Randall Modified Pic 6

[RandallBoggs]

Now although Ran taught me a little about his gifted ability, even he doesn't understand it at times.

Which leaves me to say to our informer, Pitbulllady, how can Randall change the color of his fronds and hands if they don't have scales?
We may have talked about this before, but....

You know, this actually adds another Fact and Question. When Randall learned this ability, everytime he gets hit in the head, he turns a different color (bad side-effect).

So why did he just turn to his normal shade when he got hit by Sullivan? Did that part of his head that controls his blending shut off? Because he didn't do it from then on.......

[pitbulllady]

There is no pigment in the surface of scales, Sean. That's why the shed skin of a snake or lizard looks like a piece of clear plastic. The pigment is in the skin UNDERNEATH the scales. You see, scales are analagous to our hair; they are rooted in the skin, yet the majority of the scale is made up of dead cells. Unlike our hair, though, scales do not grow individually. Reptile skin underneath the covering of scales is pretty much just like ours, but largely devoid of sweat and oil glands. It contains pigments, but unlike our skin, which only has one kind of pigment, melanin, reptile skin contains many different kinds: leucin(white), melanin(black-brown), erythrin(red), cyanin(blue), and xanthin(yellow). Randall's skin would contain billions of specialized cells called chromataphores, which contain different pigments and can be "switched" on or off, conciously or subconciously, to activate the different colors and combinations. Even though his arms, legs, fronds, and parts of his face are scaleless, the skin on those areas would still contain chromataphores. His rapid-fire color/pattern changes when Boo hits him, as well as his turning to Sulley's color and pattern in the pic you posted are subconcious changes, and with the exception of the one you posted, are random. I would assume that his returning to his "default" color when Sulley knocks him out is the result of being UNconcious, so his brain cannot relay subconcious information to the chromataphores. He just goes back to his normal coloration. When he turns Sulley's color, it's because he is actually perceiving that color and pattern, even if he's not actively thinking about it(though he most likely is, since he's concerned about Sulley beating him in the Scare Totals and about how he and Mike treated him earlier, in the locker room).


pitbulllady

[RandallBoggs]

Well I honestly still believe that hitting Randall in the head causes some kind of change.
I mean, if he got hit with the bat, he surely would have just changed to it's color, but instead he shifted between several....
So wrong to treat his gift that way....

[RandallBoggs]

I was at first thinking this was left over from the color blend, but I guess you guys would call it a color destortion or reflection or something right?

[pitbulllady]

That is just one of his blue-green stripes, which start out as deep green on his back, but travel around nearly to his chest. Since his torso is slightly twisted around as he is gesturing with his right arm, the stripe is visable on his side. If you look closely at Randall, you'll notice that he has a very complex pattern of interwoven stripes of varying shades of blue and green, which pretty much cover his back and sides, up his neck and of course, on his tail. He really has almost as much blue and green on him as he does purple, but since he's normally seen from the front, which is largely patternless and all-purple, most people just associate purple with his color.

pitbulllady

[RandallBoggs]

And Purple is mysterious.....
At least that's what artists say ^_^

[Mirage]

I've noticed that about his coloration, too (blue/green striping).

Purple's the color of royalty, too-yay! ;D

[RandallBoggs]

I thought blue was royalty and purple was prince?

Prince of Royalty....

Hmm...
What does green mean?

[Mirage]

Eh, maybe. I'm pretty sure purple is closely associated with royalty. Maybe princes, specifically.

Green? I've always heard it associated with springtime, nurturing, nature, elements, earth, etc etc. That kind of thing...

[RandallBoggs]

March is spring right?
Well.....me and Joy had come up with Randall probably being born in March.

His ancestors in the past could have been considered Royalty in reptilian point of view and Randall's a Prince of sorts, being the latest offspring.

[Mirage]

Yeah, March starts spring. Hey...that's a pretty cool theory! How'd you come up with March, by the way?

Let's see, that'd make him (astrologically speaking, which I love to do!) either Pisces, Aries, or on the cusp. I'd put him between March 21 and 31 since he shows way more Arian characteristics than Piscean ones.

[RandallBoggs]

Well umm....me and Joy both worked on this.

We figured that most reptiles have offspring near spring, so when their born, they'd have a warm enviornment to grow up in first, Summer.

We figured Randall was born around the time most reptiles are....and also the rainy season too.


Actually I can't remember that well.....maybe Joy does.....

[Mirage]

Oh...neat. That makes sense, too.

[pitbulllady]

Well, actually, most reptiles AREN'T born or hatched in the spring, but in late summer/early fall. They BREED in the spring, but it takes awhile before eggs are laid or babies born, depending on the species. Since Randall isn't really a reptile, not being cold-blooded, and having a diaphragm(which only mammals have), he would not necessarily have been born at the same time that most true herps hatch. In fact, with his human ancestry, he most likely would have been born at the time when most HUMAN babies are born, which DOES happen to be in the spring. We'd figured March because of his Irish ancestry, with the whole St. Patrick's Day thing, but then again, being that St. Patrick is the one credited with banishing some of his ancestors from Ireland(remember, the word "serpent" referred to ANY scaly, air-breathing creature, and in this case, sentient ones), Randall most likely would NOT celebrate that occasion!

pitbulllady

[RandallBoggs]

Uh yeah....yeah that's right....
That's the reasons we talked about uh huh yeah...



Uh actually....
I've been competing with myself on this.

But I honestly think it's a possibility Randall was born on St. (yeah right) Patrick's Day.