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etalian posted:That manchild dunk character is really hilarious. It's like combing the spiteful cowardly nature of Joffrey but in this series everyone can get away with owning him since he has no real power after getting passed over for the crown. I love that he was scheming to steal the throne, but then got blackout drunk and missed his father's death. He's the best comedy relief on the show.
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Oct 28, 2015 10:31
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Beeez posted:So in the books is it totally in 1st person from Uhtred's perspective or does it show events that Uhtred is not personally witnessing? Of the Cornwell books I've read, most seem to be from one character's perspective, but The Grail Quest shows events of which the lead character is not aware. I've only read the first book but yes it is totally in 1st person from Uhtred. His retelling of the events.
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Oct 28, 2015 14:53
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etalian posted:That manchild dunk character is really hilarious. It's like combing the spiteful cowardly nature of Joffrey but in this series everyone can get away with owning him since he has no real power after getting passed over for the crown. I did like the "ok I'll be a man...NOW! ok....now! No really riiiiiiiiight NOW! There, im good."  bit.Also seeing the reaction(s) to his obvious bullshit.
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Oct 28, 2015 15:15
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The Something Awful Forums > The Finer Arts > The TV IV › The Last Kingdom Season 1: "You're a Virgin" Uthred's actor is doing a good job of portraying an angry young man so far.
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Nov 1, 2015 03:29
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Benne posted:I love that he was scheming to steal the throne, but then got blackout drunk and missed his father's death. He's the best comedy relief on the show. Yeah to add insult to injury he awoke in a pig sty. I think Alfred's reason reason to keep him around is because he's so hilariously incompetent.
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Nov 1, 2015 06:00
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Alfred didn't unify England, Æthelstan did the deed in 927.  |
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Nov 1, 2015 15:51
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The casting for Alfred is spot on too, he really sells the celebrall and devious nature of the character. Alfred's woman trap plan was great in addition to putting Alfred in a position of power, it will also be a real world test if Uhtred is able to step up to being a lord. My favorite bits of comedy: -The akward hostage exchange in which the priests pass and try to say to high to the danish hostages -Uhtred bragging about boning the hell out of his hot wife to Otto etalian fucked around with this message at 19:11 on Nov 1, 2015 |
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Nov 1, 2015 16:35
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etalian posted:The casting for Alfred is spot on too, he really sells the celebrall and devious nature of the character. Fairly sure, IIRC, that Odda the Younger wants to bone Mildreth, which is why he's so pissed off about Uhtred getting all up in that dark ages poon.
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Nov 2, 2015 16:29
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So far I'm liking this. It's less of a heroic fantasy show than Vikings, but that's not necessarily a bad thing.
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Nov 2, 2015 16:50
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wiegieman posted:So far I'm liking this. It's less of a heroic fantasy show than Vikings, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. Yeah the show has a different tone and easily stands on its own IMO vs Game of Thrones/Vikings. For Vikings of the main drive of the show was focusing on alien culture/the bad guys while The Last Kingdom is more about someone who's caught between two different worlds.
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Nov 2, 2015 16:55
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I'm kinda liking this. My only (very minor) complaints are that they omitted the more interesting parts of the forging of Uthred's sword (in the books Cornwell describes the pattern welding technique, in the show it's just a brief bog standard "smith hammers piece of iron" scene)... and his insistence he wear it on his back at all times like a retarded loving larper (the stupidly long hilt actually catches on the scenery a few times  ).
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Nov 2, 2015 22:22
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I just don't like the lead actor at all. He's a poor man's Karl Urban and the fact that he can't grow a real beard just makes him seem like a douchey kid. The dudes playing Ubba and Alfred are fantastic though.
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Nov 2, 2015 23:51
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Unzip and Attack posted:I just don't like the lead actor at all. He's a poor man's Karl Urban and the fact that he can't grow a real beard just makes him seem like a douchey kid. The dudes playing Ubba and Alfred are fantastic though. He's a poor man's Channing Tatum to me. But, he does decent with the role IMHO. Keep in mind he's a teenager still at this point in the books, re: the beard comment. And his character is very much a dark ages douchey kid in the books, too. Actually, one of my favorite things about Uhtred as the main protagonist is that he's very, very flawed and selfish, in contrast to many authors' writing their protagonists as unerringly smart, charming and invincible. tooterfish posted:I'm kinda liking this. I keep waiting for the narration to mention the sword's name, Serpent's Breath. He also is supposed to have a saxe, Sting, IIRC. Much is made in the entire book series about how well Serpent's Breath was forged and how great a weapon it is, so I'm right there with you on that minor complaint.
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Nov 3, 2015 00:36
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He wears his weapon all the time because he's a nobleman, and that's why he's allowed to have one. It was a big deal in older cultures. And also because he's a bit into himself.
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Nov 3, 2015 00:47
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I like the guy who plays Leofric
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Nov 3, 2015 00:52
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wiegieman posted:He wears his weapon all the time because he's a nobleman, and that's why he's allowed to have one. It was a big deal in older cultures. It's not so much that he wears it all the time as the fact the show has him wearing it on his back, which I'm not sure the book described.
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Nov 3, 2015 01:14
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Jamwad Hilder posted:I like the guy who plays Leofric He developing into a great bro and has so many scene stealing one liners Otto the Younger: You're are a heathen Uthred: You're a virgin Leofric: Yes he is Unzip and Attack posted:I just don't like the lead actor at all. He's a poor man's Karl Urban and the fact that he can't grow a real beard just makes him seem like a douchey kid. The dudes playing Ubba and Alfred are fantastic though. I also like how the Saxon culture seems so boring by comparison to the viking culture. Doesn't have a fun things like a tug of war contest in which the losing team get dragged into a bed of hot coals.
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Nov 3, 2015 01:18
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life is killing me posted:It's not so much that he wears it all the time as the fact the show has him wearing it on his back, which I'm not sure the book described.
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Nov 3, 2015 02:12
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tooterfish posted:Yeah. It's an impractical place to wear a sword all told, and pretty ahistorical AFAIK. That's all I've seen that, as far as I know at least, is historically inaccurate. It's totally fine that he wears it all the time given his dual status as an ealdorman and Danish take-in, because Cornwell, in the books, describes that nobles were allowed to be armed most times except when in the council or court of the king or in the hall of another noble or reeve. Of course I'm giving Cornwell the benefit of the doubt when it comes to his research, but he seems to have done his homework pretty well to write the books.
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Nov 3, 2015 02:46
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Cornwell's also pretty good about admitting when he embellished something for drama purposes.
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Nov 3, 2015 02:53
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I think it's one of the reasons it sticks out so much (figuratively and literally). Cornwell is pretty meticulous, and even in the places where he does diverge historically he usually takes care to note it in his appendices. Just a TV thing I suppose. It's worth noting that Earl Ragnar also wears a sword on his back in most of the scenes he's in, so I think the writers might be using it as a shorthand way of showing the bond he and Uthred developed. ^^^you posted that while I was typing, but yes^^^ tooterfish fucked around with this message at 02:57 on Nov 3, 2015 |
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Nov 3, 2015 02:55
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I suppose an important thing to note is what little we know of the vikings as a whole and even the Danish vikings in particular, right down to how they wore their swords. That's not a hugely important fact to know, and in the context of the show I think also that the producers might have Uhtred wearing his sword on his back to show him as a man of two nations--he stands out amongst the Saxons and the other English nations, because he looks and acts more like a Dane given his upbringing. So while it does irk me a little how he wears his sword, it's a minor detail, and I feel like the producers of the show maybe did that on purpose.
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Nov 3, 2015 03:01
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All the other Danes are wearing their swords at the hip as far as I can see (even Ragnar's son). Which is what I mean, they're not just trying to show Uthred is influenced by Danes, they're showing he's influenced by one Dane in particular.
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Nov 3, 2015 03:08
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tooterfish posted:All the other Danes are wearing their swords at the hip as far as I can see (even Ragnar's son). Which is what I mean, they're not just trying to show Uthred is influenced by Danes, they're showing he's influenced by one Dane in particular. I'm pretty sure it's an aesthetic style choice that serves the purpose of showing and reminding that the sword is special, especially to Uthred. With it up on his back, we get to see the pretty and important stone he had put in the pommel in just about every shot that Uthred's wearing the sword. It would've been hard to show off the sword if it was always hanging from his hip. As for Wasp's Sting, I'm pretty sure Uthred's had it from the very beginning on the TV show. They made a point to throw in a line from a Viking during the first big battle like "Ha, Ragnar, look at the little wasp trying to sting you" when lil Uthred charged at Ragnar. Then later they had a scene where Ragnar gave Uthred back his weapon from the battle. I've just assumed that Uthred's held onto it since and that is the second hilt you see sticking up from his belt at times. I love the books this show's based on, and I love the show so far too. It's been so long since I've read the first couple of books that any changes they've made, I haven't really noticed or been bothered by them. The most important thing to me was the Uthred character, and while the pictures I saw of the actor before the show aired worried me, as they didn't match the Uthred in my head at all, I think the actor's done a fine job so far of embodying young Uthred, especially his sense of humor and swagger. Gotta love that they've worked "Arseling" into the show so prominently. I hope this lasts enough seasons that we get to see Uthred start using it on the next generation of wannabe-arselings
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Nov 6, 2015 19:33
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I hope the show continues with the story and that the series isn't just a one-off of the first book. I'd really love to see other prominent characters from the later books show up--Finan, most notably, and Asser (though I think he's SUPPOSED to be in this season) and Haesten. Maybe even some of Uhtred's more notable warriors of his household, like Rollo (yes, that's another character with the same name as one from Vikings).
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Nov 6, 2015 20:12
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What's the significance of the pommel stone?
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Nov 6, 2015 21:05
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Iseeyouseemeseeyou posted:What's the significance of the pommel stone? As far as I remember, a silver cross was in the hilt, not a particularly important pommel stone. I'm going to re-read the first book anyway so I'll find out. The cross that was worked into the hilt was a gift from a friend, and symbolized (at least to my understanding of the books, people will get different things out of this to be sure) his duality of Viking and Saxon, his disdain for Christianity and priests versus his devotion to the Norse gods.
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Nov 6, 2015 21:18
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Iseeyouseemeseeyou posted:What's the significance of the pommel stone? On the show, iirc from the first episode, the stone is some kinda family heirloom/seal type deal that proves his rightful heritage. I can't remember if he stole it right before sneaking off to battle, or if he took it from his dead father on the sly, my memory is bad sometimes.
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Nov 6, 2015 21:44
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He has it with him in the very first scene, on a chain around his neck, so it's not a seal or anything (he wasn't heir then). I think it's just a keepsake. It's probably one of the only things from his childhood he has.
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Nov 6, 2015 21:53
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tooterfish posted:He has it with him in the very first scene, on a chain around his neck, so it's not a seal or anything (he wasn't heir then). Alright, I stand corrected, though I do like my bad memory versions better
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Nov 6, 2015 21:55
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I don't even remember the pommel in the books, but it's been awhile since I've read them. I've already read them all like 2-3 times, though. And now I'm about to read them again. I really like how Cornwell meshed the Ragnar Lothbrok saga with actual history. Like has been discussed in the Vikings thread, Ragnar probably didn't exist as a single person but was more likely an amalgam of many different real people. Ubbe, Halfdan, and Ivar the Boneless were supposedly Ragnar Lothbrok's sons, and IIRC it's disputed whether or not they existed, or at least whether or not Ivar the Boneless existed, I think? I wish he'd show up in TLK, but I think he was mentioned in the show as having already died. In the books, I think his character died when fighting the Scots. But anyway, Cornwell did a good job taking these guys and fleshing them out as characters and developing them even though they weren't the central characters in the books. And I'd love to see this period in history be portrayed in Vikings to see what they do with it compared to TLK. I'm also really, really hoping they stay true to the books with the battle in which Uhtred fights Ubbe. I'm guessing that battle will be the season-ender, though, if it happens that way.
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Nov 7, 2015 00:47
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The pommel stone is unique to the show, it's not in the books. It was a symbol of the ruler of Bebbanburg that he took with him. Uhtred's swords and their origins are different in the books. As for Ragnar Lothbrok, my understanding is that his sons are in the historical record and are all believed to have existed. The book talks more about the other brothers Ivar Boneless and Halfdan, but it seems the show is just talking about Ubba to simplify things.
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Nov 7, 2015 01:18
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silly posted:The pommel stone is unique to the show, it's not in the books. It was a symbol of the ruler of Bebbanburg that he took with him. Uhtred's swords and their origins are different in the books. Yeah, you're right. The first book was pretty much Ubbe as the main antagonist, but after Uhtred kills Ubbe, it moves on to multiple new antagonists. My favorites were Harald Bloodhair and Haesten (the latter a pretty prevalent reoccurring character throughout the whole series, and kind of a huge rear end in a top hat). fake edit: spoilers for info from the books that hasn't happened yet in the show, for any of you who didn't read the books
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Nov 7, 2015 01:22
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Also, from what I remember of the first book, didn't a lot more happen and time go by before Alfred became king?
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Nov 7, 2015 01:53
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savinhill posted:Also, from what I remember of the first book, didn't a lot more happen and time go by before Alfred became king? As I remember he was already king, or at least was just about to be. It was pretty early in the books, for example, when Uhtred had to do his penance in front of Alfred, and either before or after that he almost got his rear end kicked by Steapa Snotor, who I've now realized they merged with Leofric in the show.
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Nov 7, 2015 02:00
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life is killing me posted:As I remember he was already king, or at least was just about to be. It was pretty early in the books, for example, when Uhtred had to do his penance in front of Alfred, and either before or after that he almost got his rear end kicked by Steapa Snotor, who I've now realized they merged with Leofric in the show. Alright, for some reason I thought there was a lot more of insecure, womanizing pre-king Alfred in the first book, and that Steapa didn't appear til the second when they were recruiting Saxon farmers, peasants, etc for the big armies Alfred wants to build
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Nov 7, 2015 02:38
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savinhill posted:Alright, for some reason I thought there was a lot more of insecure, womanizing pre-king Alfred in the first book, and that Steapa didn't appear til the second when they were recruiting Saxon farmers, peasants, etc for the big armies Alfred wants to build Now I might be wrong. Just started re-reading the first book this morning while staying with my FIL at the hospital. Not much else to do in the ICU
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Nov 7, 2015 17:58
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life is killing me posted:Now I might be wrong. Just started re-reading the first book this morning while staying with my FIL at the hospital. Not much else to do in the ICU That sucks, hope your Dad-In-Law gets better soon.
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Nov 7, 2015 21:06
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savinhill posted:That sucks, hope your Dad-In-Law gets better soon. Thanks. We've been here all weekend. Seems I AM wrong. Sort of at least. Almost halfway in and really, Alfred isn't king yet. That said, I was probably thrown off because in the books, by the time Uhtred is older, Alfred is king. And the fight with Ubbe seemed sort of contrived but overall it was good...Uhtred was supposed to have killed Ubbe in the battle not before it, and I think the only way Uhtred really wins the fight in the book is because Ubbe slips in some mud. To Uhtred's credit, he at least admits this more than once.
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Nov 8, 2015 22:09
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Well at least the show now has covered a wide range of rear end quality.
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Nov 8, 2015 23:09
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