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{{Infobox book
| title = Night Watch
| image = Nightwatch-paperback.jpg
| caption = US paperback cover
| author = Terry Pratchett
| central theme =
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| genre = Fantasy
| franchise = Discworld
| preceded by = The Amazing Maurice and
| followed by = The Wee Free Men
| publication date = 2002
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''How do they rise up, rise up high?'' }}
The 27th ''[[Discworld]]'' novel and the sixth in the Watch theme.
The 27th ''[[Discworld]]'' novel and the sixth in the Watch theme. Should not be confused with the ''[[Night Watch]]'' books by Sergei Lukyanenko, or the film adaptation. The novel is named after the famous Rembrandt painting ''The Militia Company of Captain Frans Banning Cocq (The Nightwatch)'', to which the front cover art by Paul Kidby is an [[Homage]] and a reproduction of which adorns the back cover in the Hardcover edition. Also not to be confused with the Night's Watch, an organisation in [[A Song of Ice and Fire]].▼
The framing events take place at the same time (such as it is) as the previous novel ''[[
The book has been noted for a much darker than usual tone, with fewer obvious jokes and a more serious story than previous installments.
▲
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* [[A Nazi by Any Other Name]]: Captain Swing and the Cable Street Particulars
* [[A Storm Is Coming]]: And with it, Sam Vimes' finest moment.
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** And when the newold Patrician is appointed, a bilingual pun.
{{quote|'''Slant:''' "''Ave! Duci novi, similis duci seneci.''",<ref>Hail! New leader, same as the old leader. Or, here comes the new boss, same as the old boss.</ref> or as we used to say in school, ''Ave! [[wikipedia:Bossa nova|Bossa nova]] similis bossa seneca.''" Of course, grammatically...}}
* [[All the Myriad Ways]]: Lu-Tze and Vimes discuss the concept of many universes (which Vimes already knows about from ''[[
** This is a reference to a reality in which young Sam Vimes is given guidance by Carcer, if old Sam fails. Hence the ''as he is now'' instead of just there is no universe. That Sam recognizes this on some level is alluded to in other parts of the novel.
* [[Annoying Arrows]]: Justified; they didn't bother Reg much because he was practically ''born'' to be a zombie.
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** Also, one of the reactions of the coppers to Vimes insisting they do things by the book. They get very precise.
* [[Break the Cutie]]: [[Wide-Eyed Idealist]] Reg Shoe learns that (badly planned) revolutions tend not to live up to the revolutionaries' expectations. He [[Heroic BSOD|doesn't take it well]].
** Not to mention [[The Alcoholic|what happens]] to the 18-year-old Sam Vimes in the years between this book and ''[[
* [[Call Forward]]: For instance, Vimes accidentally inspires [[CMOT Dibbler|Cut-Me-Own-Throat-Dibbler's]] [[Catch Phrase]], establishing a [[Stable Time Loop]]. More cynically, the new would-be ruler Snapcase is spoken of with praise by some characters
* [[Can't Take Anything with You]]: When going forward in time.
* [[Captain Obvious]]: Imposed on Lords Selachi and Venturi, who due to their [[Feuding Families|history]] have to avoid any topic that they might possibly disagree on. Leading to conversational topics like "I see you are standing up."
* [[Characterization Marches On]]: Remember when Vimes [[
** The ending of ''Night Watch'' even justifies the Vimes from early ''Guards! Guards!'' {{spoiler|After waking up to find his mentor and six other Watchmen dead on the Patrician's orders, Vimes spent about three decades having the potential to be the badass we know and love but not being able to do anything for fear of another attack on the Night Watch. That or his lack of confidence in the Law meant that the bottle was the only thing keeping the Beast at bay}}.
* [[Circling Monologue]]: The early part of Vimes vs. Swing.
* [[Click. "Hello."]]: The two Vimeses' first meeting.
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* [[Color-Coded Timestop]]: During the brief moments {{spoiler|time is 'stopped' by Lu-tze just before Vimes faces off against Carter}}, the whole world becomes gray.
* [[Contest Winner Cameo]]: Dr Follett of the Assassin's Guild is actually a cameo for fellow British novelist Ken Follett.
* [[Continuity Nod]]: Many of them. The Night Watch is based at the old watch house that the dragon burned down in ''[[
* [[The Creepy Undertaker]]: Legitimate First.
* [[Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass]]: Despite the fact that he is a complete ass in his youth, it's pointed out that the young Downey is still quite capable and dangerous, such as when he instantly suspects that a dark passageway is a trap, despite being ''very'' drunk at the time. {{spoiler|He's right.}} Not to mention that he goes on to become Head of the Assassin's Guild, which has an internal [[Klingon Promotion]] system.
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{{quote|''He wanted to go home. He wanted it so much that he trembled at the thought. But if the price of that was selling good men to the night, if the price was filling those graves, if the price was not fighting with every trick he knew... then it was too high.''}}
** Reg Shoe also has one when he realizes that the revolution he wanted so badly has only served to put an equally corrupt ruler in power. He sits dejectedly on a cart for a few minutes, then snaps into a [[Unstoppable Rage|rage so powerful not even getting killed can stop him]].
** The bit when Vimes is sitting helpless, staring blankly at a mirror as his son is born; this even shuts down {{spoiler|his internal watchman, revealed in [[
** Vimes has an extremely powerful one right when he is ordered by Rust to take down the barricade. As he starts to tell the people behind the barricade that they shouldn't take the law into their own hands, he realizes suddenly that he has no idea what the law ''was'' at that moment. The feeling of despair and disconnection is so powerful in brings Vimes to his knees. Thankfully, the Time Monks show up at that very moment to provide him with the Heroic Reboot Key, a connection to the future that seems so distant: his silver cigar case.
* [[Highly-Visible Ninja]]: Vetinari when he kills
** The Assassin's Guild in Discworld always wears the stereotypical ninja black clothes on the job. Vetinari shows the readers how much smarter he is when he reads a book on animal camouflage and goes for more appropriate clothes when they are called for. Downey shows how he isn't a match for Vetinari by burning the book instead of reading it and Vetinari shows what a [[Magnificent Bastard]] he is by {{spoiler|having destroyed nearly every other copy of the book so no one else can learn from it}}.
* [[Hooker with a Heart of Gold]]: Rosie Palm
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* [[Lightning Can Do Anything]]
* [[Line in the Sand]]: Vimes makes one right before training his men for the barricade; later, history books will disagree about what happened but they all agreed about Sergeant Keel and the Line. Young Sam is the first to step over.
* [[Mauve Shirt]]: Sergeant Abba Stronginthearm, who previously appeared in ''[[
* [[Meaningful Name]]: Captain Swing was the name used on a number of threatening letters sent by participants in the Swing Riots in Britain in 1830. In a typical Pratchett twist, Swing is now working for the other side.
* [[Meet the New Boss]]: Said by Mr Slant and Dr Follett after {{spoiler|Winder dies and Snapcase becomes the new Patrician}}. In Latin, no less.
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* [[Posthumous Character]]: Keel. Vimes makes his moves and decision with Keel's previous acts in mind, and we get a pretty good sense of who he was.
* [[Powder Keg Crowd]]: People are already rioting against Watch houses elsewhere in the city. Vimes gives orders to prevent anything like that happening in his precinct. See [[To Win Without Fighting]] below.
* [[Production Foreshadowing]]: Early in this novel Vimes mentioned having to worry about some far-flung country going to war affecting Ankh-Morpork. Said war was the main conflict in the following novel, ''[[
* [[Ragtag Bunch of Misfits]]: The Night Watch were the ones too scruffy, ugly, incompetent, awkwardly shaped, or bloody-minded for the Day Watch.
* [[Rain of Arrows]]: Reg's "death".
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** A minor subversion, though, as it's openly stated that the John Keel that Vimes knew ''was'' the real John Keel...but time travel works as it does in the [[Back to The Future]] series, meaning that Vimes' replacement of Keel {{spoiler|and the much longer-lived barricade}} don't undo the fact that Vimes originally was taught by Keel himself. The book is then Vimes' attempt to replicate Keel as accurately as possible.
{{Discworld novels}}▼
{{reflist}}
▲{{Discworld novels}}
[[Category:Night Watch]]▼
{{The Big Read}}
[[Category:{{
[[Category:Literature of the 2000s]]
[[Category:Literature]]
▲[[Category:Night Watch]]
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