Chapter 18 Summary

After the explosion of noise and light, the Heart of Gold returns to its previous orbit, but this time with the same interior effect Ford and Arthur had noticed when they were first taken on board and had thought they were on the sea front in Southend. Everything in the ship is temporarily transformed into half-familiar but absurd forms, and after some moments the travelers are able to determine that the two missiles have turned into a bowl of petunias and a surprised-looking whale. The rest of the chapter contains a complete record of the thought process of the whale from the time it comes into existence to the time it lands on the planet's surface with a sudden, wet thud.

Chapter 18 Analysis

The good thing about Improbability Drive is that nothing is what it seems to be. But Arthur and Ford are...