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Apr 13 2021

Looking Back at Kevin Hart’s Medieval Sword Fight with Jason Sudeikis

Marco Dragoje. In April 2019, comedians Kevin Hart and Jason Sudeikis engaged in a medieval sword fight. It was part of the two actors’ “knight training” for season 2, episode 10 of What the Fit, Hart’s Realscreen Award-winning comedy series that premiered in 2018. Here, Hart takes Sudeikis jousting – a popular medieval pursuit where knights showed off their skills while on horseback.

ETCanada.com reports that the series, described by Hart as “a show where I basically go and I get my friends to do things they normally wouldn’t,” took place in a Los Angeles-area Medieval Times themed restaurant, where the two comedians were fitted in knight gear before getting sent out onto the “battlefield.”

Hart and Sudeikis were then taught “how to kill and how to die,” and shown the basics of jousting. They were ultimately “knighted,” and sent off for final combat: a sword fight in front of fans. The two entered on horseback, but the battle, unfortunately, lasted less than 30 seconds, with Sudeikis dislodging Hart’s sword and then “slicing” his midsection — to audible gasps from the crowd! Hart keels over, pretends to be struggling, and finally hits the ground “dead.” Sudeikis genuflects next to Hart and raises his fist in victory.

Meet the “Swordsmen”

Eva Rinaldi via Wikipedia, under a Creative Commons License [No changes were made to the image.]

Hart is one of the most recognizable celebrities around — and one of the most versatile too. This versatility has made Hart not only popular, but also extremely wealthy. In fact, Poker.org reveals that Hart is the best-paid comedian in the world, with a net worth of about $200 million. He has gotten so rich that he can afford to be a regular at high-stakes poker tables (a favorite of his), splurge over $40,000 in a game of Blackjack, keep a collection of luxurious watches, and buy any car he wishes.

The 41-year-old Pennsylvanian made his mark onstage as a standup comedian, but Hart has become a Hollywood A-lister with hits like Ride Along and Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle. He is a superstar on social media too, with shows like What the Fit and Cold as Balls regularly getting millions of views (the jousting episode has over 8.8 million views as of this writing).

Sudeikis, like Hart, is an accomplished comedian, starting with improv comedy in the 1990s before becoming a regular for Saturday Night Live beginning in 2003. He has found success in film, too, breaking through in 2011 in Horrible Bosses and in 2013 in We’re the Millers. Unlike Hart, however, the 45-year-old Virginian has largely focused on TV, where he recently won a Golden Globe for his starring role in Ted Lasso. The LA Times describes the show as “a tonic for our trying times” — and that’s largely a credit to Sudeikis’s vision as the co-creator of Ted Lasso, which he fondly calls a “com-ma” (comedy-drama).

Yes, Hart and Sudeikis’s sword fight was all for show, but it did bring swords and sword fighting to an audience of over 8.8 million people. Now, those interested in real sword experiences can check out The Sword Experience tour dates, as Adrian Paul continues to bring the sword academy to the rest of the country.

Feb 02 2021

What Have We Been Up To?

COVID-19 made last year difficult for all of us. For the Sword Experience, it meant that we had trouble bringing our brand of fitness and travel to you. Obviously, your health is our number one priority in our endeavors, so we’ve had to limit our in-person events due to the pandemic. We were still successfully held a handful of events in 2020 by following strict local, state, and federal guidelines set in place, but that being said, some events simply weren’t possible due to the obvious unpredictable nature of the past year. However, just like you, we didn’t sit idly by in 2020 waiting for things to cool down. In fact, we’ve fired things up and hope to keep this momentum going through 2021. We’ve been experimenting with plenty of ideas to make sure you can still participate with us in your goals for physical fitness and fun escapism virtually with the Sword Experience.

The first thing you may have noticed that we’ve been working on since last year is our brand-new website design. We’ve been working diligently on our website over the year to streamline your experience on the site with our sleek and user-friendly design. Everything you’re looking for is just a click away on our site. The shop is easily accessible, the events pages are centrally located, and there are plenty of things to discover about us right at your fingertips. For example, you can now find links to our Patreon page.

What is so important about the Patreon page you might ask? Well, we’ve been bringing the Sword Experience to your home with our highest Patreon tier, the Upgrade Your Life package. You’ll gain access to a variety of content. From our Lifestyle Essentials newsletter that focuses on various aspects of health and wellness, to access to archives that features exclusive behind the scenes footage Adrian has managed to capture of the years. Most importantly though, you’ll gain access to our Live Training Videos. By signing up for the Upgrade Your Life package, you will have exclusive access to our workout videos lead by Adrian Paul. So far, we’ve added over 45 workout videos, and our catalogue of videos continues to grow as we put new videos out weekly. Now, you can train with Adrian and the Sword Experience as you improve your health, fitness, strength, and coordination from the comfort of your living room!

Are you worried that swinging a sword or bokken around in your living room is going to cause untold damage to your living space? Well, worry no longer. Adrian has partnered with long time Sword Experience friend Mark Bitner to create the SXP Pro Trainer. This bladeless sword handle perfectly simulates that feeling of swinging a sword with a compact design. The SXP Pro Trainer is made with a simplified sword handle, cast from the same high strength resin as all of our bokken handles, and has a 4 x ¾ inch, steel weight bar in place of the blade. The handles come in two styles SXP2020 and Steel Falcon. The SXP Pro Trainer is great for upper body strength training as well as offering added weight for lower body balance and leg conditioning exercises. It is only available from the Sword Experience, and is a must have for those training at home.

We also know how much you have missed going to conventions. In the first of its kind, we’ve been working on bringing the experience of the Con to you with our Virtual SXP. With the Virtual SXP, you’ll be able to move between various rooms online to simulate the experience of going to a convention. You can get autographs from your favorite celebrities, participate in training sessions with our highly skilled instructors, chat with actors and stunt professionals about their experiences on set, peruse our vendors shops to find that perfect piece to add to your collection, meet up and chat with old friends, and so much more.

For an idea of what you’ll experience at the Virtual SXP, you can participate in a meditation session with Anastasia Cheruvelil, a Reiki Master Practitioner and Meditation teacher. Learn about commonly used firearms props on-set, including rubber stunt props, blank-firing non-guns and fully functioning firearms converted for blank firing from film safety and authenticity consultants Chad Hawthorne and Bill Bolitho. Take an introductory class in the basics of using a tactical folding knife for self-defense from martial artist and personal trainer, Keith Jennings. Practice the principles of counter-offensive weapon disarming and counter-disarming from Filipino Kali Master, Mark Mikita. Train in the ways of the Jedi that every Initiate to the Order must master before being excepted for further training with Richard Ganey. Discover the process of forging a sword with Master blacksmith and Forged in Fire champion bladesmith, Ron Hardman. Visit with your favorite celebrities like Adrian Paul, Carrie Henn, and Elizabeth Gracen. Our first Virtual SXP did sell out, but we hope to bring you more Virtual SXP conventions in the future.

We haven’t completely given up on in person events, but as we stated earlier, we must follow local, state, and federal guidelines to ensure the highest standards of safety are being adhered to and your health and safety are our top priority. We hope to bring our live experiences back this year to Maryland, Colorado, Boston, New York, Florida, Connecticut, Atlanta, Nevada, Indiana Tennessee, and Kansas if we are permitted to. So, keep checking the website for further information in regards to upcoming events. We’re also working with Richard Ganey, who is part of our Virtual SXP, to bring you and exciting Star Wars themed academy in the coming months.

Lastly, we want to thank you all for being such a wonderful and dedicated community and we hope that you are all doing well. Our mission has always been about bringing you fun and exciting ways to achieve your fitness and health goals and we hope you continue working with us to reach them. We will continue to strive to bring you new ways to reach your goals. This year we’ll stand shoulder to shoulder with you, metaphorically speaking, to make this year the best it can possibly be.

Aug 11 2020

Interview with C. David Belt part 2

In our previous talk with C. David Belt, we discussed his weapons collection as well as his passion for history. In our second part, we learn more about Mr. Belt’s writing, his history classes, how to get into contact with him to learn more, and why he loves Renaissance Faires.

Sword Experience (SXP): So, it seems like most of your classes are at Renaissance Faires. If people would like to experience your class, how would people know which Renaissance Faires you are attending, and how would people be able to take your writing class?

C. David Belt (CDB): I normally publish this on my website, unwillingchild.com. There is an events link, and there I will usually list where I’m going to be and what hours I’m going to be there. Of course, right now with the Coronavirus, it’s been very limited. I did my first class since February just last month and that was for a private event. They brought us out to do that. But, most of the writer’s conferences in and around Utah, I will teach at. Sometimes only every other year, but I’ve done the Life, The Universe, and Everything symposium. I’ve done Kanab Writer’s Conference. I’ve actually presented at Horror Con, which is like a Comic Con with a horror theme here in Utah. I do Wizarding Days. That’s a newer festival that is Harry Potter themed, but they’ve had me back two years in a row to present this, because it’s so popular. People come back to the shows, because I always have new stuff. Or I’ve always learned something new about something I’ve talked about before.

So, the website, the events link will have what’s upcoming, and right now things are shifting too much, so there’s nothing current posted on there. I’m expecting to do one in the Utah Renaissance Faire in August at Thanksgiving point in Utah. It’s a two-day event, and they want me back every year, so I’m happy to do that one. (Sadly, this faire was just canceled for 2020.)

SXP: Have you thought about doing any Zoom classes or anything like that considering the current state of things?

CDB: Well, I did actually film something for one of the local online high schools. Because they were supplying the studio and crew and so on, we had several of them dress up in various sets of armor and outfits. Roman, Viking, Thirteenth-century chain, so I’ve done that.

We filmed one of the classes at the Evanston Celtic Festival, I think it was last year. It got cancelled this year. I’ll also do personal sessions, with authors usually, because if we can’t physically get together, they want to see the weapons that they’re describing and see what some of the problems are with it. It’s kind of enlightening when you show them the balance point on a Roman Spatha for example, which is really bad, but then you explain why the sword was invented. The Romans needed a greater reach for their cavalry, so they invented the Spatha. But just because the sword looks cool, I wouldn’t pick it as my fantasy weapon unless you are trying to depict a Roman or Arthurian knight. So, I will do those sessions, but those are one-on-one.

SXP: And they can contact you on your website if they want to do a one-on-one?

CDB: Absolutely. There is an “about the author” link, and if you click on that and then “contact the author.” It goes directly to my email, and I answer questions all the time from folks, so there is a way to get ahold of me very easily.

SXP: And you said you’ve written several books as well, correct?

CDB: Yeah, I write what I would call Latter-day Saint horror. It’s horror with a strong Christian theme to it. I’ve got a vampire trilogy about an unwilling vampire. In my mythos, vampirism is a choice. No one can be forced into it. I’ve never liked the idea that you’re just in the wrong place at the wrong time, and you get bit on the neck, and you are damned forever. So, it’s always been voluntary, except for the male protagonist of the trilogy, who is the world’s first and only unwilling vampire. And how he got to that state, that’s part of the story. That one involves a lot of swords for the simple reason that there are only so many ways to kill a vampire. So, to defend themselves against each other, they would frequently use swords or axes or something of that nature. Because the surest way to kill a vampire is beheading. So, lots of sword fights, lots of swords from different eras.

Then I have something called The Sweet Sister set in modern-day Utah, but it doesn’t involve vampires. At least that isn’t obvious (about vampires). And I have a science-fiction novel out. It came out last year called Time’s Plague. No swords except for a homemade machete. But it’s set on one of the moons of Jupiter, so swords are not the most practical weapon.

I just came out with one set in First-century Roman Britannia, with a Roman officer, an Option, who is second-in-command of a centurion of eighty men, but is a convert to early Christianity, and he has to go face a demon. That’s called The Arawn Prophecy, and with that I was researching Roman military life. Specifically, in First-century Britain and the Boudiccan uprising and all the things that were fascinating about that. And because of doing that type of research on Roman weaponry of that period, I also wrote a non-fiction book on the whole Armor of God analogy that Paul uses, using the Roman imagery that his audience would relate with. Because as I researched all of this weaponry and armor, there’s all this symbolism built into it, and that was fascinating.

I have a new one coming out as soon as my publisher gets the edit back to me, called The Witch of White Lady Hollow, which is set in 1978 Southwest Missouri. It’s semi-autobiographical, except I’m not a girl and I’m not a witch. No swords or weapons in that, but the sequel is done and I’m waiting for the publisher on whether they are gonna pick that one up, because the first one hasn’t even come out, and that one is called The Witch and the Devourer of Souls. And currently I’m working on a book called The Executioner of God, which is about a Thirteenth-century Scottish Templar knight who is moving forward in history sixty years at a time in the company of a Fifteenth-century Irish nun, in pursuit of three witches. He never quite catches up to them and he eventually ends up in Twenty-first-century Utah. It will tie all my horror books, except for the witch series, together.

SXP: So, if you’re interested in reading these books, how would one go about finding them?

CDB: They’re on Amazon and Barnes & Noble, Kindle and paperback. They are also available on my website, unwillingchild.com. There’s a couple of links to Amazon and Barnes & Noble and iTunes and so on. But there’s also a link to order an autographed copy, which I will sell at the normal price plus priority shipping. But yeah, they are available. I’ve seen them in bookstores, not very commonly, but I have seen them in bookstores.

SXP: That’s awesome, congratulations by the way.

CDB: I was thrilled!

SXP: Absolutely, that’s a huge deal. So, for my last question, I wanted to ask you about Renaissance Faires. Obviously, you’ve been going to them for a while now, but there may be some people that are a little hesitant to go. For those people, how would you sell it to them?

CDB: Just come and have fun! Some people dress up… a lot of people dress up. Most people don’t, so just come and have fun. There are so many things to see. This one that I’m doing in August is just a delight. They have jousting. Most of them are professional jousters. They make their living doing this. There’s a Shakespearean play put on each night. You know, William Shakespeare himself is walking around and conversing with people. And the music! I love music.

If the Ren Faire is not quite your thing, we’ve done the Celtic festival in Evanston, Wyoming for a few years. That’s a much more low-key thing, and a lot of people come for the music. There’s nothing like a Celtic band or Celtic rock group or traditional Celtic singers. We’re just starting to do the one in Moab, Utah called Scots on the Rocks. Last year was my first year going and we didn’t do the full show. We’ll see if they progress to wanting the rest of it, but yeah, Ren Faires are just entertainment. Yeah, you’re gonna find folks dressed up in various ways. They may be pirates, they may be fairies, they may be Scotsmen. You see a lot of kilts, but you don’t have to play along. And Ren Faires run the gamut. You have ones that are totally immersive, where you are immersed in the story, and all the players are moving around and things are happening around you. Including sword fights and so on. Then you have ones that are just basically you just go and visit the various booths and tents and… There’s actually a Viking ship builder here in the area, and he shows how Viking ships were built. He’s there, working on one.

So, if you like history at all, enjoy that. If you like fantasy, enjoy that. And if you just want to come and see something just really different, that’s fun too.

Ghost of Tsushima Review

Ghost of Tsushima is an open world Action-Adventure game from Sucker Punch Productions. Set in 13^th Century Japan on Tsushima Island, the game centers around a young samurai warrior, Jin Sakai, as he comes face to face with a Mongolian invasion led by the dangerous and brutal Khotun Khan. After a devastating defeat at the hands of the Mongols, and with Jin’s uncle, Lord Shimura captured, Jin must adopt less traditional means of a samurai to stop this devastating force and free his people from Mongol rule.

It must be first noted how absolutely gorgeous the open world of Tsushima is. Sucker Punch has done an incredible job filling the landscape with intricate details. The trees sway in the wind beautifully as a cascade of leaves flutter about. The amount of particle effects on display is quite astounding and pushes the limits of what can be onscreen in this generation of consoles. What the Red Dead Redemption series did in recreating the visual aesthetics of late 19^th Century America, Ghost of Tsushima has done the same for 13^th Century Japan. It cannot be stated enough just how beautiful this game looks. The color pallet in this game is so incredibly wide and well utilized that at no point will you become bored with the same bland looking environments. Visually, the world feels alive, but visuals do not make the game. Does it actually play well?

The answer to that question is a mixed yes. There are two approaches to gameplay in for Ghost of Tsushima, confrontational and stealth. When it comes to the confrontational gameplay style, Ghost of Tsushima excels tremendously. As you progress through the game, you will unlock various skills, stances, and weapons to dispose of all of your enemies in a quick and deadly fashion. Using your assortment of weapons and skills to take out swaths of enemies never gets old or tiresome. You can start an encounter by initiating a “Standoff.” Enemies surround you as one enemy approaches. These instances feel like a game of cat and mouse as you wait patiently for your enemy to attack before striking a deadly blow with your katana. Enemies will attempt to force you to attack first by feinting an attack to draw you in to deliver a near fatal blow, which puts you at a severe disadvantage in combat afterwards. From there, it’s up to you to choose how to dispatch your foes. You can throw a kunai which breaks your enemy’s guard in order to strike. You can time your parry’s perfectly to deliver an instant kill. You can unleash one of several devastating moves to dispatch multiple enemies at once. There is a lot of creative leeway in how you approach direct combat. Which makes the stealth gameplay feel like more of an afterthought than anything else.

Stealth is the least fun aspect of Ghost of Tsushima, which becomes all the more glaring when certain story missions force stealth onto the player. There is nothing unique or interesting about the stealth, which is a shame considering that this is coming from the makers of the Sly Cooper franchise, which was a fun stealth platformer from the PS2 era. There could have been endless opportunities with the stealth in this game, and it is a shame that so much of it is simply stay behind this character until you’re close enough to stab him. It really slows down the pace of an otherwise fast paced game. But this is a minor complaint considering that stealth missions are few and far between and the game tends to leave players to their own devices when choosing how to deal with enemies in the open world.

As far as the open world is concerned, Ghost of Tsushima doesn’t do much to break the formula of the open world game, but it does refine some aspects of it. First, the waypoint system is one of the greatest systems ever implemented in open world gaming. Gone is the radar system. Gone is the blip on the screen that you have to run towards. Instead, Sucker Punch has created the “Guiding Wind” system, which revolutionizes how players traverse the open world. How this works is you place a waypoint on your map in the menu screen. Instead of that waypoint cluttering up the screen as it does in most open world games, you must follow the direction of the wind. This does two things for the game. First, it minimizes the amount of pop ups onscreen which allows the player to fully appreciate the scenery of the world. Second, it showcases just how incredible the physics system of Ghost of Tsushima is. Not sure where to go? Just look at the direction the grass waving in. It’s truly a remarkable navigation system and it also allows for the player to discover the secret areas of Ghost of Tsushima on their own. And there are a lot of secrets to uncover. While some have complained that the various diversions overstay their welcome, this reviewer found them to be wonderful distractions from the quests and showed an attention to detail in the nooks and crannies that encompass the island of Tsushima. But when you just want to get somewhere quickly and are tired of running around open fields to your destination, Ghost of Tsushima has one of the best fast travel systems to date. Gone is the five-minute long load times associated with most fast travel systems in open world games. You’ll barely have enough time to read the tip on the load screen before being plopped in front of your destination. This is a welcome reprieve for people that just want to get through the game quickly, though doing so may make you miss some exciting fights and random encounters.

Another fun aspect in gameplay are the duels. Duels act as a sort of boss fight between Jin and one other character. These battles are usually much more intense than your standard sword fight as they require you to pay more attention to your dueling partners moves. As the game progresses, these duels become a lot easier when you have more tools at your disposal, but early on they can be brutal and unforgiving at times. That being said, these duels give way to some of the most cinematic moments in the game. As a side note, if you successfully complete all the duels in the game, you are rewarded with a trophy titled “There Can Be Only One.” So, while Ghost of Tsushima drew a lot of inspiration from early samurai films, clearly the developers had a love for the Highlander series and used some of those duels as inspiration.

As far as story is concerned, Ghost of Tsushima tells a surprisingly well-crafted story. While the first introduction of villain Khotun Khan seems almost text book bad guy, as the story progresses, Khotun Khan becomes a villain with depth. Khotun Khan understands his enemies and how they operate and uses their pride and their honor against them in strategic and terrifying ways. Many villains in video games are boiler plate baddies, but there is a subtleness and deftness to how this villain operates that sets him above the rest. Speaking of subtleness, there are several side quests that deal with heavy issues such as child molestation or a homosexual relationship that in other games may have come across as heavy handed, but Ghost of Tsushima is able to navigate these ideas in incredibly precise ways without telling the audience specifically what is happening. This does not happen in all the side quests as one involving dementia becomes a little too on the nose for the topic, but there are very minute details sprinkled throughout the various quests and side quests that make the story of Ghost of Tsushima work and call for repeat playthroughs.

We’ve already mentioned in our previous blog about the Kurosawa mode, which makes the game black and white, adds a film grain filter, ups the wind settings, and changes the frame rate, but the question is, does it truly add anything to the game? The answer is a simple no. While it’s a neat feature, frankly it detracts a bit from the game. First, it’s already been mentioned that the color palate for the game is absolutely breathtaking and is a true site to behold. Placing the game in black and white simply eliminates this aspect of the game. It also becomes much more difficult to see when entering a building. It may be something fun to mess with when doing a second playthrough, but we certainly wouldn’t recommend it on your first.

Overall, Ghost of Tsushima is a wonderful open world Action-Adventure game. It never overstays it’s welcome and it creates a beautiful world that is fun to explore with an engaging and deep combat system that overshadows its weak stealth counterpart. We’d definitely recommend this game to fans of open world games, or classic samurai films. On a scale of 1 to 10, we’d give this a solid 9.5/10.

We’re Getting Back into the Swing of Things

Well, ladies and gentlemen, after months in quarantine, we’ve just had our first successful Sword Experience Event in Santa Clara on August 1^st. We’ve been working diligently in an effort to bring back the best fitness and travel event in the world, while also keeping your health and safety in mind. Thank you to everyone that participated in our Santa Clara event and thank you for sticking with us while we figured out the complexities of these crazy times. We are excited to finally be getting back to what we love to do by bringing fitness and fun together with sword training and sword choreography. We have another event lined up this year in Pittsburgh and we can’t wait to see more of your smiling, but masked, faces! We’re still working on getting our Lakeland event off the ground, and will let you know as soon as possible when we’ve secured a venue and date!

Jul 22 2020

An Interview with C. David Belt Part 1

We recently sat down with author and ancient weapon enthusiast C. David Belt. In this interview, we discussed his passion for medieval weaponry, his vast collection of ancient weapons, and the classes that he teaches while showcasing his impressive collection. So, enjoy our chat with C. David Belt and check back later for the second half of our conversation regarding his work as an author, how you might be able to get a peak into his collection, and more on his passion for Renaissance Faires.

Sword Experience (SXP): You have a vast knowledge of medieval weaponry. What got you initially started? What sparked your interest in medieval weaponry, and from there, how did it evolve?

C. David Belt (CDB): Well, my father was a history professor. Specifically of U.S. frontier history, but history was his passion. He was a magnificent storyteller, and from my early childhood, he inspired in me a love of history, a love of understanding why people did the things they did and how they lived. Not just your boring old dates and names and places. So, that’s the real basis of it. Then you get to the early 2000’s, I discovered Renaissance Faires (laughs). And we thought we’d go give one a try, and we were just entranced.

I bought my first sword. It turned out to be an English sword rapier. Which is a terrible weapon, meaning bad. But I brought it home and wacked it against a tall pine tree in my backyard and nearly broke my hand and said, “Okay, I don’t know anything about how this works.” And so, I started studying it, and found out what it was, and found out that it was a weapon that lasted about fifty years. It was an English attempt to create a military grade rapier, because rapiers were never used as military weapons, because the average military sword of the day would break them. They were civilian dueling weapons. But the sword rapier was an important piece, because it is also called a transitional rapier. It was a transition between what we now call the broadsword, and an attempt at making something better which eventually became the European sabre.

So, I then began collecting weapons, and as I collected weapons, I would research them obsessively. Trying to figure out how they were used, sometimes how they were made, but I was more interested in how they were used. Which grew into an obsession, and I now have eighty-some pieces in my arsenal. I branched out beyond swords to spears and axes. A few daggers and a few odd things like a Roman dart, which is an incredibly nasty weapon. I just recently acquired an English longbow and two different types of arrows for it. I just am fascinated with how these were used. As I began to write my novels, inspired in part by how much I enjoyed Adrian Paul’s Highlander, I began incorporating some of these swords into my horror/ urban fantasy/ religious horror… whatever you want to call it, it’s kind of a unique genre. There was a need for various types of swords from various eras all being used at the same time. So, that fascinated me. Figuring out how these swords would match up against each other and so on.

SXP: So, you said you’ve amassed over eighty pieces of ancient weaponry. I know I’m asking you to choose between your children, but what do you think is your most prized possession in that collection?

CDB: I’m going to have to name a few because they are prized for different reasons. My most valuable piece is an Eighteenth-century Japanese Katana that I picked up for nothing, almost, and it is an incredible piece.

But as far as the one that fascinates me the most right now at the moment, it’s the late Templar thrusting sword. It’s a very unique weapon, wide at the base, narrowing to the tip, so that it made for an excellent cut and thrust weapon. There are stories about it penetrating plate mail when thrust exactly right. It’s the forerunner of the longsword. Which is basically a longer, two-handed version of the single-handed Templar thrusting sword. That’s just one of my absolute favorites for, like I said, different reasons.

I have a blackened Schiavona, which is a Scottish model of a sword that was very popular with Slavic mercenaries. The blade is beautifully galvanized to a black, with a beautiful basket, just an excellent weapon.

But if someone were to break into my house, I would probably grab either the Nineteenth-century Naval cutlass, because I could use it on the stairs. This is assuming that I couldn’t get to my Smith & Wesson 9mm. Or I would grab a Scottish medieval sword that I have that’s fairly simple. It’s got down-sloping quillons on it and a large pommel. And the reason I’d grab that is because I don’t have a weapon that is better balanced than that.

SXP: So, we touched on this a little bit, because you already said that you were interested in history, but why specifically study medieval weaponry?

CDB: Well, what boy didn’t grow up watching Robin Hood and Ivanhoe, at least for my generation, and seeing that and being fascinated with knighthood and so on. I have in my collection several breast plates and quite a number of helms and a full suit of chain, including a coif, and leggings that my children and I made. We made three sets of… three hauberks. And I have a full suit of plate which I acquired a few years ago. But you know, the fascination with the code of chivalry, or at least the version that has been passed down to us. Learning how things went together and as I researched for some of my novels, some of them are set in various periods of history. I would research exactly what the tactics were, and everything about the warriors of the time.

So, my collection actually goes from 2500 B.C. up through the early Twentieth-century. It’s not just medieval weaponry. I’ve got quite a few Roman pieces and even a Mesoamerican Macuahuitl, which is fire hardened oak with obsidian chips around the edge. But primarily European medieval weaponry, with a few exceptions.

SXP: So, you teach some medieval history, correct?

CDB: I teach a class that I call “Swords and Spears and Axes, Oh My! Medieval Weapons 101,” and I adapt it to a couple of different venues. Well, three different venues. I teach it at Renaissance Faires and writer/ creator conferences, and I have done some academic classes at high schools in Utah. What I do is I talk about the history of these weapons and how they were used. I sing songs and tell tales of battles and glorious, impossible victories and defeats, and after I talk about each weapon, I pass it around to the audience. Everyone gets to handle each and every sword or weapon, with the exception of the spears and the pole ax and the long bow. That’s too difficult to pass around safely. It’s kind of a unique thing.

I start off with an Irish drinking song. Then I give them my little safety lecture. It goes something like this. (With an impressive Scottish accent) “Everything I have here is sharp and is deadly and these will cut you. Now I’m asking you, please do not touch the blades. If you touch the blades, you cause them to rust. And your blood and your fingerprints cause them to rust. It’s not that I care about you and your safety, I care about my blades!”

SXP: (laughs)

CDB: And that usually gets a laugh. I do have an assistant or two that usually go with me. Not members of my own family, believe it or not. Not that they haven’t gone, it’s just that there’s a husband-and-wife team that usually go to these shows with me, because I get them in for free (laughs). The wife is an author and she sells her own medieval-themed fantasy books. I get them in for free and where a tent could cost as much as a thousand to three thousand dollars, we get in for free, because we add value to the event. My two assistants pass the weapons around, and they remind people to not touch the blades, and then they wipe them off after everybody is done. It’s just a fun class.

It does last two hours, and I warn people up front, it does last two hours and you’re free to come and go as you choose, but I have people standing for two hours in the pouring rain. I’m under an awning to protect the weapons, but they get out there and they’re handled by everybody and they come back. I’ve even had people standing in the snow in August in Utah. Utah is a weird state weather-wise, and at the Renaissance Faires, I’m always the number two draw. The joust is always number one, which makes all the sense in the world, and I will never compete with the joust. If I hear that the joust is starting or starting early, I’ll say, “Come back, and we can finish this later.” And everyone goes to watch the joust. But I do draw large crowds for this.

My class at writer’s conferences is really popular, because this is an opportunity for people to handle the weapons, and see how they feel, and get the idea that, “Oh, I really don’t want a two-handed great sword into the hands of my fourteen-year-old female protagonist. It doesn’t matter if she’s super strong, it’s gonna overbalance her.” And then I have people who come… aspiring authors that I have met… they come and do a private tour here at my home in my office. Everything is up on the walls. They’ll get a chance to pick out something that really works for their character. Or, they’ll learn that you don’t want to mix these two types of swords if you’re trying to stay historically accurate. Or that a rapier is not sharp along the edges. That it’s only sharp along the point, because it’s a thrusting only weapon. So, a lot of what you see in the movies doesn’t really work.

A Retrospective on Middle-earth: Shadow of War and Shadow of Mordor

In 2017, Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment and Monolith Productions followed up their 2014 sleeper hit, Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor, with their highly anticipated sequel, Middle-earth: Shadow of War. We thought it would be fun to take a look back at what made the series so great, and what improvements Shadow of War made to its predecessor.

The first thing that needs to be mentioned when talking about the Middle-earth series is the Nemesis System. This unique gameplay mechanic made the game series stand out amongst the crowd. Roaming around the worlds built for the game, you will have plenty of encounters with various Orcs, each with their own strengths and weaknesses. Each Orc has its own title, look, and characteristics that are randomly generated. This ensures that no two players will ever come across the exact same Orc, unless said Orc is tied directly to the story. Inside the Orc ranks, there is a hierarchy. You have Grunts, Captains, Warchiefs, and in Shadow of War, Overlords.

There are power struggles that occur at all times within the Orc community. As Talion, the protagonist of both games, it is up to you to decide how to use these power dynamics to your advantage. Say you come across a low-level Grunt, just after finishing a fight with a stronger Warchief. If that Grunt successfully kills you, no need to worry. In the Shadow series, death is not the end, death is an opportunity. The grunt will receive a promotion and is now a Captain amongst the Orcs. You can either ignore him and continue on with your quest, or you can decide to go after him. It’s an open world game, so the choice is yours. If you go after this Captain and you successfully kill him, not only will you receive more XP, but he may drop some valuable gear that can be used to enhance your playstyle.

But this only scratches the surface of the Nemesis System. What it really does is creates a unique set of circumstances for each fight that you engage in. For example, say you have broken an Orc that is a Warchief, meaning that you have defeated him in battle and instead of killing him, you decided to spare his life and convert him to your cause. Now say that you are fighting another Warchief, but unbeknownst to you, this Warchief is actually brothers with the one that you have converted. You’re in the heat of battle and suddenly your Warchief that you had converted earlier betrays you because you are fighting with his brother. Now you have to contend with two Warchief’s instead of one! This is what makes the Nemesis system so exciting. There is a depth to each of your enemies and Shadow of War took it one step further with its Siege missions. Battles in first game already felt epic to begin with, but the Siege missions amped up the battles to 11.

You have to fight with waves of enemies while your Orc army battles and Overlord’s Orc army that all culminates in a final showdown with the Overlord. The tide of battle can turn quickly in these Siege missions, and you have to take into account every aspect of the enemies you face. If you study their weaknesses before entering the battle, the Siege can take mere minutes. However, if you run in without any preparation at all, you may find your Orc army getting slaughtered by the enemy, thus leaving you to battle all the Warchiefs on your own. It can be quite thrilling riding a drake into battle as you watch your Orc army handle the Overlord’s army on their own. Or it can become frustrating as you watch all of your Warchiefs get taken out one by one by a Warchief Berserker that becomes enraged by everything. The Nemesis system is insanely deep and even after you have completed the story, will leave you coming back for more unique battles and encounters.

The combat is similar to the Arkham games, also released by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment. The Arkham games have been praised for their excellent combat design as they revolutionized how third person fighting games operate with its Freeflow Combat System. This system includes a button to attack, a button to defend, a button to stun, and a button to leap over enemies. The Shadow series does not break the mold of that combat system, but it does add its unique and gory twist to the Freeflow Combat System. As you increase your combat multiplier by successfully landing and parrying attacks, you can perform devastating executions, or combo moves that can either take a bunch of enemies out at once, or convert them to your cause. The executions are both gruesome and gorgeous and you’ll often find yourself taken aback by the moves that you pull off in game. The combat is swift and satisfying and not unlike the Nemesis system, keeps you coming back for more. At first the combat system seems simplistic, but as you progress through the game and unlock more skills, you find yourself experimenting with the system to pull off epic executions in the middle of fights. The game truly makes you feel like a God at certain points, though even God’s can be humbled by the right enemy type.

For fans of Lord of the Rings, Shadow of War does an excellent job of fitting into the mythos of the universe without taking too many liberties with J.R.R. Tolkien’s masterpiece of literature. You play as Talion, a loyal Ranger of Gondor that was murdered by the servants of Sauron. After being revived by Celebrimbor, the forger of the one true ring, Talion is hellbent on bringing about the destruction of Sauron’s Orc army. He now shares his body with the spirit of Celebrimbor and as a result has Elven like powers that aid his quest. Shadow of Mordor finds Talion exacting his revenge on those that murdered him and his family. Shadow of War follows Talion and Celebrimbor as they attempt to amass their own Orc army to defeat the dark forces of Sauron’s army. There are many memorable encounters in Shadow of War, and for fans of Peter Jackson’s films, the game does an excellent job of capturing the look and feel of the movies.

So, if you’re a fan of Lord of the Rings, or are looking for a killer third person action-adventure game, check out Middle-earth: Shadow of War or it’s predecessor Shadow of Mordor. Both games are highly engrossing and will keep you coming back for more with their incredible enemy designs, the fantastic Nemesis System, the excellent Freeform Combat, and the engrossing story. You won’t regret picking up these excellent games. You can find them on the PS4, Xbox One, and PC.

New Game Alert: Ghost of Tsushima

Ghost of Tsushima is a new open world Samurai action game from Sucker Punch Studios. Sucker Punch is famous for their Sly Cooper series on the PS2 and the inFamous series. Ghost of Tsushima is a PS4 exclusive that looks like it will itch that scratch for those of you that are looking for an epic Samurai video game. It was recently announced that the game will come with a mode called Kurosawa mode. This feature gives the feeling as if you are playing an Akira Kurosawa film by making the game black and white, slapping a film grain filter on top of the gameplay and increasing the wind in game to give it the feel of a Kurosawa film. This is an incredible feature for those that have a love for old Samurai films. Ghost of Tsushima was released on July 17^th, so look forward to a full review from us soon.

Jun 27 2020

Highlight of Silat Melayu

Silat Melayu or Silat is a traditional martial art that can be traced back to the Malay archipelago. Strictly speaking, the term Silat Melayu encompasses a vast array of knowledge related to combat tactics, war strategy, weaponry, and spiritual philosophy, culminating in the study and training of Silat as a martial discipline. While Silat Melayu primarily teaches hand-to-hand techniques, its training involving a variety of edged Malay weaponry makes it an integral aspect of any aspiring sword master’s journey.

A Short History of Silat Melayu
Throughout the centuries, before the advent of gunpowder weapons, the ancient kingdoms of the Malay archipelago have been historically well-defended against both European and East Asian invasions. Bloody battles for independence not just in Malaysia but in Indonesia have been fought and won by many Silat masters who have cemented the martial legacy of the Melayu “dance of death.” This includes the Melaka Sultanate’s Hang Tuah, a legendary 15th century warrior widely recognized as one of the first true masters of the art. Closer to the modern era, warriors like Datuk Bahaman, Mat Kilau, Panglima Salleh, and Yeop Mahidin are not only some of the most well-known Silat masters of the 19th to the 20th century, but are also famous for fighting for the region’s independence from foreign powers using Silat.

Silat Melayu Today
After Malaysia achieved independence from British rule in the last century, the National Silat Federation of Malaysia, also known as Persekutuan Silat Kebangsaan Malaysia (PESAKA) was founded by four different Silat masters to promote its practice in Malaysia and beyond. While each of these masters lead a different style of Silat, each style is still hinged on two main philosophies of movement. Bunga (blossoms) centers on the aesthetic movements responsible for Silat Melayu’s dance-like elements, both for the purposes of flow as well as for cultural preservation. Meanwhile, buah (fruits) centers on the hard and deadly movements aimed at incapacitating the enemy in the most efficient manner possible. While the four styles differ in a variety of ways, PESAKA continues to promote modern Silat practice not just in Malaysia but throughout the modern martial arts world.

The Weapons of Silat Melayu
As for the weapons pertinent to the practice of Silat, perhaps the most well-known is the keris or kris. Much like many varieties of Silat itself, the kris can be found not just in Malaysia, but also in other Southeast Asian countries like Indonesia and the Philippines. Apart from its distinctive wavy shape, the kris is also known throughout the world for how it’s constructed by folding and blending different metals together to forge a single blade, a prominent Asian technique for constructing shorter and stiffer blades as compared to those produced by European sword masters.
Silat Melayu: The Blog notes how many of the weapons in the Silat practitioner’s arsenal come from a variety of cultures, underscoring the collaborative origin of the deadly dance. The lengthy mandau, for instance, is a traditional jungle knife and headhunting sword that can be traced back to South Borneo. Meanwhile, the much shorter badik is of Sulawesi origin, and is used mainly for infighting. Many other blades, swords, spears, and other unique weapons have become integral parts of certain varieties of Silat Melayu, resulting in a range of martial techniques and practices that today comprise the whole of Silat.

Learning Silat in Malaysia
As such, the region has attracted its fair share of foreigners who wish to learn more about traditional Malay martial arts. Westerners who wish to train Silat Melayu in Malaysia will appreciate the fact that communicating with the locals won’t be a problem. In fact, as Expatbets’ guide to Malaysia indicates, many of the locals can converse very well in English as the country is a melting pot of cultures — the same reason why both its modern culinary and martial arts are a varied fusion of disciplines of different cultural origins. Furthermore, the gaming magazine notes these reasons to be why Malaysia has become a popular tourist destination, particularly for backpackers looking to experience a wide and diverse range of local activities.

Jun 16 2020

Film School with the Sword Experience

After our wonderful interview with Zoë Bell, we thought it would be interesting to take a look at one of her biggest projects to date, Kill Bill Vol. 1 &2. While there have been plenty of articles written in regards to the various film influences Quentin Tarantino used as inspiration for Kill Bill, one film that stands out the most among these influences is the 1973 action revenge thriller, Lady Snowblood. The purpose of this article is not to criticize Tarantino in any way.

In fact, while some people consider Tarantino to plagiarize from other films, this author recognizes that nearly every and all story or shot or style has pretty much been exhausted at this point in filmmaking. It is now up to the story teller to use the things that inspire them to create something wholly original in its own right. In that case, while Kill Bill has definitely been inspired by the likes of Lady Snowblood, the movies are vastly different, and can be watched independently of one another without one being detrimental to the other. So, on that note, lets dive into the similarities that these two movies share.

First, lets talk about plot. Kill Bill revolves around The Bride, AKA Beatrix Kiddo, AKA Black Mamba. A contract killer part of the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad spearheaded by the enigmatic Bill. Upon discovering that she is with child, The Bride attempts to leave her life of killing behind to start a new life with a man she barely knows. When Bill discovers that The Bride is engaged to be married, he goes on a murder spree, killing The Brides entire wedding party and leaving her for dead. When The Bride finally awakes from her coma, she exacts revenge on those that took part in the massacre culminating in a showdown with the titular Bill.

Lady Snowblood centers around Yuki, AKA Lady Snowblood. Yuki was born in a prison. Her mother had been imprisoned for exacting revenge on the people responsible for murdering her husband and child while also raping her years prior to her incarceration. She is in prison for exacting revenge on one of the four individuals responsible for this heinous crime, however, she still wishes to see her revenge through with the birth of her baby girl. As she lays dying, after giving childbirth, her final wishes are for her daughter to find the remaining three responsible for the crime to ensure that her vengeance is complete. An adult Yuki finds each of her mother’s assaulters and systematically wipes them out. As you can see from the plot, both are high concept revenge thrillers.

From here, lets talk about the framing of these plots. Both films follow a nonlinear formula of storytelling. We jump around in time to reveal motivations of the characters as well as to get more backstory from them as the film progresses. This is not entirely unique to revenge thrillers, but revenge thrillers tend to play with time to make the audience uncomfortable. When we don’t know the full extent of why a character is doing what they are doing, we tend to want to know more. By leaving the motivations of characters out from the beginning, we become intrigued by their actions, even if we don’t agree with some of the things they are doing.

Next, lets discuss the style of both films. The most obvious style element that inspired Kill Bill is Lady Snowblood’s depiction of violence. The violence in the movie is incredibly over the top. When a character is slashed with a deadly katana, a ridiculous blood spurt is usually accompanied. There is a strange mixture of over the top violence mixed with serene shots of scenery. This showcases both the brutality and the beauty of the violence depicted onscreen. A lot has been said about the violent nature of Tarantino films, but one cannot argue that he is able to frame these bits of violence in a beautiful way. Lady Snowblood is a perfect example of showcasing the beauty in violence, while not detracting from the ethical questions of said violence.

The inspiration of style does not end simply at the violence. There are plenty of shots that Tarantino was directly inspired by that he even put into his movie. For example, both movies feature shots of the villains looking down at their victims like the one seen here:

While some may argue that this image is an example of plagiarism, that simply is not the case. This image is a direct representation of the feeling of oppression. By using a low angle shot with our villains looking directly at the camera, there is no question who the bad guys in this scenario are. It immediately makes the audience recognize who we should be rooting for or against. Clearly, we should be rooting for the point of view we are experiencing, which is the person lying on their back with their attackers looking over them.

This is only one of a handful of choices used in camera angles or camera techniques. For example, both films feature quick zooms on their protagonists faces after they realize they have found their targets. This lets us as the audience know that the characters are very much aware of who their targets are and what they look like.

The filming of The Bride’s training sequence with Pai Mei in Vol. 2 is extremely similar to the training sequence a young Yuki receives in Lady Snowblood. The major difference between them being that Pai Mei’s training is centered around the Chinese art of kung fu, whereas Yuki was being trained in the art of sword fighting under the brutal tutelage of a priest. Both Pai Mei and the priest do not hold back on their training with their underlings.

They are cruel to the point of being callous. However, when we begin to see the marked improvements of both protagonists, we begin to see the softer side of each character. Their harsh tutelage is only to prepare them for the harshness they will face in actual combat.

Another technique used by Lady Snowblood that Tarantino used for Kill Bill is using animation to tell a flashback. Both films use an animated sequence to reveal a backstory relating to its central characters. Lady Snowblood’s animation seems to be directly inspired by art from the Edo period. These flashbacks are marked with narration over still images that look similar to this period of art styles. While Tarantino’s backstory involving O’ren Ishii may have been more heavily inspired by such anime films as Akira or Ninja Sword, it is clear from his love of Lady Snowblood that he was inspired by Lady Snowblood’s technique of storytelling when showing O’ren’s background.

While we are on the subject of O’ren Ishii, it becomes painfully obvious how much the character was inspired by the look of Yuki from Lady Snowblood. Just take a look at these two images:

One can’t help but notice the similarities between the two characters design. This is purposeful. While O’ren may be the antagonist of this film, her backstory is similar to that of Yuki’s. Both were set to become agents of revenge from a very young age. Both became synonymous with murder and destruction. Some may even argue that both characters were victims of circumstance, and neither had a chance at living a peaceful life.

Next, lets discuss sound design. Tarantino made it abundantly clear that Lady Snowblood heavily inspired his film. There are direct sound effects and music taken from Lady Snowblood. An example of the sound effects Kill Bill reuses is the sound of someone jumping. One might mistake it for the sound effect used in The Million Dollar Man, but in reality, the reference that Tarantino was making with the jumping sound effect is lifted directly from the training sequence involving Yuki and the priest. Most importantly though is music. Tarantino made no effort to hide the influence of Lady Snowblood when he used the opening and closing theme of “Sharu No Hana” from Lady Snowblood as the closing song for Kill Bill Vol. 1. He was letting every film fan or burgeoning film fan in on his inspirations.

While many continue to argue that Tarantino’s style tends to copy other films, the truth of the matter is that Tarantino has always been a unique voice in cinema. He is heavily inspired by other films and uses those films for shots and design, but in reality, there is no mistaking his vision and his movies for that of anyone else. In fact, it can be argued that by directly lifting the ideas from some of these films, Tarantino is actually getting us to discuss movies that may not have been in the ether of film culture to begin with. Would we still be talking about Lady Snowblood today if it weren’t for its direct inspiration on Kill Bill Vol. 1 &2? Probably not.

A Brief Review of HBO Max

HBO Max is officially here, but what exactly does that mean? Well, if you were already a subscriber of HBO Now, congrats! You are already a subscriber of HBO Max. HBO Max is the next step for HBO in the landscape of streaming television. HBO has updated its catalogue of streamable content by including content from Warner Brother’s Media, Cartoon Network, and Turner Classic Movies. To be very frank, the catalogue is enormous and is filled to the brim with amazing content. For all of our sword enthusiasts, you’ll find a plethora of classic samurai films and action films to scratch your itch.

HBO Max should be every movie lovers dream. There is a nearly endless selection of movies to choose from. From comedies to dramas, HBO Max has content that is spectacular when compared to its counterparts. You won’t find yourself sifting though as much garbage you’ve never heard of before when searching for your favorite movies and television shows. However, HBO Max still has some issues at launch.

The first issue is in regards to load times and buffering. While HBO has addressed some of these issues since launch, it still takes an extended period of time for HBO Max to boot up to the first menu screen. This may not be an issue to some, but when time is of the essence, waiting nearly two minutes to get to a menu screen is completely unacceptable. As far as buffering issues are concerned, HBO has always required a near perfect internet connection in order to stream content without buffering.

HBO wants to be considered one of the highest quality streaming services visually, thus they require a strong internet connection. The end result of this can be detrimental to the viewing experience. It takes the viewer out of the experience of watching a film way more often when the film starts to buffer than if there were a drop in image quality. Personally, this author would prefer a drop in image quality over a complete stoppage.

There’s also an issue with where one may be able to view HBO Max. There is no application yet for streaming devices such as Roku or Amazon. This is due to a lack of deals in distribution rights for platforms. Luckily, if you have a gaming device, you should be able to download an application for HBO Max onto your device. However, considering that a lot of people use Roku or Amazon to access their streaming services, this feels like a huge misstep on HBO’s part. Hopefully this can be resolved sooner rather than later. You can still use HBO Max on your personal computer, laptop, tablet, or phone. So, there are options outside of Roku and Amazon, but the issue of streaming on your television can be more difficult than it needs to be.

Overall, the catalogue behind HBO Max seems to outshine its shortcomings. However, in order for HBO to dethrone the likes of Netflix or Hulu, they need to address a lot of these shortcomings if they’d like to be mentioned in the same breath as these streaming giants. That being said, since there is plenty of content as it relates to swords on their service, don’t be surprised if you see us talking about HBO Max in the coming months.

Do You Want to Share Your Art?

We all have a lot more time on our hands lately, and some of you may have been practicing your art skills. We’ve been toying with the idea of getting a glimpse of your artwork, especially as it relates to swords and The Sword Experience. If you’d like to share some of your artwork, let us know on our social media pages. You can tweet at us @SwordExperience. You can tag us in your artwork on Instagram using @swordexperience. You can even tell us more of your thoughts on our Facebook page. We’d love to hear from you guys, and are interested in seeing the incredible works of art you have been working on while in self-isolation.

Keep your eyes peeled for an art contest coming later this summer!

May 29 2020

An interview with Zoë Bell

We here at the Sword Experience were able to convince the highly prolific and sought-after stuntwoman Zoë Bell to take some time and chat with us via phone call. In the following interview, we discussed her methods preparing for sword and fight choreography, her recent viral hit #BossBitchFightChallenge, and some of the different phrases that Kiwi’s have compared to Americans.

Sword Experience (SXP): So, let’s start with your career. You got your first big gig as a stuntwoman with Xena: Warrior Princess, and quickly made a name for yourself. You’ve starred in Quentin Tarantino movies and were Uma Thurman’s double as The Bride, and you most recently doubled for Cate Blanchet as Hela in Thor: Ragnarok. So, my first question for you today is, what actions do you take to prepare for fight scenes and sword fight choreography?

Zoë Bell (ZB): As a performer or a coordinator?

SXP: Both

ZB: Well, it sort of depends on the project for both. It depends on your resources, AKA financial results and having the time and players. It’s one thing if you’ve got a fight between four people and you’ve got four doubles and you’ve got a couple of weeks to work on it, and you can’t afford to have all the doubles to work with. Plus, the fight choreographer and maybe a regular or performer if you will and, you know, a couple of other regulars, and what have you. The process becomes quite difficult. Ideally, you’d have enough resources and time to choreograph the fight and get it ok’d by the director. Then train with the actors and the doubles so that… A) That they can complete the fight and choreography, and B) Have enough of the groundwork so that if things change on the day or leading up to the day, that the scope isn’t so narrow that they’re presented with changes and can’t adapt. So, you want to train actors and doubles, so that if I’m the coordinator or the double, you want your actors and your doubles to sort of have the foundation of footwork, stances, the specifics of the character or their style. So, on the day, if things shift around, we have some fluidity to it and we can maneuver around. Like, if the script changes, or character arcs shift, or if the story line changes, the choreography needs to be able to support it from a different angle. You want your players, your performers, to have enough of an arsenal that they can roll with the punches, excuse the pun. (laughs).

SXP: My next question, because we have a lot of Musketeers and fans that have either been doing or are interested in starting sword or fight choreography, as a stuntwoman you’ve probably had your fair share of accidents and injuries. So, what I’d like to ask you is what steps do you take, personally, to prevent injuries, or the steps that you take when you’re actually injured?

ZB: So, I guess that kinda folds into the last answer, as well as… A) Working with choreography, but you also want to train your actors or performers, this goes for me as well as a performer or me as a coordinator training actors or doubles, you want an element of fitness and flexibility and strength that they should have as a safety guard. You know, eighty percent of accidents, like small accidents, are avoidable if your joints are more flexible. If your structure has more strength in it, and if you are fit. That’s just sort of the nature of the game.

You know, you don’t always have time to do that. As a performer myself, I should maintain that at all times in case I end up getting a job that requires that, and I’d expect that of my stunt players in particular. Also, in terms of avoiding any accidents, a huge part of it is…. It’s kind of a tricky one to speak about, because the stunt world tends to still have a little bit of a stigma that stunt people don’t complain. You know, like the stunt people, we just make it work and get it done sort of thing. But for me, personally, I want to work with coordinators that trust me to speak up. I’m only gonna speak up if I feel like I need to. Otherwise, I’m gonna shut up and get the job done. But I would expect the same back as a coordinator. I want to hire players and performers that I trust to either just get the work done and or if there is a problem, like something is not sitting right. Or their instincts are kinda perking up, I want to hear it. I want you to communicate with me. A huge part of that is being able to communicate and understanding your own body and your own limits, and your skill set.

There have been times where I’ve said yes to jobs to do a gig that I’ve never done before, but I know, I trust that my body can do that and I know my limits. There are other times that I’ve said to them, “if I’ve got a week or two to go learn that, or to train it, or to rehearse it, then yes.” And there have been times that I’ve had to say, “You know what? There’s someone better at that then I am.” You know? And if you don’t want to hand the job over to someone else, go get good at it before you turn up. You can say, “Yes.” Just make sure when you turn up on set that it’s not a lie.

SXP: I’ve noticed that you’ve been very active on social media, and you just recently went viral with your #BossBitchFightChallenge. What was your thought process in getting this project started? What made you want to do this, and how do you feel about the response you’ve been getting?

ZB: Well, the fight challenge started before me. There’s a stunt guy named Aaron Toney, who I think it originated with him. The first video that I actually saw was one that was by the CUC fight challenge. It’s a fight stunt school in France. But, basically, I watched that and I was like, “What a dope idea!” That is so cool and such a dynamic way to be in the company of others when we’re in social isolation. I just thought, “There’s not very many girls in the one that I saw. I know so many badass girls, maybe I should just make an all-female one and see how it goes.” And the response was just so overwhelmingly… um… not just positive, but excited. Like everyone was just like, “(gasps) Yeah! Let’s do this!” You know? We were like little kids getting to play. And it kinda blossomed into its own thing where over the space of the week we made it, we had other… like I sort of had a core group of stuntwomen that I had reached out to.

And then other people started coming aboard, and we kinda had other actors coming aboard. Even to the point where like the day before we posted the video, we had newcomers. So, it was quite fluid and fortunately we were… I don’t know! We were just in the mindset that this thing is just cool and has a life of its own and I’m gonna do what I need to do to facilitate that and give it room to breathe. And make sure we can pull it together, and at some point, we had to lock it down and say, “We can’t accept anyone…” I mean depending on who it was, I’m sure. But there was definitely like, you know, when Drew was like, “Can I fight?” I was like, “Uh yes. We will make room for that.” But there was a point where we were like, “We can’t keep bringing more clips in.”

SXP: And just to clarify, Drew is Drew Barrymore, correct?

ZB: Right. And then there was Scarlett (Johansen) who came aboard, but Heidi Moneymaker doubles her a lot. So, she was like, “I can reach out to Scarlett.” And I was like, “Do it.” You know the whole thing was like, if these women want to come onboard, go. It’s gonna be fun and awesome regardless of who else comes onboard. I don’t know. It’s just sort of like the glass was already half full and just kept getting fuller, you know?

SXP: Overflowing, right?

ZB: Yeah to a point, almost. Yeah.

SXP: Well obviously we’re finding ourselves in a time that is just unprecedented. So, your career requires physical touch. It’s a big part of stunt work.

ZB: Except for the Fight Challenge. (Laughs)

SXP: (Laughs) Except for that. Yes. I just wanted to ask what your thoughts were on how the stunt industry will move forward after an event like this.

ZB: Well, I mean it’s an interesting question, because there’s sort of no foundational absolutes to base any theory on at this point, you know? And yes, obviously, the stunt department, we have physical interactions as a major component of what we do, but let’s be honest. Making films, like, a crew together, it’s gonna be difficult to get a crew to shoot a movie and not be in physical contact with each other.

SXP: Very true.

ZB: You know the whole… I don’t know. It’s a big picture to imagine. If we were to find a way to shoot movies where crew members maintained whatever the mandated distance is, and we all wore masks, and we got blood tests and we did whatever all those precautions would be….

You know it’s like, what are you going to do for a sex scene? Or what are you gonna do for a fight scene? It’s the same in the sense that you would just have to rewrite it, or rechoreograph it. Maybe it’s in how you shoot it. Obviously, there are ways… there are imaginative ways to get around these issues. And to be honest, I feel like…. This is an extreme situation, obviously…. But, a huge part of filmmaking, in my experience, is when you come up against blocks, or things that prevent you from shooting or completing something in the way that you planned, or rehearsed, or would normally lean on, sometimes that’s when the magic comes in. Where ideas come out. Like with the fight challenge. I didn’t come up with the idea, but when I saw it, I was inspired by it, because it’s such a cool idea. So, then things shift. And now there’s these fight challenges going on all around the world. Fire’s starting everywhere. Who knows what comes from that? Maybe that becomes a new flavor of action.

So, I don’t know. I’m definitely pondering all these ideas. Less from a how are we gonna make it work and more from a what else can we do in this world right now. What are the fun things we can explore? Now is kind of the time to be experimenting, really. Who knows?! Maybe it shifts the way we tell stories. I don’t know. These are the sort of things that shift the foundations. Even if it feels like a subtle shift at first, they may be changes that are kinda permanent, you know?

SXP: Absolutely.

ZB: At least until the next shockwave happens. You know, you can look at different parts of history, and all the Great Depressions, and these massive things that have affected the industry worldwide in any way, shape, or form. Styles and flavors come out of things like that. So, I’m kinda curious to see what comes out of all of this crazy.

SXP: Me too. Me too. I’ve been talking to a lot of actors lately, and I was wondering what you think… Because clearly the entertainment industry has taken this very seriously. And when things start getting back to some sense of normalcy, how do you think producers are going to go about choosing the people they work with?

ZB: Um, honestly, I don’t even know how producers made those decisions before Coronavirus. Um… You know, I don’t know the answer to that. I think that’ll be a little bit of the proof is in the pudding, you know? There are people that are willing to take the risks. Some producers might be like, “Great! That means we can get started and I like someone who’s a bit ballsy,” or whatever. And then there might be some producers that are like, not interested or willing to take those risks.

Places are all starting to open up in different places around the world, and I think fortunately, or unfortunately, they will be the litmus of how things continue. You know, if Atlanta gets another flair up, and they end up having to shut down for a second time, it could be crippling! And there will be other states that will take lead from that and be like, “we’re not doing this.” I mean, I don’t know. It’s still so early to make calls around those kinds of things. But, honestly, if I’m in the role of producer, I wanna look at people who are cautious. Cautious in a way that they are aware that, you know, money is at stake. And it’s not just money, but if there’s a risk to the finances, there’s a risk to the project, there’s a risk to the art. At some point, those things all have to be considered.

SXP: Absolutely. Alright, so now to get off such a depressing topic…

ZB: It’s not depressing, there’s room for new growth and sh*t in times like this. So, it doesn’t have to be all depressing.

SXP: Exactly. You’re one hundred percent right about that. However, I just wanted to ask you something fun here at the end. For those that don’t know, you’re from New Zealand, and you’ve been living in the states on and off for a while now.

ZB: Pretty much on for twenty years now.

SXP: So, the first time I (the SXP editor in chief) ever met you was on the set for the short film No Touching, which is a very appropriate title for right now, right?

ZB: Yeah. Totally. (laughs)

SXP: One of my fondest memories of that experience was when you asked me for a cooler, but you referred to it as a chilly bin.

ZB: (laughs) Yeah.

SXP: I was very taken aback by that, because I did not know what you were referring to…

ZB: (laughs)

SXP: But after we figured it out together, I thought that was probably the funniest thing I’d ever heard, because, like of course you can call it a chilly bin. Because that’s what it is, you know?

ZB: Yeah! It’s a bin to keep things chilly! (laughs)

SXP: Yeah! So, my question to you is, what phrases do you have in New Zealand that you see differ from phrases here in the States? Is there anything that really sticks out in your mind?

ZB: I have to ask my boyfriend these things, because I use them or I don’t use them and I don’t remember where they’re from anymore, but the most obvious one is we say “rubbish bin” and you guys say “trash can.” Some New Zealand phrases that I use that you just go “What?” Munted.

SXP: Munted?

ZB: Munted is a New Zealand word for… I guess the equivalent for it would be “F***ed up?” Excuse my language. If you come off your motorbike in gravel, you’re gonna get munted. If you drink too much whiskey on an empty stomach, you’re gonna get munted. So, any time you could probably say f***ed up, you could probably say munted. We also will call someone a munter. (Laughs). And I don’t know quite the definition of munter is, because it’s not f***ed up, it’s more like um…

SXP: Like Motherf***er?

ZB: No, it’s not like, “You a**hole,” it’s more like you… Ugh, what would be the equivalent? Like someone who’s willing to get f***ed up. Like if someone is a munter, like, “oh yeah, that guys a total munter,” he will go to a party and just get s***faced and pick a fight with whoever owns the house or that person’s mum.

SXP: So, like maybe a party monster?

ZB: Yeah?… Yeah. Or someone who’s like really into heavy anything can be a bit of a munter. Like if you willingly munt yourself, or get yourself munted, you’re a munter. (laughs) I really don’t think I’ve ever had to describe that before. It’s kinda fun.

SXP: Wonderful. Well, thank you for your time, Zoë. Stay safe.

May 06 2020

The Letter for the King Review

Netflix has been diligently attempting to fill the medieval fantasy void that has been left in the wake of the Game of Thrones finale and The Letter for the King is its newest iteration into this fantasy genre. The story follows an aspiring young knight named Tiuri who finds himself in over his head when he is tasked with delivering a secret letter to the King who lives across the Great Mountains. The series is comprised of 6 episodes.

Let’s get something out of the way. This is by no means a Game of Thrones killer. It seems more like a Game of Thrones geared toward tweens. The show is family friendly. While there are plenty of sword fights and action sequences, most of the violence occurs off screen with quick cutaways to character reactions. So, if you are watching the show as an adult you may gleam some entertainment value from it, but it seems as though this series would benefit more from a family viewing setting. This may be a way to get your kids interested in the medieval fantasy genre, but for hardcore enthusiasts, the show is quite tame.

However, there are some things to like in the show. The costume design is quite good, especially when compared to Netflix’s recent hit The Witcher. The armor that the knights wear seems practical and the outfits that characters wear fits into the world well. The locations that the show is filmed in are absolutely stunning. The production design for the show should be lauded, as everyone in their department is at the top of their game. The show looks great. It’s just a shame that the rest of the series meanders.

This show could have easily been condensed into a two-hour feature. While we all have plenty of time on our hands at the moment and are looking for that ultimate time killer, The Letter for the King unfortunately isn’t one of them. There are too many boring chase scenes, too much politicking between the adults of this universe, and too many bloodless battles in this bloated series. With a plot that is as bare bones as deliver this letter, there simply wasn’t enough going on outside of Tiuri’s journey to keep you invested in the overall plot.

If the series had simply followed Tiuri and his band of merry tweens, the show could have been something refreshing and fun, but instead we have to listen to a bunch of adults prattle on about the troubles that they face politically. These moments are dry and often lead to the mind wandering. It’s the curse that seems to afflict most Netflix shows. There simply isn’t a producer on the sideline saying, “Hey, maybe this should be cut out of the project.”

If you’re looking for a new fantasy series to sink your teeth into, then this one won’t satiate that hunger, but it may provide enough entertainment until the next fantasy epic comes out. It may be a fun bit of escapism for the younger crowd, but for adults, there simply isn’t enough here to recommend.

Hook: A Retrospective

In 1991, Steven Spielberg took a shot at reinventing the Peter Pan mythos with his film Hook. At the time of its release, the film was quite divisive and for the most part was critically panned, (pun intended). However, for those 80’s and 90’s babies that grew up with Hook, Steven Spielberg’s vision of Never Neverland is the quintessential Peter Pan experience. We thought it would be fun to take a look back at why so many of us love the movie.

First let’s begin with the casting. Robin Williams is the perfect adult Peter Pan. Williams made an entire career around his childlike exuberance and energy with the mind and body of an adult. His journey from a man that has buried himself in his work at the expense of his family to a man that rediscovers his childhood wonder is beautifully realized. The titular Captain Hook is also played wonderfully by Dustin Hoffman. Not only does he capture the menace behind the man, but he brings a level of bravado and class to the character that makes him even more nuanced then one might expect. The Lost Boys are also perfectly cast, and Spielberg’s penchant for directing child actors does wonders for the film.

Rufio, played by Dante Basco, has become an iconic character and his introduction in the film is so striking and fun that there is no question as to why he would be the leader of the Lost Boys. Maggie Smith as an old and wise Lady Wendy is also perfectly cast. Her work in the film, while limited leaves a lasting impression. Probably the only person in this film that was miscast would be Julia Roberts as Tinkerbell. It seems as though she was cast mainly for her star power as a way to draw in higher box office numbers. It’s not that she is particularly bad in this role, but simply that her performance does nothing to elevate the character and the film. That being said, everyone else in the film does an excellent job of rounding out their characters.

Next, lets talk about production design. The sets for Neverland are absolutely incredible and are filled with extraordinary detail. The port in which Captain Hook houses his ship is brimming with activity. Shops line every corner, smoke fills the air from fire pits, and Hook’s ship, The Jolly Roger, looms over every inch of the port menacingly. The costume design for all the pirates may not break the mold for pirates, but it faithfully recreates the iconic imagery from Disney’s Peter Pan from 1953. Hook looks nearly identical to his 1953 counterpart. But the pirate’s port isn’t the only marvel of production design in Hook. The Lost Boys jungle hideout is wonderfully crafted.

While it is certainly a product of its time, with a skating rink for roller blading and skateboarding, their hangout provides a stark contrast to the industrialized port that the pirates live out of. The movie also came out before we had reached a point where CGI had begun to take hold. Therefore, all the sets were practical and the small instances of special effects were married with practical effects, so the visuals have aged much better than many movies that came out after. The wardrobe of the Lost Boys also gives us some background on the characters themselves, as their outfits seems to suggest that each come from different time periods and different countries. All these elements add a subtle bit of world building that only add to the story through repeat viewings.

Lastly, lets talk about the plot of Hook. We’re introduced to Peter as a workaholic father that cares more about his clients than his family. He works in mergers and acquisitions and as Lady Wendy points out early on it is ironic that Peter has now become a “pirate.” When Captain Hook steals Peter’s children in the middle of the night, Peter is reluctant to embrace his true identity of Peter Pan, as years of being an adult have left him unable to remember his childhood. Captain Hook simply wants the great war that he was always promised, but has been missing ever since Peter has left. After Tinkerbell whisks him away to Neverland to rescue his children, it’s up to the Lost Boys to help him rediscover his past and his happy thought to become the warrior he was always destined to be. Peter finally finds his happy thought after he realizes that the happiest moment of his life was the birth of his children.

Upon reclaiming the title of Pan, Peter gives Captain Hook his war and ultimately defeats his greatest adversary in an epic sword fight that spans the entirety of the pirate’s port. Peter then takes his children home and we’re left with a family reunited and seemingly one that will no longer be neglected. There’s quite a bit to unpack in Peter’s transformation. The fact that he has grown up to be a “pirate” is a commentary that as we grow up, we tend to become the things that we thought we never would. His growth over the course of the film shows that we can always reconnect with that child inside of us and in essence break down the walls we have built around ourselves over the course of our life.

Most of the negative criticism of the film seems to be centered around the sentimentalism featured in the film. While the film is quite sentimental, what is the Peter Pan story without sentimentalism? The story is all about kids who never want to grow up. Children that want nothing but to laugh and play and let their imaginations run wild. The pirates are the antithesis of this as they simply cannot abide by the Lost Boys and Peter Pan’s shenanigans. So, to call Hook overly sentimental is absurd when its source material is nothing but sentimentalism.

Hook may not have been Spielberg’s most beloved film, but for those of us that grew up with it, it will always have a place in our hearts and our memories. For a lot of us, Hook is the best live action adaptation of the Peter Pan franchise and will likely remain that way. If you haven’t seen Hook in a while, it’s available on Netflix at the moment and is worth the watch if you’re a first timer, or you simply haven’t seen it in a while.

The Sword Experience is Coming to Patreon!

As many of you know, we’re living in very strange times. The situation we find ourselves in is making it difficult for us to bring the best fitness event in the world to your desired destinations. So, we have brought the Sword Experience to your home with our new Patreon, chock full with content that we know you’ll love. Firstly, we want to thank you for being part of our community. So, we are giving away our Hollywood Experience podcast, where twice a month, Adrian talks with Industry professionals from show runners to stuntmen about their experiences in bringing some of the world’s most iconic action sequences to the screen. In our first episode, Adrian talks with Chris Claremont who created many of your favorite X-men characters from Wolverine to Mystique. So, if you haven’t heard it yet, you can find it here. So, what exactly will you receive by becoming a member of our Patreon you might ask?

For just $3 a month, you will receive a Patreon Membership Card that will allow you discounts on merchandise when presented at live events. You will also be able to participate in Patreon Exclusive Polls, plus early access to Sword Experience videos on YouTube.

For $10 a month, you will first gain access to Adrian’s “Film Fight Insights”. Adrian will record commentary from some of your favorite films or tv shows, chosen from a poll you can vote on one a month. Plus, you will also receive early access to the Sword Experience podcast, and everything from the previous tier.

If you’re interested in a more personalized experience and to further your fitness and health goals for the year, our $15 tier will feature our Lifestyle Essential Bulletin sent to you once a week. This bulletin is written by fitness and health professionals with the goal of focusing on various aspects of your health. From diet, to mobility, and even injury prevention. We’ll also share your inspirational success stories on our social media accounts and your name will be in the credits of all of our future Sword Experience videos and, of course, you still receive everything from the lower tiers.

Next comes the $20 a month level. As well as everything on the previous tiers, you’ll receive access to the archives, a one to three-minute-long snippet from the vault. What’s the vault you ask? It could be anything from behind the scenes footage from Highlander and other productions or never before seen videos of Adrian training. In addition, you will get a private link to a Live stream hangout with Adrian in a group video chat once per month.

Our $38 a month tier is our highest level. You will receive everything mentioned above, plus something we know you have all been yearning for, Adrian’s online training videos. Twice per week, we will send you a private YouTube link where you can train with Adrian. Afterwards, Adrian will answer your training related questions on our social media platform, and will even go into further detail with some of the answers in the next video you receive. This platform will explain the Sword Experience numbering system. The movements, the angulations and techniques, along with fitness training movements focusing on arm speed, special awareness, and footwork. Not only will the Sword Experience be available at home, but you’ll get to train with Adrian twice per week! So, when we are finally able to bring the Sword Experience to your town, you’ll be one step ahead of your peers. These training sessions will also prepare you for your next level.

A one-hour workout session test, set for release in the upcoming months. These sessions will push you to improve your endurance, flexibility, strength, and speed in a series of exercises that will not only give any non-impact workout a run for their money but allow you a skill not many others can brag about.

We thank you for being with us, whether as a long-time member, or if you’re just hearing about the Sword Experience for the first time. We are excited to connect with you in a brand-new way to bring the Sword Experience into your home, where you can train on your own time and at your own pace. Until the next time, remember, “If you can’t achieve great things today, do small things greatly, and tomorrow, great things will surely come.” – Adrian Paul

Jan 14 2020

Musketeer Highlights for December 2019

Musketeer Highlights for November 2019

It’s that time again where we celebrate our wonderful Musketeers that continue to make the Sword Experience such a success. It is our pleasure to announce the top Musketeer for the month is none other than Darren Hayes. Darren is one of our most trusted Musketeers from Ireland. He has helped spread the word about our past events in Ireland and is currently assisting us with finding our next location in Ireland and we are incredibly thankful for his continued support as well as his insight. Thank you for your incredible work Darren. We cannot wait to bring the Sword Experience back to The Emerald Isle.

As with every month, it is always difficult to pick just one of you for our top Musketeer and this month was no exception. For our honorable mentions, we’d like to recognize two of our most beloved Musketeers, Joshua Hatcher and Tony Torres. Joshua and Tony are both incredibly active on our social media pages and are instrumental in keeping our Musketeers energized and engaged. We always look forward to your posts and are grateful for your continued support on social media. Keep up the incredible work.

We are excited to see what our wonderful Musketeers have in store for us in the New Year. Keep up your incredible work and maybe you’ll be reading about yourself in the coming months

Honorable mention Musketeer Tony Torres

Honorable mention Joshua Hatcher

Netflix’s The Witcher Review

Netflix’s newest fantasy adventure series has recently been released. We’ve talked about our hopes for the series in previous blog posts, but now that it is finally out, it’s time for the final verdict. Many were hoping that the series would fill the fantasy hole left behind in the wake of the Game of Thrones finale, but does The Witcher do the job?

The Witcher is based on Polish author Andrzej Sapkowski’s fantasy book series. The first season is set in a fictitious medieval world known as “The Continent.” After an event known as “The Convergence,” human’s have found themselves in a world filled with mythical creatures, monsters, and magic. The series follows the stories of a monster hunter and mutant named Geralt of Rivia, played by Henry Cavill, a powerful sorceress Yennefer of Vengerberg, played by Anya Chalotra, and the young Cintran princess Ciri, played by Freya Allan. Their destinies are intertwined by the forces of magic and political uprisings. The first season is comprised of eight episodes.

There’s a lot to like about the first season of The Witcher. Henry Cavill’s portrayal of Geralt of Rivia is perfect. Fans of both the book series and the game series will find something to love in this live action adaptation of Geralt. It is clear that Cavill has done his due diligence in preparing for the role. He has taken notes from both the book and game series to create a character that is familiar to fans yet is wholly his own. Cavill is able to exude so much charisma with a simple grunt or a broody look.

His dialogue is short and crisp and the character is incredibly realized with very little explanation needed. As an audience, we understand the internal conflicts that Geralt is experiencing without direct exposition. Not only has Cavill perfected the emotional aspects of Geralt, but the physicality that he brings to the series is both believable and ferocious. Cavill’s sword handling skills and adeptness of fight choreography is on full display with jaw dropping action scenes.

These fight scenes are some of the highlights of the series. In the first episode, we are treated to a fight where Geralt becomes known as “The Butcher of Blaviken.” Here we see just how otherworldly a Witcher is in battle. No human is a match for a Witcher, as Geralt dances around his enemies with brutal precision with a little help from his magical signs. It was quite exhilarating to watch Geralt slash his way through a multitude of enemies, and then use an Aard blast to knock his remaining enemies back to give himself a moment to breathe before finishing the fight. The series reaches its greatest heights with these incredible action scenes. There is also some incredible creature design and the series should be lauded for its usage of practical effects.

The Striga fight scene from episode 3 is an excellent example of fantastic practical effects married with VFX to create a terrifying and fun fight scene between mutant and monster. If the series were comprised of “monster of the week” episodes with Geralt entering a town, discovering the story of monster, and then slaying or helping said monster, the series would probably be considered flawless.

However, the biggest flaw with the series is in its plot development. There is a lot going on in the world of the Witcher, and the plot becomes near incomprehensible at times if you are not aware of the source material. This becomes especially confounding when you realize that the different plot threads featuring Geralt, Yennefer, and Ciri are all occurring at different points in time. This doesn’t really become clear until nearly halfway through the season, which is incredibly frustrating as a viewer. Characters are killed in one episode only to appear two episodes later with no clear explanation.

With a story that has an extensive backlog of lore and political intrigue surrounding the overarching story, a linear timeline would have done wonders for those entering the series for the first time. One of the reasons Game of Thrones was such a resounding success from the onset of the show is that even though the series started in the midst of political drama in a fantasy setting, the plot was quite easy to follow. There was rarely any confusion regarding the politics of the show. The characters were clearly defined and the politics that they were wrapped up in had vast ramifications for all the characters in the series.

The Witcher also spends far too much time delving into the dangers of magic helmed by the Brotherhood of Sorcerers. We are treated to several scenes that emphasize that a sacrifice is necessary to wield such tremendous power. This concept seems to be thrown out the window by the seasons end as most mage’s seem to be able to conjure incredible powers with very little repercussions to them or those around them. While Yennefer’s rise to power was an intriguing story, it was quite difficult to ascertain what the purpose of the Brotherhood was. Are they a cabal that controls the outcome of the war’s created by man? What are their primary goals? None of this was explained in great detail.

And then there’s Ciri’s plotline. Ciri is arguably one of the most powerful characters in the Witcher franchise. We see glimpses of this power early on, but most of Ciri’s plot feels like an afterthought to the rest of the series. Every time the plot cuts back to Ciri, nearly all of the momentum of the episode is stripped away. The motivation of these scenes felt more like the writers reminding us that there is this character that we’re supposed to be worried about, but very rarely did she feel like she was in imminent danger. It’s a shame that her character wasn’t more developed and that her storyline wasn’t littered with inconsistencies.
On a technical level, the series is a beautiful mess. There is amazing cinematography on display that really hammers home the incredible world that has been built.

Some fight scenes are beautifully shot handheld, which creates a sense of intimacy while also avoiding the cliché shaky cam. The establishing shots make the world feel alive and lived in. But then we are treated to some really bizarre costume design, most notably the Nilfgaardian armor. While the Nilfgaard are portrayed in the books as wearing black plated armor, the armor in the Netflix series just looks ugly and impractical. Apparently, the showrunner has already taken notice and they will be working with a different costume designer for season 2, so hopefully this will be rectified.

Overall, the first season of The Witcher is a mixed bag. Most of this can be attributed with the structure of the season. However, the series culminates in a meeting of these three plotlines that could mean that the next season will follow a linear path, which can only benefit the series. One thing is certain though, the series’ portrayal of Geralt is fantastic, and Henry Cavill is able to elevate the show to greatness. The show has already been picked up for a second season, and while the first season may have some weaknesses, it has set up a fairly solid foundation that can only be expanded upon. It will be interesting to see what the future holds for this series. Hopefully they learn from some of the mistakes from the first season and expand upon what worked best.

New Year, New You

As with every New Year, many have set resolutions for themselves, but as we know those resolutions can feel daunting. Whether you’re looking to lose weight, stop smoking, or starting an exercise regimen, it can be hard to know where to begin. We thought we’d give you some tips to help your resolution become a reality.

First, start small. If your resolution is to begin an exercise regimen, do not go to the gym seven days a week. Start off by going three days a week and build a foundation and routine that fits your physical abilities. If you’re looking to lose weight through dieting, gradually integrate the diet into your normal meal plans. If you start your resolution at a high intensity, then it can become much more difficult to maintain overtime. Building a solid foundation of good habits is more important than attempting to reach your goals quickly.

Second, don’t beat yourself up. We are all human beings and are bound to make mistakes when attempting to reach our goals. If your goal is to eat healthy, it’s okay if you break your diet by eating something that might not be considered healthy. One misstep does not make the progress that you have already made pointless. Just dust yourself off and try to maintain the good habits that you have been working towards.
Third, talk about your goals and experiences with friends and coworkers. Sharing your experiences and goals with others reinforces them.

You may also find that others around you are attempting the same lifestyle change as you. Discussing your struggles and successes is a wonderful way to reaffirm your resolutions and make your journey to a better lifestyle a lot more palatable.

There is no catch all to reaching your New Year’s Resolutions, but with these three simple acts, your goals and aspirations can become a lot less cumbersome. Consistency is the key to success. We know that you can attain your goals and we believe that with the right support system, your resolutions will become the norm.

Dec 10 2019

Musketeer Highlights for November 2019

It’s that time of the month again where we turn our spotlight onto those Musketeers that have gone above and beyond in helping the Sword Experience continue to reach countless sword enthusiasts across the globe! Our top Musketeer of the month is none other than David Chandler. David has worked with us as a Sword Partner twice now. Once in Carbondale and most recently at our Kentucky event.

David spearheaded our visit to Gilbertsville and was essential to the success of our event. As a Musketeer, he helped us secure a location for the event and was incredibly successful in spreading the word about the Sword Experience visit to Kentucky.

Thank you, David, and we look forward to working with you again.

Our honorable mention for this month is Jay Wall. Jay has been helping us look for locations for our upcoming events in Texas. He has also volunteered to help us on-site at the event. With his continued support, we are sure to have another successful trip to the Lone Star State.

Thank you, Jay, and see you soon.

We value each and every one of our Musketeers and appreciate your continued support. It is always difficult to decide who to honor each month due to your excellent work spreading the word about the Sword Experience. Keep it up and hopefully, the spotlight will shine on you next month.

Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order

The Star Wars franchise has been a staple in gaming since the earliest home consoles and Star Wars fans have been very particular about their games. On May 6th, 2013 Disney gave video game publisher Electronic Arts exclusive rights to make Star Wars video games for the next several years.

Since that time, EA has seemingly done little with the franchise. Fans have been waiting patiently for a triple-A publisher to release a fantastic single-player experience using the Star Wars world. Since 2013, EA has published Star Wars: Battlefront 1 and 2 that was developed by Dice, the company behind such first-person shooters as the Battlefield franchise.

Fans seemed to be disappointed in the Multiplayer heavy format of those games as well as the lack of a substantial single-player campaign. Many were worried about the fate of Star Wars video games in the hands of a publisher that seemed to be more interested in microtransactions and loot boxes than creating games that expanded upon the Star Wars universe. Enter Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order.

Fallen Order is EA’s newest Star Wars game and was developed by Respawn Entertainment. Respawn is most famous for developing the much-beloved first-person shooters Titanfall 1 and 2 as well as the hugely popular free to play Battle Royale game Apex Legends.

Fallen Order is set five years after the events of Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith. The story centers around Cal Kestis, a young Jedi padawan being hunted by the Galactic Empire after the execution of Order 66. As the story progresses, Cal attempts to finish his Jedi training while struggling to restore the now-defunct Jedi Order.

The game is a third-person action-adventure game with gameplay reminiscent of the Dark Souls series mixed with the Uncharted series sense of platforming and movement. You have many tools at your disposal such as force powers that can knock enemies off of ledges and of course the iconic lightsaber.

You’ll travel to several planets on your journey picking up new skills and items to enhance your powers as you play. You can even upgrade your lightsaber and change its color. You’ll face various storm troopers and animal creatures to hack and slash your way through.

As far as Dark Souls inspired games are concerned this one falls on the more forgiving side allowing you to play through at your own pace and playstyle.

The story itself is the true selling point of the game. While it is undeniably fun to play as a Jedi, Respawn has done an incredible job adding to the Star Wars story. As with Titanfall 2, Respawn has created a story that starts off small and self-contained but slowly reveals a grander plot line with vast implications for the future of the galaxy.

There has been great care taken in creating a world that fits well into the overall Star Wars universe. By placing the story after the events of Revenge of the Sith, there is an immediate sense of urgency for the player considering that the Jedi are on the verge of extinction. While Fallen Order may not reach the dramatic heights of games like Star Wars: The Old Republic, it certainly delivers an incredible cinematic experience that will stay with you afterward.

The game has been released on the PS4, Xbox One, and PC. It has garnered critical and commercial acclaim since its release. Hopefully, with the success of this game, EA will see the value of a single-player Star Wars franchise and will continue to bring us more stories set in the Star Wars universe.

Netflix Gems: The King

Netflix has recently released a new period drama detailing the life of King Henry V. The film follows Hal, played by Timothée Chalamet, a disenfranchised Prince that spends his days partying at the local tavern. Hal seems to have no desire to follow in his father’s footsteps, and his younger brother appears to be the next in line to the throne.

However, Hal quickly finds himself crowned King Henry V after the untimely passing of his brother followed quickly by the death of his father. King Henry sees himself as a more benevolent and peaceful King than his father with the intention of uniting England, but first, he must face hostilities from both inside and outside the castle walls.

The King delivers an excellent display of cinematography, fight choreography, and strong acting performances from its cast. Chalamet and Edgerton are engaging to watch as they plot out the best course of action in their war against France. Edgerton truly shines as a battle-weary soldier that understands the true cost of battle.

The fight scenes range from one on one armored combat, to castle sieges, to ground warfare. These scenes are masterfully handled and beautifully shot. One battle, in particular, brings memories of the infamous “Battle of the Bastards” scene from Game of Thrones.

Outside of the epic battle scenes is a larger sense of political intrigue. King Henry must contend with vast conspiracies that threaten his every rule. He must put his faith in his closest council while contending with dissent from the clergy.

His war tactics seem brazen and appear costly, but it seems that fate and strategy may hold the keys to his legacy. Although his victories may come at an unexpected price as he becomes a victim of politics and greed. The King boasts a sharp script with characters that are well thought out and realized throughout the film.

This is not to say that the film is without faults. The King runs at two hours and twenty minutes long and could do with some slight trimming. Some scenes tend to drag on and there is a repetitive nature to some of the exchanges between Chalamet and his council. However, this is a minor grievance as the film tends to have a quick pace from scene to scene. The film also suffers a bit from an archetype villain. And while Robert Pattinson delivers an interesting performance, one can’t help but feel as though his character is a bit underdeveloped.

As far as Netflix films are concerned The King is certainly a cut above the rest and is why we’ve named it a Netflix gem. If you’re interested in historical dramas or have been searching for a movie that will grab your attention, then The King is truly worth your time.

Nov 18 2019

Musketeer Highlights for October 2019

It’s that time of the month again where we celebrate those of you that have been doing incredible work for the Sword Experience. This month’s Top Musketeer is none other than Emma Condren. Emma has been integral to our successful events in Ireland. She has also been helping us scout locations in Ireland for our return in 2020. We can’t wait to return and we know with Emma’s continuous support that the next event will be just as incredible as the last. Thank you, Emma, and keep up the incredible work.

Our honorable mention of the month is Ryan Goins. Ryan did a fantastic job promoting Saluki Con and has successfully spread the word about the Sword Experience. Ryan has also been helping us coordinate a future event in St. Louis. With Ryan’s help, we hope to bring the best fitness and travel event to The Gateway to the West in 2020!

Thank you, Ryan.

Our Musketeers are the driving force behind the Sword Experience and we appreciate everything that you do for us. If you haven’t seen your name in our Musketeer highlights, do not be discouraged.

We see the hard work that you put in month after month. Your dedication has not gone unnoticed. So, keep up all of the incredible work that you do and maybe you’ll be recognized in the coming months!

Attention Holiday Shoppers

For those looking to get their resident sword fanatic something special this Holiday Season, check out the Holiday Offers on our website! You can find Sword Experience Merch, personalized photos from Adrian Paul, and limited-edition photographs.

Upgrade your workout with a Sword Experience water bottle. Get your Highlander fan a one of a kind personalized photograph with a special message from Adrian Paul. Get your loved one something they’ll treasure forever.

We’ve added new merch like our Grey Highlander t-shirt and have sizes ranging from small to XL. In addition to our merch, we’ve added limited edition photographs. Only two copies of these prints exist and can be found exclusively on our site.

Not sure what size shirt your loved one wears or what picture they want?

Fear not! Simplify your Christmas by getting them a Sword Experience Gift Card and they can buy anything their heart desires!

Don’t forget to check out the auction block where Adrian has opened his personal collection of Highlander photos that cannot be found anywhere else. Each week a new photo will be uploaded to the site to give you a chance to bid on this unique collector’s item.

For those looking for a new adventure for 2020, we have also added a new pre-event offer for Dallas, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, and New York. This is the perfect gift idea for those living in or around those cities, or for those travel junkies looking for something to spice up their life. Reserve your tickets for the Sword Experience headed to your city and you’ll receive a free gift at the event!

Don’t miss out on these incredible deals that will surely make your friends and family smile this Holiday season.

Nioh

For those of you that have a PlayStation 4 with PlayStation Plus, the video game Nioh is now free on PlayStation for the month of November. From the developers of the popular Ninja Gaiden franchise comes an action role-playing game set in Japan during the 1600’s. The game features several interesting mechanics and is heavily inspired by the Dark Souls franchise. For the uninitiated, this means you will die quite frequently.

While some may find the game frustrating, the game can be rewarding as the player begins to understand how the flow of combat works. You have a large arsenal of weapons at your disposal ranging from samurai swords to axes and spears, to bows and muskets. Your character has limited stamina, known as Ki, so timing your attacks, dodges, and parries are critical in a fight.

You also have an ability to regain your stamina quickly with a timed move known as a Ki pulse which boosts the rate at which your stamina recharges. This can be critical during gameplay as you may find yourself with low stamina after an attack, but you may need to dodge quickly afterward in order to avoid a counterattack. If you missed your opportunity to recover stamina quickly, you may just find yourself on the wrong end of a samurai sword.

And while you may find yourself dying frequently, the way the game handles its upgrade system always makes you feel as though you are progressing in some way. Experimenting with the combat system is also part of the enjoyment and enemies are constantly dropping items that can change the outcome of a fight. The enemies are quite difficult but it is incredibly rewarding when you finally take out that one pestering enemy that you encountered earlier.

The game will continue to be free until the first week of December and we recommend it to anyone looking for a game featuring samurai or for those that like a side of punishing difficulty with their video games.

Update on The Witcher Netflix Series

A few weeks ago, Netflix released a new trailer for its adaptation of Andrzej Sapkowski’s Witcher book series. You may remember that we talked a bit about our hopes for the series in one of our previous pieces and it appears from the new trailer that the combat in the Witcher series is exactly what we had hoped for.

While many of the fight scenes in the trailer are short, you can clearly see Geralt’s fighting style in some shots. He dances and twirls around his enemies in a unique and exciting way reminiscent of the video game series.

We also get a little more detail regarding the story as well as some insight into Geralt’s character. It seems as though Henry Cavill has nailed the character’s wry humor and broody indifference. It seems as though the series will be set early in Geralt’s career as a Witcher and the series will center around him protecting a young Ciri from forces unknown.

It is no surprise that shortly after this trailer was released that Netflix announced that The Witcher has been renewed for Season 2 ahead of it’s December 20th release date. Showrunner Lauren Schmidt Hissrich will return for Season 2.

“I’m so thrilled that before fans have seen our first season, we are able to confirm that we’ll be returning to The Continent again to continue telling the stories of Geralt, Yennifer, and Ciri,” Hissrich said. It appears that Netflix is confident in the quality of the series already.

We cannot wait to discuss this series when it is finally released. Check out the new trailer for The Witcher here.

Nov 02 2019

Spotlight with Sword Partner Steaphen Fick

We’re are incredibly excited to be working with our new Sword Partner, Steaphen Fick. We thought it would be fun for you to get to know a little bit about our newest Sword Partner.

Sword Experience (SXP): What is your background in Martial Arts?

Steaphen Fick (SF): I started training in medieval armor in 1989. I was part of a traveling tournament group that traveled around California and performed and competed at Renaissance Faires. I did the tournaments for about 7 years, and then in 1999 I went to Europe for 6 months and studied in Edinburgh and competed in tournaments, duels, and reenactments while I was there.

Once I started teaching, I was going to international workshops around the US and trained with practitioners from different European traditions as well as sharing my experience and knowledge.

SXP: We noticed that you started off in your garage and then eventually expanded. Can you tell us a little about the growth of your school and how it has affected your life since 2000?

SF: I did start in my garage, and I was working in my yard and then when I outgrew the yard, I moved to a friend’s yard that was larger and allow me to work with more students. In 2002 I was able to rent a space in the back of a fruit packaging plant. I had the first dedicated Western Martial Arts school in the US.

I stayed there until I was forced to move for safety concerns. I moved into a different location but it was in a better location. I moved from there when they tore it down to build condominiums. From that time on, I moved when I outgrew the location that I was in.

It is because of my wife that I was able to move into the full-time position of teaching. In fact, we met and were married at a Renaissance Faire. Once I moved into professional teaching, I have been able to teach all over the country and in Mexico, Canada, UK, France, Holland, Australia, and New Zealand.

We now have a school chapter in Las Vegas, NV and Midland, TX as well as the main chapter in Santa Clara, CA.

SXP: What kind of classes do you offer for DEMAS?

SF: At DEMAS we offer a Renaissance Track, a Medieval Track, and a Modern Track.
Medieval track: longsword, dagger, grappling, armor, Dragon Slayers (children’s class for ages 8-13).
Renaissance track: rapier (into rapier and dagger), side sword (into sword and buckler), sword and shield.
Modern track: firearms training, women’s self-defense, Italian stick fighting, and Pugilism.

SXP: What does it mean to you to be a Sword Partner for the SwordExperience?

I saw Highlander in 1990, and when the TV series came out, I didn’t miss an episode. Getting to work with Adrian Paul and the Sword Experience means that I get to ‘go back to my roots’ and share an early love that meant so much to me when I was early in my sword career. I will also get to offer fans of the show the opportunity to meet and work with Mr. Paul in a school dedicated to the study of sword martial arts.

SXP: For those that are interested in learning more from your programs, what is the easiest way to contact you?

SF: The best way to learn more about the classes we offer at Davenriche European Martial Artes School is to visit our website at www.swordfightingschool.com or go to our YouTube channel at https://www.youtube.com/user/swordfightingschool and we can be found on Facebook at www.facebook.com/davenriche and on Instagram at www.instagram.com/swordfightingschool. I can be contacted by email at info@swordfightingschool.com

Our school is one of the largest in the world and we have built our student family through word of mouth and by offering not just a martial arts school, but a community that supports and helps one another.

SXP: Thank you for taking the time to answer our questions Steaphen, we look forward to partnering with you for our future events.

Now for another special piece for our blog, Adrian Paul discusses the evolution of the Sword Experience, as well as the development of his targeting system and how it will apply to future Sword Experience events. So, get ready to learn how the Sword Experience can…

Upgrade Your Life Part 2

Beginners, experienced martial artists and sword handlers alike all had recurring themes. Along with the feedback we were getting from the Sword Experience, I saw the need to improve the way we taught and not just make our experiences one-time events. We also realized that taking the Sword Experience events on a regular basis was not available to everyone, that finances to travel, or the timing to attend, would sometimes be limited.

So, we decided to launch The Sword Experience Academy, a place to be able to work on the individual aspects of Fitness, Technique, and Performance.

By doing this, the benefits were not just an improvement in technique, knowledge, and fitness, but a belief that with hard work anything could be possible. So, we developed a fitness regime that tested, balance, stamina, and mobility; a technique system that worked on targeting, flow, and sword handling; and finally, a performance session to put everything you learned in a test of communication, memory and space awareness.

To make this successful we needed to create a system that was easy to use and could be applied across the board. As a base, I saw, as did other professionals, the need to work on one of the most important aspects of sword work, Targeting. Whether targeting as a martial artist, a Hema practitioner, or for stage and film, the importance of knowing where to strike and how to strike, became glaringly clear.

So, The Sword Experience Academy numbering system came into being. Numbering systems are not new, but many times they come with names or terms, that most would have a hard time to learn in the time allotted at our events.

The basic 1-12 system we created, with attack and corresponding defense numbers, allows everyone to work on a level playing field. The moves also have corresponding footwork, to show a variety of movements that can be used.

These are by no means set in stone, since in many situations, either on a film set or in the real world, any fight needs to be fluid in the environment you find yourself in. You need to find what works best for you and like any system, we are finessing it constantly. Slightly different hand position, adjusted footwork, a change of timing, are some of the things we look at as we move it forward.

Plus, it can be applied to whatever your style, or sword you use, a katana, Broadsword, Claymore, Jian, Zweihänder, Longsword or any other long-bladed weapon. Of course, the technique for handling each is different but the cuts are the same and being precise is paramount to beating your opponent, or keeping your partner safe.

Most of the numbers in the twelve-movement system can be adjusted for different sword situations. For instance, our number 2 defense position is a right shoulder, tip pointed upwards, blocking parry. However, sometimes you may block with the tip pointing downwards, based on your particular technique, or your partner’s.

Our number 3 lower left hip blocking position, with sword tip pointing down and forwards, right hand in a supinated (palm to the sky) position, can be adjusted to pronated (knuckles to the sky) downwards block position. The technique for handling each is different, but the target and the corresponding cuts are the same.

So, how does this apply to the rest of the sword experience events? Well, later in 2020 we will be creating our grading system, challenging you to show us your ability to perform the twelve attack and defense system as a whole and then gradually performing numbers together in a variety of katas and techniques.

This will allow you to have a goal to rise through the grades and allows us to get to know your skill level better. That way, when you attend any of our events, we will know how much information you already have, which in turn will allow us to know what sword work would benefit you best.

We will be applying this at our upcoming SXP Academy in Chicago (November 2019) and in Los Angeles (January 2020) where we will be looking to challenging you to improve over a three-session course.

This cost-effective course will allow you to choose what you want to learn so that if you are just looking to improve your sword technique, or learn more about stage combat you will have an affordable fun and challenging way to do so. Watch the sword experience pages and our social media channels for upcoming special offers.

I look forward to seeing you at one of our Elite or convention events or better yet, watching you improve at one of our Academy events. Until then.

“If you cannot do great things today, do small things in a great way and tomorrow great things will surely come.”

Netflix Gems

There is a lot of content on Netflix that tends to get buried. We thought it would be fun to point out some Netflix Gems that you might not have heard of. There’s a wonderful documentary on Netflix called Playing Hard about the development of the video game For Honor.

It follows the story of Jason Vandenberghe and Stéphane Cardin as they create an entirely original video game property as well as the trials and tribulations that go along with developing an original concept.

Jason Vandenberghe had dreamed of developing a game like For Honor since he was a child playing with sticks in his backyard and pretending to be a knight. His dream was to capture the feel of sword fighting. The game itself is quite innovative as it created a brand-new fighting mechanic for the genre.

While most games with swords usually just amount to button-mashing which turns them into hack and slashers, For Honor attempts to create realistic sword fighting by forcing the player to be wary of their opponent’s positioning of their sword in order to properly block, parry, or attack. This creates very intense encounters as you must be constantly aware of your surroundings as well as your opponent’s movements.

Video games are the top-grossing entertainment industry right now with the gross profits doubling those of the yearly box office, but 85% of all video games are sequels.

Original concepts are incredibly rare as they present a huge risk to publishers. Producer Stéphane Cardin has an unenviable task of trying to develop Jason’s ambitious project while also appeasing his company Ubisoft and releasing a triple-A game on time.

The documentary is incredibly interesting to those who have a passion for video games and swords and shows just how difficult it is to develop a completely new IP. So, check out Playing Hard on Netflix. It’s definitely worth your time.

Note: Many of the developers at Ubisoft Montreal speak French and there are no subtitles for them unless you switch on Closed Captioning. A large portion of this movie is in French so it is vital to turn it on.