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{{trope}}
[[File:
{{quote|'''Leela''': ''Nibbler you... You can talk?''
'''Nibbler''': ''I can do more than talk. I can pontificate.''
|'''''[[Futurama]]'''''}}
The character stumbles upon a seemingly normal animal/inanimate object. Turning away from it they hear a voice addressing them. Confused, they look around to see no one but the animal/object. When they finally realize it was the animal/object that spoke they freak out and exclaim their disbelief whilst [[Captain Obvious|stating the obvious]].
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Which is then usually replied with [[You Never Asked]].
{{examples}}
== Anime and Manga ==
* ''[[Bleach]]'': Uryu is asking Orihime who their master will be. Orihime says that the master was standing there the whole time. Yoruichi speaks up to tell Uryu that it is "he" who will be training them. Uryu predictably freaks out at the notion of a talking cat. After regaining his composure over the issue, Uryu calmly states he can't believe that there is such a thing as a talking cat. {{spoiler|Later, when Yoruichi [[The Reveal|reveals her true, human form to Ichigo]], she plays with this trope by telling him it was silly of him to believe that a cat could talk.}}
* In ''[[Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha
* This happens between [[Big Bad|Captain Shiki]] and Dr. Indigo in the ''[[One Piece]]'' movie ''[[One Piece Strong World|Strong World]]''. Dr. Indigo tries to explain something to Shiki through charades or mime or something. When Shiki doesn't get it, Indigo just comes out and says it, and Shiki gives the reaction with much surprise. This happens more than once.
* ''[[Mameshiba]]''{{context}}
==
* In [[Alan Moore]]'s ''Skizz'' from ''[[
{{quote|
▲* In [[Alan Moore]]'s ''Skizz'' from ''[[Two Thousand AD (Comic Book)|2000 AD]]'', the characters contrive a plan to break Skizz (an extra-terrestrial who crash-landed and stranded himself on Earth) out of an RAF airbase in Birmingham, not knowing that he has been taught English by his captors. When Loz discovers this, he has the following to say,
* Happens in ''[[Buck Godot: Zap Gun for Hire]]''. Buck manages "Was that... did you..." and then gives up and just looks thoroughly bemused.▼
▲{{quote| '''Loz:''' You can ''talk''! Well I'll be! We've had our budgie for seven years and all it can do is ''whistle''.}}
** Earlier in the series, the second appearance of [[Space Pirate|the Pistol Packin' Polaris Packrat]]<ref>[[
▲* Happens in ''[[Buck Godot Zap Gun for Hire]]''. Buck manages "Was that... did you..." and then gives up and just looks thoroughly bemused.
▲** Earlier in the series, the second appearance of [[Space Pirate|the Pistol Packin' Polaris Packrat]]<ref>[[Added Alliterative Appeal|Ain't alliteration absolutely awesome, amigo?]]</ref> shows him brainwashed by court order into believing his [[Hypercompetent Sidekick|Hypercompetent Sidearms]], [[Talking Weapon|the talking pistols]] [[Punny Name|Smith and Wesson]], are hallucinations and thus should be ignored. Eventually, they trick him into responding to them, which throws him so deep into this trope that he fails to notice Buck ([[The Big Guy|who is not generally very stealthy]]) sneaking up from behind and clobbering him senseless.
* In one printed ''[[Garfield]]'' story, Garfield and the other animals sense a huge storm approaching that will destroy the town. Garfield convinces the other animals that they need to warn their human families about this and that this is reason enough to reveal that they can talk. Jon and the other pet owners all react this way when their pets suddenly start talking to them, which nearly distracts them from the huge storm their pets are trying to warn them about in the first place.
* [[Played for Laughs]] (well, as a joke, anyway) in ''[[Transmetropolitan]]'': for Spider Jerusalem's first interview with presidential nominee Gary [[Stepford Smiler|"The Smiler"]] Callahan, it's his [[Yes
* Kicked off a week-long [[Out of Genre Experience]] ([[All Just a Dream|turned out to be a nightmare the father was having]]) in ''[[Marvin]]'':▼
* At the beginning of [[Grant Morrison]]'s ''[[Doom Patrol]]'' run, Larry Trainor's Negative Spirit suddenly begins speaking after twenty-plus years. When queried on this, he responds that he "had nothing to say." Things quickly get [[Sharing a Body|weirder]] from there...▼
{{quote| '''[[No Name Given|Father]]:''' Can you say "dada"? Come on, Marvin! Say "dada"!<br />▼
* [[
'''[[Enfant Terrible|Marvin]]:''' ''(in [[Thought Bubble]])'' Oh, very well...<br />▼
{{quote|
'''Marvin:''' ''(out loud)'' [[Hurricane of Euphemisms|Dada, papa, daddy, father, pops, pater, and my old man.]]<br />▼
'''Father:''' Wh-wh-wha-y-y-y-you can '''talk'''?!?<br />▼
'''Lovecraft:''' See how it cobbles together a string of sounds not unlike words? Take. Us. To. Magic. Thunder. Man.
'''Marvin:''' [[Deadpan Snarker|And better than you, apparently.]] }}▼
▲* [[Played for Laughs]] (well, as a joke, anyway) in ''[[Transmetropolitan]]'': for Spider Jerusalem's first interview with presidential nominee Gary [[Stepford Smiler|"The Smiler"]] Callahan, it's his [[Yes Man|sycophantic campaign manager]] who actually answers most of the questions, while Callahan just sits there, immobile... ''[[Meaningful Name|smiling]]''. When Spider finally gets fed up and forces the issue, there's a long silence before Callahan extends his hand and re-introduces himself, prompting a reaction of mock horror.
▲* At the beginning of [[Grant Morrison]]'s [[Doom Patrol]] run, Larry Trainor's Negative Spirit suddenly begins speaking after twenty-plus years. When queried on this, he responds that he "had nothing to say." Things quickly get [[Sharing a Body|weirder]] from there...
▲* [[HP Lovecraft]] is quite, er, surprised to discover that [[Atomic Robo]] (whom he has mistaken for an armored pygmy) can speak.
▲{{quote| '''Lovecraft:''' ''Ah!'' Look, it's attempting to ''communicate.'' No doubt the savage thing knows the language like a housepet knows its reflection in the mirror. The sense is taken in, but the process, the ''meaning'', is lost forever.<br />
▲'''Robo:''' Yer razzin' me.<br />
▲'''Lovecraft:''' See how it cobbles together a string of sounds not unlike words? Take. Us. To. Magic. Thunder. Man.<br />
▲'''Robo:''' Uh-''huh.''<br />
'''Lovecraft:''' Oh, back to its native grunts. I say, the poor beast is ''devolving'' before our eyes, Charles. }}
== Fan Works ==
* In [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=38ryh-nmnuE this] ''[[Axis Powers Hetalia]]'' doujin, Germany is transformed into a cat by England. Italy is out of the room at the time, so when he returns and sees a cat in Germany's place, he goes over to it and cuddles it. When Germany-cat starts talking, this is Italy's reaction. (Warning: Slightly NSFW)
{{quote|
'''Germany-cat:''' What's going on...?
'''Italy:''' ...Eh? Did you just...
'''Germany-cat:''' WHAT'S THE HELL IS GOING ON HERE?!
'''Italy:''' IT TALKS?! }}
* This is [[Ace Attorney|Phoenix's]] inmediate reaction in ''[[
{{quote|
'''Phoenix Wright:''' Yeah, I'm a human... *beat* ''WAIT, '''[[Big "What?"|WHAT!?]]'''''
'''Twilight Sparkle:''' A human in Equestria, that's amazing!
'''Phoenix Wright:''' '''Y-Y-YOU'RE A TALKING HORSE!''' }}
* It's a [[Running Gag]] in ''[[Shadowjack Watches Sailor Moon]]'': "TALKING CAT! TALKING CAT!" (Even {{spoiler|''Luna'' (one of the talking cats)}} does it.)
** Averted with {{spoiler|Hotaru}}:
{{quote|{{spoiler|'''Hotaru'''}}: Oh my gosh, a talking cat! So cute! May I pet you?
'''Luna:''' …I LOVE YOU, {{spoiler|HOTARU}}. }}
* [[Played for Laughs]] in ''[[Sailor Moon Abridged]]:''▼
'''Serena:''' "...You can talk?" }}▼
== Film ==
* ''[[Tom and Jerry]]'' [[The Movie]]: The eponymous cat and mouse do this to each other once they both reveal they can talk.
* ''[[
'''Cat:''' But is he saying anything? }}
* ''[[Shrek]]'':
{{quote|
'''Fiona:''' It talks!
'''Shrek:''' Yeah, it's getting him to shut up that's the trick. }}
* ''Can Of Worms'': In this [[Disney Channel]] [[Made for TV Movie|Original Movie]], the protagonist reacts to a talking alien dog this way.
* ''[[Doctor Dolittle]]''. Of course it wasn't just one animal it was all the animals, which didn't really help matters.
* ''[[
* ''[[Princess and The Frog]]'': Tiana reacts this way to the transformed Prince Naveen. Later, she reacts the same way when she heard the dog speak to her.
** She later freaks out some frog-hunters by announcing, "And we talk too."
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* In ''[[Planet of the Apes]]'', Taylor's "Get your stinking paws off me, you damned dirty ape!" were the first words the apes had ever heard a human say. The apes don't actually say "He can talk!", but their reaction to it is obvious.
** Parodied on ''[[The Simpsons]]'', in the episode "A Fish Called Selma", with Troy McClure's "[[The Musical|Stop the Planet of the Apes, I Want to Get Off!]]":
{{quote|
'''Troy McClure''': Get your paws off me, you dirty ape!
'''Ape''': *Gasp* He can talk!
'''Group of Apes''': He can talk! He can talk! He can talk! He can talk! He can talk! He can talk!
'''Troy McClure''': I can siiiiiinngggg! }}
* ''[[Up]]'': "Did that dog just say 'hi there'?"
* ''[[Monsters vs. Aliens]]'': This is Susan's second reaction when Dr. Cockroach introduces himself. Her first reaction is to yell "EWW!" and swat him with her spoon.
* ''[[The Sword in
{{quote|
'''Archimedes:''' Stuffed!? [huffs indignantly] I beg your pardon?
'''Wart:''' He's alive, and he talks!
'''Archimedes:''' And certainly a great deal better than you do! }}
* In ''[[Tarzan (Disney film)|Tarzan]]'', Jane says this after Tarzan repeats her line "Very nice", the first words he says [[Animal Talk|in human]].
* In ''[[Toy Story (franchise)|Toy Story]]'', discovering that Woody can talk causes Sid to freak out.
{{quote|
* Subverted in Disney's ''[[The Lion, the Witch
* In Disney's ''[[Pinocchio (Disney film)|Pinocchio]]'', how [[Complete Monster|the Coachman]] tortures the Donkey Boys after they've transformed actually depends on whether or not they've all lost their ability to speak: those that cannot talk anymore are all sent to either the salt mines or the circus, while those that still do are all forced to stay behind at Pleasure Island where they are locked in a pen. At least the salt mines/circus would have been a kinder fate for them.
* ''[[The Cat
{{quote|
'''Jake''': [[Deadpan Snarker|Well, it isn't the mouse.]]
'''Frank''': But your lips aren't moving! You're not... speaking.
'''Jake''': Thought transference. Nothing exceptional where I come from. }}
== Jokes ==
* There was a joke about a kid that refuses to say a first word, then asks for the salt at the table one day. When the parents are surprised he comments that it is the first time the table wasn't set properly and so there was no need to say anything.
** A variant of that joke has the son of university professors who is seemingly retarded, the parents start spelling out things like "intellectually inferior" because they don't want him to know what they're saying, and he says "You left out an 'l'". This may be [[Truth in Television]].
* There's a joke about a frog asking a girl to kiss him and turn him into a prince. The girl grabs the frog instead, because "men come and go, but a talking frog is worth something!"
** A [[Gender Flip|variant]] involves a male [[Hollywood Nerd|engineer-type-person]] finding a frog-ified woman, with a similar reaction: "[[Married to
* The following joke:
{{quote|
* A related joke:
{{quote|
* A man knocks on the door of a farmhouse. He tells the farmer "Listen, I was driving past your farm when my car broke down. I got out to fix it and I heard a voice say 'It's the carburetor!' I turned, and all I saw was this brown horse." The farmer says "Well, don't you listen to him! He don't know nothin' 'bout cars!"
== Literature ==
* ''[[Inheritance Cycle
* [[Terry Pratchett]] loves playing with this one.
** In ''[[
{{quote|
'''Victor:''' Hadn't given it a thought. }}
** Malicia's reaction to the talking rats in ''[[
** In ''[[
** It's kind of a joke in ''[[Discworld]]'' that people always have this reaction to Gaspode, despite living in a setting where such a thing is hardly implausible.
*** It's explained in the books that adults have ideas about what "must" be real and what must not be, so their minds edit out a lot of what comes through their senses.
** Averted by Brutha's reaction to the Great God Om in the form of a telepathic tortoise. At first he assumes Om must be a demon, but later decides he may just be a normal tortoise because no self-respecting demon would take a form like that.
{{quote|
'''Brutha:''' Well, they might all talk. They just might not say anything when I'm there. }}
** Subverted in ''[[
* ''[[Land of Oz
** When Dorothy meets the Scarecrow in ''[[
** This happens again in a later novel to Toto. All animals can talk in Oz, Toto just doesn't like doing it.
* In the ''[[Grail Quest Solo Fantasy]]'' adventure gamebook series.
{{quote|
'''Snake:''' Don't be silly, I'm a talking wizard in the form of a snake. }}
* Human example: In Pamela Jekel's [[Rudyard Kipling|Kipling]] pastiche ''[[The Jungle Book (
* [[The Dresden Files]] : In ''Changes'', after being turned into a dog by the "crazy death Sidhe lady," Harry is shocked to discover that his [[Evil-Detecting Dog]] can talk.
{{quote|
'''Harry''' [after being turned back into a human]: "You can ''talk.'' How come I never hear you talk?"
'''Lea''': "Because you don't know how to listen." }}
▲== Live Action Television ==
* ''The [[Benny Hill]] Show'': in a parody of ''[[The Six Million Dollar Man]]'' and ''[[The Bionic Woman]]'', Steve Austin and Jamie Summers have a baby. They're worried about him not talking yet even though he's [six?] years old. He takes a suck from his bottle, and spits it out.
{{quote|
'''Austin:''' ''*[[GASP]]*'' You can talk! Why didn't you talk before?
'''Baby:''' Up until now the food's been OK. }}
* The very first episode of ''[[Mr. Ed]]''.
* In [[The Jim Henson Hour]], Jim has this reaction when he realizes that his friend the Lion (Who will appear in [[The Storyteller]] segment) can talk.
{{quote|
'''Lion:''' ...I doubt it... }}
== Music ==
* In his take on ''[[Peter and The Wolf]]'', [["Weird Al" Yankovic]] has Peter go "Wow! A talking bird!" when the bird appears.▼
▲* In his take on ''[[Peter and The Wolf]]'', [[Weird Al Yankovic]] has Peter go "Wow! A talking bird!" when the bird appears.
* [[Frank Zappa]]'s "Stink-Foot" has this, with a dog and his owner having a short philosophical conversation before the owner exclaims, "You can't say that." Mind you, the owner and the dog had already been talking for a short while before this.
== Newspaper
▲* Kicked off a week-long [[Out
▲'''Marvin:''' ''(out loud)'' [[Hurricane of Euphemisms|Dada, papa, daddy, father, pops, pater, and my old man.]]
▲'''Marvin:''' [[Deadpan Snarker|And better than you, apparently.]] }}
== Theatre ==
* In ''[[Arsenic and Old Lace]]'', Mortimer initially mistakes his long-missing and heavily surgically-altered brother for a particularly grotesque statue, so one can imagine his shock when it addresses him by name.
== Video Games ==
* Tifa reacts this way to Red XIII in ''[[Final Fantasy VII]]'':
{{quote|
'''Red''': I'll talk as much as you want later, Miss. }}
** In a similar vein, the party in ''[[Final Fantasy VI]]'' is surprised to discover that Mog can talk after rescuing him from falling off a cliff.
** In ''[[Final Fantasy X]]'', Tidus gets a brief look of shock when he first hears Kimahri speak.
* In ''[[Day of the Tentacle]]'', Hoagie is surprised to discover that horses can talk. The horse explains that "maybe they never had anything to say to you."
* In ''[[Jays Journey]]'', Atolla ([[Animorphism|who has been turned into a lion]]) inspires this from many people. [[The Ditz|Max]] (who [[I Am Not Weasel|thinks Atolla is a "kitty"]]) [[Cloudcuckoolander|remains amazed by this the whole game]].
** [[Goldfish Poop Gang|Thinbeard's dragon Azareth]] surprises the main cast when he speaks, as well; he'd gone almost the entire game without uttering a syllable.
▲* [[Order of the Stick|Vaarsuvius' familiar?]]
** Played with, somewhat. Vaarsuvius knew that Blackwing could speak Common, but thought that Blackwing wouldn't because it was demeaning. Turns out, that was only partly true. Blackwing considered speaking in Common ''to Vaarsuvius'' [[Sesquipedalian Loquaciousness|to be demeaning.]]
* In ''[[
▲== Web Original ==
▲* [[Played for Laughs]] in ''[[Sailor Moon Abridged]]:''
▲{{quote| '''Serena:''' "You can read?"<br />
▲'''Luna:''' "Serena, if I can talk of course I can read."<br />
▲'''Serena:''' "...You can talk?" }}
== Western Animation ==
* These are Elisa's first words to Goliath in ''[[
{{quote|
* In ''[[Young Justice (
** Series Creator Greg Weisman likes to reference his work from time to time, as it's even reiterated in the non-canonical ''[[The Spectacular Spider-Man]]''/Gargoyles crossover, this time the ol' Webhead throws the jab at Goliath, and takes offence at his reading habits. [[Hilarity Ensues]].
{{quote|
Spidey: Wait, you can talk? And read?! And what you read is the Jolly One's editorials?! }}
* Nibbler in ''[[Futurama]]'' has this happen quite a few times.
{{quote|
Nibbler: Indeeed. And I have other amazing powers as well.
Fry: Like what?
[Nibbler knocks Fry unconscious and drags him away] }}
* ''[[Family Guy]]'': Peter reacted to Brian this way once, after Brian had lived with (and spoken with) Peter for years.
* Played with in the ''[[
{{quote|
'''Rumor Weed:''' I'm a talking weed; you're a talking carrot. Your point was? }}
* In ''The Fluppy Dogs'' [[Pilot Movie]], Tipi is talking with the girl who discovers her true nature and can only annoyingly repeat the stock phrase in astonishment to which Tipi responds "I wish you wouldn't be saying that, I've been talking ever since I was three."
* On an episode of [[He
* In the original [[My Little Pony]] cartoon, when Firefly asks Megan (who is used to real horses) for help, the first thing out of her mouth is "Talking pony!"
* ''[[The Simpsons]]'', as mentioned above, when Troy McClure stars in a musical version of [[Planet of the Apes]] the famous scene kicks off a musical number.
{{reflist}}
[[Category:Dialogue]]
[[Category:Stock Phrases]]
▲[[Category:You Can Talk]]
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