I keep forgetting that the guy who created the Peter Principle got his start in a government bureaucracy in California and that his observations were said to cover the public sector more accurately then the private sector. Somehow it should not have surprised me that Sweetheart is every bit as bad as Sergeant Colon became when he was promoted to the head of the Watch but all the same it did! ^_^:
When I was growing up, my family were the only Pratchett fans I knew of. We lent a few books to friends and got chuckles, but whether because they matched our sense of humor or because Dad was English, we were the ones who kept re-reading them. Now I’ve gotten out into the real world, and the Internet has made it so much smaller, and Pratchett is everywhere. It’s kinda awesome and “this was MY thing, this made me special!” at the same time.
Sweetheart thinks she has it rough with those posters, but consider the poor bastards stuck in the printers being forced to make a new poster every day that they know is wrong.
Ugh, I once worked in a T-shirt shop where the customer ordered shirts saying the following:
Texas: At it’s best.
I even had a chance to talk with the customer beforehand and gently suggest a correction. The customer appeared surprised that any correction might be needed. He reflected for a second and insisted on his original version.
For therapeutic reasons, I had to print an extra and go at it with a red Sharpie…
So in Sonoma Country there was always this billboard in the shape of a windmill with four blades with each blade having a single word on it. In clockwise order starting at the lower left– upper left — upper right — lower right, the four words read: IT’S FOOD AT BEST. And that is how I read it all through my childhood. It wasn’t until I was an adult that I realized one was supposed to read it upper left to upper right, lower left to lower right to read: FOOD AT IT’S BEST.
I’m not entirely sure they qualified as Madâ„¢; while Dana was completely insane by the end, her magnum opus was recreated by the Hamsters, who were officially not Madâ„¢. One of the key defining things about Madnessâ„¢ in Narbonic is that they create things which can’t be understood even by geniuses.
Quite right. Artie made them into super-genius gerbils, but they were sane, just as he is. Unfortunately, without the genetic modifications that Helen made to Artie, the other gerbils were destined to go insane as their brains turned into pudding. But “insane” is not the same as “Mad”.
Okay, in edduard’s regrettable absence, here’s one from “Honky Cat,” Elton John.
I was the straw that broke the camel’s back
I was too much for the Institute to attack
They changed my poster, but never got it right
So how can I get Moustachio out of that fight?
They say, get back, honky cat,
Better get back to the world
Well, I did my crime, and I spent my time.
And oh, oh, oh, the change ain’t gonna do me good
You better get back, honky cat,
Pens that won’t write just ain’t where it’s at
It’s like faking smart when you think you’re really dumb
It’s like trying to open cans without any thumbs.
I tried, but what can you do with something like this:
I’m ‘Enery the Eighth I am
‘Enery the Eighth I am I am
I got married to the widow next door
She’s been married seven times before
And every one was an ‘Enery
Wouldn’t have a Willie or a Sam
I’m ‘er eight old man I’m ‘Enery
‘Enery the Eighth I am.
Either Moustachio has been listening to Herman’s Hermits on the wireless, or he’s been part of the audience in a British Music Hall at least as recently as 1910, which is when that song was written.
I don’t think they’re trying to drive her Mad as much as break her down psychologically to the point where she’ll be easily manipulable.A-sig needs Skin Horse in the War, but on their terms.
They’re not gaslighting her, because she knows they keep replacing the poster with new, different errors every day. It’s not a Yellow Wallpaper situation, because they are changing it and it’s not her descent into madness that’s causing her to see the errors. This is basically a behavioral equivalent of the old punishment where they would put someone in a cell that was just a little bit too small in all dimensions to stand, sit, or lie down comfortably.
Mission status: tiny metal man beating head against hard object while singing.
That’s never going to get old is it?
No, no it is not! ^_^
I keep forgetting that the guy who created the Peter Principle got his start in a government bureaucracy in California and that his observations were said to cover the public sector more accurately then the private sector. Somehow it should not have surprised me that Sweetheart is every bit as bad as Sergeant Colon became when he was promoted to the head of the Watch but all the same it did! ^_^:
Sir or madam, that reference earns you one “win”. Please report to the watch house at Treacle Mine Road to retrieve your “win”.
It shouldn’t surprise me to find Pratchett-ists in the fanbase of this comic, but it makes me very, very happy.
When I was growing up, my family were the only Pratchett fans I knew of. We lent a few books to friends and got chuckles, but whether because they matched our sense of humor or because Dad was English, we were the ones who kept re-reading them. Now I’ve gotten out into the real world, and the Internet has made it so much smaller, and Pratchett is everywhere. It’s kinda awesome and “this was MY thing, this made me special!” at the same time.
Honestly, Skin Horse is one of a teeny-tiny handful of things that stand up to comparison with Pratchett for me.
Sweetheart thinks she has it rough with those posters, but consider the poor bastards stuck in the printers being forced to make a new poster every day that they know is wrong.
Ugh, I once worked in a T-shirt shop where the customer ordered shirts saying the following:
Texas: At it’s best.
I even had a chance to talk with the customer beforehand and gently suggest a correction. The customer appeared surprised that any correction might be needed. He reflected for a second and insisted on his original version.
For therapeutic reasons, I had to print an extra and go at it with a red Sharpie…
Texas, at its best, cant spel gud.
Unintentionally ironic shirts – sometimes they’re the best kind.
That t-shirt story got a chuckle out of me 🙂
So in Sonoma Country there was always this billboard in the shape of a windmill with four blades with each blade having a single word on it. In clockwise order starting at the lower left– upper left — upper right — lower right, the four words read: IT’S FOOD AT BEST. And that is how I read it all through my childhood. It wasn’t until I was an adult that I realized one was supposed to read it upper left to upper right, lower left to lower right to read: FOOD AT IT’S BEST.
Did any previous strip indicate whether or not a nonhuman can go Mad(tm)?
In Skin Horse, no. In Narbonic, however, Artie did make several mad scientist gerbils.
I’m not entirely sure they qualified as Madâ„¢; while Dana was completely insane by the end, her magnum opus was recreated by the Hamsters, who were officially not Madâ„¢. One of the key defining things about Madnessâ„¢ in Narbonic is that they create things which can’t be understood even by geniuses.
Quite right. Artie made them into super-genius gerbils, but they were sane, just as he is. Unfortunately, without the genetic modifications that Helen made to Artie, the other gerbils were destined to go insane as their brains turned into pudding. But “insane” is not the same as “Mad”.
Maybe the cat poster wasn’t so bad…
Maybe we can get the one from Beta’s place.
Okay, in edduard’s regrettable absence, here’s one from “Honky Cat,” Elton John.
I was the straw that broke the camel’s back
I was too much for the Institute to attack
They changed my poster, but never got it right
So how can I get Moustachio out of that fight?
They say, get back, honky cat,
Better get back to the world
Well, I did my crime, and I spent my time.
And oh, oh, oh, the change ain’t gonna do me good
You better get back, honky cat,
Pens that won’t write just ain’t where it’s at
It’s like faking smart when you think you’re really dumb
It’s like trying to open cans without any thumbs.
I tried, but what can you do with something like this:
I’m ‘Enery the Eighth I am
‘Enery the Eighth I am I am
I got married to the widow next door
She’s been married seven times before
And every one was an ‘Enery
Wouldn’t have a Willie or a Sam
I’m ‘er eight old man I’m ‘Enery
‘Enery the Eighth I am.
Either Moustachio has been listening to Herman’s Hermits on the wireless, or he’s been part of the audience in a British Music Hall at least as recently as 1910, which is when that song was written.
There’s a pit stop at Joe Brown and the Bruvvers, too…
I am starting to suspect this is a setup to drive Sweetheart— well— Mad.
Suspect? They’re actively gaslighting her.
I don’t think they’re trying to drive her Mad as much as break her down psychologically to the point where she’ll be easily manipulable.A-sig needs Skin Horse in the War, but on their terms.
Seconded. This has all the hallmarks of a planned attack.
Hopefully being in radio contact with a trained psychologist will counter the effect.
Wait, it’s Tip, never mind.
Uppercut, M! Get that blue guy on the chin and his head will pop right off!
Second verse:
Same as the firs’.
A little bit louder and a little bit worse!
They’re not gaslighting her, because she knows they keep replacing the poster with new, different errors every day. It’s not a Yellow Wallpaper situation, because they are changing it and it’s not her descent into madness that’s causing her to see the errors. This is basically a behavioral equivalent of the old punishment where they would put someone in a cell that was just a little bit too small in all dimensions to stand, sit, or lie down comfortably.