April 8th, 2026
8 Apr 2026 · page 1286 of 1306
Phew.
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Cast: Benjamin Thackerey, Harriet Barber, Heinrich Wolfe, Jack O'Malley, Sidney Malik, Thea Pryce
Comments (26)
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Three of these people have Wizard Experience and Mal is just side-eying them and mumbling along like the kid in choir that didn’t practice any of the songs
I’d like to think Mal has at least been learning some of the chants, the way a dyslectic learns songs: listen, repeat, listen, repeat…
He does seem to know the words now, at least.
Imbalance … has been balanced.
And so it can go home.
💜
I love the spellcasting poses and reactions afterward; they tell you so much about these characters. 😊
* Sidney is open and smiling, his hands loose and down; he’s a little sheepish afterward, the wizardry isn’t really his thing, even if he has the gift for it.
* Ben is straining, his hands gripping, squeezing to symbolize the effort doing this takes him. Afterward, he’s proud of the job he helped do.
* Mal is still a bit awkward about this sort of thing, he gets distracted, his hands’ positioning is a bit theatrical because he’s still feeling his way. But afterward, he’s smiling; he <i>has</i> found his place to stand.
* I’m willing to bet Thea’s stance and pronunciation are textbook perfect. She wants to do things right; her eyes are closed as she pictures the textbook she learned from. Afterward, she’s genuinely relieved to have gotten it right this time.
And through it all, there’s Wolfe’s music, bringing balance, peace.
Who wants to bet the four spellcasters found themselves chanting in tune with that music, turning a drone into a song, into <i>art</i>?
This could be the start of a return to more primal castings, when shamans were accompanied by the tribe’s musicians to fire the blood and kindle energy. Ben could write articles about it! 😉
And was Wolfe finally playing his own song?
That’s a really good observation about Mal, at first I read him as suspicious/uncertain of Thea, but that makes a lot more sense - maybe he’s watching to see what she’s doing and trying to mimic her.
same here, but that makes more sense that he’s copying her :-).
But I think in the last panel Mal might be looking up at the spirit and smiling because it seems pleased to go?
This is a great breakdown of the last two panels!
Meanwhile, Harry is ready with the royal scepter in case rocks fall on the casters. I like to think Sidney is actually casually amazing at the wizardry. He may not be great at studying or memorizing circles, but his chanting and rapport with spirits are top-notch in my mind.
I thought this was explicit canon?
My headcanon says that Sid {even though he doesn't realize himself} is faster with off-the-cuff, spur-of-the-moment improvised small magics.
What's this?! Witches working with mere wizards (and not even Widdershins alumni) using desummoning circles and incantations? Slumming it a bit aren't we?
That’s Instability. It is not a deadly sin, not even a mortal sin and hardly even a vice. Of course it doesn’t rate the VIP “Bugger OFF!” treatment.
But don’t forget that on the Diskworld, Chaos was the fifth horseman of the apocalypse, who left before they became famous.
So how does Thea ‘See’ spirits? Vision for Mal, smell for Nyree, but I don't recall Thea having something special that caused reactivity.
We haven’t seen Thea interacting with spirits yet, so it’s hard to say. When first introduced she was a wizard who only had the usual wizards’ connection to spirits, and the next time we saw her she was Pacifica, to whom none of the normal rules apply.
Maybe she was a witch the whole time, just one who didn’t know she was one. It’s possible; Mal didn’t know until it was made inescapable clear to him.
I suppose I thought she must be a witch, albeit unknowing like Mal, as an anchor ‘needed’ a witch with which to work through. Pacifica might be able to hide, but I’m unsure it is able to utilize a non-witch vessel.
I think of the five main senses, the one an active witch hasn’t used to sense spirits is touch. Perhaps Thea gets a chill or feels warmth when certain emotions are around, or perhaps she feels unsteady and her sense of balance is off when powerful spirits are nearby.
thats actually super plausible i hope yer right
Y'know, when she was Pacifica, her hands turned black
Good point!
I love the relief from Instability. They are trying so hard to not break things and finally get to rest! I LOVE Instability’s design being a bunch of things precariously balancing on each other and hands to attempt to steady themselves.
They look like they’re singing together 🥹
Does… does Mal know what happened while Widdershins was in control? He seems quite confused by Thea’s presence in panel 2.
Pwhew.