Gus, the deer-boy protagonist of Netflix fantasy series Sweet Tooth, has some very unique powers. The first in a generation of children born as hybrids, part animal and part human, Gus has deer traits that include heightened senses, night vision, and of course the striking pair of antlers on his head.
Based on the comics by Jeff Lemire, Sweet Tooth is set in a post-apocalyptic world that's considered normal by children like Gus, who grew up without knowing what the world used to be like. While journeying to find his mother in Colorado, Gus crosses paths with a hybrid-defending vigilante called Bear, who believes that the hybrids (and the lethal virus that emerged at the same time they did, wiping out most of the human population) are nature's way of fighting back against mankind's destructive tendencies. Because the hybrids have animal traits, they can live off the wild and be a balanced part of the ecosystem in a way that ordinary humans can't.
Raised in Yellowstone National Park by his "Pubba," Gus picks up plenty of survival skills that are independent from his deer DNA - such as growing plants for food and tapping the nearby maple trees to make syrup. But as he ventures out into the world with a gruff wanderer called Tommy "Big Man" Jepperd, Gus's unique deer powers are revealed one by one.
Antlers
The most obvious outward display of Gus' hybrid nature are his antlers, which start out as small nubs when he's a baby and grow to three points on each side by the time he's 10. Male deer antlers have two purposes that are intertwined: mating and fighting. Bucks with large, healthy antlers have a better chance of attracting doe, and they also use their antlers to fight off competitors. Gus uses his antlers as a weapon for the first time in Sweet Tooth episode 1, ramming one of the poachers with them painfully in order to free himself, and they will surely become even more dangerous as he grows older. Though it's not yet been shown in the series, deer actually lose and regrow their antlers every year, so presumably Gus can regrow his if he loses them as well.
Heightened Senses
Those big, twitchy ears aren't just for show. Gus has extremely sensitive hearing - an important survival trait for deer, who have to be listening out for possible dangers at all times. Deer also have a sense of smell that's around 1000 times more powerful than a human's, which is why Gus is able to smell food inside the Yellowstone visitor's centre, and pick up the scent of Tommy's "candy" from inside a metal box that's a considerable distance away when they're at the train station. In daylight, deer eyesight is actually worse than humans, so Gus doesn't have super-vision to go with his super-nose and super-ears. At night, though, his eyes can really shine.
Night Vision
Gus might be cute, but he has a rather creepy trait when the lights go out: glowing eyes. This is because of a layer of tissue in his eyes called tapetum lucidum, which reflects light back and therefore increases the total amount of light that passes through the retina, allowing for enhanced vision in low light. This is present in many animals, including not only deer but also dogs, cats, horses, cattle and badgers. Deer are mainly nocturnal or crepuscular (sleeping during the day and foraging at dawn, dusk and during the night), so their low-light vision allows them to navigate at night, find food, and remain vigilant to possible threats.
Speed and Agility
When Gus is first introduced in Sweet Tooth, he's still a little clumsy and struggles to make the jump to the final stone across the river near his home. Over the course of the first episode, though, his speed and agility are shown to improve until he's able to run through the forest as easily and gracefully as, well, a deer. Actor Christian Convery had actually been training in parkour for two years prior to making Sweet Tooth, which allowed him to create the speedy and agile movements of the hybrid deer-boy. These skills are particularly showcased when Gus decides to leave his home in the woods and chase after Tommy at the end of episode 1, clearing the fence surrounding the forest with ease and jumping to the ground from a considerable height. Given how much Gus's speed and agility improves just between the ages of nine and ten, he will probably be much faster and more powerful by the time he reaches adulthood.
Talking To Animals
Twice in Sweet Tooth season 1, Gus demonstrates a curious ability to communicate with animals, who seem to recognize him as one of their own. When a young doe makes its way into Gus and Pubba's home, she remains calm while Gus reaches out and pets her. Then, when Tiger takes control of the Animal Army and attempts to execute Tommy by having her captive tiger eat him, Gus is able to calm "Daisy" simply by standing in front of her and saying, "Please don't eat my friend." This is a power that's unique to him as a hybrid, since prey animals like deer obviously can't negotiate with predators in order to not be eaten. Like the deer that came into the house, Daisy seems to recognize that Gus is both an animal and a human, and shows him a strange kind of deference.
This ability to communicate with animals, at least on some level, reinforces Bear's argument that hybrids are nature's way of redressing the balance between animals and humans. Humans destroy nature to build cities on top of it and put animals in cages. Even the Animal Army, who love hybrids and dress in animal costumes themselves, are guilty of imprisoning Daisy and using her as a weapon. But hybrids like Gus are able to peacefully coexist with animals, providing a bridge between the animal world and the human world that could be the key to the planet's future.