Tag Archives: jim henson

Marooned in Fraggle Rock by Barbara McClintock

Marooned in Fraggle Rock by David Young, illustrated by Barbara McClintock: Red and Boober wander off together so the others can finish preparing for Boober’s surprise birthday party, and are trapped by a cave-in. The characterization and dialogue were spot-on with my memories of the show (a favorite from childhood), and the illustrations were great. The story was surprisingly dark and scary. A happy ending is assured, of course, but there’s a lot going on here. Which is what made Henson’s creations so compelling: even the children’s shows have layers and complexity. Add some wonderful music and you have the show distilled into book form.

Also posted on BookCrossing.

The Storyteller: Greek Myths

The Storyteller: Greek Myths: A short-lived series (only four episodes), telling the stories of Perseus & Medusa, Icarus & Daedalus, Theseus & the Minotaur, and Orpheus & Eurydice. We actually watched the episodes in reverse order, but it didn’t matter much: with the exception of actually seeing the Storyteller and his dog enter the Labyrinth, there wasn’t much plot outside the myths themselves anyway. It was a little weird to see Dumbledore as a scruffy, beardless Greek dude, but he made a good narrator. While the tales themselves were brilliant – good acting, beautiful costumes, amazing creatures, horrible wigs – this is not something I would necessarily recommend for small children. None of the stories end happily, which actually brings a refreshing honesty to the production. The myths were mostly tragedies; it’s nice to see an authentic retelling. I wish the Henson Company did more like this. Not just other Storyteller series (I haven’t seen the other one yet, but it’s in the Netflix queue), but other shows for adults. I love the Muppets, but I can never get enough of the gorgeous puppetry and effects of Farscape, Mirrormask, and The Dark Crystal.

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