May 5th, 2020
5 May 2020 · page 984 of 1306
Cast: Benjamin Thackerey, Eliza Swift, Gren
Comments (38)
Events
ThoughtBubble
14 Nov 2026 – 15 Nov 2026
Harrogate Convention Centre
Manchester Megacon
31 Jul 2027 – 1 Aug 2027
Manchester Central
Oh dear, is this going to end with some unintentional summons?
unintentional ?
Hopefully, if the University always has their graduation ceremony at the Anchor, they know how to prevent the graduates from accidentally summoning Excitement or Nervousness.
Yeah, but I forget the timetable. Is this the first graduation since Mal came to Widdershins? We know that caused small but potentially significant changes in local magic. Could that mean that the University's usual precautions aren't properly effective?
No, Mal came to Widdershins in March 1833, and there is May-June 1834 now.
Did he cause changes in local magic? I don't remember that bit.
Oh no, they're in the audience.
_Can't accidentally summon them if you invite them beforehand._ smiling and pointing finger at head.jpeg
Hey, those four in the front are the students from the Vent Incident! The one grinning and wearing the mortarboard is the one Eliza hit with a broom after dropping a bucket over his head.
Misread that as "the students from the Vela Incident" (which is something different entirely). Maybe I should get some rest.
Well that is good news! Wolfe and Sid are heading over there too!
Mal too, most likely, followed by Ben and Eliza, followed by Pryce - and once everyone's together Harry steps out of the anchor - oh the reunion! :D
Are you sure that's "good news"?
Were the new graduates knocking on Mal's head-door earlier? That'd be rude.
I think that was the Mountain Witch, finally coming to visit.
_pssst_ Mountain Witch is Granny Weatherwax, pass it on.
"All you grinnin' idiots, fulla debt and believin ye'r better than the rest o' us uneducated bunches. Smarmy arses."
...headmaster really needs to work on their speechwriting.
Why would it be locked from that side? It's the caboose. The crew goes back there. I can see why they'd want to keep passengers out, but why would they want to keep anyone in?
You might not be able to unlock it at all from this side, since nobody's supposed to be in there when it's locked.
In our timeline this is only nine years after the first passenger railway was invented and closed carriages were rare - most would be open to the sky, wind and smuts...
And the first corridor trains didn't appear until around 1900 so no-one would be able to change carriage anyway, no need for a door.
Widdershins, or the Widdershins line at least, appears to be way ahead in locomotive, rolling stock and track designs but it might be reasonable to assume trains were still running mixed-stock, part corridor, part unitary as did many trains up 'til the first world war.
Oh, right, graduation is at the anchor. Everyone is going to the anchor at the same time for different reasons. Chaos will ensue.
Eliza, what are you sitting on? It seems to have perplexed you so in panel 2, and by panel 3 you seem determined that Ben shouldn't see what it is. So what have you noticed?
I read her panel 2 expression as "what just happened, why am I feeling like this" rather than noticing anything about their surroundings.
I might have too, but the act of her sitting on that box in panel 3 being highlighted in the ways it is, as well as her expression as she does so, lead me to think it has something to do with the box itself.
yeah this. nothing to do with whatever she's sat on
Do the colors of the sashes (the violet and gold) mean anything? When I graduated uni, certain colors of hat tassels and (for doctorate and master's graduates) outfits indicated either a certain type of diploma or field of study.
It means they're alllllllllÂ0Â.
A lot of people were concerned about the decision of Widdershins U to become a school of dentistry but it really worked out for them
Summon Happiness to dull the pain, conjure up some tongs for the gristlework itself...
i picked random colours and assigned them to Wizard Degree :P i couldn't find a solid guide for other colours as it seems to vary by university and country, so god knows if it signifies another discipline elsewhere!
UW (Seattle) colors, among others.
So. Now we get to see how Sid gets himself out of this fine mess...
Honestly, with how everything in the Widdershinsverse seems to converge, this kinda feels like a Dirk Gently adventure.
I hope mal is bringing some ibuprofen for the migraines he'll get walking into that lightshow
Yikes - not only a big crowd, but a big crowd of wizards! Poor Mal.
OOF. I'm getting a sympathy migraine just thinking about it... :P
Oh darn, they'll just have to be locked into a room alone together instead of in public. ;D
Aw! The "I've always loved her" girl from Find the Lady is there, possibly talking to her beau! That's sweet; I'm glad she's graduating, at the very least.