01 | Mud

Mud is one of the two tritagonists (along with Breadhead) of The Gaslight District.

He is the older brother of Ken the Butcher, uncle of Melancholy Hill and Breadhead, and a member of The Smiling Dead. A devious and dishonest gunslinger, Mud is by no means devoted to the gang, often stealing his younger brother's takings. Despite this, he has a genuine liking for Mel, encouraging her to become more independent and join the family's criminal activities, despite being unaware of her human nature.

Mud is a tall, lanky Rotling, and appears to be the most deteriorated of the main cast. His green, slimy fur hangs from the bottom of his head, beard-like, forming tufts between his lips and leaving part of the top of his skull exposed. He has large red eyes with swirling pupils, bad teeth with rotten gums, crooked ears, and lacks a nose. His neck is not covered in fur.

He wears a brown suit with a long coat, a short red tie, and a fedora. He's also often seen with a cigarette in his mouth.

Considered a scoundrel, Mud is a greedy, traitorous, conniving, and trigger-happy criminal. Always looking for a new opportunity, Mud is cunning even with his own family, attempting to hire Mel for his own business and even stealing money from Ken's cash register, much to the latter's anger. He is incredibly sadistic like the rest of his family, laughing gleefully while shooting Jack and enjoying the spilled gore. Furthermore, immediately after cementing Jack, Mud stuffs all of his money into his stomach, showing a complete lack of respect for his victims. Mud also holds a deep grudge against him, as upon encountering his former friend Joshua, he shot him in the head and brutalized him, ranting about how much he will hate him forever, for an undisclosed event from 5245 years ago. Despite this, he also appears to be somewhat of a coward, as when Joshua revives and retaliates, Mud insists that it was all a joke.

Like the other members of The Smiling Dead, Mud is not completely ruthless and seems to have his positive traits. He genuinely cares for Ken and the rest of the family, giving Ken advice on raising Mel and encouraging Mel to take an active part in the gang's activities. This benevolence also extends to other people in the gang, as he seemingly held a fondness for Jack, wondering why he was being shot at and even giving him one last cigarette before cementing him, commenting that the store wouldn't be the same without him. He is willing to commit to a mission, even when he questions his family's actions or when the situation becomes desperate. During the escape from Paradise Lost, he also displays a great deal of urgency to get his family to safety. Likewise, Mud's family seems to tolerate him and keep him around, as long as he lies and deceives for them rather than against them.

Mud is Ken the Butcher's older brother. He once befriended Joshua and had a falling out with him 5,245 years before the pilot. Although it's unclear what exactly happened between them, Mud still hates Joshua for what happened.

Although Mud appears to have his own branch of criminal operations, he appears to primarily work with Ken, acting as a gunman and accountant for the Smiling Dead, as well as frequenting the Whale Belly Butcher Shop during business hours. He appears to be a frequent visitor to Ken's establishment, as he was quite fond of Jack the Rat. After Jack discovered that Mel was human, Ken called Mud and Breadhead to find him and ensure that Jack did not publicly reveal his humanity.

Marksmanship: Mud is an extremely skilled marksman, capable of shooting out a rearview mirror from a moving car and even shooting Jack directly between the eyes with his own eyes covered.
Contortion: Mud appears to be able to physically contort his body and move through small, tight spaces, as demonstrated when he surprised Jack by jumping off the toilet.
Functional Immortality: Like Rotling, Mud has the mark of the Black Hand on his body and will revive if killed in any way.

Ken the Butcher
Mud's younger brother. Mud is frequently the victim of Ken's wrath due to his own despicable behavior, and there doesn't seem to be much, if any, affection between the brothers. Mud is aware of Ken's anger issues and seems resigned to taking the brunt of his anger when he flies into a rage. Rather than fighting back, Mud either attempts to calm Ken down with indifference (which often enrages him further) or gets himself beaten up.

Melancholy
Mud is Melancholy's adoptive uncle. He recognizes Mel's abilities and supports her future criminal adventures, praising her for her work in catching Jack and offering her three times his salary to work for him instead of Ken. He shows concern for her and Ken when the plan begins to fail and, rather than save his own skin, he goes into Paradise Lost to find Breadhead and order him to reorganize.

Breadhead
Mud is Breadhead's uncle. (GUYS, NO MORE INFORMATION, SORRY 🥀)

Diligence
When The Smiling Dead was visiting Paradise Lost, Diligence called him "a foul, rancid Rotling", although the insults were likely not personal.

Mud is based on Tarman from the 1985 film, Return of the Living Dead.
Mud also shares many design aspects with Gorillaz bassist Murdoc Niccals, being a sleazy, greedy, and violent immortal with green skin and an accent originating from a part of the British Commonwealth.
Fans were quick to point out that Mud resembles Stubbs the Zombie from the video game Stubbs the Zombie in Rebel Without a Pulse, but according to Szopko's Twitter, this is purely coincidental. [4]
Mud's pronounced Australian accent, his attire, and his role as the gang's gunman may be a reference to the sniper from Team Fortress 2. (I LOVE YOU SNIPER)
Mud is the fourth Glitch Productions character to have an Australian accent, the first, second, and third being, respectively, Gummigoo, Max, and Chad from The Amazing Digital Circus.
While scanning Mud's body, Diligence notices that:
The Mud's skin is liquefied.
Mud has very poor oral health: he has twenty-eight (28) cavities, eleven (11) abscesses, indurated tartar, gingivitis, periodontitis, and halitosis. He also has oral tori, benign bony growths that grow in the mouth, and oral lichen planus, an inflammatory condition that affects the mucous membranes of the mouth. His level of dental erosion is described simply as "very poor."
Mud's bone structure is fragile enough that "collapse is imminent."
Mud is missing a "package," a euphemism for male sexual organs. It's confirmed that Mud lives in the meat locker at the Whale Belly Butcher Shop and sleeps on a meat hook.
The pilot hints that Mud may have worked for Virtue Corp in the past. He is the only member of the Smiling Dead who already owns a Virtue Corp guard uniform, though it was visibly outdated compared to his current one, and there is a drawing of him and Joshua in identical guard uniforms on the wall of the security office.