Episode 45 - War of the Rohirrim Review

Last year, a Lord of the Rings movie was released that garnered little attention. We give our review of The War of the Rohirrim, along with thoughts on Tolkien-esque storytelling, Japanese perspective, spiritual themes in Tolkien’s books, and what people expect from tales about Middle Earth.

SPOILER ALERT: we give notice when we are about to discuss an event that happens later in the movie (starting 18:15), though we never give away the ending.

Note: Production companies included New Line Cinema, Warner Bros. Animation, WingNut Films, Sola Entertainment, Domain Entertainment (II).

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Have you seen The War of the Rohirrim? What did you think of it?

Episode 44 - Reflections on Lilo & Stitch

With the release of Disney’s live-action remake on the horizon, Jason and Karlissa discuss what made 2002’s Lilo & Stitch among Disney’s best animated movies, diving into fun trivia about the art, voice acting, and storytelling.

This episode contains SPOILERS for the 2002 Lilo & Stitch!

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Are you more optimistic about the upcoming live-action Lilo & Stitch? Will you be watching it in theatres? Let us know in the comments!

Episode 43 – Interview with Fantasy Author H.M. Richardson

Karlissa J is joined by Heidi Richardson, Canadian author of the Tower of the Deep series, to discuss what inspired her to write, why she chose to write fantasy, and some strategies she used in creating her fantasy world.

 

Synopsis for book one, The Prisoner and the Traitor:

Hennelyn is only fourteen, born into a fierce, warlike race – the Starkhons. Her father, General Tai Kanow, has orders to conquer and enslave the remaining indigenous people who are still living free on the prairie toes of a beautiful mountain range west of the established Starkhon territories. These small people who were first in this land call themselves Bunjis.

But Hennelyn is also the daughter of a woman from Luina, whose people are peaceful and kind. After being put in charge of her father’s first captured Bunji in their prairie outpost, Hennelyn finds herself drawn to the young man. She feels a need to act – but which legacy should she choose, her father’s or her mother’s?

The bunji’s life is in her hands. She must decide what to do… even if her chosen path costs her everything.

 

Visit Heidi’s Amazon Author page: https://www.amazon.ca/stores/Heidi-Richardson/author/B09QLW84NS?ref=ap_rdr&isDramIntegrated=true&shoppingPortalEnabled=true

Episode 41 - Superheroes, Comics, and Fantasy... oh my!

Time to nerd out! When is a superhero story not a superhero story? Jason is given the chance to gush about one of his favourite subjects as he and Karlissa J discuss movies, shows, comics, Batman, Spiderman, and even Shadow the Hedgehog.

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What is your favourite superhero story? Let us know in the comments!

Episode 39 – The End… Why Does It Mean So Much?

Jason takes over to ask the question: why does the way a story ends matter so much to us? Are we being fair by judging the story by its ending? Or do we miss out on the journey by emphasizing the end? Karlissa and Jason give some insights into their own writing process, explore thoughts on genre, and reflect on what they read growing up.

Spoilers for Treasure Planet (Disney)!

Episode 37 - Animal Stories

Karlissa has recently read Watership Down (Richard Adams), so we’re going to talk about novels with animal protagonists, with a focus on the rabbit tale – including thoughts about the movie!

New vocabulary: Animal Xenofiction (stories told from the perspective of an animal)

Books Mentioned: Warriors (Erin Hunter), Redwall (Brian Jacques), Guardians of Ga’Hoole (Katherine Lasky), Silverwing (Kenneth Oppel), The Incredible Journey (Sheila Burnfield), Jim Kjelgaard books, Walt Morey books, Sonic the Hedgehog stories, The Ark, the Reed, and the Fire Cloud (Jenny L. Cote), Runt the Brave (Daniel Schwabauer), The Green Ember (S.D. Smith).

Join the conversation!

What is your favourite animal-led novel? Let us know in the comments!