Lead Adventure Forum

Miniatures Adventure => Pulp => Topic started by: Doomhippie on 02 May 2008, 04:52:04 PM

Title: Pulp German
Post by: Doomhippie on 02 May 2008, 04:52:04 PM
I recently discovered that when playing pulp style games I tend to use the typical pulp German a lot (you know, wrong plural endings etc). Now being a native speaker of German trying to sound like an American speaking German that struck me as kind of odd (though it's just so much fun...).

I was wondering if any of the other Huns here experienced the same? Just being curious.
Title: Re: Pulp German
Post by: Westfalia Chris on 02 May 2008, 05:13:33 PM
Quote from: "Doomhippie"
I recently discovered that when playing pulp style games I tend to use the typical pulp German a lot (you know, wrong plural endings etc). Now being a native speaker of German trying to sound like an American speaking German that struck me as kind of odd (though it's just so much fun...).

I was wondering if any of the other Huns here experienced the same? Just being curious.


Vhy, yez ve do! All ze time, not only vhen playing ze Schundspiele! :lol:

It´z vhat zeparates us from ze GW crowd. Ve are verrückte Schweinhunden and not afraid to zhow it, jawoll!

:mrgreen:
Title: Pulp German
Post by: Ironworker on 02 May 2008, 05:27:07 PM
I've always said the only things I still have from my german classes is the ability to do a good and cheesy accent with a few German words thrown in.  

I've always wondered how you guys feel about being constantly cast as the villians in Pulp style games and stories.  One of these days I'd like to run a short either Victorian or WWI pulp adventure serial with German protaganist and the traditionally "good guy" British, French, and Americans as the antagonist.
Title: Pulp German
Post by: Driscoles on 02 May 2008, 05:27:15 PM
I think my english is flippin` brilliant !
I could probably outplay Donald Sutherland as Henry Faber !
 :lol:
Cheers
Björn
Title: Pulp German
Post by: Doomhippie on 02 May 2008, 05:46:22 PM
Quote from: "Ironworker"
I've always said the only things I still have from my german classes is the ability to do a good and cheesy accent with a few German words thrown in.  

I've always wondered how you guys feel about being constantly cast as the villians in Pulp style games and stories.  One of these days I'd like to run a short either Victorian or WWI pulp adventure serial with German protaganist and the traditionally "good guy" British, French, and Americans as the antagonist.



Well, I must admit as a kid I wasn't too happy about that. Later I convinced myself that this was some kind of showing grudgingly respect. Okay and now I just think it's hillarious. After all, it's a fantastic world where good guys always win, woman are always beautiful and having a hangover is another way of looking cool. And let's face it: the Nazis really have everything you could ever expect of an evil villain.
Title: Pulp German
Post by: PeteMurray on 02 May 2008, 06:13:33 PM
I think it's wonderful - I can't tell you how delightful I found Doomhippie's post. It means that a way of telling stories is somehow more compelling than hanging up on historical grudges and on the sins of our fathers. It's not that we've laughed these things away or that we're making light of what happened in history - everyone here knows the darkest history of war. Despite what happened sixty years ago, we recognize enough of the humanity in each other to be able to share these pulp tropes as shortcuts to ideas, as metaphors or symbols. We use them to move out of the blood of real history into worlds of heart-pounding action - the idealized war of propaganda. And we know it's not real! We know that this stuff isn't history! And we could easily be arguing shame and guilt and atrocity, but we aren't.

I suppose someone of delicate sensibilities would say that this is obscene, but it isn't. This sort of laughter heals in ways that cries for forgiveness between former enemies do not. Long Live Pulp.
Title: Re: Pulp German
Post by: Glitzer on 02 May 2008, 06:33:02 PM
Quote from: "Doomhippie"
I recently discovered that when playing pulp style games I tend to use the typical pulp German a lot (you know, wrong plural endings etc). Now being a native speaker of German trying to sound like an American speaking German that struck me as kind of odd (though it's just so much fun...).

I was wondering if any of the other Huns here experienced the same? Just being curious.


I never could speak pulp German, tried it a few times but always failed. On the other hand, ever since I had the pleasure of listening to an Austrain forrester speaking a (grammaticaly perfect but non the less) very accented English, I find myself faking his accent from time to time...

"Vor masölf, ahm nod ivn awähr wen id häpnss..."  :wink:
Title: Pulp German
Post by: Captain Blood on 02 May 2008, 09:23:23 PM
Well I think it's worth noting that in the past 10 years or so, in many Hollywood movies, the villain is now as often as not a Brit!

Mel Gibson has a lot to answer for!  :x

 :wink:
Title: Pulp German
Post by: twrchtrwyth on 02 May 2008, 09:29:04 PM
Not exactly on topic but a friend of mine told me about an interview he had seen with a German paratrooper who had been captured and sent to the North East of England as a prisoner. He met a girl there and never went home, and picked up a perfect Geordie accent. You'd never know he was German when he apparently, excepty for his occasional use of German words, "I was a Fallschirmjäger", for instance.
Title: Pulp German
Post by: Plynkes on 02 May 2008, 09:29:53 PM
Yeah, Brits are the new Nazis! We have hundreds of years experience of hitting people over the back of the head with a spade when they're not looking and stealing their country.


Someone was on another website the other day bitching about how the Yanks were the baddies in some movie or other they had seen (they found it inexplicable how Americans could ever be seen as baddies: I think it was some thing about a Russian sub, I forget). Now he knows how Brits and Germans (and Russians and anybody vaguely Islamic) feel. Suffer!
Title: Pulp German
Post by: Plynkes on 02 May 2008, 09:32:58 PM
Twrchtrwyth, that chap has been talked about here before. The "Geordie Fallschirmjäger" must have been on quite a few documentaries, as a few LAfers have seen him.

He was at Cassino, I seem to recall. It is odd to hear a German who has TOTALLY lost his German accent. It is very weird to hear him speak of being a German soldier in such a thick English accent.


There was a former German POW who lived in my village who never went home, too. It was relatively common.
Title: Pulp German
Post by: Hammers on 02 May 2008, 09:42:39 PM
Quote from: "PeteMurray"
I think it's wonderful - I can't tell you how delightful I found Doomhippie's post. It means that a way of telling stories is somehow more compelling than hanging up on historical grudges and on the sins of our fathers. It's not that we've laughed these things away or that we're making light of what happened in history - everyone here knows the darkest history of war. Despite what happened sixty years ago, we recognize enough of the humanity in each other to be able to share these pulp tropes as shortcuts to ideas, as metaphors or symbols. We use them to move out of the blood of real history into worlds of heart-pounding action - the idealized war of propaganda. And we know it's not real! We know that this stuff isn't history! And we could easily be arguing shame and guilt and atrocity, but we aren't.

I suppose someone of delicate sensibilities would say that this is obscene, but it isn't. This sort of laughter heals in ways that cries for forgiveness between former enemies do not. Long Live Pulp.


Well put and seconded.
Title: Pulp German
Post by: Ironworker on 02 May 2008, 11:22:58 PM
Quote from: "Plynkes"
Twrchtrwyth, that chap has been talked about here before. The "Geordie Fallschirmjäger" must have been on quite a few documentaries, as a few LAfers have seen him.

He was at Cassino, I seem to recall. It is odd to hear a German who has TOTALLY lost his German accent. It is very weird to hear him speak of being a German soldier in such a thick English accent.


There was a former German POW who lived in my village who never went home, too. It was relatively common.


I think I've seen that guy as well.  Can't remember exactly where but I remember some guy with a heavy english accent talking about serving with the german army.  It seemed really odd at the time.
Title: Pulp German
Post by: Darkoath on 03 May 2008, 03:44:51 AM
Quote from: "PeteMurray"
I think it's wonderful - I can't tell you how delightful I found Doomhippie's post. It means that a way of telling stories is somehow more compelling than hanging up on historical grudges and on the sins of our fathers. It's not that we've laughed these things away or that we're making light of what happened in history - everyone here knows the darkest history of war. Despite what happened sixty years ago, we recognize enough of the humanity in each other to be able to share these pulp tropes as shortcuts to ideas, as metaphors or symbols. We use them to move out of the blood of real history into worlds of heart-pounding action - the idealized war of propaganda. And we know it's not real! We know that this stuff isn't history! And we could easily be arguing shame and guilt and atrocity, but we aren't.

I suppose someone of delicate sensibilities would say that this is obscene, but it isn't. This sort of laughter heals in ways that cries for forgiveness between former enemies do not. Long Live Pulp.


PeteMurray you quite often surprise and move me with your words...
Title: Pulp German
Post by: Florin on 03 May 2008, 12:46:00 PM
well, i don't fall into "german"-english, when i triy to speak like an "evil" german, but i'm always tempted to use a kind of military-prussian accent (might be a result of me coming from bavaria), wich spoken by me sounds odd enough, be shure.

concerning the germans always beeing the bad guys in pulp settings, i really don't have a problem with that at all. it just doesn't feel offensive for me when whilhelmenian or nazi-guys are the villians in a story, because the germany i live in is not the one where the notorious bad guys are cast from. and in the end i don't identify myself enough with "my" country to be offended by stereotypes of it.
most time i find it great to make fun of people and times that weren't funny at all. and i always think, that there would not be anything for most really evil guys in history - especially the nazis - which they would hate more than being some stereotype/ funny or stupid figure in a game or story. these guys always wanted to be taken very serious...   8)
Title: Pulp German
Post by: KeyanSark on 03 May 2008, 12:52:56 PM
Quote from: "Darkoath"
PeteMurray you quite often surprise and move me with your words...


I completely agree in this.

Pete, regarding the German-as-villains thing, we spanish usually feel the same in Swashbuckling stories  :mrgreen:
Title: Pulp German
Post by: Florin on 03 May 2008, 01:40:18 PM
Quote from: "KeyanSark"


Pete, regarding the German-as-villains thing, we spanish usually feel the same in Swashbuckling stories  :mrgreen:


well, and just think about all the fbi/ cia "bad guys" you see in american movies. in the end, everybody gets his share of villains.
Title: Pulp German
Post by: meninobesta on 03 May 2008, 02:04:56 PM
ah! we Portuguese are never the bad guys... :)

we are always depicted as poor fishermen!  :?
Title: Pulp German
Post by: MadMö on 03 May 2008, 04:11:35 PM
Quote from: "Ironworker"

I've always wondered how you guys feel about being constantly cast as the villians in Pulp style games and stories.

Well, in my gamers club no one ever wants to play US-americans.
All that WWII games take place in Russia or in north africa because no one ever wants to be an US-american.
That´s the reason we never played a pacific scenario. Only japanese at the table.:lol:
Positive: As a german/villain you don`t need an excuse to bomb a village full of innocents or develop a doomsday weapon. :D  
Everyone is invited to make fun of the 1000 years reich. D*mn idiots.
Title: Pulp German
Post by: Plynkes on 03 May 2008, 05:12:08 PM
Quote from: "Florin"

well, and just think about all the fbi/ cia "bad guys" you see in american movies. in the end, everybody gets his share of villains.


That isn't quite the same, as the protagonists in such stories are usually American too. There are very few films where the Americans are cast wholly as the baddies (can't think of any that I've seen) in the way members of other nationalities get lumped together and cast as 'bad.'

It's totally understandable though, as most of the films in question are made by Americans and largely for Americans, too.
Title: Pulp German
Post by: Ironworker on 03 May 2008, 05:24:04 PM
Quote from: "Plynkes"

It's totally understandable though, as most of the films in question are made by Americans and largely for Americans, too.


That is changing though and I for one think it's pretty cool that it is.  There just isn't much comming out of Hollywood that is all that origional or interesting.  Pretty to look at sure but that only goes so far.  

American villians are pleanty common even government and military villians but your right the heros are usually still Americans.  I can't think of a single Viet Nam movie where some American isn't the main villian.
Title: Pulp German
Post by: Howard Whitehouse on 07 May 2008, 05:16:45 AM
We've gone two pages and several days into this thread without anyone saying, "Achtung! Schnell! For you ze var is over!"

Or, indeed, "Donner und Blitzen! Gott in Himmel!"

I just wanted to rectify that  :lol:

Carry on as before!
Title: Re: Pulp German
Post by: KeyanSark on 07 May 2008, 08:57:45 PM
Don't forget another classic: "Schnell, schnell!!!"  :D

Title: Re: Pulp German
Post by: Poliorketes on 07 May 2008, 09:04:54 PM
Anyone remember the uproar when the patriot hit the theatres? The british weren't used to be the villains, too! (Except in french films, but I guess that doesn't count)
Title: Re: Pulp German
Post by: Grimm on 07 May 2008, 09:59:05 PM
Ironworker says
I've always wondered how you guys feel about being constantly cast as the villians in Pulp style games and stories.

Hey I am happy with that !! wich one is cooler Darth Vader or Luke Skywalker ?

and what I have to say to the Topic is ``SCHÄFERUND" Pulp german is a must have !!

I love it

But the best Pulpy language is Indian/English for me

Grimm

Title: Re: Pulp German
Post by: Eisenfaust on 08 May 2008, 03:45:01 AM
Regarding the British being cast as villains, I have to say, all credit to Eddie Izzard, who depicts it beautifully, that "Star Wars" is the best example of this ever. The Death Star is chockablock full of British actors running around being Imperial, oppressing rebels, and being blown up, all with very stiff-upper-lip accents. Cool!
Title: Re: Pulp German
Post by: The Hooded Claw on 08 May 2008, 06:34:13 AM
I have to admit in the pilot adventure for my new pulp RPG game, I had a german mad doctor bent on world domination and his German led mercenary flunkies as the villain. The player characters got the mad doctor monologuing and I found myself slipping into quite the cheezy German accent for him.

I think part of the appeal of Germans as the baddies is they are just so badass. They are generally not protrayed as stupid villains, but a sort of classy, crafty, competant villain who is bested by only the best the world has to throw at him.

-Eli

Title: Re: Pulp German
Post by: KeyanSark on 08 May 2008, 08:20:54 AM
and what I have to say to the Topic is ``SCHÄFERUND" Pulp german is a must have !!

Someone should explain someday for we non-germans what does Schaferhund mean!  :D

Title: Re: Pulp German
Post by: P_Clapham on 08 May 2008, 08:53:19 AM
I've always said the only things I still have from my german classes is the ability to do a good and cheesy accent with a few German words thrown in. 

I've always wondered how you guys feel about being constantly cast as the villians in Pulp style games and stories.  One of these days I'd like to run a short either Victorian or WWI pulp adventure serial with German protaganist and the traditionally "good guy" British, French, and Americans as the antagonist.

Hawkmoon perhaps?  Where the world is threatened by the forces of Granbretan.  ;)
Title: Re: Pulp German
Post by: MadMö on 08 May 2008, 09:09:51 AM
and what I have to say to the Topic is ``SCHÄFERUND" Pulp german is a must have !!
Someone should explain someday for we non-germans what does Schaferhund mean!  :D

Well, Grimm is the leading miss-speller. ;)
Schäferhund: German shepherd dog.
World famous for whipping insolent allied POWs into shape lol
Title: Re: Pulp German
Post by: Poliorketes on 08 May 2008, 09:31:08 AM
Yeah, Hawkmoon is great! But they had german gods, too - Adulf next to chirchill.
Title: Re: Pulp German
Post by: Aaron on 08 May 2008, 01:41:11 PM
American villians are pleanty common even government and military villians but your right the heros are usually still Americans.  I can't think of a single Viet Nam movie where some American isn't the main villian.

The Green Berets starring John effing Wayne! It's a true apple pie movie where all of the Americans are brave honest types and the commies are shown for the evil scum they are. Plus it has Ensign Sulu as an ARVN officer!

It is a really dreadful movie though.

Title: Re: Pulp German
Post by: Poliorketes on 08 May 2008, 03:36:46 PM
American villians are pleanty common even government and military villians but your right the heros are usually still Americans.  I can't think of a single Viet Nam movie where some American isn't the main villian.

The Green Berets starring John effing Wayne! It's a true apple pie movie where all of the Americans are brave honest types and the commies are shown for the evil scum they are. Plus it has Ensign Sulu as an ARVN officer!

It is a really dreadful movie though.
[hum-mode]Fighting soldiers from the sky, fearless men, who jump and die...[/hum-mode] lol
Title: Re: Pulp German
Post by: Westfalia Chris on 08 May 2008, 05:53:28 PM
American villians are pleanty common even government and military villians but your right the heros are usually still Americans.  I can't think of a single Viet Nam movie where some American isn't the main villian.

The Green Berets starring John effing Wayne! It's a true apple pie movie where all of the Americans are brave honest types and the commies are shown for the evil scum they are. Plus it has Ensign Sulu as an ARVN officer!

It is a really dreadful movie though.
[hum-mode]Fighting soldiers from the sky, fearless men, who jump and die...[/hum-mode] lol

*continues hum-mode*
"men who mean-just what they say-the fighting men-of the Green Berets!"
*/hum mode*

I actually bought it for a mere five Euros when I started my Vietnam project (which is now on undetermined hiatus). For that, I got a flick which serves both purposes-my liberal-intellectual furor may engage in righteous embarassment (such as watching porn or an accident, it´s terrible but you cannot look away and you still wallow in the guilty pleasure) and is a totally trashy pulpy action flick.
Title: Re: Pulp German
Post by: Ironworker on 08 May 2008, 06:18:20 PM
American villians are pleanty common even government and military villians but your right the heros are usually still Americans.  I can't think of a single Viet Nam movie where some American isn't the main villian.

The Green Berets starring John effing Wayne! It's a true apple pie movie where all of the Americans are brave honest types and the commies are shown for the evil scum they are. Plus it has Ensign Sulu as an ARVN officer!

It is a really dreadful movie though.



Oh yeah I tend to forget that one.  The again I grew up with Platoon, Full Metal Jacket, Apocalyps Now, ect.......  Not exactly the type of film "The Duke" would have been in.  When I was growing up Viet Nam was the "bad" war.  Of course now I know we've never had a "good" war. 
Title: Re: Pulp German
Post by: Cory on 08 May 2008, 06:32:39 PM
Of course now I know we've never had a "good" war. 

The Pig War wasn't too bad.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pig_War
Title: Re: Pulp German
Post by: Aaron on 08 May 2008, 06:38:59 PM
Oh yeah I tend to forget that one.  The again I grew up with Platoon, Full Metal Jacket, Apocalyps Now, ect.......  Not exactly the type of film "The Duke" would have been in.  When I was growing up Viet Nam was the "bad" war.  Of course now I know we've never had a "good" war. 

I just assumed you had the good taste to never watch it.  lol

Title: Re: Pulp German
Post by: Will Bailie on 09 May 2008, 01:52:19 AM
I've always said the only things I still have from my german classes is the ability to do a good and cheesy accent with a few German words thrown in. 

I've always wondered how you guys feel about being constantly cast as the villians in Pulp style games and stories.  One of these days I'd like to run a short either Victorian or WWI pulp adventure serial with German protaganist and the traditionally "good guy" British, French, and Americans as the antagonist.

Hawkmoon perhaps?  Where the world is threatened by the forces of Granbretan.  ;)

I read a couple of novels by an Indian author, TN Murali, which were purported to be sequels to Kipling's "Kim".  In them, Kim carries on his job as a spy for the British, but ends up gradually being swayed toward the Indian independence movie.  I won't say that they were great literature, but they were entertaining, and certainly presented the British in a less than positive light.  The books were "The Imperial Agent" and "The Last Victory".  Not quite pulp, but set in the 1910s and 1920s.
http://www.amazon.com/Imperial-Agent-Timeri-Murari/dp/0450424030/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1210294222&sr=8-2
Title: Re: Pulp German
Post by: Aaron on 09 May 2008, 02:08:38 PM
I think Hopkirk mentions those in "Quest for Kim". I thought about tracking them down, but I don't think the Anglophile in me would enjoy them much. I am also leery of pastiches. As a Holmes fan I've read a lot and few seem to be up to the originals' standards.
Title: Re: Pulp German
Post by: Burgundavia on 09 May 2008, 08:32:44 PM
I read a couple of novels by an Indian author, TN Murali, which were purported to be sequels to Kipling's "Kim".  In them, Kim carries on his job as a spy for the British, but ends up gradually being swayed toward the Indian independence movie.  I won't say that they were great literature, but they were entertaining, and certainly presented the British in a less than positive light.  The books were "The Imperial Agent" and "The Last Victory".  Not quite pulp, but set in the 1910s and 1920s.
http://www.amazon.com/Imperial-Agent-Timeri-Murari/dp/0450424030/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1210294222&sr=8-2


Hmm, shiny. My gf happened to pick The Imperial Agent up the other day. Must have a read.
Title: Re: Pulp German
Post by: Captain Blood on 09 May 2008, 09:24:05 PM
I think the British as baddies thing started long before mel Gibson. I recall a quite good mini-series called Masada, about the Jewish revolt in 70 AD. All the heroic Jewish defenders were played by - yes, you guessed it - Americans. All the gnarly Roman centurions, scum of the earth Roman legionaries, and effete Roman Tribunes, were played by a wide assortment of British character actors...
Title: Re: Pulp German
Post by: Will Bailie on 10 May 2008, 04:42:47 AM


[/quote]

Hmm, shiny. My gf happened to pick The Imperial Agent up the other day. Must have a read.
[/quote]

Please don't mistake my suggestion to indicate that the book is great literature.  The main character may share a name with Kipling's Kim, but the story is definitely Murali's.  Still, I did find it interesting to read a colonial adventure story told from the point of view of the colonised, rather than the coloniser.