Do you guys ever plan on doing horror books? If so you should 100% do the book series “Escape From Furnace” by Alexander Gordon Smith. It’s a great series
My two favorite literary quotes are from this book: "All human wisdom is contained in these two words - Wait and Hope" and "It's necessary to have wished for death in order to know how good it is to live." Best book ever.
That's the key to what makes this revenge story so effective, even when it is incredibly long. Because we have seen all his losses and pains, and the absolutely absurd lengths he goes to to repay anyone who ever showed him any kindness, when he finally says he has repaid his friends and now he will repay his foes, it creates a remarkable sense of dread - and THAT allows us to change to the perspective of those around him without losing focus, so we get to see his revenges from the outside as mysteries to solve.
God bless, Christ is Lord! Repent for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand! Accept the free gift of salvation from Christ! Christ died on the cross for “OUR” sins and rose from the tomb 3 days later! Being ressurected by God the Father! Repent NOW! For we do not know when Christ will come back. God bless you all.
Word of warning to those now interested in reading the original: the unabridged book is a real doorstopper. Oh, it's a _great_ read, just be aware that Dumas was fully milking his contract with the newspaper that paid him per word.
@@thesuccessfulone Well someone (namely Umberto Eco) pointed out some trinks that Dumas was using to produce more words, with lines which we could be easily spared if weren't for the money. Things like "suddenly he got up from the chair, and immediately let himself fall back on the chair where he was sitting". On which chair was he supposed to sit back?
One really important detail left out is that Villefort's main reason to frame Dantes was not for the notoriety of finding a conspirator (there was PLENTY of that to go around at this time), but it was to cover up that his own father was one of the Emporer's most trusted men. This would've basically barred him from holding ANY office in governmental affairs EVER. His action was not for gain, but for self preservation. He also deeply regrets it for the rest of his life. Not only that he did something selfish, but that he betrayed the justice of the law and the pleas of his love who begged him to be lenient on Dantes indirectly.
Exactly. Not only that, but the Count is later using that exact tendency of Villefort, to protect family members, to bring him down with another relative, that's such a good character and overall writing!
Villefort and MC are also great foils from the get-go. They embody a version of justice, corrupted by self-preservation for Villefort and revenge for MC. Villefort's fate is also absolutely horrible and you can't help but feel sorry for him in the end. Even MC is horrified.
1:48 Although that's part of his decision, it's not the real reason why Villefort, knowing Edmond is innocent, decides to imprison him in the Chateau d'If forever. (SPOILER ALERT) The letter that Edmond carried from the island of Elba (and the reason Danglars and Fernand accused him with their own anonymous letter, in the first place) was intended for one of Napoleon's strongest supporters back in Paris, who could help him return from exile and take back the throne. Now, Edmond doesn't know any of this, because he never even opened it, and trusted the sender when he said it was just a simple letter. But when the loyal monarchist Villefort reads it, he discovers that the bonapartist conspirator the letter was addressed to is HIS OWN FATHER. And so, in order to protect both his father's life, as well as his own career, he choses to imprison the only man who could have attested to his family's connection with the conspiracy.... And only then he thinks it might also benefit him if he acts as if he "uncovered" it beforehand. I get why E.C chose to summarize it, but the full explanation is waaaay more intense and fascinating.
Indeed! Villefort's sins are by far the most personally complicated, one reason why I think his segment of the revenge story is also so personally complicated (and goes off the rails in ways the others don't, what with all its moving parts). Compare Fernand, whose motives can be summed up with "envy," and Danglars, with "envy. Also cash."
I think the book is rather clear that Villefort and his father at no point really got along, and any family obligations weren’t a very significant motivator. His initial, primary motivation was really to protect himself and his career from how the letter reflected poorly on him. Then later, he leveraged it to his benefit and promotion. Protecting his father was a very distant subordinate benefit. Other small nit-picky issues with the summary (and it’s really to EC’s credit that in such a quick summary of a rather lengthy book that any errors are so few and minor): The Abbe Faria didn’t bury the treasure, he just deduced its existence and location. And there was really a fair bit more depth to Dantes’s crisis of conscience and ultimate decision to continue with his vengeance.
I feel extra credits got me into a lot of things: Making video games, history, mythology, and with Dan's own project, new frame plus, I found my favorite thing to do, animation. I guess I'll try reading something other than what I usually read!
I read it a few years ago, mainly reading/listening to (hard) sciencence-fiction, so it was not what I normally read, but gosh dang it was it good and fun! Really worth it!
The Count of Monte Cristo is one of the few classic books written when absolutely vast size was an essential selling point where that scale truly sells the story. It carefully sets up his good life, the intricacy of his downfall, the crushing slowness of your imprisonment, then goes to truly extraordinary lengths to reward everyone who ever showed him any kindness no matter how trivial - so when he finally says it's time to repay his enemies too, it sets up a remarkable sense of dread that hangs over the rest of the book.
...and that only covers the first two thirds! Then, as the revenge gets really brutal...a character from the past demonstrates that Monte Cristo has become the very villains he seeks to destroy. At which point he begins the process of attempting to move on and not pursue the full depths of the vengeance he has planned. Its an astonishing story, and the best work of fiction I've ever experienced.
Gankutsuou: The Count of Monte Cristo is an anime series based on this book, though it's from the point of view of Albert de Morcerf. It's also set in the non-specific space future, the Count is a space vampire, and there are mecha duels, and it has a pretty awesome aesthetic. it's worth watching is my point.
It's also quite possibly one of the best adaptations of the book as it keeps just about every sub plot, most of which get discarded in films or even miniseries. There's only a few notable changes, such as making the relationship between Albert, Euginie and Franz and parallel of that between a younger Edmond, Mercedes and Mondego. ...also I like what happens to Haydee more than the book's ending.
My boyfriend wanted me to watch a series called “Revenge”, he told me the basics of the plot and I told him it sounded suspiciously like Count of MonteCristo. He was shocked at all the “similarities”. The nail on the coffin was when I asked if at the end of the series the main character sailed to the horizon with the love interest… She does…
@@dougearnest7590 logical error on your part. Dumas' books might seem cliche but ony because he was the one who created this cliche in the first place. All the others took from his creations so that's why you might feel like you know what's going to happen next. But that's only because of his major influence on the culture
"The count of Monte Cristo by Alexander dumbass. Dumbass?" "It's Dumas. Put it in fiction. I think you'll like it. It's about a prison break" "Then shouldn't it be in education?" -shawshank redemption. TCOMC is one of my all time favourite classics. I read it almost a decade ago back in middle school of all places. And still enjoyed. Been meaning to get into the full detailed version. Time to put it on my TBR
My personal favourite revenge story is the one where a man explains how he once tried using vegetable shortening to make a pastry dough, which he then rolled out and packed full of fresh herbs. I believe it was The Account of Minty Crisco.
My personal favorite revenge story is the one where a man explains how he once took a ham and cheese sandwich, dipped it in eggs and batter, and then fried it.
@@tommenno And Haydee was "Lady Not Appearing In This Film." Which sucks... but at least she showed up in the sci-fi anime adaptation, "Gankotsuou..." where The Count is the Dracula-esque villain of the piece and our POV character is Mercedes' teenage son Albert.
@@thetribunaloftheimaginatio5247 the monte cristo movie: not nearly as good as the Penguin Classic Buss translation, but still better then the barnes and noble classics translation, which cut out like a good third of the plot.
As a matter of fact, I have read The Count of Monte Cristo. Read the unabridged version back in high school - not for class, but because I wanted to. Totally worth it. Also read the unabridged Les Miserables in high school. While also totally worth it, I don't think I will ever do so again.
Anyone who has read all 2500 pages of Les Mis including the numerous diatribes and essays (on such highly captivating subjects such as the philosophy of the Paris sewer system...) deserves a gold medal in my eyes.
I still do it from time to time, I just start it from random places to the end (it comes in 5 volumes in my country). Also, some times I skip the awesome but unnecessary stuff and focus on story, other times I revisit some specific story arc. And no, no gold medal needed. I simply like to read for a couple of hours before going to sleep and I ran out of good reading material looong time ago :p
I read Finegans Wake in High School as a personal challenge. Then I burned It. The dark souls of literature. The times I trew that book away... its a convoluted riddle.
Mild spoiler. Every adaptation of this story I've seen gets one huge thing wrong: they have Edmond get back together with Mercedes at the end. Edmond and Mercedes can't fall in love again. They've grown into far different people over the two decades plus that they were apart. The original story recognized that, and I wish Hollywood would too.
@@SinStar87 Unless I read something wrong, it doesn't end with forgiveness. He has successfully ruined the lives of people who ruined his. It ends in vengeance. Although, the Count does feel like he might have gotten overboard with things, he seems to be at ease after visiting the fort where he was held captive. It's a reaffirmation that his revenge was justified.
What a wonderful new series to start! Guess the Batman reference is spot on. He had a lot of influences though, The count of Monte Cristo, the Scarlet Pimpernel, Spring-heeled Jack, The Bat which I think was an old black and white movie from the early days of cinema, and Zorro. (You know what might make a good book for this month? Sleepy Hollow!)
The Bat was a 1926 silent film. The similarities between the Bat and Batman are very strong. They both use a Bat signal light except the Bat is a serial killer while Batman is a crime fighter
Oh lord. Hayée, Caderousse, Benedetto, Nortier & Valentine, Franz, The Morrell family, and Lord Wilmore. This video left out so many great characters. And Héloïse.
Same here. I was taking myself thinking "wait that's not why Villefort sends him to prison". "Wait that's not the story behind the treasure" But this video is just to make people read the book, so they can't get everything into 10 minutes
"A good story has many readings"... true indeed. for me the resolution of the book was Dantes´s forgiveness to Mercedes and to himself as he begin a new life with Haydée (Which you didn´t mention XD)
This is what I have always been saying!!!!!! books needs trailers, I mean how am I to know if a book is worth the time if it usually takes a hundred pages to find out. THIS IS BRILLIANT
Count of Monte Cristo is my favourite classical book. I loved it so much more than I thought I would, inspired to read it by some songs I heard from a musical version. It truly is an epic, with so many winding conspiracies and characters, to the point I had to occasionally check the flowchart on Wikipedia to remember who everyone was. It's honestly half the problem with any adaptation of it. There's no way a film, musical or possibly even a TV show could capture all the intricate connection and elements. Something would have to get cut. But Edmund Dantes is a classical hero for the ages, and a warning tale of the dangers of revenge.
i like the fact he's hooking up with the girl at a coffee shop by speaking about literature to her. It's just as I used to do when I had more free time and less wives (0 is less than 1)
I’m curious if this series would work better as an introduction to a book and it’s context, rather then a full plot summary? Watched the first half since I’m currently halfway through the count of monte cristo but since this series is designed for those who haven’t read it, it’s effectively a plot summary so you don’t have to read it. Regardless, really liked this episode and looking forward to future episodes!
The summary here is really high level...and doesn't cover significant portions of the book. For example, Dantes revenge is against 5 people, not three...
You completely glossed over the fact that he even got his revenge on Mercedes... leaving her a pennyless destitute widow. And her son joined the army in a time of turmoil. But the most beautiful part is him helping his old master...."...it was Edmon Dantes!!"
her destitution was more of a side effect of the count’s revenge on mondengo. he gave her the house and offered her money at the end as a gesture of mutual peace between them.
The first episode and you've picked one of like 3 classics that I've read voluntarily, and the only one I genuinely love. (20 000 Leagues Under the Sea and Three Musketeers are both pretty good, but Count of Monte Cristo is *superb*)
If you liked 20000 Leagues Under the Sea, have you read the Robur novels? Robur the Conqueror or The Clipper of the Clouds and the sequel Master of the World? I can also recommend the anime Nadia: The Secret of Blue Water. You may want to skip the filler arc though.
Other classic novels I can recommend are Treasure Island, The Picture of Dorian Gray, A Tale of Two Cities, Dracula, Brave New World, The Time Machine, Les Miserables, and War and Peace. (I know the last 2 are very thicc, but they're totally worth the effort.) If you're interested in reading the *really* old stuff, The Metamorphoses by Ovid is a good place to start. The Iliad and Odyssey (Homer), Aesop's Fables, Antigone (Sophocles), The Histories (Herodotus), A True Story (Lucian of Samosata) and If Not, Winter (Sappho) are very readable as well.
@@kaltaron1284speaking of anine heavily inspired by Jules Verne, one that is a lot less known but a childhood favorite of mine and honestly pretty good is "the secret of the cerulean sand"
Hiiiiîiiiiiiiiiiii My prefered book as a teenager. I think I read it 50-60 times (even found a booklet version from the 1920s) and it got me to read around 60 % of Dumas' production, including things like " boule de neige" ( not edited anymore, not sure it has even been translated)... sure, it was a short version, but good to see it featured in Extra credits Love you team ❤ 💙
Ah I like Dumat. When once commeted on his mixed ancestry his dry reply was: "yes my father is a negro and my grandfather was an ape. You see my family tree begins, were yours is ending."
Ok, Extra Credits has now officially completed it's transformation into a high production value version of Overly Sarcastic Productions. And that's a good thing. I love both channels and their History, Myth and Literature content!
Yeah but EC isn't written by someone with a college degree in ancient literature ;) Hold on, is it an English, Literature, or ancient Literature degree? I'm suddenly not sure.
" In reality, when you have once devoted your life to your enterprises, you are no longer the equal of other men, or, rather, other men are no longer your equals, and whosoever has taken this resolution, feels his strength and resources doubled." - Alexandre Dumas Le comte de Monte-Cristo (The Count of Monte Cristo)
I am literally reading this for the first time, and I love it!! I was super hesitant since it is old, but definitely has been worth every second. Good start to this series!!
Aw heck yeah! First History, then Sci-Fi, theb Mythology, and now LITERATURE!! I'm looking forward to the Filipino Revolutionary Masterpieces Noli Me Tangere and it's sequel El Filibusterismo, and Maurice Leblanc's The Gentleman Thief in this series! Thank you for continually spreading the passion and love for worlds between covers aka LITERATURE!
The context of telling these things in a cafe, the format and pacing, the addition of yet another art-style to differentiate the series... I love it all! ^0^
Mann i remember when i used to think this book and story were the greatest of all time, i thought the characters are so well written, the plot so good.. i had an obession with revenge during middle school, thankfully i have learned better ways to cope since then.. still i'm so grateful that one of my favourite channels covered something that meant so much for me for so long, good job on this episode and keep up with the good work!
2:29 actually the treasure was the inheritance of the Caesar family long ago and Faria just happened to be someone close to the last remaining heir of that family, who had clues about where the treasure was
...first episode and you cover a story that got me through years of trauma, the after effects of abuse, and being completely taken advantage of by someone I trusted. Nice. This story is so damn good and recommend it.
School gave me this book to read it for a homework. We worked in groups and I was the only one who did my part not by reading, but by watching the Simpsons version of the book. And yes, I passed that homeworked.
Not even a mention of one of my favorite characters, Nortier. Dude is entirely paralyzed except for his eyes, yet he still plays a crucial role in the Villefort plotline.
Uhh...wasn't Villefort's motivation for turning over Edmund not so much "I need a raise" and more him finding out his own father (a Bonaparte supporter) was involved in the true plot, so he turned in the innocent Edmund to avoid bringing shame from the Crown on his family name? It's been some years since I've read it, but that seems more correct.
I'm so excited about this series! Also, I'm impressed by how well you guys condensed the book, and appreciative that you referenced the insane level of complexity it has. If someone who hasn't read the book is reading this, a good example is a chapter where we read an in depth backstory of a character who only exists in the backstory of another relatively minor character. It makes the book really immersive
One of my favorite stories makes for a good first episode of this series. Also, the loosely-based anime is pretty special. Definitely an anime essential.
I dont know how much I like this series... this feels less like a story or a write up on a thesis like extra history and the video game studf and more like a wikipedia page
You don't even mention my favourite character, Danglars's daughter Eugenie! But I don't blame you, there is so much to the story that you couldn't possibly cover it all.
One of the few changes in the movie I thought was better was villefort’s motive being more than him just hunting for a promotion instead Edmund actually had what he believed to be a personal letter from Napoleon to a friend of his (actually a list of British patrols to one of his supporters) and Edmond is almost let go being called a naive fool before he named the man the letter was meant for villefort father leading to his imprisonment to keep the secret and protect villefort’s career
But in the book Villefort is not doing it for promotion but to protect his father because letter from Bonaparte was to his father and himself. Before Villefort readed letter his intend to let go Edmund as he promised to his fiance, the letter changed everything.
This was so great! I really like the premise, just hanging out in a coffee house and talking over literature. I also liked learning about the author too, never knew it was a person of color. I'm looking forward to the episode of this series!
Awesome that you are back at the books! Though I was hoping this would be a bit more like Extra Sci-fi, with a bit more focus on context and influence, and a bit less focus on straight summary. After I finished this I actually felt less inclined to read the book, as I pretty much know all the major story beats now. In contrast most Extra Sci-fi episodes left me wanting to know more, because you gave me an understanding of why the book was important and worth a read, rather than just an understanding of what happened in it.
I read The Count of Monte Cristo a few months ago. When my AP Human Geography teacher saw that I was reading it, we watched the movie in class. He is a very chill teacher. 1:47 I believe it was also because Edmond had a letter incriminating the prosecutor's father.
It is fantastic to see this become a series. I would like to know if you have a schedule in mind for the release of more episodes. As alway the art is charming. I’m really looking forward to seeing how this series evolves over time. Great job on the first episode.
Use code EXTRACREDITS14 for up to 14 FREE MEALS across your first 5 HelloFresh boxes plus free shipping at bit.ly/3wbnmH1 !
Will you please cover tarrare for Extra History?
But I don't waaaaannnnaaaaa
Yummy I love hello fresh
I did read it actually, it was a get hype book for Assassin's Creed Unity
Do you guys ever plan on doing horror books? If so you should 100% do the book series “Escape From Furnace” by Alexander Gordon Smith. It’s a great series
My two favorite literary quotes are from this book: "All human wisdom is contained in these two words - Wait and Hope" and "It's necessary to have wished for death in order to know how good it is to live." Best book ever.
Such an amazing book!
I used the first quote on my wedding vows
That 2nd one hits hard for those who know.
Although I hate how long it took him to describe the houses of each family
"But I do not believe in god"
"It matters not, he believes in you"
IIRC, before Monte Cristo/Dantes sets out on revenge, he makes a point of repaying the few people who previously showed him kindness.
Indeed. To the point of making apparent miracles happen.
That's the key to what makes this revenge story so effective, even when it is incredibly long. Because we have seen all his losses and pains, and the absolutely absurd lengths he goes to to repay anyone who ever showed him any kindness, when he finally says he has repaid his friends and now he will repay his foes, it creates a remarkable sense of dread - and THAT allows us to change to the perspective of those around him without losing focus, so we get to see his revenges from the outside as mysteries to solve.
Also, he started seeing himself as a godlike figure...
God bless, Christ is Lord! Repent for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand! Accept the free gift of salvation from Christ! Christ died on the cross for “OUR” sins and rose from the tomb 3 days later! Being ressurected by God the Father! Repent NOW! For we do not know when Christ will come back. God bless you all.
@@7hilty HAIL SATAN
Word of warning to those now interested in reading the original: the unabridged book is a real doorstopper. Oh, it's a _great_ read, just be aware that Dumas was fully milking his contract with the newspaper that paid him per word.
Providence
@@thesuccessfulone Well someone (namely Umberto Eco) pointed out some trinks that Dumas was using to produce more words, with lines which we could be easily spared if weren't for the money. Things like "suddenly he got up from the chair, and immediately let himself fall back on the chair where he was sitting". On which chair was he supposed to sit back?
gotta love those 1800s printers thinking they were screwing the writers. without them we wouldn't have had dickens either
+
I was interested in reading the book and bought the unabridged version, been reading it for two months strong now 😂
One really important detail left out is that Villefort's main reason to frame Dantes was not for the notoriety of finding a conspirator (there was PLENTY of that to go around at this time), but it was to cover up that his own father was one of the Emporer's most trusted men. This would've basically barred him from holding ANY office in governmental affairs EVER.
His action was not for gain, but for self preservation. He also deeply regrets it for the rest of his life. Not only that he did something selfish, but that he betrayed the justice of the law and the pleas of his love who begged him to be lenient on Dantes indirectly.
And monsieur Noirtier is a badass grandpa anybody wished they had in their life!
Based Noirtier.
@@PobortzaPl Noirtier is easily my favourite character in the book.
Exactly. Not only that, but the Count is later using that exact tendency of Villefort, to protect family members, to bring him down with another relative, that's such a good character and overall writing!
Villefort and MC are also great foils from the get-go. They embody a version of justice, corrupted by self-preservation for Villefort and revenge for MC. Villefort's fate is also absolutely horrible and you can't help but feel sorry for him in the end. Even MC is horrified.
1:48 Although that's part of his decision, it's not the real reason why Villefort, knowing Edmond is innocent, decides to imprison him in the Chateau d'If forever.
(SPOILER ALERT)
The letter that Edmond carried from the island of Elba (and the reason Danglars and Fernand accused him with their own anonymous letter, in the first place) was intended for one of Napoleon's strongest supporters back in Paris, who could help him return from exile and take back the throne.
Now, Edmond doesn't know any of this, because he never even opened it, and trusted the sender when he said it was just a simple letter. But when the loyal monarchist Villefort reads it, he discovers that the bonapartist conspirator the letter was addressed to is HIS OWN FATHER. And so, in order to protect both his father's life, as well as his own career, he choses to imprison the only man who could have attested to his family's connection with the conspiracy.... And only then he thinks it might also benefit him if he acts as if he "uncovered" it beforehand.
I get why E.C chose to summarize it, but the full explanation is waaaay more intense and fascinating.
Indeed! Villefort's sins are by far the most personally complicated, one reason why I think his segment of the revenge story is also so personally complicated (and goes off the rails in ways the others don't, what with all its moving parts). Compare Fernand, whose motives can be summed up with "envy," and Danglars, with "envy. Also cash."
I think the book is rather clear that Villefort and his father at no point really got along, and any family obligations weren’t a very significant motivator. His initial, primary motivation was really to protect himself and his career from how the letter reflected poorly on him. Then later, he leveraged it to his benefit and promotion. Protecting his father was a very distant subordinate benefit.
Other small nit-picky issues with the summary (and it’s really to EC’s credit that in such a quick summary of a rather lengthy book that any errors are so few and minor): The Abbe Faria didn’t bury the treasure, he just deduced its existence and location. And there was really a fair bit more depth to Dantes’s crisis of conscience and ultimate decision to continue with his vengeance.
To quote Edmond from the 2002 film adaptation, "Villefort wasn't protecting his father. He was protecting himself!"
Dante’s was illiterate so he had no way of knowing what the letter said even if he had opened it
@@hkfifty871 But Villefort had almost released Edmond but then he read Noirtier's name and changed his decision.
I feel extra credits got me into a lot of things: Making video games, history, mythology, and with Dan's own project, new frame plus, I found my favorite thing to do, animation. I guess I'll try reading something other than what I usually read!
Agree.
Personally im waiting they review foundation books or tolkien
I read it a few years ago, mainly reading/listening to (hard) sciencence-fiction, so it was not what I normally read, but gosh dang it was it good and fun! Really worth it!
@@sanhcman666 they did fondation 3 yrs ago
Yes! I've been away from reading for some time now, in part because it is hard to find books I'll enjoy, I hope this series help me out with that!
Dan's the dude behind new frame plus??
The Count of Monte Cristo is one of the few classic books written when absolutely vast size was an essential selling point where that scale truly sells the story. It carefully sets up his good life, the intricacy of his downfall, the crushing slowness of your imprisonment, then goes to truly extraordinary lengths to reward everyone who ever showed him any kindness no matter how trivial - so when he finally says it's time to repay his enemies too, it sets up a remarkable sense of dread that hangs over the rest of the book.
...and that only covers the first two thirds!
Then, as the revenge gets really brutal...a character from the past demonstrates that Monte Cristo has become the very villains he seeks to destroy. At which point he begins the process of attempting to move on and not pursue the full depths of the vengeance he has planned.
Its an astonishing story, and the best work of fiction I've ever experienced.
“Bang bang! WHERE’S MY RAISE?” best sentence EVER
Gankutsuou: The Count of Monte Cristo is an anime series based on this book, though it's from the point of view of Albert de Morcerf. It's also set in the non-specific space future, the Count is a space vampire, and there are mecha duels, and it has a pretty awesome aesthetic.
it's worth watching is my point.
Where can I watch this? Legally of course.
@@Toonrick12 Funimation
@@muthias4582 Thanks mate.
@@Toonrick12 Crunchyroll
It's also quite possibly one of the best adaptations of the book as it keeps just about every sub plot, most of which get discarded in films or even miniseries.
There's only a few notable changes, such as making the relationship between Albert, Euginie and Franz and parallel of that between a younger Edmond, Mercedes and Mondego.
...also I like what happens to Haydee more than the book's ending.
My boyfriend wanted me to watch a series called “Revenge”, he told me the basics of the plot and I told him it sounded suspiciously like Count of MonteCristo.
He was shocked at all the “similarities”. The nail on the coffin was when I asked if at the end of the series the main character sailed to the horizon with the love interest…
She does…
There's nothing new under the sun.
I've tried reading Dumas, but all this stories seem so cliched and overdone.
@@dougearnest7590 logical error on your part. Dumas' books might seem cliche but ony because he was the one who created this cliche in the first place. All the others took from his creations so that's why you might feel like you know what's going to happen next. But that's only because of his major influence on the culture
Revenge is actually inspired by the count of monte cristo !
"The count of Monte Cristo by Alexander dumbass. Dumbass?"
"It's Dumas. Put it in fiction. I think you'll like it. It's about a prison break"
"Then shouldn't it be in education?"
-shawshank redemption.
TCOMC is one of my all time favourite classics. I read it almost a decade ago back in middle school of all places. And still enjoyed. Been meaning to get into the full detailed version. Time to put it on my TBR
Thank you for reminding me of that one A&W commercial from years ago.
“Am I your man, Mr. Dumbass?”
“The name is, Dumas.”
[Mr. Dumas]
That moment when you realize Batman is just Count of Monte Christo fanfic :D
My personal favourite revenge story is the one where a man explains how he once tried using vegetable shortening to make a pastry dough, which he then rolled out and packed full of fresh herbs.
I believe it was The Account of Minty Crisco.
😂😂😂😂
Yes.
YOU...
My personal favorite revenge story is the one where a man explains how he once took a ham and cheese sandwich, dipped it in eggs and batter, and then fried it.
Oh my god hahaha
"We learn our lessons; we get hurt; we want revenge. Then we realize that actually, happiness and forgiving people is the best revenge" - Captain Hook
Which version of Hook said this?
@@timothycarney9652 pretty sure thats a quote from madonna
@@joshuamanlapaz9380 madonna?
@@somebody9 the singer madonna. Y'know, made the song 'like a virgin'
@@joshuamanlapaz9380 oh gotcha. Thought so, but wanted to check
"What happened to your mercy?"
"...I'm a count. Not a saint."
...Don't look at me like that. The 2002 film-version was awesome.
The only thing that bothered me about the movie was they basically let Mercedes off the hook, but I get it.
"Remember the treasure I told you of"
"The one you said you didn't know about"
"Yes. I lied. I'm a Priest not a saint"😂😂
@@tommenno And Haydee was "Lady Not Appearing In This Film." Which sucks... but at least she showed up in the sci-fi anime adaptation, "Gankotsuou..." where The Count is the Dracula-esque villain of the piece and our POV character is Mercedes' teenage son Albert.
@@thetribunaloftheimaginatio5247 the monte cristo movie: not nearly as good as the Penguin Classic Buss translation, but still better then the barnes and noble classics translation, which cut out like a good third of the plot.
@@tommenno At least the movie had Guy Pierce, Luiz Guzman and the late, great Sir Richard Harris.
As a matter of fact, I have read The Count of Monte Cristo. Read the unabridged version back in high school - not for class, but because I wanted to.
Totally worth it.
Also read the unabridged Les Miserables in high school. While also totally worth it, I don't think I will ever do so again.
Anyone who has read all 2500 pages of Les Mis including the numerous diatribes and essays (on such highly captivating subjects such as the philosophy of the Paris sewer system...) deserves a gold medal in my eyes.
I still do it from time to time, I just start it from random places to the end (it comes in 5 volumes in my country). Also, some times I skip the awesome but unnecessary stuff and focus on story, other times I revisit some specific story arc.
And no, no gold medal needed. I simply like to read for a couple of hours before going to sleep and I ran out of good reading material looong time ago :p
Unabridged is the only real way to go every time.
I have not read it, sounds like a good read though
I read Finegans Wake in High School as a personal challenge. Then I burned It. The dark souls of literature. The times I trew that book away... its a convoluted riddle.
Never forget the famous line of Edmond Dantes that saved him from falling into despair and insanity:
"Attendre et espérer" or "Wait and Hope."
Mild spoiler.
Every adaptation of this story I've seen gets one huge thing wrong: they have Edmond get back together with Mercedes at the end.
Edmond and Mercedes can't fall in love again. They've grown into far different people over the two decades plus that they were apart. The original story recognized that, and I wish Hollywood would too.
Exactly, his new relationship at the end of the book is where the count's actual happy ending comes from.
eh I like the 2002 ending, gave her agency in the story rather than just a trophy for Mondego.
That would be horrendous! Glad I haven't seen the movies lol
@@easternhills1329 I mean, fits alot better with the weird shift to forgiveness the book ends with.
@@SinStar87 Unless I read something wrong, it doesn't end with forgiveness. He has successfully ruined the lives of people who ruined his. It ends in vengeance. Although, the Count does feel like he might have gotten overboard with things, he seems to be at ease after visiting the fort where he was held captive. It's a reaffirmation that his revenge was justified.
What a wonderful new series to start! Guess the Batman reference is spot on. He had a lot of influences though, The count of Monte Cristo, the Scarlet Pimpernel, Spring-heeled Jack, The Bat which I think was an old black and white movie from the early days of cinema, and Zorro. (You know what might make a good book for this month? Sleepy Hollow!)
Count of monte cristo is more like Bane than Batman.
The Bat was a 1926 silent film. The similarities between the Bat and Batman are very strong. They both use a Bat signal light except the Bat is a serial killer while Batman is a crime fighter
Oh lord. Hayée, Caderousse, Benedetto, Nortier & Valentine, Franz, The Morrell family, and Lord Wilmore. This video left out so many great characters. And Héloïse.
This book is so good. I’ve read it countless times. Would recommend
Same here. I was taking myself thinking "wait that's not why Villefort sends him to prison". "Wait that's not the story behind the treasure"
But this video is just to make people read the book, so they can't get everything into 10 minutes
"Countless times"🙄
@@angela_merkeI He is an avid reader, but alas, he cannot count to 3ish 😔
So up until the prison break, amirite?
I didn't like the ending though
The Count of Monte Cristo was actually a reference for José Rizal's two only novels...
Specifically, Juan Crisostomo Ibarra turning into Simoun...
Fernand isn't a cousin, it's just a polite term given to a childhood best friend.
The book says he’s the son of her fathers brother….
Tbh whether or not this is fact, I'd still probably believe theyre actually cousins... Like the 1800s, everyone is everyones cousin 😂
@@goldie1089Everyone is everyone’s cousin NOW.
"A good story has many readings"... true indeed. for me the resolution of the book was Dantes´s forgiveness to Mercedes and to himself as he begin a new life with Haydée (Which you didn´t mention XD)
Also ignored Carderousse, Villefort's das, Maximilien, Morrel, Vanmpa, and literally everyone else
...can't give away the WHOLE plot...
@@dclark142002 Eh, what´s the point of this video? It tells basically all the story but the "final message" (sorry for my english)
@@raphl8026 Were you wanting the video to be as long as the book LOL
"Where's my raise?"
OK, I'll admit, THAT line caught me off guard & made me bust out laughing!
This is what I have always been saying!!!!!!
books needs trailers, I mean how am I to know if a book is worth the time if it usually takes a hundred pages to find out. THIS IS BRILLIANT
Count of Monte Cristo is my favourite classical book. I loved it so much more than I thought I would, inspired to read it by some songs I heard from a musical version.
It truly is an epic, with so many winding conspiracies and characters, to the point I had to occasionally check the flowchart on Wikipedia to remember who everyone was. It's honestly half the problem with any adaptation of it. There's no way a film, musical or possibly even a TV show could capture all the intricate connection and elements. Something would have to get cut.
But Edmund Dantes is a classical hero for the ages, and a warning tale of the dangers of revenge.
I am Vengeance, I am the Night, I am the Count of Monte Cristo!
My favorite quote from a movie version is, "do you mind if I take your wife?....For a dance?"
Reading the unshortened version of CoMC was one of the biggest and most rewarding literary adventures I've taken.
i like the fact he's hooking up with the girl at a coffee shop by speaking about literature to her.
It's just as I used to do when I had more free time and less wives (0 is less than 1)
1:44 Villefort actually had to put Dantes away to cover the fact that his dad, a Napoleon supporter, was planning to help bring the emperor back.
I’m curious if this series would work better as an introduction to a book and it’s context, rather then a full plot summary?
Watched the first half since I’m currently halfway through the count of monte cristo but since this series is designed for those who haven’t read it, it’s effectively a plot summary so you don’t have to read it.
Regardless, really liked this episode and looking forward to future episodes!
The summary here is really high level...and doesn't cover significant portions of the book. For example, Dantes revenge is against 5 people, not three...
There's *way* more to it than the summary. Way more. And it isn't even all revenge.
You completely glossed over the fact that he even got his revenge on Mercedes... leaving her a pennyless destitute widow. And her son joined the army in a time of turmoil. But the most beautiful part is him helping his old master...."...it was Edmon Dantes!!"
her destitution was more of a side effect of the count’s revenge on mondengo. he gave her the house and offered her money at the end as a gesture of mutual peace between them.
I loooooooove the Count of Monte Cristo, thank you so much for making a video about this!!
The count of Monte Cristo :The best Revenge Tale
The Saga of the vulsungs :Hold my Gram-
So tonight I’ll sing a song to all my friends
Villefort imprisons Dantes primarily to save his own father and his reputation.
Remember, the actual book is nearly 2000 pages. Accept no substitutes. And you forgot about Caderousse.
The first episode and you've picked one of like 3 classics that I've read voluntarily, and the only one I genuinely love. (20 000 Leagues Under the Sea and Three Musketeers are both pretty good, but Count of Monte Cristo is *superb*)
If you liked 20000 Leagues Under the Sea, have you read the Robur novels? Robur the Conqueror or The Clipper of the Clouds and the sequel Master of the World?
I can also recommend the anime Nadia: The Secret of Blue Water. You may want to skip the filler arc though.
What about the sequel to 20 000 Leagues under the sea 👀
Other classic novels I can recommend are Treasure Island, The Picture of Dorian Gray, A Tale of Two Cities, Dracula, Brave New World, The Time Machine, Les Miserables, and War and Peace. (I know the last 2 are very thicc, but they're totally worth the effort.)
If you're interested in reading the *really* old stuff, The Metamorphoses by Ovid is a good place to start. The Iliad and Odyssey (Homer), Aesop's Fables, Antigone (Sophocles), The Histories (Herodotus), A True Story (Lucian of Samosata) and If Not, Winter (Sappho) are very readable as well.
@@elirodriguez4411 20 001 Leagues Under the Sea 😀
@@kaltaron1284speaking of anine heavily inspired by Jules Verne, one that is a lot less known but a childhood favorite of mine and honestly pretty good is "the secret of the cerulean sand"
my favorite book, and also my favorite movie of all time
One of the best books ever made. Endlessly influencial
> Title: So You Haven't Read The Count of Monte Cristo
> Viewership: 99% have read it.
Holy smokes, Edmund Dantes literally " P R E P A R E D ".
This is most likely where they got the "Adventurer who got betrayed by their own party and now thwy seek revenge" plot in some mangas.
Hiiiiîiiiiiiiiiiii
My prefered book as a teenager. I think I read it 50-60 times (even found a booklet version from the 1920s) and it got me to read around 60 % of Dumas' production, including things like " boule de neige" ( not edited anymore, not sure it has even been translated)... sure, it was a short version, but good to see it featured in Extra credits
Love you team ❤ 💙
Ah I like Dumat. When once commeted on his mixed ancestry his dry reply was: "yes my father is a negro and my grandfather was an ape. You see my family tree begins, were yours is ending."
Oh la vache! Haven't heard that one in a while.
"I go to Paris, bam! bam! bam! bam!, How is this a bad plan?"
Ok, Extra Credits has now officially completed it's transformation into a high production value version of Overly Sarcastic Productions. And that's a good thing. I love both channels and their History, Myth and Literature content!
Yeah but EC isn't written by someone with a college degree in ancient literature ;)
Hold on, is it an English, Literature, or ancient Literature degree? I'm suddenly not sure.
@@user-wc7fh3iy5h I don't know.
@@user-wc7fh3iy5h well at least in history there are tons of specific degrees on different places and times in human history, so yeah
@@danielsjohnson I think Red has a degree in Classical Literature
" In reality, when you have once devoted your life to your enterprises, you are no longer the equal of other men, or, rather, other men are no longer your equals, and whosoever has taken this resolution, feels his strength and resources doubled."
- Alexandre Dumas
Le comte de Monte-Cristo (The Count of Monte Cristo)
I am literally reading this for the first time, and I love it!! I was super hesitant since it is old, but definitely has been worth every second. Good start to this series!!
Welcome, young person.. welcome.
Abbe Faria isn't a sidekick, he is a Fifth Business (which is another book you need to give this treatment to)
Aw heck yeah! First History, then Sci-Fi, theb Mythology, and now LITERATURE!! I'm looking forward to the Filipino Revolutionary Masterpieces Noli Me Tangere and it's sequel El Filibusterismo, and Maurice Leblanc's The Gentleman Thief in this series!
Thank you for continually spreading the passion and love for worlds between covers aka LITERATURE!
MY FAVORITE BOOK OF ALL TIME !!!📔📕📖
The context of telling these things in a cafe, the format and pacing, the addition of yet another art-style to differentiate the series... I love it all! ^0^
Mann i remember when i used to think this book and story were the greatest of all time, i thought the characters are so well written, the plot so good.. i had an obession with revenge during middle school, thankfully i have learned better ways to cope since then.. still i'm so grateful that one of my favourite channels covered something that meant so much for me for so long, good job on this episode and keep up with the good work!
Great way to start off this series, I look forward to see what tales come next!!!
2:29 actually the treasure was the inheritance of the Caesar family long ago and Faria just happened to be someone close to the last remaining heir of that family, who had clues about where the treasure was
...first episode and you cover a story that got me through years of trauma, the after effects of abuse, and being completely taken advantage of by someone I trusted. Nice. This story is so damn good and recommend it.
Haven't seen the video yet, I'm just glad Extra Credits have done a video on the masterpiece that is the Count of Monte Cristo!
I haven't watched much extra credits lately this is a big jump in quality from what I remember. Good work!
School gave me this book to read it for a homework. We worked in groups and I was the only one who did my part not by reading, but by watching the Simpsons version of the book. And yes, I passed that homeworked.
You really missed out.
The prosecutor in the story turned on Dantaes because to set him free would mean implicating his father, and that could cause himself to be arrested
My dad, my brother, and I watched the movie version on New Year’s Eve and it was one of the best nights of my life
YES YES YES YES YES YES! THIS IS MY FAVORITE!!!!
Saw the movie. Enjoyed it.
Oh god finnaly someone talks about the count of Monte Cristo !!!! Thank you guys so much !!!!
This is the perfect series for me right now! I have so many audible credits I need to use, please keep these coming!
One of my favorite channels covering my favorite book? Yes, please!
Not even a mention of one of my favorite characters, Nortier. Dude is entirely paralyzed except for his eyes, yet he still plays a crucial role in the Villefort plotline.
Loved this and am excited to see where this series goes! ❤️
Uhh...wasn't Villefort's motivation for turning over Edmund not so much "I need a raise" and more him finding out his own father (a Bonaparte supporter) was involved in the true plot, so he turned in the innocent Edmund to avoid bringing shame from the Crown on his family name? It's been some years since I've read it, but that seems more correct.
I read the count of montecristo a while ago out of curiosity
It became one of my top 3 favorite books
Thanks EC for covering it!!!
Finding out the book was based on a true story was one of the highlights of my year
The oh my god he's just Batman had me wheezing😂😂
I'm so excited about this series! Also, I'm impressed by how well you guys condensed the book, and appreciative that you referenced the insane level of complexity it has.
If someone who hasn't read the book is reading this, a good example is a chapter where we read an in depth backstory of a character who only exists in the backstory of another relatively minor character. It makes the book really immersive
...and yet, all those threads are IMPORTANT...and will be used later in the master plan of revenge...
@@dclark142002 Oh definitely. It's crazy how dense this book is.
I can’t tell you how much I appreciate this. Please make more.
I've read this book like twice, it's far and away my favorite classical novel
Excellent book!!
I forgot that he escaped the same year they were going to let him out. just another subtle quirk to the "revenge is pointless" moral lol
One of my favorite stories makes for a good first episode of this series.
Also, the loosely-based anime is pretty special. Definitely an anime essential.
Gankutsuou is brilliant in how halfway through, I realized that this was a story where Dantes had one critical difference in character.
So we can say he was an Avenger right ? Oh wait...
I dont know how much I like this series... this feels less like a story or a write up on a thesis like extra history and the video game studf and more like a wikipedia page
LETS GO MY FAVOURITE CLASSIC
Genius idea of this new series.
You don't even mention my favourite character, Danglars's daughter Eugenie! But I don't blame you, there is so much to the story that you couldn't possibly cover it all.
So far, FAR ahead of her time!
My favorite. Glad my mom introduced me to the movie and my wife bought me the book for my birthday
When I was hospitalized for leukemia my uncle gave me this book. I made it about half way through in about a year. It’s a lengthy tome.
Who is here after seeing this year movie ? I enjoyed it and it's interesting to be aware of the differences/scenes which were cut.
One of the few changes in the movie I thought was better was villefort’s motive being more than him just hunting for a promotion instead Edmund actually had what he believed to be a personal letter from Napoleon to a friend of his (actually a list of British patrols to one of his supporters) and Edmond is almost let go being called a naive fool before he named the man the letter was meant for villefort father leading to his imprisonment to keep the secret and protect villefort’s career
But in the book Villefort is not doing it for promotion but to protect his father because letter from Bonaparte was to his father and himself. Before Villefort readed letter his intend to let go Edmund as he promised to his fiance, the letter changed everything.
I think it's the biggest book I've read so far. 1600 pages or so.
But I read it at 14yo so I probably missed some of its meaning.
Omo the new series started💙💙💙
As always, lovelots to the narrator💙 Ich liebe dich, whoever u are
Looking forward to this series great start with a great classic
This was so great! I really like the premise, just hanging out in a coffee house and talking over literature. I also liked learning about the author too, never knew it was a person of color. I'm looking forward to the episode of this series!
Awesome that you are back at the books! Though I was hoping this would be a bit more like Extra Sci-fi, with a bit more focus on context and influence, and a bit less focus on straight summary. After I finished this I actually felt less inclined to read the book, as I pretty much know all the major story beats now. In contrast most Extra Sci-fi episodes left me wanting to know more, because you gave me an understanding of why the book was important and worth a read, rather than just an understanding of what happened in it.
I read The Count of Monte Cristo a few months ago. When my AP Human Geography teacher saw that I was reading it, we watched the movie in class. He is a very chill teacher.
1:47 I believe it was also because Edmond had a letter incriminating the prosecutor's father.
A start of another wonderful series.
It is fantastic to see this become a series. I would like to know if you have a schedule in mind for the release of more episodes. As alway the art is charming. I’m really looking forward to seeing how this series evolves over time. Great job on the first episode.