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The history-pedants' guide to The Last Kingdom - episode one

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Sir Rodney:

--- Quote from: AnsalonPaladin on 2016-02-15, 02:58:24 ---This is what is disheartening about modern medieval television shows or movies for that matter. I sometimes look upon the blissful ignorance of my childhood with wistful nostalgia as I consider the days when it was possible to just enjoy the fantastic scenes of knights and their ladies without over analyzing every little detail like if their garb is period or not. Those days have long passed, enveloping programs I may have once enjoyed in a thick cloak of disappointment.

--- End quote ---

This.  :)

Sir James A:

--- Quote from: AnsalonPaladin on 2016-02-15, 02:58:24 ---This is what is disheartening about modern medieval television shows or movies for that matter. I sometimes look upon the blissful ignorance of my childhood with wistful nostalgia as I consider the days when it was possible to just enjoy the fantastic scenes of knights and their ladies without over analyzing every little detail like if their garb is period or not. Those days have long passed, enveloping programs I may have once enjoyed in a thick cloak of disappointment.

--- End quote ---

That's all mental. Block out the history side of your brain, and enjoy the entertainment for what it is - entertainment - and not a historical documentary / educational program. :)

Ian:

--- Quote from: Sir James A on 2016-02-16, 00:27:58 ---That's all mental. Block out the history side of your brain, and enjoy the entertainment for what it is - entertainment - and not a historical documentary / educational program. :)

--- End quote ---

Which is fine when you're watching Game of Thrones, but when a story is supposed to be 'historical' fiction it gets a bit harder if for no other reason than you know that millions of people who don't know any better will come away from watching it and think it's an accurate representation of its subject matter.  Game of Thrones doesn't muddle our modern understanding of the Middle Ages.  Shows like this, Vikings, and others, can and likely do.  A person who doesn't already know the information can't suspend disbelief because they don't know they should be suspending it in the first place.  It doesn't mean all 'historical' dramas should be 100% strict living history accurate, but they can at least pretend to care.  At the end of the day it's just entertainment, and most people really don't care about history much less medieval history, so you can certainly still enjoy it as pure entertainment. It's just that the struggle to suspend disbelief becomes ever harder the more you know.

Sir Douglas:
The more I think about it, the more I wonder how much historical accuracy would be even be practical for a movie, much less a weekly tv-show. It would go beyond just hiring a capable historical adviser to tell you what you're doing wrong. A lot of it is certainly inexcusable and simply a product of the "cool effect," or lack of knowledge or of effort (back scabbard!), but I imagine some things just aren't reasonable to fit into the average budget/time constraints of production. All those sets and costumes and props don't just materialize out of nowhere.

Why go through all the extra expense of making a proper spoke wheel that you'll only see on-screen for a few seconds when it's much cheaper and faster to just glue some boards together and cut out a round shape? Stick a painted PVC pipe through it for an axle and there you go.

And those of us who do actual reenacting know how expensive it can be to get period-correct kit. Would the return of having to garb a hundred cast members in elaborate, colorful, period-correct clothing be worth the cost? Or is it more cost-efficient to just follow the tropes and throw some ragged furs over cheap, brown, tunic-like things. Though I have to admit, even thinking from a filmmaking perspective, the king's getup shown in that video is embarrassing. ;)

I would love to see how far a production company could get in trying to be as accurate as possible instead of taking the lazy route. See how much of it really would be possible to do if they just put in a little more effort, and how much simply isn't feasible to do on an average budget.

Thorsteinn:
Lloyd also did this vid. Explains a lot really.

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