought he was great even when he was just brought into the world and had yet to prove his worth in Irken Society, furthering the fact he was defective.

Other Observations

It was mentioned by Zim in "Bolognius Maximus" and "Halloween Spectacular of Spooky Doom" that Irken babies play with toys, like human children. These toys are described as advanced (even more than Professor Membrane's lab technology), but it's unclear what they look like as Jhonen likely did not have time during the show's development to create ideas for Irken toys. Interestingly Zim referred to Smeets as an “Irken Babies” during the former episode, most likely because he knew Dib (and humans in general) wouldn’t understand what the word Smeet meant until they either figure it out on their own or until Zim tells them.

Zim's Smeet

In Issue 7, a smeet that looks similar to Zim was born out of his DNA, the fluid of his Voot Cruiser, and the environment of the formerly lifeless planet. This was the first Irken smeet witnessed being born without the use of cloning. Another notable aspect of this smeet is the smeet's lack of a PAK, which could imply that Irkens currently become dependent on the device (or its components) upon adulthood. Another possible explanation is that newborn smeets can survive without a PAK for a short period before ultimately expiring. Another notable aspect of this smeet is their eye color; the smeet's eyes are amber, like Gaz's eyes, along with a bit of ruby like Zim's eyes.

Unfortunately, the smeet was killed by the other lifeforms who called the smeet a heretic and "false Zim".

Gallery