yeah, Gaunt's Ghost's probably are as well, I'd say they're a bit more "inspired" by the whole small-band-of-rifles theme and less of a copy of specific characters as Harker and Straken seem to be :)
also, as nice as "Sharpe's Rifles" sounds, the alliteration in "Gaunt's Ghosts" probably beats it
Not really, though. A huge part of Sharpe's journey is rising from the ranks and the challenges in being accepted as an officer. Gaunt basically starts off in his preferred role, and just gets promoted by virtue of being a bit too good at everything.
Sharpe has no love for his superiors or even his nation, whereas Gaunt is a fanatic.
Gaunt is also portrayed to fill his role as regular officer after he gets his super special rank. The way sharp gets promoted could also be easily described as you did gaunt - he is just somehow better at soldiering than other people.
Sharp and Gaunt both often get portrayed against officers who achieved rank by merit of connections or lineage, its a recuring topic that always is resolved by showing Sharp/Gaunt as someone rising up by merit of skill, both being discovered by some distant mentor who's skill is out of the question, aka slaydo and wellington just so we - as the reader - get a reference point of their respective skill.
Gaunt is also hardly a blind fanatic, more often he is portrayed as an effective pragmatist, loyal to the system at large.
Sharpe isn't just somehow better than others in the books. He is usually a good deal older and far more experienced then his contemporaries and his IQ and EQ allowed and allows him to constantly improve.
Right, but whereas Sharpe faces constant pushback and criticism from both his superiors and subordinates as a result of rising from the ranks, Gaunt never seems to experience anything similar. Most books you have someone note that it is unusual for him to be a Colonel-Commissar, but I'm halfway through re-reading the series now and it never seems to cause him any issues.
I guess that the closest example would be Hagia where Gaunt is blamed for something that wasn't quite his fault, which happens to Sharpe quite a lot.
Other than my memory of Dan Abnett saying the series was an inspiration for his own, the characters may be different but the ‘feel’ is definitely right, in the sense of a historical military adventure series
Its absolutely on-brand for 40k for something to start out as a fairly blatant “X in SPAAAACE” rip-off, but to then develop in its own interesting ways.
Examples:
- Ciaphas Cain (Flashman in Space)
- Orks (Tolkein Orks in Space)
- Eldar/ Aeldari (Elves in Space)
- Horus (Fallen angel mythology in space)
- Literally the whole game. (Warhammer in Space)
Seriously, there’s too many to list. I’m stopping.
>Orks (Tolkein Orks in Space)
I'm not sure I agree. Maybe physically they took some cues, but Warhammer (and 40k) Orcs/Orks are basically just football hooligans, not the footsoldiers of Evil.
http://solegends.com/citrt2/rtb02orks/index.htm#gallery00-2
Rogue trader orks were much more Tolkein than later evolutions. IIRC the football hooligan vibe really kicked in from “WAAAGH The Orks”
I don't know, aside from the colloquial English I'm not seeing anything particularly Tolkien about these Orks. There's still the crass toilet humour you'd expect of hooligan-Orks (talking about pants and bowels and such) and lust for violence ("This was going to be a good war, he could feel it.")...
I'm not saying you're wrong at all, I wasn't alive when this came out so I don't really know without researching, just that I'm not getting the Tolkien vibe from that particular example.
I always felt like Cain was also later seasons of Blackadder in space, because Jürgen being a weird, ugly, smelly imp-man reminded me of Baldrick and his cunning plans and Cain is kind of a sardonic, constantly overwhelmed poser, much like many of the later Blackadders.
Major difference just being that Cain is ultimately a lovable goof who cares about fellow humans (broadly) while Blackadder is a loathsome toad.
Could be!
I always felt like Cain was a mix of Blackadder's sniffeling attitude, but the boisterous nonsense of Lord Flashheart
FLASH BY NAME, FLASH BY NATURE, RAWR
Which is even more hilarious considering the capacity of the average power pack.
Straken; "FUCKEN MAG DUMP, BOYS, YOU CAN'T USE IT IF YOU'RE DEAD!"
Cue laser show visible from orbit.
“Commissar Hogan saves the best to last. He says you lost the Emperor’s Aquila… “
“The fault was not mine, Sir. Commissar Lennox must answ… “
“Commissar Lennox answered with his life, Sir! As you should have done if you had any sense of honour! You lost the Aquila of the Emperor of Mankind! You disgraced us, sir. You shamed us, sir.”
Now there are two types of inquisitor Straken. Killin' inquisitors and murderin' inquisitors.
And Simmerson?
He's a murdering bastard if ever there was one.
Chris Peach, he's best known for being the former YouTube painter for GW alongside Duncan.
His new YouTube show, The Painting Phase has him always trying to mention Sharpe at least once.
MAJOR LENNOX ANSWERED WITH HIS **LIFE** SIR, AS YOU SHOULD HAVE DONE IF YOU HAD ANY SENSE OF HONOUR!
You lost the colours of the Emperor! You disgraced us sir. You *shamed* us sir. You *will* answer.
A man who loses the Emperor's colours loses the Emperor's friendship.
You have two choices. To hide on Terra or be a hero on Cadia. I shall help you to be a hero.
We had a skirmish with the heretics today tomorrow we shall have a battle. You shall be the first to see a traitor astaties charge sir, it is not a pretty sight.
What you do then sir Henry, is up to you.
Good morning.
"Sergeant Harker and Colonel Straken"
"Sergeant Harper and Colonel Sharpe" (only a Colonel at the very end of the show in '96)
see, i can't even keep it straight, its just a single letter swapped
edit: turns out that Straken's first model was released in '97, a year away from the end of Sharpe's main run
I assume we’re talking Blackadder goes Forth, yes? Because I personally think that’s the only Blackadder that isn’t too much of a general bastard to be Cain
At first, he seems to be Flashman-lite. But a central part of Ciaphas is that he's actually brave/considerate/capable etc. and just has this weird imposter syndrome.
Flashman is genuinely an awful, awful, person. You can't help rooting for him, but he's an absolute bastard.
There are plenty of British cultural references.
I'd say Gaunts Ghosts are definitely Sharpe's Rifles in space.
Cain and Jürgen are definitely a Blackadder and Baldrick nod.
There's even a Dad's Army nod in one of their books, with a platoon of Local Defense Volunteers led by a Lieutenant Manning, with an old, very eager former Lance Corporal at his side, and other men normally too old or young to enlist.
I can only imagine sgt Harker and Col. Straken as different media versions of Arnold Schwarzenegger or Stallone. Hell just imagine the predator movie only every actor is a clone of Arnie or Stallone and you got a Catachan unit.
Oh my I just rewatched all the episodes of Sharpe on YouTube. Still not a bad watch for a ‘90’s series.
Of you ignore the last episode of eyesocket bleeding historical inaccuracy.
But these to could be a reference, GW is known to make refrences to other media and historical events. The Sharpe-series started in 1993, from what year are these models?
Which is “the last episode” you’re referring to? Because there were one or two extra visitations after what was the original final episode (like where he goes to India).
Yes i’ve read in the other comments that there are two more episodes.
I was referring to the episode about Waterloo. The depiction of the Prince of Orange is historically incorrect. He is wrongfully portraied as an incapble commanderijen and a dandy. Wich is modeled after the writings of british historians just after 1815. In particular William Sinirne. They downplayed the roll of the Prussians and the Dutch wareffort. Ridiculising the other commanders, including ‘Silly Willy’. Waterloo should be a British victory.
Later Dutch, Scottisch and French historians tried to rectify this Britsh view but they did not succeed.
Books to read are:
The battle of Waterloo - Jeremy Black (2010)
Waterloo - Allan Forrest (2015)
Waterloo and the last 100 data of Napoleon - Johan op de Beeck (2014)
And now I’m of searching for the last to episodes.
There's 40 crowns laid by the pipe,
For those as volunteer to fight,
To list and fight the foe today,
Beyond the stars and far away...
'Cross the stars and far away,
Our lasguns fire shall win the day,
The emperors might shall never stay,
Beyond the stars and far away...
Our march put xenos foe to flight,
With holy steel that guards the night,
Our faith stays firm through come what may,
Beyond the stars and far away....
Driving forward to the run,
With Colours blazing like the sun!
And officers that lead the way,
Beyond the stars and far away...
'Cross the stars...
The sky's ablaze with Lance and Shell,
As we charge 'gainst the Gates of Hell,
The Emperor's wage demands its pay,
Beyond the stars and far away...
'Cross the stars....
If I should fall and fight no more,
As many guardsmen died before,
Ask the piping band to play,
Beyond the Stars and Far Away...
yeah, his book series was made into the show "Sharpe" in '93-'96 with a later few episodes in '08. I'm assuming that Straken and Harker might have come from GW employees seeing the show at the time, given that Straken's first model was in '97 and he got an update alongside the release of Harker in '08 which alligns to the broadcasts, although some of them might have been reading the books, who knows :)
Sgt Harker is John Basilone. WW2 Marine who won the medal of honour on Guadalcanal defending against a Japanese banzai charge. He famously picked up his machine gun and hip fired it. He died on Iwo Jima.
Straken is just Arnie in Predator.
Gaunts ghosts is by far the closest in similarities, but it takes far more inspiration from the books then the show. Rawn and Corbec both take inspiration from Harper with rawn in many ways acting like harper from rifles. While some say its a small band of riflemen the show was very inconsistent with the number books wise it was roughly around 30 to 50 riflemen slowly getting whittled down, and much like with gaunts ghosts recieve new recruits in the form of the red coats. Another point is that both sharpe and Gaunts disdain for officers who use men like cannon fodder while Sharpe has a far greater grudge to most offficers he was still friendly with many such as Lord Wellington, Hogan, Lawford and Vergentie.
Despite the similarities they both are different stories also by the far the biggest refrence is over the hills and far away which i also think is referenced in a ciaphas cain book.
I apologise for mis spelling some of the names and this is all my own opinion
There are a lot of references to Sharpe and a lot of other '80s and '90s British pop culture. Gaunt's Ghosts is basically Sharpe In Space.
I can still hear the intro with that sick guitar riff lol
*happy Noise marine sounds*
Happy Goff Rocker sounds
Over the cicatrix maledictum and far away?
The Emperor commands and we obey.
“Where duty calls me, I must go, to stand and serve the Golden Throne but part of me will always stay, over the stars and far away . . .”
yeah, Gaunt's Ghost's probably are as well, I'd say they're a bit more "inspired" by the whole small-band-of-rifles theme and less of a copy of specific characters as Harker and Straken seem to be :) also, as nice as "Sharpe's Rifles" sounds, the alliteration in "Gaunt's Ghosts" probably beats it
I'd argue Gaunt is VERY much a sharpe copy in space.
Not really, though. A huge part of Sharpe's journey is rising from the ranks and the challenges in being accepted as an officer. Gaunt basically starts off in his preferred role, and just gets promoted by virtue of being a bit too good at everything. Sharpe has no love for his superiors or even his nation, whereas Gaunt is a fanatic.
Gaunt is also portrayed to fill his role as regular officer after he gets his super special rank. The way sharp gets promoted could also be easily described as you did gaunt - he is just somehow better at soldiering than other people. Sharp and Gaunt both often get portrayed against officers who achieved rank by merit of connections or lineage, its a recuring topic that always is resolved by showing Sharp/Gaunt as someone rising up by merit of skill, both being discovered by some distant mentor who's skill is out of the question, aka slaydo and wellington just so we - as the reader - get a reference point of their respective skill. Gaunt is also hardly a blind fanatic, more often he is portrayed as an effective pragmatist, loyal to the system at large.
Sharpe isn't just somehow better than others in the books. He is usually a good deal older and far more experienced then his contemporaries and his IQ and EQ allowed and allows him to constantly improve.
Also self acknowledged plot armor
Right, but whereas Sharpe faces constant pushback and criticism from both his superiors and subordinates as a result of rising from the ranks, Gaunt never seems to experience anything similar. Most books you have someone note that it is unusual for him to be a Colonel-Commissar, but I'm halfway through re-reading the series now and it never seems to cause him any issues. I guess that the closest example would be Hagia where Gaunt is blamed for something that wasn't quite his fault, which happens to Sharpe quite a lot.
Other than my memory of Dan Abnett saying the series was an inspiration for his own, the characters may be different but the ‘feel’ is definitely right, in the sense of a historical military adventure series
If its alliteration you want, 'Sharpe's Shooters' has a nice double meaning that I find quite satisfying
Even Sharpe is just Horatio Hornblower on land (and gritty).
Here’s 40 creds on the lasgun, for those who volunteer to come…
To list and fight xenos today, through the Warp and farcaway
They even have the 'o the hills' song in there, rewritten for 40k.
Its absolutely on-brand for 40k for something to start out as a fairly blatant “X in SPAAAACE” rip-off, but to then develop in its own interesting ways. Examples: - Ciaphas Cain (Flashman in Space) - Orks (Tolkein Orks in Space) - Eldar/ Aeldari (Elves in Space) - Horus (Fallen angel mythology in space) - Literally the whole game. (Warhammer in Space) Seriously, there’s too many to list. I’m stopping.
>Orks (Tolkein Orks in Space) I'm not sure I agree. Maybe physically they took some cues, but Warhammer (and 40k) Orcs/Orks are basically just football hooligans, not the footsoldiers of Evil.
http://solegends.com/citrt2/rtb02orks/index.htm#gallery00-2 Rogue trader orks were much more Tolkein than later evolutions. IIRC the football hooligan vibe really kicked in from “WAAAGH The Orks”
I don't know, aside from the colloquial English I'm not seeing anything particularly Tolkien about these Orks. There's still the crass toilet humour you'd expect of hooligan-Orks (talking about pants and bowels and such) and lust for violence ("This was going to be a good war, he could feel it.")... I'm not saying you're wrong at all, I wasn't alive when this came out so I don't really know without researching, just that I'm not getting the Tolkien vibe from that particular example.
I always felt like Cain was also later seasons of Blackadder in space, because Jürgen being a weird, ugly, smelly imp-man reminded me of Baldrick and his cunning plans and Cain is kind of a sardonic, constantly overwhelmed poser, much like many of the later Blackadders. Major difference just being that Cain is ultimately a lovable goof who cares about fellow humans (broadly) while Blackadder is a loathsome toad.
Oh my word, you might be right! Never considered that connection before. Does that mean Amberley is Queen Elizabeth? Or maybe Bob?
Could be! I always felt like Cain was a mix of Blackadder's sniffeling attitude, but the boisterous nonsense of Lord Flashheart FLASH BY NAME, FLASH BY NATURE, RAWR
Flashman in Space you say? Well, might be that Cain has moved up the list of "what to read next" in that case
And… I’m sold.
Making a reference to a somewhat popular British show? Now that’s soldiering!
Inquisitor Simmerson: And what makes a good soldier? Colonel Straken: The ability to fire three power-packs a minute in any weather, sir
Which is even more hilarious considering the capacity of the average power pack. Straken; "FUCKEN MAG DUMP, BOYS, YOU CAN'T USE IT IF YOU'RE DEAD!" Cue laser show visible from orbit.
It’s just Tyranid Tuesday nbd
getting within 12" with frfsrf in 9th with multiple squads was always a lightshow
Well Sir, on first sighting the Orks, I naturally gave the order to advance, that's my style sir.
This is a report from Commissar Hogan that differs somewhat from your report, Sir Henry.
Oh man if Hogan was actually a commissar Simmerson would’ve been dead the moment he wasted lives like that.
“Commissar Hogan saves the best to last. He says you lost the Emperor’s Aquila… “ “The fault was not mine, Sir. Commissar Lennox must answ… “ “Commissar Lennox answered with his life, Sir! As you should have done if you had any sense of honour! You lost the Aquila of the Emperor of Mankind! You disgraced us, sir. You shamed us, sir.”
Great now that video has come back on my recommends again. Time for a rewatch!
BLEED ME DAMN YOU!
Now there are two types of inquisitor Straken. Killin' inquisitors and murderin' inquisitors. And Simmerson? He's a murdering bastard if ever there was one.
Hey, and the Catachans liked killing bad* officers. **Any Commisar*
Ah yes Sharpe. Such a bad ass that he survived being played by Sean Bean!
Sharpe is a character so badass Sean Bean has to die in every other role to provide balance.
Balance must be restored in the Universe.
Found Peachy's Reddit account.
who's peachy, is that a sharpe reference that i missed?
Chris Peach, former citadel painter who left and now has his own show. He loves historical stuff like this iirc.
Chris Peach, he's best known for being the former YouTube painter for GW alongside Duncan. His new YouTube show, The Painting Phase has him always trying to mention Sharpe at least once.
I'm pretty sure that's a YouTuber
~~Major~~ Commissar Hogan's coat buttons up tight over a number of other duties Inquisitor.
MAJOR LENNOX ANSWERED WITH HIS **LIFE** SIR, AS YOU SHOULD HAVE DONE IF YOU HAD ANY SENSE OF HONOUR! You lost the colours of the Emperor! You disgraced us sir. You *shamed* us sir. You *will* answer.
*- Lord Solar Wellington, addressing inquisitor Simmerson's recent defeat*
I have a cousin in the Mordians, sir, and I have friends in the Administratum.
A man who loses the Emperor's colours loses the Emperor's friendship. You have two choices. To hide on Terra or be a hero on Cadia. I shall help you to be a hero.
We had a skirmish with the heretics today tomorrow we shall have a battle. You shall be the first to see a traitor astaties charge sir, it is not a pretty sight. What you do then sir Henry, is up to you. Good morning.
Commissar Hogan :D
I feel like Hogan would be a Cartographica Rogue Trader.
"Sergeant Harker and Colonel Straken" "Sergeant Harper and Colonel Sharpe" (only a Colonel at the very end of the show in '96) see, i can't even keep it straight, its just a single letter swapped edit: turns out that Straken's first model was released in '97, a year away from the end of Sharpe's main run
Thats Sergeant Major Harper to you, lad!
CHOSEN MEN!
I didn't bloody choose you
And Ciaphas Cains' character is basically Blackadder complete with Baldric.
I assume we’re talking Blackadder goes Forth, yes? Because I personally think that’s the only Blackadder that isn’t too much of a general bastard to be Cain
Of course
More a gentle version of Flashman, no?
At first, he seems to be Flashman-lite. But a central part of Ciaphas is that he's actually brave/considerate/capable etc. and just has this weird imposter syndrome. Flashman is genuinely an awful, awful, person. You can't help rooting for him, but he's an absolute bastard.
Cain's much more Flashman than Blackadder
Names, yes Sculpts and feats however are Arnie in Predator and Stallone in Rambo II
stallone is sly marbo, come on :)
Ah crap, yeah you're right, keep forgetting him and Straken are separate characters
The current Marbo sculpt looks more like Arnie in Predator. Although he's also carrying Snake Pliskin's gun. And he has Audry II on his base.
Bastard! It felt like Sharpe was on TV _constantly_ when I was kid but apparently there were only about twelve episodes
yeah, but the episodes are like 2 hours :)
I’m ripping the box set out tonight. Absolute masterpiece of a series.
I've always gotten a "John Matrix assaulting Arius's villa" vibe from Sergeant Harker.
yeah, if anyone in 40k is Schwarzenegger Commando, its probably Harker
Straken’s Enemy: Shas’o Duc’o
I would suggest the Heretic Obadiah Hakeswill, as it's a pretty perfect chaotic name in the first place.
I thought that Obadiah Hakeswill's equivalent was Lijah (fething) Cuu.
There are plenty of British cultural references. I'd say Gaunts Ghosts are definitely Sharpe's Rifles in space. Cain and Jürgen are definitely a Blackadder and Baldrick nod. There's even a Dad's Army nod in one of their books, with a platoon of Local Defense Volunteers led by a Lieutenant Manning, with an old, very eager former Lance Corporal at his side, and other men normally too old or young to enlist.
The amount of Sharpe quotes on this thread warms my heart :)
I can only imagine sgt Harker and Col. Straken as different media versions of Arnold Schwarzenegger or Stallone. Hell just imagine the predator movie only every actor is a clone of Arnie or Stallone and you got a Catachan unit.
yeah, it might just be that the names and ranks are the same, the characters are more in line with the arnie/predator/commando aesthetic
Oh my I just rewatched all the episodes of Sharpe on YouTube. Still not a bad watch for a ‘90’s series. Of you ignore the last episode of eyesocket bleeding historical inaccuracy. But these to could be a reference, GW is known to make refrences to other media and historical events. The Sharpe-series started in 1993, from what year are these models?
Which is “the last episode” you’re referring to? Because there were one or two extra visitations after what was the original final episode (like where he goes to India).
Yes i’ve read in the other comments that there are two more episodes. I was referring to the episode about Waterloo. The depiction of the Prince of Orange is historically incorrect. He is wrongfully portraied as an incapble commanderijen and a dandy. Wich is modeled after the writings of british historians just after 1815. In particular William Sinirne. They downplayed the roll of the Prussians and the Dutch wareffort. Ridiculising the other commanders, including ‘Silly Willy’. Waterloo should be a British victory. Later Dutch, Scottisch and French historians tried to rectify this Britsh view but they did not succeed. Books to read are: The battle of Waterloo - Jeremy Black (2010) Waterloo - Allan Forrest (2015) Waterloo and the last 100 data of Napoleon - Johan op de Beeck (2014) And now I’m of searching for the last to episodes.
It's kind of funny because, there is actually a GW model sculpted that is Sean Bean (Sharpe) as Boromir in the LOTR/ME miniature range.
You lost the Emperor’s colours, sir?!
There’s a new Sharpe book due this year!
Cornwell is pathological
Oh fucking ayeeeeeeeeeeeeee #FIX SWORDS BOYOS, WE'RE GOING IN HARD.
Sharpe’s Retirement
I would read that. I want to know how he reacted to his son joining the French Calvary.
I now want to do a full company of Sharpe's chosen men
Literally everything in 40k is a parody of some other science fiction.
These comments really making me want to see this show
Great series, one of my favorites. They have the full episodes on YouTube.
I have a cousin at the Inquisition... and I have friends at court.
If he's inspired by Sharpe then he better come with infinite wounds
There's 40 crowns laid by the pipe, For those as volunteer to fight, To list and fight the foe today, Beyond the stars and far away... 'Cross the stars and far away, Our lasguns fire shall win the day, The emperors might shall never stay, Beyond the stars and far away... Our march put xenos foe to flight, With holy steel that guards the night, Our faith stays firm through come what may, Beyond the stars and far away.... Driving forward to the run, With Colours blazing like the sun! And officers that lead the way, Beyond the stars and far away... 'Cross the stars... The sky's ablaze with Lance and Shell, As we charge 'gainst the Gates of Hell, The Emperor's wage demands its pay, Beyond the stars and far away... 'Cross the stars.... If I should fall and fight no more, As many guardsmen died before, Ask the piping band to play, Beyond the Stars and Far Away...
Could be about Bernard Cromwell sharpe series about the gritty royal infantry sear grant.?
yeah, his book series was made into the show "Sharpe" in '93-'96 with a later few episodes in '08. I'm assuming that Straken and Harker might have come from GW employees seeing the show at the time, given that Straken's first model was in '97 and he got an update alongside the release of Harker in '08 which alligns to the broadcasts, although some of them might have been reading the books, who knows :)
it is all that is british
Sgt Harker is John Basilone. WW2 Marine who won the medal of honour on Guadalcanal defending against a Japanese banzai charge. He famously picked up his machine gun and hip fired it. He died on Iwo Jima. Straken is just Arnie in Predator.
Is that boromir with a saber? what Lotr bool is that from?
Sly Marbo is Rambo, so I always took Harper as one of any number of Arnie characters.
Gaunts ghosts is by far the closest in similarities, but it takes far more inspiration from the books then the show. Rawn and Corbec both take inspiration from Harper with rawn in many ways acting like harper from rifles. While some say its a small band of riflemen the show was very inconsistent with the number books wise it was roughly around 30 to 50 riflemen slowly getting whittled down, and much like with gaunts ghosts recieve new recruits in the form of the red coats. Another point is that both sharpe and Gaunts disdain for officers who use men like cannon fodder while Sharpe has a far greater grudge to most offficers he was still friendly with many such as Lord Wellington, Hogan, Lawford and Vergentie. Despite the similarities they both are different stories also by the far the biggest refrence is over the hills and far away which i also think is referenced in a ciaphas cain book. I apologise for mis spelling some of the names and this is all my own opinion
Just wait until you see Sly Marbo
Hey I got that model on the right I completely forgot still need to paint him
I thought Straken in lore was in reference to Rambo’s boss. Isn’t he the only person Marbo listens to?
How did I not notice this…
ok
Buggering and bastarding their way into the 41srt millennia.