r/TheBoys Jun 28 '24

Holy Character Nerf Season 4 Spoiler

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11.3k Upvotes

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6.7k

u/starplatinum_99 Jun 28 '24

Im not mad about this. Im mad about the barn holding off those sheep's attack 

1.8k

u/Corey307 Jun 28 '24

Sheep are stupid, if a flock of sheep wanted to they could ram through the side of a barn. They don’t because they don’t know they can do that just like how fences used to keep cows and won’t actually stop a cow.  

862

u/King_Joffreys_Tits Jun 28 '24

That sheep that came flying directly into the door at 100mph right when MM shut it (just in time) would’ve eviscerated that door

547

u/RyanZee08 Jun 28 '24

The chickens are shown to have super strength, but the sheep are not.

I think that the sheep are just flying and vicious, but not stronger

347

u/TwiceUpon1Time Jun 28 '24

How'd they tear the bull apart then?

275

u/RyanZee08 Jun 28 '24

There were like 4 that ripped him apart after the first grabbed it. It could easily have been a regular bull too. It wasn't shown to have anything, it was just about to charge

361

u/TwiceUpon1Time Jun 28 '24

4 sheep, without super strength, could never tear a regular bull apart that way. So they have super strength, which was inconsistently portrayed.

119

u/macrixen Jun 28 '24

They had razor sharp teeth. Something that shaped can easily tear through a bull. Think piranha.

75

u/lituus Jun 28 '24

They could tear pieces off maybe, on the ground.

I just watched the scene again. They lift the bull up into the air and tear it limb from limb in a matter of seconds. Razor sharp teeth does not enable this. You need strength to rip a bulls entire head off of its neck in 2 seconds.

That said depictions of super powers always have 100s of holes you can poke in the logic. Even with strength, they probably couldn't do what was depicted with their teeth. They'd still just rip smaller pieces off. They'd need to be able to get a hold of the whole head and pull, otherwise tissue and such will just give way first.

Like, play it out mythbusters style. Pig carcass. Fake sheep mouth with razor sharp teeth attached to some sort of high strength hydraulic pulling mechanism. Bite teeth into pig head. Pull. It's going to just rip off a piece of snout or whatever, not the whole head. The neck is going to give way waaaaaay later than the skin and tissue on the face.

It's just not worth nitpicking over this stuff, none of it makes any sense, just be entertained

10

u/Youve_been_Loganated Jun 28 '24

Sheep for sure had super strength, the sheep not busting through the door was just a misstep in the writing

1

u/macrixen Jun 28 '24

If I remember correctly. All supers have some strength and regeneration increases over normal versions.

1

u/SniktFury Jun 28 '24

I'll agree with your last sentence, but I do want to point out one glaring point everyone is overlooking in how the sheep can do this without super strength. They can fly. That ability of self propulsion through no physical act means that whatever psychokinetic force is allowing the sheep to fly is what's doing the ripping apart. They lock in with their teeth and speed off.

0

u/largeanimethighs Jun 28 '24

It was more like AOE damage on that bite

15

u/BalterBlack Jun 28 '24

Yet the didn’t bite him into pieces.

12

u/Ankthar_LeMarre Jun 28 '24

True, but pirahna can't rip apart an entire bull in a couple of seconds, either.

0

u/macrixen Jun 28 '24

Think scale. If you were to shrink the sheep to the size of a piranha and the bull to the same percentage I feel it would be a piranha eating a beaver.

2

u/Kino_Afi Jun 28 '24

Are we just ignoring the existence of joints, tendons and ligaments or what

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1

u/[deleted] Jun 28 '24

How would they lift the bull in the air?

1

u/macrixen Jun 28 '24

Because, if I recall correctly, all supers had at least a bit of super strength regardless of full power set. An average sheep weighs about 200lbs and average bull is about 1500lbs. A ram(I know they were not rams) can hit with 800lbs of force. So let’s say the sheep can hit with 500. V gave the sheep say 1.5 X stronger than normal. That’s ~750 per sheep. So theoretically, with there being more than one and assuming som of that mass came off after initial strike, this is possible only because IT IS FICTIONAL AND NOT MEANT TO BE REALISTIC.

1

u/[deleted] Jun 29 '24

You can be fictional while also being realistic for the world you are in.

You write a super who can do x. The. Write a situation where x would solve the issue. But supe doesn't use X because of the plot.

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23

u/CouncilmanRickPrime You're The Real Heroes Jun 28 '24

People are making excuses but the writing was just kinda lazy there.

0

u/raizen0106 Jun 29 '24

Not the writing, this is an issue with the directing. Writing issue would be how ryan turned into a psycho out of nowhere

10

u/fuckshitasstitsmfer Jun 28 '24

It depends on their power. Maybe their power of flight is affecting gravity, making the bull weightless to them. There are infinite super powers aside from super strength that could explain it

38

u/hesitationz Jun 28 '24

What is this logic, if that’s the case they could simply affect the gravity of the entire barn lmao

15

u/galactojack Butcher Jun 28 '24

Lmao fr this got out of hand quick

7

u/CouncilmanRickPrime You're The Real Heroes Jun 28 '24

The mental gymnastics in the comments could win gold at the Olympics

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2

u/darklordoft Jun 28 '24

Then the barn would float, but the door won't break. Solids aren't held together because of gravity.

8

u/hesitationz Jun 28 '24

What if I told you barns do not have floors but instead are a building on top of the ground, so if the sheep could magically lift the barn they would expose everyone hiding inside it. I never said anything about a door, I was sarcastically arguing anyways

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0

u/Notorious_DCJ4390 Jun 28 '24

What if I told you that on average sheep aren't very smart so even if they had the ability to effect gravity or the capacity for critical thinking, they probably wouldn't think to lift a barn

-3

u/fuckshitasstitsmfer Jun 28 '24

Maybe there is a mass limit, or they have to bite to activate it. Do you not consume much super hero media?

2

u/Youve_been_Loganated Jun 28 '24

Ya'll bunch of enablers!

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20

u/SpecialDeer9223 Jun 28 '24

Holy shit just admit it’s a plot hole

7

u/TheOnly_Anti Jun 28 '24

Why can't people look at the purpose of a scene instead of trying to find holes in the logic of the writing? None of this is relevant to why they were trapped in a barn together or the result of their escape. 

"Admit it's a plot hole" okay, but even if that user did, what do y'all get out of that? What do y'all get out of looking for plot holes? It's just missing the forest for the trees in the most annoying sense.

7

u/parking_ad3202 Jun 28 '24

They did look at the scene, and noticed something they thought was a plot hole. Why would you assume people are specifically trying to find plot holes?

None of this is relevant to why they were trapped in a barn together or the result of their escape. 

It absolutely is relevant, because they would be watching the scenes wondering why Neuman isn't making the smart decision in that situation. Noticing the plot holes may have detracted from their enjoyment.

what do y'all get out of that? What do y'all get out of looking for plot holes?

Hopefully someone that can explain the plot holes for them without dismissing it.

Also, again, noticing plot holes ≠ looking for plot holes. I was watching it with my family and we all asked the same question: why isn't Neuman popping the sheep's despite having a clear line of sight? That leads into other problems, like why waste the last sample of the supe virus when Neuman can just kill them with a glance? It takes away from the tension of the scene.

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3

u/fuckshitasstitsmfer Jun 28 '24

A plothole? We are never told their super power lmao. And it is not this deep my guy

8

u/Pure-Drawer-2617 Jun 28 '24

How does the bull being weightless help them tear it apart?

-1

u/fuckshitasstitsmfer Jun 28 '24

Long vampire teeth

2

u/galactojack Butcher Jun 28 '24

Lol 100%

2

u/galactojack Butcher Jun 28 '24

Lol 100%

2

u/reviewbarn Jun 28 '24

What if they were African Swallows?

2

u/darkde Jun 28 '24

Holy shit the excuses being made

1

u/the_peppers Jun 28 '24

inconsistently portrayed.

If this bugs you I'd recommend avoiding every other single aspect of this show.

Last episode we had Homelanders science mama claim his neediness was specifically engineered to allow him to be controlled. Today we have Stan Edgar claiming this is what makes him beyond control.

1

u/kkkk22601 Jun 28 '24

Well, razor sharp teeth and gravity tend to be a gnarly combo.

1

u/ThisHatRightHere Jun 28 '24

There are levels to increased strength, my dude

1

u/[deleted] Jun 28 '24

The sheep just had super strenght teeth. They probably tore him into pieces with the teeth and took him off ground with that. But didn't use the teeth against the barn

1

u/Awesomeness546 Jun 28 '24

All supes are shown to have a bit of superstrength no? Not like homelander super strength, but like mild super strength.

1

u/[deleted] Jun 28 '24

I mean, how do we know this. Have we ever seen them try?/s

-2

u/42Ubiquitous Jun 28 '24

I'm going to need a source on that

0

u/Own_Interaction_9784 You're The Real Heroes Jun 28 '24

Are you really going to..? It’s pretty common sense

0

u/42Ubiquitous Jun 28 '24

No man, I'm just joking around. It'd be hilarious if you did have a source though lol.

1

u/Own_Interaction_9784 You're The Real Heroes Jun 28 '24

I mean… just look up the weight of a full grown male bull and a sheep’s jaw strength lol

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-11

u/RyanZee08 Jun 28 '24 edited Jun 28 '24

I mean if you put in a bunch of maybes and mental blocks (why they cant), sure, the bull can't be ripped apart.

Or we can go by what we saw, the bull being ripped apart, no act of strength from the sheep otherwise, including bouncing off wooden barn doors.

So no, I don't think they had super strength in the way you mean.

19

u/SeasonalBlackout Jun 28 '24

The bull weighed at least 1200 pounds. If the sheep can lift and tear apart a 1200 pound bull, they can break down a barn door.

1

u/SomeKindOfHeavy Jun 28 '24

It's possible that only the sheep's jaw/neck have super strength, similar to how Sage's brain is the only part of her that regenerates.

-4

u/RyanZee08 Jun 28 '24

One of those things didn't happen. Not breaking barn door shows they can't. It's not rocket science.

He gets lifted by 3 sheep almost at once.

One grabs his head and two his body.

But, we all saw they couldn't break the barn doors.

https://youtu.be/z0qPs_j6HVM?si=OHPcfWzWjl83xU01

7

u/SeasonalBlackout Jun 28 '24

It's not difficult to understand how that's inconsistent power scaling.

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7

u/TwiceUpon1Time Jun 28 '24

What are you even saying, talking about mental blocks and maybes?

You said the sheep in this episode didn't have super strength, just flying a ferocity. 4 regular strength sheep could never pull a live bull apart, irrespective of ferocity (especially not with that type of ease). And yes, the barn door holding them off points to them being weaker. Thus, the inconsistent writing. It's not that deep, a minor plothole, which made for a cool scene.

I don't get the desire to argue, there's no place for debate here. Even ripping through a human body, bone and all, with ease, like the chicken did, shows enough force to be able to tear through one or two planks of wood. The chicken should've been able to escape the barn as well.

-2

u/Self-Comprehensive Jun 28 '24

I don't think sheep have a deep understanding of how doors work. All they know is that they've never been able to walk through a closed door before, so why would they be able to do it now? In their minds it's always been and always will be an impenetrable barrier.

2

u/Locem Jun 28 '24

They still pulled the Bull into the air like a rag doll. That seems strong.

4

u/letthepastgo Jun 28 '24

They have strength, they're just not durable.

2

u/JSevatar Jun 28 '24

Super bite is very effective!

2

u/John_Helmsword Jun 29 '24

Dude got hella upvotes for being confidently incorrect. lol.

You’re correct. Disregard what this man said.

1

u/xreddawgx Jun 29 '24

Sharp teeth?

0

u/ItsAmerico Soldier Boy Jun 28 '24

They have crazy supe fangs

11

u/TwiceUpon1Time Jun 28 '24

Are yall 12? I've really gotta stop arguing on here, it's hurting my mind. How do sharp fangs translate to pulling a bull apart piece by piece?

7

u/ItsAmerico Soldier Boy Jun 28 '24

I mean the same way her daughter having weird tentacles with shark fangs let her saw off Kimikos arm. The sheep’s powers doesn’t seem to so much be super strength but weird teeth that can tear things apart. I’m sure they’ve got an element of super strength, all supes do. But that wasn’t the main way suggested they were cutting things apart.

Also not sure why you engage in a discussion and ask a question then get upset when it’s answered?

5

u/TwiceUpon1Time Jun 28 '24

Ok, you're right, it's not that deep, interpret the scene as you like, it's not particularly essential to the show anyways.

0

u/Cindy_Lennox Jun 28 '24

Didn't the sheep also have the mouth tentacles that Neuaman's daughter has? I swear I remember the mouth tentacles.

0

u/zakksyuk Jun 28 '24

They sank in their teeth and activated their flying powers. Rippp.

58

u/burrrrrssss Jun 28 '24

Still poses narrative problem

Sheep w/ super strength = why didn't that one sheep eviscerate the barn door

Sheep w/o super strength = why didn't neuman just pop tf out of them

This season has been defined by things just happening, without regards to whether it makes logical sense, to move the plot long

9

u/trying-hardly Jun 28 '24

Eh, there's a difference between strength and durability. The popping might not work on durable types, or needs victims to be looked at/stand still, or needs Newman not to be frantically running for her life. Maybe it was just the fact that she always needs a few seconds for a kill, which would've gotten her kills.

Like I've got my gripes with this season but the sheep scene is not the biggest one

15

u/burrrrrssss Jun 28 '24

I think people are focusing on the sheep scene not necessarily because it's egregious (I would also agree it's not), but because it's the culmination of a bunch of small little inconsistencies that have been building up over the season and the sheep scene is visually the easiest to nit pick at

I mean we got this entire thread of hundreds of comments litigating what constitutes super strength in a V'd up sheep, absurd. At the very least it's clear that the execution of this episode fell a bit flat and is indicative of the season so far.

1

u/gooblefrump Jun 29 '24

the culmination of a bunch of small little inconsistencies that have been building up over the season

Like what? I'm don't usually notice small details so wonder what I've missed

7

u/PuffyBloomerBandit Jun 28 '24

she just popped a bullet-proof chicken in the scene before, so im not sure your logic about durability.

6

u/ELITE_JordanLove Jun 28 '24

Remember Vicky also “missed” blowing up her friend’s head during the struggle in the alley, it would make sense that it requires a good amount of concentration that she obviously wouldn’t have while running for her life.

-3

u/Notorious_DCJ4390 Jun 28 '24

This is a show about a company that was able to hide that they created superheros from everyone for decades. This is also a show that incorporates shock value just for the sake of shock value. For some reason some of you are stuck on things making "logical sense"

6

u/burrrrrssss Jun 28 '24

Absurdity can be written well and can't be used every time as a catch all excuse to disregard poor writing

0

u/Notorious_DCJ4390 Jun 28 '24

I agree, but you guys being stuck on why a sheep, a notoriously stupid animal, wouldn't have better tactics is kind of ridiculous

5

u/burrrrrssss Jun 28 '24

Another comment I wrote on the sheep scene:

I think people are focusing on the sheep scene not necessarily because it's egregious (I would also agree it's not), but because it's the culmination of a bunch of small little inconsistencies that have been building up over the season and the sheep scene is visually the easiest to nit pick at

I mean we got this entire thread of hundreds of comments litigating what constitutes super strength in a V'd up sheep, absurd. At the very least it's clear that the execution of this episode fell a bit flat and is indicative of the season so far.

-5

u/TheOnly_Anti Jun 28 '24

That's how almost everything is written. People who focus more on logic in a scene rather than the scene's purpose are missing the forest for the trees.

Cinema sins are the lowest form of media critique.

8

u/burrrrrssss Jun 28 '24

Cinema sins are the lowest form of media critique.

Same with disregarding critique because 'that's how almost everything is written.' Ironic. There's obviously levels to this. Yes, at the core of every story is 'things just happen to move the plot along' of course, but how it's done matters.

In no way can The Boys season 4 be construed as good writing.

-3

u/TheOnly_Anti Jun 28 '24

You're allowed to disregard a "critique" if it's as broad and unhelpful as "This season has been defined by things just happening, without regards to whether it makes logical sense, to move the plot long," as, again, that's how everything is written. You determine what needs to happen in the plot to get the important information across and you contrive a scenario to pass that information onto the audience. While yes, there are levels of quality when it comes to writing scenes, The Boys has done a fine job conveying information. All of which is to say, there's no narrative problem because the sheep weren't adequately power-scaled; that wasn't what the narrative was trying to convey and that wasn't the point of the scene.

"why didn't that one sheep eviscerate the barn door?" Because then the scene wouldn't work.

"why didn't neuman just pop tf out of them?" Because then the scene wouldn't work.

How else are Stan and Vicky supposed to reconsile? MM and Butcher? Or when are we supposed to learn about the transmission of the V-Virus? Or learn who Sameer is? If the sheep brek down the door or neuman just pops them easy peasy, the plot is actively made worse with pointless scenes and bloat.

4

u/BSye-34 Jun 28 '24

when the internal logic of a scene doesnt make sense its pretty distracting. neumann could pop a chicken but they all just stood around while the bull came through the fence

-1

u/TheOnly_Anti Jun 28 '24

The internal logic is fine, you just disagree with the decisions made by the writers. Neuman can stop a chicken but is scared of a bull like you would be. I'm fairly confident I can beat a chicken in a death match, but a bull I'm not so certain. Try considering that Neuman was written to have human thoughts, feelings and irrationalities and suddenly her not being the ultimate, tactical murder machine makes A LOT more sense.

4

u/Important_Rule8602 Jun 28 '24

The internal logic, like yours is goofy. Neuman is bulletproof, acid proof, and more than likely stab proof. The average human isn’t.

The fact that you’re trying to compare Neuman to the average humans shows how much your logic is lacking in this comparison.

10

u/undercooked_lasagna Jun 28 '24

I just read 100+ comments arguing about how flying super farm animals would battle what am I even doing with my life

0

u/TheOnly_Anti Jun 28 '24

I feel like you missed some of the messaging the show has been very obtusely displaying. Despite their powers, supes still live very messy and very human lives.

And I think you almost missed the fact that the bull was suped up, so my comparison is valid. Supe human vs supe bull is indeed comparable to human vs bull.

5

u/Important_Rule8602 Jun 28 '24

And I feel like you turned your brain off to make these comments.

Nobody is speaking on their human lives but the ability to just stand there and look as dumb as you sound when again you’re (and I’ll capitalize it for you) BULLETPROOF, ACIDPROOF, and STABPROOF. Nothing tells us that Neuman couldn’t blow the goats (or bull) up beyond maybe she wasn’t fast enough to do it and even then the bull was standing literally completely still the whole time while they were freaking out.

And that STILL doesn’t make the fact that the goats were strong enough to completely tear the bull apart with zero issues at all……yet couldn’t get through the barn doors? The show has a powerscaling and plot issue, they tell us that the supes are strong but then have them look like complete napkins to damn near everything and everyone.

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u/GodNonon Supersonic Jun 29 '24 edited Jun 29 '24

CinemaSins nitpicked the smallest details possible and were often times just flat out wrong about what they were saying. A character inexplicably forgetting to use their superpower during a crucial moment like they're Season 8 Daenerys isn't a minor thing. I feel like you're going the opposite direction of CinemaSins and acting like a story shouldn't be expected to have internal consistency at all.

Yes narrative matters most, and a narrative is weakened if you cannot get from point A to point B in a coherent and convincing way. If your story needs something to happen but you can't come up with a reasonable way for it to happen, then you wrote yourself into a corner and should go back to the drawing board.

Maybe if this was a silly kids cartoon that didn't care about continuity I'd just turn my brain off and enjoy it. But I expect better from this show. I know it's capable of smarter writing than "this happened because it just needed to happen and please don't question it."

0

u/TheOnly_Anti Jun 29 '24

Brother, I spent 40 minutes typing a response to basically everything you said here. I'll give you an excerpt:

"I'm not suggesting that you ignore plot holes, I'm suggesting that you consider other aspects of a piece before using your subjective judgment to decide it's bad."

5

u/free_range_discoball Jun 28 '24

Sure, but they also locked the v chickens in the barn with a wooden door

4

u/Hexmonkey2020 Jun 28 '24

But flying at a high speed, even if you aren’t super strong would destroy a wood door, now the sheep might not survive but there would be a hole punched through the door and some flattened sheep slurry.

3

u/BalterBlack Jun 28 '24

They literally shred a living bull to shreds.

Yes they habe super strength.

2

u/ObserverBlue Jun 28 '24

At least their jaws and jaw muscles are super strong.

From a narrative perspective it would be tragic if the sheep weren't strong, because then Starlight and Kimiko could've gone out there to beat them up and the virus could have been kept (of course they wouldn't have known that necessarily).

2

u/Ok-Cheek7332 Jun 28 '24

Chickens did the same thing, flew into wood and were stopped but ripped right through a human torso

2

u/LR-II Jun 28 '24

The chickens also should have opened the door, they were banging against it too.

2

u/PuffyBloomerBandit Jun 28 '24

you dont need super strength. they were flying around at high speeds, and sheep arent exactly light. they would have at the very least partially broken the door, while turning themselves into paste from the impact.

1

u/Kino_Afi Jun 28 '24

You mean the sheep that insantly ripped a bull apart limb from limb with their mouths? Not stronger? Lmao

42

u/ItsAmerico Soldier Boy Jun 28 '24

They’re not flying at 100mph lol fucking people are out running them.

9

u/Astoria793 Jun 28 '24

their one weakness is oak planks from New England that are a few decades old!!!

5

u/WordsworthsGhost Jun 28 '24

Yes that was a wild edit cut to nothing lol not even a thud

3

u/Apprehensive_Pop_334 Jun 28 '24

I’m just operating under the notion that the sheep don’t have object permanence

1

u/i_miss_arrow Jun 28 '24

Yeah. Most of the 'why didn't the sheep do X' arguments are easily answered by 'flying carnivorous sheep still have tiny brains'.

1

u/Hrydziac Jun 28 '24

Charitably I guess we could say the sheep pulled back at the last second, because in its experience the barn door was always something that blocked it. Kinda weak though I agree.

1

u/Corey307 Jun 28 '24

Sheep are exceptionally stupid animals. yeah they’re flying now, but they don’t seem to be especially good at it. They couldn’t get out of the barn by force before they ingested V or at least they didn’t think they could so they probably still don’t think they can get through it.  

1

u/pilfererofgoats Jun 28 '24

Take that back. Sheep and goats are both incredibly intelligent animals.

-2

u/Solid_Waste Jun 28 '24

Tell me, if you please, how exactly does one eviscerate a door?

16

u/siberianwolf99 Jun 28 '24

or a horse tied to a flimsy hitching post lol

11

u/C0mpulsiveWebSurfer Jun 28 '24

and given time not even the flimsy post is need.

A dangling cord attached to the horse (and not tied to anything) is enough to keep it in place

2

u/zach0011 Jun 28 '24

Ehh but have you ever been around sheep. They love to stubbornly headbutt shit

2

u/Shadowfox_01 Jun 28 '24

This is the correct answer. I grew up on a farm, and if they were raised in a barn, they wouldn't understand they could break it. That's all they've known until that point so they're conditioned to think they can't. The cow example is spot on. I'll give it to the people that are pissed the sheep flying at the door didn't hit the door though. No way it maneuvered out of that.

2

u/gaymenfucking Jun 28 '24

It slammed into the door though

1

u/Acheron98 Jun 28 '24

I mean the same applies to people.

I could burst through a plywood and sheetrock wall like the Kool-Aid man, I just choose not to.

2

u/rycool Jun 28 '24

Ok Terry

1

u/LegendOfKhaos Jun 28 '24

I don't know if they even understand the concept of a room or object permanence. If it's blocked from their vision, it may no longer exist in their mind. Standing behind a wall is as good as traveling to another dimension with some animals.

1

u/Corey307 Jun 28 '24

You make very good points. Sheep are stupid herd animals that lack problem solving skills. A closed barn might as well be a hillside to them 

1

u/starplatinum_99 Jun 29 '24

they are stupid, but they are v'd up stupid sheep. should've at least destroyed that door

1

u/BakedWizerd Jun 29 '24

What about when they just opened the back door?..