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The Voyage of the Dolphin by Kevin Smith (view source)
Revision as of 15:39, 22 March 2016
, 15:39, 22 March 2016no edit summary
The idea behind the story is that a university would temporarily (if all goes well) rid themselves of an inept embarrassment (Fitzmaurice) and two almost as academically side-lineable companions in an effort to gain an edge over its learned competition. McNeill, the deceased trophy, died on a previous expedition to the Arctic and is buried there… somewhere…
The feel of the whole piece is [[:Category:Jerome K Jerome|Jerome K Jerome]] meets [[:Category:PG P G Wodehouse|PG Wodehouse]] meets mischievous Kevin Smith. Mischievous? Oh yes! He's a great one for the subtle dig and satirical gem. My particular favourite is the bishop castigating the good people of Scandinavia for believing in invisible little people – an irrational belief in something they can't see. (One doesn't have to be a clergy wife with a bishop or two in mind to laugh at that one, but it certainly helps!)
There's also the great running gag of Fitzmaurice trying to erect his camera and take a decent picture of various momentous events. In a time before the point-and-shoot, the idea of taking the camera out of the packaging and trying it out before the expedition is a notion that had eluded Fitzmaurice.