Through The Wind Door

The One (Tiger’s Eye)

"I wish I were like a rock

       sturdy and strong, enduring

       polished smooth by the forces that beat against me

       a safe resting place for storm tossed souls.

Sometimes, I am."

-Rev. Polly Guild, "Meditations from Star Island"

It's not easy to make yourself vulnerable. But inspired by Alex and Sharon, this is where my journey took me, following the path of three souls in Rama. Decent people that I found reflections of in myself.

I hope sharing my story means something to you as well.

 

Content Warning: Depression, Suicidal Ideation

Spoiler Warning: Episodes 1 and 21 of Season One of Star Trek :Deep Space Nine, Memento

 

The New Century Multiverse Website:

https://www.newcenturymultiverse.com

The New Century Multiverse Podcast Feed:

https://newcenturyshow.podbean.com/

Fireside Alliance: https://firesidealliance.squarespace.com/

 

Intro is "Crucify" by Tori Amos

Outro is a reading of the poem "Meditations on Star Island" by the Rev. Polly Guild (backed by an instrumental of Enya's "On Your Shore")

The Three (Tiger’s Eye)

"Nearly all the best Hero's Journey's are journey's within, absolutely right. It's a self examination even if it's not conscious." - Alex Shaw

So. We talked a lot about the story, deconstructing events and elements and thoughts galore. And it's up to every audience member on their own to decide what holds weight and what doesn't. What every piece means to them. But now we're going to take one last look at what it means to us.

By us, I include myself, Toby, and finally Maureen Foley herself, the voice of Hrao. Taking one last look, covering old ground and new. The journeys of three individuals tracing back along the path as we figure out why in the world we talked this much about one single story.

Maureen will eventually get to talk more about her experience. But for now, I give you the thoughts she recorded years back after the release of the Tiger's Eye audiodrama, along with a few topics of our own.

 

Opening includes clip from "The Hero's Journey" on the School of Movies Podcast:

https://www.podbean.com/site/EpisodeDownload/PB6AF304F5SE5

 

The New Century Multiverse Website:

https://www.newcenturymultiverse.com

The New Century Multiverse Podcast Feed:

https://newcenturyshow.podbean.com/

Fireside Alliance: https://firesidealliance.squarespace.com/

 

Intro is "Home" by Vince Staples

Outro is "What Hrao Means to Maureen" by Maureen Foley (edited by Alex Shaw)

The Wise Man and the Fool - Part 5 (Tiger’s Eye)

"Stories mean a lot to everyone. As Sharon and Alex and thier guests got into in the Hero's Journey podcast, they are how we make sense of the world. Is Tiger's Eye more powerful to some because it follows that monomyth path closer than others? Does it feel more primal, closer to the ancient mythologies that came before? Is that why I end up responding to it like I did? I don't know."

Part 5 to a very long episode. We finally tie it all together.

We visit the symbolism of Hakka at his lowest place. We see the final stage of the journey and journeys of all three of our protagonists, how they contribute and reflect on each other. We take a closer look at the Hero's Journey and how it contributes to the context and framing.  We talk about the importance of tools in storytelling, that you need more than one for a properly nuanced story, but that the oldest tools still have power when used right. All of it leading into how these storytelling tools will also become prominent when we use them on ourselves in the final episode of Tiger's Eye. Where Toby and I use it to talk about our own journeys as audience and and as people.

 

Suzanne Vega - Undertow: https://youtu.be/IiSFTA_qwaQ

 

The New Century Multiverse Website:

https://www.newcenturymultiverse.com

The New Century Multiverse Podcast Feed:

https://newcenturyshow.podbean.com/

Fireside Alliance: https://firesidealliance.squarespace.com/

 

Intro is "The Legend of El Dorado" by Derek and Brandon Feitcher

Midroll music: Suzanne Vega - Undertow (guitar instrumental): https://youtu.be/a_ik3i0U1VI

Outro is "Brave" by Sara Bareillies

 

The Wise Man and the Fool - Part 4 (Tiger’s Eye)

"...this is not the first time that we will see someone react harshly to what they percieve as a calamitous threat. Someone far more sympathetic, someone that has lots of evidence to hand as to how things could turn out if not addressed. In the case of Hakka, the situation is framed very differently, and his story comes back to us now at the end to give us context to make us sympathetic to his journey. For those of you that haven't read the other books of New Century, you'll have to imagine what it's like on the other foot. When we have a clear protagonist having these kinds of conflicts with other protagonists. Indeed, you already got a little taste of it back in Secret Rooms. Where Annie encouraged Abigail towards empathy in regards to other humans, and Frank had to talk James down when the doctor claimed that they might not be treating the *wendigo* with empathy. So keep all of that in the back of your mind when we move on to Arlington and other future books."

Part 4 of our analysis of the final chapters of Tiger's Eye, and what it has to say about Hakka's journey.

We stop talking about Yesterday and start discussing Today. Seeing Durga tribe  from Haka's perspective, discuss what Hakka might be like as a teacher and his understanding of his student. We dig deep on how Hakka feels about everything, how his anger and desperation grows as the events unfold, and his interaction with The Silent One as one firetalker encounters another, and they test each other. 

We come close to the end, of Hakka's journey as well as Hrao's and Miguel's, to be resolved... next time.

 

The New Century Multiverse Website:

https://www.newcenturymultiverse.com

The New Century Multiverse Podcast Feed:

https://newcenturyshow.podbean.com/

Fireside Alliance: https://firesidealliance.squarespace.com/

 

Intro is "The Legend of El Dorado" by Derek and Brandon Feitcher

Outro is "I Will Not Bow" by Breaking Benjamin

 

The Wise Man and the Fool - Part 3 (Tiger’s Eye)

"... okay, well, [Hakka and Hrao] are very much not aligned with one another. And yet, there is a familiarity there. And that just kind of gets the gears turning. But then, once the fight in the ruins happens, everything about the way Hakka speaks towards Hrao just feels exactly like an ex who still does care about you, but] is just so fundamentally not 'getting it'. The conversation on the surface is him trying to convey his goodwill towards her... it is very much a reminder of 'this is why we broke up'. It's kind of the energy of that fight scene."

Hope you love Hakka talk. Cause we gonna talk-a about Hakka.

This episode focuses of the revelation of Hrao and Hakka as mates. Both during their time together, and what it is for them now that they are apart with all of the baggage in play. How Hakka's insecurity and view of how the world should work spells doom for that relationship, and in the process, coming back to a serious discussion of how we relate to these stories and the people involved in their creation.

 

The New Century Multiverse Website:

https://www.newcenturymultiverse.com

The New Century Multiverse Podcast Feed:

https://newcenturyshow.podbean.com/

Fireside Alliance: https://firesidealliance.squarespace.com/

 

Intro is "The Legend of El Dorado" by Derek and Brandon Feitcher

Outro is "All Time Low" by Jon Bellion

The Wise Man and the Fool - Part 2 (Tiger’s Eye)

"...if we don't tell Hakka's story, then it fundamentally changes the story itself. Treating him only an an antagonist would be anathema to the nature of what Tiger's Eye is trying to do. And it needs to be here not just for those larger themes, but because his journey helps bring resolution to both Miguel's journey and Hrao's journey. And their journey's resolution to his."

Here, we start getting into the meat of our final chapters. What it means to go all the way back to the beginning with Hakka, what it means to suddenly flip the script and talk about Tiger's Eye's secret protagonist.

And we also start making our way through these defining moments of the young red tiger that would one day become a shaman. About learning the wrong lessons, or just finding your mentor lacking. 

 

To those of you that have not heard it: the Guardians of the Galaxy 2 speech referenced in the podcast: https://youtu.be/4U_2Qq-oLwk

Why No One Likes Ares: https://youtu.be/kfnc-iARu48

The Underworld/Death: https://youtu.be/Z4dAMMkqPoY

 

The New Century Multiverse Website:

https://www.newcenturymultiverse.com

The New Century Multiverse Podcast Feed:

https://newcenturyshow.podbean.com/

Fireside Alliance: https://firesidealliance.squarespace.com/

 

Intro is "The Legend of El Dorado" by Derek and Brandon Feitcher

Outro is "Breathe (2 AM)" by Anna Nalick

The Wise Man and the Fool - Part 1 (Tiger’s Eye)

"So much of New Century's fiction is the confrontation of big, frightening concepts. Things that will drive people into existencial depression.  But the author - and by extention, Hrao - looks at that and finds something that you can hold onto. Leon may well be a country with a lack of compassion. But there are still people within it that are willing to nurture hope."

And here is the beginning of the end. Part 1 of our look at chapters 21-25, though this one really only focuses on the first of these chapters. We make further commentary on what is going on inside Captain Queensbury's head as well as speculation on her future. We also dive deep into the dashing Quincy Matthews and the final communion between Hrao and Doctor Shera. Tying off the major events of the last several chapters... and gearing up for a Tomorrow... born of all of Hakka's Yesterdays.

 

The New Century Multiverse Website:

https://www.newcenturymultiverse.com

The New Century Multiverse Podcast Feed:

https://newcenturyshow.podbean.com/

Fireside Alliance: https://firesidealliance.squarespace.com/

 

Intro is "The Legend of El Dorado" by Derek and Brandon Feitcher

Outro is "16th Century Man" from The Road to Eldorado, by Elton John and Time Rice.

Unpathed Waters, Undreamed Shores - Part 3 (Tiger’s Eye)

"[Mohawk] has defined himself by his cruelty. And once his cruelty has been forcibly stopped and [the totems] he has stolen have been stripped away from him and given back to who it belongs to... what is Mohawk? In the end, we never know him by his true name. So, by the end of this, it's decided: 'We will not communicate with you. We are not going to suffer your presence any more, and we are denying you the spiritual close and the idea that you may come back in whatever form is next. Just go'. it is a complete disintegration of what Mohawk is and what he has done. In the end... Mohawk is nobody."

Part 3 of our look at... what was it? Chapters 16-20? Yes, those. Man, that was a lot of talking. looks ahead to the amount of talking on the final chapters 

...well.... shit. There's nothing for it, I suppose.

But in the meantime, enjoy our conversations on the fate of Mohawk, Captain Beatrix, Doctor Shera and our aboriginal cats. Our thoughts on the look into the hearts and minds of secondary characters, and how we feel about growth and second chances.

And prepare yourselves for what is coming next.

 

The New Century Multiverse Website:

https://www.newcenturymultiverse.com

The New Century Multiverse Podcast Feed:

https://newcenturyshow.podbean.com/

Fireside Alliance: https://firesidealliance.squarespace.com/

 

Intro is "The Legend of El Dorado" by Derek and Brandon Feitcher

Outro is "Colossus" by Afrocelt Soundsystem

Unpathed Waters, Undreamed Shores- Part 2 (Tiger’s Eye)

...Mohawk took [Hrao's] agency... and this is the first concrete step to fucking taking it back. She will not let his actions define her.

 

Part of our discussion of Chapters 16-20, as we finally move away from the events of Chapter 16, and back to Miguel's narration. We discuss the difference in the capacity of for understanding the passage of time, because Miguel is used to thinking in discrete time units even if he cannot record them. And then we discuss the other weighty topic of these chapters: Miguel killing a lion in cold blood, and all the stuff that entails. How he reaches his lowest point, but has to come out the other side without time to properly come to terms with what he has done.

We also finally start to discuss one of the most heartwarming moments of the book, how it resonates even more in respect to the events a few chapters ago, and the unification of One Tribe accepting Miguel as one of them.

 

For those that make it to the outtakes: a picture of Toby and his hamster, Apple.

 

The New Century Multiverse Website:

https://www.newcenturymultiverse.com

The New Century Multiverse Podcast Feed:

https://newcenturyshow.podbean.com/

Fireside Alliance: https://firesidealliance.squarespace.com/

 

Intro is "The Legend of El Dorado" by Derek and Brandon Feitcher

Outro is "Together We Stand" by Scott Holmes of freemusicarchive.org

Unpathed Waters, Undreamed Shores - Part 1 (Tiger’s Eye)

The parts of Tiger’s Eye that the story focuses on and we tend to remember and value are the feelings of freedom and the vibrancy of this other world, and the uplifting connections between people who were previously disconnected and have every reason to be at odds with one another. This moment [Hrao's rape] is the antithesis of that, framing it as the darkest point of opposition against all that is valued and celebrated within this narrative.

Part 1 of our discussion on Tiger's Eye, chapters 16-20 (or 16-21 in the audiodrama). And this one is a doozy, discussing one of the hardest hitting moments in the New Century ouvre.

This episode focuses mostly on the events in chapter 16 itself. We talk about some of the elements of the chapter that hearkened back to other pieces of media like the 1977 miniseries "Roots" (remade more recently in 2016). And we also discuss how the central theme of communication is finally brought to focus now, during this dark hour. About how Hrao rises above despair and uses the knowlege that she has gained in order to rally the aboriginal cats, to the goal of One Tribe. But this conversation is bracketed by a discussion of rape in media, as this is one of the distinguishing events of this chapter.

Trigger Warning: For those to whom any discussion of rape might be triggering in any way, the timestamps to avoid such conversation is 24:24 to 1:05:55. (This means a bulk of the episode is verboten, but everyone needs to make their own call.)

We hope we have done our best to address such a serious subject, and that you are also able to come with us on this journey. But if not, less fraught fare will be available next week.

 

Roots - The Golden Cannon: https://youtu.be/fZWiEi1XBv8

Levar Burton's speech about the Roots remake: https://youtu.be/43F7BFETmyg

Anansi Tells A Story: https://youtu.be/BgOH-3vcWro

Why is it we made a joke about different versions of Tiger's Eye having different faces: https://tinyurl.com/y88m8ngf

 

The New Century Multiverse Website:

https://www.newcenturymultiverse.com

The New Century Multiverse Podcast Feed:

https://newcenturyshow.podbean.com/

Fireside Alliance: https://firesidealliance.squarespace.com/

 

Intro is "The Legend of El Dorado" by Derek and Brandon Feitcher

Outro is "Secure Yourself" by Indigo Girls