2000 / Video / Forum in-joke turned Flash song

The Terrible Secret of Space

Two space robots promise protection from the universe’s worst secret, mostly by pushing people down stairs.

The original is hosted off-site; this page provides context and a link to it.

What was this?

Pusher Robot and Shover Robot deliver their ominous mission with total confidence and methods that are plainly useless.

Why it spread

The animation moved from Something Awful’s community to Flash hubs and personal sites, carrying “Do you have stairs in your house?” with it.

Pusher Robot and Shover Robot from The Terrible Secret of Space.
Image shown from its documented source.

What happened

Pusher Robot and Shover Robot deliver their ominous mission with total confidence and methods that are plainly useless.

Where it came from

The joke grew from Rich Kyanka’s 2000 Something Awful ICQ prank transcript; The Laziest Men on Mars and Flash animators turned it into a song and animation.

Why it mattered

It documents a distinct early-web pipeline: a forum joke became a remix, then a Flash object, then a shared quote.

How it spread

The animation moved from Something Awful’s community to Flash hubs and personal sites, carrying “Do you have stairs in your house?” with it.