#gumbys

[drconstellation]

The Assistant Book Seller

Edit 1 Dec 2023 - added missing information on the "ribbon pattern."

Edit: 3 Dec 2023 - correct information about middle pattern from creator

GABRIEL: Greetings! I'm Jim! It's short for James, but I don't need to keep telling everyone that. I'm an assistant book seller.

I'm sorry. Before I do anything else, I need to apologize for something I need to write further in. I didn't plan to write it, I just kind of bumped into it and, well, I can't ignore it. So...sorry. It's said. Forgive me for what needs to be done.

Although he arrived with nothing but a cardboard box and Rodney the Stunt Fly, Aziraphale made sure Jim was clothed in appropriate raiment while under his protection. We'll forgive him that he took a step back about, oh, fifty years or so to the 1970's, as Jim's overall look is a nod to the famous old sitcom "Open All Hours." So if he looks a little bit out of place, or, a little bit familiar, even, that's why.

While we are used to seeing angels in overcoats, it's Jim's vest that is the particular feature here. But I will take a moment to comment on the overcoat - not just the colour but its lapels. Aziraphale has obviously given him a colour with an earthly connection and one that indicate that he has bought Jim under his protection, but the lapels look quite neutral, with one up and one down. (Muriel is the same in their Inspector uniform, btw) This is the first indication they are between two things at the moment.

Onto the vest.

There is so, so much work and thought put into this vest! It was a one-off commission for the show, and the creator, Sandy Higgins, has said she is not allowed to give away the final design pattern. I have tried to contact her, and I'm waiting for a reply, so in the mean time I thought I would ask my keen knitter of a sister-in-law about one of the patterns I'm not sure about. "Well, that's Fair Isle knitting," she said, but she knew nothing about the individual line pattern I was interested in. Hmm, I kind of know that already, its in the notes that are guiding me for this meta, but hey, why not do a broader search and see what comes up?

So once I got back home I did. "Fair Isle knitting patterns" hmm...Wikipedia page for starters...what on *earth* is that at the bottom of the page...? YOU ARE. FRIKKING. KIDDING ME!!!!!!!

"See also: Gumbys"

oh ffs

I am so sorry that needs must make me mention Monty Python yet again, but here we are. And we must mention them, because this link is just too...unbelievably, deliciously good.

If you aren't familiar with the Monty Python catalogue, and don't recognize the mention of Gumbys, they were a set of characters that dressed and spoke in a certain way but the main points to take away were they wore woolen vests in the Fair Isle knitted style and their catch-phrase was - wait for it - "My brain hurts!"

I think we've heard that somewhere before?

CROWLEY: When you first arrived, you said you were here because they were planning to do 'Something Terrible' to you. So you remembered it then. Remember it now. GABRIEL: It hurts to remember. My head isn't built for that.

Right. Now we've got that out of the way...back to the serious stuff.

The colours used in the vest are not your typical angel colours. There is a base of angelic off-white and there are some bits of purple for his royalty around the shoulder area - sometimes you need to look carefully for it. Otherwise it is dominated by vintage shades of red and green. Well. Who's an agent of change driven by love, then?

The horizontal stripe pattern is partly to remind us of the classic biblical robes with stripes that ran along them, much like the style of Crowley's black and red robe in the Job minisode, but is also part of the traditional Fair Isles pattern work. And each row only has two colours, but up around the shoulder area we do see purple start to sneak in as a third colour.

On to the incorporated symbols! I'm going to go from bottom to top.

On the lowest two we feature Crowley and Aziraphale. We have Crowley's demon satyr tail from the Good Omens logo on the lowest stripe - the double-headed arrow.

The next stripe is Aziraphale, with a variation of the classic OXO pattern ("hugs and kisses.") The X is meant to represent his angel wings, and the O is modified to mimic the "o" with a halo in the Good Omens logo. I've highlighted all three in the image on the right.

The third row up is a Sumerian Star pattern that represents one of the flowers associated with Gabriel, the lily. They are supposed to represent the purity of Mary, mother of Jesus, as he had one in his hand when he visited her during the Annunciation.

The row above that is what I believe to be a Byzantium pattern, and is included to show "an Angel's ability to be timeless."

The next three rows are still under a bit of a question mark as I write this. I plan to come back and edit it in if I find the answer.

The bottom of the three is the Duke of Buccleuch pattern, "to celebrate the long and necessary contribution that the cottage industry of hand knitted items."

The middle one - ? (perhaps you, the reader, know? It looks like a spiralling ribbon if I stand back, but that isn't sparking any connections, either.)

Edit: @noneorother tells me in a reblog (below) that this pattern represents the shoelace from the magic incantation Aziraphale uses "Banana Fish Gorilla Shoelace." So it is ribbon-like! This then points to the Second Coming, as it the shoelace references the end of the book, and the last paragraph of the book references Yeats poem "The Second Coming" as well as the novel 1984. To me it is then also telling us there is a cycle occurring, or a cycle that needs to be renewed. This fits in with some other clues other meta-writers have been picking up.

Edit 2: Turns out none of that was correct - I heard back from the creator herself and it's actually the double-ended satyr tail pattern again! It just seems to make a bit of an illusion of a ribbon or shoelace.

The pattern below is a modified OXO pattern.

The top one looks like two rams horns facing each other. A hollowed out rams horn can be used as a trumpet, and is known as a shofar in Jewish religion. Gabriel was traditionally known to carry a trumpet.

The ancient meander pattern would be recognized by most people, included as another classic timeless pattern found all over the world. For some it symbolizes eternity and endless flow.

The wheels here appear to be Michael's ophanim wheels, that would have eyes around the rims.

The hourglass is to remind us that time is running out. Memento mori - "Remember that you die." It is a major theme in both series.

Right up high, just before we lose the rest of the vest inside the overcoat, we get a glimpse of a large diamond-shaped icon. I wonder if this is another stylized set of angel wings, like we saw in the Job minisode on Aziraphale's golden collar.

To finish off the outfit, he is wearing dark gray trousers with sneakers! I'm sure that's so he could keep sneaking up on Aziraphale in the shop, haha. His shirt seems a little too large for him and the tie is knotted too high and is not settled along his centerline. It's all at odds with his previous neat and sharp appearance as Supreme Archangel Gabriel.

I'd like to say a big thank you to @aduckwithears for helping me with information on the vest and finding the creator's other social media sites. You can see their two posts about it here and here.

#good omens #good omens 2 #good omens meta #good omens analysis #aziraphale #gabriel #jimbriel #jim's vest #satyr tails #angel wings #halos #lily #meander pattern #rams horn pattern #hourglass #memento mori #open all hours #good omens costume meta #monty python #gumbys #my brain hurts! #fair isle

[chernobog13]

The first thing out of my mouth every morning.

#Monty Python's Flying Circus #Professor R.J. Gumby #Gumbys #Michael Palin #“My brain hurts!”

[ledenews]

Circus Saints And Sinners Raises $15K for Jamie’s Warriors

The Circus Saints and Sinners recently presented a check for $15,500 to Jamie’s Warriors, a Wheeling-based nonprofit that raises money for and educates people about colon cancer awareness. Jamie’s Warriors is named after the late Jamie Orth, a Wheeling resident who battled colon cancer for four years before she died in 2018 at age 31. She is the daughter of Thomas Orth and Jody Usenick of Wheeling. Usenick, who serves as the organization’s president, said the donation represents the single-largest amount ever given to the group and will go toward funding its patient support efforts. “This is the most we’ve ever received at any one time,” said Usenick. “We will use the funds to continue helping raise awareness and help offset the costs of treatment and travel for colon cancer patients. We’re very grateful to the Circus Saints and Sinners.” Circus Saints and Sinners Vice President Corey Albers said the funds were generated from the club’s 23rd Annual Charity Golf Scramble presented by Gumby’s / Geno’s. “We’ve been holding the golf scramble for 23 years and it has become one of our signature events,” said Albers. “Well over 100 golfers register each year. Their support and the support of several major corporate sponsors, including our presenting sponsor, Gumby’s Cigarette and Beer World and Geno’s Play Grounds make it possible for us to make a significant five-figure donation annually.” Read the full article

#Genos #Gumbys #JamiesWarriors #ohiocounty #SaintsandSinners

[everydaylouie]

Special Agent Gumby falls into the frustrated hands of the enemy.

(another Far Side panel recreation in Blender!)

#blender #3d #the far side #gumby

[thedrawingduke]

I realized I never posted these here on tumblr! 2020 did unspeakable things to my mind and body…I staggered away from lockdown with a whole pitch of how I would make an animated Cats adaptation. I got the whole thing up here *taps skull*—it would be Very Good. I can’t think about it too much lest I awaken my sleeping obsession…still want to finish Old Deut and Macavity one of these days.

Fun fact: The term "Jellicle Cat" is actually the cats’ mishearing of the term "Dear Little Cat" (this gives me much joy)

@thedrawingduke on Instagram

#Cats #cats the musical #thedrawingduke #grizabella #Victoria #bustopher jones #jemima #the gumbie cat #jennyanydots #gus the theatre cat #skimbleshanks #Demeter #bombalurina #munkustrap #the rum tum tugger #mr mistoffelees #main coon #sphinx #English shorthair #tabby

[benthesoldiersjeanshorts]

#dank memes #memes #lol memes #meme #stolen memes #gumby

[skeletalheartattack]

#was talking to a friend and she was talking about how she didnt like how disruptive the tutorial of the demo was #since she wanted to look at the pretty environments without the distractions #and this is what popped into my braine #ive had the gumby pokey format in my brain since the demo but i didnt know whod fit the gumby slot #sorry collin. #i personally didnt mind the tutorial (from watching a stream of the whole demo) but i can see how it could be frustrating #:) i like oatchi #edit: for further clarification im not shitting on collin. i just didnt have much other choice. collin im so so sorry.

[catfindr]

#petfinder #catfinder #cat #kitten #kitty #food mention #gumby bear #solid grey #solid gray #ny #new york #mod note: as soon as i saw her name i actually said 'GUMBY BEAR' out loud lol

[drconstellation]

Portable People

Muriel: "Can I...Can I take a book with me? I was looking at one earlier. They're like people, only portable." S2E6

Crowley's yeeting them around while stress-cleaning the bookshop, Jimbriel is trying to sell them to the investigating archangels, and Muriel just wants to read them all. Should we give a second thought to any of these books?

Er, yes. Yes, we should, I say.

In Crowley's case, both times he tosses the books aside (both in S2E3) it is adjacent to a conversation about memory.

In the first one he remarks to Jim that he doesn't remember why "they" invented gravity. He tosses the books - records of the past, records of (human) knowledge - then moves right back into the present, observing Rodney the Stunt Fly with Jim and then describing his Operation Lovebirds plan to him.

The same with the second GIF - Crowley has to make a decision between answering the phone (which is Aziraphale calling from Edinburgh) or the books. The present wins again, and he has the phone conversation with Aziraphale.

Crowley: Pffft. Humans. You don't let yourself get too attached. Aziraphale: No. No, I suppose not. Um… You haven't actually been selling any of the books, have you?

While we get the impression of Crowley not wanting to hang on to the past, as if its something that's hurt him before and he doesn't want to repeat that, on the other hand Aziraphale was having a lovely time remembering Mr Dalrymple the Scottish surgeon from 1826. This from an angel who hates getting rid of memories books, and we learn keeps a diary! Hmm.

I suppose the question is, is it a real memory problem on Crowley's side or an affected one to get around certain...awkwardness to do with his history? Such as not remembering working with Saraqael or fighting next to Furfur before the Fall?

Jimbriel, on the other hand, is more like Muriel. He is having a wonderful time discovering the delights of Humanity in the bookshop for the first time and is sooo excited to show it to the archangels when they arrive on Aziraphale's doorstep!

[btw, do you notice which side Jimbriel is standing on here? Its actually interesting to pay attention to which shoulder-side he is on in S2, because he is rarely on the left - even in S1, as well]

So while Aziraphale tries to, um, explain what humans do, Jimbriel "fans" one in Saraqael's face and then tries to (horror!) kill Rodney the Stunt fly with the Wicked Bible - the one with the printing error that says "You Shall Commit Adultery." *ahem* (not looking at you Jimbriel, oh no, not all...) Good thing it never works, Jimbriel declares, as the dust flies dramatically.

Edit: This book-banging episode is also a Monty Python reference! I found out over in my Assistant Bookseller meta that Jim's Fair Isle's style vest is a nod the Gumby characters, who all wear that style of vest and have the catchphrase "My brain hurts!" They also bang bricks together occasionally. *sigh* The things you didn't expect to find...Gabriel the Gumby...

The angels take no notice of Jim's antics. Since when do they take any notice of what goes on with humans, anyway? Oh, yes, they are going to keep a close eye on Aziraphale, but some idiotic human - nah! Don't care!

Then there's this travesty:

Aaah! The horror! Aziraphale reluctantly lets Maggie and Nina throw the books of human knowledge at the demons. But that doesn't work in the long run. Only the angel himself can solve this crisis.

#good omens #good omens 2 #good omens meta #crowley #aziraphale #gabriel #muriel #the book shop #mr dalrymple #edinburgh #portable people #Rodney the Stunt Fly #the wicked bible #Is that Jim's fans only section? #the horror! #no no that's about the encyclopedias #foul fiends! #how dare you defile a book! #Monty Python #gumbys

[barksbog]

may i offer you gumby worms?

they are magnetic and squishy! you can adopt them in my bog

barks-bog.com/shop

#get your gumbied worms everyone #centipede #handmade #plush #plushblr

[atomic-chronoscaph]

TGIF

#soul train gif #tgif gif #evette moss #gumby #80s tv shows #80s dancing #80s fashion #1980s #friday #1986 #gif #chronoscaph gif

[outofcontextgumby]

Gumby Adventures

Episode 60: Gumby’s Close Encounter.

#gumby #gumby adventures #grey alien #xcom #Episode 60 #out of context #Out of Context Gumby

[moishe-pipick]

#gumby #pokey #music

[meshimellow]

i drew gumby yesterday i love that little green freak

#gumby #the gumby show #pokey #meshi art #artists on tumblr

[goobersplat]

💚 Assorted Green Toys 💚

Treecko Figure

Blues Clues Green Puppy Figure

Shrek the Third Baby Figure

Gumby Rubber Action Figure

#png #transparent #kidcore #nostalgia #nostalgiacore #toycore #toywave #toys #Shrek #shrek the third #Gumby #blues clues #treeko #pokemon #Nintendo #anime

[stickyfrogs]

Today a bright light has gone out at the Stickyfrogs’ house.

Gumby has passed away peacefully this morning at age 10 years 11 months after fighting her liver disease for the past 3 years.

I am immensely grateful to her wonderful vet for taking care of her with such kindness and compassion.

Gumby has brought an infinite amount of Joy and Happiness to my life and I would like to remember her forever in this way.

I will continue to share Happy Memories of Gumby going forward. If you have a request or thought please feel able to share it with the Stickyfrogs family around the world. Thank you

#Gumby #frogs #pets #animals #amphibians #green tree frogs #white’s tree frogs