[POOPOO MCBUMFACE]

Think the song "Liberty" would seem to be the most relevant.

http://lyrics.wikia...._Waters:Liberty

CHORUS
We've given, we've given
More blood, than we could turn to love

REVOLUTIONARY PRIEST
Come angles of mercy
Come doves of peace
Shine a light on all these warring clubs and cliques

OFFICER
The jackal and hyena who prowl these city streets
Would turn in their own mother for a little extra meat

REVOLUTIONARY PRIEST
From the piles of dead the Republic comes to life
Her mutilated body reeling like a drunken fishwife
Gives birth to the future

[Steel General]

Yeah, that makes more sense than my suggestion.

[CircleBinder]

2 things that I don't think have been mentioned yet:

- At the Sekala Crossing, after the Chain crosses the river on the man-made road, Duiker turns to watch the rebel army be blown into a million bits and pieces by the Malazan Sappers. This was the definition of an "Oh S@#t" moment, and I loved how the scene played out almost in slow motion.

- When Fid and Co. are on their way to Tremorlor and they get attacked by D'ivers in the maze, Fiddler thinks he is about to use his last Cusser when he actually tosses the old Conch shell into the fray. I loved this because through the whole reading of DG, I found myself thinking back to Fiddler's scene with the Tanno Spiritwalker and wondering at its significance. This scene - only about 700 pages later - finally revealed the importance of Kimloc's gift.

[Benn Greenbow]

The whole book was a holy shit moment!!!

[Ilona]

Benn Greenbow, on 28 May 2011 - 02:20 PM, said:

The whole book was a holy shit moment!!!

...Damn, someone got there first. Although, to be more specific, for me the Chain of Dogs arc was one big holy fucking shit moment.

[Esp]

Probably my most epic moment was when Icarium goes on the verge of über rage and he is keening. I know it's quite minor but I completely visualised it. While it was happening I could -feel- Mappo's terror that he had lost it.

[Moon Chaser]

The bit where you discover who is Sha'ik reborn, and you're waiting to find out who it is, and then, "Watch his hands." I did a fist pump in midair in public, hah.

"A life given for a life taken." Seems to be a theme throughout the entire book, and it all came full circle when Heboric was standing, blindly looking up to Duiker.

The final annihilation of the soldiers five hundred paces from the gates was a whirlwind. Throughout the entire book, I was expecting them to just go, and go, and then get surrounded and destroyed. But when Duiker gets atop the tower and sees Coltaine, all that rushed out the window, I got a surge of hope, and then realized I had been right the whole time as they were cut down. (And, in addition to Coltaine/Duiker, I'm wondering if the two dogs are going to become significant...)

When Fiddler tosses the conch shell and then is asked, "Did Kimloc touch you?" and Fid replies he couldn't remember, I flipped back through the pages and saw that Kimloc innocuously patted his shoulder in farewell.

[boesjwoelie]

As the chain of dogs nears its end, duiker sees a bunch of soldiers playing some game with a ball they fashioned from whatever bits of leftover leather they could find, and so 'mocking the enemy, as well as their own exhoustion...' yeah, malazan soldiers are tough guys liked that part =)

Also, when this whole army is being stripped of weapons, the enemy is like: right, we captured this idiot high fist, no i suppose we kill him... When they are bickering over the who and how, i half expected duiker to say: 'can i do it?'... Sadly he didnt

[Phere]

Excellent topic and subsequent replies! After only one reading, I am sure some of the more subtle plots mentioned here will have a "Holy $#^@" effect on me as well, but for this newbie, what stands out first and foremost is the Chain of Dogs story. Admittedly, I initially bored with the exodus...but the line grew on me..and grew..and grew...until I was an slobbering, emotional wreck upon reading of Coltaine's death. Even to the last, I was hoping for a miracle - that miracle was delivered via the crows - albeit bittersweet (that is an understatement!).

On the opposite end of the spectrum, I thought it was hilarious when the nameless marine came up to Duiker as they were preparing for the last haggard push to Aren and told him that she had something for him. Either Lull or Bult (forgive me for not remembering) commented, "What, here?" ...hahahaha!

As others have mentioned, Kalam's Claw Hunt was nothing other than uber badassedness. Absolutely a "Ahhh, now I see!" moment.

[ColtaineRattlesSlow]

I Finished Deadhouse Gates yesterday, and it's probably the most tragic and intense book I've ever read. The moments that I consider to be Holy @#$%, although in different degrees, are these:


-Baudin brutally killing the old woman at the very start, cutting her head off, then throwing it into the crowd.
-Leoman and the Toblakai fighting off an entire squad of Red Blades after Sha'ik was murdered.
-Kulp being devoured by thousands of rats. The confusion and intensity of that scene was amazing.
-Duiker finding Gesler, Stormy and Truth sitting on the sand near the burnt Silanda.
-Kalam being stabbed by Salk Elan, then thrown overboard.
-Kalam stalking the Claws through Malaz City with makeshift weapons.
-Coltaine's final stand. The most tragic and intense thing I've ever read.
-Pormqual being beheaded by Korbolo Dom.
-All 10 000 Seventh soldiers being nailed to trees, and Duiker being the final one. Probably the most depressing thing I've ever read, especially knowing that he died never reading the bit of cloth his nameless marine gave him.
-Laseen telling Kalam that outlawing Dujek was all a part of her plan (if she is to be believed, which I'm not sure yet.)
-Servant being revealed to be Apsalar's father.
-Sha'ik being shot through the eye with a crossbow bolt.
-Mappo and Icarium at the very end, when you realize that Icarium's mind is just stuck in a cycle, and their journey will continue, with him not remembering the events of Deadhouse Gates.

There's probably more, but I can't remember all of the book, so these will do.

[ShantyKing]

To add another, I really loved the scene where Moby appears at Tremorlor. I wasn't expecting it at all, and I love the image of him coming around the corner, this tiny little furry thing, trailing smoke after having devastated the ones pursuing the gang. I loved it so much I'll type it out:

Quote

"Let's get moving," the sapper said. Something was indeed coming up behind them, making the air redolent with sickly spice. The Hounds had pulled their attention from Mappo and Icarium and now faced the other way, revealing restless nerves as they shifted position. The trail made a sharp bend twenty paces from where the huge beasts stood.

A piercing scream ripped the air, coming from just beyond that bend, followed by the explosive sounds of battle. It ended abruptly.

"We've waiting too long!" Pust hissed, cowering behind his god's Hounds. "Now it comes!"

Fiddler swung his crossbow around, eyes fixed on the place where their pursuer would appear.

Instead, a nut-brown creature half flapped, half scampered into view. Tendrils of smoke drifted from it.

"Ai!" Pust shrieked. "They plague me!"

Pust's reaction is hilarious, too.

This post has been edited by ShantyKing: 19 December 2012 - 09:08 AM

[Abyss]

ShantyKing, on 19 December 2012 - 09:07 AM, said:

To add another, I really loved the scene where Moby appears at Tremorlor....
Pust's reaction is hilarious, too.

I also love the next bit where Crokus picks up Moby and someone tells Crokus that in veered form Moby could pick HIM up the same way.

[Overactive Imagination]

If I remember correctly, there was some part where the horse Duiker was riding bit some guys face off. That was a big ''holy fuck'' moment for me. Super random.

[Spoilsport Stonny]

'Twere Fiddler's horse, but yes, that one...harsh...I personally loved the bringing down of Fener. The way he described the noise, and the giant foot, the woad tattooing. Yeeha!

[Abyss]

Overactive Imagination, on 19 December 2012 - 07:05 PM, said:

If I remember correctly, there was some part where the horse Duiker was riding bit some guys face off. That was a big ''holy fuck'' moment for me. Super random.

Stalking Stonny, on 19 December 2012 - 07:23 PM, said:

'Twere Fiddler's horse, but yes, that one...harsh...

Fid's Gral horse bites a tribesman's face off, but we also find out that during the Wickan Wars Bult's horse bit off Dujek's arm iirc.

[BigNukes]

Geese, there were quite a few of them. Off the top of my head:

*Coltaines last stand was near infuriating, but maybe more than that was Pormqual not helping even when Coltaine was right outside the city walls
*The 10,000 Malazan soldiers being spiked along the road
*Duiker being killed off, that really suprised me, well it suprised me that he left the city to begin with

[TabbyFL55]

Salt-Man Z, on 15 July 2009 - 09:32 PM, said:

I always feel bad, because, even after only two reads through the series, I cannot for the life of me remember not knowing the secret identities of Shadowthrone and Cotillion. I feel like I'm missing out on a great moment of revelation, even though I know it must have occurred at some point.

+1 Glad I'm not the only one!

[Zuzu Bolin]

The reveal of who Shadowthrone and Cotillion were.

[Atrate61]

Not a Holy Sh*t moment, but one that made me unbearably sad was the idea that Duiker never got to read the scrap of cloth with the unknown marine's name on it. For some reason that one stabbed my heart big time. Any musings by Mappo on the subject of his stewardship of Icarium had the tendency to make me misty as well.

The original Sha'ik's death was kind of a "WHAT???" moment for me.

The whole Chain of Dogs story had a kind of grand, tragic, epic "this is the end, my friend" feel to it. I hated what was happening, but I couldn't look away.

If I had a son, I would name him Coltaine.

I'm finished my 5th read of this book, and I never get tired of its story or the story of its people. It reads like a true history.