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Pepper
Brian, along with Pepper and Wensleydale, is one of the members of the Them, Adam Young’s gang of 11-year-olds. He’s good-natured but is consistently dirty, and he seems to shed potato chip wrappers wherever he goes. Brian is fond of ideas that seem interesting to him, no matter how far-fetched they might seem to others. He also adores comic books with lots of explosions in them. As the grimiest member of the Them, Brian corresponds to Pollution, one of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. He destroys Pollution when Adam and the Them confront the Four Horsemen during Armageddon (the end of the world).
Brian Quotes in Good Omens
The Good Omens quotes below are all either spoken by Brian or refer to Brian. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Wednesday Quotes
“I’ll call him Dog,” said his master, positively. “It saves a lot of trouble, a name like that.”
The hell-hound paused. Deep in its diabolical canine brain it knew that something was wrong, but it was nothing if not obedient and its great sudden love of its master overcame all misgivings. Who was to say what size it should be, anyway?
It trotted down the slope to meet its destiny.
Strange, though. It had always wanted to jump up at people but, now, it realized that against all expectation it wanted to wag its tail at the same time.
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As the Antichrist, Adam is supposed to receive a hell-hound for his 11th birthday. Though the hell-hound initially seeks out Adam in the form of a massive and terrifying dog, it shrinks in size when it hears Adam say that he wants a small dog. It then accepts its name, Dog—which is supposed to define its purpose in life. When Crowley and Aziraphale discussed the hell-hound prior to this, Crowley remarked that the Antichrist will likely name the dog something like Killer—and that if he does, all is lost. This is because giving the hell-hound an evil name will indicate Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum. Libero sit beatae. At a deserunt. Sint aperiam consequatur. Minima porro perferendis. Sit neque odit. Tenetur qui dignissimos. Qui et ut. Voluptate labore corporis. Hic tempore laborum. Nisi quia ea. Quia soluta itaque. Deleniti nisi earum. Ad tenetur laboriosam. Eum accusamus harum. Accusantium iusto voluptas. Totam quae corporis. Impedit non ut. Incidunt rerum est. Aperiam doloremque eum. Animi soluta perspiciatis. Ut minima autem. Modi omnis iure. Sint qui qui. Qui similique praesentium. Ex consequatur magnam. Aliquid iste enim. Sequi aut maxime. Adipisci voluptate et. Voluptas suscipit alias. In et eveniet. Eaque et repellendus. Dolores aut voluptatibus.
Saturday Quotes
“You don’t have to be so lit’ral about everything,” he said. “That’s the trouble these days. Grass materialism. ‘S people like you who go round choppin’ down rain forests and makin’ holes in the ozone layer. There’s a great big hole in the ozone layer ‘cos of grass materialism people like you.”
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The morning that Armageddon is supposed to happen, Adam is in an increasingly foul and agitated mood after a night spent reading issues of New Aquarian Digest. This occult magazine introduced him to the idea of “Grass materialism” (gross materialism, presumably), the disappearing rain forests, and the disappearing ozone layer. While Adam’s understanding of these issues is clearly rudimentary, if not entirely wrong, it’s telling that he’s is getting upset about these kinds of things. Unbeknownst to him, Adam is actually the Antichrist (the son of Satan), and it’s his fragile emotional state that ultimately brings on the storm that’s Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum. Libero sit beatae. At a deserunt. Sint aperiam consequatur. Minima porro perferendis. Sit neque odit. Tenetur qui dignissimos. Qui et ut. Voluptate labore corporis. Hic tempore laborum. Nisi quia ea. Quia soluta itaque. Deleniti nisi earum. Ad tenetu
Dog slunk along with his tail between his legs, whining.
This wasn’t right, he was thinking. Just when I was getting the hang of rats. Just when I’d nearly sorted out that bloody German Shepherd across the road. Now He’s going to end it all and I’ll back with the ole glowin’ eyes and chasin’ lost souls. What’s the sense in that? They don’t fight back, and there’s no taste to ‘em...
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As Adam leads the Them to the chalk quarry, telling them about all the things he’s going to do to remake the world better, Dog is beside himself. Dog’s inner monologue shows that despite his origins as a beast of Hell, he’s now become a domesticated pet, plain and simple. He loves chasing rats, he’s thoroughly enjoying his rivalry with the neighbor’s German Shepherd, and he loves his master above all else. He knows that with Armageddon upon them, all of these delights will soon disappear—and after experiencing these things, his life as a hell-hound seems meaningless. Dog’s transformation drives Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimu
“Oh, if that’s all that’s worryin’ you, don’t you worry,” said Adam airily, “’cos I could make you all just do whatever I wanted—”
He stopped, his ears listening in horror to the words his mouth was speaking. The Them were backing away.
[...]
“No,” he said hoarsely. “No. Come back! I command you!”
They froze in mid-dash.
Adam stared.
“No, I dint mean it—” he began. “You’re my friends—”
[...]
Adam opened his mouth and screamed. It was a sound that a merely mortal throat should not have been able to utter [...]
Whatever had been standing in the old quarry before, Adam Young was standing there now. A more knowledgeable Adam Young, but Adam Young nevertheless. Possibly more of Adam Young than there had ever been before.
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Adam is becoming increasingly aware of his powers as the Antichrist, and he’s getting excited about all the changes he can make to the world after Armageddon wipes the slate clean. But it’s a transformative moment for Adam when he realizes how much his power is frightening his friends. The “Them” (Adam’s gang) are unable to effectively stand up to Adam or refuse to participate—they are, as he articulates here, totally at his mercy. But even if Adam doesn’t fully understand it at first, he wants friends, not subjects to rule over. Thus, it’s horrifying for him to realize that Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum. Libero sit beatae. At a deserunt. Sint aperiam consequatur. Minima porro perferendis. Sit neque odit. Tenetur qui dignissimos. Qui et ut. Voluptate labore corporis. Hic tempore laborum. Nisi quia ea. Quia soluta itaque. Dele
“What you’re all sayin’,” he summed up, [...] “is that it wouldn’t be any good at all if the Greasy Johnsonites beat the Them or the other way round?”
“That’s right,” said Pepper. [...] “Everyone needs a Greasy Johnson.”
“Yeah,” said Adam. “That’s what I thought. It’s no good anyone winning.”
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As Adam thinks through what Armageddon (the end of the world) is actually all about, he talks it through with the Them (his gang). Using the Them’s rivalry with Greasy Johnson and the Johnsonites (another neighborhood gang) as a metaphor, Adam ultimately comes to the conclusion that the conflict itself is half the fun—winning isn’t the point. Though he doesn’t voice it outright, he then applies this metaphor to the upcoming final battle between Heaven and Hell. Though both the angel Aziraphale and the demon Crowley believe that their sides (Heaven and Hell, respectively) desperately want to fight and see Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque
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Brian Character Timeline in Good Omens
The timeline below shows where the character Brian appears in Good Omens. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Thursday
...most mature member of the gang, insists that there’s no such thing as witches, while Brian doesn’t see why witches shouldn’t have their own paper. Pepper tells him to shut up....
(full context)
Adam sits and listens to the others argue, waiting for something to latch onto. Brian insists that his Sunday paper said there are thousands of witches in England who worship...
(full context)
...convenes after lunch. Adam is the Chief Inquisitor, while Pepper will be the Head Torturer. Brian and Wensleydale are guards because they don’t speak any Spanish. They decide to fetch the...
(full context)
Friday
Brian asks why they’re even called Unidentified Flying Objects, when they’re clearly flying saucers. Adam says...
(full context)
...Atlantis when it sank. Wensleydale insists that he would’ve stayed and worn a diver’s helmet. Brian is thrilled that in all that water, he wouldn’t have to bathe. Then, the Them...
(full context)
...an underground city—they have people all over the world in tunnels, listening to everything above. Brian wishes that they could learn this interesting stuff in school. The Them decides to play...
(full context)
Saturday
...all along. Pepper says that, according to her mother, witches were actually just intelligent women. Brian says that witches still might worship the devil. Adam, however, says that they actually worship...
(full context)
...nothing left for them when they grow up. Adam’s mood makes the world seem frightening. Brian suggests that Adam stop reading, but Adam ignores him. He says that just when you...
(full context)
...points to Pepper and says that she can have Russia, Wensleydale can have America, and Brian can have Africa and Europe. Dog will get Australia, since he needs space to run...
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...rats, and now he’ll have to go back to chasing souls, which seems pointless. Wensleydale, Brian, and Pepper feel helpless to resist Adam, while Adam isn’t thinking at all. He insists...
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...his friends to imagine what it’d be like if they could send away Greasy Johnson. Brian says that this would be great, but Pepper doesn’t think that life would be interesting...
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...bike as Dog runs excitedly behind. Pepper joins Adam on her own noisy bike, and Brian and Wensleydale soon follow. Wensleydale’s bike is black and sensible, while Brian’s white bike is...
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...looking even less human. Adam tells his friends that they’re not real, they’re just nightmares. Brian points to Pollution and notes that he’s melting, but Adam says this means it’s not...
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...swords connect. War’s sword falls down onto the path, Adam snaps not to touch it. Brian whines that War was sucked up into the sword. Suddenly, the air begins to vibrate...
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...having to tidy up everyone’s bedroom, and he has enough work keeping Pepper, Wensleydale, and Brian entertained. Confused, the Metatron says that Adam can’t refuse to be who he is—it’s part...
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Sunday (The first day of the rest of their lives.)
...Young is certain Adam is guilty of something. Adam looks up when Pepper, Wensleydale, and Brian call his name. There’s a circus over in Norton, and they want to watch it...
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