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| Uhtred is our Jon Snow-esque protagonist |
Although ostensibly a medieval action-drama about the battles between the Saxons and the Danes, the show sometimes feels like a critique of respectability politics. Alfred the Great chooses what looks "right" over what is actually smart or noble, and frankly he eats shit for it every time.
I'd extend the argument to Christianity as a whole, as it's presented here.
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| Hild will fuck you up |
Faster death-rate than Game of Thrones too; Game of Thrones wants you to start liking a character before they eat steel--The Last Kingdom doesn't have time for your affection. That said, it does give you the space as a viewer to take an immediate dislike to some of the squirming wormtongue villains, and it does reward you with some very rewarding death scenes for the same.
The show even gets away with some noble savage nonsense because the difference between Dane and Saxon is (usually) less about ethnicity than it is about heathenry.
I do wonder at the places where show gets a little squeamish. The use of the word "hump" in place of any stronger language is simultaneously jarring and charming, for example.
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| And then there's this crazy witch |
Danish men have the largest testicles of any country's men - 24 grams each on average
ReplyDeleteInevitable recommendation that you check out Nicola Griffith's novel "Hild" just on the off chance it's not on your radar.
ReplyDeleteIt wasn't on my radar, so thank you!
DeleteYou should consider reading the books (by Bernard Cornwell). They're better.
ReplyDeleteWell, here's the thing: the show was fine entertainment when I was sick in bed. Freed from illness...the books could only find a place at the far end of the queue.
DeleteThat's fair - a novel series is a much bigger investment than a TV series.
DeleteI agree with Steph/ven. I loved the first three or four books. After that they get a bit samey.
ReplyDeleteBut I couldn't watch trough the first episode of the series.
I especially love the grumpy old unreliable narrator vibe. And that the first-person narrator while the one who gets shit done, clearly isn't the person we should be routing for. (Nobody is, the Viking Age was an bloody and violent time. Fuck anybodies ideas about noble heroes)
I like that the show could be over and done with in a few days. A series of books? Eh, it's less enticing to hang out with that story for weeks, I'm guessing.
DeleteWhile far from perfect, The Last Kingdom certainly is fun. And it's one of the most "D&D" shows I've ever seen. Uhtred is literally a murderhobo and his hangers-on are a perfect representation of an adventuring party, complete with mace-swinging clerics!
ReplyDeleteNeeds moar magic missiles.
DeleteGive the people what they want, Netflix - a Skade spin-off show!
ReplyDeleteSkade: The Early Years
DeleteI would watch the hell out of that!
DeleteCornwell books are *fast* reads, that's one of the requirements of the market he writes to. Any of the audiobooks narrated by Jonathan Keeble are excellent, if audiobooks are your thing. I like Cornwell but I think Keeble's performance really elevates the material.
ReplyDelete"Hump" is %100 from the original text, Cornwell is very careful not to trip any traps that might keep his books out of a younger or more socially conservative audience's hands (which is weird in a series that features sexual menace and off-screen rape, but here we are). Some of the more labored attempts to avoid swearing achieve their own kind of art though, like "Alfred can piss down his own throat, and I hope he chokes on it and dies" is way better than "Alfred can eat shit and die," especially if you really blast that regional accent, as Keeble does.