Discworld! (Terry Pratchett has passed away; world cries a collective "Buggrit.")

Krathoon

I tried the Audio book for Morte, but could not get into it. I made it pretty far too.

Trace

Rhesus Positive wrote: »

Nobby is described as being distinct from a Dwarf via species rather than height, and in Jingo is described as practically dwarf-height, so somebody short would fit the bill better.

I think that the issue with casting somebody to play a character described as being disqualified from the human race for shoving, who carries around written proof of his species, is that you're never going to get it as right as the description without going cartoony. Imagine trying to cast Maris Crane from Frasier from the descriptions given throughout the series.

Clearly the only solution is Andy Serkis in mocap

If Nobby weren't supposed to be, well, so nobby I'd suggest Danny DeVito.

Smrtnik

First one i read was Thud, i had picked up the paperback in an airport and read about 60% of it in that flight.

Then when i got home i read the rest in chronological order, starting with Color of Magic.

Heffling

For Nobby Nobs, I'd go for Peter Dinklage. He's a dwarf who could have papers stating that he's human, and I think he can act more than well enough to pull off a good Nobby.

Fencingsax

I think he'd make a better Vetinari

Munkus Beaver

Neveron wrote: »

I guess The Fifth Elephant is somewhat standalone given how it only takes a couple established characters that it moves into a new setting, but those characters get set up so much in the previous books in that particular series that I don't think I'd recommend it as an introduction.

Then again, I started with Men At Arms. It took me years before I read Guards! Guards!, I think?

Men At Arms is probably the best starting spot. It has his writing style perfected and has the Watch at a starting point as it will continue forward and grow. I think Guards Guards is better held off until later, and you can read it as a prequel.

Heffling wrote: »

For Nobby Nobs, I'd go for Peter Dinklage. He's a dwarf who could have papers stating that he's human, and I think he can act more than well enough to pull off a good Nobby.

Dinklage is too pretty to be Nobby.

Fencingsax

My first book was Hogfather, and that worked

DevoutlyApathetic

I actually really like Going Postal as an audiobook. Probably more than as a book itself actually. Nicely self contained while it works to bring in some of the wider Discworld cast.

Heffling

Munkus Beaver wrote: »

Neveron wrote: »

I guess The Fifth Elephant is somewhat standalone given how it only takes a couple established characters that it moves into a new setting, but those characters get set up so much in the previous books in that particular series that I don't think I'd recommend it as an introduction.

Then again, I started with Men At Arms. It took me years before I read Guards! Guards!, I think?

Men At Arms is probably the best starting spot. It has his writing style perfected and has the Watch at a starting point as it will continue forward and grow. I think Guards Guards is better held off until later, and you can read it as a prequel.

Heffling wrote: »

For Nobby Nobs, I'd go for Peter Dinklage. He's a dwarf who could have papers stating that he's human, and I think he can act more than well enough to pull off a good Nobby.

Dinklage is too pretty to be Nobby.

Makeup and costuming exist.

see317

Heffling wrote: »

For Nobby Nobs, I'd go for Peter Dinklage. He's a dwarf who could have papers stating that he's human, and I think he can act more than well enough to pull off a good Nobby.

Fencingsax wrote: »

I think he'd make a better Vetinari

Why not both? Some facial prosthetic for Nobby, costumed down with some worn out, ragged patrol man uniform. Suit him up nice for Vetinari a nice, maybe a nice severely trimmed beard.
I think he could pull off playing two parts.

Nyysjan

V1m wrote: »

The 2 Ronnies as Nobby and Colon

see317 wrote: »

DanHibiki wrote: »

Schadenfreude wrote: »

I always held a soft spot for Pyramids and was sorry we never saw more of that crew. In my mind it's something of a twin to Small Gods, concerned as they are with gods, belief and sand.

In terms of 'literature', Small Gods and Night Watch are top of the pile IMO.

Small Gods is fantastic but it could pretty much be a complete stand alone book unrelated to the rest of discworld. I mean there are obvious connecting points like Cut-Me-Own-Hand-Off Dhblah but it's sort of in it's own little bubble. So as a starting point to the rest of the series I wouldn't recommend it.

It's actually funny but I read most of the stories completely out of order and began with The Light Fantastic and Colour of Magic right after and frankly it was pretty great either way.

Personally, I think that's one of the selling points of Small Gods as a starting point with Discworld. The investment in the book is just this one book. There's no characters from other books who show up with the assumption that you know who they are.

Also, it came out during what I think was Pratchett's peak as an author. It was after the early Discworld books where he was still finding his voice and establishing the setting, but it was before the alzheimer diagnosis and (in my opinion) subsequent decline in writing. I'm not saying the later books are bad, but I don't think they were as good as those in the middle of his writing career.

Night Watch was his last really good one IMO. After that, there were still good books, but one had to forgive an increasing amount of not-so-good in there.

Fuck you, Alzheimers. You go to hell.

I think Thud! was also pretty good, Going Postal and Making Money were great.
Snuff, was not, it had good bits in it, but overall, kinda weak.
Still haven't read the last main Discworld book or the Tiffany Aching book.

Golden Yak

I thought Thud! was really good also. Has one of my favorite/darkest Vimes moments in it.

Drascin

Going Postal was very good, probably one of my favorites. It helps that I really like Moist.

Making Money's main problem is that it was basically the same story as Going Postal but Cosmo makes a much poorer Reacher Gilt. As its own book it's good, but the fact that it's a retread hurts it when read after the similar-but-better Going Postal.

RMS Oceanic

I was studying Macbeth when I picked up this book called Wyrd Sisters. Perfect introduction.

Mr_Rose

klemming wrote: »

I hope we get low quality stop-motion work for the gargoyles.
As GodPratchett intended.

While that would be great, I’d also like to not see them move at all. Like, the shot cuts away and back and they are in a different position but we never witness them in motion, except for the grinding noise.
At least for the first half of the series/programme.

Also, Peter Capaldi for Vetinari.

Neveron

Mr_Rose wrote: »

klemming wrote: »

I hope we get low quality stop-motion work for the gargoyles.
As GodPratchett intended.

While that would be great, I’d also like to not see them move at all. Like, the shot cuts away and back and they are in a different position but we never witness them in motion, except for the grinding noise.
At least for the first half of the series/programme.

Also, Peter Capaldi for Vetinari.

So a less scary Weeping Angel? (From before we got to see them move and they were actually scary, that is.)

Mr_Rose

Neveron wrote: »

Mr_Rose wrote: »

klemming wrote: »

I hope we get low quality stop-motion work for the gargoyles.
As GodPratchett intended.

While that would be great, I’d also like to not see them move at all. Like, the shot cuts away and back and they are in a different position but we never witness them in motion, except for the grinding noise.
At least for the first half of the series/programme.

Also, Peter Capaldi for Vetinari.

So a less scary Weeping Angel? (From before we got to see them move and they were actually scary, that is.)

Yeah, but artfully crafted to make it look like an editing/budget decision rather than riffing off the Angels. Besides, no-one ever actually figured out how a creature with an immobile stone mouth and no stomach actually manages to eat pigeons…

klemming

Given that Pratchett specifically described them as moving slowly and jerkily, I assumed he was either laying groundwork or parodying stop-motion animation when he wrote them. At the time, that's the only way they could have been done.

Munkus Beaver wrote: »

Dinklage is too pretty to be Nobby.

Pretty much any human would be too pretty to be Nobby. They need someone who you can look at for some time, then conclude that in all probability they are most likely to be human, at least compared to any other known species.

Expanding the fantasy casting, would there be anyone better for Ridcully than Brian Blessed? Maybe Nick Offerman if you want someone younger.
(and Daniel Radcliffe for Ponder Stibbons would work quite well)

And Robert Picardo as Drumknott.