Greeks and Geeks

Today we're not just comparing the differences between the book and the film of Howl's Moving Castle, but the psychological differences and the childhood influences of both creators (Diana Wynne Jones and Hayao Miyazaki) to see how that impacts the ideas both stories contain. How can a story with an identical premise and create two vastly different outcomes?

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References:
https://www.cartoonbrew.com/anime/miyazakis-quiet-protest-15318.html 

Rudd, D. (2010). Building Castles in the Air: (De)Construction in “Howl’s Moving Castle.” Journal of the Fantastic in the Arts, 21(2 (79)), 257–270. http://www.jstor.org/stable/24352209

https://www.newsweek.com/positive-pessimist-119801 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4BbhWrjIImg

http://www.nausicaa.net/miyazaki/interviews/m_speech.html

http://www.nausicaa.net/miyazaki/interviews/m_speech.html 

Diana Wynne Jones' autobiography

Clytemnestra often gets a bad rep for being the "bad wife" of Greek Mythology. It's pretty tricky to excuse husband killing but when you're married to Agamemnon, it's a bit more understandable.

Today we're sitting down to chat with the wonderful Hannah Lynn, winner of the Kindle Storyteller Award, to discuss her book "A Spartan's Sorrow."

Follow Hannah Lynn/Buy her books here:
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Buy a Spartan's Sorrow

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Why do we love magical communication devices? This episode will look and fantasy stories such as Percy Jackson, Dungeons and Dragons, Divine Rivals and Avatar the Last Airbender to find out when magical communication is necessary, when it's cliche and why we especially like magic in romance.

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In the final days of 2024, Christopher Nolan’s Odyssey was announced to released in Summer of 2026. We had an immediate list of cast members but no roles attached to their names as of that point. People. Went. Nuts. Christopher Nolan is such a well loved director and The Odyssey is a timeless epic. 

In this episode, let's discuss predictions for the movie, hopes and some worries too. We'll also discuss the controversies and inaccuracies that are already coming out from the production images.

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Greeks and Geeks Discord server (21+ years old only please!):

https://discord.gg/p4RtC7BA 

Promo images:

https://www.polygon.com/news/525433/christopher-nolan-odyssey-matt-damon-historical-accuracy-still-good 

The final episode of series 3 looks at Epic the Musical: The Underworld saga. Let's compare it to the original Odyssey and analyse the lyrics of the darkest saga in the musical yet.

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In this episode we'll be comparing the original tale of Orpheus and Eurydice to the musical Hadestown and taking a deep dives into the musical. How has this tale of doomed love been updated for a modern age?

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References:
Greeka
Ovid's Orpheus and Augustan Ideology- Charles Segal
Theoi
Virgil's Orpheus and Eurydice
Genius lyrics (to read the lyrics for Hadestown)
Hadestown- Orginal Broadway Album and the live show I saw in London! :D

In this episode we'll be exploring the Underworld of Percy Jackson in the first book series, Percy Jackson and the Olympians, as well as the TV show on Disney Plus and yes... I will be joining Rick in giving the first movie a thorough roasting.

How does the Underworld in Percy Jackson compare to the ancient myths? Does it ring true or not?

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Part 3 of of Underworld themed episodes! Hades is one of the best games of the decade so far, but is a game based on Greek Mythology accurate? Did Supergiant really do their homework? Today we're looking at the many layers of the Hades video game!

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References:
The Oresteia on audible

Also available on BBC: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b03pd7kv
The episode of In Our Time which discusses the Oresteia: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p003k9fk

https://www.britannica.com/topic/Zagreus

https://www.britannica.com/topic/Orphic-religion 

https://www.loebclassics.com/view/aeschylus-attributed_fragments/2009/pb_LCL505.237.xml 

https://poets.org/poem/iliad-book-i-lines-1-15 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BpLDi4_dRL8 

The Iliad/ The Odyssey- Emily Wilson translations

Greek Myths That Shape the Way We Think- Richard Buxton

The myth of Hades and Persephone has been fascinating to romance writers and readers alike, but their foundational  Greek myth is more of a tale of kidnap and grief than it is anything romantic. How could Hades and Persphone end up being one of the most frequently retold romantic stories? Today we're going to look at the Homeric Hymn to Demeter, Hesiod, and discuss why their story might be a compelling romance.

 

Bibliography

https://fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/explore-our-collection/highlights/context/stories-and-histories/eleusis-myth-and-mysteries#:~:text=The%20temple%20of%20Demeter%20at,made%20to%20Demeter%20at%20Eleusis.

https://www.theoi.com/Cult/DemeterTitles.html

https://www.oxfordreference.com/display/10.1093/oi/authority.20111010143853768#:~:text=Epithets%20which%20euphemistically%20address%20his,Pluton%20('Wealth').

https://chs.harvard.edu/primary-source/homeric-hymn-to-demeter-sb/ 

Mystery Cults in the Ancient World- novel

Girl, Goddess, Queen- Bea Fitzgerald

https://www.theoi.com/image/R14.1Haides.jpg 

To celebrate spooky month, we're going on a tour of the Underworld of Greek mythology! Ancient Greece had a fascinating relationship with the afterlife and the myths about death and Hades are iconic. Today we're going to go on a guided tour of the Underworld and find out, what is the ancient Greek Underworld? Where do souls go? What is the afterlife really like in ancient greek myths? What is Asphodel, Tartarus and Elysium?

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References:
Mystery Cults of the Ancient World
Theoi
The Afterlife of Ancient Greece
The Odyssey and the Iliad- Emily Wilson translations
And of course a bit of ye olde wikipedia!
Pixaby for sound effects