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ArbitorIan
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HOW DO YOU SOLVE A PROBLEM LIKE THE IMPERIUM? Taking 40k Lore back from the far-right. - Early Access Video

Right, batten down the hatches for when this one goes live! Any suggestions for a better title thoroughly encouraged (it's difficult when there are certain words you can't use!).

HOW DO YOU SOLVE A PROBLEM LIKE THE IMPERIUM? Taking 40k Lore back from the far-right. - Early Access Video

Comments

It always strikes me as crazy that the Imperium, this seemingly all-encompassing evil empire, *only* consists of one million worlds. Even optimistically saying that’s one million *star systems*, there are over 100 thousand million (I know, billion) star systems in the Milky Way galaxy. For every star the Imperium controls, there are 100,000 stars that it doesn’t. That’s a lot of Galaxy for other Galaxy-spanning evil (still no room for good) empires to exist. Fantastic and thought provoking video as always Ian!

Ashwin

Added my like to the pile!

Tomas Rawlings

This was a really good and important video. What I'd add to the conversation is that, imho, GW is exploring the idea of how we see Marines and the Impreium. If you have Warhammer TV, the episode In the Garden of Ghosts tells the story of the loss of a craftworld from the Eldar POV, and it is brutal on the Marines and the Impreium. The Marines are seen a evil and in contrast we see Eldar kids being separated from thier parents and the genocidal nature of the Imperium is clear. https://www.grimdarkmagazine.com/review-hammer-and-bolter-in-the-garden-of-ghosts/

Tomas Rawlings

IT'S LIVE! Hold on to your word filters, let the deluge of assholes commence!

ArbitorIan

I think you've hit the nail on the head here with the 'necessary evil' aspect of the lore and how the evolution of the Space Marine as the poster-boy of 40k sits very uncomfortably with the satirical roots which sit at the core of the IP and which remain much more prominent in things like Judge Dredd. I would say that I'm a little wary of how much the canon change you suggest would work towards believably making the Imperium seem like something other than the 'necessary evil' unless they really committed to making a formal, canon human secession (as opposed to a group of fiefdoms begrudgingly offering support to Terra or tiny rebel enclaves hanging on by their nails) - as you mention, it's been in the canon to have areas of the Imperium like that for a long time, and it hasn't stopped fascists taking the 'necessary evil' angle because ultimately any major threat to the Imperium has always tended to be dealt with by the more 'orthodox' factions. Were you to do a formal secession, it would certainly be interesting, but I'm not sure how you'd do that in a manner which didn't code the new faction(s) as being de facto heroic by not being the Imperium. That's not a problem per se, but it does break the 'everyone in 40k is wrong' approach a little bit. Ultimately, I suspect that there's not an 'easy solution' to this without GW fundamentally being willing to tear down their edifice of the Space Marine as heroic, and I don't see this changing any time soon for commercial reasons. The mixed messages have been entrenched for so long and given the breadth of the canon, it's very easy for people to pick and choose what they listen to. That being said, I'm very happy to be proved wrong, and I'm really happy that you made the video and keep making things like it!

IronConsul22

I love that you're addressing this. Thanks Ian!

Johannes Meyer

I have not read many of the books BUT it seems Guilliman has been pushed into working with the corrupt imperium. I think it would be fitting to see a split with a "good " human empire breaking away. I like to think there are good space marines and such.

MechMerc

Awesome content! Things like 'Allo 'Allo or Judge Dread comics just get lost or misunderstood without knowing the context of the joke, or seeing that it is a joke to begin with. I also think the awful people who want to coopt Game Workshop's content will pick and choose what they want. The far right that glorifies the the Imperium, also ignores what they don't like. For example The Dark Angles are a reference to a romantic poem about suppressed queerness under a repressive society. They don't mention that.

Adam Busbin

Suggested title , are there goodies or baddies? Taking 40k Lore back from the far-right. Yeah I know it is a parody of Mitchell and Webb but in some ways I havent had an original idea since 2006. Great video and suggestion that could potentially bring us away from some of the rather boring space marine books / narratives.

laurence m

Primaris Lieutenant Marius Poppins 👌

Gabriel Walton

I think you treaded that line perfectly, great video too, really like the concept and I would LOVE to see 10th ed. take some of the cues you presented

Sam

I don't want to even imagine the comments section on youtube for this one haha

Peter Hopkins

Thanks! I wasn't sure if it was TOO much, but since I can't say f*scism or n*azi in the actual title I had to cram a lot in there!

ArbitorIan

Wonderful work on the thumbnail 😂

Sam


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