War is thrilling. It sets off a inner spark; our joy to still be alive, after surviving impossible odds.

Playing with the odds is a risky sort of business, but that’s what makes it exciting. Gambling is enjoyable because it’s so much more likely that the gambler will lose, so any victory becomes a celebration; a sort of taunt directed at the odds themselves. In this case, a young man walks away from a massive pit, having survived it. Considering its massive size, that seems impossible. So absolutely improbable, that it almost seems to go against the very fabric of reality that this one man managed to survive, while the men on the other side are very likely going to try to cross it, and find themselves dead anyway. That’s what makes this soldier’s survival that much more… thrilling. The pit, a metaphor for war, serves to remind that the chances of surviving a large quantity of firefights, ambushes, bombardments, sneak attacks, etc. are not statistics to laugh about, unless it’s to take the edge off alongside one or two bottles of poor-quality beer. To go through all of that and survive… that’s worthy of celebration. Playing the odds of war is a tremendous thrill, a metaphorical rolling of the dice, with deadly consequences. The reward: the winner’s continued existence. And really, that simple reward is enough. War’s high, deadly risk makes it a tremendously ultimate thrill.