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Thursday 26 April 2018

Pterolykos


The name is Pterolykos, which also means "winged wolf". It isn't as popular and famous as the Pegasus the winged horse, but Pterolykos is part of European folklore. It's not a well known creature of legend anymore as it's become almost forgotten. The winged wolf is found in Hungarian myth, but this creature can talk and breath fire. It's associated with a crossroads and the number three, of riddles and the sky, fire and war. Such a winged wolf is able to carry knights into battle.
The winged wolf Pterolykos is a creature of the sky, a celestial wolf being that might even be linked to stories of the Wild Hunt and wolf gods that chase down the sun and moon. Perhaps not as monstrous and evil in reputation as Fenrir, Hati and Skol, but not as celebrity status as Geri and Freki. The Pterolykos isn't of Norse myth either. It comes from East European legends and even ghost stories of Dark Ages Germany. The wings of a Pterolykos are feathered like angels', hinting that this being was divine as well as an animal connected to the gods, as Pegasus was.
To know more of this vague creature of legend, lost in the mists of time, we need to know that wolves in ancient Indo European myths are part of the primitive cultures, and the warrior castes that were found in early societies. Wolves were sacred to the war god Mars of Roman mythology. In Norse mythology, the divine maidens called Valkyries rode wolves that were large and able to run across the air and clouds. There were stories of the sorceresses or Volva who rode upon wolves. Female giants rode on the backs of large wolves. These big powerful wolves resembled the primitive direwolf species and they had supernatural abilities of flight, levitation and even passing through different dimensional realms. Also wolves are associated with darkness and evil in Indo European myth, created from things of nightmares. The wolves mentioned in the Avesta described wolves as Daeva which is Persian to mean "the wrong gods". It's a term applied to certain figures of legends and life that are to be "not worshipped". For example, read The Bundahishn and it's entry XXIII "On the nature of the species of wolf".
Howls ^^     

Tuesday 24 April 2018

Paranorman


"Paranorman" is a 2012 animated film. This is probably one of the few "video nasties" aimed at children. I found it tame, although kids watching it had nightmares because the theme of this animated "family movie" had ghosts, zombies and witches.
I want to review "Paranorman" because I just so happened to watch it the other night with the children, and they selected it, as kids just like cartoon horror. I don't like to review family films or cute slushy movies anyway but this was pretty good. However, this was a horror film just for kids.
Paranorman is quite amusing in places, but it contains some bad language and violence, such as violence against zombies. The message of the film is just quite silly, yet so popcorn entertaining. It was even quite tense in places. Some adults might be terrified of this.
I rate this movie a 4/10.
Most favourite part was badass witch girl who wants ultra power.
(Why don't the super villains ever rule in the end?)
Howls ^^

Saturday 7 April 2018

Cynocephaly


The word Cynocephaly means "dog-headed". A known race of dog-headed people has been around since antiquity. They're now confined to Myths and Legends.
Yet there has been many sightings in modern times of curious dog-headed "men" that are mostly reported in the Americas, where the country is vast and full of many outlets and research. Some of these Cynocephalians have been seen in other parts of the world, including Europe and Africa.
Some want us all to believe that the origins of the Cynocephaly comes from ancient people seeing lemurs on Madagascar. The issue I have with this view is that Madagascar is a pretty isolated island in the Indian Ocean, also ancient humans were not stupid to think lemurs are dog-headed people. Cynocephaly is a type of Theriocephaly, animal-headed humans.
There are many gods that were animal headed on humanlike bodies. It stems from prehistoric beliefs in animal worship. Animal headed and dog headed humans as deities in antiquity. Animal and dog headed people seen as monsters today, in only the realms of Horror. From divine beings, to fearsome creatures of the night. From gods like Anubis to werewolves like Wolfman. The link drawing together divine beliefs in the Cynocephaly and Theriocephaly to the scariness of it, is DEATH.
Anubis was a dog-headed (or some say jackel-headed) god of the underworld and the dead. We also recognise how Anubis looks, like a tall muscular man with the head of a dog. Werewolves represent death also, especially hunting. Werewolves are cyclical as they're well believed to change at the full moon. Anubis was also a god of the moon. It means that dog-heads or really people who become dog headed are parallel to the lunar cycle and that could trigger a multiple spike in werewolves during blue moons.
The dog heads are a special breed of animal/people for they represent something lost and forgotten. Whatever was known and buried, is now myth. Whatever is known and glimpsed (Dog-men sightings), is a time of legends.
We've entered the phase in our earth's orbit of rotation that appears slowing, and our days lengthening. If this is right, our days will slow down further so by next century, there will be an extra two or three seconds. That means a Full Moon night will linger for a slower time, and the future will get longer lasting lunacy and lycanthropy.
Howls ^^       

Sunday 1 April 2018

Ginger Snaps 2: Unleashed


The second of the Ginger Snaps werewolf movies is "Ginger Snaps 2: Unleashed". It was made in 2004 and directed by Brett Sullivan, starring Emily Perkins, Tatiana Maslany, Eric Johnson and Janet Kidder. This is different to the first movie, which happens a few years after the end of the first movie.
Brigitte has lost her sister, and no longer staying at home with her parents anymore. She ends up in a care facility for women. It's assumed that she's a drug addict and the doctor wants to help her recover. Brigitte only wants to prevent herself becoming like her sister. Ginger, Brigitte's dead sister, appears in spirit form in this film. Brigitte doesn't like the other patients and she befriends a girl called Ghost, who loves to read comics and knows her way throughout the building.
There is a monster coming for Brigitte and inside the facility, a werewolf lurks. Brigitte is the only one who knows something. No one else will understand but she looks to Ghost who can help. There is a way out, and like the events before, the werewolf can't be stopped. 
I rate this 5/10 but I won't spoil it. Ginger is a spirit but Brigitte is the one who snaps.
Most scariest part: Werewolf hiding in the corridors.
Howls ^^