Here Be Tygers

Hey all,  This is the second half of our conversation on the ‘four essential beats of narrative’: namely, the sad, funny, beautiful and weird. They’re not the only beats that matter, of course. But they often give, direction, flow or a shape to the moments that hold us captive or impact us the greatest. And though we may start with a fairly deep exploration of one of our favorite storytellers, Hayao Miyazaki, the foundational tropes, motifs and narrative elements he plays with—the loss of innocence or exuberant certainty, and the maturity gained in the presence of challenges we must face—are present to some extent in all of the works, from fantastic to horror to literary classics, that we discuss today. As for the ending? Well, we had to leave a little time yet to play. So join us as we see what happens when we have only a title, “Death Leaves Us Stranded”, and a premise as strange. We hope you enjoy. - J Show notes • Hayao Miyazaki & Studio Ghibli’s filmography • Katabasis, “descent to the underworld”