So, interestingly, my two latest media experiences were War Horse and the second season of Downton Abbey, in both of which, of course, WWI figures really heavily; and in both of which the really apocalyptic nature of WWI is highlighted - that scorched-earth, bombed-out, nothing-will-ever-be-the-same feeling. So this week *I* was wondering, why is western media suddenly so interested in revisiting the horrors of WWI?

The best hypothesis I have at the moment is that we're at a moment in history right now where everything feels like it's changing forever - perhaps not in a good way - and we feel existential anxiety, which is expressing itself in media about apocalyptic war.