Early Access: Chapter 4: The Final Act

Perhaps, but I would expect that EC have enough on their plate with actually making these videos for us, and while websites like Keepvid and ClipConverter exist, there's no need for a special 'downloadable' version.

Adam Thomas

This is how you explain history. I was so bored in class... it's like they wanted us to just know dates. Like "this war started this year, and finished this year", but not WHY happened? HOW? Could that be avoided? That's how you learn what happened, and how to prevent it to be repeated. Thanks a lot for doing this, seriously.

Elfangor

I have learned much about the Great War. After all of the history classes, all of the books I read, the games I've played, the movies and cartoon and TV shows and plays that I've seen, I've learned much about it. About who the Allied and Central powers were, when each country entered, where the main battle lines were drawn, and how the war came to an end. I have seen pictures of the devastation, read poems inspired by the mustard gas attacks. and I've played games that let me experience the pain and hopelessness of the common soldier charging mindlessly under orders from a feckless fool of an officer into the jaws of death from land mines, snipers, barbed wire, machine gun nests, and artillery barrages just for a few meters of additional worthless land that will be taken back three days later. And from that, I can truly say: never in all of my life has the soul crushing emotion of that loss hit me until I watched this series. Never has the sorrow, the anger, the...the *pain* that the war caused ever truly connected with me in such a raw form. Now, though, as I sit here with tears running unabashed down my cheeks, as I reflect on all that these rulers - these men - did to try and prevent war, and how stupid circumstance and mistakes caused the deaths of millions of young men and women on a nearly global scale...I also realize that, at last, I can truly understand how awful that war was, and how terrible all war is not just on an intellectual level, but on an emotional one, too. And I feel that this, more then anything else I've ever done, honors the memory of those who fought and died in those years.

Although, with that in mind, maybe some sort of education pack downloadable version might be of use to those teaching in schools that block youtube?

Stephen

This is why the future is so exciting! Now History teachers can show this to their classes. I assume at this point in time most schools in countries with access to the internet can access Youtube via one means or another. (There are always ways around Website Blocks, even if it just requires the teacher to be a little bit motivated about it.) "I used my time traveling Kayak to find squirrels." - Randall Monroe

Adam Thomas

Alright I have to say this: Is anyone else just absurdly confused at how well maybe an hour worth of show covered something history textsbooks tend to just kind of nod at? How, in this short lived series I learned more about the players, motivations, and history of this conflict than I ever did in school? How is it that this less than an hour of video did that much educational justice? It kind of feels like there was a great failing, within my previous education. If in less than an hour all of that can be learned, I weep for all the time wasted in classes doing packets premade for teachers, taking tests which were just a: cough up this random thing we keep shouting at you, and all those math problems which were force fed to me repetitively, excessively to try and drill in this information. If I were a history teacher, I'd kill to show this to a class to teach them about WWI.

Jonathan Biddle

Wow, that was amazing. You guys are amazing. Thank you for that, it was a great and beautiful story told expertly and I found it moving, yes you even got a couple of tears. Thank you for your hard work, so much love for you guys. Keep them coming, I will keep my support coming :)

Dara Robinson

I second this... We've talked, and debated, and learned of WWII since the day the war ended. We've got everything we can out of it, it's now time to let it alone. WWI is always glossed over for WWII, and I think this series definitely did the tragedy justice. Now it's time to move elsewhere. Hell, I'd love to hear about the wars in Asia, they're never really covered in the west.

Jonathan Biddle

One of the most difficult challenges in telling a story which is meant to set up for another story through tragedy, is that the audience already knows how it will end. And despite this, the storyteller must make the audience forget that knowledge, and embrace for even a brief moment the insane hope that things won't end the way they know they will. This daunting task is exactly what you guys have succeeded in doing with this series.

Alex Kaiser

Well, that's up to you folks (if you are a Patreon voter) but we have definitely got some biographies of great figures in our upcoming suggestions list!

Extra History

We've actually got one more episode that we're tentatively calling the "Lies" episode, which is a special wrap-up that James will deliver looking back on the series and his scholarship choices when he wrote it. We hope you folks find that interesting! After that, Sengoku Jidai will air on November 8.

Extra History

Yes. This. some historical vignettes about these monolithic figures.

FloundericiousWA

I have heard of the magnitude of the calamity... but the "one month later, a million men were dead" got me... I had to go check it...and find the lyrics for "in Flanders fields".... *critical hit to the feels* (pardon the expression)... I was speechless for a long while after this one. Well done.

FloundericiousWA

A truly wonderful ending to a fantastic series of episodes. Y'all did a spectacular job with everything. Very much thanks and my deep appreciations.

Kathyrne

Please, no. WW2 has been subject of study countless times in series, movies, games, classes... we have a lot of world events that could benefit more from EH treatment.

Nibelung

That means. It was really well written to make you forget for a minute that this actually happened. Put into perspective like this it really does sound like some grand epic that could never happen.

noah

Fantastic job, thank you for producing such an excellent series. Great job representing some of the conflicting forces within all parties that led to the war. I know that this is the last ep but maybe sometime later you guys can look at the resulting activity in August leading up to the Battle on the Marne.

M Kotow

I give the heartiest applause I can muster. The series is coming along wonderfully and I eagerly await for the next series. Really hope more backers can come in so we can get even more history.

Andrew Conrad

That ending was legit heartbreaking. No other words for it. You really managed to convey the enormity of all those mini-tragedies collapsing against each other at once like that. The writing is just amazing in this series.

Andyeah

beautiful.

Luknai

That would be an interesting future topic, the events that led up to the second world war.

Chris Wolfe

A throughly engaging and educating series. It has been sombering to learn how many tiny details came together to spark this disaster. I do have a few details that I think would have been worth including: First, the actual distance between Potsdam and Berlin (about 25 km) and second, introducing Sazonov a bit earlier (prehaps in the first episode). Still, minor details, overall a GREAT job on this second series!

Christian Jensen

I found myself wishing that they would be able to stop the war, then I remembered that I already know they weren't.

Ruben Bañuelos

this is the first video ive ever watch that haves made me cry in a long time, great job and hope to see more your work

arthur D. gonzalez-martin

And here I was hoping for a look at how this war influenced the men of its sequel. Oh well, maybe next time...?

Michael Jebbett

The ending was really touching and well done. I hope the next topic is a touch happier.

Laura Galm

Thank you, gentlemen, this WWI series was great, simply great. I never FELT this tragedy like I did today. Thank you very much.

Frederico Lohmann Jr

You know whats crap about backing this series... I get to watch it early and then when it comes out I go "Yay!!!" and realise I've seen it before. :) Great episode, great series, great job.

Tom Murphy

Great series. A sad song. A fitting end to the series and a fitting start to one of the worst chapters in history. Brings tears to my eyes to listen to that song and see the pictures of such suffering.

Steven

I am not ashamed to say I cried. This is tragically beautiful and a great honor to those that were lost. Keep doing what you're doing EC team!

Kov

October 25th

Kanlink

I hope you do go back and do a historical figures piece about Otto von Bismarck. I've done a little extra reading, and he seems like an incredible man.

Adam Thomas

That was amazing... Here's hoping the next series starts soon.

John Madigan

Awesome, awesome series, and the last part literally left me in tears. It makes it all the more tragic when you know how many ways this war could have been stopped if things had only been a little different. Well done, folks.

Tammy Spiller

All I can really say is wow...the entire thing...so many pulls, so many emotions. Thank you EC crew so much for this!

Krishna Markwort

Jesus, hit like a truck why-don't-cha?! This series has been amazing, I'm so happy to have supported this, if only in a small way.

Scott Bruce

Thank you SO much for what you do.

Dan

I watched it... enough to make me feel like crying. Unbelievably great job from all of you! I picture that I'll be rewatching this series many times, and showing it to others. Today, I've been made to feel the seminal tragedy for all it's sadness. I'm well looking forward to the next series.

Mask

It truly is the kind of tragedy that you could see Shakespeare writing. Maybe someone should do that, writing the tale of this Seminal Tragedy in the style of Shakespeare. Would be interesting to see on stage. Great series, guys.

Hasan Mahmood

Wow, what an episode. The rythm at the end and the conclusion fits perfectly, great job. I'm glad ever since the beginning I contributated. You guys are awesome.

BriceB

It got really dusty in this room around 9:45...

Dave Hoyt

It's here! Nice cover image for the last episode. I feel oddly excited for it, even now just before watching it.

Mask