History Recap / BlackadderS3E6DuelAndDuality

---> '''Baldrick:''': [after a {{Beat}}] Yes. And Mr. Blackadder loves you too.

----

** In his letter, Wellington describes himself as "Supreme Commander, Allied Forces Europe", which was established in World War II.

-->'''Edmund:''' Yes, I'm afraid my ambitions stretch a little further than professional idiocy in West London. I want books written about me. I want songs sung about me. And then, hundreds of years from now, I want episodes from my life to be played out weekly at half past nine by some great heroic actor of the age.\\

* BloodKnight: As Blackadder lies dying (he thinks) and wistfullty yearns for a peaceful world, the Duke asks if he doesn't think that the Duke also wishes for an end to the dirty job of soldiering. Blackadders response is a firm "Frankly, no".

* DidNotThinkThisThrough: [=MacAdder=] rejects Blackadder's initial plan in favour of killing Prince George. Blackadder has to point out that if he does that, he'll just be arrested.

* OverprotectiveDad: Uncle, actually. Even though it was his nieces who approached George and took him home to Apsley House, Wellington's vowed to kill anyone who meddles with his family. (Of course, unmarried sex ''was'' a much bigger deal back then.)

* BeigeProse: Wellington's full account of the Peninsular War is simply "We won. Signed Wellington.".

** Also at play with the portrayal of George III, who by all accounts did ''not'' speak with a German accent (although undoubtedly from a German family, he was very proud of the fact that he was the first Hanoverian monarch to have been born ''in Britain'').

* NotEvenBotheringWithTheAccent: An odd inversion, as King George III speaks with a German accent, which there's almost no way that his real-life counterpart would have had. Then again, he ''is'' mad, so he may be affecting the accent as part of his illness.

** In his letter, Wellington describes himself as "Supreme Commander, Allied Forces Europe," which was established in World War II.

The last episode of season three starts with the impossible: George has gotten laid. Unfortunately, his amorous conquests are the nieces of the Duke of Wellington, who has personally sworn to kill anyone who defiles one of his relatives. George is terrified of fighting the duel so Baldrick suggests he should get someone else to fight it for him, and suggests Blackadder, who of course, is not pleased. However, when he remembers his identical Scottish cousin, who just happens to be a homicidal maniac, [=MacAdder=], is in town he changes his mind. Of course, [=MacAdder=] refuses to fight and Blackadder must pretend to be the prince and fight the duel himself. Wellington turns out to be a blustering idiot, and the duel turns out to be fought with cannons, and Blackadder is shot. But all is well! The cannon ball hit his cigarillo case, and everything is fine! George, pretending to be the butler, Blackadder, steps out of the shadows to reveal he is the prince, but Wellington shoots him in his anger. At that moment, the mad king appears, looking for his son, and Edmund, still in the prince's clothes, goes off with him, presumably to live the rest of his life as the Prince Regent.

* ArtisticLicenseHistory: Done for comedic effect, but historically the person who was challenged (and not the challenger) was able to select the weapons used in the duel, unless the challenger was of higher social status. As Prince George was of higher social status than Lord Wellington, he would have got to choose the weaponry instead of Wellington, whether challenged or challenger, and would likely not have chosen a cannon, and given how obsessed with honour Wellington is, it's equally unlikely that he'd try to exploit George's ignorance in order to more easily kill him.

-->'''[=MacAdder=]:''' Oh, blast. I forgot about the bailiffs.
* DopeSlap: Wellington does this incessantly to George (having switched roles with Blackadder to escape the Duke's wrath).

* EveryManHasHisPrice: George is eventually able to convince Blackadder to fight the duel with copious amounts of bribery. Blackadder's response essentially epitomises this trope (and really sums up his entire character)...

* HiddenDepths: Not only is [=MacAdder=] actually a fish salesman rather than a warrior, he's apparently a ''very good'' fish salesman.

* EveryManHasHisPrice: George is able to convince Blackadder to go back and fight the duel with copious amounts of bribery. Blackadder's response essentially epitomises this trope (and really sums up his entire character)...
-->'''Blackadder''': A man may fight for many things: his country, his principles, his friends, the glistening tear on the cheek of a golden child... But personally, I'd mud-wrestle my own mother for a ton of cash, an amusing clock and a sack of French porn! You're on!

* HiddenDepths: Not only is Macadder a fish salesman rather than a real warrior, he's apparently a very ''good'' salesman.
* HistoricalVillainUpgrade: While the real Wellington was not exactly friendly to servants or the lower classes, he was not known for savagely beating them for the slightest indiscretion, and in fact Napoleon Bonaparte ''was'' known for being violent with servants and Wellington held it against him!

** After George gets punched by Wellington he visits Baldrick in the kitchen when Mrs Miggins arrives. Miggins lists all insults Baldrick has thrown to George (who's hiding from her) but Baldrick manages to manipulate the conversation so that George "knows" Baldrick thinks he's a "lovely" instead of "clot". Baldrick's look when he realizes he's ''smarter than'' George is priceless.

* SmartBall: The three main characters are trying to come up with a plan to get the Prince Regent out of a duel he's sure to lose, when the plan comes up of Blackadder and the Prince switching places so that Blackadder can fight instead. When the Prince notes that it will never work, because "my portrait hangs on every wall", Baldrick - who thought to solve the problem of his mother's low roof by cutting off her head - offers up this gem:
--> '''Baldrick:''' Well, my cousin Bert Baldrick, Mr. Gainsborough's butler's dogsbody, says that all portraits look the same nowadays since they're painted to a romantic ideal rather than as a true depiction of the idiosyncratic facial qualities of the person in question.
--> '''Blackadder''': ''(grudgingly impressed)'' Your cousin Bert obviously has a larger vocabulary than you, Baldrick.

* AnachronismStew: Prince George references the story ''Literature/ThePrinceAndThePauper'', which was first published in 1881 and whose author, Creator/MarkTwain, wasn't even born until 1835.

* GeneralRipper: Wellington's regimental crest is two crossed dead Frenchman emblazoned on a mound of dead Frenchmen.

* BloodKnight: As Blackadder lies dying (he thinks) and wistfullty yearns for a peaceful world, the Duke asks if he doesn't think that the Duke also wishes for an end to the dirty job of soldiering. Blackadders response is a firm "no".

* NiceJobBreakingItHero: A fatal example of this occurs when Prince George screws up Blackadder's plan to save his life by blabbing about the whole thing in front of the Duke of Wellington, who intended to kill him. Wellington doesn't actually believe him, but gets so pissed off at the fact that the Prince, who is disguised as Blackadder and vice-versa is acting disrespectfully to his "master" that he whips out his pistol and shoots him dead.

* AnachronismStew: Prince George references the story ''Literature/ThePrinceAndThePauper'', which was written in 1882 and whose author, Creator/MarkTwain, wasn't even born until 1835.

* AnachronismStew: Prince George references the story ''Literature/ThePrinceAndThePauper'', whose author, Creator/MarkTwain, wasn't even born until 1835.

* ArtisticLicenseHistory: Done for comedic effect, but historically the person who was challenged (and not the challenger) was able to select the weapons used in the duel, unless the challenger was of higher social status. As Prince George was of higher social status than Lord Wellington, he would have got to choose the weaponry instead of Wellington, whether challenged or challenger, and would likely not have chosen a cannon -- and given how obsessed with honour Wellington is, it's equally unlikely that he'd try to exploit George's ignorance in order to more easily kill him.

* HonourBeforeReason: Even when finding that the "Prince" is smarter than rumour has it, Wellington still finds it necessary to kill him. On the other hand, he only cares about the ''honour'', not about the actual death -- he's perfectly fine with the Prince after the duel, once honour is satisfied, even though the Prince didn't die thanks to his PocketProtector.

* NoIndoorVoice: The Duke of Wellington. Because THERE'S ONLY ONE WAY TO WIN A CAMPAIGN--SHOUT, SHOUT, AND SHOUT AGAIN!

* HonourBeforeReason: Even when finding that the "Prince" is smarter than rumour has it, Wellington still finds it necessary to kill him. On the other hand, he only cares about the ''honour'', not about the actual death -- he's perfectly fine with the Prince after the duel, once honour is satisfied, even though the Prince didnt die thanks to his PocketProtector.

But wait... [[NotQuiteDead George isn't dead after all!]] The bullet hit HIS cigarillo case--oh, wait, he must have left it on the dresser. Bugger.

* ArtisticLicenseHistory: Done for comedic effect, but historically the person who was challenged (and not the challenger) was able to select the weapons used in the duel, unless the challenger was of higher social status. As Prince George was of higher social status than Lord Wellington he would have got to choose the weaponry instead of Wellington, whether challenged or challenger - and would likely not have chosen a cannon.

** Blackadder's mad cousin [=MacAdder=] is also quite deliciously hammy, though in his case it's down to his ludicrously over-the-top Scottish accent.

** Blackadder's mad cousin MacAdder is also quite deliciously hammy, though in his case it's down to his ludicrously over-the-top Scottish accent.

* HorribleJudgeOfCharacter: George III first appears minutes after [[spoiler: his son has been shot by Wellington]] and tells the disguised Blackadder "this is the first time I've truly felt fatherly towards you".

* NiceJobBreakingItHero: A fatal example of this occurs when [[spoiler:Prince George]] screws up Blackadder's plan to save his life by blabbing about the whole thing in front of the Duke of Wellington, who intended to kill him. Wellington doesn't actually believe him, but gets so pissed off at the fact that [[spoiler:the Prince, who is disguised as Blackadder and vice-versa]] is acting disrespectfully to his "master" that he whips out his pistol and shoots him dead.

* PocketProtector: Parodied: [[spoiler:a cigarillo case stops a ''cannonball'']].
** And parodied again when shortly afterwards [[spoiler: Prince George]] also gets shot, seems to die, wakes up shouting he also has one... then realizes he left his on the dresser. [[RuleOfPerception THEN he dies]].

* GeneralFailure: Wellington, who believes war is about shouting and stations his men in Alaska to try and catch Napoleon in case he tries to sneak up on them. He actually seems competent enough the rest of the time however, unlike the generals seen in the next series.

* HonorBeforeReason: When Blackadder as the Prince proves to be quite intelligent, Wellington expresses regret that he needs to die. Once the duel is concluded and Blackadder survives, the Duke declares that honor is satisfied.

* PocketProtector: Taken to comedic extreme. Blackadder's cigarillo case saves him from death by ''cannon'' fire.