I just read them a few months ago and liked them very much. The only other Cook books I'd read were all the Black Company and Garrett ones as well as Swordbearer and I'd hated Swordbearer so much that I was a little wary of reading his earlier stuff. I was delighted to find that I was sucked right into the story and didn't find it to be nearly as predictable, derivative and poorly paced as I thought Swordbearer was.
I rather like the grim stuff and Darkwar has no shortage of that and I really enjoy how he can have a character do something completely reprehensible and yet I still root for them.
My next goal is to obtain all of the Dread Empire novels to give them a go.
Sam
Ram≤n Pe±a <kunimon@wanadoo.es> wrote: .
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
>
> Has anyone else read them recently? They are memorable, if for
> nothing else, for some of the most appalling covers ever to insult a
> Glen Cook novel.
I did! There were quite a few dangling plot holes but I liked a lot how
the scope of the narration kept increasing more and more, from the iron
age village in the beginning to the star-spanning war at the end.
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<P>I just read them a few months ago and liked them very much. The only other Cook books I'd read were all the Black Company and Garrett ones as well as Swordbearer and I'd hated Swordbearer so much that I was a little wary of reading his earlier stuff. I was delighted to find that I was sucked right into the story and didn't find it to be nearly as predictable, derivative and poorly paced as I thought Swordbearer was.
<P>I rather like the grim stuff and Darkwar has no shortage of that and I really enjoy how he can have a character do something completely reprehensible and yet I still root for them.
<P>My next goal is to obtain all of the Dread Empire novels to give them a go.
<BLOCKQUOTE style="PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: #1010ff 2px solid">.<BR>.<BR>.<BR>.<BR>.<BR>.<BR>.<BR>.<BR>.<BR>.<BR>.<BR>.<BR>.<BR>.<BR>.<BR>.<BR>.<BR>> <BR>> Has anyone else read them recently? They are memorable, if for<BR>> nothing else, for some of the most appalling covers ever to insult a<BR>> Glen Cook novel.<BR><BR>I did! There were quite a few dangling plot holes but I liked a lot how<BR>the scope of the narration kept increasing more and more, from the iron<BR>age village in the beginning to the star-spanning war at the end.<BR><BR>-Ramon<BR><BR>=======================================================================<BR>To unsubscribe, subscribe, or access the archives of this list,<BR>visit <HTTP: GC-Mail.html GC ~shpshftr www.xmission.com>.</BLOCKQUOTE><BR><BR><P>"I donÆt get it, I mean what is it about relatively sane people (usually male it has to be said) who turn into really irritating wankers as soon as they get near a tour bus? Being in a band is not a short cut to ignorance and childishness; no matter how many times Liam Gallager pretends it is. The sad truth is that the more I see of the business the more I realize that Spinal Tap was just too tame." - Dean White, <STRONG>New Model Army</STRONG></P><p><br><hr size=1>Do you Yahoo!?<br>
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I lurked during the last Swordbearer discussion, mostly because the people who didn't like it seemed to cover all my reasons and I dislike being repetitive.
It's been a few years since I tried to read it and it irritated me so much that I didn't finish reading it which means I'll have a hard time specifically addressing all of your questions, so let me try to sum up:
Generally, I don't mind predictable or tried and true story formulas if they're done well, I just didn't think this was. The story moved along too quickly for me to either a)buy what was happening or b)care at all about it. I needed more character, more background or something. I remember being under the impression at the time that the plot went the way it did because that was the way he wanted it to go and I felt like it should be a little more organic and character driven. There's some RPGers on this list so I'll use the analogy that it's like playing in a game where the GM has decided what's going to happen in the story and no action you take seems to be able to affect that. No flow to the story and no fun.
I like the basic concept you believe he started with and I very much enjoy the recurring theme of people in shades of grey that Glen Cook uses in his books, I just think he's done it way better than in Swordbearer.
Now, having said that, I've considered going back and reading it again to see if my opinion has changed and if I could actually finish it this time, but it was a borrowed copy that has since been returned to someone I no longer know and at this point I'm not too keen on spending money on it. Maybe after I'm done acquiring the Dread Empire novels, I'll take another run at it.
Sam (studiously ignoring the political comments out of a sincere desire not to cause an OT explosion) :-}
Derrill 'Kisc' Guilbert <ninjaspam2@insaneninjahero.com> wrote:Alright, I know we've had this discussion before, but explain to me about
Swordbearer again (you aren't the only one who doesn't like it, if you
weren't here for the last time).
I /liked/ Swordbearer. I /liked/ that the protagonist changed sides, that
both sides were run by human beings who were, in the end, selfish pricks
after their own agenda.
I mean, that is what this whole Iraq thing is, right? Bush is a moron with
some agenda (that I'm not aware of because I try to ignore that entire
family) and Saddam Hussien is, in fact, Evil.
Now, I'll give you the poorly paced; I think this one book could have used a
little rewrite and another hundred pages at least.
I do not see the derivative. I thought that the story was intended as a
different twist on the standard "legendary sword" type story. (Hmmm. Was
there ever a "standard" legendary sword story? Because I can't think of
one.)
Predictable is a tough one for me. Many stories are predictable for me, but
other people don't complain about them being predictable. What aspects of
the story were predictable? The Garrett books are predicatable, in some
sense: he always spends time with a hottie, generally one that causes him
problems, and hilarity ensues.
Here's how I envision Mr. Cook as having come up with the story for
Swordbearer: "So there is this hero, right? And he has this sidekick, and
this legendary sword. Well, what if the story didn't go like we thought?"
and things snowballed from there.
This is a serious question; I'm not being a smartass (for once).
Kisc
"I donÆt get it, I mean what is it about relatively sane people (usually male it has to be said) who turn into really irritating wankers as soon as they get near a tour bus? Being in a band is not a short cut to ignorance and childishness; no matter how many times Liam Gallager pretends it is. The sad truth is that the more I see of the business the more I realize that Spinal Tap was just too tame." - Dean White, New Model Army
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<P>I lurked during the last Swordbearer discussion, mostly because the people who didn't like it seemed to cover all my reasons and I dislike being repetitive.
<P>It's been a few years since I tried to read it and it irritated me so much that I didn't finish reading it which means I'll have a hard time specifically addressing all of your questions, so let me try to sum up:
<P>Generally, I don't mind predictable or tried and true story formulas if they're done well, I just didn't think this was. The story moved along too quickly for me to either a)buy what was happening or b)care at all about it. I needed more character, more background or something. I remember being under the impression at the time that the plot went the way it did because that was the way he wanted it to go and I felt like it should be a little more organic and character driven. There's some RPGers on this list so I'll use the analogy that it's like playing in a game where the GM has decided what's going to happen in the story and no action you take seems to be able to affect that. No flow to the story and no fun.
<P>I like the basic concept you believe he started with and I very much enjoy the recurring theme of people in shades of grey that Glen Cook uses in his books, I just think he's done it way better than in Swordbearer.
<P>Now, having said that, I've considered going back and reading it again to see if my opinion has changed and if I could actually finish it this time, but it was a borrowed copy that has since been returned to someone I no longer know and at this point I'm not too keen on spending money on it. Maybe after I'm done acquiring the Dread Empire novels, I'll take another run at it.
<P>Sam (studiously ignoring the political comments out of a sincere desire not to cause an OT explosion) :-}
<BLOCKQUOTE style="PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: #1010ff 2px solid">Alright, I know we've had this discussion before, but explain to me about<BR>Swordbearer again (you aren't the only one who doesn't like it, if you<BR>weren't here for the last time).<BR><BR>I /liked/ Swordbearer. I /liked/ that the protagonist changed sides, that<BR>both sides were run by human beings who were, in the end, selfish pricks<BR>after their own agenda.<BR><BR>I mean, that is what this whole Iraq thing is, right? Bush is a moron with<BR>some agenda (that I'm not aware of because I try to ignore that entire<BR>family) and Saddam Hussien is, in fact, Evil.<BR><BR>Now, I'll give you the poorly paced; I think this one book could have used a<BR>little rewrite and another hundred pages at least.<BR><BR>I do not see the derivative. I thought that the story was intended as a<BR>different twist on the standard "legendary sword" type story. (Hmmm. Was<BR>there ever a "standard" legendary sword story? Because I can't think of<BR>one.)<BR><BR>Predictable is a tough one for me. Many stories are predictable for me, but<BR>other people don't complain about them being predictable. What aspects of<BR>the story were predictable? The Garrett books are predicatable, in some<BR>sense: he always spends time with a hottie, generally one that causes him<BR>problems, and hilarity ensues.<BR><BR>Here's how I envision Mr. Cook as having come up with the story for<BR>Swordbearer: "So there is this hero, right? And he has this sidekick, and<BR>this legendary sword. Well, what if the story didn't go like we thought?"<BR>and things snowballed from there.<BR><BR>This is a serious question; I'm not being a smartass (for once).<BR><BR>Kisc<BR><BR></BLOCKQUOTE><BR><BR><P>"I donÆt get it, I mean what is it about relatively sane people (usually male it has to be said) who turn into really irritating wankers as soon as they get near a tour bus? Being in a band is not a short cut to ignorance and childishness; no matter how many times Liam Gallager pretends it is. The sad truth is that the more I see of the business the more I realize that Spinal Tap was just too tame." - Dean White, <STRONG>New Model Army</STRONG></P><p><br><hr size=1>Do you Yahoo!?<br>
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Subject: Re: (glencook-fans) What a Wonderful World
Date: 13 Mar 2003 12:19:30 -0800 (PST)
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Very well put, I agree with darn near all of what you said. I would just like to add that another thing I appreciated about the Books of the South was the use of different narrators. As much as I LOOOOVE Croaker and his tragic, sardonic wit, I really enjoyed marvelling at Mr. Cooks facility at moving between narrative voices so well without losing the story or my interest.
Sam I Am
Robo Tchas <robotchas@yahoo.com> wrote:I read the first Black Company books before there were
any Books of the South and thought the end of the
White Rose was one of the most satisfying, bittersweet
endings ever. I've reread them countless times,
because they've become comfort books even though I
know them almost by heart by now. So I was ambivalent
when I saw that he was writing more: I'd get more
Black Company, but at the potential cost of spoiling
the end of the White Rose (imagine reading a sequel to
the Lord of the Rings in which Frodo comes back from
the SPOILER to fight a new evil that just popped up,
because of something Gandalf overlooked).
I liked the Books of the South û the one written by
Lady was a fascinating insight into her character, and
I liked Bleak Seasons (which seems to be most people's
least favorite) because of the Billy Pilgrim-esque
elliptical timeline and the sense of impending doom û
it begins to escape the limitations of the genre and
become a meditation on grief, which may be why some
people were bored with it (the ending is undercut
somewhat by later events, just as another example of
an ending being undone). But I don't reread them the
way I reread the first three...I think some narrative
sprawl crept in, they're not lean and mean like the
Books of the North, and while I like Murgen, the
characters aren't as colorful for the most part: I'll
take Marron Shed over Willow Swan any day.
And Silver Spike I really could have done without (see
Frodo...)
I should clarify: Cook needs money to live on, and if
he can get it through writing, by all means he should
do so. I don't begrudge him the last couple Garrett
books, and I buy hardcover to support him. My wish is
that he WERE "raking in the cash" and had the luxury
of writing what inspires him and not what his
publisher thinks will sell. I think in the long run
that kind of economic pressure hurts authors: if
Cook's next ten books were all "Angry Lead
Skies"-quality I imagine most of us would have little
interest in his eleventh. If he's inspired to go back
and tell the story of Old Father Tree's arrival,
great, otherwise I'm happy to leave it to my
imagination. And personally, I *like* all the stuff
that's left to the imagination. It makes the world
bigger and more real because there are stories you'll
never hear. Part of the sense of wonder is...wondering.
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<P>Very well put, I agree with darn near all of what you said. I would just like to add that another thing I appreciated about the Books of the South was the use of different narrators. As much as I LOOOOVE Croaker and his tragic, sardonic wit, I really enjoyed marvelling at Mr. Cooks facility at moving between narrative voices so well without losing the story or my interest.
<BLOCKQUOTE style="PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: #1010ff 2px solid">I read the first Black Company books before there were<BR>any Books of the South and thought the end of the<BR>White Rose was one of the most satisfying, bittersweet<BR>endings ever. I've reread them countless times,<BR>because they've become comfort books even though I<BR>know them almost by heart by now. So I was ambivalent<BR>when I saw that he was writing more: I'd get more<BR>Black Company, but at the potential cost of spoiling<BR>the end of the White Rose (imagine reading a sequel to<BR>the Lord of the Rings in which Frodo comes back from<BR>the SPOILER to fight a new evil that just popped up,<BR>because of something Gandalf overlooked).<BR><BR>I liked the Books of the South û the one written by<BR>Lady was a fascinating insight into her character, and<BR>I liked Bleak Seasons (which seems to be most people's<BR>least favorite) because of the Billy Pilgrim-esque<BR>elliptical timeline and the sense of impending doom û<BR>it begins to escape the limitations of the genre and<BR>become a meditation on grief, which may be why some<BR>people were bored with it (the ending is undercut<BR>somewhat by later events, just as another example of<BR>an ending being undone). But I don't reread them the<BR>way I reread the first three...I think some narrative<BR>sprawl crept in, they're not lean and mean like the<BR>Books of the North, and while I like Murgen, the<BR>characters aren't as colorful for the most part: I'll<BR>take Marron Shed over Willow Swan any day.<BR><BR>And Silver Spike I really could have done without (see<BR>Frodo...)<BR><BR>I should clarify: Cook needs money to live on, and if<BR>he can get it through writing, by all means he should<BR>do so. I don't begrudge him the last couple Garrett<BR>books, and I buy hardcover to support him. My wish is<BR>that he WERE "raking in the cash" and had the luxury<BR>of writing what inspires him and not what his<BR>publisher thinks will sell. I think in the long run<BR>that kind of economic pressure hurts authors: if<BR>Cook's next ten books were all "Angry Lead<BR>Skies"-quality I imagine most of us would have little<BR>interest in his eleventh. If he's inspired to go back<BR>and tell the story of Old Father Tree's arrival,<BR>great, otherwise I'm happy to leave it to my<BR>imagination. And personally, I *like* all the stuff<BR>that's left to the imagination. It makes the world<BR>bigger and more real because there are stories you'll<BR>never hear. Part of the sense of wonder is...wondering.<BR><BR>__________________________________________________<BR>Do you Yahoo!?<BR>Yahoo! Web Hosting - establish your business online<BR>http://webhosting.yahoo.com<BR><BR>=======================================================================<BR>To unsubscribe, subscribe, or access the archives of this list,<BR>visit <HTTP: GC-Mail.html GC ~shpshftr www.xmission.com>.</BLOCKQUOTE><BR><BR><P>"I donÆt get it, I mean what is it about relatively sane people (usually male it has to be said) who turn into really irritating wankers as soon as they get near a tour bus? Being in a band is not a short cut to ignorance and childishness; no matter how many times Liam Gallager pretends it is. The sad truth is that the more I see of the business the more I realize that Spinal Tap was just too tame." - Dean White, <STRONG>New Model Army</STRONG></P><p><br><hr size=1>Do you Yahoo!?<br>
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Subject: Re: (glencook-fans) sequels and ramblings (medium length)
Date: 13 Mar 2003 16:26:29 -0400
"Horky, Roger" wrote:
>
> I would opine that Godfather 2 was just as good if not better than
> the Godfather.
But both were drawn from the same source. Put the two movies together
and you more or less have the book (The Godfather) with a bit extra, all
written by the same hand.
>
> Part of the appeal of a sequel is timing. Reading the messages on this board, I get the impression that a good many of you have only recently begun reading the BC series, and thus were able to read them all in one (long) sweep. A certain amount of fatigue would naturally set in, reducing your enjoyment after the fourth or fifth book.
>
> However, I know that there are some on this board who read the first
> three when they first came out way back when, and whose only reaction
> to the end of White Rose was regret that there were no more books.
> Then, when the next titles came out, after such a long hiatus, there
> was a certain amount of excitement and anticipation, which even the
> best book may not live up to.
>
And of course the many looonnnnggggg years between the second book of
the South and the Glitter Stone series - years. Many years.
> I think that one of the problems (as has been said before) was that
> some of the later books didn't seem to have a fully-identified
> beginning, middle, and end--i could not imagine making a movie of
> them (although now that LOTR has demonstrated that it's possible to
> sustain interst in an unresolvbed storyline over the courrse of a
> year)--there was too much story for one single volume, sadly. I agree
> also that too many stories were wrapped up precipitously (but it was
> better than Dread Empire, where so many characters just died random
> battle deaths--GC overused the gimmick so often that my
> brother-in-law remembers nothing else about the series).
To me this is one of the joys of Cook.
Take your standard fantasy book where there are no insignificant main
character deaths. You know that the main characters will go through the
series and death is only a risk in moments of high drama where a death
would make sense.
Compare that to the first chapter of The Black Company and Sergeant
Mercy. As I started that book I identified Mercy as one of the main
characters - he was developed, his name explained, we saw his actions.
Then he goes down in a meaningless holding action, not dead, but
mortally wounded. (Last mentioned when Croaker was asked about his
changes and said "I've seen bigger miracles".) Then went Tom-Tom.
First chapter and two main character deaths. Without that I wouldn't
have accepted any of Raven's death scenes, and there would have been a
sense of danger missing from the series because I'd expect Raven,
Darling, Silent, One Eye, etc to live through all the books. Sure,
Croaker lived to write the book, but what about the other characters?
At anytime we might read "And X fell in the battle at Y" - making the
series more of a live and death struggle because death played a big
role.
If Moley died in the Garrett, well, I wouldn't be shocked the way I
would if another author killed off a main character. If the next BC
book opened (Possible spoiler) with the mention that somebody's mother
took him across the veil so he wouldn't be a become a bad boy, well, I
wouldn't be shocked. I've xome to expect main character death from
Subject: (glencook-fans) switching narrators (was What a Wonderful World)
Date: 13 Mar 2003 14:55:15 -0800 (PST)
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Yeah, I know a lot of folks feel that way, and I kinda understand how you could, I just don't. I especially loved getting an outside opinion on Croaker. It was very interesting to me to see him from someone else's perspective. I will admit that I found Bleak Seasons a little difficult to read the first time through but it's become one that I love to revisit.
Sam
Richard Chilton <rchilton@auracom.com> wrote:>... I really enjoyed marvelling at Mr. Cooks facility at moving
> between narrative voices so well without losing the story or my
> interest.
I hate to say this, but for me the multiple voices broke the series into
interrelated books as opposed to a continuing series. But that's just
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<P>Yeah, I know a lot of folks feel that way, and I kinda understand how you could, I just don't. I especially loved getting an outside opinion on Croaker. It was very interesting to me to see him from someone else's perspective. I will admit that I found Bleak Seasons a little difficult to read the first time through but it's become one that I love to revisit.
<BLOCKQUOTE style="PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: #1010ff 2px solid">>... I really enjoyed marvelling at Mr. Cooks facility at moving<BR>> between narrative voices so well without losing the story or my <BR>> interest.<BR><BR>I hate to say this, but for me the multiple voices broke the series into<BR>interrelated books as opposed to a continuing series. But that's just<BR>my opinion.<BR><BR>Richard<BR><BR>=======================================================================<BR>To unsubscribe, subscribe, or access the archives of this list,<BR>visit <HTTP: GC-Mail.html GC ~shpshftr www.xmission.com>.</BLOCKQUOTE><BR><BR><P>"I donÆt get it, I mean what is it about relatively sane people (usually male it has to be said) who turn into really irritating wankers as soon as they get near a tour bus? Being in a band is not a short cut to ignorance and childishness; no matter how many times Liam Gallager pretends it is. The sad truth is that the more I see of the business the more I realize that Spinal Tap was just too tame." - Dean White, <STRONG>New Model Army</STRONG></P><p><br><hr size=1>Do you Yahoo!?<br>
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We choose to go to the moon. We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard, because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone, and one which we intend to win, and the others, too.
We choose to go to the moon. We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard, because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone, and one which we intend to win, and the others, too.
Bingo ! That was my conclusion after finishing it for the first time.
Swordbearer is in many ways a literary exercise more than a storytelling
exercise. That's part of why things move so fast, this one was
definitely written on the assembly line (between parts assemblies, not
writing technique)
And I'd have said "...went downhill...", not "snowballed" :-)
Derrill 'Kisc' Guilbert wrote:
>Here's how I envision Mr. Cook as having come up with the story for
>Swordbearer: "So there is this hero, right? And he has this sidekick, and
>this legendary sword. Well, what if the story didn't go like we thought?"
>and things snowballed from there.
>
>This is a serious question; I'm not being a smartass (for once).
>
>Kisc
>
>
--
We choose to go to the moon. We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard, because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone, and one which we intend to win, and the others, too.
Actually, some of his earliest works are msyteries. "A Matter of Time"
and "Heirs of Babylon" are both murder mysteries.
Richard Chilton wrote:
>I think they started because Cook wanted to write a detective novel but
>was only known for fantasy. This way he could practice writting the new
>form while staying close to one he knew.
>At the start they are a bit "film Noir" with some fantasy, but not
>driven by fantasy. Change the war to a long running WWII, the vampires
>to nazis, and you have something approaching a Bogart movie for Sweet
>Silver Blues. Yes, there is lots of fantasy in it, but if they were
>fantasy driven there would be more understandable magic like the Lord
>D'arcy series.
>
>
We choose to go to the moon. We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard, because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone, and one which we intend to win, and the others, too.
The first three books in this series remain my favorites. I like Crocker's viewpoint and there were some clever set-ups that paid off later on.
I enjoyed having different characters become the first person viewpoint. As Crocker grew in statue, it became more difficult to identify with him. Other people needed to step in to replace him as as the point-of-view character.
I would love to see the next set of BC book set again in the North. I am hopeful that Cook will use elapsed time in the series to give familiar settings a new look. Rebuilding the City of Oar into a thriving metropolis. Discovering deeper levels of tombs in the Barrowland. Showing Father Tree to be something other than a benevolent God from another world.
Perphaps most important, I would like to see the Black Company shatter into factions and have to find itself and rebuild itself. Crocker, Murgen, and others are quick to tout the virtues of brotherhood. Yet the Company continues to absorb countless people and ideas from other cultures. At some point in time, the coin loses its value and needs to be reminted. The Company went South to find its origins but found only desolation, instead. Perhaps Cook will see his way to give the Company a crisis of spirit and forge his creation anew.
Subject: Re: (glencook-fans) Dread Empire - Prequels first, or no?
Date: 15 Mar 2003 11:39:21 -0800
Read 'em in chronological order, starting with "The Fire in His Hands",
the series works better that way since it introduces all the characters
and stes them on their paths.
Bill Acuff wrote:
> Greetings,
>
> Long time lurker, very infrequent poster ... need some advice from y'all.
>
> I'm about to start reading the Dread Empire series. I have the
> prequels (in total I have "The Fire in His Hands", "With Mercy Towards
> None", "A Shadow of All Night Falling", "October's Baby", "All
> Darkness Met", "Reap the East Wind", and "An Ill Fate Marshalling" ...
> took me some time to get them all--not as long as it took to get
> "Doomstalker", but that's another story <grin>).
>
> Here's the question: do I first read "The Fire in His Hands" or "A
> Shadow of All Night Falling" (and then come back and pick up the
> prequels later, I.e., to read them in the order as they were written
> and published) ... or, does it really matter?
>
> L8r,
>
> Bill
--
We choose to go to the moon. We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard, because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone, and one which we intend to win, and the others, too.
From: Les gropabos sont en lecture seule actuellement <gropabo@caramail.com>
Subject: RE: (glencook-fans) What's a morrion anyway?
Date: 22 Mar 2003 11:39:06 +0100
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Well morions were the typical european infantry helmets of the 16░ century. Their <BR>curved shape were supposed to deflect rather than stop missiles.<BR><BR>A face guard with a similar shape would have made its user blind, so it would have <BR>required to make something simple, that would have been useless when hit by a gun <BR>shot. Plus these helmets were supposed to be cheap. Footmen at this time wore nothing <BR>but their morion and a body piece of armor. Their legs, arms, front neck and face were <BR>unarmored.<BR><BR>Soulcatcher is not concerned with the price of armor pieces. In addition to that the <BR>inexistence of guns made face guards more effective (and BC soldiers had some, at least <BR>in the the first book) especially as it was supposed to be a mask rather than a protection.<BR><BR>Notice you can see, in the background of the french cover of first book (as showed in <BR>Eric Hermann's answer) a representation of a soldier wearing a morion with face guard. <BR
>The french translator, who generally made a great job, had changed the meaning of a <BR>sentence so that french readers thought most BC soldiers wore such morions, which may <BR>have influenced the illustrator.<BR><BR>GPB<P><P>______________________________________________________<BR>Boεte aux lettres - Caramail - <A HREF=http://www.caramail.com>http://www.caramail.com</A><P>
