REAPER'S GALE - Malazan Book 7 Spoiler Discussion ft. Philip Chase and Johanna 

Hellian conquering Letheras one tavern at a time is one of my favourite things ever written by Steven Erikson, absolutely amazing.

Toc: *exists* Tool: Look how they massacred my boy

Most haunting damn line I have read in years "The ocean does not dream of you." SE scares me sometimes.

Rhulad Sengar risking it all against Karsa Orlong just to see Trull again and ask for his forgiveness is so heartbreaking :(

I'm twenty pages from the end with a big goofy grin on my face, happy that all my favourite characters are safe and sound and will live on to the next book. And then WHAM. And now my copy of Reaper's Gale is at the bottom of the lake.

Thanks so much for being the best BookTube host, Jimmy! I love chatting about Malazan in general, but getting to do that with wonderful people is special.

"Did anyone else grieve for Taralacck Veed?" says Phillip with a straight face haha

I’m way late as I just finished Reapers Gale today but agree w/ so many of your alls points. One underrated scene/small plot line that I loved was Corabb getting roasted by the Malazans for how many weapons he’s carrying and then he trips rushing into the tavern and just gores like 4 Tiste Edur accidentally haha

A personal fav moment of mine in RG is the entire lucid absurdity following Nimander going in to stop Phaed. That entire ordeal perhaps wasn’t supposed to be funny, but the sheer intensity and confusion happening in that one room where passionate tic-tac-toes being had was peak comedy. Great discussion !

I finally watched this after finishing my re-read of Reaper's Gale. I really like how you steered the conversation to try and keep it in order of the chapters, as best you could. There is soooo much in this book to go over. Great job and great conversation!

What I really like about your discussions, a little more than some of the others, is that you bring up and highlight some of the parts that feel confusing or vague, and ask questions about them. I feel your format for going through the books is a little more structured and catches more of the plot points that also left me scratching my head. I also really like how many Malazan tubers you have been able to pull into these discussions, and a lot more in the chat. Although Allen wasn't in this one, I do like him included too because he is more vocal about things he doesn't like. It is fun to watch when people have different opinions about scenes, characters, plot lines, etc. Sometimes I will not like some character and then a comment from AP or Chase will change my perspective, but sometimes it doesn't too haha. Great channel. Good luck.

I just finished Reaper's Gale and the ending kind of destroyed me like when I thought it was already bad it just got worse . . . The Sengars could not catch a break man

I'm really glad I mustered the willpower to get up for this one. Totally worth the 2-hour gap in my sleep. Huge thanks for doing these streams, they're a great way to bring together the Malazan community and the live interaction adds a whole new level to the experience. Looking forward to Toll the Hounds!

Thank you so much for doing these streams jimmy, this is my favorite series of all time (along with dresden) and when I first read the series 3 years ago I read it alone and I had a ton of of questions and was so confused. I'm still confused now on alot but I can sort of talk through this series in the chat and relieve moments that I had forgotten about and it is really renewing my love for this series even though I never stopped. So thank you for doing this. And I really need to reread the main 10 and then read all the extended Malazan books soon. Because I have forgotten alot of the details besides the massive monents that happen but I want to finish liveships and prince of nothing, and start and read sun eater and the green bone saga. But once that is done I want to start my reread of malazan and mix in a book or two in between Malazan books so I can keep reading rote and other series. So once again thank you for these streams jimmy and to all of your guests throughout.

Just finished the book, slightly late for the party but ill watch it now. You guys are always great :D

What Helian did is know as a "Pub Crawl" in Australia. 😜

Super love these discussions! There is so much depth to mine from these books.

a wonderful discussion full of insight and understanding as always :) great work everyone!

Sad I missed this but I'll try and hit the rewatch. I will say the Awl plotline is awesome and the Patriotist one is not. 😃

Love these videos Jimmy. I just finished Reapers Gale today so looking forward to this chat. Thank you. Keep up the good work.

Hello, Mr. Nutts, great discussion as always. I never got a chance to comment on your Bonehunters discussion, so, in short: pretty mind blowing. They say to play the mid game of a chess match like a magician and that’s what Bonehunters felt like to me. And with the ending in mind, to see the complex board state suddenly transform completely into something else where the endgame is now in sight, just blew me away. Tavore and the Bonehunters just stealing the spotlight the way they did in Malaz City and going to forge their own destiny is the coolest thing ever. Only topped by their invasion of Letheras, that is! I get feeling slightly mixed about some aspects of Reapers Gale, as the narrative continues to uncompromisingly grow in scope; I was the same way. It’s all great stuff, but it’s just a lot to digest and you don’t know where it all fits. As people have already said, I’m sure, with full series context, further reflection, and potential rereads, it becomes a much more fulfilling narrative wholesale. For example, after reading Toll the Hounds and seeing how Daruhjiatan, the city itself, felt like the character of that book, I think of Letheras in RG the same way, and that whole story and how it was told works a lot better for me. That is all to say, despite that, the invasion of Letheras is so, so immensely cool, that it single handedly tips this book into being one of my favorites. I admittedly have not read much, and I’m sure there are other great ones out there, but the “two worlds colliding” feeling of the Bonehunters being in Letheras and interacting with the people there is the coolest thing in the world to me. I asked myself: “How did we end up here?” I find it so cool how the story and world has unfolded and evolved to the point where the story is nigh unrecognizable from where we were in Gardens of the Moon. Tavore becoming one of your favorites was interesting to hear. She certainly does garner intrigue, no? Her reputation precedes her by the time we formally meet her in HoC, and with my personal investment in Felisin, I was eager to get to know her. Her being kept at a distance made me even more intrigued. And after the devestating ending with a lack of resolution for them both, I was desperate. Over the course of Bonehunters my intrigue became a feverish fixation. Erikson’s metaphor of slinging clay from all sides onto an invisible rock to show its shape is a perfect metaphor for her characterization. There’s something there… but, what? You’re so close to finishing the series, it’s very exciting. Can’t wait to hear your. Thoughts and feelings on the ending.

This is good. This book is so sad I couldn’t man. All this really does server as a recap lol, I even end up feeling the frustration when I also can’t remember an answer to a question. And finally Bless Beak and Hellian

Toc the Younger is the best! The Eternal Chewing Toy of the Malazan Universe, but he just won’t stay down!

Yeah it was the female Jaghut from Midnight Tides (who originally froze the demon in the lake) that took out Hannan Mosag. The female Jaghut that Paran met got murderised by K'Chain (Naruk?) in Bonehunters. I didn't get who the two drunks are though?

I'm loving this chats, they make me want to reread

During Strryns perspective he is always worrying about himself and how he is going to be okay and come out on top. Then he ends up getting sucked into the worst out of Hood by Quick. A little justice for Trull

As soon as Trull told Seren that he was going to see Rhulad one last time, I started shouting at the book "You're going to get yourself killed you moron!". While Trull's death itself was sad, it also felt predictable and telegraphed to the point where, when it happened I was more "I told you so" than anything else.

Finished the episode and great stuff! I have wanted a discussion about Beak and whether the Malazans looked at him as Family? He called them friends and Sort recognized his value others were annoyed by him. that sacrifice and his barrow I guess is very much like Itkovian in that the imass didn't know this guy nor had they ever loved him or had a chance. In this case the Malazans had time and it seems Beak's sacrifice was also made out of his mis-understanding of social affairs. The whole 'deserving of salvation' idea i'm uncomfortable with. Also, is Seren Pedec pregnant from Trull and her's first time or was that old man Onrack or remember that Eres'al end of MT didn't she take Trull's seed?

39:45 Johanna's knowing smirk lolol

I've mentioned this elsewhere but everyone HATES the Errant for what he does here but as he says he is what he is. I won't say what I normally say because it's a big spoiler for TTH but there are things that happen in Kharkanas that had he not given his nudge none of the huge events playing out from here forward could have happened.

I also thought they were trying to get Udinnas to be the Sheild Anvil and Brys to be the Mortal Sword. Either way kinda of a useless point since Udinas turned Errant away and Bruthen called Brys to be summoned I guess we'll find out, but I guess first sword or something to Tehol's Empire? Ha!

omg Seargent Hellian's bar crawl invasion had me cackling

Redmask is the thin red line of the moral code in malazan... but it is hard to talk about spoiler free until after you read the other side of the line in tCG keep redmask and his fate in mind as you read about the che'malle's next attempt at finding a place in the modern world

Jimmy, also a big fan of MMA. Been hunting online to try and find the UFC fighter that had a malazan quote on his shorts. I’m guessing the quote is ‘witness’. Unable to find thus far except for the article in which Steven mentions that it has occurred. Anyway, great video! Reapers Gale is a book I like more and more in hindsight. Definitely had some epic moments for sure. Looking forward to the next video.

In regards to Phillip always plugging the additional Malazan books, the single greatest chapter I've ever read was in Forge of Darkness from the pov of a character named Kadaspala. It was absolutely breathtakingly poetic, profound, and beautiful.

I still disagree with Philip about Redmask being the stand-in for the White Savior trope. He might have Letherii parents, but he was most likely raised by the Awl. It is established quite early on that the Awl occasionally kidnapped letherii children. Oh, and about the Patriotists: Karos and Tanal Yathvanar are very much the Lavrentiy Beria of the Letherii empire. The quest for personal advancement, the sadism, the sexual violence are all there.

What's with all the negative comments about advocates in this novel? Was Erikson involved in litigation when he wrote it? Speaking as an advocate myself, I found it hilarious, but seemed a little pointed.

The Errant will suffer

I’m enjoying the series but I’m getting a little tired of SE writing characters that arrive “just barely too late”. It’s like a trope at this point. Just off the top of my head, Tayschrenn at the end of MoI, Lostara and Pearl at the end of HoC, Tool too late for Toc in RG, Quick Fiddler and Hedge too late for Trull in RG. Now I read knowing that if there’s a dicy situation, the character is always going to die because the help is always going to be too late.