I can’t think of a good Labyrinth-related poll to post right now, so for the next poll, I’m curious which upcoming fantasy film folks are most excited about. There have been so many good trailers likely, I’m more excited about going to the movies than I have been in years. Harry’s come and gone, Ponyo’s made her splash and District 9’s integrated in our imaginations. What’s the next winner? Feel free to point out any omissions you think belong there or duke it out over your choice in the comments .

Return to Labyrinth Vol. 4 is in the middle of being drawn, and as promised, I bring you the first ever preview pic! This is the “splash page” for Chapter 1, titled “Oubliette.” It’s just a thumbnail, much rougher than the final art, but it’s still quite a beautiful composition. From this sketch, artist Chris Lie will move on to a final “pencil” version, which then gets inked and finally toned. I’ll share the updated versions as they move through production and are approved by the Jim Henson Company.

Next time, I’ll share some juicy penciled pages, but in the meantime, I hope you enjoy this tantalizing first image! Feel free to speculate on the image or title in the comments.

So back in June I proposed this “Gobblin Gab” concept of creating themed discussion forums for all things Labyrinth and Return to Labyrinth. Most Labyrinth discussions usually end up debating nuances of the Jareth/Sarah relationship, but I’d like to put the spotlight on an aspect of the film that has nothing to do with either of the human leads  – the other stars of Labyrinth, the puppets. I’m not talking about Hoggle’s klepto proclivities or the goblin techniques for the breeding of chickens. I mean the actual art of puppetry that went into bringing the non-human characters of Labyrinth to life.

Throughout his career, and in the eighties especially, Jim Henson pushed the boundaries of what puppetry could achieve like no other artist before or since, and  Labyrinth was no exception. From cutting edge technology, like the radio controlled animatronic face of Hoggle or the record-breaking size of “Humongous,” to the decidedly analogy whimsy of the Helping Hands and the Fire Gang, Labyrinth pushed the envelope.

Please use the comments here to discuss your favorite puppet-centric moments of Labyrinth, or to reflect on the art of puppetry in general.

Image by way of worldofwonder.net.

When I switched to threaded comments, I set it to 1 level deep of replies. I’ve tested and don’t see any problem with posts appearing in the wrong place if there’s just one level, but I did see replies to to the wrong place if I reply to replies (why it would prompt for replies when it won’t post them as such, I don’t know). Anyway, to attempt to solve the problem, I’m expanding comments to 5 levels deep. If problems persist, I’ll just ditch nested comments all together.

Thanks for your patience!

New reader Dave recently asked in the comments whether or not Return to Labyrinth is considered canon. It’s a question that comes up a lot in message boards and such, and I’ve said my take before in comments and panels, but I thought I’d reiterate here so it’s easy to find.

First of all, the series is 100% authorized by the Jim Henson Company and goes through rigorous approvals there. In that sense, it’s definitely as official as any of the other ancillary releases. Whether or not that makes it “canon” is ultimately the Jim Henson Company’s call. Labyrinth was first and foremost a movie, and movies follow different rules from comics, novels and prose. Even should the manga be adapted for a movie (which as much as I’d love to see, I don’t think is likely!), great changes would have to be made to make it work for that medium. For that reason, I think it’s best to think of the manga, the novel and the art books as “Extended Universe” Labyrinth. Enjoy them (or not) as companion pieces.

The original movie will always stand on its own, and as the guiding light has sadly passed away, we can only guess as to whether he’d have approved of this or any future Labyrinth story. All involved want to do right by Jim Henson’s memory. Whether or not you consider the manga canon, at least it’s keeping us talking about the original.

Last week I finished revisions on a scene for the final volume that features Jareth and Mizumi’s courtship. Mizumi mentions their affair in volume 2, but it isn’t until the next volume that we really get to see what their relationship was like. I’m not going to spill all the juicy details here, but now that the biggest piece of backstory is out of the way, I would like to talk about origins.

Prequels, even more than sequels, are dangerous ground, as they can, if badly handled, taint everything that comes after chronologically. Darth Vader is the perfect case in point. In the original trilogy, he’s a terrifying figure turned tragic hero. Apparently being turned into an evil cyborg was the best thing that could have happened to the guy, since according to the prequels, before that he was just a dick. The new Star Trek movie got it right, but only after the dreadfully dull Enterprise sucked all the energy out of the original series’ prehistory. C. S. Lewis’s The Magician’s Nephew is the earliest prequel I can think of, and definitely one of the most successful, but even that one has slightly diminished the series thanks to revisionist editing renumbering it from volume 6 to 1.

But back to Labyrinth. In dealing with anything that could be construed as part of Jareth’s “Origin Story,” I definitely wanted to tread lightly. While I’ve imagined many adventures that Jareth might have had before he crossed path with Sarah, I’m of the opinion that his relevance, if not his existence, begins and ends with Sarah. Any back story he has must reinforce that relationship – the needs that brought him into her life, if not into existence.

As I finish tying up the many threads as best I can (with much support from the awesome Joe LeFavre at Henson), I sincerely hope that this story will supplement other fans’ memories and dreams of Jareth and not spoil them. In any case, more is left in mystery than is explained concerning the distant past; like they in the Neverending Story, that is another story and will (hopefully!) be told at another time.

The ultimate ’80s fantasy movie showdown poll is now closed and the consensus is clear. Princess Bride won by a landslide, followed by the Neverending Story and the Last Unicorn. Maybe it wasn’t quite fair to rank the accessible and much-loved PB up against a list of largely costume and creature flicks, but there’s no doubt it’s a film at the top of its genre.

There’s a new poll up asking which minor character from the film you’d most like to see again. I will say right now that Ludo, Hoggle and Didymus will appear (it wouldn’t be right for them to miss the finale!), but of these other characters, I’m curious which fans of the film would most like to see.

Also, are there any particular bit players I overlooked list that you miss? Share them in the comments!

It’s good to be back! July was a busy month. I got married, spent 3 weeks in southeast Asia, turned 32 and gotted started on a few new stories that I hope to keep writing once Return to Labyrinth Volume 4 is wrapped. I know everyone’s eager to start talking about volume 4, and I promise that a first peek will be forthcoming soon. This week I’ve got a major deadline to meet, after which I’ll see what I can do about bringing gobblin readers a scoop. Plus, 10 hour time difference = nasty jetlag.

In the meantime, please check out my newly launched other blog, the creatively-named jakeforbes.com. In the first post I explain why I now have two blogs, but the basic gist of it is that gobblin.net will remain the offical blog for Return to Labyrinth and related topics, while jakeforbes.com will be for personal stuff, career stuff and essays. If you enjoy my non Labyrinth-themed posts, I hope you’ll add it to your feed!

Also, a small change, but I added nested comments so you can now reply to posts directly. Since some of the more popular discussions involve a of back and forth, I thought this might make it easier to follow. What do you guys think?

Thanks for your patience this past month. I’ll be back to regular posting soon!