1.2.5-Pilferingapples

Ninety Three 1.2.5- 1.2.6 retroblogging
* hoof* Okay, this weekend certainly Happened at me, I havent even gotten to read the last couple chapter’s posts on Ninety Three!. Time to catch up! Gentle followers, I am SO SERIOUS when I say to blacklist the ClubNinetyThree tag, because it is about to be Reblog Carnivale over here.

1.2.5 Vis et Vir

Ah, HERE’S the Hugo I know and expect to give me nightmares about charming pastorals in countries I’ve never visited. This chapter is a full on TW— strobing lights, blood EVERYWHERE, the Imminent Deathening—I can completely see it. The men are reduced to ROLLING BLOODY STUMPS oh my guts, and I mean I’m SURE that’s a political/guillotine image, I’m SURE, but it’s also incredibly gut churning. And still the creepiest thing is The Peasant, who’s just STANDING THERE the whole time; an appropriately nightmare touch, the silent, unnamed figure watching the violence, untouched by it but definitely part of it, judging and untouchable.

On a practical level, kinda impressed with how utterly sievebucket USELESS the leadership is here. Our two sardonic would-be theatergoers do nothing but shake their heads and lament that God would be needed to save them (and they believe in God like they believe in the Peasant’s Royal Capability, it’s something that only matters if it will help them get back to the course they choose). And The Peasant does NOTHING until the gunner intervenes. On his own, The Peasant doesn’t so much as give orders. He’s willing to take the chance of facing the chaos himself, has no plan and no answer for solving it.

The only person who has ANY sort of plan, and it honestly seems like a PRETTY OBVIOUS plan, even if it’s desperate, is the gunner. The Peasant steps in and helps with it at the very end, and is quick and strong, but it’s not his plan and most of the risk isn’t his risk, and basically WHAT KIND OF A LEADER ARE YOU, SCAREQUOTES, why are you even HERE.

I am not getting attached to the gunner I am NOT getting attached to the gunner,  I REFUSE, he’s been brave and inventive, he’s probably INTREPID, and he is the reason this ship I hate is in dire straits and THIS IS HUGO, I can just feel the Tragic Adventure settling all over him. I’m not gonna like him.

…ARGH, the Inevitable Hugoening is gonna sting.

1.2.6 - The Two Ends of the Scale

Wow, okay, that happened sooner than expected.

I do actually see where The Peasant is coming from with this- that was a catastrophic failure of duty by the gunner. Stopping the gun didn’t and CAN’T make up for the gun having been unleashed in the first place; on a purely practical level, five men are dead, most of the cannons are disabled, and the ship is nearly wrecked. The Chief Gunner really must have some form of punishment.

At the same time, he DID just risk his life to do what he could to fix the mistake. Just in practical terms, I’m not sure the effect this is going to have on the rest of the crew? If the ONLY response to an error is capital punishment, might that make men more likely to try and hide mistakes than repair them? What about, like, flogging or something? I am basically not cool with Death Is Your Only Option as a management plan. Points to V. and B., who don’t order anyone killed at all and yet still manage to be the most loathsome people in this chapter. The Peasant might or might not be right, but he THINKS he is, and he DID step in to help stop the loose cannon; the gunner DID say you have saved my life, which may be seen as granting him both greater authority to dispose of that life, and greater responsibility to answer for it. La Vieuville and Boisberthalot don’t even care about the immediate concerns of, oh, one (more) of their crew being dead. They’re just busy being delighted because OH HAPPY DAY they’ve found the the ruthless killer they’ve been dreaming of! THE THEATHER BECKONS!

…I do not like these men.

(also— am I the only one feeling like there’s maybe a parallel being set up with The Peasant and the cannon? The Peasant, too, is so far silent, answering to the use he’s meant for; but he’s already killed one of the people on ‘his’ side. And they’re about to set him loose. Will he also go against his intended masters? EQUALLY GOOD CHANCE that I’m seeing something totally unintended there, and nothing even vaguely like that shall happen, but atm I AM seeing it.)

Commentary
Shirley-keeldar Not that I’m in a hurry to put myself in the position of defending The Aristo Scumbags (TM), but I’d like to point out for the record that the captain does immediately respond by getting stuff thrown in the path of the cannon, and I frankly take it as a point in both their favor that they DON’T order anyone to go down there and try to do what the gunner did — since, obvious plan or not, it’s the next best thing to a suicide mission. Plus Hugo goes to a good deal of trouble to explain that there’s very nearly nothing anyone can do against the cannon.

And, I don’t know, I read the exchange about God as a little character moment, a banter-in-the-face-of-danger sort of thing.

Though as everyone has pointed out, Boisberthelot did pretty much dare The Peasant to demonstrate his inexorability/fitness to command by showing no mercy to the gunner, soooo… yeah. No points there.

I’m right there with you in piling on The Peasant, certainly. He can rot.

Pilferingapples (reply to Shirley-keeldar) Yyyyeah, they won’t assign anyone a suicide mission that might save the ship, but they’re OKAY with…the Other Thing (WE WILL NOT SPEAK OF IT)?

..Actually, if so, that’s interesting; they talk a big game about wanting someone ‘remorseless’, the sort of man who won’t hesitate to SHOOT HIS OWN SON, but in the face of doom they have qualms about ordering their men to face death? But they’re happy to see someone else is willing to do it?

As for the God Discussion, I can see your interpretation, and I might go with that myself if not for the conversation we’ve been watching them have. It’s definitely one of Hugo’s stage-directionless exchanges, so a lot of different interpretations are possible!

Shirley-keeldar (reply to Pilferingapples' reply) Is anyone surprised that we’ve ended up back at Shitty Aristo Hypocrites, because I’m not surprised. They won’t do the thing themselves put they’ll support and egg on other people doing it. That’s - actually worse, yep! I happily concede all your points except the God Discussion one, but then I’m useless for God Talk.