Durara: its folkloric basis

[Jeffbert]

I had watched this series a few months ago, & had begun watching the 2nd one, but the folkloric basis seemed to have been glossed over, at least not really well explained. But last night, TCM showed Darby O'Gill & the Little People, at the near conclusion of which there came the death coach, driven by a headless coachman, & it was really convincing (beside the point ). So, where is Celty's coach? Is she supposed to toss the stiff over the saddle bags, & ride away? For that matter, how does she keep her helmet on?

So, I googled the term "The Death Coach, or cóiste bodhar" as found in the wiki page for the film, & ! Talk about a frightening sight! I do not recall the coach in the film being anywhere near as creepy as the description on the wiki page. I think Celty's motorcycle should have bones for its frame, etc. As I recall, there were monster-themed car & motorcycle model kits, when I was a kid.

 

[JoanDrake]

I rather like this story, (as might be guessed from the fact I have started no less that THREE separate threads on it, for which I shamefacedly and contritely apologize if this breaks a rule.) It didn't seem much when I first saw it but it has opened like a flower to further investigation.

Indeed, it combines several folktales from East Asia, Ireland and elsewhere. The most terrifying one is indeed the Headless Horseman (woman in this case) and yet she is the most sympathetic character in the story, a girl who manages to be attractive even without a head, strong yet vulnerable and very much in love. I don't really recall ever seeing this meme presented in quite this way before

But the other traditional tales are equally intriguing , the Magic Sword Saika from Japan and the Yellow Scarves from China. The Manga make both of these a lot clearer than the anime did. I do wish I could get ahold of the YA novels these are supposedly based on, but I don't know if they are even available in English

 

[Jeffbert]

Thanks for the response, JoanDrake! As I recall, an episode in DORORO features a supernatural sword that possesses whoever wields it.

 

[Mythopoet]

I do wish I could get ahold of the YA novels these are supposedly based on, but I don't know if they are even available in English

It looks like you can buy them on Amazon. They're published in English by Yen Press.

I'm a fan of this series as well. As far as the depiction of the Dullahan goes, one has to remember that with this type of folklore there isn't any definitive version. It tends to vary from tale to tale. And remember that this story is trying to depict what a Dullahan would be like in a modern setting, where she isn't really functioning as a Dullahan because she can't without her head.

 

[Warren_Paul]

Been catching up on this show so that I can watch the current season. Can't believe I missed the first season when it came out. It's been really good. I love how the episodes tend to follow a particular character's story and many of the scenes aren't necessarily in chronological order yet how well it all ties together. Very inspiring, clever writers. I wonder if the free and loose chronology of the story is how it plays out in the books? Really keen to read them now.

And I just have to say, Heiwajima Shizuo is now one of my all time favourite anime characters. Semyon (Simon) is pretty great too. Russian sushi! Really, the author of this story knows how to do characters. Well done indeed!

All the plot twists were well done too.

I'm a bit more forgiving when it comes to the lore some of the characters are inspired from. It's using that lore as a concept but it's based in a very different setting to the original lore, so they are allowed to be a bit liberal with it, imo. Celty is also just one character in an entire host of characters the story revolves around. It was never intended to specifically deal with her alone and more deal with how all these weird and unique characters work together in the community. There is also going to be a total of 60 episodes so far, so they have plenty of time to revisit the lore revolving around her in the future. I haven't started on the second season yet so can't comment for sure on where things go.

 

[Jeffbert]

Thanks for the info, Mythopoet, Warren_Paul! With respect to versions, I wrote a term paper on the Robin Hood legends, so I well know about those, though was not exactly thinking about it, with the Dulahan.

 

[JoanDrake]

I had watched this series a few months ago, & had begun watching the 2nd one, but the folkloric basis seemed to have been glossed over, at least not really well explained. But last night, TCM showed Darby O'Gill & the Little People, at the near conclusion of which there came the death coach, driven by a headless coachman, & it was really convincing (beside the point ). So, where is Celty's coach? Is she supposed to toss the stiff over the saddle bags, & ride away? For that matter, how does she keep her helmet on?

So, I googled the term "The Death Coach, or cóiste bodhar" as found in the wiki page for the film, & ! Talk about a frightening sight! I do not recall the coach in the film being anywhere near as creepy as the description on the wiki page. I think Celty's motorcycle should have bones for its frame, etc. As I recall, there were monster-themed car & motorcycle model kits, when I was a kid.

Oh god yes, I remember that scene from when I was a small child. Probably the scariest thing I've ever seen except maybe for "A Night on Bald Mountain" (another Disney film, ironically). The Irish have, IMO, about the scariest mythology of anybody except maybe Inuit, and Inuit is more grim than scary really

 

[Mythopoet]

Yeah, we have Darby O'Gill on dvd, but my kids are terrified of it. lol I remember being afraid of the banshee as well, when I was a kid, but the scene in the Leprechaun's home was worth it.

I don't think Irish folklore is that scary (now that I'm an adult). The Banshee and the Death Coach are both just omens or warnings. They don't do anything to you. Irish folklore can be morbid, but it doesn't really have anything like all of the various terrifying and deadly youkai of the Japanese.