Book #1 Final Blog

What do you think is the defining moment or moments for the main
character and/or other major characters in the book?

Captain Vimes' defining moment was one of shining bravery that was both great and completely unexpected. He had just been pretty badly injured in a fire, and was being taken care of by a rather large dragon caretaker named Lady Ramkin. There was a mob of people searching for a huge dragon at her home, when out of nowhere comes Captain Vimes to rescue her from the mob. This moment was truly amazing for Vimes for a couple of reasons. For one, this is a completely different act than we would expect after hearing about him at the beginning of the book. Then, he is described as a useless and lazy drunk who just hobbles around his city wallowing in his own self-pity. Now, he's being a hero, dashing about to save a damsel in distress. Although, Vimes himself isn't even sure what struck such bravery into himself, hoping that "...it doesn't catch on (Guards! pg. 150)." But I still consider if a major turning point in his personality.
There is another character, the Supreme Grand Master, who has his defining moment very early on in the book. This is when he first summons the dragon, and you learn of his reasons why. He wants to use this dragon to take over the city, make it his own, and to give himself a position of absolute power. It's pretty obvious from this point that he is the main baddie, and that the heroes of the book will have to stop him by either defeating him or his dragon. It's also at this same point in the book that he manipulates his whole cult into summoning the dragon with him, while none of them will share the power he will get. This also defines him as a conniving and manipulative character.