Tag Archives: dungeons and dragons

Put a Zork in It

Posted on February 3, 2023 by Nathan

I remember seeing magazine ads for Zork and other text-based adventure games when I was a kid, and thought they seemed pretty fascinating. I never actually got to play any of them at the time, though. I don’t think they … Continue reading →

Posted in Animals, Authors, Douglas Adams, Games, Greek Mythology, Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Humor, J.R.R. Tolkien, L. Frank Baum, Lewis Carroll, Magic, Maps, Monsters, Mythology, Oz, Oz Authors, Video Games, William Shakespeare | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Mazes, Memory, and Magic

Posted on December 10, 2022 by Nathan

Piranesi, by Susanna Clarke – This is the first thing I’ve read by this author, and it was pretty fascinating. The protagonist and narrator is called Piranesi after the eighteenth century Italian artist and archaeologist (not that he knows that), … Continue reading →

Posted in Authors, Book Reviews, Discworld, Final Fantasy, Games, Magic, Terry Pratchett, Video Games | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Stay Out of the Deep End

Posted on June 23, 2022 by Nathan

I’m going to guess you want more fish-people, but I’ll admit I’m very bad at predicting what other people want. So let’s just say I want to write more about fish-people. I often go to TV Tropes to see examples … Continue reading →

Posted in Animals, Art, Australian, Babylonian, Breath of Fire, Cartoons, Dragon Quest, Final Fantasy, Games, Greek Mythology, Health, Humor, Japanese, Language, Magic, Mana/Seiken Densetsu, Mario, Monsters, Mythology, Pacific, Relationships, Sexuality, Television, Video Games, Zelda | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

A Thousand Thousand Slimy Things Lived On

Posted on January 8, 2022 by Nathan

I wrote about Slimes in the Dragon Quest series eleven years ago, and mentioned the fact that they were inspired by Creeping Cruds from Wizardry, but Akira Toriyama drew them as cute. There was also a mention of Slimes in … Continue reading →

Posted in Board Games, Cartoons, Dragon Quest, Final Fantasy, Focus on the Foes, Food, Games, Gender, Japanese, Magic, Monsters, Mythology, Video Games | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Dreaming of Seuss Juice

Posted on March 13, 2021 by Nathan

I wanted to say a bit about the manufactured controversy over Dr. Seuss, which is obviously being totally misrepresented by conservatives. It’s the Seuss estate that decided to stop publishing six particular books, so it isn’t some kind of government … Continue reading →

Posted in Animals, Art, Authors, Current Events, Dr. Seuss, Humor, John R. Neill, L. Frank Baum, Monsters, Oz, Oz Authors, Politics, Prejudice | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Troglodyte Tuesday

Posted on March 10, 2021 by Nathan

I mentioned in my review of Rick Riordan’s The Tower of Nero that I liked the way it portrayed the troglodytes, and since I don’t think I’ve done it before, I might as well take a look at the origins … Continue reading →

Posted in Animals, Authors, Cartoons, Dragon Quest, Games, Greek Mythology, Language, Monsters, Music, Mythology, Rick Riordan, Television, Trials of Apollo, Video Games, Zelda | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Quests of Yore

Posted on January 31, 2021 by Nathan

Onward– This one was up my alley, as I tend to like fantasy and its accoutrements. It has an interesting premise, that a sword-and-sorcery kind of world developed modern technology and became one much like our own, except still inhabited … Continue reading →

Posted in Cartoons, Families, Games, Magic, Monsters, Mythology, Prejudice, Relationships, Revisiting Disney, Technology, VoVat Goes to the Movies | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Guests from Another Game

Posted on September 17, 2020 by Nathan

You might well know by now about my mixed feelings on crossovers, how I love the idea but think they bring their own headaches, particularly when it comes to continuity. What’s kind of strange is that crossovers in the Mario franchise … Continue reading →

Posted in Animal Crossing, Captain N: The Game Master, Cartoons, Dragon Quest, Final Fantasy, Games, Magic, Mario, Metroid, Monsters, Pac-Man, Sonic the Hedgehog, Super Mario Bros. Super Show, Television, Toys, Video Games, Zelda | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Sorting Out Sorcery

Posted on July 30, 2020 by Nathan

One running theme in Glinda of Oz is that there are several different types of magic in Oz, all of which have their specialties, but none of them can do everything. L. Frank Baum contrasts the fairy magic of Ozma … Continue reading →

Posted in Alchemy, Characters, Etymology, Games, Jack Snow, John R. Neill, L. Frank Baum, Language, Magic, Magic Items, Oz, Oz Authors, Politics, Religion, Ruth Plumly Thompson, Technology, Theosophy | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The Devil’s Busy Decade

Posted on June 28, 2020 by Nathan

I had heard of the phrase “Satanic panic” before (hey, it’s very catchy), and had some idea of what it entailed, but I thought it was worth looking into a little more. While there are many components, the phrase largely … Continue reading →

Posted in Christianity, Conspiracy Theories, Cults, Fundamentalism, Games, Magic, Music, Mythology, Religion, Satanism, Wicca | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments