"Watching My First Sharpe Episode EVER" Topic

I think it is called "Sharpe's Battle", about a "British rifleman (who) trains an Irish regiment amid false reports of Britons massacring Irishmen".

Nicely done, though I must really be high on cold medicine to be watching a Napoleonic flick!

CC

PS. Do people ever try to game these episodes? If so, are they done as skirmishes?

Many people game Shape's scenarios, all the ones I have seen were skirmsihes. Also Flintloque (Napoleonique fantasy) is based heavily on the books/show.

Mike

And there are several companies who produce figures of Sharpe and Harper. I think Chiltern miniatures do a set in 28mm, amongst others.

Cheers,

Ace

Even my wife likes Sharpe!

Just don't confuse Sharpe with anything resembling historical fact.

Except for the one with the Conquistadores, Donald, that one was spot on. BTW, prove Sharpe didn't shoot the Prince of Orange.

P.S. A wargaming friend's wife really likes the Hornblower TV series, so you're not the only one, Bill.

My brother got me reading the books then gave me the series. I like how the two are dissimilar enough that you can enjoy both- but similar enough that you always know whats going on lol.

The books have lots of good historical background- but the events are often slightly different- the differences are usually explained at the end of each book. Still I had no idea what a light or grenadier was or did until I read the books so they are a good primer for a noob. Also explains how a lot of the equipment was used and how it worked.

The movies are pretty decent for seeing some of the uniforms and equipment.

My only complaint- Richard is actually a 'dick'- Sweet William didnt deserve to get played in the 13th show :(

Sweet WIlliam is certainy one of my favorite characters in the entire series.

Hope you feel better soon, CC!

My wife likes Sharpe too.

CC,

Welcome to the dark side. My Napoleonic reference library and Sharpe collection is at your disposal.

What Happend to Cooper I know he gets killed in one of the Books but he was not in this show at all?

Andygamer

I've only seen a couple of Sharpes. What do you mean about the Conquistodores? Are there some chaps dressed in 16th century garb? If so, it's not unhistorical. Some British officer set up a unit wearing gear from Spain's heyday. They got rid of it pretty quickly due to the ridicule.

S.

S. they are a band of Guerillas whose ancestes had been Conquistadors and there is a horde of Aztec golden hidden somewhere.

Which Sharpe discovers using a secret device invented by Colonel Shrapnel (called 'S' by his secret service cronies).
Sharpe uncovers the gold but is distracted by the blonde, pouting lipped mistress of the leader of the Conquistodores who is, of course, typically foreign (i.e. has a bad accent & facial hair).
Sharpe is captured, escapes & destroys the villain's HQ using a plethora of incendiary devices & exits, blonde in arm, knapsack filled with gold & a grumpy letter of thanks from Wellington ('W') in his pocket.
Sorry to spoil the episode for anyone who hasn't seen it.
cheers, donald

When I saw my very first Sharpe (I started with the first one, determined to go in order), I laughed out loud at the cheesy 1980s guitar solos, and I kept checking the copyright date because the whole production looked like something from the last years of the Jimmy Carter presidency.

But the damn thing did grow on me, and I got through about five episodes before it started to seem repetitive and silly.

I really liked Brian Cox the intel cheif and especially the first Wellington actor, and was miffed when he was replaced with some guy who made Nosey look and sound like something out of an early Dr. Who.

Just as a point of interest, joining two comments from the last post, the original @Wellington@ was David Troughton, who is the son of the late Patrick Troughton, who was the second Dr.Who. The chap who now plays W (with a large plastic nose) is also Captain Hastings in the ITV "Poirot" adaptions.

No matter what they are fun to watch. Have the first three and need to get the rest.

Now what they need to do is release Waterloo on a DVD that I can watch here in the states.

Also if you like Sharpe then you should get A&E's Horatio Hornblower. Mostly sea battles but some fighting on land.

Some British officer set up a unit wearing gear from Spain's heyday. They got rid of it pretty quickly due to the ridicule.
As demonstrated here too. History repeats itself. (And I VHS videotaped all the episodes off TV, myself, so I'm not throwing stones at anyone here. And the Hornblowers are excellent, including several forays ashore as Mithmee points out.)

Waterloo (Christopher Plummer and Rod Steiger) is available through netflix.

I've seen most of the Sharpe films and i can truly say that i didn't like them at all.

The film's made the French out as complete idiot's(for the most part),and they couldn't shoot straight if their life depended on it.

Were as when it comes to the English almost every shot they fired they hit a target.

Captain Gideon

True, Sharpe makes the rank-and-file French out to be the Napoleonic equivilant of a Star Wars Stormtrooper. They're the most feared troops in the world BUT they're easily dispatched by our hero(es). Just part of the genre, really.

nah, I wouldn't say so. The advance of the french column againt the South Essex in "Sharpe's Eagle", and especially the warm-up that the Sharpe is giving the poor redcoats the day before the battle ("it's gonna be a battle here tomorrow. You'll fight in it, maybe even die in it, but you won't see it") is something that makes me shiver ;) But then again – I'm a reenactor, and most of the battle scenes in series are just like reenactments ;)

"Ah naw yu' can fire 3 rounds a minute- but can ye' STAND?"

Riflemen able to fire at incredible rate with no visible reloading in one of the episodes…

"prove Sharpe didn't shoot the Prince of Orange."

That's easy. The Prince wasn't shot by anyone and became King in 1840.

Wasn't Silly Billy carried away from Waterloo battlefield with a stomach wound? O_o

Most sources say a shoulder wound.

Perhaps everyone took a shot.

I didn't say fatally shot, Vincent.
;^)