We Need to Talk About The Winter King: A "Gritty" King Arthur TV series...👀

Рет қаралды 28,924

6 ай бұрын

Go to nordvpn.com/welsh and use the code "welsh" for 4 months free on a two year subscription!
They made another King Arthur TV series! And this one isn't like the old 1950s King Arthur movie, or that 2004 King Arthur movie, or that other 2017 King Arthur movie either! This one is a gritty remake!
Yay...
This TV series is (loosely) based on the Warlord series of books by the mighty Bernard Cornwell, and the books follow the adventures of Derfel, an Arthurian warrior, as he helps King Arthur secure his throne in a time of religious upheaval, changing gender roles and politics, and Saxon invasions!
The TV show is also here!
And it's definitely not just a cynical cash in on dark historical and fantasy shows like The Last Kingdom, Vikings, and Game of Thrones. It's definitely not that. Even though some of the costumes look identical, all the men are broody and wear black leather, there's lots of fairly gratuitous violence, and it looks almost the same as The Last Kingdom.
It isn't just a reskin. Ok? Ok.
Glad we cleared that up.
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@TheWelshViking 6 ай бұрын

Nord VPN reminder: you can get 4 months free on a 2 year subscription of NordVPN by going to nordvpn.com/welsh and using the code “welsh” at checkout!

@RogueB 6 ай бұрын

So funny to me that the propmaster was like, "Aw yeah, some colorful, freshly dyed yarn," but the costumers couldn't be bothered. "We're going for a gritty dark oil leather brown black metal rope dirt aesthetic. I took inspiration from my mechanic's garage floor."

@GaraksApprentice 6 ай бұрын

I'm really very sick of "grim historical" pieces. Please, TV people, give us some COLOUR in things set before the 17th century.

@gwynbleidd1917 6 ай бұрын

Im just sick of netflix and other massive companies doing "adaptations" of beloved book series and completely disrespecting them by not being remotely faithful to the source material, and also writing god awful garbage in place of the original books. Like, just make your own series if you're gonna basically only use the characters names and change everything else.

@swizzarmynige1585 6 ай бұрын

They did use colour , look at Merlin

@pervyboy69 6 ай бұрын

There was too much "colour"...

@gwynbleidd1917 6 ай бұрын

@@pervyboy69 found the bigot!

@dianeshelton9592 6 ай бұрын

@@pervyboy69this series is set just after the Romans left Britain. Since 25% of the soldiers manning Britain as an invading force were black then it is natural that a large number remained due to family commitments etc, not to mention mixed race children being in abundance. The only reason that during the Middle Ages the majority of the population was white was due to the watering down of the mixture of the races so that people got lighter and lighter. So pretty damn accurate I would have thought.

@SciFiFemale 6 ай бұрын

It's mind-blowing that films like The Court Jester, 1955, The Crimson Pirate, 1952, had the right sort of colours for the costumes. Muppets Christmas Carol, the costumes are bang on right for the time period, including the colours. Can we please go back to those types of films.

@TheWelshViking 6 ай бұрын

MCC is one of the best costumed historical films ever

@carminaburana9765 6 ай бұрын

The first image of the priest in the white coat reminded me of a young Colonel Sanders. Without my glasses on, he looks like he fought for the Confederacy.

@samuelleask1132 6 ай бұрын

Disappointing though the Winter King show’s disregard for history is, at least it brought us one good thing: A ranty Jimmy video 😂

@worritis7446 6 ай бұрын

From a Welsh/Cardiffian perspective this is disappointing to hear - i remember hearing about it from a friend who worked at Wolf Studios, and was very excited for another big series to be produced here, but with that in mind why not bring in the local knowledge? Like i bet the people at St Fagans would be chomping at the bit to show some TV producers properly old examples and advise on how to make things look rich and interesting and compelling but nope. Also mispronunciation in a Welsh program is shameful

@SuperFunkmachine 6 ай бұрын

The rope is because they ran out of leather but the S&M store had some rope in stock.

@danyf.1442 6 ай бұрын

"You' d think lessons would have been learned from Game Of Thrones..." boy that still hurts lol!

@joanabbott9531 6 ай бұрын

Based on the archaeology I’ve seen, the Romans had a fondness for basements. Storage and servant passages mostly, but there are basements in Pompeii and the Palatine hill in Rome is honeycombed with passages and cellars.

@attewoode 6 ай бұрын

The a+e at the beginning of Aelle is a letter called “ash”. It is pronounced, not surprisingly, like the letter a in “ash” or “cat”. So the king’s name is pronounced like Ahl-leh Also, since Derfel Cadarn is a captured Saxon, one might expect his name to be pronounced in old English fashion. Guess what! When f is next to an e or I, it tends to be pronounced as v in OE. So it comes out pretty much the same as the Welsh pronunciation.

@TheWelshViking 6 ай бұрын

Superb. 👏👏👏

@kathrynt.3710 6 ай бұрын

yes!!! im not even that well-versed in OE but i CRINGED ALOUD when i heard "ayelly". not only is there the obvious ash problem, but (as you've noted) the e at the end isn't pronounced like a modern long e either! the great vowel shift was still a thousand years away! it was pronounced like "eh", and if it were pronounced "ee" it'd be spelt with an i

@Misterfeind 6 ай бұрын

Okay but noww...You have to do Camelot '2011, and Camelot '67, and Excalibur '81, and King Arthur '04, and Merlin '98 and Merln 08

@thatotherted3555 6 ай бұрын

Don't forget _The Mists of Avalon_ 2001

@SusanYeske701 6 ай бұрын

And the movie Guinevere that aired on tv in 1993 and starred Noah Wyle and Sean Patrick Flanery. Very low budget I think, but my favorite version of Guinevere.

@thatotherted3555 6 ай бұрын

@@SusanYeske701 OMG thank you! Shirtless Sean Patrick Flanery was one of my early clues that I was gay, but I couldn't remember which TV special he was in.

@TheWelshViking 6 ай бұрын

I’ll need more beer for that.

@jamesv.7041 6 ай бұрын

This saddens me deeply - The Winter King is one of my favorite series written by one of my favorite authors. I too read the series during my undergrad studies and fell in love!

@rickansell661 6 ай бұрын

I'm afraid, being the outright perverse person I am, that I would be picking apart Modern Wales as Sub-Roman Wales. So much 'natural' landscape everywhere (not just Wales) has been modified by the hand of man. I'm afraid it always (or, maybe, just 'often') jars with me, and sometimes they don't even bother to brush out things like big metallic structures. Take any shot of 'natural' Eryri (specifically, because it is an ur-example) and you will be looking at piles of mine-waste and huge Quarries. Eryri is an Industrial, not Natural, or even Agricultural, landscape. And, coming from where you do, you will be familiar with Mynydd Parys (Parys Mountain to my fellow Sais - go look it up). You do have to be careful though. I look out of my window and see man-made Heathland. Man-made in the Bronze Age, when it was overgrazed to such an extent that the thin topsoil was worn away.

@Kroeghe 6 ай бұрын

Wait! "Caer Cadarn"?! Kyle Katarn?! Star Wars, stop stealing names from stuff!

@eazy8579 4 ай бұрын

I want a “Gritty and realistic” medieval tv series, and it’s just a show about like, some guys building a cathedral, a local lord settling property disputes, and some peasants doing peasant shenanigans, in period accurate outfits.

@thomphan9518 4 ай бұрын

Ive rewatched the guedlon castle documentary so many times. If that was an actual plotted show, I’d be obsessed.

@mondriaa 4 ай бұрын

The Pillars of the Earth?

@TheNorthlander 4 ай бұрын

@@mondriaa Fuck yeah, Pillars of the Earth. The books, the show, and the game are a perfect look into the everyday life of this little community and the cathedral that's being built alongside the many stories and lives of Kingsbridge.

@BlueEyedBrunette 4 ай бұрын

Honestly that seems like a "be the change you want to see" thing from some reenactor communities.

@joseze5902 3 ай бұрын

La Catedral del mar, spanish tv series and really good

@TocsTheWanderer 6 ай бұрын

Landscapes are like dogs. Everybody thinks that theirs are the best in the world, and everybody is correct.

@millymollymrst3537 6 ай бұрын

I hate it when programmes aren't historically accurate. The Welsh language is lovely and should be protected, so many other languages have been lost. I'm from Devon and as far as I'm aware no one speaks our language anymore and its lost to time.😢

@clairemullin249 6 ай бұрын

All those Arthuruan names are so much sexier in a Welsh accent.

@challalla 6 ай бұрын

I wasn't aware that this TV adaptation existed. Many years ago I was consulted on the transcription of names for a translation of the original books, so I ended up doing a lot of research on the names that appeared in them. It's a real hodgepodge of names pulled from various traditions, authors, and languages. Not just Welsh, but Irish, Old English, Old French, Latin... Cornwell himself gets some linguistic details wrong, and sometimes makes odd choices, e.g. Guinevere's sister being called Gwenhwyfach (either call the former Gwenhwyfar or the latter Guinevak to be consistent). Anyway, having done the research into how names like Derfel should properly be pronounced so that we could use transcribe them correctly in the translation, it's disappointing to hear about the mispronunciations in the adaptation.

@paulinemegson8519 6 ай бұрын

I’m from NZ….National beauty wise I think I’ve got a chance;) *throws a kiwi plushie into the ring” I can take ya!!! (Wales is gorgeous tho)

@anniehosking2408 6 ай бұрын

NZ blew me away. So many beautiful places. I think the Coromandel Peninsula was my absolute favourite.

@darthbee18 6 ай бұрын

Jimmy: WHY THE ROPE ACCESORIES THOUGH 😩🤦🏾 Me: SMH Jimmy, don't you know that there were shibari enthusiasts in Sub Roman Britain as well?? 🤪🤪🙃

@Alex-Sews 6 ай бұрын

They're reusing black leather tunic-jerkin things as costumes from like four other productions... there's no way in hell they're shelling out for tablet weaving for anyone they could possibly have use rope for a belt. LOL

@nixhixx 6 ай бұрын

Why rope when Tablet Weaving is so amazing!?

@TheWelshViking 6 ай бұрын

Right?!

@anneaddisonmeriwether5258 6 ай бұрын

but if it isn't washed out and dark, how will people know it's ~gritty~?!

@kitdubhran2968 6 ай бұрын

I’m curious what the hell they do with the yarn after it’s dyed if no one is wearing it? Just hang it outside for some random seasonal decor?

@EA-History 6 ай бұрын

The parts with the colors is probably the only parts with reenactors 😅

@not-a-summerchild 6 ай бұрын

I had the same thought at that point. And even then, they couldn't be bothered to put the nicely dyed, probably still wet yarn on a clean drying rack, but slung them over rough, lichen covered pieces of timber... The many little things that would just make no sense in any scenario, realistic or fantastic, are so frustrating! -- grumbles in disappointed long time living history hobbyist -- And don't get me started in the topic of lazy and absurd costuming... at least make it make sense in-universe. Please?!

@ellawright4764 6 ай бұрын

I've been waiting for a video about this one! Have you ever considered making a video about Aneirin's poem Y Gododdin? Would love to hear an informed (and Welsh!) perspective on it's historicity!

@TheWelshViking 6 ай бұрын

Oh, I meant to ages ago! Thanks for the reminder 😅

@Sinewmire 6 ай бұрын

Like the Last Kingdom, the very strong feeling I got from this was "too cool for school" - they are attempting to display a deep contempt for the books, the history, and the language, and are deliberately attempting to show how cool they are by ignoring them and doing their own thing and making it look "cool and modern". It's like they're afraid they're going to get picked on at school if they seem to interested in this "history" stuff.

@gwynbleidd1917 6 ай бұрын

Yes, this! I hate that modern adaptations of books set in earlier time periods show so much contempt for the source material. Like for fuck sake, if you don't like the original works, then why the fuck are you doing an "adaptation"?!?!?

@elizabethclaiborne6461 6 ай бұрын

Suspect that turquoise is supposed to be woad, but it looks like they just ordered some Whatever Blue fabric in bolts instead of finding out what woad looks like. It’s indigo, which would’ve made a much better production design…

@wilhelmseleorningcniht9410 6 ай бұрын

Ælle would most likely be pronounced something like the A of 'cat' followed by an L sound, which might´ve been light at this point like in German, however unlike German it's going to be geminate meaning held twice as long in the mouth. Germanic languages in general at this point in time have geminate consonants like Norwegian and Swedish do today Then it'd be followed by an E sound as in from 'get' (or the A of gate as a short monophthong, think of how a Scot might say it). So it's A as in cat, followed by an L twice as long, followed by E as in get

@thomasllewelynjones5546 6 ай бұрын

Let’s get a drama in Welsh based off an old English legend and have the English characters and place names pronounced in an inconsistent Welsh way

@moniqueleigh 6 ай бұрын

From a costumer's perspective (I've done mostly community theatre on zero to nearly-zero budget), they probably *are* raiding the closets of other productions. Whether it was the Viking grim-dark shows I couldn't say, but yeah. Director says "I want something that looks like Production X." Costumes see if they can get those exact costumes or at least something that looks close. Also, as to getting actors into natural waist trousers.... /sigh Good luck with that. I costumed a production of The Music Man a few years back. Y'know, set around 1912-ish. It was nearly impossible to get any of our gents to wear their pants at their waists. Even when I got costumes from a professional theatre nearby, the guys insisted on wearing them at their hips and complaining about the fit/length. Well, my dears, they Would FIT if you would wear them properly!!!!! I fussed at them, the director fussed at them. It didn't matter. At the top & bottom of every production: "If you are playing a male-coded character, PLEASE wear your trousers AT YOUR WAIST." Five minutes in: fully half of my guys are wearing them at their hips with the hems dragging under their shoes.

@EldhjaertaZ 6 ай бұрын

Modern men really have zero concept of where their waist is. I'm a student marshall in Sweden - meaning that I (amongst other things) police the dress code at formal student events at my uni - and we have a long and proud history of formal wear at balls and the like, meaning tailcoats... If I actually told people of for messing up the dress code, half the people at every ball would have to turn at the door (the other half would be wearing ball gowns)! I get that not everyone will have a well startched shirt bossum, or that people can't wear medals correctly, but have a look in the mirror will you! The wide white stripe between waistcoat and trousers makes them look like they all have beer bellies, even though their mostly fairly fit or a bit scrawny 20-somethings. Then they try to accommodate this by lowering the waistcoat, instead making it look like their clothes are both too big and too small at once! As well as exposing the unstartched part of the shirt after the piqué ends (if their even wearing a formal evening shirt to begin with). I'm publishing a strongly worded dress guide in the student papers this semester. Even in the windows of high end stores I see the same issue. Just wear the clothes properly!!

@Eyrenni 6 ай бұрын

@@EldhjaertaZ No, as another Swede, who went to a wedding last year that had some instructions and a link to a webpage for if you wanted a more in-depth explanation on the clothing etiquette, I'll say; if they're at uni, they have been taughthow to read and research. They can and should do both. There is no excuse. If it can be done for a wedding, it can be done for a university ball. 😂 My hope goes out to you and your thankless task.

@Eyrenni 6 ай бұрын

I feel for you, OP. As someone who's worked in costuming as well, I would get extremely frustrated as well if it were me. And then I would either do what you did or tell them to "suffer or obey" lol. Just be extremely petty about it because they're actors. Their job/task is to wear strange clothes at times. The world is full of wonders! Experience them while you can, my lovely nuisances!

@moniqueleigh 6 ай бұрын

@@Eyrenni Having been on both sides of the "this costume is WEIRD" conversation, I feel for them. But we did explain to them at the very first costume meeting: "I'm sorry to inform you that your waist is NOT likely to be below your belly button. It is probably even with your elbows when you bend your arms. It is definitely that part of your torso that bends when you (try to) touch your toes." Top of every show: "Guys, I don't care how awkward it feels. Your character is not a 21st century person. HE thinks this is normal and right. (And the women in his life are whispering behind his back about how sloppy he looks right now.)" I even had the ladies nudging their partners occasionally. LOL, at least THEY mostly knew where their waists were supposed to be....

@pufthemajicdragon 6 ай бұрын

SO excited to see you collab with Bernadette! Both of you are amazing people!

6 ай бұрын

I'd rather get everyone mispronouncing the same words the same way, so at least it's consistent and I can pretend is an in-world thing, than having random pronunciations and naming. It just highlights the problem to me.

@kerriemckinstry-jett8625 6 ай бұрын

Minus: A show that looks like it's got too many problems to be worth it. Plus: An author to add to my reading list. 🙂

@gwynbleidd1917 6 ай бұрын

Bernard Cornwell is great fun to read! His Grail Quest series, which is centered around an English longbowman in the hundred years war, is absolutely fantastic.

@kerriemckinstry-jett8625 6 ай бұрын

@@gwynbleidd1917 Thank you! I will keep an eye out for that one.

@KanonBlack13 6 ай бұрын

"Fun end screen text. (Remember to replace)" I presume it was not replaced. 😂❤

@Nyctophora 6 ай бұрын

_Sumer is icumen in_ was definitely not period-appropriate! Poor Jimmy, watching this so we don't have to. Or at least know what we're in for. It's a service.

@tillysrad 6 ай бұрын

actually, second comment sorry, but i made the mistake of studying old english in uni so i gotta use that knowledge somewhere. the "æ" character in old english denotes an "ah" sound, like the "a" in "cat" or "hat". famously, the beowulf manuscript begins "hwæt!" (a sort of call to attention similar to "hark!" or "hear ye!") and youd pronounce it like "hwat" im no expert on this next part (my middle english classes were far less concerned with grammar and pronunciation), but it seems there was a sort of shift later within the development of early-modern english where the "æ" character either became an "eh" sound or an "ah" sound. for example: the name "ælfwynn" becomes "elfwyn" for the brief period its still used, but the first "æ" in "ælfræd" very clearly retains that "ah" sound in "alfred". this is useful to nobody and im not getting to any point here really, i just think its cool

@Dunadi 6 ай бұрын

I was ready to forgive the atrocious costuming (hello medieval hemp rope shibari on a Christian bishop), I am not even expecting anything from armouring, the changes necessary for a book to tv adaptation, but for Heaven's sake how could they make it sooooo mind numbingly BOOORIING? And in roughly 9 hours they adapted what, half of the book, nothing was achieved plotwise. Unfair comparison, but in that time Middle Earth was saved! But yeah the landscape shots were breathtaking.

@oldmangames9292 6 ай бұрын

I'm a massive fan of the books - but don't have a Welsh bone in my body. I'm not coming at this from ANY sense personal local connection. Yet I WANT to see this story told with the proper Welsh flavour. I WANT to see proper Welsh pronunciations, proper period costumes, props and architecture. I WANT it to feel like a different time and place. I WANT to be immersed. Why do TV companies always screw this up? And why can't they understand that they are, actually screwing it up? *btw, does anyone know of a vid giving proper pronunciations of all the names/places in the books so I can re-read them properly ?

@alexiosi2646 6 ай бұрын

Can you explain to me what you mean when you use the term Welsh, because the Welsh didn't exist as a nation or identity during the period this story covers. Thanks

@oldmangames9292 6 ай бұрын

@@alexiosi2646 You're right. I guess I'm referring to the remnants of the old British tribes, culture and language which were not directly subsumed by saxon and viking migrations/invasions - of which the Welsh language is the closest modern approximation, and the Welsh cultural history is probably closest to the setting of the story.

@3879keith 6 ай бұрын

they just dont care about the real story as long as they tick all the woke casting boxes

@alexiosi2646 6 ай бұрын

@@oldmangames9292 This is an incredibly interesting period of history, specifically how the Romano British of late antiquity became the English. I've collected a lot of books that cover this subject, many of which jar with the narrative of Cornwell's trilogy, however the novels are excellent and it's truly a shame to see such a poor adaptation made for TV.

@eunomiac 6 ай бұрын

Simple: We're white. We aren't allowed to have a culture.

@EnlightenedPigeon 6 ай бұрын

It's such a shame to see this show go the way of the Last Kingdom (or worse). While Cornwell's books can be questionable in terms of historical accuracy, they're *never* boring or lifeless. The descriptions and characters are always full of life and colour, and seeing all of that get thrown out the window in favour of making a GoT ripoff is just depressing (and ironic, considering the fact that the books GoT was based on were themselves incredibly colourful and lively). I just got into the Warlord trilogy this year, and those books are easily some of the best historical fiction I've ever read. It makes me sad to not see them get the love and passion that they deserve

@erikplaysdrunk9024 6 ай бұрын

I must say, what I like most about these TV shows is how enjoyable they make the books to read after I finish watching these clichéd productions.

@permiebird937 6 ай бұрын

The rope is mostly home decor trims. They look really cool when mixed and layered. Is there any rhyme or reason for it? Hey, It looks cool, right? 🤦

@Tobascodagama 6 ай бұрын

I can't keep myself from hearing "Kyle Katarn" whenever you try to imitate their mispronunciation of "Caer Cadarn".

@TheWelshViking 6 ай бұрын

I kept hearing it and nearly put a couple of images in!

@phoenixfritzinger9185 6 ай бұрын

Kyle Cartman?

@Waggadudewagga 6 ай бұрын

I agree totally on the whole pronounciation thing. Look, I am german. I grew up with american B Movies where every villain is german (I can live with that given the history of the 20th century, I get it. it's ok, really), but, even after several effing decades I find not giving a fuck about pronounciation much, much more offensive.

@iris.holmes 6 ай бұрын

Don't forget the Russians!! Lucky you Germans, after a genocide came the Cold War, so Americans could diversify their bad guys! Yay! 😅

@nickverbree 6 ай бұрын

I was also in the camp of really hoping The Northman would change early medieval costuming in film. Guess we're going to be waiting a while longer

@jennifercourtemanche9793 6 ай бұрын

Why do the horses have modern tack?! And also almost all historical shows the horses are far far too large and warmblood looking.

@TheWelshViking 6 ай бұрын

Ah, I was wondering if anyone equestrian would have more subtle errors to spot!

@C.G.Hassack 6 ай бұрын

And the brow band on the Dun/Buckskin, washed out bay, or whatever, is too tight.

@timmadison5410 6 ай бұрын

Unfortunately, productions like this one don't seem terribly interested in the source material beyond it being a proven literary property whose name gives them a bit of a boost and a thin gloss of credibility. I understand that historical accuracy in production design, particularly for an ongoing TV series, can be a very expensive proposition (as opposed to recycling available costuming), but it's a bummer. And you know, it's clearly a deeper issue than just how the show looks. The production doesn't put much value in the actual history or culture it purports to be about. The entertainment industry and to some extent the audience create this feedback loop divorced from actual history where mud, blood, and darkness is not just the aesthetic but largely what historical epics are expected to be.

@barbararowley6077 6 ай бұрын

I must admit, the first thought I had when I saw a trailer for this was “Jimmy’s going to have something to say about all that impractical, uncomfortable black leather”.

@MsSarahKelly 6 ай бұрын

I NEVER comment about ads that people throw into their videos because they are able to receive monetary compensation, but this was absolutely hands down hilarious to me for some reason. I love that you definitely did not know what language it even was that you were supposedly reading. 😂 I wish more ads were like this because it was “oh so smooth” and quite sarcastically charming! Um, now I’ll go back to watch the rest of the video.

@loisfitzpatrick5585 6 ай бұрын

All these series seem to use the same wardrobe department. Why don’t they consult with Welsh museums like at St Fagan? Also, beautiful earthy colours on a drying rack but none woven and made into clothes for the cast! It all seems directed at a very American audience, instead of making it realistic television producers seem to think that all Americans don’t understand history or ancient culture. If they don’t, no wonder when they’re fed these anachronistic series?

@maryherblet1133 6 ай бұрын

As an American, I agree. We understand that most things produced in the United States have historical inaccuracies, often the result of our melting pot culture. We don't expect the inaccuracies about European cultures in shows made in Europe.

@easternlights3155 6 ай бұрын

I have only done one semester of Old English so far, but yeah, that's definitely not how Ælle is pronounced. "Æ" is a single sound, pronounced as the "a" in "tap". And e would not come to be pronounced as an "ee" sound until cca the 16th century. But then again, if this is really made by the same people as the Last Kingdom, I'm not that surprised - they somehow managed to mispronounce "Alfred" on at least one occasion.

@Athena_0519 5 ай бұрын

Yes! I was taught Æ was like the A in “Apple” so I think we’re on the same track there! Like you said, definitely not two different vowel sounds.

@KanonBlack13 6 ай бұрын

You have been updating so regularly!!!! Please know this update is the strength I needed to start finally detangling my hair. Thank you ever so much.

@TheWelshViking 6 ай бұрын

You can do it!

@KanonBlack13 6 ай бұрын

I did it!

@lizhart81 6 ай бұрын

I didn't hold out much hope for this series after The Last Kingdom, but there was a small part of me that thought "but maybe this time it'll be ok". Never mind... The Welsh pronunciation is egregious, though. I'm an Englishwoman whose Welsh knowledge comes almost entirely from the old Colin and Cumberland and Catchphrase courses on the BBC Wales website, and even I gasped out loud at 'Dur-ffell'!

@Shindashi 5 ай бұрын

I laughed at Merlin's "unfortunate trope." Yeah...

@elizabethclaiborne6461 6 ай бұрын

The guy in the modern suit coat - he has set in sleeves and bag lining. Post Edwardian factory style clothing.

@catherinerw1 6 ай бұрын

Makes me think of a front-buttoing cassock (yes I might sing in a choir that uses them).

@doobat708 6 ай бұрын

Dude wearing rope wanted to be on Our Flag Means Death. And they couldn't even get that priest an alb??? Even a modern polyester alb would've been more appropriate than that weird coat. The only "weird caves" under Roman villas that immediately spring to mind are early home chapels when Christianity became more of a thing. Even then, they'd be fairly well finished spaces, cause Romans don't like messy stuff like that.

@Azphreal 6 ай бұрын

I remember reading a thing years ago where they were talking about the idea of Arthur in full plate and were saying that armour of the time would most likely be repurposed Roman armour or armour based on the Roman designs.

@Arianddu 6 ай бұрын

"Sumer is Icumen In" is mid-13thC, and they probably used it because it's one of the earliest songs in English we have, and the earliest secular one.

@wendymontie5660 6 ай бұрын

What is the flippin' point of getting the rights to a successful book/series and then going utterly bonkers and reworking it to suit the wobbly, precious egos of the producers??? I had mildly enjoyed The Last Kingdom until (as my MIL had said it was based on Cornwell's novels and was 'historic') I went to go look up some facts...DANNNNGGGG!??!?! I mean...y'all... Now this?

@TheNEOverse 6 ай бұрын

So that you get that nice, marketable 'Based on the stories of Best Selling Author Bernard Cornwell'...

@gleann_cuilinn 6 ай бұрын

The bad Welsh pronunciation probably felt the same as how it feels for me as a Texan when British people (mis)pronounce Spanish 😁

@TheWelshViking 6 ай бұрын

Or to Spanish people when Texans do the same ;)

@stevegoodson9022 6 ай бұрын

Haven't seen this, but it sounds like they might as well have given the characters mobile phones, and had them complain about their WiFi reception

@Angel_1394 6 ай бұрын

They need to improve these characters. Love Bernard Cornwell. He's an amazing writer. He's books deserve better adaptations

@crystallinecrow3365 6 ай бұрын

Jimmy: (explaining the mispronunciation of Caer Cadarn) Me: "did...did he just say 'carchadon'?? Isn't that a prehistoric shark???? (Google) oh, no that's 'Carcharodon'" 😂 😂

@SilverDawnArrow 6 ай бұрын

I had exactly the same thought!

@gadgetgirl02 6 ай бұрын

Okay, that NordVPN promo was exactly where Masterpiece Theatre and James Bond meet. 😊

@SarahGreen523 6 ай бұрын

I appreciate your review and I will not waste my time (and irritation) on this show. I'm so weary of watching poorly adapted historical fiction.

@caerrie 6 ай бұрын

The mispronounciation of Caer Cadarn legitimately sounds like they're talking about Turkish-German comedian Kaya Yanar. How did anyone convince these actors they were even in the ballpark with that? As ever, thank you for bringing this atrocity to our attention and suffering for our entertainment!

@JustGrowingUp84 6 ай бұрын

Hmm, Kyle Katarn was a Jedi character from the old, pre-Disney Star Wars Extended Universe. Now I wonder if his name was inspired by a mispronunciation of Caer Cadarn...

@suburbiaAZ 6 ай бұрын

I AUDIBLY MADE A SQUEE FOR YOUR SPONSORSHIP!! Congratulations, Jimmy!!

@TheWelshViking 6 ай бұрын

Thaaaaank!

@janetgraham-russell4476 Ай бұрын

At one point, it looked like Arthur was wearing a nice black Northface gilet.

@bujin1977 6 ай бұрын

Mispronuncation of Welsh names and words is something that really grinds my gears! There are a lot of fascinating youtube documentaries on the history of Wales, usually by English history channels, where they do a huge amount of research into the historical events, but then can't be arsed spending a couple of hours learning to pronounce the names anywhere close to what they should be, and for me that really ruins the experience. It surely can't be *that* hard to find someone who can help them with the pronunciation. Hell, I'd do it for free if people would just ask. But for a show with Welsh crew to allow the mispronunciation, especially the inconsistent mispronunciation, that's utterly criminal. I certainly won't waste my time with this series.

@beagleissleeping5359 6 ай бұрын

Why the ropes? Maybe it's to pay homage to the original The Beverly Hillbillies?😂😂

@violetsidhe 6 ай бұрын

I only know about the winter king because it was reccomend to me since I liked the last kingdom which was also written by Bernard Cornwall

@MartinAhlman 6 ай бұрын

When this one makes it way to Sweden, and it will happen, I'll make sure to miss it. Love your work!

@cypriennezed5640 6 ай бұрын

Excruciating when wonderful source material and a beautiful setting don't come together properly!

@janiced9960 6 ай бұрын

The washed out turquoise material has probably had several incarnations and started life in the TV series The Three Musketeers. I've seen it in so many television programmes they must want to get their money's worth. Pob Hwyl.

@michellecornum5856 6 ай бұрын

Congratulations on your sponsorship!! ((🤫 Shhhhhhh! Don't tell Jimmy that we ALL cosplay as him on Casual Tuesday.)) Unfortunately, it seems like for every step forward, we have to go back eight or twelve. (throws tiny fit) Costumes are haaaarrrd. The pronunciation thing is just weird, though. (then Jimmy does it, too 😄 ) I think, far too often, it's just easier to do whatever and get it out there. The thinking being "Who is going to know?" And pretty soon, a new visual short cut for a time period is established -- Vikings wear horns, Victorians wear corsets and faint, Jane Austen becomes the name of an era -- and the dumbing down of America spreads worldwide. Fight the good fight, James, fight the good fight!

@polinaignatenkova3634 Ай бұрын

The music you use at the beginning and especially the end of your videos makes me so happy! I love that style of singing, it scratches the right musical itch

@elizabethmcglothlin5406 6 ай бұрын

So lots of sloppy (Lack of) research and complete disregard for the source material? Thanks for saving us the time!

@andyedwards9222 5 ай бұрын

I was reluctant to watch it. In my opinion it's Cornwell's best work. I saw posters for it and the images caused me to wince. Managed to get through two episodes and that was enough. Costumes were bad and everything felt cheap. Hohum.

@wybub 6 ай бұрын

As a big fan of the books, it's honestly really sad to know the show went the direction of the gritty GoT cash in. The books, while not perfect in their portrayal of the "Arthurian era" do try really hard to be accurate the clothing, the Arms and Armour of the period, and battlefield tactics. Although I do believe some of the authors choices were also colored by the views of 90's archeology of the time to be fair.

@excuse_me_but_wtf 6 ай бұрын

I'd be brooding too, if I were a character in that show, but luckily I get to watch your great content instead!

@superlatero 6 ай бұрын

Ooooh see this is one of the reasons I'm here: great recommendation for a new (old) book series that I didn't yet know about 🙏

@mattburden6633 6 ай бұрын

I'm sad that they haven't made the story Derfel's POV. Too many other shows have followed Arthur or Merlin. This could have been so much better. Read the books numerous times, too good to read once. I have been eagerly anticipating a series for years. Not watched this yet, but I'm sure I'm gonna be disappointed from what you have said 😢

@rickansell661 6 ай бұрын

I get that 'trampling over my culture' bit. I do wonder how much Cultural Appropriation, and related disrespect, would be recognised as a problem if we 'White People' got a bit more angsty about similar (or, maybe, 'adjacent') things happening to our culture. Napoleon. Fun film with it's problems justifiable with a swift 'its only a film' or travesty that mangles the history of a National Hero? The Winter King. TV series that is allowed to tell the story it's own way, or casual mangling of a tale that is culturally important to at least two nations? Mispronunciations of Welsh and Old English names? Trivial slip or indicator of a casual, verging on colonialist, disregard for entire nations, their history and language? How would a British TV series that mangled the the name of John F Kennedy or George Washington, or referred to the places 'New Yorvik' and 'Dallaysis', fare? Oh yeah. Stereotypes. English characters, particularly Upper Class ones, as villainous villains. Welsh characters as backwards and dumb humorous characters. Start being aware of these things and you start being more aware of similar things happening in relation to 'People who are not like me'.

@samuelleask1132 6 ай бұрын

Really well said!

@oaktree3 6 ай бұрын

So many good points in this one! I think, as someone who teaches primary sources to teenagers in my classroom and who uses that 14th century song you mentioned as an example, I might have been tempted to throw something at my screen had I heard that one scene...Sheesh.

@OmnivorousReader 6 ай бұрын

..black leather... modern soled boots... *sigh* get a clue people... 13:13 did they hit up some actual reenactors for prop participation maybe?

@katienewell7350 6 ай бұрын

I was DEVASTATED when I saw the costuming for this show, as I was also hoping for better than Vikings and TLK after The Northman's example. It put me off so much that I still haven't watched it, and probably won't. Hearing about the plot and character changes was also really off-putting. Perhaps I'll give it a go in the future but seeing all the promo pics made me angy

@ffotograffydd 6 ай бұрын

You can’t escape it Jimmy, it’s on in the UK (ITVX) from 21st December! 😉 I’m in two minds about watching it, but as Bad Wolf did the production and filmed in Wales I feel like I should at least give it a go!

@yogsothoth7594 6 ай бұрын

Well I was about to write a comment about how Geoffrey of Monmouth describes Arthur wearing a leather jerkin at one point but I just went to look up the latin to compare and I'm pretty sure my english translation just randomly invents the leather part with at least the version of Historia Regum Britanniae in latin I just looked up to compare it to just saying "ipse vero Arturus lorica tanto rege digna indutus, auream galeam simulacro draconis insculptam capiti adaptat"

@paulaunger3061 6 ай бұрын

I picked up The Winter King in a library not long after it came out, and was really disappointed by just that representation of the pagans versus the Christians. The research may be better known now, but there was plenty available then for Cornwell to use! He just chose not to, and said as much in the afterword. That killed it for me before I started.... that much historical distortion right from the start, how good was the rest likely to be??

@GallowglassVT 6 ай бұрын

Just out of curiosity, was there still a pagan presence in the former Roman controlled areas? I know that Ireland and the Pictish areas of Scotland were, but aside from potential evidence of temples being refurbished and a Kings & Generals video saying that Celtic paganism persisted in the north of what became England for a bit, I've not seen much.

@stananders2333 6 ай бұрын

It seems to be a common assumption recently, but i havent seen any evidence for it and plenty contemporary against it. The Britons, once converted, seem to have stayed christian, while anglosaxons didnt convert till the 600s. Constantius of Lyons assumes a catholic Britannia, as does Patrick and Gildas, Bede argues that it was a problem that the Britons didnt try to convert the Anglosaxons and Aldhelm argues with the Cornish king about what the right day to celebrate easter is. That covers from the 480s(430s) to the 730s, there just isnt any space for a large scale reversion to happen, and to all accounts, it seems even the common ppl were sufficiently christianized to stay that way after the pagan conquest, with thousands showing up when the Roman missionaries turn up in 597

@bartolomeothesatyr 24 күн бұрын

I hate the (lack of) color grading in this and other "historical" fantasy series like it. Everything is either washed-out blue, muddy brown, or too dark to discern from black. HUMAN EYES ARE CAPABLE OF PERCEIVING A WHOLE SPECTRUM OF COLOR, USE IT!!!!

@lukebatchelor717 16 күн бұрын

my number one complaint of every tv show in existence these days

@TheNorthlander 4 ай бұрын

It really is a shame that these shows are so afraid of at least leaning towards the material culture of the period they're covering. Even though "The Outlaw King" was *faaaar* from perfect, you could tell it was set in the early 14th century! You can tell that! Especially since in the story department, I like Vikings and The Last Kingdom! I think their script and acting and storytelling is great! I just can't watch these shows with my bestie without commenting on everything that's wrong. 😂

@bartolomeothesatyr 24 күн бұрын

David Dawson as Alfred of Wessex in The Last Kingdom gave one of the best performances that I've ever seen in any medium. I wish the rest of the cast were as good as he was.

@rhys12435 6 ай бұрын

One day I will make a lush beautiful adaptation of the lantern bearers by rosemary sutcliff I swear I will

@HenryTinker 5 ай бұрын

The costuming is very Vikings aesthetic, it was clear that's what they were going for and it doesn't look good. But as a Welsh person, the pronunciation genuinely bothers me. The lack of thought there is disrespectful to be honest. You don't have to speak Welsh or even be able to pronounce letters specific to the language like 'ch', 'll', 'rh', 'dd'. Just be consistent and don't anglicize Welsh words, especially character and place names. I can understand the Derfel=Duh-full initially, (because 'f' doesn't read as a 'v' sound to English speakers) but it would take seconds to google how to pronounce the name correctly.

@gwynbleidd1917 6 ай бұрын

Not surprised another wealthy production company disgraced yet another Bernard Cornwell series by not respecting the source material. So far, the only tv adaptation of a Bernard Cornwell book series that hasn't been laughably terrible was the Sharp series from like the 90s.

@TheWelshViking 6 ай бұрын

Mighty Sharpe

@janiced9960 6 ай бұрын

Come back Sean, all is forgiven.

@helenafarkas4534 6 ай бұрын

as someone who watched that ENTIRE series, and loved the books, I have to disagree: the Sharpe series was butchered in every possible way - how do you get SEAN BEAN - a BLOND BUFF man from the NORTH OF ENGLAND - his accent is NOT subtle! - to play a LEAN DARK HAIRED man from LONDON?!?!?!?!? then you've got the costumes that the extras were too scared sillly to get dirty that had clearly been unpacked from the costume truck 5 minutes ago, when the books go into GREAT detail how broken down and dowdy the uniforms were, then you've got plot points all out of order, and squeezed into odd shapes - yeah the Sharpe series was butchered in a MAJOR way, we just didn't know any better and were greatful for what pittance we got. at least the theme song slaps though...

@gwynbleidd1917 6 ай бұрын

@@helenafarkas4534 fair enough, and to be honest, I've read a handful of Cornwell's Sharpe stories, but not all of them, unlike the grail quest series, and last kingdom, so I guess I couldn't have caught all of the betrayals to the source material. And I also haven't watched the Sharpe show in years at this point so I probably look back at it through rose tinted nostalgia glasses. I guess tv series adaptations truly do always suck compared to the source material, cause Sharpe was the only example which I thought was halfway decent lol. Netflix and others butcher and disrespect so many good books at this point with shitty "adaptations"

@Fyrdman 5 ай бұрын

Lol wdym? Bernard gave the series his blessing. Even defended it when people gave it backlash (and rightfully so) for adding non white characters for affirmative action reasons.

@ladyliberty417 6 ай бұрын

I enjoy your exasperation to the extent that I learn a lot from it, it’s eloquent!! Thanks for warning us of another show to avoid, ha!! Stay well Jimmy, always love hearing you speak Welsh🥰✌🏼