Tar Valon Or Bust

In which Jenn and Preeti talk about martyr complexes vs. sidekick syndrome, Mary Stewart: Action Writer, how epic this last section is, and one hell of an Author's Note. For those reading the ebook version, which...

In which Merlin realizes how bad he is at people, two times over, and we talk about pivotal moments in Arthurian lore, three generations of unacknowledged royal boys, and .... apples? Castiel (June) House of Harkness...

<p>In which Merlin is bad at people in several ways, we love Cador of Cornwall, and the atmospheric writing is off the chain.</p><br><p>Castiel (June)</p><br><p>House of Harkness (July) </p><br><p>DragonCon...

<p>In which there are several big discussions about Herms, class and its impact on publishing, anachronisms in historical fiction, and then the actual section -- which is very funny AND very foreboding all at...

<p>In which Preeti talks about ghosts, Jenn talks about layers, and they both cannot even with Stewart's linguistic stylings.</p><br><p>In Your Spare Time - Ursula K. LeGuin...

<p>In which this very short section gives Jenn and Preeti so many feelings, especially about high fantasy and how Stewart does (and doesn't) write it. And horses!</p><br><p>CASSIEL’S SERVANT by Jacqueline...

<p>In which Jenn and Preeti love this new, fancy-free Merlin, at least until things get EXTREMELY uncomfortable with Morgause.</p><br><p>Next episode: The Search: Sections 6-8 inclusive</p><br><p>Get more of Brett...

<p>In between all the descriptions of trees and Arthur lustily wailing, there's some really interesting stuff -- song callbacks, Merlin's "gap year", Mary Stewart's version of known characters ... and then some real...

<p>In which not that much happens actually, despite a lot of build-up, and Jenn and Preeti talk about narrative and meta-narrative, anxiety and prophecy, and lots of interesting parallels. </p><br><p>Next episode: The...

<p>In which Preeti and Jenn return to the world of Mary Stewart's Arthurian Saga, can't remember very much, are gob-smacked by how it starts, and have a lot of theories and questions. Also, big love for...

<p>In which Jenn and Preeti work their way through The Green Knight by David Lowery, starring Dev Patel, with sidebars into Sir Gawain and the Green Knight by The Gawain Poet! So many colors! So many vignettes! So many...

<p>In which Preeti and Jenn revisit Guy Ritchie's King Arthur: Legend of the Sword, which is actually two different movies (one of which is actually a video game), and possibly the least "King Arthur" Arthurian movie...

<p>In which Jenn and Preeti take back any nice things they ever said about Uther, have wildly different memories of this section, are gobsmacked by the fight but less enthused about the pages and pages of descriptions...

<p>In which Preeti and Jenn discuss Merlin's (lack of) interiority, Mary Stewart's stylistic and mythological choices, and the Absolute Unit that is Ygraine.</p><br><p>Next episode: Book V, The Coming of the Bear...

<p>In which Jenn and Preeti talk about emotional disconnection, historical infodumps, Big Feelings about Ambrosius and Merlin, and quests. </p><br><p>Next episode: Book V, The Coming of the Bear: Sections...