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[Holey Moley]

Holey Moley Website System Administrator Offline

look out honey, 'cause I'm using technology

Holey Moley says,

On TV this morning there was a photo from the internet with a little white dog's head that looked dragon size beside two people. Of course I was reminded of the "NeverEnding" Story movie, and so I tried and failed to remember the name of its dog face dragon. Even stranger is I know just the other day while walking down the road I was thinking of that very same dragon for no obvious reason and I'm pretty sure the name popped into my head then.


So of course the first thing I did after sitting down is look up that name (Falkor) but also I was surprised to notice that the book the movie is based on happens to have some core similarities to KF2, and so could have inspired the direction its author(s) took. There are really just two: There are two serpents that are black and white, and both have a jewel eye (green and red) that are seen biting each other by the tail in a double Ouroboros (AURYN) knot that are the talisman seen in the movie. And not featured so much in the movie, the books other core artifact is "the waters of life" which is like a spring used to move between the two worlds (the real and fantastic) that could easily have served as inspiration for the poison/life-giving springs in KF2 (in KF3 the springs are also used to get around, but don't seem to have the poison-like qualities, and it isn't clear how or why they are a common feature of its landscape.)


Another weird thing about the book is it is very overtly steeped in Crowley-isms. Aleister Crowley's most famous saying is written on the back of the talisman and the name chosen by the protagonist for the childlike empress is Moon Child, which is one of Crowley's narrative fiction books. Also the name of the talisman is AURYN written in caps like a magical evocation of some kind. Needless to say the word Moon appears throughout KF2 too, and green and red from the talisman's gems happen to be the Moonlight Sword's colors.


Crowley's prominence in the story could have inspired the prevelence of demons and that sort of thing, although those were already present in the first game. Maybe the trilogy was already conceived before ground was broken on the first.


Just a lot of coincidences. Timing wise it seems very possible that Japan would've been high on the movie and reading the original book. In the book the protagonist becomes corrupted by the fantasy universe and revels in destructive fantasies kind of how Aleph inadvertently brings ruin upon Elegria, but needless to say it is dark in nature, despite being a kids book (a German kids book)

Formerly "Holy Diver" ("Holy") [Holy will be back as soon as I'm back to full form]

[Holey Moley]

Holey Moley Website System Administrator Offline

look out honey, 'cause I'm using technology

Holey Moley says,

Here's (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mazirian_the_Magician) another story that bears some resemblance to some of the odder aspects of King's Field 2. Unrelated. It features creatures in vats contrasted to magicians, and other uncanny similarities.

It's regarded as emblematic of a Dying Earth series by a U.S. author, Jack Vance. The titular dying Earth is located at the end of the universe. Since the lights are going out, due to thermal exhaustion, the nature of the world is reverting to the stuff of magic. This is similar to what I've thought about for King's Field XI~XIX "Logic Cycle." Except I'm not sure it could wait for the astronomical end, since that's presumably billions of years out. (Possibly if time-travel was involved.)

I read about this via Zork, which is famous for a kind of monster that is taken from this series. I was reading that because I watched "Ridley Scott's" The Martian last night, and wanted to look up "The Leather Godesses of Phobos." (I was surprised it was a Ridley Scott joint at this point. I think his name was withheld until the end credits. He's developed a hit and miss reputation since his heyday. Hollywood movies have such exhaustive credits these days I'm hesitant to exalt any of the participants to a station of singular importance.)

Formerly "Holy Diver" ("Holy") [Holy will be back as soon as I'm back to full form]