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Sharpe's Battle is actually better paced than the last episode I watched, enough so that I didn't notice how long I'd been watching.
The show stars out with the South Essex lost and looking for the supply wagons they're supposed to be escorting. Poor luckless Lieutenant Jenkins who could actually read the map did a wonderful job of digging a hole for himself -- of course, being a junior officer in a Sharpe movie, having a name, lines, *and* a backstory were certain signs of doom, even if he wasn't wearing a redshirtcoat.
Hugh Fraser as Wellington does a good job, especially since his other big role was a the affable Capt. Hasting in the Poirot Mysteries series. Munroe's hat is slightly distracting during their discussion of what to do with the Royal Irish Company, because although it is period, it looks like nothing but a tan cowboy hat. Munroe keeps changing his outfit too, which can be confusing -- is he just a dandy, or is that supposed to be an indication of time's passage?
It's kind of funny that of the Chosen Men, two of them are so noticeably taller than Sharpe -- it messes with movie conventions a bit not to have the hero being the tallest one. I like the little bits of life they sprinkle through the show -- Harris looting bodies in the background, Perkins shaving (and getting teased horribly by his fellows), soldiers napping, repairing their uniforms, and singing for entertainment.
The speech Sharpe gives about killing officers -- nice to see that fragging incompetent officers is an old tradition. Sharpe winds up drill-sergeant at least three times in the series: to the South Essex when they first show up, to the Royal Irish here, and to the South Essex 2nd Battalion in Sharpe's Regiment (though that was more getting the officers to behave than the men). He's good at it -- being a former sergeant himself -- and that combined with his talent for completing a mission no matter how insane the odds, makes him valuable to his superiors. Though the "no one wants you to die... unnecessarily" was a bit harsh.
Kiely wants a name of glory, and is willing to get all his men killed for it. When he mentions Leonidas and Roland, Sharpe is visibly uncomfortable -- he doesn't have a gentleman's education, only learned to read when he was already a sergeant, and thus the allusions Kiely makes are things that he knows only in shadow (and whatever Harris has managed to blather around the campfire); Sharpe does, however, know that getting killed for the sake of getting killed is stupid. He'll get his men killed for the job at hand, though he'd much rather keep them alive so he has someone to do the job after that.
True Gryffindor that he is, I find it quite charming how Sharpe reacts when confronted with anything he can't shoot, stab or bludgeon his way through -- most often, women above his social status. He turns his back to respect Lady Kiely's privacy, quietly freaks out when Ramona orders him to loosen her clothing, defends her to her husband when the miscarriage comes up, very gently refuses the carnal bribe he's offered, and generally acts like a lamb. No wonder women get him in more trouble than his superiors do.
When Lord Kiely tells Sharpe that he can't understand what is like to lose a child (referring to Lady Kiely's previous miscarriage), Sharpe gets very stone-faced. He's not about to correct Lord Kiely, but he had lost a child -- he'd given Antonia up to his wife's relatives after Teresa was killed. That, and the fact that he does seem to respect marriages, seem to be why he's on Lady Kiely's side. Plus, he thinks Lord Kiely is a romantic git in a quest for a name.
Sharpe's look when Ramona announces Lady Kiely is going to have a baby is priceless. You *know* that he wants to ask "how did THAT happen?", but can't because Ramona and Harper will laugh in his face if he does. Or worse, Harper will start explaining about the birds and the bees, which is a lecture that a widower just shouldn't have to put up with.
I love that Sharpe keeps saying "I'm a practical man, not a romantic", and Harper gives him significant looks behind his back. Sharpe is practical, but give him a damsel in distress and that can all go out the window. It's his most reliable failing, even above his visible dislike for privileged twits.
Lady Kiely impressed me as well -- she's in love with her husband (who does not deserve someone that strong), determined to to help him, and yet she knows his faults very well. The scene where she pleads with Sharpe to intercede was wonderfully done; she's so obviously distraught and desperate, and yet willing to do what she thinks will work.
The final ambush works, though I think they messed up with the rifles. I don't think I ever saw one of the Greenjackets *reloading*, and considering that Harper is carrying a seven-barrelled volley gun, they really should have. The 'play dead' trick was wonderfully devious, and really the reason that Sharpe keeps his Chosen Men close -- they're good as nasty tactics as he is. Of course, this is where Perkins gets killed -- poor lad falls in love, has sex, and gets killed in the standard subtexty morality play.
This is a fun Age of Sail series that doesn't have boats in it. I'm surprised that there isn't more fic for it. And I'm going to need a Sharpe icon if I keep doing these reviews... anyone know of a good place to look?
The show stars out with the South Essex lost and looking for the supply wagons they're supposed to be escorting. Poor luckless Lieutenant Jenkins who could actually read the map did a wonderful job of digging a hole for himself -- of course, being a junior officer in a Sharpe movie, having a name, lines, *and* a backstory were certain signs of doom, even if he wasn't wearing a red
Hugh Fraser as Wellington does a good job, especially since his other big role was a the affable Capt. Hasting in the Poirot Mysteries series. Munroe's hat is slightly distracting during their discussion of what to do with the Royal Irish Company, because although it is period, it looks like nothing but a tan cowboy hat. Munroe keeps changing his outfit too, which can be confusing -- is he just a dandy, or is that supposed to be an indication of time's passage?
It's kind of funny that of the Chosen Men, two of them are so noticeably taller than Sharpe -- it messes with movie conventions a bit not to have the hero being the tallest one. I like the little bits of life they sprinkle through the show -- Harris looting bodies in the background, Perkins shaving (and getting teased horribly by his fellows), soldiers napping, repairing their uniforms, and singing for entertainment.
The speech Sharpe gives about killing officers -- nice to see that fragging incompetent officers is an old tradition. Sharpe winds up drill-sergeant at least three times in the series: to the South Essex when they first show up, to the Royal Irish here, and to the South Essex 2nd Battalion in Sharpe's Regiment (though that was more getting the officers to behave than the men). He's good at it -- being a former sergeant himself -- and that combined with his talent for completing a mission no matter how insane the odds, makes him valuable to his superiors. Though the "no one wants you to die... unnecessarily" was a bit harsh.
Kiely wants a name of glory, and is willing to get all his men killed for it. When he mentions Leonidas and Roland, Sharpe is visibly uncomfortable -- he doesn't have a gentleman's education, only learned to read when he was already a sergeant, and thus the allusions Kiely makes are things that he knows only in shadow (and whatever Harris has managed to blather around the campfire); Sharpe does, however, know that getting killed for the sake of getting killed is stupid. He'll get his men killed for the job at hand, though he'd much rather keep them alive so he has someone to do the job after that.
True Gryffindor that he is, I find it quite charming how Sharpe reacts when confronted with anything he can't shoot, stab or bludgeon his way through -- most often, women above his social status. He turns his back to respect Lady Kiely's privacy, quietly freaks out when Ramona orders him to loosen her clothing, defends her to her husband when the miscarriage comes up, very gently refuses the carnal bribe he's offered, and generally acts like a lamb. No wonder women get him in more trouble than his superiors do.
When Lord Kiely tells Sharpe that he can't understand what is like to lose a child (referring to Lady Kiely's previous miscarriage), Sharpe gets very stone-faced. He's not about to correct Lord Kiely, but he had lost a child -- he'd given Antonia up to his wife's relatives after Teresa was killed. That, and the fact that he does seem to respect marriages, seem to be why he's on Lady Kiely's side. Plus, he thinks Lord Kiely is a romantic git in a quest for a name.
Sharpe's look when Ramona announces Lady Kiely is going to have a baby is priceless. You *know* that he wants to ask "how did THAT happen?", but can't because Ramona and Harper will laugh in his face if he does. Or worse, Harper will start explaining about the birds and the bees, which is a lecture that a widower just shouldn't have to put up with.
I love that Sharpe keeps saying "I'm a practical man, not a romantic", and Harper gives him significant looks behind his back. Sharpe is practical, but give him a damsel in distress and that can all go out the window. It's his most reliable failing, even above his visible dislike for privileged twits.
Lady Kiely impressed me as well -- she's in love with her husband (who does not deserve someone that strong), determined to to help him, and yet she knows his faults very well. The scene where she pleads with Sharpe to intercede was wonderfully done; she's so obviously distraught and desperate, and yet willing to do what she thinks will work.
The final ambush works, though I think they messed up with the rifles. I don't think I ever saw one of the Greenjackets *reloading*, and considering that Harper is carrying a seven-barrelled volley gun, they really should have. The 'play dead' trick was wonderfully devious, and really the reason that Sharpe keeps his Chosen Men close -- they're good as nasty tactics as he is. Of course, this is where Perkins gets killed -- poor lad falls in love, has sex, and gets killed in the standard subtexty morality play.
This is a fun Age of Sail series that doesn't have boats in it. I'm surprised that there isn't more fic for it. And I'm going to need a Sharpe icon if I keep doing these reviews... anyone know of a good place to look?