Captain Braunsfeld Posted August 5, 2022 (edited) The Marquis - Origins - Chapter 8: Practice makes perfect The story so far: Chapter 1 - The InterrogationChapter 2 - Early DaysChapter 3 - The First MateChapter 4 - The StormChapter 5 - The Poker GameChapter 6 - Dancing with the MarquisChapter 7 - On the MSS Chapter 8 - Practice makes perfect (you are here) Having joined the Monkeys’ Secret Society, the Marquis spent considerable time on learning the control of animals Aided by a lengthy manual he set out to work with the rubber duck He whistled. Nothing happened. He whistled again. Nothing happened. He studied the manual. He whistled slightly differently Nothing happened. He looked at the duck and the duck stared back at him. “This will be more difficult than expected”, the Marquis thought Later that day, the Marquis was back at the Monkey Headquarters to start his language training course. Teacher: Let’s have a look at the Oleon language, shall we? Marquis (nods) Teacher: Now, how do you pronounce that word? Marquis (stays silent) Teacher: You probably need a sip of bananarite milk to get started! Marquis (takes a sip): Woo. Woo woo woo woo. Teacher: That is better, but pay attention to your pronounciation. Marquis: Vous! Teacher: Excellent. Now: Je ne suis qu'un pauvre garçon personne ne m'aime Marquis: I am just a poor boy, nobody loves me. (And from there, it just took off.) Teacher: He's just a poor boy from a poor family! Spare him his life from this monstrosity! Marquis: C'est juste un pauvre garçon d'une famille pauvre. Épargnez-lui sa vie de cette monstruosité! Teacher: Bismilla? Marquis (with determination): Bismilla! (Actually, later, when the Marquis was speaking, he often started with “Vous vous vous”, before turning into what he really wanted to say. Just because he had learned it that way.). (to be continued) Spoiler I could not decide what was the best final shot for the animal training: Spoiler And when you saw "Bismilla" you maybe were reminded of Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody"... On bananarite: Spoiler Bananarite is a special substance that in the first place enhances the taste of bananas (and obviously does other tricks for monkeys). The Monkey Society has been set up to find bananarite. The vulcanoe eruption on Gunpowder Island was, in fact, an explosion of a vast amount of bananarite, which led to bananic mutations on the island. The marquis helped to resolve the situation. In a 2018 storyline about the "Secret of the Eight Provinces" the monkeys were also trying to recover lost bananarite. Edited August 6, 2022 by Captain Braunsfeld Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
evancelt Posted August 5, 2022 Love the use of the underside of the plates and clouds for the backdrop - looks super cool :) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Kai NRG Posted August 5, 2022 That milk is something powerful! It's a really cool print, where'd you get it? Neat to see you shaking up the sky technique a bit with the undersides this time. The cloud undersides are especially good. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Thomas Waagenaar Posted August 5, 2022 I love the "Banana school" design! Especially the obvious-yet-subtle banana floor tiling! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Captain Braunsfeld Posted August 6, 2022 10 hours ago, evancelt said: Love the use of the underside of the plates and clouds for the backdrop - looks super cool :) I haven't really got used to it myself, but I agree that it creates a nice (and probably new) effect. 8 hours ago, Kai NRG said: That milk is something powerful! It's a really cool print, where'd you get it? Neat to see you shaking up the sky technique a bit with the undersides this time. The cloud undersides are especially good. People seemed to have forgotten about the many features of bananarite. The milk is nothing special, I thought, before I tried to find it again on bricklink. I might have found it as a special print at one of our BrickMania events in Antwerpen. Or I found it by searching for "banana" or "monkey". I do those things. 8 hours ago, Thomas Waagenaar said: I love the "Banana school" design! Especially the obvious-yet-subtle banana floor tiling! Yes, you have successfully uncovered the secret of the floor tiling Those monkeys can be pretty rational - and then everything goes bananas again... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
NOD Posted August 6, 2022 That's a lot of rubber ducks. I understand, bananarite milk that's the secret to learn a new language quickly. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Captain Braunsfeld Posted August 6, 2022 1 hour ago, NOD said: That's a lot of rubber ducks. I understand, bananarite milk that's the secret to learn a new language quickly. You got it. If you are a monkey, that is. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jeff of Clubs Posted August 6, 2022 Clever little scroll there. Always a joy to see Monkey HQ. Perhaps the formation of some type of Bananarite Republic would ensure a steady flow of this most elusive element? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Captain Braunsfeld Posted August 7, 2022 (edited) 11 hours ago, Jeff of Clubs said: Clever little scroll there. Always a joy to see Monkey HQ. Perhaps the formation of some type of Bananarite Republic would ensure a steady flow of this most elusive element? "Banana Republic" - that's a (not so good) song by the Boomtown Rats. If the monkeys knew how to ensure a steady flow of bananarite they would not need a secret Monkey Society Edited August 7, 2022 by Captain Braunsfeld Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
