The Jeeves - TV Tropes The Jeeves You need to login to do this. Get Known if you don't have an account Share Zany Schemes abound, but Stephen Fry barely lifts an eyebrow . Ever notice a lot of butlers are named Jeeves? You know, I think when you name a baby "Jeeves"... you've pretty much mapped out his future, wouldn't you say? Not much chance he's gonna be a hitman, I think, after that. "Terribly sorry, sir, but I'm going to have to whack you." — Seinfeld , "The Pilot Pt. 2" The Jeeves is the perfect British butler, valet, or manservant. Always well-dressed, unfailingly polite, devoted to his employer... and usually much smarter or more level-headed than his employer , too. Usually can manipulate him so subtly that he does not even have to speak With Due Respect to achieve his ends. The canonical example is Jeeves himself, from the Jeeves and Wooster short stories and novels of P. G. Wodehouse and the Jeeves and Wooster TV series based on them.

The original Jeeves, just for the record, is a valet, not a butler — that is, he's a personal manservant, not a chief of domestic staff; as a bachelor living in a flat, Wooster doesn't have the kind of staff to warrant a butler. The same is true of many examples of this trope, as the two roles are commonly confused. A somewhat common subversion, which began while Wodehouse was still writing, is to have the butler as a brutish thug (and possibly a Battle Butler ). Both the original and the subversion are examples of an actually useful kind of valet taken to the logical extreme. After all, if an aristocrat is in fact foolish and incompetent, then a competent valet is an urgent necessity if they are to survive everyday life. Conversely, an aristocrat may find it useful to have a brutish thug on retainer to deal with certain... inconvenient problems.

Note that The Jeeves, even if a valet, is not prone to the No Hero to His Valet plot, generally having a clear view of his master's faults and virtues, though he may, on occasion, allow his view of the former to jaundice his view of the latter.Usually a Hypercompetent Sidekick . Complete opposite of the Bumbling Sidekick . If the Jeeves should appear in a work of Mystery Fiction , expect copious Lampshade Hanging on the idea that The Butler Did It . Examples: Pagan, the Darlian family butler from Mobile Suit Gundam Wing . Tokita, the Itoshiki-family butler in Sayonara, Zetsubou-Sensei . He's ultra-competent and seems more sensible than his employers, although since this is a World Gone Mad , he has his own quirks. In Wild Rose , Mikhail's butler Bernt is utterly unflappable and appears like a phantom the moment Kiri slacks off in his work. Riffael Raffit of Count Cain is an ex-medical-student, beyond competent, devoted to a fault, and always turns up right when his master needs him.

Until it turns out he's even more mentally unstable than Cain is, at least. Nurse Angel Ririka SOS has Shion, the faultlessly loyal butler to Princely Young Man Nozomu Kanou. He's always level-headed; the only time his composure breaks is when Kanou collapses from exhaustion. The man is even calm after being mortally wounded. Comic Books Alfred Pennyworth from Batman . And yes, given the title used for a military officer's personal assistant, that makes him Batman's batman. He's also a Battle Butler in several incarnations, with British military and/or espionage training. Keeps Batman from either giving up, or going too far into Knight Templar territory. While he isn't more intelligent or deductive than Batman (though he has his moments), he's certainly wiser than he is. This has changed over the years. When first introduced, Alfred was primarily there for comic relief, particularly in the role of a self-styled detective who either had to be rescued from the danger his bungling efforts got him into by Batman and Robin, or who triumphed by sheer luck and/or slapstick humour.

Later, the detective angle was dropped, but one thing that remained that exemplifies this trope is that Alfred turned up at the door of Wayne Manor one day, announced to a startled Bruce and Dick that he had come to take up the role of butler to the household (which was news to them!), walked in, took up his self-appointed duties and never left. More recent versions of the character have him employed by the Waynes before the murder of Bruce's parents and make him a substitute father to the young orphan. Once the comic aspect was toned down, he's been the perfect gentleman's gentleman — that is, extrtemely competent at everything he does, with the possible exception of getting Bruce to look ater himself — with a touch of razor-sharp wit that comes out in occasional glimpses of him as a Deadpan Snarker . Jarvis from The Avengers also fits this trope, considerably more level-headed than his employer, Tony Stark - which one of them, after all, is the alcoholic? Cadbury, the butler of Richie Rich . From Archie Comics , the Lodge family butler, Smithers. Nestor, the butler of Marlinspike Hall in the Tintin series.

Tom Poes : Joost, the faithful butler of Olivier B. Bommel. Films — Animated Fred's family butler Heathcliff in Big Hero 6 . He remains completely stoic and unruffled even as the team practices and tests their weapons with him as the target. Films — Live-Action Ruggles of Red Gap , in which the proper, stuffy Ruggles suffers from a lot of culture shock when he's gambled away to a couple of loudmouthed Americans and winds up working in Red Gap, Washington. Hobson, Arthur's valet from Arthur , is an uncommonly sarcastic instance of this trope. What gift do you think a good servant has that separates them from the others? It's the gift of anticipation. And I'm a good servant. I'm better than good. I'm the best. I'm the perfect servant. I know when they'll be hungry and the food is ready. I know when they'll be tired and the bed is turned down. I know it before they know it themselves. Delbert Grady of The Shining , albeit briefly. Jack even calls him "Jeevesy". Stephen from Django Unchained provides a very interesting subversion.

He isn't British and he isn't a gentleman. He is, however, a genius butler who can fix anything for his idiotic master - with both him and his master being pure evil. Subverted, with more than a hint of Fridge Horror by the character of Ulysses Diello, a.k.a. Agent Cicero in 5 Fingers (1952) . Diello plays the part of a loyal gentleman's personal gentleman to perfection but is inwardly consumed by resentment at his low social status. If you have ever wondered what Jeeves would turn into should he start to dwell on why a person as intelligent and cultured as he is should be a mere servant, the answer is Diello. Rami Malek in Spike Lee 's Da Sweet Blood of Jesus plays one. He is the very educated and proper Seneschal Higginbottom, manservant to pseudo vampiric Dr. Hess Green. (Although he can be a bit catty with Ganja, Green's new lover and loses his temper dealing with her, but only once. Jealousy is a probable cause of this). Literature From The Kingdomsof Evil , Mr.

Skree In Death : Summerset, a butler who is naturally British. However, he doesn't seem interested in manipulating his employer Roarke very much. Mr. Butler from the Phryne Fisher novels. He keeps Phryne's eccentric household running like clockwork and is never put out by any request, no matter how odd. Played with every which way in George MacDonald Fraser 's McAuslan story The Servant Problem: zigzagged by MacNeill's grandmother , who intimidates her employers; played straight by John, footman to a baronet who is the perfect manservant; and completely, utterly defied by every one of Lt. MacNeill's successive batmen, not to mention MacNeill himself. Honor Harrington : Most of the stewards of the Royal Manticoran Navy. Not so much the part about being smarter or more level-headed, but definitely the part about manipulating the captains, commodores and admirals they serve into being properly dressed and fed, and at providing proper hospitality even at the most awkward times or when the most unusual and unexpected guests show up.

At the start of the Tommy and Tuppence short story collection Partners in Crime, Albert is attempting to be the sort of butler he sees at the pictures, much to Tommy's embarassment (he's had to stop him taking cards in on a silver platter). He grows into the role in later books. Saturnin in the eponymous Czech book is very resourceful and skillful and relishes helping his employer in unconventional ways while maintaining perfect polite demeanour. Live-Action TV In an episode of Even Stevens . Louis comes into enough money to hire his own Jeeves, called Chives, for a week. This is likely a parody of this trope. Massively defied by Edmund Blackadder in Blackadder the Third, who constantly manipulates his self-confessed "thick as a whale omelette" employer for his own ends. Interestingly, his employer is portrayed by Hugh Laurie , who also played Wooster. Niles from The Nanny Actually, Niles mostly fits the Trope. He's British, polite, sophisticated, and loyal to his employer... For the most part.

Eventually, however, he becomes somewhat of a Deadpan Snarker and the Only Sane Man in the cast, thinking Maxwell somewhat stubborn for his reluctance to admit his true feelings to Fran. Eventually, in a late season, he gains enough backbone to finally tell his boss off and speak his true mind about it, and this finally convinces Maxwell to propose to Fran, and it sticks. In La Niñera the Hispanic version of the character also fits the profile; Fidel in the Argentinian remake and Nicolás in the Mexican. There is Frik from the mini-series Merlin . He is the polite and well-mannered servant to Queen Mab who horribly mistreats him. He often tries to serve as the voice of reason only to be ignored and is often the one to actually carry out her plots. He leaves her employ/is fired when Mab kills the woman he loves. He then helps Merlin destroy her.

He defines his role and the trope perfectly when Merlin meets him at the end saying: "There will always be a need for the perfect gentleman's gentleman, and I was and always will be one of the best." Kryten of Red Dwarf is named after the Admirable Crichton, although he's The Woobie as much as The Jeeves . Hudson from Upstairs Downstairs , who often puts duty and rectitude before compassion or flexibility, or even his own selfish needs. In one story, he panics when he is seen by Sir Richard at a restaurant entertaining relatives from Australia because he thinks he is aping his betters and thus deserves to be sacked. He is quite shocked when Bellamy doesn't get rid of him, though Bellamy's brother makes him squirm quite a bit. Carson from Downton Abbey . Only World War One can stop him from running the house perfectly. Lurch in The Addams Family fit in every single characteristic other than been British (as far as we know). The basic premise of the sitcom Mr. Belvedere is this, serving for an American Middle class family.

Theatre Speed definitely comes off this way in Two Gentlemen of Verona ; he's a cheerful Servile Snarker with an unbelievably quick wit, as likely to rib his master for being in love as he is to help him put his gloves on. Tranio in The Taming of the Shrew —a Gentleman and a Scholar who's willing to do literally anything to help his master out . (And, incidentally, to help himself to some of his master's power.) Lucentio never does a thing without consulting him. Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat : In the song "Go, Go, Go, Joseph", the Pharaoh's butler is referred to as "the Jeeves of his time". The Admirable Critchton appeared before even Jeeves. Though he plays Hypercompetent Sidekick to an entire family of Upper Class Twits (and single-handedly saves the day when they end up on a Deserted Island ), he still believes that it's wrong for the upper and lower classes to mingle too much and maintains that, as a mere servant, he should know his place. Video Games In Laura Bow : The Colonel's Bequest, there is a butler named Jeeves.

Winston from the Tomb Raider series. He was often known to follow Lara around in II and III during the tutorial levels, causing many irritated gamers to lock him in Lara's freezer . In World of Warcraft , engineers can craft a device that requests the presence of Jeeves, the perfect gentleman robot butler, who will attend to your needs for 10 min. Jeeves allows players to repair their armor and weapons, sell unwanted items, buy reagents for spells and grants bank access to skilled engineers. Truly a gaming gentleman's gentleman. The Jeeves robot, however, has the look of a clockwork gnome and lacks the British stuffiness of a true Jeeves. A closer approximation to The Jeeves in-game is the raid boss Moroes inside Karazhan. He's in charge of the grand dining hall, and is unflaggingly polite to you even when he's trying to kill you. Even when you kill him, he maintains his stuffy cool, saying only "How terribly clumsy of me." Lawrence is one of these to Dr. Nefarious in the Ratchet & Clank series.

In Fallout 3 , when you get a house (either in Megaton or Tenpenny Tower), you are given a robotic butler to help explain the house's functions, give you fresh water, and tell you jokes. Both possible butlers speak with a British accent and have remarkable manners. Most 'Mr Handies' (the actual designation of the robots) have this kind of personality, with variable levels of competence (and sanity) depending on their model and programming. They've also been successfully used as mechanics, lab assistants and doctors, though most models retain the British accent and fussy good manners. In Pokemon Platinum (and Pokemon HeartGold and SoulSilver ), Darach is this to Caitlin. Just look at him His title is Castle Valet, and he battles you in place of Caitlin, who is implied to have tantrums when she loses. Darach is polite and proper, and he also says En garde! Caitlin is also a powerful Psychic who can't control her powers, so you can see why she doesn't battle. Doesn't stop her from Taking a Level in Badass and becoming an Elite Four member in Black and White . Haskill from The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion .

It's telling that when his master is the god of madness, and he lives in a dimension where everyone is insane, he's the Only Sane Man . Visual Novels The player character of Seven Kingdoms: The Princess Problem is assigned a personal butler, Jasper, for the duration of the Summit. He's there to help manage your schedule, run errands, assist with planning and setting up any events you decide to host, keep you apprised of relevant information, and generally in all ways assist you in your efforts to successfully navigate the Summit and achieve your goals there. Jasper is extremely poised and professional and very competent at what he does - as well as being very mysterious and suspiciously well-informed. Webcomics After he won the lottery, Robbie of PvP hired a butler named Butler who plays this to the hilt and can solve any problem the other characters have if they ask him to. ... And apparently LolBat in his spare time. Alumik Edrok, father of Evan Edrok, from Tower of God , the butler of Princess Jaina Repellista Zahard . He's got the dress code right and generally is more mature than all the Princesses we meet .

Also, he knows many of these Princesses so well that he knows exactly what they want. In No Rest for the Wicked , Perrault effectively runs his master's life. Until he decides he's bored; and even then setting guidelines for continued success while he's gone. In Girl Genius , Gilgamesh Wulfenbach's assistant Wooster is a complete aversion of this trope, considering that he works for British Intelligence. Gil knows about this. Considering the man's name , it's not much of a surprise. Despite being a spy with his own agenda and a university friend rather than someone hired as a professional manservant, he does seem to be good at his cover job. And given who his employer was , having a batman with non-traditional talents probably came in handy. Web Original Mr. Deeds of SCP-662 . In the Show Within a Show Caleb Rentpayer from the Homestar Runner cartoons, Caleb is a young slacker who somehow came into a lot of money. From the brief snippets of the show we've heard, his hapless butler Tuxworth seems to be half Jeeves, half Butt Monkey . Caleb: You throw like a girl, Tucksworth.

Tuxworth: Caleb, that suitcase was heavy! Websites . Back by popular demand. Western Animation Alfred Pennyworth | DC Animated Universe | Fandom powered by Wikia Efrem Zimbalist, Jr. "Sounds as if the human race would become quite expendable. Except for butlers, of course." [1] Alfred Pennyworth was the butler to Thomas and Martha Wayne , and later to their son Bruce , the first Batman . Before entering the Wayne family's service, he was an agent of the British Secret Service . Contents [ show ] History Alfred was once a clerk at the British intelligence. One of his projects was Project Excalibur, a missile defense program of which he had half of the launch codes. [2] After leaving intelligence work, Alfred assumed a life as an ordinary domestic servant. He served Thomas and Martha Wayne since before their son was born, and helped to raise him. Alfred witnesses the birth of Batman . When the Waynes were killed by a mugger, Alfred helped shelter the orphaned Bruce, and assisted him in his training to become a crime-fighter. Alfred was fiercely loyal to his master and would never betray him.

Indeed, Alfred was like a surrogate father to Bruce; offering him guidance and advice when he could. He would continue to do so as well for Dick Grayson , Barbara Gordon and Tim Drake . During his many trials, Bruce came to rely on Alfred as a source of advice and moral support, one of the few men with whom he shared confidences. There were also multiple times when Alfred came to the rescue of Batman. Alfred was also an invaluable source of aid in all aspects of Batman's life, from keeping his home in perfect order, to helping him maintain his public facade as Bruce Wayne, and occasionally carrying out espionage and investigation on his behalf. Alfred's secret service past came back to haunt him briefly, when he was forced to leave Bruce's employ without notice to help rescue an old colleague who had been kidnapped by Red Claw . Alfred passed away sometime before 2019, leaving Bruce alone. Abilities and equipment Alfred had no superhuman powers or abilities, nor did he claim to be extraordinary in any way. However, he was extraordinarily competent in all the fields necessary to help maintain Batman's life, from ordinary housekeeping and cooking, to mechanical maintenance and computer operation. He also proved to be a competent medic, and lab assistant.

His background in intelligence also made him a skilled analyst, investigator and spy. Personality "What rot, sir! Why, you're the very model of sanity. Oh, by the way, I pressed your tights and put away your exploding gas balls." [3] A traditional English butler, Alfred always kept a stiff upper lip, even under the extraordinary circumstances imposed by his master's secret identity. No matter what the situation, Alfred always responded with resolve, equanimity, and good humor. Though he and Bruce occasionally quarreled, Alfred's loyalty remained absolute. Partially this could be explained by continued loyalty to Thomas Wayne, and a traditional sense of duty to one's master. At the same time, Alfred found ways to express his pride in Bruce, and his belief in the cause he was fighting for. Also, Alfred may well have felt (not without cause) that Bruce couldn't get by without his help. Reflections in the Future — Terry McGinnis [4] Though Alfred likely had passed away by the time Terry McGinnis adopted the identity of the Batman, his role and relationship with Bruce, which Terry would apparently learn at least something about it, was reflected in many ways by Terry's relationship with Maxine Gibson .

Like Alfred, Max was technically brilliant in a number of ways that made her invaluable to Terry, she was able to help him maintain his "public life" and guard his secret identity, and finally, it was a great comfort to Terry that he could share his identity and his occasional doubts with a sympathetic listener. During one of Commissioner Barbara Gordon 's visits to Wayne Manor , she commented on the tea Bruce had made, to which he replied "I learned from the best. Now if only I could figure out how he made those little tea-cakes", which Barbara pointed out were crumpets. [5] Background information Alfred is one of the most familiar supporting characters from the Batman comics. In the comics, before entering service, Alfred was an actor on the London stage. It has been suggested that it was Alfred who taught Bruce the arts of disguise and impersonation. Alfred also occasionally uses his talents to go undercover himself. The animated Alfred has one very minor difference in appearance from his modern comic counterpart; his hair colour. The animated Alfred is generally always seen with white hair (not including facial hair) in more present settings, whilst his comic counterpart has black.

The DCAU Alfred is shown with black hair in flashbacks however (such as in Batman: Mask of the Phantasm ), implying that the DCAU Alfred is meant to be slightly older than the comic version. In the first three produced episodes of Batman: The Animated Series , Alfred was voiced by Clive Revill . Thereafter, on the remainder of Batman: The Animated Series , and on Superman: The Animated Series , Static Shock , and Justice League , he was voiced by Efrem Zimbalist, Jr. . In Justice League , " Starcrossed, Part I ", Batman infiltrates a Thanagarian ship while accompanying a delegation of Earth diplomats, and wearing a disguise that resembles Alan Napier , the actor who played Alfred in the classic 1960s TV series, with Adam West and Burt Ward. VIDEO GAMES: Ask Jeeves....No Ask Alfred Pennyworth! Video Games Headlines Videos VIDEO GAMES: Ask Jeeves....No Ask Alfred Pennyworth! Batman: Arkham City drops today and part of the massive marketing campaign is a fully functional search engine which will also feature new screenshots, audio files and a chance to win a special edition X-box 360 Arkham City console.

Details after the jump. Source: GamePro Move over Google, Alfred Pennyworth is here to challenge your search engine dominance. As part of Arkham City's marketing scheme, a fully-functional search engine is up and running. Now, you can get ever closer to becoming Batman by having the distinguished butler fetch those nude Scarlett Johansson photos or that video of Shia Labeouf getting his teeth knocked in. Alfred will also be reportedly leaking game details via the official Arkham City Twitter account and on Facebook, so keep your eyes peeled for details. The keywords you'll need to put into the search engine to unlock special content will be hidden throughout Arkham City's vast marketing campaign so be on the lookout for those, as well. Batman: Arkham City is the sequel to action-adventure stealth video game Batman: Arkham Asylum, based on DC Comics' Batman, for Onlive, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Wii U, and Microsoft Windows. It is being developed by Rocksteady Studios and published by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment. The game was officially announced during the beginning of the 2010 Spike Video Game Awards and is scheduled to be released worldwide the week of October 18, 2011.

The story for Arkham City takes place about one year after the events of Arkham Asylum. Quincy Sharp, former warden of Arkham Asylum, has taken credit for stopping the Joker, and used the notoriety to become mayor of Gotham City. As neither Arkham nor Blackgate Prison are in any condition to detain inmates, Sharp buys out a large section of Gotham's slums and arms the perimeter with private military contractors from a group called Tyger in order to create "Arkham City". The prisoners are brought into Arkham City and are given free rein, as long as they do not attempt escape. To oversee the city, Sharp hires psychiatrist Hugo Strange who appears to have his own secret agenda for the city. Batman and Robin maintain a vigil over the city, worried that the situation may get out of hand. Part of the setup for "Arkham City" was contained in plans in a hidden room in Sharp's office in Arkham Asylum. The events of the game are set in motion when Two-Face, seeking to gain notoriety among the inmates and other villains outside the city, devises a plan to publicly execute Catwoman.

Batman decides for both the safety of Gotham and of his past relationship with Catwoman that he must stop the execution by entering Arkham City. Catwoman takes advantage of the chaos in Arkham City to acquire jewelry, and a few high tech gadgets; much like how Batman receives new tools and upgrades. A teaser trailer was released that featured Joker being nursed by Harley Quinn from the effects of the Titan formula (and the explosive gel punch from Batman) while Arkham City descends into chaos. The sequel was described by veteran Batman voice actor Kevin Conroy as "really, really dark". While relating the game's dark nature to the animated movie Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker, Conroy also said, "It involves a lot of the villains and it goes to that area – it's that dark. From Alfred to Carson: Pop Culture's 10 Best Butlers | WIRED From: The Avengers First Appeared: 1964 But What Does He Do? Originally Tony Stark’s personal servant, Jarvis was seconded to take care of those in Avengers Mansion early on in that team’s existence and has continued to be responsible for the super team’s needs ever since, no matter where they’re headquartered.

Does He Possess The Requisite Snarky Attitude? Although Jarvis does enjoy a good joke, it’s almost definitely the case that he would feel that snark is beneath both he and his position. Does He Go Above and Beyond the Call of Duty? Another superhero butler who has suffered for his career—the poor man’s been bound and gagged by villains so many times he could give bondage lessons—it’s clear that Jarvis is loyal to the point of needing an intervention. Image: 20th Century Fox From: The Rocky Horror Show First Appeared: 1973 But What Does He Do? Officially the assistant/handyman of Frank N. Furter, although that’s not particularly descriptive. Think of him as an Igor by another name. Does He Possess The Requisite Snarky Attitude? “Snark” may not be the right way to describe Riff Raff’s sense of humor; it’s far more off-kilter and, yes, ghoulish. Does He Go Above and Beyond the Call of Duty? Only when it comes to big song and dance numbers—this was a butler who ends up killing his employer, after all.

But what can you expect from an alien who doesn’t understand how these things are supposed to work? (Uh, double spoiler.) Image: Sony Pictures Television From: Soap/Benson First Appeared: 1977 But What Does He Do? Depending on which show you’re watching, Benson is either responsible for running the Tate household (Soap) or the Governor’s mansion (The latter spin-off, Benson). Does He Possess The Requisite Snarky Attitude? Although arguments could be made for Benson being more of a fan of the broad wisecrack than something specifically snarky, he was certainly one to employ sarcasm in making fun of his employers. Does He Go Above and Beyond the Call of Duty? Just doing his job was exhausting enough—although he did manage to rise from head of the household to Lieutenant Governor of the State. Image: Sony Pictures Television From: Hart to Hart First Appeared: 1979 But What Does He Do? Max was a jack of all trades, officially acting as the butler, chef and chauffeur of the globe-trotting millionaire investigators in the Aaron Spelling-produced detective series (and the Adam Scott/Amy Poehler credit sequence remake for adult swim).

Does He Possess The Requisite Snarky Attitude? Definitely not; Max was on the up-and-up from the word go. Does He Go Above and Beyond the Call of Duty? Although Max tended to stay out of the weekly derring-do of his employers, it wasn’t uncommon for him to have to clean up many messes that were far from domestic. When Mr. and Mrs. Hart got together, as he said, it was moidah. Image: Paramount Pictures First Appeared: 1985 But What Does He Do? As he explains in the classic movie, he “butles.” Does He Possess The Requisite Snarky Attitude? Yes, and with good reason: How else could one stay sane with so many people dying all around you? Does He Go Above and Beyond the Call of Duty? Running around and cleaning up after numerous murders doesn’t tend to fall under the heading “every day tasks,” so let’s just say yes—although, as those familiar with the movie already know, there may be more to Wadsworth than his being a simple butler. Image: Warner Bros.

Television From: The Fresh Prince of Bel Air First Appeared: 1990 But What Does He Do? Despite his fine education (Oxford, dontchaknow) and background as an Olympic athlete, Geoffrey nonetheless fled the United Kingdom to find a life of butlering in the U.S. —first for celebrities including Led Zeppelin and Chuck Norris, and then taking care of the Bankses. Does He Possess The Requisite Snarky Attitude? In many ways a retread of Lynn Belvedere, Geoffrey proudly kept the snark flag flying in the Banks household. Does He Go Above and Beyond the Call of Duty? Not if he can help it. This was a butler who complained when he had to answer the door. Image: ITV Studios From: Downton Abbey First Appeared: 2010 But What Does He Do?Carson is in charge of the pantry, wine cellar, dining room, and male staff at the abbey, but as far as he’s concerned, he’s also the last line of defense against a moral decay brought on by the modern world. Does He Possess The Requisite Snarky Attitude? Not in the slightest.

Although Carson has a dry sense of humor, he is far too proud to reduce himself to such low forms of humor. Does He Go Above and Beyond the Call of Duty? Only in his heart—and where Lady Mary is concerned, of course. Although Carson’s work is his life, his respect for the position in which he finds himself means that he could never break protocol in such a manner. Jeeves in Gotham - pozorvlak - Jeeves - P. G. Wodehouse [Archive of Our Own] pozorvlak Summary: Bertie visits his old Oxford chum Bruce in Gotham, where his habit of falling in love with the wrong girl gets him in more than the usual amount of trouble. Fortunately, Jeeves is on hand. Work Text: I never know where to begin with these things. Should I start at the beginning, as it were, or start things off in medias res, the res in this case probably being the vat of acid? I put it to Jeeves, who suggested that the latter option, followed by a flashback to establish setting, was “very much in the post-modern idiom”.

“But, I say, Jeeves,” I said, “what do you mean by post-modern? How can one be more modern than modern?” “The phrase refers not to modernity itself, sir, but rather to the philosophical and aesthetic movement referred to as Modernism. Indeed, once a movement had laid claim to the title of Modernism, there was nowhere to go but up, so to speak, sir. The defining features of postmodernism are hard to pin down, but frequently involve self-referentiality, the “re-mixing” or recontextualisation of found sources, the use of deliberate anachronism or paradox, and the treatment of popular culture with equal reverence as Classical works or high art.” “And the use of fractured timelines is all tickety-boo with postmodernists?” “Indeed, sir. Even more complex temporal structures are possible: the novelist Iain M.

Banks structured his novel Use of Weapons as two interleaved narratives, one proceeding forwards in time and the other backwards, with the basic scheme further complicated by flashbacks and flash-forwards; the film Memento consisted of a sequence of scenes each ending as the previous one started, so as to dramatise the effects of the protagonist’s anterograde amnesia; and in the motion picture Pulp Fiction, the filmmaker Tarantino…” “Never mind the filmmaker Tarantino, Jeeves.” “Yes, sir.” “Expunge him from your mind.” “I have already done so, sir. Be that as it may, sir, postmodernism is, to use the current vernacular, not merely a thing, but a thing that exists, sir.” Well, you can’t say fairer than that, what? So the p. of campaign is this: start in medias res with the aforementioned v. of acid, flash back a day to explain how I came to be there, allow the action to run through to a dénouement, and wrap the whole thing up with a frame story establishing character and setting. Got all that? Good. On with the motley.

Do you know the worst thing about living in a city under the heel of organised crime? Zoning regulations. Judging by the dull ache at the base of my noggin, it couldn’t have been more than half an hour since I’d been rendered unconscious by a sap or blackjack, and yet that had evidently been enough time to transport me from Le Foie Heureux to what appeared to be a chemical warehouse, truss me up by my heels, and suspend me from the ceiling above a gent’s size vat, in which a large quantity of acid was merrily bubbling away. Wouldn’t be allowed in London, of course, where there are rules against siting dangerous chemical plants so close to fashionable restaurants. There are rules against it in Gotham too, of course, but when the people enforcing those rules have a fat envelope full of moola to look forward to if they look the other way and a bullet in the head if they don’t, who can blame them for taking option A?

“If this is dating, American-style,” I said to nobody in particular, “you can keep it.” I was staying in Gotham - not the one in Nottinghamshire, I mean the American one - for a few weeks with my old Oxford pal Bruce “Beefy” Wayne, at his ancestral pile on the edge of town. I thought the place looked like the architects of Chatsworth and Blenheim had got into a drunken argument about who was best, decided to settle the matter then and there, and met in the middle with an almighty crash of buttresses and balustrades; Jeeves, as ever, was more temperate, saying only “very stately, sir.” Nonetheless, the place combined all the advantages of country-house living with convenient access to a bustling metropolis, and I was very grateful to accept old Beefy’s invitation.

“Stay as long as you like, Bertie,” he’d said, “I’ve got more rooms here than I know what to do with.” It was true; despite the place being built as if to house at least a regiment of assorted Waynes and hangers-on, he lived there with only his butler Pennyworth and a young chap called Grayson, the latter being some species of gymnast. I was feeling sore in both body and spirit after Beefy had given me a thorough thrashing at rackets. We’d been pretty evenly matched at the ‘Varsity, where we’d taken our Blues together, but years of late nights and gaspers had clearly taken their toll on me. “I say, Beefy, you’ve been keeping your hand in!”, I said, as he poured me a most welcome second w. and soda. The first tissue-restorer was already working its magic, and I anticipated only minor muscular agony the next morning. “Thanks, Bertie. I try to keep in shape, but don’t often manage to get a game in; it’s mostly parkour and mixed martial arts these days, with the occasional bout of spelunking.

Anyway, will you be joining us for the party this evening?” “The orphanage benefit? Rather!” The social life of Gotham’s great and good revolves around a series of charity benefits, raising money for some good cause or other. Beefy was hosting one himself at the manor, in aid of one of the Wayne Foundation’s many orphanages. “Tell me, young Beefy, why do you have so many orphans in Gotham? Are they all victims of this ghastly crime war?” “Many of them, yes, but the biggest cause is actually industrial accidents. In a city with a corruption problem as bad as ours, it can be hard to encourage a culture of workplace safety. Far too many factory owners decide it’s easier and cheaper to buy off the inspectors. WayneCorp doesn’t, of course, but it makes it darned difficult to compete.” “Dashed unfortunate. Still, you seem to manage,” I said, waving an airy hand at the stately p. surrounding us. “One does one’s best. Anyway, Bertie, I must go back about my business as a Captain of Industry: I’ll see you at the party tonight.” My name's Wooster, Bertie Wooster.

I'm a friend of Beefy’s - that is, of Mr Wayne's - from his time as a Rhodes Scholar.” “Delighted to meet you, Mr Wooster. I'm Harleen Quinzel.” The penny took a second to drop. “Not Doctor Quinzel, of Arkham Asylum? Beefy - er, Bruce - speaks very highly of your work.” “The very same, and I'm delighted to hear it. The Wayne Foundation has been a generous sponsor of my research.” “You'll probably think me very old-fashioned, but I’d imagined someone more on the lines of Sir Roderick Glossop - old, grey-haired, male.” “Oh! Do you know Sir Roderick, Mr Wooster?” “Rather! Old friend of the family. Introduced his daughter Honoria to her husband.” “I've never met Sir Roderick, but I do enjoy reading his case studies. Particularly the one about the man who kept a fish and several cats under his bed! I sometimes wonder which of us has the odder patients.” “Yes, well I wouldn't take that one entirely seriously. Composite of several different incidents, don't you know.

Patient confidentiality and all that.” An electronic beeping came from her bag, interrupting the cosy tête-à-tête. “Work calls, I'm afraid - one of my patients is trying to escape again.” I don't know if it was the room, or the jazz, or the perfume, or simply being in America, where the twin spirits of can-do and seize-the-day are everywhere. But whatever it was, I took the plunge. “I say, Dr Quinzel? Would you care to have dinner with me tomorrow?” “Why, Mr Wooster, you're very forward.” “Oh, please, call me Bertie.” “Only if you'll call me Harley. Very well, meet me at Le Foie Heureux at eight. I'm sure a man with your connections will have no difficulty securing a table.” She turned on her heel and was gone. Come the appointed hour, I was cooling my heels at the bar, toying idly with a pensive gin-and-tonic.

I know it’s a lady’s prerogative to keep a chap waiting, but I was starting to worry that our dinner would be cut short - tables at this place were booked solid, and I’d only been able to get one when Beefy had intervened with the maitre d’hôtel, an alumnus of the Wayne School of Snootiness for the Disadvantaged. As the clock tinkled the quarter-hour, I became aware of a distinct dimming of the light behind my right shoulder, and looked around to find myself staring up at a huge looming sort of chap, constructed along similar lines to the Empire State Building. “Doctor Quinzel has been un-av-oid-ably det-ained, and sends her apo-lo-gies”, he rumbled, with the air of one reciting his lines.

“She asks that you meet her in the all-ey outside.” “Oh, right-ho.” I’d been hanging by myself for about ten minutes, and was starting to come round to Beefy’s point of view in re Gotham’s health-and-safety problems - neither the hook I was hanging from nor the bolts connecting it to the ceiling looked like they’d been manufactured or installed in accordance with the relevant American National Standards - when the door opened. “Awwwww, Pudd’n, all for me? You shouldn’t have!” The voice sounded familiar. Reginald Jeeves | At Your Service: 10 Great TV and Movie Butlers | TIME.com At Your Service: 10 Great TV and Movie Butlers By Gary Susman Aug. 17, 2013 REX FEATURES / ITV Jeeves and Wooster (1990-1993) Jeeves is more than the archetype for all future butlers; he’s more like a superhero. The P.G.

Wodehouse creation is knowledgeable on nearly every subject, can glide into and out of a room without anyone noticing, mixes both killer cocktails and miraculous hangover cures, and is capable of extricating his master, upper-class twit Bertie Wooster, from any sticky situation. Curiously, Jeeves finds serving the hapless Wooster so fulfilling that he never quits to, say, go cure cancer or win the Nobel Peace Prize. (Of course, he dishes plenty about his boss to the other butlers at the Junior Ganymede Club.) Over the years, Jeeves has been a popular character in books, radio shows, plays and musicals, movies, and even as the inspiration for a Web search engine, but his most satisfying incarnation may have been in the U.K. TV series Jeeves and Wooster. Indeed, the comedy team of Stephen Fry and Hugh Laurie (pictured, left and right, respectively) seemed tailor-made to play the Wodehouse pair. Fry’s unflappability is the perfect tonic to Laurie’s wide-eyed, slack-jawed cluelessness.

Their chemistry suggests the real reason Jeeves never leaves Wooster: the match between Bertie’s complete neediness and Jeeves’ thorough resourcefulness makes theirs an ideal bromance. Origins: Alfred Pennyworth - YouTube Origins: Alfred Pennyworth Want to watch this again later? Sign in to add this video to a playlist. Need to report the video? Sign in to report inappropriate content. The interactive transcript could not be loaded. Loading... Rating is available when the video has been rented. This feature is not available right now. Please try again later. Published on Oct 6, 2014 A butler is trusted with safeguarding his master's secrets – especially when he's serving a superhero. Join as we explore the comic book origin of Alfred Pennyworth. Special thanks to our user ibriers 1 for submitting the idea on our WatchMojo.com/suggest page!Check us out at , and . If you want to suggest an idea for a WatchMojo video, check out our interactive Suggestion Tool at :) We have T-Shirts! Be sure to check out for more info. WatchMojo is a leading producer of reference online video content, covering the People, Places and Trends you care about.

We update DAILY with 2-3 Top 10 lists, Origins, Biographies, Versus clips on movies, video games, music, pop culture and more! Category Why are butlers/personal assistants a lot older than the person they are working for? - Quora Quora Alfred (DC character) Why are butlers/personal assistants a lot older than the person they are working for? Like Alfred Pennyworth to Bruce Wayne or Bernard Houseman to Harry Osborn Are there any advantages to it? Written Sep 11, 2014 The same reason it usually takes a person years to rise to a high rank in any profession. The art of 'Butling' (yes, I'm quite sure that's the correct term) doesn't just encompass having a British accent and razor sharp wit. It is a proper, legit career path with trained institutes even offering degrees for the same. According to this article on Wikipedia- Butlers traditionally learned their position while progressing their way up the service ladder. For example, in the documentary The Authenticity of Gosford Park, retired butler Arthur Inch (born 1915) describes starting as a hall boy.

While this is still often the case, numerous private butlering schools exist today, such as The British Butler Institute, the Charles MacPherson Academy for Butlers and Household Managers (a government registered private career college), the International Institute of Modern Butlers, the Guild of Professional English Butlers, and The International Guild of Butlers & Household Managers So, you see, it takes time to become a butler, much like it takes time to become a senior manager in a corporation or a Judge of your state. Meanwhile, rich young brats are born abundantly, waiting for you to finish your training and acquire the skills and patience to wait hand and foot on you and iron your spare undies, cape and cowl while you go out prowling at night and beating criminals to pulp and dispensing your brand of justice 553 Views · View Upvotes · Answer requested by 1 person What are some great butler/valet names? - Quora Quora Literature What are some great butler/valet names? I'm looking for names that conjure up some of the same images as "Jeeves" of PG Wodehouse's writings. Stereotypical upper-class butler names, from the US or UK traditions.

If they have specific cultural references or sources in real life or fiction associated with them, it would be great to know (eg "Jeeves" was from PG Wodehouse's Jeeves and Wooster stories, and also used by the search engine Ask, previously known as Ask Jeeves). Agador Spartacus - the butler in The Birdcage - played by Hank Azaria. 42 Views Maybe not the very best, but amusing nonetheless. I was flying from Portland Maine to Washington DC. In the winter. With a connection in Boston. For those of you not familiar with the area, in the winter the weather is often pretty crappy, and delays are common. So it was on this trip, my flight from Portland was an hour or so late and consequently I (and several other passengers) missed our conn... I don't think I've ruined my life but I've gotten pretty close at times. I'll give just a few. I was generally a smart kid from the begining. I never read or studied hard but I was always the first or second kid in my class. My parents loved me for being smart.

Being in Africa where education is the only key to a better life, your whole village admires you if you are a smart kid. I managed to s...

Question: What is the profession of Alfred Pennyworth and Jeeves?
Answer: Butler