Good Luck Everyone - Blackadder - BBC
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- čas přidán 23. 05. 2010
- Baldrick's cunning plan will have to wait as Blackadder and his troops go over the top in a poignant and powerful finale to the series.
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My only criticism is that this video starts just after the most heartbreaking part.
"Sir?"
"What is it, lieutenant?"
"I'm scared, sir."
Too true. This last episode certainly was a mixture of emotions.
I'm scared too
Awan Biru it’ll be alright
DurkMcGerk Don’t be such a damned fool. The next war is imminent whether it starts in the Middle East, the Korean Peninsula, the South China Sea or on Russia’s Western borderlands.
And when it starts there’s no turning back.
With a dangerously capricious, overtly aggressive hothead like Trump in the White House, with his tiny fingers poised over the ICBM launch codes, we’re all going up in a planet-wide mushroom cloud.
The irony of the centennial armistice day commemorations while the Doomsday Clock sits at its closest to midnight since the Cuban missile crisis....
Damn our politicians all to hell. They never learn the lessons of history...
@@helmethead72 Shut up, you hysterical loon.
"The great war, 1914 to 1917..."
The greatest piece of gallows humor on television.
I remember thinking "Wow they finally- oh damn."
you and me both, I was hoping they all got out of it ALIVE
+Graham Keith Todd none of us get out of it alive.
I like to think they all survived
dont you mean 1914-1918?
When this episode aired, the studio got a lot of calls and letters from WW1 veterans, who told them that they were worried they would screw this up, but that they got it square on the head
Ironically, the actors and everyone on set when it was shot thought they did screw it up, and finished the whole thing rather unsatisfied. It was the terrific work of the editor and director to slow it all down and get from the BBC library a shot of poppy fields, and then they nailed it to make one of the most moving and memorable tv endings of all time.
@@shugaroony as we are here decades later discussing this programme shows just how powerful it was. A comedy show that sometimes had me almost falling off my chair with laughter had me crying at this final episode. It was actually broadcast on Remembrance Sunday if I remember correctly and it still brings a tear to my eye.
@@clivejones7104 Oh I agree, and its still as powerful and sobering now, as it was when it first aired. I also liked that Blackadder himself had for once a genuine get-out from Baldrick with his idea, but showed when push comes to shove, he wasn't a coward and did his duty, respecting in that one moment, all those who fell for real.
@@shugaroony and it's tough to watch.
@@shugaroony yes he did his duty, followed his orders, the fool.
Break's my heart how Baldrick just says "I have... a plan, sir." Not a _cunning_ plan just _a_ plan. Even he lost faith in making it out.
I never noticed that before.
Thanks, that just adds to the whole of what this actually means.
I think it's just to set up Blackadder's lines - if Baldrick had said he had a cunning plan, then Blackadder wouldn't have been able to ask if it were a cunning and subtle one.
'Theres a nasty splinter on that sir, someone might hurt themselves' followed by - 'I have a plan'. Boldricks plan was to hurt themselves on the splinter so they did not have to go over the top. Ironically, the only good plan Boldrick ever came up with was dismissed by Blackadder. And alas they died.
I bet those brave men would be disgusted if they knew about the current state of the country they fought and died for.
@@davidgalea6113 They'd be no different than the men from many other countries right now.
One of the scariest aspects of the world right now is how common certain problems are from nation to nation.
"Good luck everyone". And in those three words you realise Blackadder, the most sarcastic of characters, does care and it changes the entire ethos of the series.
I think it's the only non self serving remark he makes, along with "madman"
I think that is the most sarcastic bit, isn't it? Its not said with menace or to put someone down, he does care but that is Peak Sarcasm.
@@thetiddlemonster I think the word you're looking for is "ironic," not "sarcastic," but yes, very ironic line: after 400 years of sarcastic put downs, his last words are actually sincere...
@@dennisbergendorfii5440 your last sentence is exactly right it is the only sincere thing he says after 400 years, and I think that's why it works so well.
Actually, I think he genuinely only cared about himself for the rest of the series. It looks like facing death mellowed him though so that he overcame his egocentricity in those last moments.
"Who would have noticed another madman around here?"
One of the greatest lines in television history. Rowan Atkinson delivered it beautifully.
Can you explain more that that means? I'm a bit confused
Throughout the series, blackadder has always managed to get himself out of tricky situation with some absurd plan. But here in the series finale he is put in a war so absurd and that even he cannot see away out of this situation.
That - and how are you feeling darling ? 😂
@@Jacob-lv6zy It's Catch-22, isn't it? The sane reaction is to go mad. So if you're mad, you're sane. If you're sane, you're mad.
Ah ha! We meet again!!!!
Over thirty years have passed since this was first broadcast, and it still remains the most gut wrenching end to any series.
An end to one of the greatest comedy series ever produced. Stunning, really.
First time I saw it, it hit me like no other film / TV series. Beautifully handled. Showed the banality of war and the human consequences in less than 30 seconds.
“Good luck everyone”
Still gives me chills and that feeling of stunned silence.
A masterpiece.
Well it's a kid show but the ending of David the Gnome was brutal too.
To think of all the funny lyrics of the Blackadder theme in the first series, then hearing the slow piano on this one as they go over the top, makes it feel like the series really went full circle. Such a poignant end to it.
"Five hundred miles of Germans, five hundred miles of French,
And Englishmen, Scots and Irishmen, all fighting for a trench.
And when the trench is taken, and many thousands slain,
The losers, with more slaughter, retake the trench again."
- Anonymous WW1 soldier, 1917
Thank you for sharing this 💔
You can actually sing this to the theme of Blackadder!
Very sad
@@RVPMatt123 kinda
@@sodddit8360 the first part of the 2nd line is one syllable too long
Sad part for me is when Blackadder says 'goodluck everyone' right before the end. It's that confirmation that he really did care about all of them and the only time he admits it in the entire series.
He did in the end what we never thought he would. He lead his men to an honourable death. He played the coward, died a hero
And it's also the first time I think in any episode of the series that Blackadder admits that one of Baldrick's plans were better than his. "I'm sure it was better than my plan to get out of this by pretending to be mad. I mean, who would have noticed another madman around here?" Such a powerful line in a devastating end to one of the greatest comic creations ever.
I remember thinking to myself: after all the scheming, conning, prevaricating, he atones for his behavior (and that of his ancestors) by doing his duty with honour and nobility as an officer of the British Army.
well said.
yeah.
I remember watching this the night it was originally broadcast. There was a group of about 15 of us in a students' lounge at College and we had all had a drink or two and so were in quite high spirits. At the end of the scene where the field turns from a dull grey to a carpet of poppies there was just a stunned silence. Nobody uttered a word. A group of boisterous lads in our late teens were struck dumb. It was one of the most profound and moving experiences of my life. I will never forget it and neither should we ever forget.
Yep, I watched in 1989 as a 16 year old...when it came to the end, I was just quiet for a minute as if to say, wow....that was something else...superb...none of that triple hidden message like the end of the sopranos...you understood...
I remember it too. We cried. X
I remember watching it on the BBC as an eight year old, even at that early age it left me stunned. With few WW1 veterans left by the late 1980s it probably forms the abiding perception of the First World War for people of my generation - certainly for anyone who watched the episode. One of the most moving pieces of television I've ever seen.
That’s so true. I’m a student myself right now and am re-watching this again for the 100th anniversary of the Armistice. It’s amazing that a comedy series could do something that is so profound that transcends it’s very creation and becomes so entrenched in our nations identity.
his1ojd It’s been officially declared as being so now. It’s so amazing.
The most devastating line isn't in this clip, it happens right before it. Lt George, who maintained a childlike enthusiasm for war throughout the series, turns to Blackadder and says:
"Sir? Um...I'm scared, sir."
I was 11 when it was broadcast and my heart stopped. More affecting than any war movie before or since.
Agreed. You can see George's attitude gradually change through the course of the episode. Realising he's the last of his group of friends still alive, Blackadder shattering his beliefs in why there was a war, his own inability to explain the war to Baldrick.
Yes, especially since Lt. George had the privilege to be invited to stay out of the final push and sit on the sidelines and watch at the invitation of General Melchett. But he declined and wanted to be with his friends and do the heroic thing. So sad. It also showed the class system and how the poorer men/boys were sent to slaughter while those with money or with ties to the royal firmament could sit and watch in comfort. Heartbreaking.
@@trikywu There at the last. Even and especially becuase of that mortal terror. He stayed there with his friends.
Damned fool....
That and Captain Darling's line about hoping to have made it through the full show and married Doris. That really stuck with me because, after all the infighting with Blackadder, it was both of them on the front line, going to their fate, at the command of General Melchett. It just seems sad that for the whole series they had all been creating this life in the trenches or back at HQ, trying to insulate themselves from the inevitable. And yet, the inevitable still finally came.
@@carlhague9102 a bloke called Archie Duke shot an ostrich
"Good luck, everyone" is a historic line. It is the first and only time in the entire series that Blackadder actually showed that he had at least some degree of care for other people.
actually, he cared a lot for his men. he just showed it in a sarcastic way
He did care in his own little way.
"Who would have noticed another madman around here?" no laugh track.
This was shot in front of an audience. There's no laugh track because no one laughed.
@@KindredPlagiarist well, I checked (sorry :D) and looks like you were right. It got a little annoying at times so I honestly thought it's a laugh track. Thanks for the info.
@@KindredPlagiarist 💔
They knew when it was warranted and when it wasnt
@@KindredPlagiarist "...And no one spoke and no one smiled, there were too many spaces in the line..."
This has got to be the most powerful scene I've ever seen in television. It's amazing because it's so funny, right up until the moment Blackadder says, "Who would have noticed another madman around here?" And then it just hits you. The sheer reality of it. Absolute masterpiece.
Ah well the 1979 tv movie "All quiet on the Western front" is a nice reminder of the reality of it all, however there is no humorous undertone.
Lone Wolf true; if you want another reminder when done well the power of TV watch the Northern Ireland anti-terrorist hotline advert with Cats in the Cradle. Its incredible.
+Lars Bosman See the original all quit on the western front from 1930, that is a great movie. I have also read the book, very sad story about the horrors of war.
amen
Lone Wolf huh, same profile pic
One of the best anti war scenes I have ever seen. Characters that we had grown to love gone in one horrible instant. Truly gut wrenching.
same shit going on right now in Ukraine and yeah.....kinda just sorta letting it happen
@@Decenium Letting it happen? No, directly caused and continue to fuel it. The ones that created both Putin and Zelensky's political parties were the same powers that instigated the disintegration of the USSR and the 2014 civil war in Ukraine. The very same powers also using the current conflict to sell weapons and test new ones.
@@Decenium Yeah, Zelensky keeps sending men to die pointlessly over untenable positions to such an extreme degree that many field commanders are being forced to defy orders just to save their own men's lives
@RTS Man oh that beautiful Russian propaganda.. You got to love it. Nortth Korea on a verge of Europe. That's what we will have out of you at the end. No matter how it ends, no matter if you take the whole Ukraine, only a complete moron is not understanding that you already lost the war. And far, far more than that.. Only thing confusing in this whole thing is, why are you on yt and not in "special operation" ?? West looks so good once you are there right? Sh...ng on everything with a cover over your identity while posting over product made in West bought by money that you made on western market. That great mother Russia... From far, far away..
@RTS Man almost like there wouldn't be a war at all if a dictator hadn't invaded the country to overthrow its democratically elected government
I never paid attention to this before, but watch Captain Darling while Blackadder and Baldrick are discussing their potential cunning plan. His face is absolutely paralyzed in fear.
Yep - the way he hangs his head in defeat once Blackadder says it'll have to wait is a nice touch as he accepts he's not getting out of it this time
Well spotted. Jesus, you can really feel what’s going through his head there.
Such an underrated actor
Never noticed that, he's demeanor after the line "Company will advance" is a great but subtle piece. He knows he's done for.
Captain Darling is an experienced soldier, you may have noticed he is wearing the ribbon of the Military Cross, so was clearly not always a staff officer and general's toady.
Darling's line about his diary entry simply saying "bugger" is particularly heartbreaking to me, they all knew to go over the top was a death sentence.
The most powerful ending in all of television, R.I.P to all the souls lost at the war 🌹
Yeah i always felt so sorry for those guys, i mean the guys that were actually in the war. To be treated like garbage like that.
Blimey!
It was the redemption of Darling. He did prove that although he was an office johnny and was scared, he still had the same courage and bravery and honour as the other officers and men who went over the top. He was after all a brother in arms.
@@davekp6773 Captain Darling may be an office johnny, but if you look closely, you will see his is wearing the ribbon of the Military Cross, so has obviously seen action before. Probably why he was so shattered, he thought he had a safe job.
Yes, because no one survived the war, did they? Oh, hang on, yes, quite a lot of soldiers did survive, so not quite the death sentence you assume.
100 years ago today, to the moment, the guns fell silent for the last time. Lest we forget.
Vlodec @ me next time chicken
@@ballsforbrains1953 Calm down sweetheart. Your edginess is scaring the children.
We will never forget them. It is the duty of the past generation. Ours, and the next to come.
And our Fake President acted shamefully in France during the centennial observation!
Sadly the guns did not fall silent "for the last time". It was the end of that war but there have been many others almost continuously since. The guns have never been silent.
I remember watching this for the first time thinking “Blackadder will think of something… surely” but no. Such a gut wrenching scene that has a proper tug at the heartstrings. Especially when the music kicks in. Probably one of the best moments in television. Amazing.
I'd choose rdj's for "400 years" scene
Agreed, it's right up there with some of the MASH stuff
He eventually did think of something, y’know… remember Blackadder Back and Forth?
Oh god, I never noticed it before, but when Baldrick says “Maybe the war’s over!” Darling’s face just collapses into utter relief. For a moment there he got to imagine a life with Doris. And then you get to see him realize that this really is, as they say, It.
Especially there was no laugh track at the mention of marrying Doris…
Tim McInnerny's performance in the trench is a masterclass in silent acting.
Maybe they survived? People did go over the walls plenty often and some made it.
There’s that glimmer of hope until it’s revealed this is 1917.
@@kumasenlac5504 He was the only ACTOR in the series, apart from a couple of 'guest ' players. All the other's were comedians and writers etc
"who would have noticed another mad man around here"….
that line says it all really
Simply sums up the madness of war, mans worst creation.
Simply sums up the madness of war
Only the dead have seen the end of war.
Only if they're solipsistic
Love is a battle that wounds even the victorious life is a war no one survives😔
really, I thought it was those who made it out alive who seen the end of war?.
@@twilightjester5672 u dont get it mate, soldiers and ex soldiers live with war far after the war has finished
@@twilightjester5672 who made it out alive will die in another war and if not they will die by PTSDs
Damn, it’s 2023 & I’m still sobbing over this. It was beautifully written 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻❤️
And given the current events this scene is even sadder
Very sad ending. For a guy who always found a way out of anything he sure handled imminent death like a boss
The moment you realise the entire series he's actually fearless, all his previous attempts to avoid going over are because he pragmatically realised it's absolutely futile, certain death.
Shades of Butch Cassidy
They deserved it
@@TruthTortoise81 How do you figure that?
@@tsitracommunications2884 and Catch 22
In my opinion; the single best ending to any series ever aired.
Code Geass would like a word
it was a good ending because it was real while some series go for the kitch ending which in my view are a weak as lolly water, here we have dare I say it truth as to what happens
Brilliant ending
yep, a very good case..
@@divineassassin7217 so blackadder died?
"Good luck everyone"
It shows that Blackadder really did care for all of them
It's beautiful because even the most cynical jaded asshole felt camaraderie for his fellow man in the face of death.
There are those that would describe Blackadder as a coward, but when the time came, he was the first one of them over the top. It wasn't that he was a coward, he simply didn't want to die. The final moments before they went over, he was calm, composed and their officer, simply grim with the weight of the moment. Great War Blackadder and every person in that show, despite their silliness are all so very human, and that is what makes the entire show so brilliant, and yet so tragic at the same time.
Also notice he didn't insult or put Baldrick down. Instead, he gave him some praise.
@@Nimish204 and was kind enough to lie - "Whatever it was it'll have to wait" as though they had a future.
Blackadder, for me, will always be Rowan Atkinson’s best role.
Totally agree, but amongst his many other characters is one that I think tends to be overlooked,maybe because there were so few episodes made that is Rowans brilliant portrayal of Maigret the french detective who those of us of a certain age can remember the originals from a long long time ago
Try Maigret
Second for me I still love Mr Bean the best
Credit must go as well to Howard Goodall for the simple but utterly devastating piano as they go over the top
Without it, this scene would not be anywhere near as heartbreaking.
The Blackadder theme in slow-time as the scene of the trench fades to a poppy field is one of the most enduring in all of television. A classic from the moment it was broadcast.
Recorded in a gymnasium, apparently
"Made a note in my diary on the way here... Simply says: "Bugger."
+Laughing Jack So moving, can't believe the audience laughed at that..
+sjfoster12 It's a dark joke. Also, they use laugh tracks.
+James McIlvenny Blackadder was filmed in front of a studio audience.
+sjfoster12 The audience still thought it was a comedy. And it stayed a comedy until about two minutes from the end. Then it became the most depressing thing you've ever seen.
+Laughing Jack thats me on my way to work lol
Without happiness and comedy, you can't have tragedy.
I believe you've got that muddled up, I'm sure the correct term is "Without tragedy, you cannot have comedy." or something along its lines.
Sam Davis Erm...yeah
We've had enough tragedy, but comedy didn't trigger it, I won't mention what did for political reasons.
Shouldn't someone tell him about sarcasm?
+PonzooonTheGreat Without tragedy, you can't have happiness and comedy.
Its still and is the best ending to a sitcom
The ending is pure brilliant. Heartbreaking, but brilliant
And it was close to be awful : The planned version was to get everyone in a freeze frame with different camera angles but in shooting, it looked quite goofy as you would almost think it's a Monty Python sketch (not helped by the studio size as end just after those Barbed wire).
And also heartbreaking. This'll stay with me forever
And hilarious 😂
This scene makes me appreciate my grandfather, who did survive WW1 trench warfare, even more. He never talked about it but I know he was very courageous, having won the Military Cross at just 19 years. I wish was still alive now so I could tell him how much I respect him.
Yes done with great senetivety
I've always found Captain Darlings plaintive "keep wicket for the Croydon Gentlemen......marry Doris....." particularly affecting in this magnificent piece of TV. It's almost never mentioned in discussion, but in that moment one of the hate figures of the show, a man who even has a joke name, becomes a human being who just wants to go home, play Cricket and marry his sweetheart.
Beautiful analysis.
Considering Kevin Darling was the butt of all the jokes of the show and an adversary to Blackadder he suddenly becomes a vulnerable and kind man - Doris must have seen something in him.
Yeah. :(
I would say that all the characters have a deepened meaning in this particular episode. Darling like you said is finally shown to be a normal, kind man who just wants things to be normal and is sincerely concerned he may never see his love interest again.
George while overly enthusiastic and blood thirsty is shown that he is actually morning the loss of his childhood friends whom all joined up with him at the start of the war. It's not that he likes the war and its seemingly pointless killing, but he's unable to bear the thought of having to return home while all the people he ever cared about did not. So he cares very little of his own mortality and carries that bravado as a coping mechanism.
Blackadder near the end of the episode finally quits his cowardly schemes and stoically accepts his fate like so many men around him, and puts aside his sarcastic snarky comments and attitude at his peers and wishes them a simple but sincere "Good luck and fair well" before blowing his whistle, and goes forth even knowing that he probably would not survive.
And Baldrick who steadfastly remained loyal and ready even though he by far had the shortest end of the stick out of any of them, just did what he was asked because that was his job. Which represents the thousands of Private solders who mostly volunteered to do a job they thought needed to be done. He never tried to run or get out of it, he was just there and suffered the consequences of the higher ranking officers and just endured as best he could.
Deep stuff.
Beautifully said!
"I'm scared, sir."
This is where we go from finest comedy to finest tragedy.
Comedy began with tragedy in Ancient Greece
S1: Best Plot
S2. Best Characters
S3: Best Comedy
S4. Best Emotion
"I'm sure it was better than my plan, pretending to be mad. I mean, who would have noticed another madman around here."
Damn...even if you're like me and know very little about Blackadder, that line cuts DEEP.
One of the most poignant moments of television of all time. Beautifully done.
Hamish Woodland Well ssid
Good luck everyone......
Fully agree
wonder what baldricks plan was ? :D
Hamish Woodland The whole 4th series was hilariously funny yet(the final scene in particular) heartbreakingly sad. Lions lead by complete donkeys. RIP every last one of those incredibly brave young men. NOT including the morons giving out the orders through binoculars. Safely ensconced miles away
In a doco rowan atkinson spoke about this scene. They only had time to do one take because the studio was closing for the night, they actually had to run from the previous studio to get to this studio in time to do it. They were all amazed at how small the set was and how little distance they had to run. When they finished the take they were all really pissed off because they thought it was a rubbish ending. The BBC then spent ages trying to make the ending work until finally some bright spark thought about slowing it right down, putting the sound track over the top and fading to the poppy field and hey presto probably the best final scene of any show.
Yeah i remember that documentary, it was a beautiful and very respectful ending for all those who lost their lives in WWI
The greatest achievement of post production ever.
pageystomsam I saw that documentary and yes, the ending was terrible. I may be wrong but think 'Cut' was said before the actors fell to the ground! The Production Team had very little to work with but turned the worst ending ever into the best ending ever.
Sorry for bothering you two years after you posted this comment, but I'd really like to watch that documentary you speak of. Do you remember the name?
Kneecap. There is 'Blackadder - The Whole Rotten Saga' and there is also 'Blackadder Rides Again.' Both can be found on CZcams.
"How are you feeling Darling?" - even this line gets me.
ONLY the bloody Brits can write and play a show like this. Nobody on earth could do something like this. Brilliant!!!
We do have a gift for it, or we used to, don't we (this is over 30 years old now). I do love American shows though, and tend to avoid British ones now, since they've become obsessed with "diversity" and "inclusion". I want to be entertained on an evening, not preached at. Also, British humour can be dark, as well as silly, American humour I find is more refreshing and doesn't make you feel "unclean" or tainted in some way, as our humour sometimes can.
"Marry Dorris" incredible how that one line delivered makes Darling, a figure of ridicule for Blackadder ever more human. It's amazing yet incredibly sad
Yeah. He'd always been a character who wasn't very likeable, and then suddenly, "marry Doris."
I think that one line means so much as throughout the series he's been the ridiculed far off existence effectively playing god with other people's lives, then that one line suddenly reminds you that above it all, he's still a human just like the rest of them
“Simply says.....bugger“
@@Torahboy1 and yet that, even above 'marry Doris', holds the most emotion out of almost any line in this scene
The thing about Darling is, he's seen it from both sides. He's sat comfortably back at HQ listening to General Melchett ignorantly droning on about the "glorious campaign to push back the vile Hun", and now he's in the trenches about to face the hopeless and futile reality of going over the top. And he KNOWS, even before he gets there, that it's a death sentence. He's seen the war from on high through battle reports and casualty statistics, and knows all too well that the men on the front lines don't stand a chance. And now, neither does he. Which is why he's already abandoned all hope of going back to civilian life and the girl he loves, and all he has to say about the situation is "...bugger."
RIP great Grand-father Lance corporal John Richards of the Northumberland fusiliers. battle of the Somme 1916.
no one asked
The detail of a lark singing above the field of poppies is such a beautiful, heart-wrenching hint at the poem 'In Flanders Fields'
Its all that's left of them.
I've visited the WW1 sites in Belgium and France. As moving as they are, nothing makes me well-up like this. Only a British comedy could go from flippant to heartfelt so effortlessly..
I still remember watching this when was 11 with my sister and I ask her what happened..
She said in a plain voice.
They all died.
I ask.. What even boldrick.
Yes..
I started to cry and she gave me a hug..
A brilliant show.
I
I am from Russia. We sat with dad, looked and laughed. And then there was the last episode .. they went to die. I understood and sobbed. dad said: Now you understand what death is:
That’s where yer wrong Baldrick had a cunning plan, a secret plan and pulled it off by jumping into a crater and surviving throughout the entire war
Only about 2 or 1 soldiers survived the battle. One more year and they'd have lived.
That’s one thing that saddens me the most. He seems to be the most cheery and innocent of the bunch and he just had to die. Poor bastard
your sister sounds like a prick
i will never stop loving this. '' Can't face a Machine gun without this!'' LOL
Didn’t seem to make much of a difference. He died anyway
@@thatdumbass8962 that was kinda the point
BlankSpace that’s the joke you muppet
@@lonewolf9578 given the username "thatdumbass" I think it might have been deliberate
I watched this at around age 16, I loved the whole Blackadder series the dark comedy the absolute sarcastic social commentary, and when I got to this ending where I had never much thought about war at that time in my life, I literally burst out crying. And today, in Australia, it is Remembrance Day and on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month THIS is the tribute I truly remember them by.
Beautifully said.
I’ll never forget how our history teacher showed this episode to our year 10 history class. It was usually quite a ‘naughty’ class who chatted a lot. When the episode ended we were stunned silent and some were crying. Pretty crazy the effect this has even in (as it was 2017).
Funnily enough our history teacher also showed us this in 2017 lol
@@Videos-qu4xk 100 years after this scene took place
And then everybody clapped right? This is as bullshit as a bullshit story can get. They were shown only the final episode where they had no emotional connection to the characters and then they cried to them running up in slow motion at a low frame rate and dying off screen?
@@bobsandwich3431 Yes well, other people have this thing called 'empathy' Bob
@@ariaflame-au teenagers usually have a problem with empathy or at least putting themselves in others shoes though don't they? It's why bullying is common in schools. And this class is specifically described as a class full of naughty kids who talk and couldn't put themselves in their teacher's shoes and didn't know how frustrating that could be for a teacher. You really think a class full of high schoolers cried at this random clip full of characters they had no connection to? If that's true they must cry everytime they see war photos or hear about the terrible things that happened in history right. You can have empathy for others without crying anyways. Crying is a strong emotion and it takes a hell of a lot to make an entire class cry and there's no way this clip made anyone cry who didn't know the context and didn't watch the show leading up to this point. You are gullible as shit if you believe that comment.
And when he gets to heaven,
To Saint Peter he will tell,
One more soldier reporting sir,
I served my time in hell.
i saw this and immediately teared up. so powerful.
Mr English you do know he didn't right this it's called the Soldiers Poem, it was written in WW2.
Boxanadu So true. War IS hell. While we are on the subject of poems...here's one by the poet S. Baldrick. It's called 'The German Guns.' Boom, boom, boom, boom.Boom, boom, boom.BOOM, BOOM, BOOM, BOOM,BOOM, BOOM, BOOM. Ironically, in this final episode it is the least intelligent person, Baldrick, who says probably the most intelligent thing in the whole world which is 'Why don't we just stop? Why don't we just put our guns down?' Very true Baldrick, why don't we?
+Darren Martin Because they would all die.
Lord Geezmo Not if the Germans or whoever the 'enemy' is put their guns down too. If everyone refused to engage in war then there would be no war.
This whole series was far more than just a comedy.
It's a clear anti-war statement. And a very clever one.
Love how they intertwine such sadness with humour. A lot of people involved with Blackadder were geniuses. By the way, WWI was such a horrendous war. It was a miracle soldiers survived the trenches at all. Such waste of life. Really sad.
@@SuperTed19021 The great war taught us a great lesson, and it wasn't just that the war wasn't great at all.
World War 2 also taught us some important lessons, and it's not just that sequels are usually just as bad as the first.
2:16 it's stopped being beloved historical sitcom to show us the reality of those who laid down their lives and the poppys bloom so that we can remember them forever.
"The Great War, 1914-1917"
The moment when you realise there is not going to be a way out; no cunning plan; just tragedy. A haunting moment when television became art.
What is so striking about this scene, is the stoic dignity of the soldiers going over the top
possibly for the very final time.
A brilliant and haunting tribute to the millions of very brave men, who fought and gave
their lives in that dreadful war (1914-18).
I notice that Blackadder, for the first time, stays his hand for a quick scheme to get out of danger. As the Captain, he hardens his resolve and is the first to climb over the top. That kind of seperates him from the last 3 Blackadder's.
I think it's because he couldn't think of anything...
British officers often have a very large set of balls. there are tales of them walking through enemy fire unfazed to give orders to squads personally. they are chosen to lead by example.
A fine example would be my grandfather's superior officer who turned tail the very moment he heard shoutings of 'Banzai' from a distant.
Keyword *often*
I can never watch this without getting at the very least a lump in the throat and a few tears. Crazy how the mood changed so quickly in the space of a few seconds. Props to the editors of the show for one hell of an ending to a brilliant, funny and ultimately heartbreaking series. Beautiful.
Derek Collins yes, they changed the ending quite a few times. Just google an interview with the guy playing Baldrick, to see the real ending and how they changed it.
Tyler Durden already seen it! Thank God they didn't go with that ending! It would've had nowhere near the impact as the edit did!
Tyler Durden Can you send me a link please, been trying to find the alternative ending, thanks in advance.
Ahhh yes agree with you man, very pleased they went with this one anyway :)
If you ever visit the Great War battlefields in France, it brings it all home. Today, they are beautiful, tranquil fields like you see in the coloured still at the very end. In those days, it was just like the charge scene immediately beforehand.
Very moving stuff and I suggest everyone goes there to get a sense of the enormity of it all. Well, I say "enormity" - the actual No Man's Land is usually very narrow and these men were dying in their droves over what amounts to bugger all. In some places my very average back garden is wider than No Man's Land.
Go to the Somme and in the British trench you can hear people talking in the German trench just in front of you. Scenes of unimaginable horror in an area little wider than the length of a tennis court.
---
I plan to go back one day. I also plan a trip to the Second World War battlefields that are nearby.
Simply one of the greatest moments in television history. Period. It sums up perfectly the utter waste of life-an entire generation of men as the butcher’s bill for WW1. The final charge over the top, set to that haunting piano, Blackadder’s “Good luck, everyone”, and then the blasted no man’s land they tried to cross shown in modern day as a peaceful place with birds singing-it hits like a sledgehammer, every bit of it. Heartbreakingly poignant. Bravo to all involved- an ending for the ages
I still fill up every single time I see it.
Tim McInnernys' acting right before they go over is superb. The dumbfounded look on his face at how he found himself in this situation, the terror in his eyes, the way he bows his head in disbelief when Atkinson admits he has nothing up his sleeve to get them out of this... right up to the end of the scene, you forget this isn't real.
Tim was the only trained actor in the show, acepting the occasional guest part. the other's were noted comedians writer's and presenter's.
It was real. For about 10 million men.
Read that number again, and don't forget - it was real. We (humanity) did this to ourselves.
Just an amazing cast of actors who, in a single scene, ascended from a simple comedy to a true tribute and commemoration of WW1.
I'm fine up until George says that he's scared. A man who was so incredibly patriotic and excited about warfare, up until the last moment, when we see how the war effects everyone involved in the same way. Thank you men, 100 years its been since the end of the war, you fought bravely, and you will never be forgotten. Rest in peace.
God knows how his parents will react after hearing their son is dead...that goes to show you that he's still a very young man (not so much stupid as much as he is naive and inexperienced) with his whole life ahead of him, and the facade cracks beneath the unrelenting cheeriness...
@@flannerymonaghan-morrs4740 George is a very young man, and appears quite casual about the war, but if you look carefully he is wearing the ribbon of the Military Cross and has survived, probably, two years on the Western Front. The casual attitude is probably a facade, he does know what is coming.
I can totally understand how one can be scared in front of the horrors and atrocities of war.
@@christianmargris this comment is a unique blend of narcisissm, stupidity, and a vain attempt at virtue signalling. Oh, really, you can imagine that? Youre so deep and empathetic....
@@rogueriderhood1862 He did also say he's the last of his friends group, he knew.
Director wanted a retake of this scene, actors flatly refused. Said they couldn't go thru it again, way too emotionally draining. Rowan Atkinson just said 'No'.
I will never ever forget when this was first shown. We were all sat in silence after for ages. I think saddest is where Blackadder asks Darling if he's 'come to join them for the last waltz' 😪
+Paula Williams There was no way to retake that. If they did something might have been lost in what is the best scene in television.
they wanted to retake the final moment because it was awful, with all of them stopping after three steps (since that's where the set ended) and awkwardly falling over and dying.
but they'd run out of time. It was only then that, as an emergency fix, they just slowed down the footage and faded away, unintentionally creating the moving moment it's known for.
+Paula Williams Which is pretty big a deal, since Rowan Atkinson's been described as something of a perfectionist in his acting.
+willywonkadailyblah The irony is that the casts refusal to re-shoot the scene resulted in this marvelously heart-wrenching finale.
Their hand was forced, they made do and the rest as they say is history.
Still remember when I first watched this. After the poppies showed up and the drum beat ended I felt just nothing, I just just couldn't feel neither anger nor sadness but pure shock. I just couldn't fully comprehend what had just happened. I then turned to my mom and asked did they all just die? She looked at me with a worried face and told me "uhh no they lived. They managed to crawl back to the trench and live." I then thought ah that must have been his amazing plan he had and brushed it off. Years later I tried searching for that ending where they crawled back to the trench but couldn't find it. It was becoming more obvious what had really happened and eventually I realised she lied to me to keep me from the pain of the truth. I think I always knew deep down they died and didn't survive but I just didn't want to face that the possibility of these great men just dying suddenly for no reason.
Thanks for sharing, general. Salute.
It stunned all of us, including the actors and production crew, because the original recording wasn't up to scratch, but the actors refused to do take 2, a it was dangerous AND it wasn't till later that they decided to slow down the film, which made it far more dramatic, especially as the piano music was also slowed, and made it haunting.
For absolutely no reason whatsoever.
This was a landmark scene. It's all anyone spoke about for days after the original broadcast.
Probably the finest moment on British television. When a comedy transcended and became something more
Into what?
@@AsadAli-jc5tg a tragedy
Oh thanks God you cleared, he just left me confused. ^^more
class..
Tragedy over time becomes comedy, and comedy over time transcends into tragedy?
"I mean who would've noticed another madman around here?"
Fantastic line to end a brilliant series- and sadly so true. I expect nothing less from our "warrior-poets" though! :)
Darling's face in the final moments is very telling and is a haunting reflection of the finality of it all. Notice how he listens with one ear to Baldrick and Blackadder's exchange and when Blackadder says- "Well, it would have to wait."- you can see his head drop and finally accepting that there's just no escape this time around. :(
Most memorable ending of my childhood.
So glad somebody else noticed Darling's expression at the end. It's such an understated thing, but it adds so much.
I’ve seen this so many times, seen many of those programs where they talk about great tv moments and I’ve never noticed Kevin Darlings head drop until now.
I watched this first when my uncle brought down the VHS collection when he was visiting us. In 1995, I was too young to understand the nuances of this ending but never forgot that nobody was laughing while we watched. More than a decade and a half later, I lost my uncle to that damned dragon called cancer and I watched the series again partly as tribute to him and partly because I was finally old enough to appreciate the nuances. The final push as it were, hit me hard especially when the theme song is played in the form of a lone piano rather than a triumphant fanfare that usually accompanies many a war propaganda film. It never really sunk in that my uncle was no more until I re-watched this scene. RIP, Mr. N. I hope I'm half the funnyman you always here.
Nice words.
Thank you for sharing, my thoughts are with you. 🌺
In the end, Blackadder died courageous, selfless, with honor, sacrifice, and alongside his friends.
Thank you for your service, gentlemen, all of you are gentlemen. (Salute).
"I mean, who would've have noticed another madman 'round here?" Haunting...
If you haven't before, read Pierre Berton's "Vimy". I don't know about you, but I'm Canadian, and that was one of our proudest moments, taking the Ridge. I visited Vimy in '95 when I was 15, with my grandfather (who landed on D-Day on Juno Beach), and it was incredibly powerful.
I saw the train car where the Armistice was signed, and where Hitler demanded France's surrender 22 years later. Just wanted to share some experiences, I hope you've had some that were as meaningful!
Possibly a reference to Catch-22
Johnny Devious that was a replica of the train car the real one was destroyed in ww2.
"This is all splendid,
noble and ... Sir ?"
- Yes, lieutenant.
"I am scared ,Sir."
*I'm scared too, sir..*
that is not in the clip
Good luck, everyone.
This is so sad. Made me cry. I watched all the Blackadder series.
105 years ago today.
Tragically beauttiful and brings a tear to my eye every time, the best bit is Edmund shows that he care's about the other guys at the end.
I dont think it could have ended better. All the horsing around of the last few generations of Blackadder all culminate in the final battle, where the boys all step bravely up to their fate.
This is the most poignant and resounding salute to those men in history who made that charge I can think of, on tv.
RIP, may we never forget.
Chris Goodall That's the point...Nothing could save them so they did what they were asked to, like millions of others.
Chris Goodall if you want to see how truely fantastic it is watch how it looked before it was edited because they only had the budget for 1 shot of the charge.
"Rather, Sir. Wouldn't want to face a machine gun without this!"
Brilliant writing when a huge laugh can be obtained from the above line amidst the sadness and tragedy of what we know is to come.
When life throws a spanner to the face and I can't duck dodge dip dive dodge it I just think of this one scene. I still didn't have it bad as those guys back in the WW1 day. I count my blessings for sure.
"Who would have noticed another madman around here?"
One of the finest lines ever written in television. A wonderful comedy that, in its final moments, perfectly and simply describes the utter lunacy of war. Haunting.
It harkens back to an earlier scene with Field Marshal Haig sweeping men off a scale battlefield with a brush and shovel. The completely detached insanity of sending regiment after regiment into a meatgrinder, all for the sake of a few hundred meters at a time.
When you hear that slow piano music start playing, you realise to yourself...this is it, the greatest TV series ever is coming to an end, after all these years from the first Blackadder to here, never will we see something like this again.
+David Ryan when I first saw this I was just in shock
+Karthigai Dipam As part of the colonial British Indian Army then, Indian troops fought on many fronts, including the Western in Europe.
Over 72,000 were killed and almost an equal number wounded.
Across all the fronts, there were about a million troops from the Indian Army with 700,000 alone serving in Mesopotamia.
+Karthigai Dipam Well yea. India is still a stick hole none the less... Women and men only trains. I wondered why? Rapists and pedophiles.
Trollin' aside. Your awrite.
Craig Elliott Are you stoned?
What kind of rambling is that!
You seem to be unable to complete a comprehensible statement!
You seem to speak more like a boom-boom girl!
When I was a kid, my next door neighbor was a WWI vet. He would never talk about the war. He wheezed from being gassed. He did a lot to help my folks, and he was a good neighbor to a little kid. R.I.P. Lem.
I was on a course with a couple of hundred engineers. We crammed into the TV room to watch Blackadder. When this episode come to an end we filed out in total silence. That moment has been engraved in my memory all these years. One of the most powerful bits of script writing ever. A powerful comment for humanity.
"Wars only look good in the books of history."
Unknown
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not many people realise this, but one of the best and most devastating parts about this scene was Baldrick's final cunning plan; the splinter on the ladder. Many of the soldiers in the trenches deliberately set about ways of getting themselves hurt and therefore put out of action so that they wouldn't have to fight or go over the trench and face machine guns. Baldrick's final cunning plan was to get all of them to cripple their hands on the splinter so they would be unable to hold a gun, and therefore unable to leave the trench. The irony of the situation is that Baldrick and his plans were always ridiculed throughout all the blackadder series. but this time he would have saved all of them.
I'm pretty sure that's just a joke, in that Baldrick was worried about everyone getting splinters while climbing ladders that lead to certain death.
+George Unitt There is that to it, but I think the above comment can also be right. Injuring yourself to get out of duty is not unheard of, so that's a nice detail to add. Maybe not be what the Blackadder team had in their heads, but it's a nice piece of headcannon :)
+George Unitt then how do you explain his final cunning plan that he specifically mentioned just after spotting the splinter?
+DatGuyAlex Thanks i always wondered what his cunning plan would be :D
+DatGuyAlex I think that Blackadder was wiling to give Baldrick's plan a chance, yet at this point, it was already too late.Even if they had decided to criplle their hands, it wouldn't beign left unnoticed. So they would beign punished (exequted) anyway.
"We lived through it. The Great War 1914-1917"
The second you hear that, you know it's not gonna end well. That's some great writing.
I think about "Who would have noticed another madman around here? Good luck, everyone" regularly
This still moves me to tears to this day
How perfect that Captain Darling is there and we all get a chance to feel empathy for him after having loathed him for so long.
I never loathed Blackadder, in fact I always looked up to him
I wanted him to marry Doris and play Cricket probably more than he did.
It's when you realise that all he wanted was to survive, go home to his old job, marry his fiancee and play a bit of cricket that it really hits me. He wasn't asking for much in life
@@SamuelBlack84 I didn't loathe Blackadder either but captain Darling was Weasley!
@@blackbird5634 there's an interesting bit by david mitchell on the descendents of concientious objectors and protected jobs considering how such a war was an unwinnable set of circumstances- weasly action to avoid the death faced by comrades, sure, but also some kind of survival instinct in wanting to avoid it- cowardice at the time, but at least they could go home, marry their girlfriend and have kids.
i can't imagine the full scope of being stuck in that scenario, but honestly i fele i'd similarly look for ways to avoid running into machine gun fire.
"Good luck everyone" So sad.
+Danox94 That is the one line that says it all.
+Danox94 that line makes onions appear in my room all the time!
I wish the BBC still made television like this.
bbc would be under fire for making a sitcom about one of the most horrific events of human history
Now it only does prowar propaganda.
I'm afraid whimps and wokes control the once great BBC now, The BBC and ITV made Multi-Millions out of their comedy greats, selling them to the world. NOW, we are lucky to see them repeated on main channels, in case they offend someone. Such cowardly hypocrits shame the tallents of the greats, many of whom are no longer with us.
If they did a remake wouldn't be a white face shown...
As an American I watched every minute of this show. Young me was shocked when they all died at the end, I was not expecting that to happen. British humor is so much better than American humor but they saluted the lads that went over the top and were killed it really gutted me.
It's really a simple reason for it, culturally, American humor has one "above it". British humor has everyone "in it". The exception to this is It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia, which harkens back to Only Fools And Horses in its delivery of humor.
I think you can sum it up in one word "respect". Men younger than the actors fought and died in a war. Not a joking matter. I still get a lump in my throat when watching this and I have seen it so many times.
@@jennysutton1434 you and a lot of others, I'm a 71 Yr old man, and feel the same
@ab that's so sweet of you,,, really nice comment
@ab thats a good river youre crying there, keep it going would you
I maintain that this is the greatest ending to any show I've ever seen on TV. I watched it when it was first broadcast and was moved to tears.
There is also the ending to the episode of M*A*S*H (first season, I think) where Col. Henry Blake gets to go home.
better than the end of the sopranos...?
You and me both
the end of MASH was a chiller
When a show has you laughing and crying in the space of 30 seconds, you know it’s something remarkable.
So true.
Oh god I had buried this in the depths of my mind until someone brought it up in an ask reddit thread. I remember being around 11-12 and watching this. I didnt expect the ending. I cried like a baby when I saw the field of poppies.
Big fan of blackadder, but I did NOT expect to wind up crying when I fired up the last episode for the first time.
That's a live audience for you
It got me too.
still does!
This is one of the most perfect endings to any TV series ever. Every single episode tried to make you laugh, but then you get to the final moment and there's not a joke in sight. Instead, all the characters you've grown to love are led to their deaths and you never see them again. You wait for a punchline and there isn't one.
I think WWII was the punchline.
The punchline was right in your heart all along.
“Don’t forget your stick
No sir, Wouldn’t want to face there machine guns without this”
If you can watch this without a tear in your eye, you’re stone cold dead.
That's like, your opinion man
Will S.E.E
It’s not ‘like’ my opinion. It IS my opinion. Man.
If it were something akin to my real opinion, without actually being me opinion. THAT would be ‘like’ my opinion.
But this really IS what I think. It’s my opinion. It’s NOT ‘like’ my opinion.
@@Torahboy1 okay okay! Jeez 🙄
Ernest Hemingway was an ambulance driver in WW1. He was injured multiple times and survived the war to become one of the greatest writers of all time. I always wonder how many brilliant minds were lost forever in the World Wars.
Maximum respect for the fallen that anonymously sacrificed their lives for others.
+Benjamin Tayehanpour Lets not forget Leo Tolstoy was inspired to write "War and Peace" by the Crimean war, where he was an artillery officer.
Well one such great was of course Wilfred Owen, who during his last few years on the western front as a 2nd lieutenant in the Manchester regiment, wrote some of the greatest anti-war poetry to come out of that awful conflict. He died exactly one week before the armistice on 4 November 1918. Who knows what great works he could have gone on to write?
+Barbute *YEP*, very well pointed out! Do you know where he was stationed? That's right! In Sevastopol! He had some _extremely_ *moving* parts in his memoirs regarding the siege and the brave defense by the Russian Army _and_ Navy as well!!
+StannieDum oh that is _so_ terrible! i think the deaths that perhaps get to me the *most* are those that occurred on the 10th or 11th of November, 1918. if i'm not mistaken, the last man to be killed in the entire war from enemy fire (outright that is) was a Canadian. he joined the ranks alongside the tens of thousands of other Canadian troops killed during the warlll it's _so_ freaking *SAD*... an entire generation simply butchered in less than four years :(.... possibly _most_ disgusting was an American officer's hubris and ignorance whose unit had not seen very much combat.... therefore, he decided to order his entire regiment to attack a small French village held by only a single under-strength (but battle-hardened) German battalion. his reason for ordering the attack....? his men hadn't had a _bloody _*_BATH_* and there were baths inside of the town!!!! luckily for his men, the Germans did not want to kill so many men and didn't want to die themselves, so their commanding officer ordered his men to simply pull back and give the Americans the town after a short amount of fighting... still, several _hundred_ of his men lay dead and many more wounded less than 10 hours before the Armistice.
Lot of sons of great men were lost in those wars. Kipling got his son a commission for example (which he shouldn't have had due to his bad eyesight).
Watching this again on November 11th 2018. This never fails to resonate with me.
Bill Lyons was my great grand dad, he died in Flanders summer 1918.
May he rest in peace, his sacrifice must never be forgotten!
Sorry mate :(
Totally same for me. My great gran father lost one brother on one of the pointless assaults of Cadorna in mt. Zebio and the other brother in a POW camp in Austria and he almost got killed on the Piave.
The Absurdity of this war would be funny if it wouldn't be for the reality that so many man died in it. A Serbian Anarchist shoots a Inbreed Austrian and half the world tries to kill each other.
He died for nothing.
The transition to the poppy-filled field always gets me.
No better conclusion to a series exists.
When a comedy show is deeper, more poignant and heartfelt that most dramas today.
Thats the point though, it wasnt like this through the entire series.
This is like a moment of silence in a piece of beautiful music.
A small fade to black in an important moment in a film.
Its a counter point, only made possible to have so much gravitas because the entire series is comedy but in this one final moment it was serious which just adds that much more weight.
Im scared sir, I don't really want to die. I'm the last of the Cambridge tiddlers.
That still gets me everytime.
"We mate it 7 feet before the Germans took us, sir. That's no so bad, innit?"
"Do I really have to spend eternity with you?"
Oof, please no
The ending of this is the only time I can remember my dad, a tough man if ever there was one in tears. This has just stuck in my head for years and years.
I started 'Blackadder' about five days ago, with the first series, and today, I just finished watching the final episode of 'Blackadder Goes Forth.' I can't stress this enough: This ending was simply powerful. I had the feeling that in every series, Blackadder, the character, is shaped by the time period and circumstances, and in the last series this was, perhaps, the most apparent. Brilliant ending.