39,327
edits
Night Watch (Discworld): Difference between revisions
m
Mass update links
m (Dai-Guard moved page Discworld (Literature)/Night Watch to Discworld/Night Watch: Move to correct namespace) |
m (Mass update links) |
||
Line 1:
{{work}}
{{quote|''There was The Beast, all around him. And that's all it was. A beast. Useful, but still a beast. You could hold it on a chain, and make it dance, and juggle balls. It didn't think. It was ''dumb''. What you were, what ''you'' were, was not The Beast.''<br />
''[[What You Are in
{{quote| ''All the little angels rise up, rise up.''<br />
Line 8:
''How do they rise up, rise up high?'' }}
The 27th ''[[
The framing events take place at the same time (such as it is) as the previous novel ''[[Discworld
The book has been noted for a much darker than usual tone, with fewer obvious jokes and a more serious story than previous installments.
A note, two of the links at the top of the page (characters, main) are for the Sergei Lukyanenko's ''[[Night Watch (
----
=== Contains examples of: ===
* [[A Nazi
* [[A Storm Is Coming]]: And with it, Sam Vimes' finest moment.
* [[A Wizard Did It]]: Lu-Tze uses this after attempting to explain the function of the Procrastinator.
Line 26:
** 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 ''[[Discworld
** 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.
Line 41:
* [[Berserk Button]]: Fred Colon's reaction to a young corporal asking why they were wearing sprigs of lilac seems quite disproportionate, as it seems like a fair question to us, but as the reason becomes apparent later in the book the incident implies that the subject of the revolution is a [[Berserk Button]] for Colon.
** Let's not forget Vimes' epic rant to Vetinari when the Patrician wants to put up a monument to the dead watchmen.
* [[Bothering
** It also doesn't say anything about serving or defending the ruler (King, Queen, or otherwise). Just the public.
** Vimes also pulls an [[Obstructive Bureaucrat]] on Unmentionables with paperwork to sign when he has to hand over curfew breakers to them. The Unmentionables are expectantly uncooperative and Vimes gets them off the hook.
** 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
** Not to mention [[The Alcoholic|what happens]] to the 18-year-old Sam Vimes in the years between this book and ''[[Discworld
* [[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...both Vimes and the readers know that he will become Mad Lord Snapcase and [[Cool and Unusual Punishment|be hung up by his figgin]].
* [[Can't Take Anything
* [[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 [[Discworld
** 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.
Line 57:
* [[Colour-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 ''[[Discworld
* [[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.
* [[Darker and Edgier]]: The book basically begins with the death of a copper and memorial to an event so bad even the normally comic Colon and Nobby treat with solemnity. [[It Got Worse]].
* [[Death
* [[Doomed Moral Victor]]: Parodied, as the villains consider "You may take our lives, but you'll never take our freedom" to be the dumbest revolutionary slogan ever. Specifically, Carcer replies "Wrong," and cue the hail of crossbow bolts.
** However, [[Fridge Brilliance|if you think about it]], they did take Reg's life, but they never took his freedom.
Line 70:
{{quote| "He's not an enemy; he's a nemesis."}}
** Which takes on a whole new (hilarious) meaning if you remember Brick Top's speech from ''[[Snatch]]'': "Do you know what 'nemesis' means? A righteous infliction of retribution manifested by an appropriate agent. Personified in this case by an 'orrible cunt..." In this universe, Vimes.
* [[Due to
** Only people who where there can wear the lilac.
* [[Even Evil Has Standards]]: Lady Meserole was clearly as power-hungry a schemer as anyone else, whose nephew suggested that she let him kill Keel for expediency (though she only gave him empty threats), when she sees {{spoiler|Snapcase turn around and order his death despite the amnesty}} she's so disgusted she {{spoiler|orders Vetinari to protect Keel, and he happily obliges}}.
Line 76:
** Similarly, Captain Swing is an idealist, he simply looks at the problem the wrong way around.
* [[Eyepatch of Power]]: Like Keel before him, Vimes gets one of his own.
* [[Fascists' Bed Time]]: One of the jobs of the Night Watch is to patrol this and take people breaking curfew to Cable Street House. The first thing Vimes does when he becomes Sergeant-at-arms of his station is bring this system to the ground, release the people he's captured and make himself a reputation in the process.
* [[Foreshadowing]]: Lots of it. Both the lilac blooming and, as the story starts, with Sam Vimes and other Night Watch survivors of the Glorious People's Republic of Treacle Mine Road solemnly commemorating the anniversary of the deaths of their comrades, among them Sergeant Keel's.
** All The Little Angels.
Line 82:
* [[Fright Deathtrap]]
* [[Full-Circle Revolution]]: A pretty much [[Foregone Conclusion]]. Snapcase, mentioned as [[The Caligula|Mad Lord Snapcase]] in previous books, isn't much better than Winder.
* [[Get Back to
* [[Give Me Back My Wallet]]: Vimes to Young Nobby.
* [[Gone Horribly Right]]: In a non-science trope, Vimes' plan for the barricade. The original John Keel may have been a revolutionary, but Vimes just wanted to keep a few silly, innocent people safe and protect those in his street.
Line 94:
{{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 [[Discworld
** 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 {{spoiler|Winder.}} He walks right up to him as the crowded hall ignores his presence, and {{spoiler|Winder}} thinks that this isn't how assassins really operate: this is what happens in dreams.
** 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
* [[Hope Spot]]: {{spoiler|Winder is dead, Snapcase is Patrician and just as it seems the barricade can come down peacefully, Carcer's men attack and Sergeant Dickins picks up the lilac as Vimes' gang prepare to fight. }}
* [[Humble Goal]]: The revolutionaries want a slogan that encapsulates what they're fighting for. After asking each of their members what they want, the result is "Truth, Justice, Reasonably-Priced Love and a Hard Boiled Egg".
Line 106:
* [[I Hate Past Me]]: Sort of. While Vimes doesn't hate young Sam, he's certainly put off and ashamed of how incredibly naive and idealistic he is.
{{quote| "You're not me. You can't be. I don't think I was ever as young as you." }}
* [[I Just Shot Marvin in
{{quote| Vimes: What did I tell you about Mister Safety Catch? <br />
Detritus: When Mister Safety Catch Is Not On, Mister Crossbow Is Not Your Friend. }}
Line 121:
** Which he must have really, ''really'' regretted when Vetinari became Patrician.
*** Although, privately to his Aunt, Vetinari states that the nickname Downey gave him is STILL better than his real name, and burning the book Downey took from him was actually beneficial to him, as it means that the only assassin who knows what's in it is Vetinari himself. It was a book on camouflage, and Vetinari is VERY GOOD at that. (So good that he was given a ZERO for the course, as the instructor never ONCE saw him in class and assumed he'd used trickery in the exam. Vetinari insists he ALWAYS attended class and that he thought trickery was the whole point.)
* [[Kill It
* [[Knife Nut]]: Carcer.
* [[La Résistance]]: But of course.
** Mais oui.
* [[Lightning Can Do Anything]]
* [[Line in
* [[Mauve Shirt]]: Sergeant Abba Stronginthearm, who previously appeared in ''[[Discworld
* [[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.
Line 151:
* [[One-Liner]]: Vimes tries to do one by saying his authority (as he draws his crossbow) comes from "Mr Burleigh and Mr Stronginthearm." No-one gets it, however, as those two haven't gone into business yet in the past.
** Another: Vimes finally revealed that he wasn't really Sergeant Keel to Ned Coates. He admitted he traveled through time. This is after a huge melee. Coates looked over Sam, blood and all, heavily-used [[Dual-Wielding|swords in his hands]], and once he was told Vimes was a time-traveler, he had just one thing to ask: {{spoiler|'From how far ''back''?'}}
* [[Only Known
* [[Opt Out]]: Ned Coates seems to do that in the middle of the book.
* [[The Password Is Always Swordfish]]: [[Lampshade Hanging|Lampshaded]]
Line 161:
* [[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, ''[[Discworld
* [[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".
* [[Rats in
* [[Reasonable Authority Figure]]: Vimes, of course, but also the Abbot of the History Monks. He absolutely forbids Lu Tze to do what he's going to do, but follows it up by acknowledging that when he does, it will probably be for the best.
* [[The Revolution Will Not Be Civilised]]: Mentioned by Vimes numerous times.
Line 199:
* [[Verbal Tic]]: Swing's unusuallypaced...speech pattern and Captain Tilden, what. Snouty, hnah, too.
** Carcer's patronizing little chuckle, haha.
* [[What You Are in
* [[Wide
* [[World Half Empty]]: Past Ankh-Morpork sucks even worse than present, with insane rulers, tyrannical and cruel authorities and even more rampant crime. Vimes repeatedly calls the Watch "just another gang" in his monologues. And he's explicitly told upfront that he cannot, ''cannot'' change any major events, such as a clearly pointless war borne of the Patrician's insanity which will last just long enough to kill many innocent people, or the deaths of many watchmen. However, rather than sitting there and taking it, he makes efforts to reform the watch, prevents a bloodbath on Morphic Street, and changes history by holding his barricade through the entire night when the original Keel failed halfway through, reducing his side's casualties to perhaps a dozen (during the battle, anyways). And he takes down Carcer in the most lawful way possible.
* [[You Will Be Beethoven]]: Vimes takes Keel's place after Carcer murders him.
| |||