In the twelfth part of Lords and Ladies, Nanny does her best to try to comfort a friend, and the Lords and Ladies do their best to do the opposite. Intrigued? Then it’s time for Mark to read Discworld.
Some nit-picking, first, and I’ll be brief here.
“I know she’s in there,” said Verence, holding his crown in his hands in the famous Ai-Señor-Mexican-Bandits-Have-Raided-Our-Village position.
If you’re gonna make this pretty terrible joke, use the correct word. It’s “Ay,” not “Ai.” PS: There’s a much better way to convey this same image without name-checking an entire culture in a stereotypical way.
Secondly: I don’t expect someone to time-travel and fix their manuscript, so let’s just all agree going forward to drop the word “gypsy” from our vocabularies if we’re not Romani. Thanks.
With that out of the way, let’s talk about Nanny. I really adore how quick she is to empathize with Magrat and to try and offer some sort of comfort to her friend. It’s admirable that she tries so hard here, giving Magrat a chance to respond how she likes. She opens a lot of doors to give Magrat a choice about how she’ll interact, if she’ll do so at all. Seriously, it’s really awesome. Nanny has experience with marriage, but she doesn’t wield it in a condescending way, you know? Sadly, Magrat remains completely silent during the whole exchange, and… it’s the letter, isn’t it? Well, that whole “Stand before your god…” line is pretty awkward, but Magrat is furious for a different reason.
More on that in a bit. I have nothing but lovely things to say about Casanunda and Nanny’s date. It’s so pleasant! I love that it’s a celebration of HOW GOOD FOOD IS and how Nanny is awesome for enjoying it instead of fulfilling a stereotype for the date. Plus, Pratchett makes a point of stating that for the first time in ages, Casanunda is having FUN while eating with Nanny. I’m also super into this:
And Nanny Ogg was an attractive lady, which is not the same as being beautiful.
I LOVE THE DISTINCTION MADE BETWEEN THESE TWO THINGS. IT’S VERY IMPORTANT.
I now understand, though, why certain characters are where they are. I’ll explain. Nanny is on a date with Casanunda; Granny and Ridcully are leaping off the Lancre Bridge to escape a unicorn; and Magrat is realizing that she’s got a very difficult decision ahead of her. All of them are far from the theater when it happens. I’m guessing that because the Librarian is not human, he’s not susceptible to the glamour as the others are, at least not to the same degree. I say that because of this line:
Suddenly the Librarian felt very alone.
Everyone else in the audience had their gaze fastened firmly on the turf stage.
Oh my god, the elves got in through the actors’ dreams and ARE IN THEIR MINDS ALREADY. As I said on video, there’s no better place for them to unleash their glamour than during the Entertainment, where most of Lancre is in the same room.
OH. SHIT.
The original text contains use of the word “gypsy.”
Mark Links Stuff
– I am now on Patreon!!! MANY SURPRISES ARE IN STORE FOR YOU IF YOU SUPPORT ME.
– IÂ will be at Borderlands Books, Book Riot Live, and Windycon this fall! Check the full list of events on my Tour Dates / Appearances page.
– My Master Schedule is updated for the near and distant future for most projects, so please check it often. My next Double Features for Mark Watches will be Kings, season 1 of Sense8, season 1 of Agent Carter, seasons 1 & 2 of The 100, Death Note, and Neon Genesis Evangelion. On Mark Reads, Diane Duane’s Young Wizards series will replace the Emelan books.
- Mark Does Stuff is on Facebook! I’ve got a community page up that I’m running. Guaranteed shenanigans!
