Tag Archives: george macdonald

Hyrule on the Hog

Posted on February 18, 2016 by Nathan

Years ago, I wrote a post on how common people turning into pigs is in mythology and fantasy. More recently, this post on Power of Babel also addressed the theme of pig-people, specifically that of orcs with the heads of … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, Authors, Captain N: The Game Master, Cartoons, Chinese, Dragon Quest, Fairy Tales, Focus on the Foes, Games, J.R.R. Tolkien, Magic, Mario, Monsters, Mythology, Super Mario Bros. Super Show, Television, Video Games, Zelda | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Don’t Let the Earth Get in Your Eyes

Posted on January 16, 2016 by Nathan

Here are my thoughts on some albums I’ve heard recently, some old, some new, some borrowed, and…okay, I don’t think any of them are blue, but I’m not going to double-check the discs to find out. Robyn Hitchcock, A Star … Continue reading →

Posted in Albums, Ben Folds, Carolyn Mark, Fairy Tales, Humor, Music, Rasputina, Robyn Hitchcock, Star Trek, Star Wars, Tori Amos, Weird Al Yankovic | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Death by Common Household Item

Posted on December 14, 2014 by Nathan

I’ve looked before at the Wicked Witch of the West’s vulnerability to water, and mentioned how Ruth Plumly Thompson extended this weakness to dragons and ogres. It’s also the weakness of the aliens from Signs, prompting the frequently asked question … Continue reading →

Posted in Fairy Tales, L. Frank Baum, Magic, Monsters, Mythology, Norse, Oz, Oz Authors, Ruth Plumly Thompson, Urban Legends | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Know Your Gnomes

Posted on December 9, 2014 by Nathan

I’ve been looking into the portrayal of various mythical peoples in works of fiction, and it seems to me that some are much better defined than others. I asked earlier today on Twitter and Facebook what people thought of when … Continue reading →

Posted in Authors, British, C.S. Lewis, Characters, Chronicles of Narnia, Fairy Tales, Games, J.R.R. Tolkien, L. Frank Baum, Monsters, Mythology, Norse, Oz, Oz Authors, Piers Anthony, Ruth Plumly Thompson, Xanth | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

Creatures of Hobbit

Posted on December 2, 2012 by Nathan

I just finished re-reading The Hobbit in preparation for the upcoming movie. For anyone curious, it was the annotated edition with notes by Douglas Anderson. Honestly, I think the annotations are a bit sparse. It took me a while to … Continue reading →

Posted in Authors, Dragon Quest, J.R.R. Tolkien, Video Games | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

Princess Makes Perfect

Posted on June 23, 2011 by Nathan

Pretty much, right? I mean, the story only worked out because the princess not only couldn’t get to sleep because there was a pea under twenty mattresses and twenty featherbeds, but complained about it the next morning. Isn’t that rather … Continue reading →

Posted in Fairy Tales | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Bored in Hyperborea

Posted on December 4, 2010 by Nathan

In Greek mythology, it was said that the land of Hyperborea lay far to the north of the lands the myth-makers knew. The name means “beyond the north wind,” and it was regarded as being to the north of the … Continue reading →

Posted in Astronomy, Christmas, Greek Mythology, Holidays, Mythology, Science | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

The Return of the Nome King Returns

Posted on September 8, 2010 by Nathan

The most frequently recurring villain in the Oz series is Ruggedo, originally known as Roquat, the former Nome King. I would imagine L. Frank Baum didn’t intend to use him so often, but ended up finding him convenient for several … Continue reading →

Posted in Characters, Oz | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 18 Comments