Favorite extremely minor character

[[deleted user]]

She was treading "water" I believe. :)

[Barbm1020]

Jeanette, I like your new picture. Thinking about minor characters, I've just re-read Going Postal and re-encountered unforgettable Sacharissa Cripslock, the Lois Lane of Ankh Morpork. (And I thought this book came before The Truth...)

[[deleted user]]

Hi Barb! Thanks!

"The Truth" is the earlier of the two books. I like that phrase "The Lois Lane of AM." Going Postal is one of Pratchett's best books!

[Jax]

Hi.
My fave 'minor' characters are Greebo and the Death of Rats. I have tattoos of them :)

[surfmadpig]

aww, a death of rats tattoo! I wanna see!

[Barbm1020]

Wow, that's a true fan to get those tattoos.

[Jax]

Here is a link to the FB photos that I have my Discworld Tattoo in. Please don't mind the photos of my current and past pets :)

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid...

[Jax]

Jax wrote: "Here is a link to the FB photos that I have my Discworld Tattoo in. Please don't mind the photos of my current and past pets :)

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid...#!..."

I dont know if this will work...actually...if you wanna see the tat's drop me your email and i'll send it to you :)

[surfmadpig]

It does work and wow!
that's a great tat, did you design it yourself?
also, cute pets you've got there :D

[Jax]

well, I took the two photos of Greebo and DOR and told my tattoo artist that I wanted DOR riding Greebo, so she put them together and added the rope/harness bits. I cant draw for beans so the credit is all hers and Paul Kidby's of course. Apparently, someone showed the tattoo to Kidby :)

[Mai]

I enjoyed the god of hangovers in Hogfather. I also quite like the Hogfather, I like how he's got a dangerous pagan god element instead of our overly cute Santa Claus.

[Bjoern]

Don't know about that... Over here in Germany "Santa Claus" is actually TWO persons... the first is the "Nikolaus" or the namely saint Nicolaus former bishop of somewhere in Turkey who stood model for the idea of giving presents for christmas, the other half is the "Xmas man" and his closes associate is "Knecht Ruprecht", a rough guy that stems directly from the older pagan traditions of driving out the bad ghosts and spirits and "fighting" the winter so it would eventually give way to spring.
Nowadays the "coke"-alized overly commercial christmas festivities have to a certain degree displaced the more traditional costumes and customs, but the pagan roots are still to find in many regions, not only in the tree and the lighting of candles and so on...
I don't know if Pratchett maybe was aware of such "continental" traditions, but his hogfather seems to me more closely founded in this mythological concept than e.g. the Father Christmas of Narnia fame...

[[deleted user]]

I know of Knecht Rupert! Doesn't he take a switch to bad children? Just as Santa leaves coal instead of presents, at least when I was a kid.

Pratchett is very much aware of the old customs and traditions, and he even sends Susan back in time to "save" the Hogfather. And, Pratchett's Santa has a sleigh pulled by boars with nasty tusks, who wee on things. There isn't a whole lot of cuddly going on here! :)

Maeve, I enjoyed the Oh-god of hangovers, too. And I love that he got his revenge on Bacchus!

[Bjoern]

That's right, in former times, when you haven't been nice there was the threat of getting the switch from Santas Helper. I think "modern" times don't allow it any more to really hit children even as a threat much less for punishment, but then i've never been SO nasty to deserve it when i was younger ;)

Of course Pratchett always knows WHY he writes down what he writes, but i'm not really sure if he had any obscure myths in his mind for the hogfather or rather was really pissed of by what Disney and Coca Cola "have done" to the old traditions and wanted a little bit to get even by having wild hogs pissing back on the over-sweetened "Rudolph" and Co Christmas traditions by caricating them to the extreme...

Or maybe he had too much eggnock for christmas and during the hangover one thing came to the other ;)

[[deleted user]]

Yes, to all three! :)

Are you sure you never got the switch when you were a kid? lol

[Alyssa]

My favorites are probably Death's co-Horsemen. And Scrofula.

[[deleted user]]

Alyssa wrote: "My favorites are probably Death's co-Horsemen. And Scrofula."

I need to look up Scrofula! Any hints?

[Barbm1020]

Scrofula is a skin disease. Character named for it is one of Death's assistant reapers, but I don't know which book he appears in.

[[deleted user]]

Barbm1020 wrote: "Scrofula is a skin disease. Character named for it is one of Death's assistant reapers, but I don't know which book he appears in."

Thanks, Barb. It sounds like a skin disease. I don't remember Death having anyone besides Mort and Albert, of course.

[Barbm1020]

Ah, here we have it! He's in The Colour of Magic, which I thought I had thoroughly read. Oh, dear, I'll have to read it again, is there no justice? lol

http://www.extenuation.net/disc/dwcha...

[[deleted user]]

Barbm1020 wrote: "Ah, here we have it! He's in The Colour of Magic, which I thought I had thoroughly read. Oh, dear, I'll have to read it again, is there no justice? lol

http://www.extenuation.net/disc/dwcha......"

This is one I have not read. I was never a big Rincewind fan. :(

[Marissa]

Colour of Magic is the first Discworld book, and so it is not really fully formed yet. Pratchett got such a magnificently better handle on it in later books that C of M ended up being one of my least favorite discworld books - that and Equal Rites, because that is SO not how Granny Weatherwax would act. Her character is so much better in the witch books. I love Rincewind in the later books though, Last Continent and Interesting Times are some of my favorites! Also, that site with every discworld chatacter detailed is fabulous!

[[deleted user]]

Marissa wrote: "Colour of Magic is the first Discworld book, and so it is not really fully formed yet. Pratchett got such a magnificently better handle on it in later books that C of M ended up being one of my le..."

This is why I always point "newbies" to Going Postal or The Truth or even The Wee Free Men. There are some Rincewind diehards, but C of M can scare people away from Pratchett. I enjoyed Eric.

[Andrew]

if I were to point newbies to one of the best books that is self contained and works just great, I'd point them straight to Thief of Time. I think thats probably still the best one Pratchett has done.

[Barbm1020]

Thief of Time is great. Going Postal is also a good place to start. But for young female newbies I like the Tiffany Aching books.

[[deleted user]]

Andrew wrote: "if I were to point newbies to one of the best books that is self contained and works just great, I'd point them straight to Thief of Time. I think thats probably still the best one Pratchett has done."

I love Thief of Time, but it is just a bit more complicated than Going Postal (imo). Thief of Time, Thud, Going Postal -- all top-of-the-list reads!

[Brad]

If I'd started w/ Colour of Magic, I probably would never have read any more Pratchett. Instead, I read first Night Watch, and have been hooked ever since.

Oh, favorite minor character? Probably Shawn Ogg.

[[deleted user]]

Brad wrote: "If I'd started w/ Colour of Magic, I probably would never have read any more Pratchett. Instead, I read first Night Watch, and have been hooked ever since."

Another great choice! It was a bit in the middle, though, for a starting point! :)

[Kim]

Humble opinion from a quiet person: Guards! Guards! is the only place to start. I really have to work a little at enjoying any Rincewind book. But if you're suggesting a Pratchett to someone more cerebral I'd suggest Small Gods or (reading now) The Nation.

[[deleted user]]

Kim wrote: "Humble opinion from a quiet person: Guards! Guards! is the only place to start. I really have to work a little at enjoying any Rincewind book. But if you're suggesting a Pratchett to someone more ..."

Can't go wrong with Vimes! Humble, quiet, with good taste in books... :)

[Brad]

I know Guards! Guards! was the first Vimes book, but you can tell Pratchett is still feeling out the characters; I believe he's on record stating that the book was supposed to be about Carrot originally. Whereas, w/ Night Watch, we see Vimes at the very beginning -- what made Vimes Vimes, really. I think I got lucky and picked the best book to start with. If you couldn't guess, Vimes is my favorite major character.

[Kim]

Guilty: Major Vimes lover here. Like Carrot but he's just too good. Maybe that's a new thread: favorite Vimes book and why. "Whinny if you love dragons."

[[deleted user]]

Brad wrote: "I know Guards! Guards! was the first Vimes book, but you can tell Pratchett is still feeling out the characters; I believe he's on record stating that the book was supposed to be about Carrot origi..."


I had read somewhere that Carrot was supposed to be the "major" character in the Watch, but Vimes took over. And I think Pratchett picked the best man for the job! :)

[[deleted user]]

Kim wrote: "Guilty: Major Vimes lover here. Like Carrot but he's just too good. Maybe that's a new thread: favorite Vimes book and why. "Whinny if you love dragons.""

You should start that thread, Kim. It would be an interesting discussion.

[Mai]

"Guards, Guards!" was my first real TP book. I started with Equal Rites, liked it well enough, picked up GG! half price and never looked back :D

[[deleted user]]

A good book and a bargain! :)

I like your new profile picture -- totally different! Did you attend some type of convention recently?

[Barbm1020]

I like "Guards, Guards!" for the Vimes-and-Watch backstory too. Every good fictional/fantasy cop has to have an inner demon to conquer, so Sam is a better choice than Carrot for point of view, but Carrot is awesome! He's sort of the Alfred the Great of Ankh Morpork. He gets to know the people and never claims greatness for himself, but the elite know who he is. I love the way he's six feet tall but thinks of himself as a dwarf because they raised him, and his diplomatic skills and scary (almost magical but effortless) leadership ability. Which book is it where he gets the street gangs to play a sport instead of killing each other? I should know...

[[deleted user]]

Doesn't Unseen Academicals start out with the gangs playing ball with Carrot?

He is a great character, totally naive and yet, he has the hidden power of a great leader. He holds things together for Vimes, and lets Vimes chase and conquer the demons. One of the best examples of this is in Jingo.

[Barbm1020]

Jeannette, I think you're right, it is Unseen Academicals. Yes, Carrot is a major player and totally admirable. He even accepts a relationship with Angua, knowing about her "problem." Has anybody seen Kevin Kline's 80's movie that satirizes the Sensitive New Age Hero? it's The January Man and it's hilarious. Wonderful cast too. Sort of a joke Capt. Carrot guy.

[[deleted user]]

I have heard that January Man is good, Barb. Thanks for mentioning it!

[Mai]

I'm glad you like it, I took part in a school play - that was me doing a parody of a scene from Reservoir Dogs, hehehe
Vimes is quite easily my favourite Discworld character. He's just hilarious. And while I know he doesn't really count as extremely minor, I love 71 Hour Ahmed.

[[deleted user]]

I couldn't help noticing that your new picture and the old are vastly different! :) A parody of Reservoir Dogs -- interesting.

Jingo is a great story!

[Mai]

Vimes' butler is another awesome one, I love the way he is in Jingo.

[[deleted user]]

Willikins biting off noses! I like the way he takes care of the dwarves in Thud, too! He's the perfect man's man. (Is it written that way? lol)

[[deleted user]]

Lovely thread and lots of good memories in it already! Thank you so much, you all, now I just have to go back and re-(re-re-...-re-)read all 37 or so Discworld books! :P

Perhaps he's not a "character" in the proper sense, but I couldn't not mention Binky here: not much for dialogue, but what an arresting presence he is!

A more "traditional" character would certainly be John Keel - although that's perhaps a bit stretching the rules, seeing how things turn out in "Night Watch", but as a Vimes fan I find his mentor just very likeable indeed. Now, why do I picture him in my head as a sort of hard-as-nails Clint Eastwood?

[[deleted user]]

I wonder what the real John Keel was like? Great idea to have your older self go back to make sure your younger self becomes the you you are today. :)

[Mai]

A bit headache inducing though. Why are all my favourite books filled with time paradoxes?

[[deleted user]]

Maeve wrote: "A bit headache inducing though. Why are all my favourite books filled with time paradoxes?"

Because they are fun to read and they give you just a little bit of satisfaction, knowing that you made it to the end without falling off somewhere! :D

What other books do you like to read?

[[deleted user]]

Maeve wrote: "A bit headache inducing though. Why are all my favourite books filled with time paradoxes?"

If you like that theme, do you know "The Accidental Time Machine" by Joe Haldeman, of "The Forever War" fame? An interesting take on the subject.

[Mai]

Never heard of it, but I love me some mixed up experimental physics. I'll check it out, thanks.

My top time paradoxes are the numerous random TP ones, the Cassandra Palmer Series by Karen Chance (great urban fantasy, if you like that kind of thing) and Artemis Fowl.