Today is all about monsters. Hosted by Timothy Brannan
from The Other Side, this bloghop is a chance to post about monsters you love,
hate, or are featuring in your latest novel. So sign up for Monstrous Monday if
you already haven’t and join the monster-madness.
When it comes to monsters I have to say, it’s hard to pick
just one – so I decided I wouldn’t try. Instead I’m going to post about two very
different monsters that provoke two very different reactions. The first is a
creature I became familiar with in my early childhood thanks to a little movie
called The Princess Bride . . .
The R.O.U.S. (Rodents of Unusual Size):
R.O.U.S.s are large, rat-like creatures that are known to
be incredibly vicious. They live in Fire Swamps and frequently attack human
beings brave enough to venture into their lair. As a child these R.O.U.S.s terrified
me – because who wouldn’t be terrified with a giant rat that eats people? Still,
I always liked to pretend that I was in the Fire Swamp, battling an army of
these strange creatures beside my hero Westley. If I ever come across an
R.O.U.S., I’ll grab a sword and start swinging.
The second monster I want to discuss is a creature which absolutely
petrifies me. The very idea of it makes me skin break out in goosebumps . . .
The Mothman:
While R.O.U.S.s are make-believe creatures from a beloved
childhood novel and film (at least, I hope William Goldman made them up), the Mothman
is an ominious creature with a number of sightings. The most well-known
incident occurred in 1966 in Point Pleasant, West Virginia. Police recorded several
sightings of a seven-foot creature with long wings and glowing red eyes. These
reports continued up until the 1967 collapse of the Silver Bridge, which killed
forty-six people. Though some claim to have seen the Mothman standing on the
bridge the day of the collapse, following the disaster the creature was never
seen in Point Pleasant again.
The Mothman is a dark omen, bringing death in its wake.
And while I think R.O.U.S.s are amusing, and feel confident that I could handle
myself against most monsters (my wealth of Buffy knowledge would aid me such an
event), the idea of facing a Mothman is not high on my list of fun activities.
Beware . . .
Any reference to The Princess Bride rocks in my book!
ReplyDeleteI couldn't resist.
DeleteMothman is real. The good news is that it's just a giant heron that would fly alongside cars, attracted by the car's lights, and its eyes would glow red because that's what their eyes do. More good news, their life span is 15 years in the wild, and since Mothman hasn't been seen since 1967, I think you're safe.
ReplyDeleteStill makes for a creepy story though. Gave my overactive imagination some serious nightmares.
DeleteI'm pretty sure there's a family of R.O.U.S's living in my attic. I'm going to have to have Westley come and take care of that for me.
ReplyDeleteYou definitely have some strange picks. Personally, I don't want to see a rodent of ANY size. One that big would scare the crap out of me.
ReplyDeleteGreat monster picks! I think NY is breeding those R.O.U.S. Maybe Buffy ought to send some young slayers to go clean up that mess before it becomes a real problem!
ReplyDeleteThey're both equally terrorizing.
ReplyDeleteRodents of Unusual Size!! I'm so happy they got a mention in this blogfest. I've not heard of mothman before...kinda wish I still hadn't to be honest, hehe.
ReplyDeleteLOVED Princess Bride. Great, great movie.
ReplyDeleteI had always heard of the Mothman, but never really knew anything about him/it till much later.
Thanks so much for joining in my bloghop!
I've never heard of Mothman (I just typed Mathman--which is scary in a different kind of way :)--pretty sure I don't want to run into him ever!
ReplyDeleteI would totally fight that ROUS! But how do you fight the Mothman? Holy water? Fire? Silver bullets?
ReplyDeleteI love those lines:
ReplyDeleteButtercup: And the R.O.U.S's?
Wesley: Rodents of Unusual Size? I doubt they exist.
WHOMP!
I saw the Mothman Prophecies movie. Creepy!
Excellent picks on both monsters. Creepy and funny at the same time.
ReplyDeleteI like your picks. Rats are scary even when not of unusual size. And moths, with their velvety wings are spooky.
ReplyDeleteGreat monster choices! I was never afraid of the R.O.U.S.s, but the Mothman is freaky. I agree with you about that. I saw the movie and it was freaking scary.
ReplyDeletePrincess Bride is so funny! I need to watch that again, soon.
haha, I'm so glad you mentioned the ROUS's. What a great movie.
ReplyDeleteAllison (Geek Banter)
Both of those give me the chills. Great choices.
ReplyDeleteThose giant rodents live in Louisiana and are better known as Nutria. They are a huge problem in New Orleans but have spread throughout the state. There was an incident in Shreveport (when I still lived there) of a nutria setting off a burglar alarm at a restaurant, not because of chewing on the wiring or anything but because it was so big it disturbed the motion sensor.
ReplyDeleteThe Mothman gave me the shivers...But I love The R.O.U.S. Brings back memories of childhood...
ReplyDeleteThe R O U S, so funny in the Princess Bride, my husbands favorite movie. The Mothman, was so disappointed in that movie, could have been so much scarier!
ReplyDeleteWonderful choices!
I used to think such large rodents were something of tall tales... until I saw a rat the size of a dog in Central America. It was horrifying! I still laugh at the Fire Swamp part of the movie, though.
ReplyDeleteMothman looks terrifying; reminds me a little of Slenderman...
ReplyDeleteI'm with you; give me the ROUSes any day!
Jamie
The mothman stuff creeps me out. I don't know if you are an X-Files fan, but the episode entitled Mothmen is one of the scariest I've seen. It's on Netflix instant if you want to check it out.
ReplyDeleteI remember the R.O.U.S.! And the Mothman is definitely a creepy monster, especially since its appearance is a harbinger of doom.
ReplyDelete