In the finale of every episode of FIF, the contestants are charged with recreating an 'iconic weapon from history' and have it tested safely for the benefit of the viewers. I've met some of these guys, and none had a problem with the format, or the judges. There's an awful lot that happens that we don't get to see, like the 2 or 3 hours while the blades temper, so they don't shatter like glass when smacked against a cow-bone. We see an hour, but it takes all day. And I like finding out about ethnic oddities in the cutlery realm, from around the world. Many of these were in common usage for hundreds, or even thousands of years, changing little with the passage of time. Some were not so fortunate. What makes a forgotten Italian short sword any less effective, or interesting, than, say, a Visayan barong?
Think about that for a second, tho. An 'iconic weapon from history.' History goes back a good while, even longer than WRITTEN history, and while we as a species might not have evolved much in that time, weapons design advances much more rapidly, and in fits and starts. Better technology, better metallurgy, advances in other weapons can make any design or tactic obsolete, seemingly overnight. At the very time this 'stupid looking' knife was being developed as an art form, the availability of muzzle loading hand-guns made it a has-been from the end of the Renaissance period. Had fate not intervened, we might today all be carrying a cinquedea, instead of a Buck knife, and calling ourselves swordsmen...
I'm not sure what the heck this even means , but I am intrigued !
