November 20th, 2018
20 Nov 2018 · page 852 of 1306
It's actually the Ding Dong alarm, there to inform you that this guy is a real ding dong
Cast: Vincent Knott, Will Sharpe
Comments (56)
Events
ThoughtBubble
14 Nov 2026 – 15 Nov 2026
Harrogate Convention Centre
Manchester Megacon
31 Jul 2027 – 1 Aug 2027
Manchester Central
Ding-dong-a-ling-dong, somebody slap this pawn upside the head. With rope. On his neck.
Don't do it! Just tell dad you're not up to it. This guy isn't even trustworthy.
But how do we get plot if he doesn't ??!!
I like the idea that this guy drives Knott to skip the normal plot thread and go straight to the resolution of the arc.
Weirdest. Blackmail. Ever.
What are the odds he removed his own fear, do you think?
That's a really excellent guess! I was wondering why he seemed so cheerful about all this, and that would explain it.
I dunno -- I've heard that when people know they're going to die in a certain time (of a terminal illness, for example) they become at peace with it and unusually (ie unusual to outsiders) calm about the situation. I'd guess Sharpe here is either that, or he's so afraid of dying that this is his way of coping.
This is true, but only for some people. Kubler-Ross is wrong, or at least badly misinterpreted in the popular understanding: there is no 'one size fits all' way of facing your death.
Dunno about that... check out the classic Kenneth Williams sketch: ["Hand Up Your Sticks"](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DInM68YgcC4 "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DInM68YgcC4").
Edit: According to one source, it was written by Peter Cook, although Williams made it his own. Here's a sample...
Robber (Williams): (completely failing to sound threatening) Hold up your hands, this is a stick-up! Stick up your hands, this is a hold-up! Give me the money! - ooh, I must get that right - Give me the muneeeey! ...Hands up, this is a stick-up, give me the money. Hands up, this is a stick-up, give me the money. Hands up, this is a stick-up, give me the money. Got it! running feet, door Hand up your sticks, this is an uphold!
Classic. And, as Widdershins fans, we can also imagine Macavity concealed nearby, facepalming, Harry rolling her eyes in amusement as she prepares for a textbook arrest, and Vee striding off haughtily, muttering "Too easy."
>:=)>
'Vee striding off haughtily, muttering "Too easy."'
It would be too easy to catch him or it was too easy to rob the bank while everyone was distracted by the other guy?
It would probably end up with Macavity robbing the bank while everyone was distracted, then Vee nabbing Macavity.
Vee: Ha! A target more worthy of my talents! handcuff This way, Mister Macavity, and do try to keep to my pace - I want to arrive at the Hunters Society just after Harriet, so I can show her up with my more noteworthy captive!
Macavity: ...Okay, why not? I don't like her either. :-) matches her pace while searching for ways to escape
>:=)>
I see the ending rather like that:
Macavity: ...Okay, girlie, why... gets knocked-out, wakes up in the prison
Evidently Mr. Sharpe knows exactly which ropes to pull
He gets to pull a big one in eight hours, if this doesn't go well.
That's why he's taking this big chance. He can either swing for the fences or swing in the breeze.
I can't reach through the Internet, so please smack yourself upside the head for that pun. Thank you. ^_^
I feel profoundly stupid for not realizing that this was a pun.
In all fairness to Mr. Knott, it is rather hard to make prudent decisions while one is experiencing a nervous breakdown.
Both of them are adorable in two totally different ways
One of them is the kind of adorable that makes you really want to punch him.
I heard that hangings occurred at the sunrise. Looking into Google. It says in Manchester, on 23.04.1834, the sunrise was at 4:50. Hey, you have three hours more!
Clearly whatever authority has to witness these matters prefers to sleep in.
That's firing squads. I don't think there's a traditional time of day for hangings.
Well, some historically famous hanging in my country (almost two centuries ago) was set at 4 AM, a bit after sunrise. But they messed up, and it was done at later time.
Ah now we get shenanigans. And boy they will be a doozy.
Think about it this way. Knott being hung would be worst outcome if he lets Sharpe out.
I am starting to reconsider my previous hard line stance against capital punishment.
I'm a great fan of the death penalty in web comics. There are just characters which should be put to death in order to make the comic's world a better, smarter, and more livable place. Their crime? Existence.
There's an an article about this in TV tropes. You can find it under "Thrown under a guillotine". You'll recognize the page image: it's Will Sharpe.
I can't find it, has the page been deleted or renamed? Also which Will Sharpe?
TV tropes has been cleaning up the pages, part of that is sadly a lot of pages got merged or removed.
It's a horrible thing, but so is life in prison. Deterrence is one of the most basic functions of any legal system.
In our version of 1834, there was a third option. Captain Barber does not approve:
[https://archiveofourown.org...](https://archiveofourown.org/works/15940307 "https://archiveofourown.org/works/15940307")
Although in fact I suspect this didn't happen in the Widdershins' AU
I totally forgot about Transportation. Also, delightful little bit of fanfic! Got any more? :D
There's a link to everyone's fanfic in the fanworks section.
Knott, you're not stupid, surely you can see he's manipulating you like putty here... (Wow, Vee would either shoot him immediately or like him a lot, or maybe both.)
He can see it, I'm sure. The trouble is that, even though it is such obvious manipulation, Knott can't reject it on that account -- because his own internal conflict is much deeper than Sharpe even understands.
And the pitch hasn't worked yet. It's thrown Knott into conflict, but on this page he's not saying yes. It'll take something else -- maybe a very small thing, but something -- to tip the balance.
Is Knott even able to let Sharpe out? Traditionally, jail guards don't hand visitors the keys.
Maybe he’s going to drug the guard with those sleeping drops Eliza gave him earlier.
In this jail they let visitors wander around unescorted. They have one guard sitting without sight of all the cell doors and no other guard keeping him in vision - plus they let him stand his weapon against the wall where it might be snatched and they have corridoors with no clear view end to end and... I could go on but this is not so much a jail, more like temporary accommodation for the crook in need of a night off.
And they keep a guy charged with crimes against magic and sentenced to death there.
Yep, seems normal.
Pretty much SOP for every fictional gaol in the multiverse.
Oh good, that means he keeps his keys on a large, easily-grabbed ring resting on an open hook on his back pocket from which they can easily be removed from behind without him noticing (even if he were awake at the time, which he almost certainly won't be).
[https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki...](https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/CardboardPrison "https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/CardboardPrison")
In some fairness to Will, while he's definitely manipulating the heck out of poor Knotty here, he's basically been sentenced to death for writing a paper last minute and then losing it. I'd pull every shenanigan I could to survive the next morning in his shoes, too.
I can't wait until he realize Knott isn't exactly a lawyer
Well, he knows more about the law than Sharpe’s last defense attorney, so he’s still a step up.
that's not putting the bar high
I didn't need the alarm to know he's a ding-dong, but it's nice to know such a system is in place in at least one universe.
At first I was sad that this chapter wouldn't be about the main cast, but Vincent's character and the conflict he's facing are so compelling! I dare say he's got himself into quite the knot ;P. Frankly I think this is some of the best writing in Widdershins to date.
Vincent should tell his Dad how he really feels and back out. But obviously he's not going to do that, and I guess saving someone's life and keeping some dangerous magic out of the wrong hands is almost worth the risk.
Someday an enterprising young student will write a groundbreaking essay about the magical ability some people have to rapidly convince their brand new friends to go along with foolhardy plans.
Vincent: I can't let you out!
Sharpe: Why not? It's your best chance.
Vincent: Besides the obvious legal ramifications? I physically can't. I don't have the key.
"Depend upon it, Sir: when a man knows he's going to be hanged in a few hours, he concentrates his mind wonderfully." --Dr. Samuel Johnson
“Unfortunately, what the mind inevitably concentrates on is that it is in a body that, in the morning, is going to be hanged.” - Sir Terry Pratchett
I can't help thinking that Will would have made a great conduit for Superbia. Even his clothes in the lecture hall panel were superbia-coloured.