Yes, he's up there for me too. Until I started doing the background research on Wagner's biography, I didn't quite realize how absolutely central he was for Wagner either
I read the Kane tales about 30 years ago,it were my first real fantasy book it almost ruined the the rest of all what followed by different authors. I was 14years when i read first and later i always thought about the tales and the special lyrics It shaped me and the thinking about fantasy until now. All i read up from Kane i compared to it but not much could stand the comparison. I ve read the books about a hundred times i think the best stories are:Reflections for the Winter of my Soul,Dark Crusade,The Bloodstone...i could go on because all of wagners stories are great.
Moorcock was, indeed, an influence on Karl; I well remember him describing the Elric tales to me when we were both in high school. Interesting to contemplate that Karl's been gone for almost 25 years, and Moorcock, happily, is still with us.
Hi John! What a nice memory. Could you tell us more about authors that Karl mentioned with enthusiasm or mentioned as an influence to him? I would love to know more about his tastes in literature (beyond the well-known lists that he made etc).
There is some news bouncing around this week that the estate has licensed a TV show and its being worked on. Its early days and shows often die at this point but it might be good.
Dr. Sadler, I recently found your channel when searching for commentary on Hegel. Since then I've spent hours each week enjoying your content. With this channel you've created something absolutely incredible - Your hard work on these videos is very much appreciated. Thank you so much!
I was lucky. My father was an avid Wagner fan who was able to share all five then-current paperbacks with me. Over the years I have repurchased them all, plus "Gods In Darkness," "Midnight Sun " "Where the Summer Ends," " Walk on the Wild Side," "In a Lonely Place," "Why Not You and I?," plus "Years Best Horror Stories XV" and "Black Prometheus." I read to my father from "Darkness Weaves" as he died.
I think the boredom of his immortal existence is really the essence of Kane's curse. He can be killed through violence, but he is so powerful that he can only be killed if he decides to allow it to happen. The nature of his curse is to make him suffer milenia of loss until he is broken and kills himself. But because Kane is proud and stubborn and hates the god that cursed him, he always fights back to the last, only continuing his own suffering.
I'm not sure that his always fighting and thus evading death is simply because he is proud, stubborn, and hates the god who created him. It seems that, when he's threatened, he doesn't want to die
@@GregoryBSadler as I perceive his character it is more than just the will to survive...in case of being threatened he is flooded with murderlust and the burning desire to destroy. maybe because in the heat of battle, on the brink of annihilation he feels truely alive
I must say that I enjoyed your lecture immensely! I co-directed the documentary The Last Wolf: Karl Edward Wagner, and after 4 years of solid research and work on the project rarely find videos providing anything more than just "best of" type offerings, but that's not the case with your discussions! This is incredibly informative and entertaining stuff...Great job!
Thanks very much! Just watched the trailer for the documentary - looks awesome and I'm looking forward to seeing it! Where is the documentary available
As to why Kane bothers at all, partly he strives to take over kingdoms and conquer lands as a sort of hobby; what else has he got to do? And there are moments when he gives in to fits of frenzy and takes unnecessary risks, wading into the thick of combat, because, on one level, he wants to die. One of Karl's favorite movies, perhaps his favorite, was _The Wild Bunch_. I recall his commenting on the final scene where the principals give it all up in one final combat, that one might ask why and the response would surely be Why not?
Not surprisingly, but R. Scott Bakker has mentioned that the Kane series was an early influence on him. I'm very interesting in hearing your take on Bakker come December, I've spent many years delving into the nature of Eärwa myself, but I am also not really all that smart.
Have you ever encountered the suggestion that The Man With No Name from the Dollars Trilogy and some other, later Clint Eastwood movies, was actually Kane? I found this speculation on a website over 10 years ago. It was a very interesting idea, I thought.
I am currently working on an audiobook-adaptation for the story 'undertow'....I will upload it here on UA-cam when it's ready. Unfortunately I am german and no matter how hard I try to tame my treacherous tongue the german accent oozes thickly through every konsonant! :D If someone is interested in joining in and adapt more of the Kane stories, contact me here. Let's make these ingenious stories audible.
Very interesting sir, thank you. One of the most only dissections of Wagner's Kane out there so thank you sincerely again! What would be the ending for Kane I am so intrigued. For a character like this what would be a fitting end?
@@GregoryBSadler Absolutely, I think he is one of the greatest writers period. When I read his horror stories I was absolutely stunned. How would you prefer for Kane story to finish however if you ever contemplated or would write it?
god, i wish the omnibuses for the Kane series were re-published with reasonable prices, i would SO LOVE to have physical copies. for now, ebooks will have to do :( Kane is a fascinating individual, fell in love with the character in Bloodstone, he sounds like a almost regular guy with sometimes poetic language. like John French's Ahriman, he seem to have legit affableness, but absolute coldness in his evil. (and unlike Ahriman, a fellow villain protagonist, he doesn't feel any meaningless regret) i hope i can finish reading the whole series, and hopefully in the series, get new physical copies, seriously, they need to be a reality!
Kane was doomed to fail. He knew he was doomed to fail. I believe his quest was to find a way past the curse, perhaps to break it and end his immortality.
The is indeed a important problem with immortality and morals: One usually gets his morals usually from the suurounding culture, his/her heritage. But is one get hundred of yeas aold and the surrounding culture is gone, then wher is you your backgroud, where is the basis for your culture gone?
One gets starting points for morals from one's environment. A mature autonomous human being gets them from other sources before too long. Kane, as we know, reads philosophy, history, etc.
Sad thing the Kane books never received a decent edition / revision. Maybe Centipede press, but that's too expensive. I have the e-books but they're full of typos.
THANK YOU SO MUCH for illuminating these profoundly underrated tales.
KANE is my all time favorite heroic fantasy stuff.
Yes, he's up there for me too. Until I started doing the background research on Wagner's biography, I didn't quite realize how absolutely central he was for Wagner either
I read the Kane tales about 30 years ago,it were my first real fantasy book it almost ruined the the rest of all what followed by different authors.
I was 14years when i read first and later i always thought about the tales and the special lyrics It shaped me and the thinking about fantasy until now. All i read up from Kane i compared to it but not much could stand the comparison.
I ve read the books about a hundred times i think the best stories are:Reflections for the Winter of my Soul,Dark Crusade,The Bloodstone...i could go on because all of wagners stories are great.
Moorcock was, indeed, an influence on Karl; I well remember him describing the Elric tales to me when we were both in high school. Interesting to contemplate that Karl's been gone for almost 25 years, and Moorcock, happily, is still with us.
Hi John! What a nice memory. Could you tell us more about authors that Karl mentioned with enthusiasm or mentioned as an influence to him? I would love to know more about his tastes in literature (beyond the well-known lists that he made etc).
Would like to see a movie based on the books by Karl Wagner, I have "Darkness Weaves" love the archaic mixed with the sorcery
Yeah, that would be cool! Would need some good writers though, not to mess it up
There is some news bouncing around this week that the estate has licensed a TV show and its being worked on. Its early days and shows often die at this point but it might be good.
Ah I wish I lived close enough to attend these in person. Thank you for putting them online. I love this series.
You're very welcome!
thank u. hard to find Kane related videos on UA-cam. Darkness Weaves left an impression on me 10 years ago.
I finally got to read that one about 10 years back. Death Angel's Shadow was my introduction to Kane, when I was around 10
Dr. Sadler, I recently found your channel when searching for commentary on Hegel. Since then I've spent hours each week enjoying your content. With this channel you've created something absolutely incredible - Your hard work on these videos is very much appreciated. Thank you so much!
You're very welcome!
I was lucky. My father was an avid Wagner fan who was able to share all five then-current paperbacks with me.
Over the years I have repurchased them all, plus "Gods In Darkness," "Midnight Sun " "Where the Summer Ends," " Walk on the Wild Side," "In a Lonely Place," "Why Not You and I?," plus "Years Best Horror Stories XV" and "Black Prometheus."
I read to my father from "Darkness Weaves" as he died.
That's quite something! I pretty just much have them on Kindle, and takeout physical copies when I can find them in libraries
I think the boredom of his immortal existence is really the essence of Kane's curse. He can be killed through violence, but he is so powerful that he can only be killed if he decides to allow it to happen. The nature of his curse is to make him suffer milenia of loss until he is broken and kills himself. But because Kane is proud and stubborn and hates the god that cursed him, he always fights back to the last, only continuing his own suffering.
I'm not sure that his always fighting and thus evading death is simply because he is proud, stubborn, and hates the god who created him. It seems that, when he's threatened, he doesn't want to die
@@GregoryBSadler as I perceive his character it is more than just the will to survive...in case of being threatened he is flooded with murderlust and the burning desire to destroy. maybe because in the heat of battle, on the brink of annihilation he feels truely alive
Thank you!! No one does thi sort of thing about kew. This guy is amazing and you are too!!
He certainly was. Rough life he had as well
I must say that I enjoyed your lecture immensely! I co-directed the documentary The Last Wolf: Karl Edward Wagner, and after 4 years of solid research and work on the project rarely find videos providing anything more than just "best of" type offerings, but that's not the case with your discussions! This is incredibly informative and entertaining stuff...Great job!
Thanks very much!
Just watched the trailer for the documentary - looks awesome and I'm looking forward to seeing it! Where is the documentary available
I too discovered Wagner at an early age. I was in 4th grade when i got my copy of Death angel's shadow.
Sounds about the same for me. I remember taking the book with me on our Mississippi river trip
Another fascinating talk, thank you.
You're welcome!
As to why Kane bothers at all, partly he strives to take over kingdoms and conquer lands as a sort of hobby; what else has he got to do? And there are moments when he gives in to fits of frenzy and takes unnecessary risks, wading into the thick of combat, because, on one level, he wants to die.
One of Karl's favorite movies, perhaps his favorite, was _The Wild Bunch_. I recall his commenting on the final scene where the principals give it all up in one final combat, that one might ask why and the response would surely be Why not?
Not surprisingly, but R. Scott Bakker has mentioned that the Kane series was an early influence on him.
I'm very interesting in hearing your take on Bakker come December, I've spent many years delving into the nature of Eärwa myself, but I am also not really all that smart.
It's a new series for me - voted in by fans and followers
Have you ever encountered the suggestion that The Man With No Name from the Dollars Trilogy and some other, later Clint Eastwood movies, was actually Kane? I found this speculation on a website over 10 years ago. It was a very interesting idea, I thought.
I have not seen that idea, no.
Have you ever encountered the suggestion that Kane is one of the inspirations for GDW's God-Emperor character in Warhammer 40k?
I am currently working on an audiobook-adaptation for the story 'undertow'....I will upload it here on UA-cam when it's ready. Unfortunately I am german and no matter how hard I try to tame my treacherous tongue the german accent oozes thickly through every konsonant! :D If someone is interested in joining in and adapt more of the Kane stories, contact me here. Let's make these ingenious stories audible.
Really enjoyed this. It’s making me want to revisit and I’ve still got the books
Lucky you, man! I had Death Angel’s Shadow as a kid, but lost it in one of my many moves
would also recommend Prisoner of the Horned Helmet / Death Dealer series by james silke. both Gath & Kane should be films
That would be worth watchng, if done right
Very interesting sir, thank you. One of the most only dissections of Wagner's Kane out there so thank you sincerely again! What would be the ending for Kane I am so intrigued. For a character like this what would be a fitting end?
Unfortunately Wagner died too young to work that out, it seems
@@GregoryBSadler Absolutely, I think he is one of the greatest writers period. When I read his horror stories I was absolutely stunned. How would you prefer for Kane story to finish however if you ever contemplated or would write it?
No idea. Not something I've given thought to
god, i wish the omnibuses for the Kane series were re-published with reasonable prices, i would SO LOVE to have physical copies. for now, ebooks will have to do :(
Kane is a fascinating individual, fell in love with the character in Bloodstone, he sounds like a almost regular guy with sometimes poetic language. like John French's Ahriman, he seem to have legit affableness, but absolute coldness in his evil. (and unlike Ahriman, a fellow villain protagonist, he doesn't feel any meaningless regret) i hope i can finish reading the whole series, and hopefully in the series, get new physical copies, seriously, they need to be a reality!
Yes, new affordable physical books would certainly be desirable
@@GregoryBSadler did you know about these: www.centipedepress.com/horror/kane.html not affordable, maybe rare as of now, but by god, i want them!
I've seen them, yes. Pretty awesome
Kane was doomed to fail. He knew he was doomed to fail. I believe his quest was to find a way past the curse, perhaps to break it and end his immortality.
Which story you talking about? He’s got a lot of “quests” in there
It should be noted that _Bloodstone_ took place fairly early in the existence of Kane and of humanity.
Karl spoke of his Kane stories as being the biblical stories but told from Cain's point of view.
Side-note about Avatar: My pet theory is that Avatar might be partly based on the Green Star series by Lin Carter.
The is indeed a important problem with immortality and morals: One usually gets his morals usually from the suurounding culture, his/her heritage. But is one get hundred of yeas aold and the surrounding culture is gone, then wher is you your backgroud, where is the basis for your culture gone?
One gets starting points for morals from one's environment. A mature autonomous human being gets them from other sources before too long. Kane, as we know, reads philosophy, history, etc.
Sad thing the Kane books never received a decent edition / revision. Maybe Centipede press, but that's too expensive. I have the e-books but they're full of typos.
Maybe someday, they'll get redone well
@@GregoryBSadler I hope so!
I also once had a series of cassette tapes of Roger Zelazny reading Kane stories. Sadly, they succumbed to time.
That would be very cool to hear
Zelezny is a sick author
@@GregoryBSadleravailable through interlibrary loan
@@jaydugger3291 Yes, perhaps to you. ILL varies from place to place. And I'd need sound files, not cassette tapes
I've more commonly heard the phrase "alienation of affection."
Ellery Queen was two people, a pen name.
A lotta comments there buddy.
@@GregoryBSadler - Oh, no bother, really; glad to contribute.
That WAS intended in appreciation, right?