Krull (1983)

Krull is one of those movies that’s so silly it’s fun. The events take place on a distant planet where magic is a viable part of life. The Beast soon arrives with his more science-fiction/stormtrooper like army and captures the princess because of an ancient prophecy that whoever she marries will rule the world and their son shall rule the galaxy. It is then up to the prince, her true husband, and an unlikely group of companions to journey to the lair of the Beast before it takes off into outer space. Only then can the prophecy proceed as planned and true love will conquer all. I think my favorite character was the wizard, who is only able to transform himself even though he tries to turn others into geese and such. This is also one of the first movies Liam Neeson was ever in. He plays one of the ex-cons that join with the prince.

The Sword by Deborah Chester*

The Sword is the first book in a trilogy called the Sword, the Ring, and the Chalice. The first part of the story is about the king of Nether, Tobezijan, who is betrayed by his half brother and forced to flee. He hides his children away and escapes with the magical chalice and ring that are his birthright. But trying to flee the horrible spirits that his brother has unleashed, Tobezijan gets stuck in the second world where he can only watch what goes on in the first. Dead, but not really.

The second half of the book is about Tobezijan's son, Dain. Dain doesn't know he is a prince. He only knows that he's half elf and that some people hate him for that. Dain must conquer the foes of his own youth and the foes of his father in order to regain his kingdom. The book is certainly good and worth reading.

A Simple Tune by Nissa Warnings

A Simple Tune is another Lord of the Rings fanfiction one shot. It tells the simple story of Sam humming a piece of a tune that he heard at Rivendell. As happens to the best of us, Sam only remembers one or two words. Legalos helps him by singing to him the rest of the lyrics. I argue that you can also begin to see the friendship developing between Legalos and Gimli in this story. Gimli grumbles that the elves only sing about trees, but he starts quietly singing along as they journey to Mordor. It is a fun and engaging glimpse at one of those moments when the fellowship was just marching along.

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/442978/1/A-Simple-Tune

Bewitched (1964-1972)

Bewitched is one of those shows I absolutely loved as a child and when I saw it as an adult, I just thought to myself what really was I thinking? Still if it happens to rerun on TV, it’s total mindless entertainment for a lazy, rainy afternoon.

As an adult one of the things that bugged me was Darrin’s insistence that Samantha use no magic whatsoever. That they had to be “normal.” Hey if I was alone with my sweetie and he could wiggle his nose and clean the house, cook dinner, and wash the dishes? Wiggle away, darling. I understand we needed some tension in the story, and Darrin provided that tension. That and Samantha’s relatives showing up to tell her that she shouldn’t have married Darrin in the first place. I think one of the funniest episodes is when Samantha finds a picture of herself from back in the 1600s and she’s trying to keep it from Darrin because she doesn’t want him to know she’s that old.

A Midsummer Night's Dream by William Shakespeare

I like Shakespeare’s fantasy plays. As far as I’m concerned, they’re the best ones the guy wrote. A Midsummer Night’s Dream tells of the intrigues of the Faerie Court and what happens when foolish mortals stray across their path. Oberon is angry with Titania, so he orders Puck to make her fall in love-for just one night- with a mortal. Puck goes so far as to give this mortal a donkey head so that Titania will be fully humiliated. He also dabs some on the eyes of a couple of the mortals, not realizing the chaos that will presently break forth. But even if he did, I don’t think Robin Goodfellow would have really cared. A great play when done right.

DuckTales (1987-1990)

DuckTales (the original series) is one of my all time favorite cartoons. It tells the story of Scrooge McDuck, a multibillionaire, who is charged with watching his three great-grandnephews: Huey, Duey, and Louie, while their Uncle Donald is out sailing the world. It involves a series of misadventures while various villains try to claim Scrooge’s money for themselves. It is all together a wonderful show and a fun lark for any day!

Eragon

Eragon by Christopher Paolini

Eragon is a great first book for any author, especially when you think about the fact that this first book was in fact self-published. It gives hope for all of us writers. We can make a breakout. It tells the story of Eragon, a farm boy who finds a dragon egg and therefore becomes the last of the dragon riders. Of course as is typical with these sorts of novels, Eragon develops a telepathic connection with his dragon, Saphira. There is also an evil king that has to be overcome later on in the series. Although they fight the first battle in this book, this is very much a coming of age novel where our hero starts on the first few steps of his hero quest in order to defeat said evil king.

Eragon (2006)

Many people found fault in this movie adaptation. I happened to watch it before I read the book, so I didn’t have quite the negative reaction as some people, but after reading the book I could see where people objected. The casting as described in the book was off. I also felt that Eragon himself was a lot whinier in the movie than he was in the book. Provided, with everything that is happening to him, he has a good excuse to whine. Still you have a dragon! Stop whining and get on with your epic heroic quest boy! It was fun the first time I watched it, but I don’t think I would ever watch it again unless it was on instant play on Netflix, it was pouring down rain, and I was totally and completely bored.