I was sad when I heard he'd died, because he was still on my list of authors I'd been meaning to write so I could thank them for a great childhood…

I didn't mind the fact that they had to forget everything — even as a kid, I felt like this seemed like a reasonable fantasy trope, given that magic was leaving the world to humans.  (I hadn't even read Tolkien yet.)

Can we start our own Diana appreciation wing of the AVClub?  I totally cried when I heard she passed away.   Absolutely formative literature for me, and I still go back and reread everything every few months.

It makes sense if you think about it, because most of the heroes are young men (and, rarely, women) who leave home at an early age to go questing.  If they had loving, supportive parents it would be a lot harder/more guilt-inducing to leave.   The narrative might also have to check back in with the folks back home…

Oh mannnnn, now I desperately want a revisit of Howl's Moving Castle.  (Except that I revisit it all the time, so I know what I think.)

Yeah, I don't understand all the hate, except that it comes from obsessive fans who expect movies to faithfully recreate each page on the screen.   If I wanted that, I'd read the book again!

that is an amazing point!  congrats on being so insightful.

So I haven't read these books in years (although now I really want to revisit them), but I think part of the problem is that when there aren't a lot of sympathetic female characters to relate to (or many female characters at all), it is frustrating to see the only heroine sacrifice herself.   There are various witches…

white tumblr, to be precise.

Wait, are you arguing that no woman changes her last name to her husband's any more?   Because that's definitely not true.

@RedScarab:disqus  Yeah, but Jean-Ralphio is used as a punchline or a plot device, not an actual adversary.  I liked this episode a lot (unlike everyone else apparently), but Jamm has been the main problem for too many episodes, and he's not funny or believable.

No but see, they're genius nerds, so they don't have to work hard or suck up to administrators or anything.   Because nerds.  Funny.

You're making me want to watch Wonderfalls again, and I don't have time for this, damn it!

Has 1600 Penn been cancelled?  I ask not because it was good television, but because I like Bill Pullman and Josh Gad was apparently hiring his Broadway buddies for bit roles.

@avclub-df106893a4574bccb7bce1ff66e788b9:disqus   I don't think I'll ever fully understand The Sound And The Fury, and I'm OK with this.

now you've got me all sad…. :(

Good to know, @avclub-c26473f2f4772a2a52e4690515ce6e75:disqus .  But I think I'm ready for Absalom, Absalom.  I love the Biblical story, and I have the patience for confusing Southerners now.  ;)

@avclub-fdb2ab7c6d32198281dca52d36a8ac52:disqus  which book were you referring to?  Although I suppose it doesn't really matter.

I didn't appreciate As I Lay Dying when I first read it.  I owe it a reread, but I feel like a first attempt at Absalom, Absalom comes first.

I just started skipping certain subjects altogether (like Iraq, back in the day), and it made it a lot easier to get through.  I don't get to be a snob about it, but at least I'm relatively current!