Legend of the Seekers Main Casts (Then vs Now)
An underrated Medieval Fantasy show I first watched as a kid. As someone who love the Lord of the Rings trilogy, watched shows like Xena and Hercules, it was a welcoming surprise to find a medieval fantasy show.
Now re-watching it again as an adult, I realise two seasons are not enough as the the book series, which this show is based and inspired on still continues after season 2, which makes me want season 3 to happen.
Age is not an issue to me, they still look incredible now. If shows like Cobra Kai, Jurassic World, Star Wars, Top Gun Maverick and Ghostbusters are able to get the original casts to return, I don’t see why we can’t do the same.
Last month (Sep 2022), Tabrett Bethell (Cara Mason) post a throwback photo of her character with Craig Horner (Richard Cypher) which prompted replies from both Craig Horner and Bridget Regan (Kahlan Amnell).
It was clear from the comments that a lot of fans wants the show to return, especially now with the popularity of medieval fantasy shows like House of the Dragon and The Rings of Power.
The stars themselves are no doubt more than happy to reprise their roles provided they have the same producers and studios or at least with good writing as it is not easy to retain the original vibes and atmosphere.
Something which divides the fans of Lord of the Rings with The Rings of Power, as the new series does not really capture the spirit and atmosphere of Peter Jackson’s trilogy as it is not easy to simply duplicate the art of another.
Unlike House of the Dragon which manage to retain the vibes of Game of Thrones, from its soundtrack, characters, story-telling and atmosphere. But like any franchise, nothing can really beat or duplicate the original.
Well, for now, we can only hope that they will return, even for just one season. For now, here’s a wholesome clip of Tabrett Bethell goofing around with Bridget Regan on set.
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all RIGHT:
Why You're Writing Medieval (and Medieval-Coded) Women Wrong: A RANT
(Or, For the Love of God, People, Stop Pretending Victorian Style Gender Roles Applied to All of History)
This is a problem I see alllll over the place - I'll be reading a medieval-coded book and the women will be told they aren't allowed to fight or learn or work, that they are only supposed to get married, keep house and have babies, &c &c.
If I point this out ppl will be like "yes but there was misogyny back then! women were treated terribly!" and OK. Stop right there.
By & large, what we as a culture think of as misogyny & patriarchy is the expression prevalent in Victorian times - not medieval. (And NO, this is not me blaming Victorians for their theme park version of "medieval history". This is me blaming 21st century people for being ignorant & refusing to do their homework).
Yes, there was misogyny in medieval times, but 1) in many ways it was actually markedly less severe than Victorian misogyny, tyvm - and 2) it was of a quite different type. (Disclaimer: I am speaking specifically of Frankish, Western European medieval women rather than those in other parts of the world. This applies to a lesser extent in Byzantium and I am still learning about women in the medieval Islamic world.)
So, here are the 2 vital things to remember about women when writing medieval or medieval-coded societies
FIRST. Where in Victorian times the primary axes of prejudice were gender and race - so that a male labourer had more rights than a female of the higher classes, and a middle class white man would be treated with more respect than an African or Indian dignitary - In medieval times, the primary axis of prejudice was, overwhelmingly, class. Thus, Frankish crusader knights arguably felt more solidarity with their Muslim opponents of knightly status, than they did their own peasants. Faith and age were also medieval axes of prejudice - children and young people were exploited ruthlessly, sent into war or marriage at 15 (boys) or 12 (girls). Gender was less important.
What this meant was that a medieval woman could expect - indeed demand - to be treated more or less the same way the men of her class were. Where no ancient legal obstacle existed, such as Salic law, a king's daughter could and did expect to rule, even after marriage.
Women of the knightly class could & did arm & fight - something that required a MASSIVE outlay of money, which was obviously at their discretion & disposal. See: Sichelgaita, Isabel de Conches, the unnamed women fighting in armour as knights during the Third Crusade, as recorded by Muslim chroniclers.
Tolkien's Eowyn is a great example of this medieval attitude to class trumping race: complaining that she's being told not to fight, she stresses her class: "I am of the house of Eorl & not a serving woman". She claims her rights, not as a woman, but as a member of the warrior class and the ruling family. Similarly in Renaissance Venice a doge protested the practice which saw 80% of noble women locked into convents for life: if these had been men they would have been "born to command & govern the world". Their class ought to have exempted them from discrimination on the basis of sex.
So, tip #1 for writing medieval women: remember that their class always outweighed their gender. They might be subordinate to the men within their own class, but not to those below.
SECOND. Whereas Victorians saw women's highest calling as marriage & children - the "angel in the house" ennobling & improving their men on a spiritual but rarely practical level - Medievals by contrast prized virginity/celibacy above marriage, seeing it as a way for women to transcend their sex. Often as nuns, saints, mystics; sometimes as warriors, queens, & ladies; always as businesswomen & merchants, women could & did forge their own paths in life
When Elizabeth I claimed to have "the heart & stomach of a king" & adopted the persona of the virgin queen, this was the norm she appealed to. Women could do things; they just had to prove they were Not Like Other Girls. By Elizabeth's time things were already changing: it was the Reformation that switched the ideal to marriage, & the Enlightenment that divorced femininity from reason, aggression & public life.
For more on this topic, read Katherine Hager's article "Endowed With Manly Courage: Medieval Perceptions of Women in Combat" on women who transcended gender to occupy a liminal space as warrior/virgin/saint.
So, tip #2: remember that for medieval women, wife and mother wasn't the ideal, virgin saint was the ideal. By proving yourself "not like other girls" you could gain significant autonomy & freedom.
Finally a bonus tip: if writing about medieval women, be sure to read writing on women's issues from the time so as to understand the terms in which these women spoke about & defended their ambitions. Start with Christine de Pisan.
I learned all this doing the reading for WATCHERS OF OUTREMER, my series of historical fantasy novels set in the medieval crusader states, which were dominated by strong medieval women! Book 5, THE HOUSE OF MOURNING (forthcoming 2023) will focus, to a greater extent than any other novel I've ever yet read or written, on the experience of women during the crusades - as warriors, captives, and political leaders. I can't wait to share it with you all!
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Researcher and doctorate @NoraEpstein on Twitter just posted a video of the new tattoo she got commemorating her PhD.
And… she footnoted the artwork, with a literal footnote 😂 I love this so much
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A happy and sleepy Sunday to you all. ❤️
May your day be calm and cozy. 🤗
Get your own prints HERE
https://www.etsy.com/shop/ArcherInventive
Model Credit (last photo): Chase Kingsford
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Jonathan Harker knocked me flat with this one. his speculation that vampirism spreads because people willingly follow their loved ones into damnation is so affecting. and it's an insight that's so uniquely him. the gothic heroine in him can see Dracula's world in a way the others seemingly can't. he can look at the situation without any concerns of rationalism, honour, god, or any other facet of Victorian society, and reach this truth: we will walk into any horror for love
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Celebrating new year and ending of the quest:)🕯️🎄🪓
product of my recent green knight reread on holidays, save me erotic hunting scene......
Happy new year, hope everyone have a nice starting of the year!
for hardcore fans yes lady bertilak dress lowkey reference form manuscript (feat. burrito gawain)
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What lies ahead
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By popular demand (aka two people asked lol), a secondary Women's Wrongs Poll for characters I considered for the first one, but ended up not choosing for various reasons:
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Legend of the Seeker (S2E17)
Silently judging you from a distance. 😆
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can we get medieval slow burn crumbs pls 🤲🙏
I have had this idea with Knight Ghost bouncing around in my head since I saw an absolutely destructive to my psyche insta reel, so here it is
Ghost helps you get his mail shirt over your head, far too big and far too heavy for you to practically wear, but he's insistent. You try not to tense your shoulders at the weight of it, try not to buckle your knees when it drops into place. You knew knights were strong but to wear this every day without so much as a complaint? Plus the rest of the armor? Your eyes roam over Ghost's broad shoulders as he turns away from you to fuss with the rest of his armor. You always thought he'd look smaller without all the metal, but it almost feels like the opposite it true.
He's larger than life. Life being the operative word here. A living breathing man of flesh and blood, and greater warmth than the fire. His linen shirt pulls tight across his shoulders, revealing the firm musculature as he moves. You grab the mail shirt in your tightening fists, feel the well worked metal press its indents into your skin, still so warm from being on Ghost. You want to touch him. You won't, you're not supposed to. Not supposed to want to. You think that's what the armor is for, to keep you from thinking the man underneath is human, to keep you from wanting him.
"You alright Princess?" He asks, his voice is so low and rasping it makes you want to melt, "Thought you'd be complaining about the weight by-" He turns to look at you again, and his voice falls another impossible degree, "-now. Jesus." His eyes drag over you, fresh kindling for the fire in your stomach, the heat in your cheeks.
You must look silly in your dress and his chain mail, but the way he looks at you... God, the way he looks at you. Not even at your best dressed has a man looked at you like that. You swallow, and hold onto the mail rings a little tighter.
"It's heavy," You tell him, and although you mean it to sound like a complaint, to whine and put on the spoiled princess act that keeps all the other men away, you find your voice quiet almost reverent. Ghost nods, his warm brown eyes meeting yours. The only man in the kingdom with the impertinence not to look away, not to bow his head to your gaze.
"It'll keep you safe," He barely breathes, his eyes don't leave you, can't leave you. There's no where safer to look than your face, and no where more dangerous.
"You're doing a more than suitable job of that already," You know that twitch in his brow, the way his lips draw thin.
You remember the bandits that had ambushed your carriage, the way they're battered their daggers against your door, made slow battle with your guards. How they'd dragged you out of your safety kicking and screaming with harsh laughter. How Ghost's blade had torn through them like paper, his eyes red with fury. The physical shield he'd put between you and your assailants, the sound their swords had made bouncing off his armor was still ringing through your ears. Blood still soaked the hem of your dress.
"I'm not taking any chances," His eyes leave yours, turning his attention back to his armor. It's like having cold water thrown over your head. With you, you think, he's not taking any chances with you. "Can you move at all?" He asks, not looking at you, it feels purposeful. You hesitate, before testing the weight over your arms, hopping to feel the drag of the chain try to pull you down. You shake you head.
"Not much, I don't think I'll be swinging a sword anytime soon." He chuckles, and the heat returns to you, your heart clenching tight in your chest.
"That's good," He nods, "Violence doesn't suit you."
You wish it did, sometimes. You've begged him enough to at least show you how to properly hold a sword, but he always refuses. Always tells you, your future husband won't want your glaring to hold real threats. As if your gaze doesn't already bear his shadow, doesn't command Ghost to act as your sword. Wouldn't he come with you, to wherever you did marry? You couldn't stand to be apart from him.
Ghost lifts you up onto his horse with a quiet grunt of effort. "We'll have to take more rests, she's a strong horse but with two of us..." He shakes his head, pets a hand down the horse's neck. "Do you think you can stomach a few extra days of travel, my lady?" His hand lingers on your dress. His lady, you think, he never shortens the words like the others do.
"Of course, I'm hardly one to complain," for you, you tack on silently.
"Of course not," for me, he seems to agree.
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ℑ'𝔪 𝔥𝔬𝔫𝔬𝔯𝔢𝔡 𝔪𝔶 𝔩𝔞𝔡𝔶
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I love a Black medieval/fantasy queen!!! More of this, please!!!!
ETA: this is Angela Bassett as Lady Bayford in "Damsel" on Netflix.
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A Knight and His Lady by Andy Thomas
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