Hiatus?  What hiatus?This week (month) (year) it's The Legend of Luke, which is ... not exactly the kind of material that makes for a triumphal return to podcasting.  LoL does for Redwall a little bit of what Rogue One does for Star Wars, and while it's really fun to see all the iconic stuff we all remember from the first entries into the well-loved series, this prequel doesn't really ... I mean, it kinda never ... that is to say, it sort of ... it just doesn't really bring balance to the Force.  And Chugger ain't no Baby Yoda.  Look, just listen to the episode and you'll see what we're talking about.Kathryn doesn't really like Luke!  Brick doesn't really like continuity errors!  Jacques doesn't really like vermin!  But none of us like absurdly long gaps between episodes, so look out for our next one, coming ... soon!Really!

Welcome to a special eco-friendly episode of The Gatehouse, in which we discuss all the things the Redwall novels are starting to reuse and recycle  — namely character types, scenery, plot points, tropes, and more!  Instead of one Big Bad we have eight of them.  Maybe nine?  Or maybe just one, but recycled seven or eight times?We get a little Shakespearean — Kathryn waxes literary about the use of prologues and poetry, and Brick floats the notion that Marlfox is the story of a marginally more successful Lady Macbeth.  Kathryn fires her headcanons to take Florian Wifflachop’s editorial note at its word and theorize Marlfox as an entirely fictional play written & performed at Redwall, so the stock characters and reused materials make sense as dramatic elements based on myths and legends.Join your ethically sourced, carbon-neutral, and fully biodegradable hosts for another 100% post-consumer-product episode of The Gatehouse as we dig into the 11th book of the Redwall series.

On the heels of Netflix's announcement of their acquisition of the film rights to all 22 Redwall books and the adaptation of Redwall and Martin the Warrior, your Gatehouse pals get together for a quick reaction episode!

 

Kathryn is excited.  Brick's cold, dead heart is still too broken by what Netflix did to Watership Down to be able to love again, and he torments Kathryn with the idea of Cluny being given a tragic backstory.  Kathryn likes the concept art.  Brick's heart grows three sizes at the thought of getting hired by Netflix as story consultants.

 

This minisode happened so quickly that Brick was caught without his usual mic, so we apologize for the occasionally wonky audio levels.  What are your thoughts?  Excited?  Worried?  Blasé?  What do you think the adaptation will change from the books, and will it be good or bad?  What should they change?  Who will make the cut for the voice cast?  Let us know what you think and we'll feature your thoughts in an upcoming episode!

Season Two of The Gatehouse rambles on with the fourteenth Redwall book, The Long Patrol.  Join us for a dive into Brian Jacques' novel that is totally all about World War I: mud, trenches, mechanization, shell shock, and other fun fare for a kids' book about talking animals.  Kathryn posits that War itself is this book's Big Bad (better than Damug Wotsifang).  Brick contends that Tammo's character admits insight into trauma in a way we haven't seen from Salamandastron hares.  Jacques finally runs out of vermin species, and the best thing he can make up for an antagonist is "well, it's a rat, but, like ... bigger."  Cregga gets a stan and Russa gets a fan.  Kathryn tries to define authorial intent, and Brick gripes about a riddle that is terrible, even by Redwall standards.  Lots happening in this episode, so hop into your favorite overstuffed armchair and join your hosts on a march through The Long Patrol.

We're back – and glad of it – with a real, full episode this time!

 

Today, we happily jump back into the world of Redwall to talk about the ottery goodness of the first full novel of our second season, Pearls of Lutra.  We're finally into novels that Kathryn definitely hasn't read before, so she comes to this book as a first-time reader.  We begin as we often do, with an appraisal of the traits and gimmicks main villain (today it's Mad Eyes' mad eyes), then we move on to discuss heroism by committee before turning our attention to Redwall.

 

Brick defends Tansy's choice to throw the Tears of the Sea into the ocean. Kathryn points out that they weren't Tansy's to dispose of. We quibble fervently over Mystic Martin's intervention and whether or not it's crucial. This editor remains neutral and cannot comment on the correctness of either individual. But one person is correct. And the other person is not. (This blurb writer, who is NOT the editor, technically agrees with the foregoing.)

 

Kathryn rants about Dibbuns again. And then, to conclude the episode, Brick is forced to come up with a criticism ... which leads to another Kathryn rant. She talks a lot today. Must be the fresh new season.  Enjoy!

For our holiday bonus episode, we dip our toes into A Redwall Winter's Tale (2001). In classic Krick form, we start with a tangent and progress from there. The artwork of Christopher Denise elicits our highest praise, while  Bungo draws some (reduced for the season) ire.

 

Happy Holidays from the Krickcast.

Your esteemed hosts don't know when to quit while they're ahead and decide to record some afterthoughts on Ray Bradbury's continually engrossing Something Wicked This Way Comes.  In this episode filled with hypotheticals and conjectures, they ponder whether or not Mr. Dark is actually human, and the implications of either answer.  After repeated promises to start posting more Redwall episodes, our hosts luckily remember to shut off their mics before drifting into their respective Thanksgiving dinner comas.

Welcome to the final episode on Ray Bradbury’s novel Something Wicked This Way Comes (1962). 

Due to unavoidable and unpredictable life circumstances, our plan for recording and editing this episode on time to get it out for Halloween was ... not possible. But, emergencies happen, you deal with them, and then you make a new plan.

enter ... Krickcast Undead! It's not quite a live episode, because we did record it and add our intro/outro ... but it is otherwise Just Like Live. No edits. All rambles.

In this episode, we wrap up our reactions to the book and discuss what we saw as the unifying weave of the novel. Brick manages to bring in Flannery O'Connor, while Kathryn mumbles, again, about how much she likes the book.

Welcome to the second of three episodes on Ray Bradbury’s novel Something Wicked This Way Comes (1962). 

We continue to love this book. In this episode, though, Kathryn talks about this section of the novel as relatively weak. Brick is unmoved by the Dust Witch. We both dwell on Bradbury's descriptive language and emphasis on empathy.

As promised, the brisk winds of October are sweeping past, but carrying holiday delight along with them. This is the first of three episodes on Ray Bradbury's novel Something Wicked This Way Comes (1962).

In this episode, we dive right into discussing all the elements we liked -- the characters, the feel, the prose, Charles Halloway, and the spooky thrill of hovering threat. Brick waxes eloquent about nostalgia, while Kathryn struggles to say anything beyond, "I love this book." We both love this book.

Note: Because it is us, we also spent about fifty minutes arguing about the book's conception of the way in which evil functions ... Our editor declared, "Enough! This is already long enough!" and excised that section. The recording, however, does still exist and may make an appearance at some point if there is enough popular (or unpopular) demand.