Argyle is a fictional character from the Netflix series Stranger Things. He is Dustin Henderson’s pet demogorgon who was introduced in season 4. As a demogorgon, Argyle has a distinctive physical appearance that sets him apart from humans and other animals. In this article, we will take a closer look at what Argyle looks like and describe his key physical characteristics.
Appearance Overview
Argyle is a small demogorgon, roughly the size of a small dog or cat. He has light brown skin with darker brown stripe patterns all over his body and head. Some key features include his large, bulbous head, large mouth with sharp teeth, claws on his hands and feet, and a long prehensile tail. He walks on two legs but often crouches on all fours. Overall, he looks like a sinister mix between a reptile, primate, and plant.
Head
Argyle has an oversized, almost plant-like head that accounts for a large portion of his body size.
Face
His face includes:
– Large, round yellow eyes with black slit pupils
– Slits for nostrils instead of a proper nose
– A very large mouth taking up most of the front of his face
Teeth
Argyle’s mouth contains rows of small, sharp teeth. He has a total of approximately 50 teeth, with about 10 teeth visible when his mouth is closed. The teeth are all canine-shaped.
Petals
Surrounding Argyle’s face are five pale pinkish-white petal-like structures. These structures resemble flower petals and have ruffled edges. They connect to the sides and top of his head. The petals can open and close, with Argyle able to flare them out in displays of aggression. When closed, the petals conceal portions of his face.
Body
Skin
Argyle’s skin is smooth and hairless. It is light brown in color with darker brown oval and diamond-shaped stripes covering his body from head to toe. The stripes are a form of camouflage and help him blend into wooded environments.
Arms & Legs
Argyle has long, thin arms and legs. His limbs end in hands and feet with four clawed digits each. He is capable of standing and walking on just his hind legs but often uses all four limbs to move around quickly.
Tail
Argyle’s most prominent body feature is his long, tapered tail. The tail is slightly prehensile, allowing him to grasp and grip objects to a certain degree. When extended straight out, his tail is roughly the same length as Argyle is tall. It helps provide balance and can be used as a defensive or predatory weapon.
| Body Part | Description |
|---|---|
| Head | Oversized, bulbous, with plant-like petals |
| Eyes | Large, round, yellow with black slit pupils |
| Mouth | Very large, lined with sharp teeth |
| Skin | Smooth, hairless, light brown with darker brown stripes |
| Arms & Legs | Thin limbs with clawed hands and feet |
| Tail | Long, tapered, prehensile tail as long as body height |
Movement
Argyle is capable of moving in a variety of ways:
Bipedal
He often stands and walks upright on his two hind legs. This allows him to use his front limbs for grasping, reaching, or striking. His long tail provides balance as he moves bipedally.
Quadrupedal
Argyle will frequently drop to all fours for rapid movement, climbing, or lunging attacks. He scrambles quickly on four limbs and can climb fairly well using his clawed appendages.
Hopping
For sudden bursts of speed, Argyle will make frog-like hopping leaps using all four limbs to spring himself forward or upward. Each hop can launch him several feet.
Climbing
By gripping with his front claws and bracing with his hind legs and tail, Argyle can climb up surfaces like trees, walls, and chain-link fences. His prehensile tail helps anchor him.
Swimming
Argyle is an adept swimmer, using his webbed feet and tail to propel himself swiftly through water. His streamlined body built for speed helps make him very mobile in water.
Senses
Argyle relies on multiple heightened senses to hunt and navigate:
Sight
His large yellow eyes give him excellent vision, allowing Argyle to see well in low light conditions. The eyes have slit pupils like a cat’s, giving him sharp focus.
Hearing
While he doesn’t have visible external ears, Argyle is able to hear very well. He can detect even faint or distant sounds using his specialized auditory senses.
Smell
Slits in Argyle’s face allow him to smell prey and predators even when they are not in direct sight. He uses scent-tracking to hunt.
Behavior
Argyle exhibits some unusual behaviors for a creature of his kind:
Bond with Dustin
He has formed a close emotional bond with Dustin and seems protective of him despite normally aggressive demogorgon instincts. This sets him apart from the purely predatory behaviors of others of his species.
Problem-Solving
Argyle has demonstrated the ability to understand verbal commands, communicate non-verbally, and solve simple problems. This shows an adaptive intelligence beyond basic animal instinct.
Mimicry
In an attempt to blend in, Argyle will occasionally walk bipedally while wearing clothes and will mimic human behaviors like sitting on furniture. However, he has difficulty fully disguising his animalistic nature.
Hunting
When hungry, Argyle’s vicious predatory side takes over and he will aggressively hunt for prey. He seems to prefer eating animals over humans when possible.
Weaknesses
Despite his formidable abilities, Argyle does have some weaknesses that adversaries could potentially exploit:
Fire
As with all demogorgons, Argyle has an aversion to fire and extreme heat. Fire-based weapons can do additional damage and drive him away.
Electricity
Powerful electric shocks can temporarily stun and incapacitate Argyle, disrupting his nervous system.
Sonic waves
High-frequency sonic blasts cause Argyle noticeable distress and pain, likely due to the effects on his sensitive hearing. Sonic weapons could help deter him.
Cooking oil
Argyle becomes immobilized when slathered in vegetable cooking oil, suggesting he cannot easily traverse slippery surfaces. Lubricants like oil could be used as a defensive measure.
Instincts
While intelligent for a demogorgon, Argyle still has primal instincts that can override his reasoning, making his behavior highly unpredictable at times.
Conclusion
In summary, Argyle has a very distinctive appearance and abilities compared to ordinary animals. Key physical traits include his large flower-petal head, rows of sharp teeth, brown striped skin, clawed limbs, prehensile tail, and variable movement types. He has heightened senses but also weaknesses like fire and sonic attacks that foes could exploit. While bonded with Dustin, Argyle still shows unpredictable predatory instincts at times. His blend of animal and humanoid features make him a fierce, otherworldly creature far beyond any ordinary pet.