Tag Archives: hell

The Academic Abyss

Posted on April 16, 2026 by Nathan

Katabasis, by R.F. Kuang – The title is an ancient Greek term for a journey to the underworld, and that is what happens in this book. It’s set in a world where magic is a respected academic discipline, and the … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, Book Reviews, Chinese, Christianity, Education, Greek Mythology, Hinduism, Humor, Magic, Maps, Monsters, Mythology, Relationships, Religion, Roman, Technology | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Psaro Gets Pstarted

Posted on May 16, 2024 by Nathan

Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince – One reason I was anxious to play Chapter 6 of Dragon Quest IV is that this game kind of follows up on it, with the same writer being involved. Here, you play as Psaro, … Continue reading →

Posted in Dragon Quest, Focus on the Foes, Food, Magic, Monsters, Music, Relationships, Video Games | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

You Can’t Keep a Good Dog Down

Posted on January 15, 2024 by Nathan

These are the movies we watched this weekend. There are SPOILERS for all three. Pontypool – The movie is named after the village in Ontario where it takes place, although I’m not sure how much of the actual place is … Continue reading →

Posted in Animals, Cartoons, Dreams, Holidays, Language, Music, Television, The Flintstones, Valentine's Day, VoVat Goes to the Movies | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Wyld Stallyns Rule!

Posted on November 21, 2023 by Nathan

Since so many long-dormant franchises have been resurfacing as of late, it’s not all that surprising that we got a new Bill and Ted movie. It came out three years ago now, but we only just got around to watching … Continue reading →

Posted in Cartoons, Celebrities, History, Humor, Language, Music, Technology, Television, VoVat Goes to the Movies | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Anthony’s Animals, Part 2: Plus Plants

Posted on November 12, 2023 by Nathan

Continuing from my earlier post on fantastic beings in Gustave Flaubert’s The Temptation of Saint Anthony, here are a few other sorts of mythical animals who appear but don’t get lines: a Tragelaphus, Myrmecoles, Askar, Pastincaca, Presteros, Mirag, Phalamant, Senad, … Continue reading →

Posted in African, Animals, Arabian, Art, Chinese, Dragon Quest, Egyptian, Final Fantasy, Islam, Japanese, L. Frank Baum, Monsters, Mythology, Oz, Oz Authors, Poetry, Pokémon, Religion, Video Games | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Did It Hurt When You Fell from Heaven?

Posted on October 29, 2023 by Nathan

I first learned about Genesis B through Alice K. Turner’s The History of Hell. It’s an Old English poem included in a longer one called, not surprisingly, Genesis A. Of course, that wasn’t what people called them at the time. They … Continue reading →

Posted in Christianity, Greek Mythology, History, Islam, Judaism, Language, Mythology, Poetry, Religion, Semitic, Zoroastrianism | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Cities of the Damned

Posted on April 16, 2023 by Nathan

The idea of the world of the dead as a physical place is fascinating to me, probably at least partially because I love maps. Whether people in ancient times who wrote about such things genuinely believed that the Underworld had … Continue reading →

Posted in Christianity, Etymology, Final Fantasy, Greek Mythology, Language, Maps, Monsters, Mythology, Poetry, Religion, Roman, Video Games | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

These Judges Are Such Cretans

Posted on April 12, 2023 by Nathan

When the world of the dead is presented as a place of reward or punishment, as has become pretty standard, that generally means that someone has to decide who goes where. The Underworld of Greek mythology came to have three … Continue reading →

Posted in Animals, Art, Greek Mythology, Monsters, Mythology, Poetry, Roman, Video Games | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

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 , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

Roland in the Deep

Posted on January 24, 2023 by Nathan

I think I first heard of Ludovico Ariosto’s Orlando Furioso in a blurb about C.S. Lewis comparing J.R.R. Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings to it. Well, they do both have a magic ring that makes people invisible, and a monster … Continue reading →

Posted in Animals, Arthurian Legend, Authors, Book Reviews, British, C.S. Lewis, Characters, Christianity, French, Greek Mythology, Islam, J.R.R. Tolkien, L. Frank Baum, Magic, Magic Items, Monsters, Music, Mythology, Names, Oz, Oz Authors, Poetry, Relationships, Religion, Ruth Plumly Thompson, Video Games, William Shakespeare | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments