Udo and Winzig really don’t want to be in the army. I know how Udo got there — if you keep following, you will too — but I never heard how Winzig got there.
He probably joined, it would be just like him.
There’s really not much going on here except unit politics and the man in command trying to herd cats. Which is really all an officer can ever do, but not without the assistance of the sergeants.
I found an old reader letter that said he found my portrayal of the military in Permanent Party to be “bleak.” I couldn’t put anything in a fictionalized memoir except what I saw and heard. The army’s no damn fun, after all. Officers can be pinheads with power — imagine the office manager in “The Office” but with a lot more authority. Sergeants can be salt-of-the-earth — or, more often, cases of arrested development worse than a highschool basketball coach. When they start feuds with each other they often use Freestyle Peon Harrassment as part of the game rules.
Winzig strikes me as the sort to talk big and only sign up when circumstances made it impossible to do otherwise.
I don’t know if you’ve seen Red Dwarf – if so, you’ll know who I mean when I compare him to Rimmer. Tons more competent than Rimsy, but with that same elevated self-image. Oh, and somewhere, deep beneath, a decent human hides – apparently only willing to come out when push comes to shove.
You’ll find out in Issue 17 what made Winzig the man he is. He is holding down a much better man inside him, but over time he improves and lets that decent man back out — but not without much screaming and cursing. In 19 he gets kicked in the gut — badly — but it’s still not easy for him.
I have the whole Red Dwarf set, and yes, I’ve noticed they fell in to the same trap I did — the class idiot/bully/villain takes over the series as the most interesting person. Star Wars syndrome. Beware of cardboard villains; they are often the deepest character in a mask.
I dunno that Winzig takes over the series but he’s got points to him that I always rather liked.
I have to check my issues. I may not have gotten 17. Am almost certain I missed 19. If there’s anything that makes me glad you’re posting these it’s the opportunity to figure out what I missed.
#17 is the issue where Udo gets married. 19 is the one where the dead bodies make the Peach sick and the entire unit goes to hell.
I just finished the lastest Afterdead story, in which Winzig goes to look for his sister. He’s tagging along after Rommel, who has discovered Hitler must be somewhere in the afterlife — and why — and is determined to find him and make him pay. As usual, to quote Clausewitz by way of “Valkyrie” — “It’s a military operation. They never go right.” The Peach, who has sworn he will stop attempting to help/run everybody’s lives — or afterlives — can’t help himself. This is the issue where I made an excuse to draw everybody as naked as possible because, well, I just wanted to draw people with their clothes off. The Peach is adorable in a lava-lava; I’m sorry, he just is.
If you’re into paper, check out the Ka-Blam issues in the shop; they’re truly beautiful. Ka-Blam is doing a great job.