Gunpowder controversy, brutality, history and RPGs

did anyone see Gunpowder? The new BBC 1 drama stars Kit Harington as Robert Catesby the leader of the 1605 Gunpowder plot to blow up the King in Parliament (the one most associated with Guy Fawkes).

Anyway the first episode (starting 1603 and giving context to the plot) caused controversy due to its graphic depiction of executions - a women being stripped and crushed and a young priest being hung, drawn and quartered.

One viewer complained “Another potentially good historical drama ruined by unnecessary gruesome scenes.” whereas BBC has defended the scene as being "grounded in historical fact and reflect what took place during the time of the gunpowder plot.”

Anyway that got me thinking about brutality as a historic fact and how this is depicted in our entertainment. Should such things be depicted in full gory detail?

do you as a DM include details of people being gutted and decapitated in public executions in front of cheering crowds? more importantly with our modern sensibilities can the 'heroes' side legitmately use public crushing of heretics as a punishment and still be the 'good guys'?

Got it recorded, but haven't had time to watch it yet. Was it good?

I enjoyed the first episode, though it is historic and smaller in scope it is very much in a Game of Thrones mould of drama (and thats not just because of Jon Snow). Its a compelling story of grim life and angry men, a foppish king, a scheming lord (Mark Gatiss), backstabbing, persecution, nudity, violence and a brooding Jon Snow (okay not Jon Snow)

Tonguez said:

Anyway that got me thinking about brutality as a historic fact and how this is depicted in our entertainment. Should such things be depicted in full gory detail?

do you as a DM include details of people being gutted and decapitated in public executions in front of cheering crowds? more importantly with our modern sensibilities can the 'heroes' side legitmately use public crushing of heretics as a punishment and still be the 'good guys'?

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The odd thing about our modern sensibilities is that we still celebrate Bonfire Night by figuratively burning a man to death. It's one of those quaint little old traditions that nobody really thinks about too deeply these days.

Then again, I always found it to be a rather schizophrenic commemoration, given that the other half of the event consists of detonating huge quantities of explosives and marveling at the pretty spectacle. In the context of the original attempted deed, it's almost as though we are collectively saying "but just imagine how spectacular it would have been if they had managed to go through with it!"

Tonguez said:

One viewer complained “Another potentially good historical drama ruined by unnecessary gruesome scenes.” whereas BBC has defended the scene as being "grounded in historical fact and reflect what took place during the time of the gunpowder plot.”

Anyway that got me thinking about brutality as a historic fact and how this is depicted in our entertainment. Should such things be depicted in full gory detail?

do you as a DM include details of people being gutted and decapitated in public executions in front of cheering crowds? more importantly with our modern sensibilities can the 'heroes' side legitmately use public crushing of heretics as a punishment and still be the 'good guys'?

Click to expand...

I find squeamishness about historical violence a bit disappointing, actually. I think it's great that a lot of us have gotten well past the desire to see violent public executions as entertainment and cringe that there are people who still feel executions should be televised. But I also don't want our history of violence and brutality sanitized away. It should be put before us to humble us and remind us of what we once were and could be again.

That said, I'm usually not that graphic in the games I run. I don't shy away from public executions, but usually I don't depict it too graphically. I told one player that his PC was executed by being boiled alive, another murdered in prison, and a third having died of a disease outbreak in the prison - all for having murdered a retired emperor. But I wasn't graphic about it.

The Hayes Production Code governed movie making until about 1970. It was the reason there was no nudity or graphic depictions of violence in movies. The audience had to fill in where the camera left off, using their imagination. The result was movies that people found memorable - and still want to watch again 40+ years later.

And there is a Star Trek episode where Spock mind-melds with an injured alien life-form. You hear Spock groan in transmitted pain, and see everybody else reacting to the sight, but not the injury or the look on his face. You understand perfectly well - the alien is SUFFERING.