This episode might hold the new record for "most unique characters in a single episode". There might have been more separate characters in Episode 52 with all the Italians and Anabaptists, but they were hardly unique.

Also, the Eagles played a terrible game tonight against the Redskins. This displeases me.

--Geoff

In general, Franz von Sickingen was not what one would call overwhelmingly successful in his life's endeavors. He did Pillage And Burn well, eventually adding Bribery and Treachery to the list when he took money from Francis I for his support and then promptly used his armies to back Francis's opponent.

After eventually failing against Francis's troops, he tried his hand at acting as The Knight of Lutheranism. Luther, for his part, wrote Sickingen nice letters along the lines of "Boy, burning Rome and raping its livestock would sure be great, Franz, but maybe not just now" until another one of Sickingen's crazy schemes, the Knight's Revolt, got Franz good and dead in 1523.

So, yeah, this whole cycle of Failure and Renewed Call To Aimless Violence is sort of par for the course for Ole Sicky, really...

In other news, the new Iron Man Movie looks pretty sweet. A lot of people have been talking smack about Iron Man recently, but for my money, Stark hasn't been this interesting a character in a loooong time.

And now your Donnie Murphy update:

After a streak of no hits in 18 at-bats, Donnie Murphy got a single Monday night. Is this the eleventh hour comeback the Ancient Texts have foretold? The comeback that announces the Dawning of the Age of the Nameless Ones? Are these truly our last moments with those we love? Perhaps, Jimmy, Perhaps...

- Count Dolby von Luckner