Monthly Archives: July 2017

It’s a Brazzle Dazzle Day

Pete’s Dragon – Released in the year I was born, this classic Disney film is about human trafficking, child abuse, alcoholism, and medical scams. It also has a cartoon dragon, which is why it qualifies as a live-action/animation hybrid. I … Continue reading

Posted in Cartoons, Revisiting Disney, VoVat Goes to the Movies | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Where the Hell Are the Singing Cats?

Cats is a consistently popular but much maligned musical, and I guess it IS kind of dorky and cutesy. Then again, we live in a time when grown men openly love My Little Pony. Beth and I saw a Broadway … Continue reading

Posted in Animals, Live Shows, Music, Names, Poetry | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Spectacle Spectacular

I find it interesting that the Frogman in The Lost Princess of Oz is said to wear “great spectacles with gold rims, not because his eyes were bad, but because the spectacles made him look wise.” I don’t know how … Continue reading

Posted in Characters, Eric Shanower, John R. Neill, L. Frank Baum, Magic Items, Oz, Oz Authors, Ruth Plumly Thompson | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Everybody Loves a Clownfish

Finding Nemo – I saw this one in the theater when it was new, but haven’t watched it since then. The animation of animals under the sea is quite impressive. Pixar humans still looked weird at this point, but we … Continue reading

Posted in Animals, Cartoons, Families, Humor, Names, Revisiting Disney, Television, The Simpsons, VoVat Goes to the Movies | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Tesser Action

Many Waters, by Madeleine L’Engle – I’d read L’Engle’s original Time Trilogy back in my younger days, definitely in elementary school for at least the first two and probably the third. I remember A Wrinkle in Time pretty well, and … Continue reading

Posted in Authors, Book Reviews, Christianity, Language, madeleine l'engle, Mythology, Religion, Science | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 9 Comments

Fantasy Repeats Itself

I’ve been playing the PC version of Final Fantasy IV: The After Years, and I have a few things to say about what I’ve played so far. The game is, as the title suggests, a direct follow-up to FFIV, set … Continue reading

Posted in Final Fantasy, Video Games | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Zeebee and ze Bee

The Spelling Bee of Oz, by Robin Hess – The follow-up to Toto and the Cats of Oz has two new visitors to the fairyland. Elizabeth Warren from California, or Zeebee for short, is captured by the Nome King Korph, … Continue reading

Posted in Book Reviews, Characters, L. Frank Baum, Oz, Oz Authors | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

The Brick Bat

The Lego Batman Movie – Lego has become a significant franchise apart from their actual plastic building bricks, and sometimes it really seems to complicate things. I mean, Lego Star Wars? Just pick one or the other! I’ve heard these … Continue reading

Posted in Cartoons, Harry Potter, Humor, Monsters, Toys, VoVat Goes to the Movies | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

It’s All About Mimi

Last week, I finished reading the last book in Patricia Wrightson’s Song of Wirrun trilogy based on Australian mythology, which taught me about a few spirit beings from aboriginal folklore. One of them was the Mimi, a kind of spirit … Continue reading

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Mice, Ducks, and Aliens

The Song of Wirrun, by Patricia Wrightson – Paul Dana recommended this trilogy of books based on Australian mythology: The Ice Is Coming, The Dark Bright Water, and Behind the Wind. I have a passion for mythology, but I haven’t … Continue reading

Posted in Australian, Authors, Book Reviews, Comics, Diana Wynne Jones, Humor, Mythology, Prejudice, Religion | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment