Mark Reads ‘Feet of Clay’: Part 2

In the second part of Feet of Clay, EVERYTHING IS HAPPENING ALREADY. Intrigued? Then it’s time for Mark to read Discworld. 

LET’S JUST GET INTO THIS!!!! SO MUCH EXCITING STUFF!!!

The City Watch

Pratchett is a lot more liberal with revealing all the changes in the City Watch here, and it’s so weird. Everything is efficient and organized and multi-tiered and HOW IS THIS THE SAME WATCH WE SAW IN Guards! Guards! The growth is spectacular, but that doesn’t mean these characters are drastically different. They’re still recognizable. Corporal Nobbs is still a mess. Vimes is still that comfortable mix of cynicism and anger that I enjoyed. And how powerful was this tiny moment during the interview that opened this section?

Vimes found he was automatically opening the bottom drawer of his desk. He pushed it shut again and, instead, shuffled the papers in front of him.

How long has he been sober for? Anyway, the interview with Cheery Littlebottom didn’t just introduce a new character to us; it helps us to understand how the Watch is growing. At this point, there’s never been a position for an alchemist, and while Cheery might just blow up a crime scene or a Watch house or himself, it’s cool to see why he’s needed. The Watch is changing! They’re pissing off the richer members of Ankh-Morpork who I suspect have been getting away with a number of crimes that they’re now being held accountable for. (Maybe. There are no details about this specific thing.) But even internally, Vimes knows that Watch has become something else. It’s like a messed up family. I love that he admits to Cheery that they’re making it all up as they go along, too! It’s an adventure into the unknown. It’s not like they have anything to base their organization off of, you know?

Pratchett then jumps from one scene to another, each of them packed with jokes and clever wordplay, and each of them also doing the job of providing exposition and story detail without feeling like they are. Detritus’s tour of the Watch house is ADORABLE. (I just love Detritus a lot, okay?) Carrot and Angua surprising the thieves is just lovely. (A LOADED WOLF.) I am so eager to see how else the Watch has changed.

Golems

That’s what that scene with the “speaker” is referring to, right? So, someone is making golems, one got out, it killed a priest, and they can be controlled by thoughts? And someone is making a profit off them?

I went back to that awesome scene with the crossbow and the bread and Angua being the best, and this line stuck out to me:

The bold one with the crossbow licked his lips and glanced from Carrot to the wolf. “If you set it on us, I warn you, someone’s going to get killed!” he warned.

Now, he’s clearly referring to Angua, but then MY BRAIN STARTED THINKING OF THINGS. What could this possible theft/murder have to do with the golems? What if there’s a connection between the two events? There always is in these mysteries, and for a moment, I imagined that the man was talking about a golem. I say that just as a hypothetical thing. Those working with the golems are afraid of them, and Mr. Ironcrust has a bizarre reaction to Carrot here:

“Three years!” he said. “Three years and no one bothered! Three bloody years and not so much as a knock at the door! And he’ll ask me! Oh, yes! He’ll be nice about it! He’ll probably even go and get the extra forms so I won’t be put to the trouble! Why couldn’t you buggers have just run away?”

OKAY, THAT’S NOT WHAT I EXPECTED. So, people are behaving weirdly, and we know that a golem is out there somewhere killing people, and we don’t know why. It makes no sense to me that Mr. Ironcrust would be upset that the thieves did not get away. Thus, that’s why the gears started ticking because of that passage. I know it’s about Angua, but I’m suspicious. I MUST BE IN ORDER TO FIGURE THIS OUT.

Zoos and Coat of Arms

WHAT A RIDICULOUS SCENE, OH MY GOD. I was a little confused about the whole thing, but OWLS. A morpork on an ankh! I feel a little weird about the gay hippo joke because… well, that’s about the closest the Discworld series has gotten to having gay characters and… well, they’re hippos. But I was pleased by the fact that the man of the house used LIVE ANIMALS and an actual shield to paint his coat of arms. WHO THINKS OF SOMETHING LIKE THIS.

“Good gods,” murmured Vimes. “I always thought they’ve just made it up!”

“Made it up, sir? Made it up?” said voice behind him. “We’d soon be in trouble if we made things up, oh dear me, yes.”

Can I imagine that this is a subtle reference to Vimes telling Cheery that they mostly make everything up as they go along? YES, GOOD.

I’m interested to see where this plot is going, too. Who is the dead person talking to Vimes?

Diane Duane is still offering a massive discount on the first 9 books in the Young Wizards series just to this community, so please take advantage of this deal while you still can:

http://bit.ly/markreadsYW

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VeP0w6PGrwY

Mark Links Stuff

– I am now on Patreon! There are various levels of support, from $1 up to whatever you want! You’ll get to read a private blog, extra reviews, and other such rewards.
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– 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 have been announced here.
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