The Pillars of the Earth

[Fast Learner]

Apparently we miscommunicated. Evidently there was a two-part 7th episode on Friday that I hadn't yet seen. I'm sure it will make it feel more like a real ending and not like a season cut-off ending like I got at the end of the 6th. Netflix on demand ftw!

 

[Mark CMG]

It's essentially eight hours of television, but they showed two the first night and two the last, so it ran for six weeks.

The chapters were titled -

1 Anarchy - The succession of England's crown is in doubt and causes King Henry's daughter and nephew to compete for the throne. Church politics see Philip elected the new prior, which leaves him indebted to Deacon Waleran.

2 Master Builder - Fire destroys Kingsbridge Church, giving Tom, son Alfred and stepson Jack the chance to build a new cathedral. Ellen is accused of being a witch. William takes Aliena and Richard by surprise in a brutal attack.

3 Redemption - Prior Philip and William find themselves in a standoff over access to the Shiring quarry. Jack's artistic talents take hold. Aliena starts a business to help earn money for Richard's chance to become a knight.

4 Battlefield - William wants his father's title of Earl, but finds a mysterious knight is a rival for the title. King Stephen orders an assassin to kill Jack. Waleran tells Maud the man who betrayed Earl Bartholomew is Philip.

5 Legacy - Waleran and Regan engineer the prisoner exchange so that they remain on the winning side of the war. Tom wants Jack and Alfred to be friends, but their rivalry over their work lives and Aliena is too intense.

6 Witchcraft - Richard returns from war to find no money to support his knighthood. Aliena has to choose between her love for Jack and her oath to her father. Waleran uses a disaster at Kingsbridge against Prior Philip.

7 New Beginnings - As a result of his journeys, Jack has learned how to build a cathedral filled with light. Waleran offers Philip a new position. Kingsbridge becomes prosperous again, which infuriates William, who plans an attack.

8 The Work of Angels - Eight years later, Jack’s fixation with the cathedral leaves him little time or energy for anything else, while Aliena’s fixation with the distant Earldom of Shiring has married her to Alfred, a man she hates. Waleran and Alfred develop a plot to get rid of Jack for good and it seems to be working until evidence comes to light that makes all wrongs rectified.

 

[Fast Learner]

Now that I've seen the last of it, I'm much more satisfied. Without those last two hours it was a very dissatisfying end.

 

[El Mahdi]

Storywise, it was a cool ending. I liked seeing Walerin and William finally getting their due. However, I definitely did not like the historical inaccuracies again. Such as Richard killing Robert of Gloucester in battle (Robert died of a fever in his own castle at the age of 57), and Henry killing Eustace in battle (they never met in battle). I especially didn't like Richard being able to decapitate Robert completely through a mail coif. Armor was worn for a reason: because armor worked! A sword could not cut clean through a mail coif - it's just not possible!

I don't understand why writers, or screenplay writers, feel they need to change the facts of history in order to write an interesting story. In most cases, the reality of what happened is more interesting as a story than anything made up. For instance, showing Henry killing Eustace was cheap and expected...in other words: Boring! In truth, Eustace actually died while eating eels...exactly the same as the old King Henry. The irony in that situation was tailor made for a great story...and has the added advantage of being true.

Overall, I'd grade the series a C.