Anguy the Archer - Is that scene even possible?

Below is a scene from Game of Thrones (season 3, episode 2) in which Anguy the Archer shows off a rather unusual archery skill.



In the scene Anguy shoots almost straight up, and it comes back down only mere feet away, nearly hitting Hot Pie who was smart enough to move out of the way.

Now after the recent controversy about the Ramsay archery scene in season 6 / episode 9 of Game of Thrones, some people were wondering if that scene was even possible to do and some calling Ramsay "the Greatest Archer in Westeros".

Except Ramsay isn't. Not even close. Anguy beats him easily.

That scene with Ramsay is indeed possible to do, as explained by the National Post article and the more details post by archery expert Charles Moffat.

Is that scene from Game of Thrones actually possible? - National Post

Ramsay's Archery Skills on Game of Thrones - Cardio Trek

Okay, so now that we know that it is indeed possible to do, what about Anguy's skills? He is literally the greatest archer in Westeros according to the books. And the above skill of being able to shoot nearly straight up and then intimidate the heck out of opponents is a very impressive one (and arguably impossible to do, as it may be theoretically possible, but would require perfect wind conditions as the arrow is going to great heights and the wind will be different at various elevations, which would effect the arrow's trajectory). So Anguy's archery skills are practically like that of a Jedi. But what else is Anguy able to do?

Well, with Arya back in Westeros now, perhaps we will see the return of Anguy in season 7.

In which case we can expect to see more amazing feats of archery from the real greatest archer in Westeros.

The Five Best Robin Hood Films Ever

There have been over a hundred different films about Robin Hood during the last century. Most of them were really horrible. But which ones are the best?

#1. The Adventures of Robin Hood, 1938

Okay so even though this film was made before World War II it is still relevant today. Prince John, Guy of Gisborne and the Sheriff of Nottingham are basically representations of oppressors, whether they been seen as Nazis or other sources of oppression.

The plot boils down to this: Prince John and his followers are Normans and control the land. Robin Hood and the common peasants are Saxons, and they're tired of being mistreated and robbed by their Norman overlords. The Normans are conquerors from a foreign land (Normandy) and thus can be seen to represent any kind of corrupt conqueror.

Thus the fundamental point of the 1938 film is the need for freedom from oppression, through any means necessary. By Norman standards, Robin Hood was a terrorist fighting against the government. By the Saxon standards, Robin Hood was a freedom fighter. Guess who won?

The 1938 film also lays down the ground work for future Robin Hood films. There were literally dozens of films during the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s about Robin Hood. The 1938 film kicked off an archery fad that lasted until the early 1970s. It isn't just a great Robin Hood film, it is a very influential Robin Hood film that continues to inspire today.

It also did wonders for Errol Flynn's career, skyrocketing him to being one of the most talked about celebrities in Hollywood.

From an archery stand point the 1938 film is also special because it features Howard Hill doing most of the archery shots in the film and fulfills a cameo role in the film. This furthered Howard Hill's career as a trick shot archer and set his name in the annals of archery legend.

#2. Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, 1991

This is the best Robin Hood film we've seen in the last 25 years. It is action packed, has romance, humour, a great sound track, good lead actors and stays true to the mythology of Robin Hood. Unlike the above film, the 1991 version starts off with the Crusades and ends with King Richard the Lionhearted returning from the Crusades, creating nice historical bookends.

Unlike most Robin Hood films which depict Robin Hood having a mustache, this American version has a clean shaven Robin Hood - with no attempts to imitate a British accent, as the film was made for the American audience and they wanted an actor that Americans could understand his accent easily. A British accent would have seemed fake (also in American films people with British accents usually play the villain), or a British actor would have seemed alien to American audiences. Thus American actor Kevin Costner, known for playing a variety of sports roles / action roles, was chosen because of his appeal to American audiences.

The plot of the film is solid, the acting is stellar, Kevin Costner is a convincing and emotional Robin Hood (and arguably better than Errol Flynn), and even the villain is awesome: Alan Rickman as the Sheriff of Nottingham, complete with an evil sounding British accent. Ignoring his accent, Rickman is by far the best Nottingham ever portrayed in a Robin Hood film.

#3. Robin Hood, 1973

This merry animated version of Robin Hood by Walt Disney Productions includes singing, humour, plays with Robin Hood's skills as a master of disguise and is ultimately a perfect introduction for children to the story of Robin Hood.

While there have been other attempts at animated versions of Robin Hood, none have come close to the 1973 version. None yet at least.

#4. Robin Hood, 1991

Starring Patrick Bergin and Uma Thurman this is a very good Robin Hood film, but it was dwarfed by the big budget Kevin Costner film which came out the same year. Definitely still worth watching however. The plot follows the classic Robin Hood story, and even includes Normans in it, but otherwise differs from the 1938 version when you compare the details. The overall plot is the classic Robin Hood story however.

#5. Robin Hood: Men in Tights, 1993

This humourous homage to the Robin Hood genre pokes fun at the history of Robin Hood films, both the 1991 films and other films in the genre. The film is a farce, and as such is both a Robin Hood film but also a mockery of them. Oddly enough, it still manages to make this list because it is an incredibly good farce. It is not appropriate for children however.

Below is an incomplete list of Robin Hood films. There are literally hundreds. These are just a few of the better ones. (If it is not on this list, it is not worth watching. Many of the films we are not listing are "TV movies" which never saw a theatrical release, or big budget films which were panned by critics for being a horrible version of the Robin Hood story.)

• Robin Hood (1912)
• Robin Hood (1922)
• The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938)
• Son of the Guardsman (1946)
• The Prince of Thieves (1948)
• The Story of Robin Hood and His Merrie Men (1952) [Disney's Live Action Version]
• The Men of Sherwood Forest (1954)
• Sword of Sherwood Forest (1960)
• A Challenge for Robin Hood (1967)
• The Scalawag Bunch (1971)
• Wolfshead: The Legend of Robin Hood (1973)
• Robin Hood (1973) [Disney's Animated Version]
• The Arrows of Robin Hood (1975)
• Robin and Marian (1976)
• Aaj Ka Robin Hood (1988)
• O Mistério de Robin Hood (1990)
• Robin Hood (1991)
• Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (1991)

Notice also that this means that there hasn't been a "good" Robin Hood film in 25 years. That is sad really.

Someone should make a film about "The Death of Robin Hood". Maybe make it a sequel to the 1991 film and get Kevin Costner back in the role.

Happy shooting!

Why can't artists learn how to draw archery equipment properly?

Look at the image below. Tell me what is wrong with the compound bow in the image.

Well, lots of things. Chief of which is that it has strings for the pulleys, but no actual bowstring. (Anyone who has a compound bow will know this.)

The "compound bow" also has lots of extra stuff on the limbs that have no business being there. Things that serve no purpose.

Oh and lest we forget, where is the arrow rest? There isn't one. If you zoom in you will see the handle doesn't have an arrow rest at all, and the handle is not where it would normally be on a compound bow.

And last but not least, there are cams for pulleys, but they are really tiny and circular - which means zero let off. This isn't even a compound bow if there is no let off. It is basically a shortbow designed to look like a compound bow.

Sights and stabilizers, those are no big deal. Those are optional anyway. But basically the above image is the result of an artist doing what they think is the way to draw a compound bow, without having taken a proper look at one and learning how it works.

But hey, this is pretty common for idiot artists to do. It doesn't seem to matter whether they are historical artists, fantasy artists or science fiction artists - only a rare few seems to know how to draw or paint a proper bow.

Take for example the "Egyptian" archer drawing on the right.

Based on the tips, it is obviously a recurve bow, but they have drawn the bowstring attached below the tips as opposed to attached to the actual tips.

And it is not alone...

People who don't know any better end up making photographs and movies based off this level of idiocy.

Like the photo below, wherein they attached a really long bowstring to a tiny recurve bow meant for a kid. Let alone they gave her a left hand draw recurve bow, yet she is pulling it incorrectly with her right hand. Sheer idiocy.

And then there is the Hunger Games. Lets have a quick look at Everything Wrong with Katniss Archery Form...

Oh and she is pulling to an anchor spot on her chin, which should only be done on an Olympic bow with a clicker because a chin anchor spot is less accurate than a mouth anchor spot. (Olympic archers only use chin anchor spots because they use a Clicker gadget for their draw length.)

So artists, photographers who don't know how string a bow properly, and idiot film makers who don't bother to properly train their actors.

So when was the last time a film properly trained their actors you might ask?

Sad to say it might be "Deliverance" starring Jon Voight and Burt Reynolds.

Or possibly Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves with Kevin Costner.

If there is any painters, photographers or people in the movie industry reading this, please do us all a favour and learn how to do archery properly before trying to imitate it. Otherwise we will just be making fun of your poorly made films, poorly drawn art pieces or idiotic photographs for all eternity - or as long as the internet still works.

And one more... It doesn't take a genius to figure out what is wrong with this image. Count how many mistakes you can see and post your answer in the comments.

Why do all the best archers have mustaches?

Look at the images below and pay close attention.

Howard Hill

Awa Kenzo

Robin Hood

Robin Hood (parody)

Howard Hill and Awa Kenzo are two of the best archers from the last century. Robin Hood on the other hand is a fictional character, who may or may not have been based off a Welsh Yeoman who actually existed and has been raised to legendary status.

It doesn't seem to matter who the archer is, if they are a great archer they often have a mustache - or at very least facial hair. Even the film versions of Robin Hood and other characters often have mustaches or facial hair.

With exceptions (most of them being women), not all great archers have facial hair. But it does make you wonder... does a mustache make you a better archer? Or is it just a cultural stereotype that great archers have mustaches?

Archery in Walt Disney's Robin Hood

The Heart of Robin Hood in Toronto at the Royal Alexandra Theatre

Mirvish Productions is showing "The Heart of Robin Hood" on stage at the Royal Alexandra Theatre (260 King Street West) from December 23, 2014 - March 1, 2015. Ticket are available for between $45 and $105.

Theatre shows of Robin Hood are common historically, but what is interesting about this particular production is that it places greater emphasis on the role of Maid Marian, casting her as a dashing hero rather than as a damsel in distress. What is usual for Robin Hood theatre productions is a lot of archery, swordplay, swashbuckling, the romance between Robin and Marian and even singing.

So singing, romance, action-packed violence? Sounds like a winning combination to me. I am already planning to take my significant other to see it.

Ygritte's Bow - Meare Heath Replica

Have you ever wondered what type of bow Ygritte is using during 4th season of "Game of Thrones"?

Well here is your answer.

It is a recurved replica of the Meare Heath flatbow found in a bog south of Wales, and is carbon dated circa 2690 BC.

So yeah. Roughly 4700 years ago someone lost their bow in a bog, the bog preserved most of the bow, and it was later discovered and then reconstructed by archaeologists.

Many different people have made their own replicas of the Meare Heath bow, using the original pieces of the bow and drawings made by people who have studied the bow to get an idea of how to design and build it. Below is a diagram showing the original shape of the bow.

The Meare Heath bow is one of the possible designs of the famed Welsh Bow (of which no surviving examples exist). The Welsh Bow was said to be extremely powerful, but since no examples exist we have to rely on samples of bows that might have been similar. Some people believe the Welsh Bow was more like an English longbow, others believe it was like the Meare Heath. Others believe it was cable backed. Nobody knows with absolute certainty because there aren't any Welsh Bows to study and any drawings, paintings or artwork of them look to be too stylized by the artist to tell what their precise shape was.

If you want to learn more about the Meare Heath bow I recommend reading "Ancient European Bows", a chapter in Volume 2 of The Traditional Bowyer's Bible.