Yes, a Chekhov’s Gun is supposed to appear before it’s used, but; and this is the part that many seem to forget; it’s supposed to be inconspicuous. Seeing as the readers’ attention is purposefully drawn to every new ancient artifact that appears in the series, I’d go as far as to say, that Wapsi Square doesn’t have a single Chekhov’s Gun… let alone the whole Armoury.
The more academic name for Chekhov’s Gun is the Law of Conservation of Detail. What he was saying was that if you make a detail known to the audience it should have some bearing on the plot or you lose credibility with the audience as a storyteller.
The original form of his advice related to literary, rather than visual media (“If you say in the first chapter that there is a rifle hanging on the wall, in the second or third chapter it absolutely must go off. If it’s not going to be fired, it shouldn’t be hanging there”), which bears out that it’s a detail the audience is or should be aware of, not just one that exists.
When related to dramatic or visual media, a loaded gun hanging above a mantle is innocuous, but if the stage directions call for the gun to be there, or for a character to put it there, no matter how subtly, then it needs to be fired.
My read on Chekhov’s items is that they should be irrelevant to/innocuous in the scene where they are revealed (the Winchester rifle at the Winchester Arms in Shaun of the Dead). I see the most Chekhov item as her music degree, which was mentioned at least as early as her conversation with Tina about becoming a trainer (completely innocuous to mention a degree that you never used when considering a new career).
Her bass playing got Chekhoved a couple times: Heather arcs, the note in the previous strip, &c.
everyting means something
When I read the first panel, I wondered how the heck she identified the note. Then I read the third panel.
Veeeeery clever, Paul!
Keep striking notes, maybe it’ll spell something
I’m starting to think that Paul has access to a Checkov armory that rivals that of the first Matrix movie…
Yes, a Chekhov’s Gun is supposed to appear before it’s used, but; and this is the part that many seem to forget; it’s supposed to be inconspicuous. Seeing as the readers’ attention is purposefully drawn to every new ancient artifact that appears in the series, I’d go as far as to say, that Wapsi Square doesn’t have a single Chekhov’s Gun… let alone the whole Armoury.
The more academic name for Chekhov’s Gun is the Law of Conservation of Detail. What he was saying was that if you make a detail known to the audience it should have some bearing on the plot or you lose credibility with the audience as a storyteller.
The original form of his advice related to literary, rather than visual media (“If you say in the first chapter that there is a rifle hanging on the wall, in the second or third chapter it absolutely must go off. If it’s not going to be fired, it shouldn’t be hanging there”), which bears out that it’s a detail the audience is or should be aware of, not just one that exists.
When related to dramatic or visual media, a loaded gun hanging above a mantle is innocuous, but if the stage directions call for the gun to be there, or for a character to put it there, no matter how subtly, then it needs to be fired.
My read on Chekhov’s items is that they should be irrelevant to/innocuous in the scene where they are revealed (the Winchester rifle at the Winchester Arms in Shaun of the Dead). I see the most Chekhov item as her music degree, which was mentioned at least as early as her conversation with Tina about becoming a trainer (completely innocuous to mention a degree that you never used when considering a new career).
Her bass playing got Chekhoved a couple times: Heather arcs, the note in the previous strip, &c.
Is it 261.6 Hz or 256.9 Hz? (The A=432 theory)