2014-08-05
Art for today brought to you by Dazhbug! You may check out a higher-resolution version of this strip over on the GoComics mirror!
Skin Horse
By Shaenon K. Garrity & Jeffrey C. Wells
Art for today brought to you by Dazhbug! You may check out a higher-resolution version of this strip over on the GoComics mirror!
They MUST be evil. Nothing sane can POSSIBLY enjoy carbonated mineral water!
I enjoy carbonated mineral water!
… your point stands.
Daisychain has expensive tastes. And is surprisingly well-versed in brand identities for a rodent that lives in the walls of a roach motel.
Just to clear up one thought I had, where was NIMH located in the book?
I don’t think the book specified, but it was inspired by actual NIMH research by John B. Calhoun that mostly took place in Maryland… although he did work on the project for a couple of years in Bar Harbor, Maine. Dun-dun-dunnn?
It either has disciminating expensive taste, or it is the only brand of that kind it ever was exposed to.
i suspect we’ll soon find out how he learned that
And I believe the only time NIMH’s location is stated (Racso and the Rats of NIMH), it is given simply as “the city”
Notice how the mouse hasn’t budged from his burrow, leaving it’s back in shadow. That’s because it’s not a mouse. It’s not even an animal. It’s an appendage that’s evolved to mimic the shape of a small, non-threatening animal which is to say it’s a lure.
It’s also tasted human flesh
Also, note that the form of an adorable talking mouse named Daisychain appeals to the sensibilities of human beings in a way far too exact to be a coincidence. This appendage isn’t just a lure. It’s a lure that’s been methodically developed specifically to attract human prey.
Even if it is an anglerfish, I’m still calling it Daisychain.
And note that it specifically attracts humans who are *not* weird-blind. The weird blind will only see a mouse, and will put down traps that will be quite ineffective against such a monster!
that does make it queer that (he?she?it?) carved out a mousehole in the wall, especially one shaped like a cartoon mousehole
(yes, i know “it’s a cartoon”, shut up)
Hm, “Daisychain.” Lots of small, pretty things assembled into a larger structure by a higher intelligence?
Or… lots of creatures from the phylum Cnidaria (jellyfish, corals etc) form large organisms by having many individual bodies that bud off each other but stay attached. Behind that wall is just an enormous, fused mass of mice.
Thank you SO MUCH for that thought…
(Really, thank you, I needed new monsters for my dnd group)
If you want disturbing stuff for DnD, this is the first thing I thought of in response to davidbreslin’s comment:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rat_king_%28folklore%29
Daisy Chain, huh? From that Wikipedia entry on Rat King linked above: “An alternative theory states that the name in French was rouet de rats (or a spinning wheel of rats, the knotted tails being wheel spokes), with the term transforming over time into roi de rats.” Hmm…
First, off, thank you so much for the nightmares. I’ll send you the therapy bill.
Second, if y’all are talking about DnD, you should check out Planescape. Specifically, they had a monster known as the Cranium Rat. Individual rats were just rats, with heads that looked like exposed brains on top. When more rats gather in one place, they started forming a telepathic group mind that got more intelligent with the greater number of rats in the swarm.
Daisychain may not be fused physically with the rats in the walls . . .
Doesn’t their motel have a snack machine?
Maybe it’s not really a motel! Dun dun duuun!
I hope you’re on vacation. The art work is terrible. The lettering is difficult to read. The story line is, well, uninteresting. After at least 5 years of following your strip, I got to say the change didn’t do you any good.
Thanks for the feedback. As noted elsewhere, if you have a problem with the lettering, you may find it helpful to view the larger-resolution strips on GoComics. In case you’ve missed the other announcements, yes, our usual cartoonist is indeed on maternity leave. She will be returning. If you hate the storyline, well, that’s mine, and you’re stuck with me. 🙂
Seriously, dude? Not cool.
Jonah’s wrong, it would sound pretentious if he wasn’t so cute. Not sinister.
In Vietnam era U.S. military parlance a “daisy chain” is a string of claymore mines connected together with det cord, usually for the purpose of making an “automatic ambush” designed to wipe out everyone trooping along a trail.
The very first thing that crossed my mind when I read that name was Automatic Ambush.
Damn, this “mouse” just keeps getting creepier and creepier
“Automatic Ambush” The “kinder, gentler machine gun hand” version of Automic Ambush.