Wapsi Square Forum

I recently discovered {and immediately binged} the webcomic Speak of the Devil {link to the first page; the page that just posted is a spoiler for almost the full run to date}. Great stuff; urban fantasy noir done right.

The protagonist, Sunday Blackburne, is a seven-foot or so basilisk/human hybrid {perhaps her father wore shades or a blindfold?}.

She "freelances" in the city of Eidolon - the "Cast" page says:

Examples of work from previous clients include: Bodyguard, Private Investigator, Negotiator, and as an "intimidation tactic" in one instance.

The story opens with a bang with a defenestration right out of Watchmen and doesn't slow down.

If you like noir, or urban fantasy ... or want to meet a protagonist who would look Bud in the eye and tell her to back off ,,, try Speak of the Devil
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You may have noticed my current avatar:
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Well... Yes, that's Sunday Blackburn - but she IS in a Halloween costume - the "skull" whiteface, lips, nose and extreme eye treatment are makeup.

The fangs and horns?

That's all her.

Funny thing about "monster" type creatures with horns -- all horned animals are herbivores. Therefore....

Hollywood is silly.

Atomic wrote: ↑Mon Mar 22, 2021 11:35 pm Funny thing about "monster" type creatures with horns -- all horned animals are herbivores. Therefore....

Hollywood is silly.

And the most dangerous non-insect non-human species in Africa is an herbivore. Mostly. They have been observed eating carrion, and hunting for meat. Their closest living relative species, outside their taxonomic family, are all primary carnivores.

(Among mammals, there are few if any pure herbivores. The rest are at least accidental carnivores, failing to clean their food of tiny bugs before eating it. Some that you wouldn't guess, go well beyond that.)

The North American animal that kills the largest number of people each year for the last century or so is a "horned" herbivore . . .

Atomic wrote: ↑Mon Mar 22, 2021 11:35 pmFunny thing about "monster" type creatures with horns -- all horned animals are herbivores. Therefore....

Hollywood is silly.

Actually, Hollywood is stupid.

Warrl wrote: ↑Tue Mar 23, 2021 12:10 amAnd the most dangerous non-insect non-human species in Africa is an herbivore. Mostly. They have been observed eating carrion, and hunting for meat. Their closest living relative species, outside their taxonomic family, are all primary carnivores.

I'd say hippopotamus, but I've not heard of them scavenging or hunting.

Cape buffalo are known to hunt hunters and other predators, but I'd not heard of them eating meat either.

Warrl wrote: ↑Tue Mar 23, 2021 12:10 am(Among mammals, there are few if any pure herbivores. The rest are at least accidental carnivores, failing to clean their food of tiny bugs before eating it. Some that you wouldn't guess, go well beyond that.)

Rabbits, for one.

--FreeFlier

FreeFlier wrote: ↑Tue Mar 23, 2021 7:48 am

Warrl wrote: ↑Tue Mar 23, 2021 12:10 amAnd the most dangerous non-insect non-human species in Africa is an herbivore. Mostly. They have been observed eating carrion, and hunting for meat. Their closest living relative species, outside their taxonomic family, are all primary carnivores.

I'd say hippopotamus, but I've not heard of them scavenging or hunting.

Yep, hippos. I didn't actually know about them scavenging or hunting until I read Wikipedia, but it's what I was there looking for - lots of other herbivores are opportunistic carnivores (i.e. if they find meat that can't get away, such as carrion, bird nests on the ground, or trapped small animals).

And the closest living relatives of hippos are cetaceans.

FreeFlier wrote: ↑Tue Mar 23, 2021 7:48 am

Warrl wrote: ↑Tue Mar 23, 2021 12:10 am(Among mammals, there are few if any pure herbivores. The rest are at least accidental carnivores, failing to clean their food of tiny bugs before eating it. Some that you wouldn't guess, go well beyond that.)

Rabbits, for one.

Rabbits, though they are about as close to a pure herbivore as you can get with mammals, don't clean the tiny bugs off their food.

And a mother rabbit has very limited means to remove the afterbirth or dead kits from the burrow - and doesn't want to leave them laying nearby to attract predators. So she will normally eat them. But that's the extent of their deliberate meat-eating.

FreeFlier wrote: ↑Tue Mar 23, 2021 7:48 am The North American animal that kills the largest number of people each year for the last century or so is a "horned" herbivore . . .

Depends on your definition of "North American animal". If you mean "animal present in North America during current or historic time" then I'd argue that Homo sapiens wins the prize... a very dangerous species indeed. However, most examples of this species are omnivorous and non-horned. The only horned one I've heard of lately is in a zoo in Washington DC - it's noted for its striking coloring and its aggressive territorial displays but as far as is known it hasn't killed anyone, and is organic-omnivorous rather than herbivorous.

If you mean "native North American animal" then it's going to depend on your definition of "native" and on where you set the time boundary to establish nativity. Humans are a very invasive species but have only been in North America for maybe 20,000 years or so, while cervids arrived somewhere around 5 million years ago.

Dave wrote: ↑Tue Mar 23, 2021 10:32 am

FreeFlier wrote: ↑Tue Mar 23, 2021 7:48 am The North American animal that kills the largest number of people each year for the last century or so is a "horned" herbivore . . .

Depends on your definition of "North American animal". If you mean "animal present in North America during current or historic time" then I'd argue that Homo sapiens wins the prize... a very dangerous species indeed. However, most examples of this species are omnivorous and non-horned. The only horned one I've heard of lately is in a zoo in Washington DC - it's noted for its striking coloring and its aggressive territorial displays but as far as is known it hasn't killed anyone, and is organic-omnivorous rather than herbivorous.

If you mean "native North American animal" then it's going to depend on your definition of "native" and on where you set the time boundary to establish nativity. Humans are a very invasive species but have only been in North America for maybe 20,000 years or so, while cervids arrived somewhere around 5 million years ago.

I suspect FF meant "antlered", rather than "horned" - the moose, i believe.

AnotherFairportfan wrote: ↑Tue Mar 23, 2021 3:11 pm

Dave wrote: ↑Tue Mar 23, 2021 10:32 am

FreeFlier wrote: ↑Tue Mar 23, 2021 7:48 amThe North American animal that kills the largest number of people each year for the last century or so is a "horned" herbivore . . .

Depends on your definition of "North American animal". If you mean "animal present in North America during current or historic time" then I'd argue that Homo sapiens wins the prize... a very dangerous species indeed. However, most examples of this species are omnivorous and non-horned. The only horned one I've heard of lately is in a zoo in Washington DC - it's noted for its striking coloring and its aggressive territorial displays but as far as is known it hasn't killed anyone, and is organic-omnivorous rather than herbivorous.

If you mean "native North American animal" then it's going to depend on your definition of "native" and on where you set the time boundary to establish nativity. Humans are a very invasive species but have only been in North America for maybe 20,000 years or so, while cervids arrived somewhere around 5 million years ago.

I suspect FF meant "antlered", rather than "horned" - the moose, i believe.

That's why the "horned" is in quotes . . . they aren't actually horns.

And all deer, which includes moose, blacktails, whitetails, mulies, and roosevelt elk. A car hits the critter, cuts its legs out from under it, and it rolls right up the hood into the windshield and through into the occupants' laps.

Moose, of course, may attack the car if the driver is stupid enough to blow the horn at it.

I wasn't getting tricky about the definition of animal (by including humans), it's just that nobody thinks of deer as dangerous unless they know about this . . . or have gotten to close quarters with a panicked deer.

--FreeFlier

Most Dangerous Horned North American animal? The domestic cow. Cattle, and cows in particular get very cranky and put their 3/4 ton of muscle into motion pretty quickly. If you're in the way, you will find out in a hurry, particularly around calves. All that Rodeo bull riding stuff is far from fake.

And since when do hippos have horns? Off-topic, 5 yard penalty. Fweeeet!

Nobody said hippos have horns...

Cows are also most dangerous because they're plotting bloody revolution and murder (watch how they watch us sometime), but we won't get into that here.

Typeminer wrote: ↑Wed Mar 24, 2021 5:46 am Cows are also most dangerous because they're plotting bloody revolution and murder (watch how they watch us sometime), but we won't get into that here.

I guess now is a bad time to mention the medium rare steak I ate last night?

Typeminer wrote: ↑Wed Mar 24, 2021 5:46 am Cows are also most dangerous because they're plotting bloody revolution and murder (watch how they watch us sometime), but we won't get into that here.

And they have unexpected allies...

Warrl wrote: ↑Thu Mar 25, 2021 1:18 am And they have unexpected allies...

I was waiting for that!