In preparation for the “Good Omens” TV (specifically, Amazon Prime and BBC Two) series, I started reading the 1990 novel by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman. Concurrently, and after watching too much TV news, I started to think (again) about the Four Horse-persons of the Apocalypse. In the book, personifications of these entities appear as characters working conscientiously to bring about the end of the world (but so far without their trusty steeds). They are (by one interpretation):
- War (or Conflict) (said to ride a Red Horse)
- Famine (said to ride a Black Horse)
- Disease (said to ride a White Horse)
- Death (said to ride a Pale Horse)
These four riders famously make their appearance in the biblical book of Revelation, after the Four Living Creatures (essentially, the Tetramorph) say “Come” or “Allons-Y!”, depending on your translation. And indeed the Four Horse-persons are a powerful “meme” and are referenced in many popular entertainments and real-life derivative nomenclatures. I’m looking forward to the video series as I enjoy the main actors playing the “odd couple” of angel and demon, and after viewing the various trailers and photos.
Who says Armageddon (or the struggle against it) can’t be fun? Ok, I admit it’s scary but sometimes you just have to laugh!
Further Reading:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Good_Omens
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Good_Omens_(TV_series)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Four_Horsemen_of_the_Apocalypse
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Living_creatures_(Bible)
https://publicdomainreview.org/collections/the-four-horsemen-of-the-apocalypse/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Four_Horsemen_of_the_Apocalypse_in_popular_culture
Here Death is the end, but it’s only the beginning of the end (or is it the end of the beginning?) in the four-fold “The Four Last Things”:
https://equivalentexchange.blog/2017/09/06/the-four-last-things/
[*8.118, *11.20]
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