Vikings Valhalla

[Drunk Monk]

The interviews went well. I wore my SAFD shirt and the choreographer was delighted to see it. I mentioned that I worked for the Armoury and he said he got his very first sword from there and remembered Dex. Gave me an excuse to email Dex, who I haven't seen in way too long.

[Drunk Monk]

Q for the swordfight guys: Steel or aluminum blades? Why? How close, historically, is the clothing,arms, etc?

Bamboo & rubber. Steel is rare on sets nowadays and both gentlemen had UK accents so they had a queer way of pronouncing aluminum.   

They do research their arms relatively well. I did drop a HEMA reference and that was well received. Thanks for that Maestro!

Ryan is a humble gentleman with roots in Shakespearean theater. He learned his trade from Hobbs himself. He aspired to be an actor but Hobbs saw some natural talent in him and encouraged him to his present career. We hit it off really well from the start (the SAFD shirt really broke the ice). I could see he was delighted when I knew things like who Hobbs was and about HEMA. I imagine few of his interviewers know what he’s talking about most of the time. He’s someone I could’ve chatted with for days.
 
McKenna is a machinist who started maiming prop guns and moved to swords. He’s quick to acknowledge that he’s no smith, and has a workingman’s earnestness, almost blue collar if he wasn’t a weapons nerd. He had a very practical perspective, struck me as a ‘gets the job done’ sort of guy. He said he spends his free time drawing swords based on historical pieces he’s seen in books, collections and museums. 

It struck me later that this is exactly the sort of niche piece that I am most suited to write. It’s for Den’s print mag (which they repub online too) a sponsored piece (meaning Netflix bought out a special like they did with Jupiter’s Legacy) and I get compensated at 4x my standard rate.

Season 2 is already in the can. There was mention of season 3 but the rep said I cannot write about that yet because it hasn’t been announced so it falls under my nda. 

I’ll definitely go back and watch the original series. There were some references to it that really teaser my interest.

[Drunk Monk]

Not using this bit from the transcript but I must share it for the amusement of the other D00M professional swordsman:

Richard:
I appreciate you're wearing a Domenico Angelo t-shirt.
Gene:
Ah, very good. Very good. I wore that in your honor. I used to do some sword making way back in the day for The Armory in San Francisco. Mostly theatrical stuff for Shakespearean theater.
Richard:
I bought my very first swords from there.
Gene:
Oh, wonderful.
Richard:
Dexter Fidler, I think was the guy that I bought them from.
Gene:
Dexter Fidler. Yes, he was my partner in doing work in The Armory. Very good. Very good. Yeah. Good man.
Richard:
Indeed. I still have a book of those prints. So I still have one of those back in the UK under lock and key.
Gene:
Wonderful. I'm glad that we made that connection. But this is about you...

[Dr. Ivor Yeti]

Small planet. That's a happy coincidence.

[Drunk Monk]

We forget our impact upon theater some 30 years ago. We were the only game in town…on the planet back then. I still see Armoury pieces in stage productions today. It’s so different now - stage combat has evolved so much as well as stage weapons. 

But yeah, a happy coincidence. Made me proud and very pleased that I wore the right shirt.

[Drunk Monk]

[Drunk Monk]

There are only 8 eps total so I only had 3 to go and I’m done now. It was very enjoyable. Good action, costumes, and drama. The last two eps - wow - heads will literally roll. After the battle on the bridge (London bridge) as the centerpiece, the finale is the siege of Kattengat culminating with some 20 minutes of cold arms warfare. There’s a finale sword fight that’s quite satisfactory, as well as a squad of sword hotties called the shield maidens. The political intrigues are wicked fun - lots of backstabbing (and front stabbing - a stabby show…plus chopping and slashing). Lots of blood spattered faces. 

IT’S ALL ABOUT FREDIS. A new sword hottie rises. 

Moral of the story - Christians are assholes (no offense anyone). Pagans are cool until they start ritual sacrifices. And everyone looks good when splattered with blood and mud. 

D00M recommended.

[cranefly]

Watched the first episode.  I know the name Leif Erikson from high school, but now realize I don't remember anything about him.  I certainly don't recall him being a skilled fighter capable of defeating 10 armed men at a time, and now I want to see him matched up against Marco Polo's Kung Fu.  Who would win?  Indeed, who would win.

But I'll also admit to wanting to see these two giants from history settle into tamer fare, maybe TV shows suitable for family-viewing.  Just as a suggestion, maybe Leif It to Erikson?  And maybe The Marco of Polo.

Anyway, I'll continue to watch...

[cranefly]

Finished this.  Or should I say Finnished this. Clearly set up for sequels.

Colorful, lots of moving parts, and so much backstabbing!  Even with a cast of thousands, that wasn't nearly enough backs to accommodate all the stabs.

I never saw Game of Thrones, but believe it was notable for killing off a good share of major characters.  Viking Valhalla suffered a bit by striving to keep most everyone aboard for sequel-land.  That reduced the drama a bit.  If someone is defeated or outwitted, they aren't summarily beheaded but instead forced to make a deal.  Another deal.  So many deals, so much backstabbing.  And Orson Welles is the worst of the lot (you know who I mean).

Wikipedia is calling to me.  Must look up Leif Erikson.

[Drunk Monk]

Finished this.  Or should I say Finnished this.

[Greg]

I'm four episodes in. We just watched the battle of the bridge. Knowing history spoils some of the tension. For instance tQ knew Edmund didn't die at the hands of the Vikings so she knew the outcome of that battle. I do like it. Good battles. Good fights. Good intrigue. Christians are dicks! But it was the Pagan who started the fight on Leif's ship.

I hate the sets and the TV CGI. It looks bad. The wall for the city of London looks like it's out of a High School productions. It needs to be roughed up and aged. It's also really short.

[Drunk Monk]

Well you know, in all fairness, sets and cgi weren’t that great in the 11th century.

I was impressed by the Viking long boats. They actually built several of those to scale. My only question is where do you poop when traveling on a long boat?

[Greg]

Fair point.

You hang your ass over the side. Obvs. They weren't as body conscious in olden times. Take a look at a Roman toilet some time. I get the willies just contemplating it.

[Drunk Monk]

I knew this but was under NDA.

[Greg]

Well, that was fun. Lots of twisty politics. Lots of warfare between the religions. Couldn't wait for the bald zealot to get his comeuppance. Sad that Olaf didn't.

And what happened to Kanut? Did he get kicked off the show and was replaced by his father, who was really good, too. But I kept waiting from to reappear. i thought for sure he would come to the rescue at the final big battle. It's a puzzlement.

Lief is going to kill everyone in Season 2, isn't he?

And why are Viking axes so tiny? It's probably accurate but they look like kid axes.