Category Archives: Discworld

Fearsome Furnishings

Posted on December 5, 2019 by

Living versions of inanimate objects are common in fiction. The Oz books have a lot of them, although most of them are friendly. There are, however, many animated objects that are deadly, especially in role-playing games. I was recently thinking … Continue reading →

Posted in Animals, Authors, Discworld, Dragon Quest, Final Fantasy, Focus on the Foes, Games, Jack Snow, Kid Icarus, Magic, Mario, Monsters, Oz, Oz Authors, Terry Pratchett, Video Games | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

You’re in Luck

Posted on August 4, 2019 by

I’d thought before about how the appellation “lucky” is applied to so many Oz characters. Well, only three that I can think of, but that’s still kind of weird. They were introduced by three different authors, however. The first is … Continue reading →

Posted in Advertising, Authors, Characters, Comics, Discworld, Greek Mythology, John R. Neill, L. Frank Baum, Melody Grandy, Mythology, Oz, Oz Authors, Philosophy, Religion, Roman, Ruth Plumly Thompson, Terry Pratchett | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Magical Arts and Sciences

Posted on June 23, 2019 by

I’ve been thinking a bit recently about magic and science in fiction. I’m not saying anything at all new when I point out that a lot of what’s considered science fiction contains very little science. Sometimes it just seems to … Continue reading →

Posted in Authors, C.S. Lewis, Christianity, Chronicles of Narnia, Comics, Discworld, Fundamentalism, J.R.R. Tolkien, L. Frank Baum, madeleine l'engle, Magic, Mythology, Oz, Oz Authors, Philosophy, Religion, Science, Star Trek, Technology, Terry Pratchett | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

House of Reptile-sentatives

Posted on May 21, 2019 by

The idea that the governments of the world are secretly controlled by lizard people is most prominently supported by David Icke, a former soccer player and sports broadcaster. That’s what comes of letting him hit the ball with his head. … Continue reading →

Posted in Animals, Authors, Chrono Trigger, Conspiracy Theories, Discworld, Douglas Adams, Greek Mythology, Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Magic, Mario, Monsters, Mythology, Prejudice, Religion, Terry Pratchett, Theosophy, Video Games | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Hello to Bygone Ages

Posted on January 20, 2019 by

Looking at Robert E. Howard’s essay on his imaginary Hyborian Age got me to thinking about a few different issues in fantasy fiction that deals with lost civilizations. The essay tells of a succession of great empires contrasted with barbarians, … Continue reading →

Posted in Authors, Christianity, Discworld, Evolution, History, Humor, J.R.R. Tolkien, L. Frank Baum, Magic, Maps, Monsters, Mystery Cults, Mythology, Norse, Oz, Oz Authors, Persian, Prejudice, Religion, Roman, Science, Terry Pratchett, Theosophy | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Bread Dead Redemption

Posted on November 3, 2018 by

Today is All Souls’ Day in the Catholic liturgical calendar, and the Day of the Dead in Mexico (which I think is actually two days; this is the second one). I never knew that much about either holiday, but I … Continue reading →

Posted in Authors, Aztec, Catholicism, Celtic, Christianity, Discworld, Eastern Orthodox, Halloween, History, Holidays, Mesoamerica, Middle Ages, Mythology, Native American, Religion, Roman, Terry Pratchett | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Use Your Illusion

Posted on September 16, 2017 by

There’s a fair amount of magic in the Oz series based on illusion, although exactly what that indicates is a little ambiguous. An illusion is a distortion of sensory input, different from a hallucination in that that actually is a … Continue reading →

Posted in Authors, Discworld, Edward Einhorn, L. Frank Baum, Magic, Oz, Oz Authors, Rachel Cosgrove Payes, Ruth Plumly Thompson, Terry Pratchett | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

When Humor and Anti-Humor Collide

Posted on May 23, 2017 by

I found this post by Amy to be interesting, as I think we have similar senses of humor in many respects, and I’m somewhat fascinated by the concept of anti-humor. I’ve never come across the “No soap, radio!” joke in … Continue reading →

Posted in Authors, Cartoons, Characters, Comics, Discworld, Humor, L. Frank Baum, Language, Lewis Carroll, Oz, Oz Authors, Television, Terry Pratchett, The Simpsons | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

You May Find Important Pieces Gone

Posted on March 10, 2017 by

Cautionary tales to try to convince children to behave seem to be pretty much universal, even though it’s quite possible they do more harm than good. I’ve written before about boogeyman legends, and along much the same lines is the … Continue reading →

Posted in Authors, Discworld, Fairy Tales, Family Guy, Humor, Jasper Fforde, Monsters, Music, Nursery Crime, Television, Terry Pratchett, XTC | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

A Frosty Reception

Posted on January 7, 2017 by

Since our President-Elect is in love with Vladimir Putin and insists that everyone should constantly say “Merry Christmas,” I guess we’d better learn about Christmas in Russia, right? It might seem a little late for this, but Orthodox Christmas is … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, Authors, Christianity, Christmas, Discworld, Eastern Orthodox, Fairy Tales, History, Holidays, Mythology, New Year's Day, Religion, Russian, Terry Pratchett | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments