Animals in Strips.

[Tom]

I actually enjoy reading the strips that feature the animals (not that I don't enjoy the other strips), I think they remind me of the Hanna-Barbera cartoons when I was little (and now, I must admit).

Sam is one of my favourite characters in Horace, and I'm sorry to hear that he's been moved to the sidelines. I'd say this about any of the characters I like though, but as time goes on things change, and hopefully new characters will emerge.

The strips where the humans interract with the animals interest me, as they give an imaginary insight into the thoughts of the animals. And as quite a lot of people are frightened of snakes, well, this gives me hope that Sam may return some day.

Another thing: a dose of surreality is good for you... who needs to read about people all the time anyway?

[Roger Kettle]

Tom, I'm pretty sure Sam the Snake will appear again in the future....just nowhere near as often. He featured every five or six weeks for about sixteen years and..well...he jutht needed a retht.

[Diane CBPFC]

Sixteen years! How old is that in human years?

[Tarquin Thunderthighs lll]

Well, the average life-span of a rattlesnake is around 22 years up to a maximum of around 30, so that makes it around 3:1 in terms of snake:human years, making Sam around...well...my age.

So - mid-life crithith time?

[Colin]

[The Peepmaster]

Well, the average life-span of a rattlesnake is around 22 years up to a maximum of around 30, so that makes it around 3:1 in terms of snake:human years, making Sam around...well...my age.

So - mid-life crithith time?

Thenility will be thetting in! (Feel free to use that one Roger).

[Roger Kettle]

Don't worry---I will!

[The Peepmaster]

Have you had him do any tongue-twisters yet, Roger - Like "The Leith Polieth dithmitheth uth"?

or

"Thee thells thea-thells on the thea-thore"

or

"The thixth thick sheik'th thixth sheep'th thick"

or

"Thix thlippery thnails, thlid thlowly theaward"

I could get you a week's worth of material!

[Colin]

The thixth thick sheik'th thixth sheep'th thick

I can't even say that as it is 

[Roger Kettle]

You thee...I mean, you see, this is the kind of stuff that used to drive me mad. One of the words you suggested was "sheep's". Now, if I'm going to stick to the pattern, I should represent this as "theepth"---and that is, basically, indecipherable. Had I continued introducing the snake every five weeks, I would have feared for my thanity.

[Colin]

I thought it was:

1 sheep
2 sheeps
&
3 sheepsies

[The Peepmaster]

Okay - here's a strip for you Roger.

Thammy the Thnake says: ""Thee thells thea-thells on the thea-thore"

Toady the Toad says: "How much for?"

Thnake says "That'th irrevelant, it'th a tongue-twithter".

Toady the Toad says: "I thought you were going to thay thickthpenth"

[Roger Kettle]

Well, technically, I suppose it should be "six cents" and how do you write that and make it understandable? "Thickth Thenth" ? To me, that looks more like "sixth sense". As I said before, writing this stuff every five weeks was driving me bonkers.

[Tarquin Thunderthighs lll]

Couldn't you just write in a miracle lisp cure?

[Roger Kettle]

I went for the "dump the snake" option.