Forged In Fire - General Discussion

[sourpickles]

THAT.  Just made my night.  Thanks and love!

[Maelstrom]

^^ Happy to oblige, Pickles! :)

Maybe everyone else has already seen this, but recently I came across a short video on YouTube of J teaching Wil and Doug to forge. It's a fun watch, especially when Doug sums up bladesmithing as "hard", lol.

[Quilt Fairy]

On ‎7‎/‎18‎/‎2017 at 10:03 PM, ZoloftBlob said:

In watching the master apprentice episode, I am likely terrible for asking but.... is Wes some sort of transgender?

I wondered that as well.  When he first walked in I thought "Oh, that's nice, one of the masters has a female apprentice."

[sourpickles]

Gosh, I thought I was behind but has no one been here for a bit?  Ok, I'll test.................those be some ears on Wil Willis (really, mom and dad?), yes?

[Maelstrom]

I was sick last week and spaced posting (I blame the head cold). I thought it was too bad that the one finalist didn't use enough glue so her sword could be properly tested. I mean, I applaud her commitment to historical accuracy, but no epoxy? No metal pins? Such a shame. Though I did get a kick out of the judges' increasingly disgusted reactions to Dave's nautical puns, lol. One of the most entertaining panels on tv!

Now to catch up tonight's ep... Also, I don't see a new ep listed for next week on my satellite guide. What's with that, History Channel?

[sourpickles]

Just now, Maelstrom said:

Now to catch up tonight's ep... Also, I don't see a new ep listed for next week on my satellite guide. What's with that, History Channel?

Don't know if you saw the commercial or not, the next new epi is on Aug. 22, just in time to conflict with Face Off and Game Face!  Oy.

Also, Mr. Pickles was in the Navy for 20 years so I especially enjoyed all the nautical stuff.  I still might not understand half of it, but what the hell. 

[Maelstrom]

And it'll conflict with the new season of Leah Remini's show, too! Why is everything good on Tuesday evenings?! *wrings hands*

[sourpickles]

1 minute ago, Maelstrom said:

And it'll conflict with the new season of Leah Remini's show, too! Why is everything good on Tuesday evenings?! *wrings hands*

I've been bitching about that for ages............almost everything I watch ends up that day for some reason!  Ink Master, Face Off, Game Face now, Forged, etc. etc.  Drives me nuts.  Leah, love her, and nothing but the best her way, she's gonna need it.  I'm not sure if this is a break in this season or if that's the start of a next one, I'd have to look, or @Quilt Fairy will know, and we'll get more "eeeet weel keel" vids!!!! 

Oh, and the Gladiator's Scissor...........might be one of my favorite weapons ever, just in terms of how dang hard it was to manufacture. 

[Maelstrom]

Yeah, the gladiator' scissor was a beast in terms of construction! I thought both guys did really well considering how complicated a weapon it seems to be to make. So next ep has the dreaded coal forge! Seems like that's always a challenge you either go into knowing how to use or you try to keep up as best you can.

[Maelstrom]

Michael's kampilon was pretty cool! Though I chuckled at Todd's dinosword. Ha.

These guys were definitely the best on the coal forges that I can remember seeing on FiF before. They must've specifically cast them for this episode, unlike previous seasons where they just throw them in the deep end, so to speak.

[Maelstrom]

"Backscratcher of death" Ha! Doug does have a way with words. They had a good batch of contestants tonight,  I'd like to see any of them return in the future. So why no new episode next week, huh History Channel? What's with that?

[Arynm]

The blades are getting way too weird for me. Can we go old school and get a broadsword or greatsword? We still haven't gotten a real working one yet. Maybe it's a lost art like the real Damascus blade. I don't mind seeing repeats of blades, especially if they are iconic weapons. Bring back the rapier or cutlass and do something fun with them.

[qtpye]

When we saw the blade...I actually squeed with joy, because we were going to get to see Doug throw them like ninja stars...I love that man.

I am glad that judge found his soul mate in colorful man vests.

[eel2178]

7 hours ago, qtpye said:

When we saw the blade...I actually squeed with joy, 

I know it is probably just a typo, but I find, "squeed with joy," to be hilarious. It sounds like a combination of, "squealed," and, "peed." Being an old fogey, I have squeed more frequently than I'd like to admit.

[qtpye]

2 hours ago, eel2178 said:

I know it is probably just a typo, but I find, "squeed with joy," to be hilarious. It sounds like a combination of, "squealed," and, "peed." Being an old fogey, I have squeed more frequently than I'd like to admit.

No typo, that was the noise I made...perhaps squeed like an idiot is more appropriate.

[Quilt Fairy]

I assume there's no new show next week due to Labor Day.  (Which yes, I realize is NOT on Tuesday, but sometimes a channel like the History channel will use the occasion to show specials all week.)

I think that I've grown tired of this show.  I DVR it and then FF through everything except the judging/testing of the blades.  It's still a good show, but it's guys making knives, and I don't know how much more they can do with it.

[Lemur]

On 8/30/2017 at 0:41 AM, Arynm said:

The blades are getting way too weird for me. Can we go old school and get a broadsword or greatsword? We still haven't gotten a real working one yet. Maybe it's a lost art like the real Damascus blade. I don't mind seeing repeats of blades, especially if they are iconic weapons. Bring back the rapier or cutlass and do something fun with them.

I wouldn't mind seeing them start repeating some of the blades in the final, especially the ones that had less than successful builds.  I get that exotic builds are interesting, but the fact remains that the Claymore has two catastrophic failures (winner got by because he could straighten his blade a bit, loser's blade broke).  They need to redo that challenge. 

[Monty]

They did redo the Claymore challenge once. I remember because after the double-failure, it was amazing to see a Claymore slice smoothly through an entire pig carcass.

[JuliaJenkins]

On 8/29/2017 at 11:25 PM, Maelstrom said:

"Backscratcher of death" Ha! Doug does have a way with words. They had a good batch of contestants tonight,  I'd like to see any of them return in the future. So why no new episode next week, huh History Channel? What's with that?

For such a serious show they can be really funny at times. I love it when the judges start talking about one of the forgetestants "do you think he will remember he's got a tool for that?... I guess not" And there was the forgetestant who sounded like and dressed like David Baker. IIRC it was Wil who suggested calling him up to be David's stand-in when David couldn't make it. These guys are funny.

[qtpye]

I could not believe how light and powerful last night's winning Turkish weapon seemed. I am a fairly petite woman with little in the way of upper body strength and this might be the sword for me. 

[Quilt Fairy]

Yes, those were 2 beautiful swords, and pretty much equal in testing. 

[johntfs]

I'm glad Gabe won, and a nasty part of me is even more glad that Josh lost after the dick move he pulled right at the start, working with Gabe and then abandoning him once he'd gotten his own steel.  I get it, it's a competition, but one of the things I like most about this competition is the way the competitors come off as being decent to each other in a way that isn't fake.

Edited September 15, 2017 by johntfs

[Maelstrom]

I agree, I was rooting for Gabe the whole way through. He seems like a decent guy, especially compared to someone like Josh. And I was amazed at Gage's Yatagan and how light and sharp he made it. I got the impression Doug didn't want to let it go.

Anyone know if we get a new ep next week?

[Quilt Fairy]

1 hour ago, Maelstrom said:

Anyone know if we get a new ep next week?

Last time I checked my DVR for scheduled shows, no.

[sourpickles]

5 hours ago, johntfs said:

I get it, it's a competition, but one of the things I like most about this competition is the way the competitors coe off as being decent to each other in a way that isn't fake.

We're just not used to stuff like that on this show.  It definitely gives one pause.

[johntfs]

20 hours ago, sourpickles said:

We're just not used to stuff like that on this show.  It definitely gives one pause.

Not really.  In the Venn diagram of Forged in Fire competitors and assholes, the overlap is being represented by Josh.

[johntfs]

On 9/14/2017 at 0:31 PM, Quilt Fairy said:

Last time I checked my DVR for scheduled shows, no.

There's nothing really new for the next two weeks.  However, Tuesday, September 26 they're going a "look ahead" at something they're calling an International Competition which starts at 7:59 PM Eastern (6:59 PM Central) and runs until 8:06 PM Eastern (7:06 PM Central).  While I'm not complaining, I'm surprised the fourth season has gone as long as it has.  I can't believe we're not getting close to the end of it.  Likely that International Competition will be the end of the season.

[Monty]

I enjoyed hearing J. Neilson comment on how contestants help each other on this show. It's not quite the only show where that happens (see also: Face Off) but it's definitely one of the things that sets it apart.

[illini1959]

American Ninja Warrior being another. It's very refreshing. 

I felt so bad for Guillermo when his handle broke :( 

[sourpickles]

10 hours ago, illini1959 said:

I felt so bad for Guillermo when his handle broke :( 

I kind of felt like that was coming, like a weird sort of tension, you know?  But I liked the episode.  I think I love the show more when it's been off for a bit.  Makes me thankful for the decent shows that I watch, instead of some of the crap that is around.  Says the gal watching James Bond for days on end....some of THOSE are truly cheesy LOL.  HEY!  Maybe they could make some Q creations if they run out of ideas.......

[johntfs]

This is one of the ones where the dude I least wanted to win ended up winning.  The only other time that happened was with David "I wear my kimono and act like I am the reincarnation of Masamune" Goldberg.  Even then, I didn't really dislike JW, though the "I'm here to win this for America!" stuff kind of annoyed me.  Dude, this isn't the Olympics.  The only real difference between this episode and the rest of them is that the other three guys had longer plane rides than you did, JW.  You have more in common with your fellow competitors than you do with almost every other American.  The other three seemed to get that more than JW did.  If they do a redemption challenge again, I'd love any of the three of these guys to come back, especially poor Guillermo.  My heart kind of broke for that guy.

[Maelstrom]

Sorry to see Daniel (?) go home first, as I liked both his attitude and his work, but that warp was pretty substantial. I’ve got to give Holden credit for doing this show with only four years’ experience, especially going up against such experienced smiths. Both final weapons were beautiful but I was kinda rooting for Santa, so I was happy to see him win.

Am I mistaken or does next week’s returning champions ep feature five former contestants? Damn, five forges in that studio is going to make it hotter than the fires of Mount Doom.

I love that Dave continues to love puns, and the others continue to groan at him when he does.

[johntfs]

I was rooting more for Chris (not-Santa) and honestly expected him to win until he got that tiny roll and the other guy didn't.  As far as the heaviness Doug and especially David mentioned, it's a axe-mace, not a fencing foil.  It's there to smash the holy living fuck out of whatever unfortunate person/thing is its target.  It's supposed to be a bit like the Zweihänder, something to smash the hell out of something.

As far as Daniel and Holden went, I was pretty much fine with them being sent packing.  When you see an obvious flaw in your weapon, at least make an attempt to fix it.  Even if you gamble and lose, you'll get props from the judges for not giving up (and might get to come back later in a redemption challenge).  If you just try to skate by, your ass is going home and it's highly unlikely you'll get a chance to come back.

[Quilt Fairy]

The 2nd "Champion of Champions" competition was really good.  I liked that they asked each champion to bring a knife with them for the first round.  Those were some awesome looking choppers, and it made me appreciate why some of these folks are on the show.  It's nice to see what they can do without the goofy materials and time constraints of the show.  

[halopub]

Neil was an absolute badass forging that blade so quickly.

Quote

Well Neil, if I were these three guys, I'd be mad as hell at you. Because you just showed them they wasted 2 1/2 hours and multiple canisters to do what they could have done with one can and 32 minutes.

It was a bit weird to not see Doug testing the weapons.

Edited October 19, 2017 by halopub
syntax - extra 'not'

[whydoiwatchtv]

I noticed at the end that Doug was wearing an arm sling so he probably couldn’t participate. I sure missed him, though.

[johntfs]

Neil seems like a guy who's really, really good at improvisation and as such still tends to improvise even when he doesn't have to - and really shouldn't.  That's likely part of what cost him the championship this time.  For my part I was rooting for Nick and especially Kelly because I just like their personalities.  I won't say I was exactly disappointed when Theo won, but he's no Kelly.  As for Ray (the first to go), I was pretty much indifferent there.  Somebody had to go first and I was okay with it being the guy who won because his opponent was kind of a dumbass.

We still have new episodes coming Oct 24 and 31.  I think there's a new show coming into that slot Nov. 7.  I love this show, but I'll be a little okay with seeing the back of it for a while.  My Tuesdays are getting kind of crowded in terms of TV.

[Maelstrom]

I enjoyed this one even though my pick (Kelly) didn't win. Theo certainly seemed to have the skills, so I can't fault him for winning, though I would've liked seeing Kelly take the title again. I really like the new judge/former contestant even though I'm blanking on his name at the moment. Wonder where J and Jason both got off to. It was really odd not to see Doug doing any testing, I hope he recovers from whatever injury he has so he can get back to telling us if things weel keel.

Edited October 19, 2017 by Maelstrom

[halopub]

Doug says he had surgery four months ago. He's not wearing the sling now, so fingers crossed.

Ben Abbott was the judge, the first champion of champions.

Kelly's great to watch and I'm sorry I haven't seen her original episode yet.

Neil's only been forging blades for about a year, right? Now that he's studying with masters and fellow competitors, it'll be interesting to see if anything changes in his approach. On Instagram he did say his tai chi was too heavy because of his inexperience in making swords and not knowing how one was supposed to feel.

[Quilt Fairy]

5 hours ago, halopub said:

On Instagram he did say his tai chi was too heavy because of his inexperience in making swords and not knowing how one was supposed to feel.

Except he kept saying while he was making it that he knew it was too heavy.

[johntfs]

1 hour ago, Quilt Fairy said:

Except he kept saying while he was making it that he knew it was too heavy.

Well, really he just said he knew it would be heavy but he liked making stuff that way.  So, basically he just kind of decided to ignore that aspect of what he was making.  Probably the guy that would have kicked both their asses in this challenge would have been Gabe from Episode 18.  He was the guy that made the Yatagan that chopped through two cow bones taking barely a dimple in return while weighing less than 20 ounces.

[Lugal]

Also sorry Kelly didn't win, but I loved her line about making a knife out of her washing machine once because: "It made me angry"

[johntfs]

I think the season finale is next week (on Halloween) and then People Digging for Stuff (The Curse of Oak Island) takes over the time slot November 7.

[Monty]

I was hoping that the Templar challenges were tie-ins to Curse of Oak Island, because those guys are always claiming to find signs of Templar activity. But I guess Knightfall makes more sense. Certainly more sense than your average Project Runway tie-in.

[johntfs]

I'd figured that Ben Abbott had been brought in as just a special judge for the "Champion of Champions" thing but apparently he's going to finish out the season.  I'm kind of wondering what happened with J. Neilson and why they didn't just bring back Jason Knight.

As for Robert, I felt a bit bad for him, but after the extra miles he went, he should have also applied a few inches of tape measure.  I think if his blade had been "under par" Brian would likely have been the first one out instead of him.  As for Josh, avenging Dad story or not, if the blade doesn't cut you don't go forward.  I think Josh focused so much on penetrating the chain with a thrust he forgot there was going to be a slash test.  Meanwhile, I think Brian got caught up in the swords' legend when he should have focused on the their construction.  Even if a Knights Templar's sword was forged in the fires that destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah and then quenched in the blood of Jesus, if the fucking thing doesn't slash well enough, the Knight isn't gonna take it to war.  It was cool to see that weapon mastery is a family thing with the Marcaidas, even if "It will keeel" is all Doug.

Edited October 26, 2017 by johntfs

[TexasTiffany]

It was funny when Doug wiped his messy hand on his brother's shirt. In turn, his brother touches it and symbolically flicks it back at him. Wil was amused! 

[Monty]

Another VERY violent kill test. I'm usually indifferent to the fake gore, but that torso was completely destroyed.

[johntfs]

21 hours ago, Monty said:

Another VERY violent kill test. I'm usually indifferent to the fake gore, but that torso was completely destroyed.

It was destroyed because it was yanked off its pole and fell on the floor.  When it came to damage caused purely by the weapon, Jeremiah's weapons probably did better.

I liked this episode pretty well, but I honestly wished the Champion of Champions had been the finale.  This episode was almost by-the-numbers predictable.  Who will fall first?  Well, probably Joel since he depends on machines and their mostly aren't any and also because they're using coal forges which he's far less familiar with.  Who will fall second?  Perhaps Jeff, they guy who already knows it's a bad idea to use an unfamiliar handle material (particularly one that already seems brittle) and yet who goes ahead and uses that material anyway.  As far the winner, well, Jeremiah is more experienced and something of a an expert on historical weapons and the other dude isn't.  So, yeah, Jeremiah wins.

As for the rest, I admit that I'm kind of missing Jason Knight and J. Neilson.  I think if I were a smith and had to work in a shop with someone, I'd far prefer Ben Abbott.  He's a calm, friendly low-key person.  However, as someone who is not a smith, if I wanted to really learn the trade, Jason and J. would be my go to people.  Ben clearly knows what he's looking for when judging, but I always appreciated how Jason and J. would explain certain techniques being used and comment on why something was smart (or not).  I miss that happening.

[TexasTiffany]

16 hours ago, johntfs said:

Who will fall second?  Perhaps Jeff, they guy who already knows it's a bad idea to use an unfamiliar handle material (particularly one that already seems brittle) and yet who goes ahead and uses that material anyway. 

We've seen that several times now. One of the forgetestants picks a handle material we all know won't last through the challenge, but they use it anyway. The best choices are the wood or antler, but they are boring. Jeff uses the green resin to be different. A chunk breaks off and falls on the floor. Goodbye, Jeff. 

[johntfs]

36 minutes ago, TexasTiffany said:

We've seen that several times now. One of the forgetestants picks a handle material we all know won't last through the challenge, but they use it anyway. The best choices are the wood or antler, but they are boring. Jeff uses the green resin to be different. A chunk breaks off and falls on the floor. Goodbye, Jeff. 

I'd go for the kirinite or micarta.  They seem easy to work with and are very durable.  I guess my thing is that even if you don't know exactly what the tests are going to be, you know the basic type of tests.  There's a strength test, which for a knifish size object usually means using it to cut or chop into something tough, usually with a lot of kinetic force being applied.  So, the very last thing you want on your knifish object is something brittle.