Oo I have to respectfully disagree (which is hard because I am a huge fan of yours!), I can't see Archie not giving (at least) Wolfe presents. Instead of 'manor lord' (which I do see in other contexts, like the fact that Archie is his 'personal attendant/page/joker who talks back to power' in a sense) I see Wolfe as being very personal about who he employs--I remember that while Archie draws up the checks for him to sign, Wolfe personally hands each person their paycheck every week. (I think week! lol)
And the fact that Archie lives there in the house also (to me) heightens the level of emotion/love he and Wolfe have for each other--I mean in the books we see ie. a standout case, and the important parts of it, but I always randomly think: these guys live together 24/7. In a lull period (or even boring cases) Archie eats alone with Wolfe twice a day every day and of course is in the office with him for like half the day (I always like when he mentions how they drink coffee in the office after dinner together.) That is a huge amount of time spent together and conversations had. To me this gives/implies/creates an underlying, extremely serious emotional backdrop to the books, which is why imho Archie is so flip about everything; if he talked about it seriously it would sound like something more odd than the books really convey (since they focus on Wolfe being a genius, his subsequent ~weird eccentricities and the case.) I think Archie makes the books very 'exciting' and makes Wolfe a awe inducing yet alien character because that's cool and it'll sell (not that I think he's exaggerating etc.)
I think all three of them (and even Saul) are so perfectly hand picked by Wolfe, and they each have interests that coincide so strongly (I mean being experts in their field, and Wolfe is a polymath), that at least for Fritz and Archie I would expect mutual present giving. I can't see Archie 'not' giving something back, partly because of how he's so proud (in a way, ie. 'he owns his own furniture'.) And of course Fritz (and Saul maybe) often seem like old friends of Wolfe, and I would assume they would exchange gifts. I do wonder if all Archie gets are presents that don't fit his own modern cultural milieu! (ie. the silk dressing gown; since he's involved in choosing the cars I discount them from Christmas gift ideas.)
And I definitely see your logic re: the birthday present, but I have to admit that I can't rationalize what Stout did there ie. he's worked for Wolfe 7 years and this is his first birthday present?? It seems odd to me. My mind has to work with the conclusion that it's an error somewhere there or else I don't get it! LOL
I wish that Stout had set up Lewis Hewitt or Marko (or Felix) as a 'potential Archie rival', or even ~Zeck~ somehow, though obviously that would be almost impossible to swing, since he's so evil. But then again, Archie's writing these and he hates to see Wolfe being super nice/desperate in public--and the books are public. I wonder what (if anything) he left out to preserve everyone's 'honor'.
Personally I always see Archie's oversensitivity about his 'replacements' as just possessiveness--like the way some people get all jealous/possessive about their spouse even though they are overreacting a little. I think it conveys pride in being with the other person/protecting & valuing your relationship with them. I guess we really have that moment in the Santa Claus escapade, but that seems more of an exploration of the premise than a long, drawn out 'she's so perfect for me' leading logically to a marriage license. I mean you don't get the sense that Archie's been talking up Margot Dickey for a while, it's just the presence of the license that spurs Wolfe into action. I would like to see this with more depth and with a genius rival, which would be far more horrifying (imho) than a woman, because a huge part of their relationship is Wolfe's genius and Archie being impressed by him.
I don't see Saul as a threat because he's so devoid of the 'airs' and eccentricities Wolfe has, and because he's presented in such a supportive/cool elder brother way, imho. And I too keep trying to get people into NW, I was happy to see that bookshop on LJ is also into it, she's pretty popular, so hopefully that will help. You being into it is also great as you are also on that superstar lj level LOL : ) :D
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And the fact that Archie lives there in the house also (to me) heightens the level of emotion/love he and Wolfe have for each other--I mean in the books we see ie. a standout case, and the important parts of it, but I always randomly think: these guys live together 24/7. In a lull period (or even boring cases) Archie eats alone with Wolfe twice a day every day and of course is in the office with him for like half the day (I always like when he mentions how they drink coffee in the office after dinner together.) That is a huge amount of time spent together and conversations had. To me this gives/implies/creates an underlying, extremely serious emotional backdrop to the books, which is why imho Archie is so flip about everything; if he talked about it seriously it would sound like something more odd than the books really convey (since they focus on Wolfe being a genius, his subsequent ~weird eccentricities and the case.) I think Archie makes the books very 'exciting' and makes Wolfe a awe inducing yet alien character because that's cool and it'll sell (not that I think he's exaggerating etc.)
I think all three of them (and even Saul) are so perfectly hand picked by Wolfe, and they each have interests that coincide so strongly (I mean being experts in their field, and Wolfe is a polymath), that at least for Fritz and Archie I would expect mutual present giving. I can't see Archie 'not' giving something back, partly because of how he's so proud (in a way, ie. 'he owns his own furniture'.) And of course Fritz (and Saul maybe) often seem like old friends of Wolfe, and I would assume they would exchange gifts. I do wonder if all Archie gets are presents that don't fit his own modern cultural milieu! (ie. the silk dressing gown; since he's involved in choosing the cars I discount them from Christmas gift ideas.)
And I definitely see your logic re: the birthday present, but I have to admit that I can't rationalize what Stout did there ie. he's worked for Wolfe 7 years and this is his first birthday present?? It seems odd to me. My mind has to work with the conclusion that it's an error somewhere there or else I don't get it! LOL
I wish that Stout had set up Lewis Hewitt or Marko (or Felix) as a 'potential Archie rival', or even ~Zeck~ somehow, though obviously that would be almost impossible to swing, since he's so evil. But then again, Archie's writing these and he hates to see Wolfe being super nice/desperate in public--and the books are public. I wonder what (if anything) he left out to preserve everyone's 'honor'.
Personally I always see Archie's oversensitivity about his 'replacements' as just possessiveness--like the way some people get all jealous/possessive about their spouse even though they are overreacting a little. I think it conveys pride in being with the other person/protecting & valuing your relationship with them. I guess we really have that moment in the Santa Claus escapade, but that seems more of an exploration of the premise than a long, drawn out 'she's so perfect for me' leading logically to a marriage license. I mean you don't get the sense that Archie's been talking up Margot Dickey for a while, it's just the presence of the license that spurs Wolfe into action. I would like to see this with more depth and with a genius rival, which would be far more horrifying (imho) than a woman, because a huge part of their relationship is Wolfe's genius and Archie being impressed by him.
I don't see Saul as a threat because he's so devoid of the 'airs' and eccentricities Wolfe has, and because he's presented in such a supportive/cool elder brother way, imho.
And I too keep trying to get people into NW, I was happy to see that bookshop on LJ is also into it, she's pretty popular, so hopefully that will help. You being into it is also great as you are also on that superstar lj level LOL : )
:D