He hates dishonest policemen. Upon becoming a father, Vimes swore to faithfully get home by 6 p.m. every evening to read a certain picture book called Where's My Cow? The pattern of Sam and Sybil's marriage was set the moment he turned away from his wedding to chase an assassin who had just made an attempt on the Patrician's life. "I decided in my head that he's three. Due to his authority in Men at Arms, when he finds himself in possession of the Gonne, he struggles between his sense of justice and the Gonne's twisted desire to use him to kill in the name of justice. Both are effectively 'good' characters, who nevertheless both secretly fear the darkness inside themselves, and constantly strive to control the darker sides of their nature. Sybil maintains a number of close (female) social contacts from her schooldays, who, thanks to the kind of school she went to (The Quirm College for Young Ladies), are now all strategically placed in the highest levels of power across the Sto Plains and often more powerful than Ankh-Morpork Guild leaders. It has also been noted that, in personality and mental setup, Vimes bears some similarity to Granny Weatherwax. You see that clich so often in fiction. He also has a soft spot for the poor, the working class, or the young. His sheer, incandescent rage is barely suppressed by his desire to be lawful and administer justice properly (and also in a way, to not follow in Stoneface's steps). He chokes off those little reactions and impulses, but he knows what they are. The best caption for Sam Vimes would probably be "Dirty Harry gone to seed".He is cynical, stubborn, rude and with an almost religious contempt for authority.He is also a closet idealist (albeit a disillusioned one) and a reluctant diplomat and nobleman.. Vimes' relationship with Vetinari is completely symbiotic - the conflict between them is what move the plots of the books as well as in . Discworld Wiki is a FANDOM Books Community. Destination Wedding Photographer, living in Montreal, Canada. Young Sam is Vimes' son and about fourteen months old by the time of Thud!. Facebook gives people the power to share and makes the world more open and. All that changed when Carrot Ironfoundersson came to the city. Sam Vimes - Character Character Vimes is a very conflicted character: An incorruptible idealist with deep beliefs in justice and an abiding love of his city, he is also a committed cynic whose knowledge of human nature constantly reminds him how far off those ideals are. Assassin must be their main job title. Vetinari stood beside him and looked down. [11] The conflict within Vimes is between his virtuous nature ("the Watchman") and what he calls "the Beast". Vimes has a complicated love-hate relationshop with the city of Ankh-Morpork, equating it to a woman who treats you badly, but you can't help but go back to her. In Jingo, Vimes finds himself in a difficult and tense situation where he is holding the Klatchian Prince Cadram at bowpoint, and is prepared to kill him because (tenuous) evidence links him to a conspiracy to kill Prince Khufurah, but there is no court which would try the case. In the course of his mission to berwald as ambassador, he was disgusted to learn that he was also entitled to be addressed as "His Excellency". He accepts that a publican may offer a free pint or a meal to an officer just because having an officer on the premises at rush hour makes things go more smoothly is just a way of doing business, but draws the line at an officer taking money to look the other way. [5], The Vimes family is mentioned as historically being closely linked with the City Watch, with many members serving in it through its history. For three centuries afterwards, the memory of "Old Stoneface" has lived on in infamy and, as his descendant, Vimes has frequently endured suspicious mutterings from the aristocracy. The Watch showed their worth by stopping a dragon from taking over the city. This has become such a point of pride that he now has nightmares about not being home by 6 p.m. In The Art of Discworld, Pratchett explains that Vimes protects himself from the Beast with the symbol of his own badge, which prevents him from becoming the criminal he despises, at least in his own mind. According to Vimes's long-time close friend and fellow officer Fred Colon, it is because that every other normal person is naturally slightly drunk to some extent to conceal the true horrors of reality from them. In his view, the law must apply to everyone, or it applies to noone. Dormer's character, Sam Vimes, is the captain of the city's police force that's known as the titular Watch. The character of one of her ancestors, John "Mad Jack" Ramkin, was inspired from real-life aristocrat John "Mad Jack" Fuller of Sussex (&/or John "Mad Jack" Mytton of Shropshire). It is mentioned in Jingo that Sam Vimes' father, Thomas Vimes, had been a watchman prior to his death. Guards!. In the days of Guards! So he tries to act like a good person, often in situations where the map is unclear. Sybil bears this divided loyalty with some grace; nearly every Watch novel concludes with Sam making some form of amends to his neglected wife, either a delayed honeymoon, or simply time alone with their new baby. Why, that would be Captain Samuel Vimes, of course! He never completely loses control, and always manages to restrain himself (or have someone around to restrain him) in the end. Whatever happened to him, she raised the young Sam on her own. It had been her childhood home, and in Thud! It is depicted as being so poor that there was little crime, though Sam was part of a street gang (The Cockbill Street Roaring Lads) with Lupine Wonse (who later became secretary to Lord Vetinari). Night Watch states that Vimes was sixteen years old when he joined the City Watch. . it is revealed that some of her family's possessions are still stored in the attic of the building in this instance they retrieved a copy of Methodia Rascal's Koom Valley painting, made by Sybil as a child, after the original is stolen. They have a son, The Honourable Samuel Vimes II. Weight: 11 st 6 lb (160 lb) Associations Ankh Morpork City Watch However, the Watch declined in importance during this time, particularly after Lord Vetinari legalised the Thieves Guild. Sybil Ramkin (Wife)Sam Vimes (Son) Vimes also reflects on killing a werewolf in Night Watch[13] and Vetinari mentions him killing a werewolf in Thud!. Samuel Vimes. As Lu-Tze explains to Vimes in Night Watch, both pasts are true and there was a real John Keel. His mother would go on to tell young Sam that his father was 'run down by a cart when he was crossing the street'. Through his detective work and adventures he saves the city and many people's lives on multiple occasions. In spite (or perhaps because) of her wealth, Sybil engages in certain 'housewife'-like activities such as repairing socks and preparing meals. Both of those factors, and a near-Death experience that forced him to miss his 6:00pm story-time with his son, culminate in him snapping and temporarily losing over to "the Beast", going insane/berserk and single-handedly storming the deep-downers responsible, all the while roaring out the lines to Where's My Cow? Vimes is depicted in the novels as somewhere between an Inspector Morse-type 'old-school' British policeman, and a film noir-esque grizzled detective.His appearances throughout the Discworld sequence show him slowly and grudgingly rising through the ranks of both police force and society. At this time, he lived in near poverty, giving away almost all of his salary to widows and orphans of watchmen, and spending what was left on alcohol and cheap boots.[10]. Guards! Biographical information ", Whenever he thwarts an Assassin in an attempt, he usually lets them go after taking their share of the payment for his inhumation (which he then donates to the 'Watch Widows and Orphans Fund', or to the 'Sunshine Sanctuary for Sick, Abused or Abandoned Dragons'), and subjecting them to a little humiliation. That was why, in Jingo, he reluctantly agreed to arrest Lord Vetinari. This may be because he is somehow vital to the running of the city, as Lord Vetinari is, or it may be because no sensible Assassin will volunteer for the task anyway. Philip Jackson from the British Robin of Sherwood TV series provides the voice for Vimes in the BBC Radio 4 adaptation of Night Watch. This page uses content from the English Wikipedia. This thought leads to the general realization that one of the reasons rich people remain rich is because they don't actually have to spend as much money as poor people; in many situations, they buy high-quality items (such as clothing, housing, and other necessities) which are made to last. [12] He eventually did actually kill Wolfgang (with a firework, it having been previously established that werewolves can be killed by fire as well as silver.). As other noblemen might ride horses, wear laces, ruffles, and plumes, Sam Vimes walks the city on endless patrols and wears his old battered Watch armor and leather shirt and jerkin, with the standard sword and truncheon. to his son, Young Sam. He has also appeared in the City Watch Diary and the picture book Where's My Cow?. Presumably this is also why the protective flame-baffles between the Vimes residence and Sybil's dragon stables are much, much sturdier in Thud! The conflict within Vimes is between his virtuous nature ("the Watchman") and what he calls "the Beast". Just about the only kind of people that he doesn't hate are gargoyles, who never commit crimes that anybody finds out about, and the wizards; they may mess up the space-time continuum and destroy the universe, but such offenses seldom fall within Vimes's jurisdiction. He now finds himself in the awkward position ("practically zen" according to his boss) of continuing to despise the ruling classes of the city while actually being a member of them. There is absolutely nothing that takes precedence over this; Vimes believes that if he misses it even once for a good reason, the next time he might miss it for a bad one, and eventually this attitude might spill over into the rest of his life. Sybil tries her utmost to get Sam to take some time off in almost every book, but for the most part, Sam finds an excuse to stay on the job. Sam Vimes is the main character of the Watch-subseries of Discworld-books. Peter Johnstone says the "Sam Vimes 'Boots' theory of socioeconomic unfairness" was not invented by Terry Pratchett but by Paul Jennings in the . Guards!, Vimes has become a Captain of a Night Watch that had dwindled to just four people: himself, Sergeant Colon, Corporal Nobbs and the new recruit Carrot Ironfoundersson. Samuel Vimes was born in Cockbill Street, the Shades, Ankh-Morpork into a poor family. He fears he may be a bad person because he knows what he thinks rather than just what he says and does. He is married to Lady Sybil Ramkin, the wealthiest woman in the city, and they have a son Samuel "Young Sam" Vimes II. Vimes' involvement in preventing a pointless war with Klatch in the novel Jingo led to his being once more rewarded with an unwanted title, in this case, Duke of Ankh. Sam Vimes is the central character in Guards! While no detailed description of his physical appearance shows up in any of the Discworld novels, Pratchett says in the companion work, The Art of Discworld, that he has always imagined Vimes as a younger, slightly bulkier version of late British actor Pete Postlethwaite. He seems curmudgeonly at . The Annotated Pratchett File notes that Suffer-Not-Injustice Vimes is closely modelled on Oliver Cromwell, and that the name of his supporters, the Ironheads, is a portmanteau of Ironsides and Roundheads, Cromwell's regiment and faction, respectively.[7]. While the Summoning Dark had trespassed into his mind, needing a host in order to track down the Deep-Downer Dwarves, would try to enter through one of the doors that opened when Vimes became angry, only to be pulled away at every time. It is also mentioned in Night Watch, that at the time of the "Glorious Revolution of the Twenty-Fifth of May", both Sam Vimes and Havelock Vetinari were 16 years old, meaning that they are both the same age. Physical description He has married Lady Sybil and certainly loves her. His reform of the City Watch has been so successful that by Night Watch, Vimes-trained policemen are in high demand in cities across the Disc. Find an assassin capable of inhuming Samuel Vimes from discworld. In Thud!, after years of nighttime patrols, Vimes's mindscape is described as the city of Ankh-Morpork, streets and all, in the dead of night, with the rains bucketing down over your head. National team caps and goals, correct as of September 23, 2022. Death himself is unsure whether Vimes should die or not in these cases, citing "quantum" as an explanation. The Watch was rapidly revived and became increasingly important in the city. Nowadays, Vimes has to eat fancy food as cooked in the Ramkins' house. This meant that when he hadn't been drinking, he was beyond sober--he was knurd and saw reality, stripped of the benefits of fuzziness and mental illusions. When Vimes is angry, doors of some of the houses (the more angry he is, the more doors) will open. Rated: T - English - Fantasy - Chapters: 1 - Words: 5,701 - Reviews: 2 - Favs: 1 - Follows: 1 - Published: Jul 8, 2021 - Vetinari, Sam Vimes, Death, Susan Sto Helit - Complete. He is promoted to being the Commander of a reunified City Watch at the end of its sequel Men at Arms, and presides over the Watch's transformation into a modern police force. In every book in the series, the fee for his assassination has risen until he has been removed from the Guild register, meaning that contracts on his life are no longer accepted (this was initially literal, as no assassin wanted to take the contract). Occupation Samuel Vimes This horrifying state of mind caused Vimes to try to balance it out through drinking, but he would get the dosage wrong and end up drunk. Vimes is the Commander of the City Watch, the burgeoning police force of the Discworld's largest city, Ankh-Morpork. His son's welfare is one of the few things Vimes is willing to cross even his wife about, such that he insisted that they hire a nursemaid, Purity, to attend to Young Sam over Sybil's objections. Samuel "Sam" Vimes is the Commander of the Ankh-Morpork City Watch. On rare occasions, Sam Vimes has been described as completely happy, even if it's only for a brief period; such occasions include alone time with his wife, the birth of his son, and whenever a case has reached a satisfactory conclusion. He is the central character of the Watch Series, in which his rises from being a poor and often-drunk policeman to being the leader of a modern police force. 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