May 4th, 2016
4 May 2016 · page 597 of 1306
These guys.
ECCC Overstock Book Sale!
For a very limited time, you can grab Vol 2, Vol 3, Vol 4 or Vol 5 of Widdershins for only $3 shipping within the United States, instead of the usual $11 I have to charge. That’s a pretty huge saving! There’s not too many of these going, so grab one while you can!
This only applies to Vols 2-5 individually, not the multibook pack or Vol 1. Cheaper shipping applies only to America, not Canada or other nearby countries, many apologies!
Cast: Benjamin Thackerey, Heinrich Wolfe, Jack O'Malley
Comments (59)
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You notice they've really gotten to trust each other, at least a little, even if they're still not very nice to each other.
Or "early reading practice" is a secret challenge code for detecting dopplegangers!
Or maybe he's actually trying to learn to read. Well... in the afternoons.
Buggerlips! Ah, how we've missed your refreshing discourse, Mal.
I think that's buggerups rather than buggerlips. A hazard of the font.
As a non-Englisher, I can only assume that Mal's gesture in panel 3 is very rude. Mal, no.
Yeah, the two finger salute there is the same as sticking up your middle finger over in the US.
Is THAT what Churchill was flippin' at the Nahzzis?!?
Yes-no. The Victory sign and the other V-sign are not quite the same, though Churchill was referring to it quite cheekily. Mal is showing the correct use of the sod-you version. xD
Interesting trivia: The Churchill "V-for-Victory" sign has an entirely different meaning in France. It's used to tell men that their wives are being unfaithful to them.
In Italy, the first and last finger are used that way; it's not so much saying that your wife IS unfaithful, it's implying that you're not man enough to keep her from it.
In a macho culture...
Just something that my mom told me. Thanks for the clarification.
Just to be clear, we're talking about what occurs in America as the "rock on" gesture?
The Italian derogative gesture is first and little finger extended, middle fingers and thumb curled, back of the hand toward the derogatee.
Other bit of trivia--tradition says that the insulting version came from the Hundred Years War. The French would cut off the first 2 fingers of any Englishman they caught, especially the archers, so they couldn't draw a bow any more. So the English would taunt the French by waggling their fingers at them. I can see where that turns into a F*** off gesture.
And all that the French could do once those fingers were gone was fart in their general direction...
Unfortunately, actual historical research says that tradition is wrong on this one. (For starters, longbowmen were commoners and wouldn't be kept alive after capture.)
Pity, that.
Debunked. It's probably just the flipped-around cuckold sign -- something we got from the Romans, as did the French. We basically formalised which way to use it just to differentiate the English from French or visa versa. ;)
So, yeah... probably stems from the Hundred Years' War, but not because of bowfingers. :)
The rude one is the backs of the fingers. The V-for-Victory (later the peace sign) was the fronts of the fingers.
Not quite as strong, but that's the idea, yeah. Not the first time he's used it.
This community is so educational ;-)
UhOh - looks like sloth is making it's presence known. Yawns are contagious, you know. :)
I'm now reading Ben in Anthony Daniels' voice. We should Twitter-bomb him with the Widdershins archive.
I so much love the color scheme on this page!
You liked April so much you decided to do it twice? ;) It does sound nicer than May...
Like the comic by the way. Hope Mal avoids trouble this time (though he probably won't).
Whoops! In my defense, I was running on 2 hours sleep at the time of uploading. Fixed!
Well the weather in the UK is more like early April than early May at the moment.
Early reading practice? Sounds like Mal is trying to fill in some of his skill gaps in the wake of that disastrous contract.
Given the situation he was in when Margery Faribairn gave him that contract he probably would have signed it anyway even if could have read at the time. Hopefully that experience will make him more careful about signing things he doesn't understand.
It was interesting that Mr. "Always see the best in everybody" Wolfe knew better at the time while Mr. "Suspicious of everyone" O'Malley did not.
Love these guys. But then I love everyone in this comic.
I know what you mean. When I say Mal is my favorite, I really mean he's my favorite of favorites, because they're all so lovable.
Hurrah! My favourite character is back in the story. Oh, and that German fellow who plays the violin.
Wake up, waaaake up.
It's a bright and beautiful day.
Wake up, waaaake up,
You should leave the Anchor, okay?
The song I grew up with goes: Good morning good morning good morning!
It's time to rise and shine.
Good morning good morning good morning,
I hope you're feeling fine!
Good morning, get up, get out of bed,
It's time to get up, you sleepyhead!
The day is rising just for you,
And oh my god they're coming for you!
(Doodley-doo. Run, buddy, do! Doodley-doo!)
Well, maybe not just exactly like that.
Ben, spot the atmosphere, man! You should be a touch better after your run-in with Mal's ability. No excuses. xP
Oh, Ben :D
Mal and i agree - two seven o'clocks in one day is one too many.
I have to admit - i swiped that line from Terry Pratchett
If you're going to steal from someone Terry Pratchett is an excellent choice.
Waking up to Wolfe's violin practice sounds like a pretty nice way to wake up honestly. So happy to see this trio together again!
I must assure you, hearing someone praticing an instrument or voice every day gets tiring, fast.
Sure does
I don't know about that, Dad constantly practices his flute, and before that, his mandolin, and before that, his guitar. He very much likes to learn new instruments, and he has gotten pretty good. For me, after a while, it just becomes background noise. My friends, however, are quite enamored when his flute comes over Skype.
You may like music, or not.
The performer may be adequate, or not.
But in general, it is uplifting to participate in someone else's act of joy.
My son was in the ARMY, and passed a lot of time by playing on his mandolin. His buddies commented often enough that is was pleasant to come back to the barracks and hear him jamming.
Well, that may be nice for you all, but for me waking up to noise is THE MOST annoying the in the world.
If it's any consolation -- and it rarely is -- being someone who practices an instrument or voice every day gets tiring, fast.
I mean, think about it. The damned baritone down the hall running through that particular passage again and again and driving you nuts is running through that passage again and again trying to get it in his head. It stops being fun long before it stops being necessary.
With a welcome like that it's no wonder he doesn't like mornings. XD
Heh. Couple of things: the finger gesture is referred to a "cornuto", which literally means "horned", as in "putting the horns on him" . Similarly, in Spanish "cabron", which literally means "goat is the term.
Also, for a window into macho culture - in Italian, "sorpassare" is the infinitive form of two verbs: "to pass/overtake" (on the road/highway) and "to be a better man"...
Mornings are terrible things indeed, especially when unexpected.
Interesting that he told Ben & not Wolfe....
The [Wikipedia article about the term "cuckold"](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cuckold "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cuckold") says:
in Sicily (where i spent a year in the Navy), just flashing the horns at the wrong time and/or place can get you knifed.
I've informed you to leave 'Cause I can't afford to lose more sleep There's your shoes, and there's the door Please don't come here anymore
Ben's also the resident Malform expert. Wolfe might tell him not to worry about it, in casual optimism.
Ooh - i missed that one.
Ben is a painstaking person. He's been studying up on 'The Deadly Sins.' I hope this all night reading helps when they face them.
Good grief, Wolfe, don't say things like that when you're about to face a villain who really can disguise himself as anyone!
Agh. Let me tell you, as a very-much-not-morning-person, I totally sympathize with Mal here. When I get up earlier than usual and everyone feels the need to comment on/joke about it, it just makes me want to crawl back into bed and never come out.
These guys indeed ♥