Tag Archives: phanfasms

I Like Birds

Posted on April 13, 2019 by Nathan

When I linked to my last Oz post on Facebook, people gave a few more examples of birds I hadn’t mentioned, including some people turned into birds and other birds from authors outside the Famous Forty. I believe the first … Continue reading →

Posted in Animals, Characters, Chris Dulabone, David Tai, Edward Einhorn, Eloise Jarvis McGraw, Eric Shanower, Gina Wickwar, Hugh Pendexter, Jack Snow, Jared Davis, L. Frank Baum, Magic, Magic Items, Marcus Mebes, Melody Grandy, Oz, Oz Authors, Phyllis Ann Karr, Ruth Plumly Thompson | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Conflict, Controversy, and Contradiction in Oz

Posted on January 19, 2018 by Nathan

Finally, I’ve been able to read and review some new Oz material! There are some significant spoilers in this post. The Royal Explorers of Oz, Book 4: Into the Wild, by Marcus Mebes and Alejandro Garcia – What was originally … Continue reading →

Posted in Babylonian, Book Reviews, Characters, Chris Dulabone, Jared Davis, Jeff Rester, L. Frank Baum, Magic, Magic Items, Marcus Mebes, Marin Elizabeth Xiques, Monsters, Music, Mythology, Oz, Oz Authors, Places, Ruth Plumly Thompson, Semitic, Sexuality | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Use Your Illusion

Posted on September 16, 2017 by Nathan

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

Oz Con Artists

Posted on June 15, 2016 by Nathan

I’ve written before about how L. Frank Baum’s position on trickery is somewhat mixed. As someone who had worked as a salesman, he knew the value of a certain amount of balderdash in order to sell things to people. And … Continue reading →

Posted in Characters, John R. Neill, L. Frank Baum, Magic, Oz, Oz Authors | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Goodhearted and Good Fellowing, We Gaily Go Umbrellowing

Posted on October 9, 2014 by Nathan

The Magic Umbrella of Oz, by Paul Dana – The follow-up to The Law of Oz sees Button-Bright and Ojo further developing their magic, and trying to fight off the nasty Piper who had created the Phanfasms. The Piper recruits … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, Book Reviews, Characters, Dick Martin, Jared Davis, John R. Neill, Magic, Magic Items, Oz, Oz Authors | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

Mildly Vile

Posted on August 14, 2012 by Nathan

The thing about writing villains for children’s media is that much of the villainy is often implied. Villains make violent threats, but are rarely able to carry them out, for whatever reason. That way they can be seen as evil … Continue reading →

Posted in Characters, Focus on the Foes, L. Frank Baum, Oz, Oz Authors | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Nome Invasions

Posted on December 14, 2010 by Nathan

I’ve already discussed the constant invasion attempts of the former Nome King, but this time I’d like to take a closer look at the individual attempts. The first occurs in The Emerald City of Oz, in which King Roquat’s goal … Continue reading →

Posted in Characters, Magic Items, Oz | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 9 Comments

Drifting Off to Dreamland

Posted on September 21, 2010 by Nathan

If you look at the map of the countries surrounding Oz from the endpapers of Tik-Tok of Oz, you’ll notice that the area just to the east (which is left on this map for some reason) of the Growleywogs’ territory … Continue reading →

Posted in Dreams, Oz, Places | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments