Besieged- Annotations
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Page 1
"I remember that much at least": Jim programmed the portal so that those who went through it would not remember their lives in the real world.
Chris and the Cat do because they came through at the same time and the effect on them was dissipated.
That's my explanation, anyway.
'A year after his arrival...': Time passes at a faster speed in the sub-dimension. It's an idea that's been used many times but the Chronicles of Narnia is the only one that springs to mind right now.
Page 3
"What is this that you do here?": For the Courinneans' speech I translated what I wanted them to say into French and then translated it back into English word for word, leaving in accents for pronounciation.
Words with no equivalent in English such as chez and si (the contradictory 'yes') were left in French. Gender was left in too, hence 'the', 'tha' and 'thé', and I also retained the distinction between vous and tu in 'you' and 'yu'.
Page 4
"It's time for our band image change": Coincides with the release of the album A Worm's Life, where Brad and Dan cut their hair and Ellen dyes hers brown.
"I see that A-Level choice paid off": Maths and Further Maths. I didn't envy them.
Page 5
"We've tangled with him before": Allusion to a non-existant prequel. Maybe some day...
Page 6
"...A plan of unting all thé countries...": A parallel of the European Union, though Ségat simply sees it as an excuse to show off his standing army and acquire some more local land.
Page 7
"...This plan to rule over all the nearby countries": There are two sides to every story. Usually at least one of them is wrong.
Page 8
"Côteaux, Touhuin, Léon and St Claude": Bordeaux, Toulouse Lyon and Paris.
Page 9
"Have you found our black van yet?": See Curse of the Two-Legged Cat page 30, frame 19 and page 34, frame 2 for explanation.
Page 10
"That man is driving in a bus lane!": See the cast list under Richard Mansell for details.
"Yeast grenades!": I have a thing about yeast. It's a good word. Plus it causes hiccups.
Page 12
Fanfare: It should sound something like the opening fanfare on Jonah Lewis' song Stop The Cavalry.
Page 13
"For sooth, sirrah": I was since tld that 'sirrah' was a mocking way to address someone, not just an old word for 'sir'.
The Homberños: The Spanish.
Page 14
'Kren blay oob sissin': Just checking you were paying attention.
Page 15
"The police have brought our van back!": Note that on page 30 of "The Curse..." André is driving the Crew's van, having stolen it when he locked the Crew in the warehouse. By page 41, however, he is on foot.
Page 16
"David's moved house": As he did in real life, to something a little bigger albeit just around the corner.
Page 17
The Cullis and Bells: Many background people are of the fantasy fiction ilk, though the three charcters at the very bottom right of page 17 may be recognisable from a certain long-running TV comedy set in Peckham.
Page 19
"Saint Robert": So the monks may have been called 'Bobbies' by derivation.
'King Roy': Roy is an old French word for 'king'.
Page 21
Doctor Nguyen: When last heard from, Quang was at large in Birmngham's QE Hospital. He proudly informed me that they were now letting him use sharp things.
Page 22
"Money for nothing": I'm sure most of you got this, but fr the sake of completion: This scene refers to the Dire Straits music video for the song of that title. For an explanation of the doughnuts see the cast list under 'Phil'.
"Is it you who keeps putting masking tape over the windows?": In series 2 of The X-Files Mulder used to contact his secret informer by forming a big X on his window with tape and then shining a blue light behind it.
Page 24
"You have not thèn found tha weapon secrèt?": Asterix and Obelix always succeeded in their missions, whereas the protagonists of most French films and plays, such as those upon whom Gambourde and Lorin are based, always have bad luck.
Page 25
"It's me! Perry!": Peregrin. A type of falcon. Good name. Robin Hood. A small red-breasted bird and some old headgear. Bad name.
Page 27
"No, that's not right!": The general look of this scene, and a brief glance at what appears in the circle, may give you some idea of what Richard was trying to sumon. Good thing he failed. Incidentally, the Genie leaves his lamp here as a result of the rites performed.
Page 30>
"What if the two of us dressed up as owls?": "Two owls!"- Part of a Reeves & Mortimer sketch.
"Is it voodoo?": From a commercial for the drink Taboo.
Page 31
The history: Kürsland is of course Germany. The little servant guy might be thought of as a sort of Jean Monnet. It is, if you like, a potted history of the EU since 1945.
Page 32
"Which 'family citadwèlle'?": My aunt and her two youngest sons. All English born but living in Paris at the time of writing.
Page 33
"Vartch! What are you doing here?": Jim and I occupied ourselves in many an ALevel French class by writing songs, under the band name Vartch Drenga.
Jim was Drenga, I was Vartch, although I felt my alter-ego would have been better suited in that band.
Drennage was our masterpiece, written by Jim. I don't know if any copy still exists.
Page 35
"Three man carreering down the hillside in a double bed": Allusion to Last of the Summer Wine (see Ben's comment in frame 5) in which the three old men often ended the episode rolling down a hill in
a bath/trailor/boat or anything Wesley could set a spanner to.
Page 36
Catapult shots: The kids behind the bush are Edward and Jack, two of my cousins, whose favourite toys at the time were usually anything that resembled or could be used as a weapon.
Page 37
"Tuhelwithom and Go'Nite": Sodom and Gomorrah.
Page 38
"I hope you realise, this means war": One of Bugs Bunny's catch phrases. Now take another look at frame 6.
Page 39
"He who funds my science": Presumably the Cat, though Jim's comments and behaviour in "The Cat Came Back" suggest that he might have been referring to Andrew Rogers.
Page 40
"...Mickey Mouse stuff": 'A Mickey Mouse operation'- one which has been incompetently conceived and executed.
Page 42
Crêperie: I never pass up the opportunity to eat crêpes in Paris.
"The only nation that can make a hospital look like a tourist attraction": Reference to Les Invalides.
Page 43
"That's the last of them": Except for Stewart, whom I simply forgot to draw.
Page 45
Frame 5: Compare the date on the calendar behind Mr Jack to the comment made at the top of page 17.
Epilogue
"...nô a sociéty who struggles to finance of-thé rénovations": A criticism of the Versailles treaty forcing Germany to front reparation costs was that it weakened them as an economic ally for the ECSC.
