WTF WEDNESDAY! OF FRAGGLES, DEATH, PONIES, & WIZARDS!

FRAGGLE ROCK- OF DEATH & PUPPETS

I have a special place in my heart dedicated to the works of Jim Henson, except... that place isn't for the normally beloved Jim Henson projects that come to the mind of the majority-- I think of Labyrinth, The Dark Crystal, Muppet Babies, Dinosaurs and, of course, Fraggle Rock, before I ever think of Sesame Street or The Muppets-- because of the strange place at which I am positioned as a member of Gen Y. Some of the Henson projects I love are clearly inferior to others or had serious problems, and most I caught in reruns that were a time capsule of their era, but Fraggle Rock is a show that is timeless and special.

Fraggle Rock (1983-1987) was a live-action puppet show about the trials and tribulations of the cave-dwelling, fun-loving but still grim, song-singing Fraggles of Fraggle Rock that lived in a world that was constantly trying to capture, squish, or eat them. Unlike most shows of this basic sort of premise, the Fraggles main cast were developing characters that grew and changed over time and dealt with deeper issues ranging from personal crisis to questions about the the meaning of life. The show's production values and writing were fantastic for a children's show and I hope they try to reboot or continue this franchise soon.

JAPANESE MY LITTLE PONY: FRIENDSHIP IS MAGIC INTRO

私はマイ·リトル·ポニー:友情は魔法ですが大好き。しかし、私はしばらくショーを見ていない。

WIZARD OF THE WEST!

 So, this, this right here, is pretty much the sort of Live Action TV Show I could get behind-- its got ridiculous melodrama, whimsy, action, fantasy and "nosebones". Regardless, there is nothing you can do to stop me from enjoying this Wizard of the West clip from the makers of Charlie the Unicorn, filmcow.

WORD OF THE DAY! 6/9/12.

Arthurian [ahr-thoor-ee-uhn]
adjective
1. Of or pertaining to King Arthur, who, with his knights, formed the subject of large part of medieval romance.

EX.Pictured above and below you can see the Muppets cast dressed as characters from Arthurian lore and, to be honest, I would love to see a Muppets film based on the premise. It would, basically, be a FUNNIER version of Monty Python. That's right Holy Grail fans. I'm calling you out.

Muppet Treasure Island and the Muppet Christmas Carol were two great examples of a Muppets genre parody.

BILLY BONES DEATH SCENE

And the Star Wars episode of Muppet Babies is a lost treasure. It even includes a Jetsons parody and a Star Trek parody. The people who made the show must've been having a lot of fun drawing their characters in cool outfits.

THIS IS INSANE?!

THE BEST OF WORD OF THE DAY & A NEW MISSION!

A portrait of your benevolent blogger

Starting this month, I will be trying to pull this blog back to some of its roots. Looking back to last year, I found that my Word of the Day's used to be a lot more in-depth and analytical. In order to continue to improve my blog, and to explore the world of science fiction, fantasy, and story-telling theory, I am going to pursue loftier heights with some of my Word of the Day Articles.

In the future, expect the articles to get a good bit wordier.

Also, expect to see more articles like this as the blog gets bigger to help bring new readers up to date and share some of the best content I have in my archives. Expect a round-up of the more touching/fantastic/bizarre Word of the Days in the future. For example a round up of Pokemon articles, Unicorn articles, and a round-up of my most creative uses of the Word of the Day.

To celebrate this new chapter or milestone or pointless moment in the march forward (or in any relative direction) here are links to some of the more interesting and intellectual Word of the Day's I've done. They are less about creative or funny flights of folly and more analytical. Check them out and make sure to leave comments. Expect the whimsical and the witty.

WORD OF THE DAY! 11/1711

wraith [reyth]
noun
1. a visible spirit.
2. an apparition of a living person supposed to portend his or her death.
3. a ghost

specter [spek-ter]
noun
1. a visible incorporeal spirit, especially one of terrifying nature; a ghost; a phantom; an apparition.
2. some object or source of terror and dread.

EX. The Muppets had only just left the shire when they were forced to hide from the ghoulish specter of a wraith king. Later they would learn the Ringwraith was named Lord Sweetie Pie.

Word of the Day. 9/20/11

Word of the Day

craven [krey-vuhn]

 adjective

1. contemptibly timid, cowardly or chicken.

noun

1. coward

rogue [rohg]

noun

1. a thief.

2. a dishonest knave and/or scoundrel.

3. a tramp or vagabond

4. a playfully mischievous person

HIS NAME IS HOG-GLE!

Most fans of Labyrinth seem to be girls, and most girls have a favorite character and that character is not Hoggle. Hoggle is a nasty, little, cowardly, thieving, greedy, ugly, mean and contemptible goblin. He hunts fairies with poison spray, he runs at the first sign of trouble, and only wants to help Sarah if it is profitable. Yet, not only is he one of my favorite characters of all-time, but he is my personal example of the archetype of  a rogue.

 

First, lets tackle his first scene. Not only do we have the pleasure of watching a muppet pee into a pond, but we get to see him gas pretty little pixies with a spray gun. At first, Sarah thinks this is terrible but after one bites her, she realizes Hoggle may not be all he seems. All things that are beautiful are not necessarily good and all things that are ugly are not necessarily bad.

Hoggle is the first person Sarah meets in the Labyrinth and she asks for his help. He gives it, plainly, but she doesn't follow his instruction well. After ending up in a pit, they meet up again and he offers to help her escape the bowls under the Labyrinth and even get to the castle in exchange for a piece of jewelry made of "plastic" (haha). Yes, he may seem greedy to us but look around his environment. Its not easy for a goblin in the Labyrinth. He has never met anyone like Sarah and this begins his own transformation.

In the Wizard of Oz, Dorothy meets three characters that are missing something. In Labyrinth, Hoggle has no heart and no courage but he does have is brains and know-how. He is a rogue. A thief but he is not mean or cruel. He tries to help Sarah escape the Labyrinth and only leaves when it becomes too dangerous for him to continue. He soon becomes the biggest risk in Sarah's gang of weirdos when Jareth threatens to throw Hoggle in the Bog of Eternal Stench if he helps her again. Hoggle leaves her when he sees the threat of Ludo but returns to save her from the Fire Men. He becomes Sarah's friend but not for long. Jareth makes Hoggle poison her with a piece of corrupt fruit. Hoggle has to hit a low point 

 before he can become...*drum roll* A HERO!

 

In the last act of the movie, when they reach the castle, Hoggle has to become a hero. Hoggle not only defeats the gate guardian robot in single combat by using his roguish climbing skills but he defends Sarah from the goblin army. Hoggle is not big like Ludo nor as brave as Sir Didymus but he learns a lesson that will always stick with me. The first way we learn to be brave is by protecting our friends. He doesn't become a hero for any greedy or vain reason. He does so to protect Sarah and his friends. Hoggle is a great symbol for the little clever dwarf thief in all of us.

And he will always be there should the need arise for him to come to her aid!

MUSICAL MONDAY! David Bowie in LABYRINTH's MAGIC DANCE!

Msuical Monday!

DAVID BOWIE in LABYRINTH's MAGIC DANCE

CLICK HERE FOR MAGIC DANCE! 

INSIDE THE LABYRINTH DOCUMENTARY 

 Continuing with our theme of Labyrinth, I've attached links to the Inside the Labyrinth and Magic Dance videos on youtube. Enjoy. 

The Labyrinth is really special. How so? Well, for starters it is a musical that centers around a single artist or band, and it doesn't suck. Besides Across the Universe, which doesn't have any of the Beatles in it as far as I can remember, this is the only film of that genre that I not only enjoy but can watch again and again. I think part of the reason it works is that, rather than taking already existing Bowie songs and cramming them into an overstuffed movie or trying to build some Bowie mythos it does none of these things. It is a completely unique creature and that is why it has gained cult movie status. Perhaps the hammiest but most cult classic song of the bunch is Magic Dance.

These guys are party animals. Seriously.

I'd like to begin by talking about what is so hammy and lame about the song. First, Magic Dance, which may be the lamest and most uninspired song ever. Furthermore, this scene really doesn't play into the plot or establish any new information besides the following, Jareth is a bit of a silly tit and his servants really do love him. He is mean, insulting, and even cruel but it is all done with style and panache. With all his powers, it really would've made you wonder why he'd be King of the Goblins if it wasn't for his sillyness.

Yet, what is the real strength of this scene? Bowie's energy bringing an instant jolt of fun and the opening lyrics, 

You remind me of the babe.

What babe?

The babe with the power.

What power?

The power of voodoo.

Who do?

You do.

Do what?

Remind me of the babe.

This neat little Dr. Seussian poem sets us up for fun and is extremely easy to remember. I really love to find other fans of this movie by just saying, "You remind me of the babe," and seeing who chimes in. This is what we call a hook, song/movie fans, and it really is all you need. The rest of the song is kind of silly but that's the fun of it. Pure fun. Goblin puppets singing, chickens doding footfalls and a baby being thrown through the air, giggling.

Fun fact, the baby giggles in the song are actually David Bowie. In the documentary, Inside the Labyrinth, Bowie remarks about the difficulties of working with a baby and how at one point where the couldn't get the baby to cry he just wanted to kick it. Add the chickens, puppets and other miscellanea and its easy to see why this was a challenging music video to pull off.

Is Magic Dance the best song in the movie? Nope. The best song is probably at the very end with As the World Falls down. The final battle song is really an impressive feat. But for every Yang you must have a Ying and thats what Magic Dance is in the end. The positive note in a dark fantasy for children-young and old.

Word of the Day. 9/18/11

Word of the Day

Today's word of the day is actually quite serious business. Not only is it one of my favorite words of all time, it also the title of my favorite Jim Henson movie and, perhaps, my favorite architectural structure. Today's word is...

labyrinth [lab-uh-rinth]

noun

1. An intricate combination of hallways, paths and passages that make it difficult to reach the exit.

2. A maze made of tall hedges, either built for the amusement of trying to find the exit or for the aesthetic complexity.

3. A complicated and/or confusing arrangement of streets.

4. A bamboozling complex or bewildering puzzle

I could use the word to talk about the Minotaur of Crete and Theseus but I think I'll leave that sort of talk for another article. Today and hey, this week, I want to talk about Jim Henson's 1986 film, Labyrinth. 

GOBLIN KING, GOBLIN KING 

We ain't in Kansas no more.

This film is special. It is the Wizard of Oz of my childhood (and we had Wizard of Oz too). Yet, something about Wizard of Oz is so different. The difference being the dark imagination of illustrator Brian Froud was brought to life by the puppet sculpting genius of Henson Studios, a story by the collective mad genius of Jim Henson, Dennis Lee, Terry Jones and Elaine May, and all feeding off the charisma of David Bowie. Everyone has their own idea of Bowie in their mind's eye. Some people see the Bowie of Ziggy Stardust, some see the more settled Bowie who sang Drummer Boy, but I see the Bowie as the Goblin King. I love the story told here but its easy to forget where it all begins.

Thanks to Jennifer Connely's performance as Sarah I will always have a bit of my heart out there for bookish girls with dark hair. Sarah is a 15-year old girl who enjoys acting, reading and, therefore, lives much of her life in her imagination. More than anything, Labyrinth is a tale of her growing up from a child (or is it?) The story begins with out heroine returning home in a rain storm, her pretty gown costume sopping wet and her mother irritated with her (Her "evil" stepmother won't even let the English Sheepdog inside the house because he is wet). She is then informed that she is responsible for babysitting her infant brother until the two return from an evening party. Sarah probably laments that she is given all this responsibility and is still treated like a child. Sarah is like Belle from Beauty and the Beast. She spends all her time reading books (nothing wrong with that) and is obsessed with fairy tales (so much so, her imagination can get away from her).

She goes to her room and when he spots that one of her many stuffed animals, Lancelot, has gone missing she becomes a little upset. She becomes absolutely petulant when she discovers that her stepmother gave it her baby brother, Toby. Sarah becomes angry, taking the toy away (on one hand, immature, but on the other, why doesn't Toby have his own stuffed bear?) and this makes Toby start to cry. Desperate to have him stop and a bit apologetic, she takes her baby brother and tells him a story to calm his nerves.

She begins telling him the story of a Goblin King and a girl he gave special powers because of their love. She then tells him that one day the girl grew furious with her baby brother crying all the time and she wishes the goblins to take him away (they did). Meanwhile, hiding behind the 4th wall of her reality are a bunch of silly looking goblins waiting to hear her say "I wish..." When she leaves Toby in the bed, still crying, she turns off the light and says, "I wish the goblins would come and take you away. Right now."This off-hand remark is enough. Toby stops crying. Concerned,she rushes back into the room to find that Toby has disappeared. 

This is when our antagonist makes his most dramatic appearance. A large owl flies in the window and transforms into Jareth, the Goblin King (David Bowie). This bewitching wizard expects a thank you from Sarah for granting her wish and getting rid of the babe. She tells him that she didn't mean it. This begins the game. Jareth, is a pretty damn powerful wizard and so he makes a deal. If she can make it to the center of his Labyrinth in 13 hours, she can have Toby back. If she fails, he will be turned into a goblin!

Doesn't look so hard.

Thus begins Sarah's quest to find her brother in the wacky world of the Labyrinth. Rather than keep synopsis the story I want to analyze Sarah as the symbol of adolescence.

 This is one of Jennifer Connely's first roles so her performance isn't award worthy but for the role it is just fine. Furthermore, she gives, at the very least, a much more believable performance than Judy Garland's Dorothy. Sarah is an archetype that borrows from Alice in Wonderland and the Wizard of Oz. The girl on the cusp of womanhood thrust into a dangerous and fantastic world. Yet, unlike Alice or Dorothy here quest is not strictly a selfish one. She is there to save her little brother. This means she has far more to lose than just being trapped in the fantastic land. In fact, several times, Sarah is tempted to stay. She is torn between two worlds.

On one hand, she is still in love with childhood. Growing up, for many, means letting go of fantasy and sinking into the dull rhythm of reality. This manifests in her selfishness in her scene where she takes the bear away from Toby. Her possessions are like little treasures to her but they seem to hold her back (at least when thought of as so important). This gets her into real trouble when she is seduced by a trash witch who brings her into her old room. The witch begins literally piling all of her possessions onto her back but she realizes that they're not treasures. They're just things! She refuses the material culture of childhood and breaks free of the witch's grasp. This shows she is able to overcome her desire to live in a fantasy world.

The next challenge, is her desire to grow up. In the film, this is related with Jareth tempting Sarah with power and adulthood. He tricks her into eating a poisoned peach (innocence) and she falls into a dream. In the dream she is at a masquerade and is the gorgeous center of attention. All the while, the Goblin King is trying to seduce her. It is a bit dark to think of Gareth, played by a middle aged Bowie, trying to seduce the young woman but remember that this world is (for better or worse) made up of Sarah's fantasies. There is nothing creepy about a teenage boy fantasizing about an older woman so why is it wrong for her to fantasize about a KING? In the end, she not only resists these temptations but breaks away from him. She realizes that adulthood is not so simple.

Being an adult doesn't mean you should abandon all childish things. The characters of our imagination helped establish right from wrong and created friendships that don't end. The beauty of it all is that though she has to return to reality and begin accepting reality, her friends will always be there. As Hoggle says, "Should you need us."

Party Time!

Tomorrow I will cover Jareth and the music of Labyrinth.  The word of the day will have to do with Hoggle. I'm going to try and give you guys a lot of Labyrinth articles so forgive me for my silliness.