Illustrations for the fairy tale Beauty and the Beast all seem to highlight the same moment, as portrayed here. The two are seated together, the beast pledging his devotion, while Beauty looks away, pleased but ambivalent. This one, using the palette and style of the 1960s, shows the encounter in slightly abstracted form, with a Siamese cat sitting on Beauty’s lap, and the Beast a sort of beaked wild boar/unicorn/donkey/porcupine creature.
I present to you…. STING! In wing-shaped leather panties, his body toned through Tantric sex. His Feyd was the best thing about the film.
The recent release of Villeneuve’s adaptation of Frank Herbert’s Dune got me thinking about the many depictions of Feyd Rautha, Paul Atreides’ antithesis and rival, created by artists over the years. Why not the saintly Paul himself, you ask? Well, he’s just not as interesting. He spends most of the book in a stillsuit, the same as his Fremen followers. Paul was one of them, he didn’t exalt himself, and since the stillsuits were utility garments, flashy costuming was out. But Feyd Rautha, coming from a bizarre and morally corrupt clan, has costuming more open to interpretation. In addition, Herbert was stingy with his characters’ physical descriptions, so again, outside of Feyd’s having thick lips, artists can let their imaginations fly.
Feyd, to my teenage self.
When I read the books as a teenager, the impression I had of the Harkonnens was that they were the stereotypical Evil Arabs, their names, culture, and physical features deriving from the Middle East. We meet Feyd as a 16-year-old teenager, and he’s spoiled, petulant, sulky, and cheats at gladiatorial contests where he kills slaves without a second thought. A bad egg, obviously, but a good-looking one. His uncle the Baron has an obvious fascination and regard for him that the reader doesn’t see.
I thought it was because the Baron was corrupt himself and more than a little nuts, but others have interpreted the Baron’s interest as sexual, in addition to wanting Feyd as his heir to carry on the Harkonnen line. Certainly Alejandro Jodorowsky thought so, when he planned to produce a film of the novel in the mid-1970s. He commissioned French comic artist Moebius (Jean Girarud), who was of the same mind, for the storyboarding and character sketches.
“My naughty nightie is an essential element of my character.”
I admit having Feyd be a full-on transvestite was a novel approach, but there was nothing in the book, or its sequels, to support it. In retrospect, I think it was an obvious attempt to inject some transgressive naughtiness into the dull and obvious political shenanigans… though Herbert himself did not object.
Art by Clement Martine
This Feyd takes another page from the playbook of the bizarre, with his Harlequin costume and elevated bison feet. It feels like something a far-future society with a mixed-up design sense might create, but it’s unappealing, perhaps deliberately so. I think it recalls this costume for Elric’s enemy Yyrkoon, from a comic adaptation of the late 1970s… its playing card aesthetic may have come, in turn, from Moebius, bringing things full circle.
But I can’t see this Harley Quinnesque Feyd walking, let alone fighting.
Art by Tom Kraky
A more realistic Feyd in warrior armor who actually looks like he’s in his early 20s, albeit hyperdeveloped, by artist Tom Kraky.
Illustration by Sam Weber
A more realistic yet Feyd, and perhaps my favorite of this lot. He also looks more than a little Hispanic to me, like a young Lucha Libre wrestler.
Matt Keesla’s Feyd from the Syfy television production. Too wholesome and normal? The jury’s out for me as I haven’t seen it yet.
Dune Feyd Rautha, by jubjubjedi@deviantart
Now we are back to the Evil Redhead trope! I thought making the Harkonnen clan all carrot-tops was an odd choice for 1984 film, but apparently fan artists liked it. This Feyd emphasizes the spoiled teenager. He’s even holding the knife like it’s a toy prop not a weapon, playing dress-up.
In Dune’s early sections, Herbert did a lot of character contrast on Feyd vs. Paul. Though he didn’t come out and say it, it would have been clear to the reader who the superior of the two was — Paul with his discipline and sense of duty.
Feyd — another redhead — is extra smirky in this rendition, showing the poor slave he killed — by cheating — in the background.
Art by Stephan Rumping
Feyd with a hood, cheek piercings, codpiece, and odd gold strips across the toes of his boots. A usable, nasty depiction adhering, again, to the “Techno-redhead” aesthetic from the 1984 movie.
Portrait of Feyd showing scarred lips and a quasi-18th-century military uniform. He’s the right age, seems brutal and untrustworthy enough, and cunning. It’s a good depiction. But what happened to his mouth? It looks like it was sewn shut at one point.
Azhrarn, The Demon Prince of Night, from a cover of a Japanese edition of Night’s Master
In the late 1970s and 1980s British writer Tanith Lee came out with the books that most defined her career: The Flat Earth series. These books were about an Arabian Nights never-never land of deserts, demons, innocent maidens, leering rakes, and magic. The first three, Night’s Master, Death’s Master, and Delusion’s Master dealt with, respectively, the three Demon Lords of Darkness: Azhrarn, Uhlume, and Chuz, who embody Evil, Death, and Madness. The fourth book, Delirium’s Mistress, introduces a new Demon Lord: Azhriaz, Azhrarn’s daughter, who is somewhat ambivalent about her title. The fourth book, Night’s Sorceries, continues her adventures.
Azhrarn, the most powerful of the Demon Lords, is the one consistent character throughout the books and the mover of most of the plots. He is described as an incredibly beautiful pale-skinned, dark-haired man and the inventor of carnal love — and, appropriately, pansexual. I’ve yet to see, however, a depiction that does him justice. The purple and turquoise illustration above, from a Japanese language version of Night’s Master, is the best of a rather tepid crop. Which is odd, given that character’s unearthly good looks and sinister morality should be a hot subject forfantasy artists. But the books do seem to have waned in popularity over the years, unlike LOTR and Narnia which had movie adaptations to support them and create buzz.
I could go on about the difficulty of adapting the Flat Earth books for the Netflix market, but that’s for another post.
On the other hand there’s no shortage of sultry, sulky, black-haired man-babe eye candy in fandom art that could stand in for the Demon Lord of Night, like the dude to the left.
The language of The Flat Earth (so named because it is, indeed, flat, with formless chaos at its borders) is consistent throughout the books, a mashup of Amharic, Arabic, and Hebrew. Female names end in -eh, male names in -em, -er, or -ar. If a character becomes a magic-user, their name is changed, women receiving the -as, -az, or -azh suffix, men -ek. Azhriazh, Azhrarn’s daughter, for example, was first known as Soveh, then Sovaz when she came into her magical powers.
I generated this list of words for fanfic or roleplay in this world for people, places, or things.
| Abhuth
Adhar Ajem Anabaz Aneh Ashteh Bahlaz Bhomek Bhujek Chalas Chaldisek Chavitu Chavtek Dhinem Dhol Ejem Drezmi Duthos Ebatha Faluzhu Ferahud Ferasumaz Idha Jesh |
Kaschab
Kaschuj Khaqu Khasavras Khassek Khaszimi Kishteh Kushmideh Lyroth Mimadune Nabaz Nabuzheed Narothe Ninmisu Pabriseh Paresippe Sabezh Sabusch Shazhrem Shethem Shevansas Sonek Sumearth |
Sumesh
Surakathe Surhar Surise Thuvrek Tirushmi Uhlapoo Uranek Urem Uvek Yavrem Yobaz Yolazeh Yoleh Yomarek Yorihar Zharot Zheleb Zheleh Zhimuz Zoradune Zordas Zorusheh |
Russia retained a feudal type of government until well into the 20th century (before the Russian Revolution, of course) that depended on the backbreaking labor of its serfs to fund the lavish lifestyles of its ruling elite. Not only that, the Czars were considered chosen by God himself to rule, and considered sacred, which is something even the Hapsburgs missed out on. So to be born a peasant in Russia was really getting the short end of the stick in the equality sweepstakes.
Most of the nobles’ former palaces survived the wars intact and are now open to the public for all to see. There isn’t anything especially Russian about them, though. They could be in Finland or France, for all the architecture says. No, the real palaces of Russia are the wooden ones. Only a handful of the less impressive ones survived the years, so the Russian government built a new one, in the old style, to give tourists a taste of its pre-Communist years. That’s the ornate building above, which serves as a visitor’s office.
Want a Russian palace of your very own? Here’s a list.
| English
St. Svetan’s Castle Mnichny Pavilion Dniev Mountain Fortress Svermaska Palace Babinsk Batka Monastery Supper Palace of Novodiev Ektini’s Winter Palace Zvodora Country Dacha |
All Russian
Osobnyak Enzhnovo Trokan Bashnya Yuka Zamok Krepost Asprensk Dom Odev Zhvisn Osobnyak Trazaad Krepost Vubrev Krepost |
Why is explorer lady wearing high-heeled pumps in the jungle?
Nosferatu, or The Undead, was a 1922 German silent film that predates the more familiar Universal version of Dracula. Max Schreck played the titular vampire, Count Orlov; the actor had an unusually tall, thin, lanky build that added to the otherworldly look of the being, highlighted in this trailer for a restored version of the film. Unlike Dracula, Count Orlov’s fangs were not his carnivore teeth — they were his front incisors! They, with his pointed ears, bulging eyes, and clawed hands created a unique horror that’s still to be replicated.
If you’re looking for a made-up horror movie to stick in somewhere, here’s a list. I even hope some are produced one day!
| In the Mouth of Lucifer
I was a Teenage Banshee The Stalking Cannibal Dawn of the Fiend 13 Scorpions Return of the Damned Day of the Ghoul Beyond Legend Talons of the Crawling Hand Eyes of the Puppet Master Dracula vs. the Witch Doctor Our Martian Eden Scream, Dr. Jekyll Birth of the Gorgon Thirteen Corpses Empty Graves Casting the Runes The Claw of Jupiter Succubus and Gorgon The Wicked + the Divine The Borogravian Mirror Underworld Embalmer Who Left the Bones in That Box? Spider Women from beyond the North Star |
Art by Stephane Rosse
This would have been only a slightly disturbing domestic scene but for the skull head of the man and the wig rest head of the tabby cat.
Russian fairy tales have a cast of characters rarely heard above in the West. I believe the pic above is of Alkonost and Sirin, two mythical, woman-headed birds with bewitching voices. Unlike the sirens, they used their singing for good, bringing happiness to those deserving. The cave full of giant gem crystals is an unfamiliar element as well, though the intrepid boy explorer is not.
Following are a list of imaginary fairy tales culled from my Twitter feed, 2017 – 2021.
| Fairy Tales |
Princess Apple Blossom The Sleepy Little Seamstress The Talking Pudding The Goat-Girl’s Blessing The Magic Cheese-Mold The Terrible Bairn and the Forgotten Girl Secrets of the Soundhole |
| Fables |
Why Beauty is Blind The City Where No One Was Ugly How Death Was Wounded The Monkey and the Apes The Fable of the Peacock and the Ogre |
| 1001 Arabian Nights Stories |
The Tale of the Rok’s Foster Daughter The Nine Lemons The Adventures of King Absmas and His Brother |
| Nursery Rhymes |
The Honey-Tongued Hummingbird of Hickenback Dell |
Illustration by Jeff Drew
The alien certainly thinks so.
Being born in the shadow of the Baby Boomers, the interests of my older siblings and cousins were a big influence on my life, particularly those most popular of the Hippy arts: psychedelia and astrology.
I read every astrology book I could get my little hands on, but decided the signs could do with some improvement. So I created my own Zodiac, of fourteen months not twelve, and my own set of signs, of which five were animal, four celestial phenomena, and the rest sinister objects. I even drew a set of cards with the signs depicted in gur-roovy acid trip rainbow colors, as was still common in the mid-1970s, but my gur-roovy style of lettering left much to be desired in the way of legibility, so I’m recreating them here, childish errors intact. (I created my own planets to go along with the signs because the nine in our solar system had already been claimed.)
|
WEXINOG THE WHALE Month: January Flower: Lily Stone: Emerald Animal: Whale Bird: Loon Fish: Angel fish Color: Green Ruling Planet: Cameiila You are highly lithe and athletic. Your Personallity [sic] will conflict between friends. |
No comment.
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CADIS THE CLOUD Month: February Flower: Dogwood Stone: Topaz Animal: Bison Bird: Robin Fish: Manta Color: Red-brown Ruling Planet: Lianna Born a Cadis you are truthful and fun-loving. You are very good at sports. Unfortunately you display your affection for people through violence. |
Again, no comment.
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UNI THE WINGED UNICORN Month: March Flower: Honeysuckle Stone: Spinel Animal: Dolphin Bird: Magpie Fish: Siamese fighting fish Color: Lilac Ruling Planet: Simoon Born a Uni you are a strong expressor [sic] of your rights. You are persistent. Unfortunately you are likely to be in bad health. |
What a blow for people born in March.
(In an earlier version of this zodiac, the unicorn was an awkward fantasy creature I made up called a Clixnalon — a two-legged, bipedal antelope with feathered wings and a bird-of-paradise tail )
 |
VISHINI THE VOLCANO Month: April Flower: Rose Stone: Ruby Animal: Lion Bird: Chicken Fish: Tuna Color: Red Ruling Planet: Coppercailie Born a Vishini you are tolerant and patient. You are friendly. You are a gossip. |
Why are the animal and bird of this sign both creatures commonly cooked for dinner?
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GRUS THE CRANE Month: May Flower: Bluebell Stone: Diamond Animal: Gnu Bird: Crane Fish: Flying Fish Color: Blue Ruling Planet: Sarina Born a Grus you are friendly and active. You become bored easily and are often quite pickly, |
Grus is an actual constellation. But it doesn’t lie on the ecliptic.
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KI’ANG THE SACRIFICIAL KNIFE Month: June Flower: Dogtooth Stone: Opal Animal: Bear Bird: Eagle Fish: Shark Color: Violet Ruling Planet: Belotsi Born a Ki’ang you are agressive and a leader. You cannot tolerate stupidity. You are wise and loyal, but often hostile. |
I created this sign after a prolonged period of fascination with the Aztecs. Later in life, I married one. But it didn’t last.
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CHING THE CARNIVOROUS PLANT Month: July Flower: Venus fly trap Stone: Peridot Animal: Coyote Bird: None Fish: Pilot fish Color: Lt. Green Ruling Planet: Senecca Chingians are tricky people who can easily double-talk you. They make good thieves and are usually warm and loving. |
I wonder what a carnivorous plant has to do with being a deceitful, warm, and loving thief.
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LANA THE SNAKE Month: August Flower: Anemone Stone: Onyx Animal: Snake Bird: Osprey Fish: Eel Color: Yellow Ruling Planet: Dole Snake Children are very cunning and deceitful. They are usually graceful and lithe. They are thrifty and loving & caring. |
I see that my fifth-grade analysis of those with a snake sign matches that of J. K. Rowling’s (Slytherin). But it’s harder to see how that co-exists with being thrifty and loving.
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INA O’PO’O THE DRAGON ** Month: September Flower: Iris Stone: Sapphire Animal: Dragon Bird: Vulture Fish: Barracuda Color: Deep Purple Ruling Planet: Chicagonite Dragon People are the king of the other sighns. [sic] They are loving, caring. |
I was born in September, so of course that month has the best write-up.
** Shows my Hawaiian influence, obviously.
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QUASER THE TWIN STARS Month: October Flower: Pansy Stone: Chrysoberl Animal: Dog Bird: Emu Fish: Trout Color: Gold Ruling Planet: Alpha Centauri Born a Quaser you are critical and a stay-at-home. You are very active and light-headed. |
At my age then I didn’t quite understand what a quasar was. Only that the name sounded cool and had something to do with ultra-powered stars. The ruling planet is also the only space object that really exists (but it is a star and not a planet.) I’m not even gonna go into the four very disparate personality traits.
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SCOPTOS THE SKULL Month: November Flower: Sunflower Stone: Cat’s Eye Opal Animal: Leopard Bird: Owl Fish: Shark Color: Olive-brown Ruling Planet: DEATH Born a Scoptos you are solemn and quiet. You are a leader in many things. You are most likely fair and tall. |
I cannot get over the fact the ruling planet of this sign is DEATH!!
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KRYTNON THE KROWN Month: December Flower: Sunflower Stone: Ruby Animal: Gazelle Bird: Hummingbird Fish: Ray Color: Rose Ruling Planet: Marina You are highly dominating and attractive. Unfortunately your rude ways turn you off to many people. |
This is the only personality description of all the signs that makes any sense.
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SOLAL THE SUN Month: The thirteenth month Flower: Concubine (I think I meant columbine) Stone: Jade Animal: Lygon (I think I meant liger) Bird: Quetzalcoatl Fish: Minnow Color: Lt. Yellow Ruling Planet: The sun rules you As a Solal you are friendly and independent. You are never cold. You have a tendency to be stingy and greedy, and sensitive. |
We are running into uncharted territory here with the addition of a thirteenth month. What season that month was in, I wasn’t sure. It was too heady a concept for me. So I simply let it lie with “the thirteenth month.”
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RASHI THE RAINBOW Month: The fourteenth month Flower: Crocus Stone: Platinum Animal: Giraffe Bird: Hummingbird Fish: Pukapuka (I meant the humuhumunukunukuāpua‘a, or reef triggerfish) Color: All colors Ruling Planet: Joma Born a Rashi you are shy, sensitive and meat. You are a comfort and care. |
My brain has been turned to mush by all this. How about yours?
But I adapted most of it as the zodiac system for the Escharne novels and stories.
