Redwall

[Jimjamflimflam]

OP must have found a mysterious poem tucked away somewhere that just happened to cryptically and vaguely describe current day events to inspire this thread.

I read so many of these as a kid but barely remember much beyond the descriptions of food and that there was ALWAYS a fucking poem found that had allusions to whatever was happening in the book.

Do remember getting my first eye rolling at wokeness before wokeness become a thing when Smithsonian magazine had an article about the series containing a blur on how problematic it was that the weasels were always evil characters (or was it an article about weasels and they referenced how problematic their depiction in media was using red wall as an example. Can't remember)

 

[Heckler1]

I loved this series as a young Heckler, and read every single book in the series. Some I remember better than others, but they were all fun adventure stories that were based around a strong idea of good and evil. One aspect that I don't think gets talked about enough is how well Brian Jacques wrote the mysticism of the series. There is never any definite "magic" in the series, but there is often a supernatural influence in the stories that is never fully explained and gives the stories a very mythic feel. I'd say my top 3 books in the series are probably Lord Brocktree, Salamandastron, and Pearls of Lutra.

 

[Thomas Talus]

I loved these as a kid, but the first 4 were the best to me, then it started to slip and reached a genuine nadir with Outcast of Redwall.

 

[Overly Serious]

I was very young when I read these (I was precocious) and only remember a few details. My primary recollection is a pair of eyes in the dark and a sibilant voice hissing "Asmodeusssss". Little else of the novel but that has never left me.

 

[HarblMcDavid]

Gosh, this brings back memories.

I actually taught myself to read on Redwall due to a set of bizarre circumstances that saw a whole school year of "free study" and a shelf chock-full of the books, though my parents read it to me when I was even younger and that got me hooked.

Went through everything that was available as of around...1995? Great YA stuff for sure.

I also ended up with mint condition Library bound versions of most of them too which I should really re-read one of these days.

 

[Replacement Account]

I was very young when I read these (I was precocious) and only remember a few details. My primary recollection is a pair of eyes in the dark and a sibilant voice hissing "Asmodeusssss". Little else of the novel but that has never left me.

Yeah that one was pretty memorable.

I only really read the first one, but with all the cat warlords and vermin hordes running about the whole thing is closer to being mad max than anything.

 

[Ughubughughughughughghlug]

Redwall vibes

 

[Dupree Home Edition]

Loved Redwall as a kid. There was one with an otter who was like this chosen warrior, and there was a bigass badger who was an absolute unit. I get heavy nostalgia from old school furries, it all felt a little more innocent and magical. It was like proto-harry potter, there was a movie made in the 2000s that was pretty good too. Martin the Warrior is the absolute bro.

Off topic, but does anyone know about this young adults book that had a kid with blue markings(?) on the cover, maybe slightly alien? I think it had a black border with designs. It was about these crystals that gave you power, and there were mermaids in a cove. I barely remember but I absolutely LOVED it.
EDIT: FOUND IT FUCK YEAH

 

[Ser Prize]

If you guys like Redwall I highly recommend a little comic series called Mouseguard.

 

[Alabama Gamer]

Had most of these books as a wee lad. The whole "good forest animals vs. evil vermin" dichotomy was incredibly racist. Outcast of Redwall is probably the best example, with its subplot about a ferret kit being adopted by the peaceful Anglo-Saxon mice at Redwall Abbey and still becoming evil. I currently have a theory that if you read the series as a kid you either grew up to become a Nazi or a furry. We don't talk about what happens when you grow up to be both.

Also, can we talk about how awesome the opening theme to the cartoon was? I mean, you can take or leave the cartoon itself, it was probably mediocre without the benefit of rose-colored glasses, but the intro is still pure kino.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_2W_3uXqsfw

 

[TenMilesWide]

Had most of these books as a wee lad. The whole "good forest animals vs. evil vermin" dichotomy was incredibly racist. Outcast of Redwall is probably the best example, with its subplot about a ferret kit being adopted by the peaceful Anglo-Saxon mice at Redwall Abbey and still becoming evil.

I must be having a Mandela Moment or something because in the version I read the ferret is a good boy who dindu nuffin and only dies because the abbey mice are a bunch of racists.

 

[Candlelight Desolation]

Never read the Redwall series, but part of me wants to since a lot of you in here are saying it's appealing to even adults. Based on what I've heard so far, it seems like a literary version of Disney Robin Hood; medieval setting with animal characters instead of humans.

 

[Sayer of the N-Word]

If you guys like Redwall I highly recommend a little comic series called Mouseguard.

View attachment 5154823
View attachment 5154824

Although the mice are the centerpieces of the story, all of David Petersen's animals are excellent:

Spoiler

I especially like the weasels, who most closely resemble the mice but with architecture and clothes that are not European but a blend of various Oriental styles: Persian, Mongol, and Slavic.

Spoiler

It's really too bad he ended his career to take care of his mother. Laudable, too, I guess.

 

[m1ddl3m4rch]

Although the mice are the centerpieces of the story, all of David Petersen's animals are excellent:

Spoiler

View attachment 5257358 View attachment 5257396

I especially like the weasels, who most closely resemble the mice but with architecture and clothes that are not European but a blend of various Oriental styles: Persian, Mongol, and Slavic.

Spoiler

View attachment 5257359

It's really too bad he ended his career to take care of his mother. Laudable, too, I guess.

They even have a tabletop rpg for it too

 

[Sayer of the N-Word]

They even have a tabletop rpg for it too

And it's a good one, not just some slapped together shit like the Rick & Morty 5e hardcover. I may be the only person within 100 miles of me who wants to play it, though.

 

[Scream Aim Fire]

You know... I've heard a ton about this book series, but I've never read it myself. How does it fair these days? It sounds interesting.

 

[Goonon]

You know... I've heard a ton about this book series, but I've never read it myself. How does it fair these days? It sounds interesting.

It's good fun, but only if you don't mind reading below your reading level. It is designed for children, after all but I did get surprised with the word "orgy" in one of them, I guess it didn't have sexual connotations in Britain at that time lol. Each book has a fairly big cast so a character's species and/or title will be repeated a few times, which is a annoying. It doesn't pull punches with the violence. I say read the original, and if you like it continue in publication order until you've had enough.

 

[Thomas Talus]

I say read the original, and if you like it continue in publication order until you've had enough.

The original still had some rough spots where you can see that the world design hadn't completely jelled yet (a non-sentient horse, a couple of real-world references slipping in), and it's a a lot shorter than subsequent books, so bear that in mind.

 

[Goonon]

The original still had some rough spots where you can see that the world design hadn't completely jelled yet (a non-sentient horse, a couple of real-world references slipping in), and it's a a lot shorter than subsequent books, so bear that in mind.

This is true. Based on interviews I think the intention was for it to be a place in the real world far from human settlements, which he soon changed his mind on when he realized there was opportunity to keep writing more. If I remember correctly he wasn't even certain he'd be able to get the first one published. As for the horse I think it wasn't necessarily non-sentient, just exhausted and freaked out by the 400 rats driving it. Although I do seem to recall it being mentioned that Martin the Warrior created the title Foremole, but then in Mossflower there is already a Foremole bearing the title when Martin arrives. Maybe someday I'll get the autistic energy high enough to catalogue retcons, continuity issues, and other oddities.

Spoiler: Redwall Structure Musings That Aren't True Spoilers

I don't think the word "formula" is totally fair here, beyond there being bad guys and chosen heroes which is pretty broad. And prophecies and poems. There is definitely a cycle and familiar roles filled by similar characters from one generation to the next, though, especially after the first few. You've always got your Skipper, your Log a Log, your Foremole, etc. Considering both the target demographic and the fact each story wouldn't really benefit much from arbitrarily making the current title-holder radically different from the others, I don't think it's a bad thing. The rarity of exceptions may be uninteresting to some, though.

Question for the thread: out of the books you've read, which one is your favorite/most remembered or your least favorite/most forgettable? For me, my least favorite is easily Salamandastron. It has good things about it but I really disliked several characters and I think there was too much going on for any of the plot threads to get the attention they needed. Choosing a favorite is more difficult but if someone put a gun to my head I would just say Martin the Warrior.

 

[Thomas Talus]

As for the horse I think it wasn't necessarily non-sentient, just exhausted and freaked out by the 400 rats driving it.

By the chapter heading illustration I recall it was not anthropomorphized even a tiny bit, it was just a regular horse like you would see in our world, and I don't think there were ever horse-drawn carriages in the series again.

As I've said before, my least favorite was Outcast, and that's where I jumped off the series. I think that Mossflower through Mariel were the strongest ones.