The Royal Podcast of Oz: Breaking Down The New Volshebnik Izumrudnogo Goroda Trailer

 Russia should really get out of Ukraine's business and make some good movies like the one Sam and Jay watch and discuss in this episode!

To watch the trailer yourself, go here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p3-d9qg9Ew4

80 Years Of The Wizard of The Emerald City

This past weekend was OzCon International 2019. I attended and presented a panel on Alexander Volkov's Magic Land series as it was 80 years since his original version had been presented. I have blogged about the series indepth, but this panel was designed for those who were not familiar with the series and might be interested in finding out more. Below is what I'd written to read during my panel as well as the videos I'd planned to show during it. Not represented are the questions I received during the panel and the clips of other television adaptations I showed afterwards as we had extra time.

So, you probably didn't understand a word of that. But I think it's fair to say you recognized the story it was celebrating. Over in Russia, generations have grown up with the story of a little girl lost in a fantasy world seeking the help of the magical ruler so she can get home. But it's not Oz, but Volshebnik Izumrudnogo Goroda: translated, the Wizard of the Emerald City.

The one behind this switch was Alexander Melentyevich Volkov. He was a teacher who came across the original Baum book about 1937 when he was given the book to translate as part of his mastering the English language. He enjoyed the story and decided he would publish his own translation. His version of the story, however, would change a few things.

Now, at this time, Russia did not honor international copyright law, allowing writers to freely borrow from other works. Volkov's essentially rewriting an existing work into a new one was not unprecedented, as Pinocchio had become the Russian Buratino at the hands of Aleksey Nikolayevich Tolstoy. Yet it was not even original to Russian writers. A very famous example is none other than Alexandre Dumas' The Three Musketeers, which was inspired by a part of a believed to be fictionalized memoir of the real life d'Artagnan. So before one writes Volkov off as simple plagiarism, just remember that it's a long-established tradition in literature.

Originally published in 1939, Volkov's translation was mostly a straightforward retelling of the original Oz story. The name "Dorothy" wasn't common in Russia and didn't have a real equivalent, so Volkov renamed the heroine "Ellie." Toto's name was translated to "Totoshka." The Tin Woodman was now changed to the Iron Lumberjack as iron actually rusts. The Good Witch of the North and Glinda were now renamed Villina  and Stella, respectively, while the Wicked Witches of the East and West were Gingemma and Bastinda. "Oz" was also renamed "Volshebstrany" or "Magic Land."

However, Volkov had some ideas for Magic Land and twenty years later in 1959, he revised and reissued the book with even further changes. Ellie Smith now lived with her parents in Kansas with her dog Totoshka. As the story opens, her old shoes are wearing out and her mother reads her a story about a Wicked Witch who tries to conjure a hurricane to wipe out all life on earth that she doesn't find useful. Lo and behold, this story is actually happening in Magic Land with Gingemma being the Witch. However, Villina, the Good Witch of the northern Rose Land, alters the spell so that a house that should be abandoned will be dropped on Gingemma.

But the best laid plans of mice and men so often go awry and just like Dorothy, Ellie arrives in the eastern Blue Land of the Munchkins. To her surprise, Totoshka can now talk and expresses himself quite enthusiastically. She is told that in order to return home, she must help three beings fulfill their fondest wishes. She takes with her Gingemma's Silver Shoes and along her way down the yellow brick road, she meets Strasheela who wants a brain, the Iron Lumberjack who wants a heart and then an ogre who wants to eat her after she takes a detour into a trap. Surprise! Shortly after Strasheela and the Lumberjack rescue her and Totoshka, they are joined by the Cowardly Lion on the way to the Emerald City.

There's a few expansions, such as many characters that Baum didn't name in his first book now having names. The Queen of the Field Mice is Ramina, the Guardian of the Gates is Faramant, and the Soldier who guards the palace is Din Gior. Instead of Kalidahs, we have sabre-tooth tigers. The Wizard is named Goodwin.

Volkov also made a few interesting changes. Bastinda has a cook named Fregosa who Elli confides in and makes her question just how powerful Bastinda is. When Goodwin is leaving Magic Land, an eclipse occurs, making the people believe he has actually gone to the sun. When Ellie and her friends journey south, there are no fighting trees or China country. Instead, they attempt to cross a river and it turns into a flood that separates the friends. When it comes to the colors of the Land of Oz, the eastern Munchkin Country is Blue Land and the Emerald City is still green, but the western country is now Violet Land, the northern country is Yellow Land, and the south is Rose Land.

So, there was a brand new, distinctly different Oz tailored for Russian audiences, and over the next sixteen years, Volkov wrote five sequels. These were serialized in magazines before being collected in book form, the last one actually being released five years after Volkov's death in 1977.

 The first sequel was titled Urfin Jus and his Wooden Soldiers. A woodcarver who served Gingemma finds his property overrun with mysterious thorny plants. After burning them, he discovers the ashes will bring things to life, so he creates wooden soldiers called the Deadwood Oaks to conquer Magic Land. While he quickly conquers the Munchkins, Strasheela puts up quite the defense at the Emerald City, until a traitor named Ruf Bilan helps Urfin win. After Urfin captures both Strasheela and the Iron Lumberjack, Kaggi-Karr the crow is sent across the mountains to Kansas to ask Elli and her peg-legged sailor Uncle Charlie Black to come to Magic Land.

Just so we're clear, Urfin is basically a male Mombi mixed with Jinjur with a dash of the Nome King. Uncle Charlie clearly feels a lot like Cap'n Bill. And in a nod to The Road to Oz, the return to Magic Land is achieved through a wheeled boat. Just don't ask why there's a mountain range and a desert in Kansas with all of Magic Land hidden there that no one's noticed.

In Magic Land, Elli and Uncle Charlie meet up with the Lion who helps them free Blue Land, and then with the help of Ramina and her knowledge of underground tunnels, they free Strasheela and the Iron Lumberjack to help them free Violet Land. With Urfin's supply of magic ashes now exhausted, the Deadwood Oaks at the Emerald City are taken out with flaming debris and Urfin is sent home. The remaining Deadwood Oaks are given new faces and serve Strasheela.

 In The Seven Underground Kings, Ruf Bilan fled into the Land of the Underground Ore-Diggers, who have a system of seven Royal Families who take turns ruling. This is acheieved thanks to the Soporific Waters, which send people  to sleep for an extended period of time and wipes their memeories. When each family and their court awakens, they are re-educated as to who they are and then allowed to rule for one month. Ruf Bilan has damaged the source of the water, stopping the system, meaning that over time, each family has awoken.

Back in Kansas, Ellie and her cousin Fred Canning explore a cave, but are trapped and journey to Underground Land, where Ruf Bilan claims that Elli is a powerful fairy who can restore the waters, so she and Fred are kept prisoner. Totoshka is sent to find Strasheela, who arrives with Ellie's other friends to advise on the matter, though the underground climate isn't favorable to any of them.

When Fred suggests finding another source of the Waters, they manage to set up a pump, and each of the Seven Kings decides to send the others to sleep. However, the Timekeeper Rujero decides that all of the Kings will be sent to sleep and he will take permanent ruling duties, with the former kings being sent to new jobs to work with their people.

As the Underground People move above ground, Ramina predicts that Ellie will not be returning to Magic Land before she rides home on the back of Oyho the Dragon.

 So, now on to The Fiery God of the Marrans. Urfin Jus goes south and convinces the Marrans that he's a god using Charlie Black's abandoned cigarette lighter. The Marrans are a short, primitive people who can jump high who Volkov used to replace Baum's Hammerheads. And so, he decides to go conquer the Emerald City again. Strasheela now has a Magic television set that shows him anything he wants to see in Magic Land and has dug a moat around Emerald City. Yet, even with this, the Marrans are able to conquer.

Over in Kansas, we are introduced to Annie, Ellie's seven year old sister and Arto, the son of Totoshka. She and her friend Tim O'Kelly are obsessed with Ellie's tales of Magic Land and when Fred Canning sends them two solar-powered mechanical mules, the two children ride them to Magic Land. Once there, Annie helps to free a fox who gives her a circlet that makes her invisible. As she heads into Munchkin Country, she discovers what's going on with Urfin and grabbing some Soporific Water, she manages to free Strasheela. Urfin lies to the Marrans that the defeated Marrans were killed, but when he arrives, the Marrans see their supposedly dead friends playing a game of volleyball, causing them to revolt against their "Fire God." So all goes well as Tim, Annie and Arto return to Kansas.

 Now, over to The Yellow Fog. The giant witch Arachna awakens from her five thousand year slumber and catches up on the history of Magic Land. She decides she will conquer Magic Land. She tries brute force, but the combined forces are able to repel her. So she casts the yellow fog, which begins to irritate the throat and eyes, but the people of Magic Land manage to find ways to allieviate the effects. It's not until it brings severe winter weather that Oyho goes to fetch Annie and Tim to tell them how to deal with the new climate. However, uncle Charlie makes his return and helps the people defy Arachna with a giant robot named Tilly-Willy who comes to life and fights the witch, making her fall to her death.

 All right, now on to the final book, The Mystery of the Deserted Castle. Now, if you thought Magic Land is sounding a little strange, hold onto your seats. Magic Land is invaded by aliens from the planet Rameria. The cruel Menvits control the peaceful Arzaks with their hypnotic gaze, and soon make it clear to the people of Magic Land that they're up to no good, so the people create an elaborate ruse to keep the invaders in check. But when the Menvits kidnap some citizens and even Annie when she comes in for a visit, mice manage to pipe the Soporific Water to the castle to send the Menvits to sleep. The Arzaks discover that emeralds counter the Menvits' powers and taking a lot in the rocket ship, they head back home to free Rameria.

There's some debate as to if the final book was possibly finished by a ghostwriter.

 

There's a major difference between Baum and Volkov I noticed when I read through the series. After the first story, Villina and Stella only get mentioned and aside from Annie and Arachna, most of the new characters are male. In The Yellow Fog, Tim even quotes a maxim saying that men go out on adventures and seeking fortune while women care for the home. Compare this with Baum's world where women are often the adventurous protagonists and leaders and in the case of the Patchwork Girl, even reject having a domestic role to life a life of independence. That said, after reading a number of fan sequels to The Wizard of Oz in which Oz is in trouble and they send for Dorothy, it was refreshing to see the people of Magic Land come together and face threats as a community.

The series promotes people coming together as a community and working towards a common goal. In a common fairy tale trope, Ellie in the first story must first help others before she can expect to be sent home. While it gives Ellie some motivation to befriend her companions, I think I prefer the original Oz story in which Dorothy just befriends them because she wants to help them. Giving her a motivation makes it seems like her friendships are a means to an end. Totoshka, however, is a great twist on Toto with his winsome and energetic personality.

Now, the books have been popular over in Russia and other nearby countries, and they've inspired a number of adaptations, from stage productions to live action television productions to animated versions. However, the most popular seems to be a 1973 10-episode series adapting the first three books. The series was animated via stop motion. That song I opened this presentation with is "The Song of the Friends," which thematically combines "We're Off To See The Wizard" with "If I Only Had A Brain," "If I Only Had A Heart" and "If I Only Had The Nerve." How popular is this song? Well...

I have some bad news if you think those puppets are charming. The series was produced by Soyuzmultfilm, who lost their puppet building to the Russian Orthodox Church about 1990 who did not give notice to the animators before sending in a squadron who threw out the puppets, saying they were "satanic" and "animated with the blood of Christian babies." No salvaging of the puppets or other materials was allowed. So, sorry for a depressing episode of "Where Are They Now?" *

The series has had its continuations. Leonid Vladmirsky, who illustrated the series, wrote Buratino in the Emerald City, sending the Russian version of Pinocchio to Oz.

Yuri Kuznetzov wrote at least four books properly continuing the series.

However, one Sergei Sukinhov has written no less than twenty books set in a version of Magic Land that only went off the first book and then created its own continuity.

If you're wondering about the proper Oz series being translated to Russian, yes, that's since happened, allowing readers to experience both series. For America, thanks to Peter Blystone, Volkov's books are available in English in the "Tales of Magic Land" series, and he's also translated a number of Sukinhov's books. I couldn't tell you about every plot beat, so my summaries there just had to skim the basics of the stories. I highly recommend checking them out.

So, back to that song, I found the lyrics and managed to translate them. The lyrics are only functionally translated, so they don't rhyme, but at least you'll get an idea of what the characters are saying. So, let's head down the yellow brick with Ellie and her friends one more time.

* Despite having seen the series lumped in with Soyuzmultfilm's work, after posting this blog, I was informed that the series was produced by Ekran, a separate company. It is entirely possible that the puppets survive!

Volkov-thon: The Mystery of the Deserted Castle

And so we come to the final book. Volkov, like Baum, wrote Magic Land stories to his final days.

One thing we notice is that Volkov tended to make use of his old characters as much as possible, where Baum would have characters come in and go again and sometimes never return. This is not to say either is a problem, but it does speak of the differences of the two worlds: Magic Land feels smaller and more interconnected as a result (which is in its favor as it is hidden in America somewhere), while Oz feels larger and if a character doesn't reappear, it's more likely that they're just going about their lives and didn't get involved in this particular story.

The Mystery of the Deserted Castle opens not in Magic Land nor in Kansas but in outer space as the rocket ship Diavona from the planet Rameria heads to Belloria (Earth). Volkov explains quite a bit about the ship, Rameria, and the two races of the planet: the amiable, hard-working, inventive Arzaks and the lazy and cruel Menvits, who have the power to make the Arzaks forget their accomplishments and stay subservient.

Although Volkov takes his time to tell the story, it can be recapped briefly: the Diavona lands in Magic Land, outside the abandoned castle of the giant wizard Hurricap who had made Magic Land magic (kind of like Lurline, but not immortal). The newcomers take possession of the castle. Having the birds and gnomes spy on the newcomers as much as possible (some birds are killed when the Menvits fire their ray-guns), the people of Magic Land try to discover as much as possible from a safe distance. Also, Strasheela has the Magic Television set.

Urfin Jus, who became a gardener as well and had his regular food festivals interrupted by the newcomers, manages to sell his vegetables to the newcomers and get what information he can. The Menvits capture Mentaho (a former Underground King) and his wife as they learn the language and discover that the Arzak people who came with the Menvits are actually friendly. Furthermore, they discover that if the Arzaks are holding emeralds, they are immune to the psychic control of the Menvits. Mentaho lies to the Menvits about Magic Land to make the newcomers hesitant to openly attack, the main elaboration being that there are giants are all around. (The gnomes keep everyone else informed of what Mentaho says and Tilly-Willy walks around with different painted faces regularly.)

Because this is a Magic Land book, Annie and Tim are sent for by means of Oyho the Dragon, and Fred Canning joins them to help the people of Magic Land build a mine. However, they are hesitant to blow up the mine, and try to put Soporific Water into the Menvits' food instead, though it seems they might not have a choice as the Menvits are becoming frustrated with the repeated failures of their attempted attacks (thanks, eagles and Gingemma's black rocks!) and want to blow up the Emerald City and the rest of Magic Land before returning to Rameria. They also kidnap Annie to confirm what Mentaho said. (Thanks to the gnomes, she's in line with him.)

Luckily, the Soporific Water comes through the newly constructed pipes just in time, putting the Menvits to sleep and putting the Arzaks in charge, who get ready to head back to Rameria with plenty of emeralds in tow so they can fight against the Menvits' psychic powers. Oyho takes Annie, Tim and Fred back home.

Magic Land has definitely developed over the series. By this book, Strasheela has united so much of Magic Land and has such a good surveillance system that there was pretty much no need to call for Annie at all. Yes, she helped (Ramina and her mice are actually instrumental in bringing the Soporific Water to the castle, and Annie summoned them), but it's really pretty minor considering what else was being done.

One might well gape at using invaders from outer space in a book that was inspired by Oz, but may I remind you that Ruth Plumly Thompson's Ozoplaning with the Wizard of Oz and John R. Neill's The Wonder City of Oz also go beyond the stratosphere. In any case, Volkov doesn't make the invaders far too fantastic.

In any case, we've seen how you could take a concept like Oz and go in a different direction than Baum while not going overly dark or adult in theme. Although, Baum's feminist fairyland certainly becomes a patriarchal society here...

So, this wraps up Volkov's series. He died in 1977 before the book edition was published in 1982. However, Magic Land had captured the imagination of readers, and spinoff novels exist, just as they do with the original Oz series. Blystone has translated a series of books by Sergei Sukinhov, but I've yet to get those. But now that we've got these done, I think I can say that we'll be back to Magic Land someday.

All pictures in this series are by Leonid Vladimirsky. They—and more illustrations—can be found with the Russian texts of the series at volkov.anuta.org

Volkov-thon: The Yellow Fog

On to the penultimate book in Volkov's series. It didn't matter that I'd read them out of order because Volkov wrote the books so that they could be read individually. Baum did the same thing, but they did them differently. Baum would just fill you in on the information you needed to know. Volkov, however, would tend to recap the entire series so far.

In The Yellow Fog, he at least has a nice reason for doing so. He opens thousands of years in the past, telling how the wizard Hurricap (who created Magic Land, pretty much Volkov's Lurline... noticing something?) battled the Witch Arachna, who was also a giantess. Upon victory, he put her in an enchanted sleep instead of killing her. The tribe of tiny gnomes (actual tiny little men, no relation to the Nomes we know from Oz) refreshes Arachna's clothes and a food supply and her magic flying carpet as she sleeps for five thousand years. They also keep a record of everything that is happening in Magic Land for her to read when she awakens.

In this way, I was kind of reminded of not a Baum book, but Rachel Cosgrove Payes' The Wicked Witch of Oz in which a witch awakens from a long, enchanted sleep. As Cosgrove wrote her book in the 1950s but it went unpublished until 1993, and Volkov's book came out in 1974, there is no chance of one inspiring the other.

As it happens, Arachna awakens one year after the events of The Fiery God of the Marrans and reads the record to get up to speed on Magic Land. So here is where Volkov takes two chapters to recap the entire series for people like me who began with this book.

After finishing the chronicle, Arachna decides to take over Magic Land, and she has the Nomes send for a henchman in her schemes: Urfin Jus!

Volkov goes back to Urfin and Guamoko's fates after their defeat in the previous book. There was nothing left for Urfin to do but return to his home in Munchkin Land, feeling defeated and sorry for himself, but along the way, the Munchkins open their doors to him, letting him have food and shelter. And so, touched by their kindness, Urfin begins to think about how he's been living. Returning home, he finds the plants he made his Powder of Life from respawned. He briefly considers building a new army, but then uproots the plants and destroys them and builds a new home elsewhere. He's done enough to the people of Magic Land who have repaid his foul behavior with kindness.

I was developing my book Outsiders from Oz when I first read The Yellow Fog and at the time, Ruggedo the ex-Nome King had not joined the story. I'd seen people compare Urfin to Ruggedo due to his repeated plots to conquer the Kingdom, so when I read these chapters, it gave me the idea not only to include Ruggedo, but also what to do for his character arc. I added some twists and Ruggedo's story is quite different from Urfin's, but it did prove my inspiration.

So, when the gnomes arrive to fetch Urfin to consult with Arachna (he gives them some gifts and carries them in a wheelbarrow to make the trip faster), he refuses to help her. She says that he will regret it and he leaves, noting that other gnomes fetched another potential henchman: Ruf Bilan. He had just awaken from drinking the Soporific Water and was being re-educated when the gnomes fetched him. Arachna has him learn his past life from the Record and he agrees to help her, assuring her that the people of Magic Land will swiftly surrender.

That is not the case. Word spreads quickly in Magic Land and all the people Arachna tries to conquer: the Marrans, the Winkies, the Emerald City, the Ore-Diggers and even the Munchkins are all able to repel her attempts at conquest. Oyho the Dragon even manages to rip off a piece of the Magic Carpet which Rujero uses as its own carpet.

So Arachna sets her next plan in motion: the Yellow Fog. This fog covers Blue Land, Violet Land, and the Emerald Kingdom, and at first seems to be harmless, but after some time, people begin coughing from its effects. But the doctors Robil and Boril discover that wearing raffaloo leaves over your mouth and nostrils will ease your breathing. Urfin Jus—who is brought to the Emerald Island after Strasheela discovers his reformation—also shows that the fog can be repelled with smoke.

Soon, the fog begins affecting vision as well, and everyone is required to wear glasses. Finally, the fog brings cold weather and snow—previously unknown to the people of Magic Land—and Strasheela sends Oyho and Faramant to fetch Annie and Tim to show them how to prepare for winter.

In Kansas, the mechanical mules have been helping John not only plow his own fields, but also that of his neighbors, increasing his income. At the time Oyho and Faramant arrive, Charlie Black has been visiting and Tim is interested in going to sea with the old sailor.

There is one bit that Tim quotes that kind of set me off: "Men are obliged to seek their fortunes in foreign climes, while it's the lot of the women to keep the home fires burning." This rather old-fashioned maxim does give us a little reminder about one of the differences between Volkov's Magic Land and Baum's Oz. Baum had women take lead roles. They're allowed to do as they please. However, Volkov's women are either villains, the rarely seen Villina and Stella, or simply assist the male characters. Even as Annie returns to Magic Land, it's really Charlie and Tim who lead the action.

Arriving in Magic Land, Strasheela and the Iron Woodman confer with Charlie on how to openly attack Arachna. They wind up building a giant mechanical man they call Tilly-Willy, and with his fierce, ugly face, is sure to frighten even the giant witch. Tilly-Willy comes to life after construction and begins to speak like Charlie. This giant will fight Arachna, and Tim will help sneak mice into her lair to devour her magic carpet to prevent a getaway. After a long, hard journey (many mice perish on the way), they manage to surprise Arachna with Tilly-Willy and destroy the carpet. In an amusing twist, the bits of the magic carpet allow the mice to fly away from the wildcats Arachna summons. Volkov mentions that they lost the power to fly and the magic carpets remnants were spread all over Magic Land. Those who know how digestive systems work realize what Volkov just said without actually saying it.

Little fun bit, in James Patrick Doyle's song "Pull Together" for his musical adaptation of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, the Queen of the Field Mice sings "We can even learn to fly!" I can't help but mentally connect that verse and this scene in The Yellow Fog.

Annie goes to get Carfax the Eagle, who assists Tilly-Willy in his fight against Arachna, using his giant sword to break her club, and eventually pushing her over a cliff, where she perishes.

Charlie and Annie find the spell to lift the Yellow Fog in Arachna's magic book, and after the fog is gone, the book is burned to prevent anyone from using it again. The gnomes do not miss their old mistress and Strasheela tasks them with maintaining their record of the events of Magic Land. (So, this could be Volkov's take on the Book of Records.) The book wraps up with a celebration in the Emerald City as Oyho prepares to take Annie, Tim and Charlie back to Kansas.

The Yellow Fog is a good story on its own, and what I appreciated when I first read it was that Annie and her companions are not called to save Magic Land. The people of Magic Land were defying Arachna on their own and only called for them to learn how to survive during the Winter.

One little thing does bug me: why is such a huge disaster happening in the rest of Magic Land and Villina and Stella are just doing nothing? Volkov rarely used these characters after the first book, and in a contrast to Baum's books, Villina the Good Witch of the North gets more appearances in these books than Glinda's counterpart, Stella. Still, Ruf Bilan suggests that the Flying Monkeys could overpower Arachna. Did it occur to no one that calling on these two sorceresses might help?

Well, we have one more book. Then I can get on some proper Oz books I got recently.

Volkov-thon: The Fiery God of the Marrans

On to Book 4. Translator Peter Blystone noted that The Fiery God of the Marrans was Volkov's weakest in the series. Let's see what he meant.

Reminder that Volkov had previously prevented Ellie from returning to Magic Land by means of saying she wouldn't return, so how was the series going to continue?

Speaking of which, in the last blog, Sam commented that he hoped there would be an explanation as to why Ellie would not return to Magic Land. Commenter Marc Berezin (who also assisted Blystone on the recent editions of the translations) said that it seemed to be because Ellie was growing up. This seems to be accurate as Underground Kings had her parents put a lot of emphasis on her need to go to school and learn more about the world. This almost seems to be a concept lifted out of The Chronicles of Narnia, in which the Pevensie children are told they need to grow closer to their own world as they get older.

In The Fiery God of the Marrans, Volkov doesn't keep Ellie out of the picture, revealing that she studied to become a teacher after her final visit to Magic Land. He also reveals that while she having her third adventure, her mother gave birth to another daughter, Annie.

The early chapters mainly focus on the new designs of Urfin Jus after his famous defeat in the second book. He of course isn't happy about his defeat and wants to conquer the Emerald City again. After waiting for a new chance for years, he gets one when he hears about the Marrans from Carfax, the eagle he helps. He sends Eot Ling the wooden clown to investigate further.

The Marrans were introduced back in The Wizard of the Emerald City in place of the Hammerheads. The short people can jump high and far and are nicknamed the Leapers. They're also very good at throwing punches. They live in their mountain and have never used fire.

It just so happens that Urfin managed to get a hold of a spare cigarette lighter that Charlie Black had when he visited Magic Land, so he has Carfax carry him to the Marrans and with his ability to call forth a flame instantly, he gets them to hail him as a god. He teaches them to cook, then build nice houses. (The noble Carfax eventually realizes Urfin's deceitful game and leaves him.) Soon, he has an army ready to march on the Emerald City.

Meantime, Strasheela has busied himself with digging a deep trench around the Emerald City to turn it into an island. Aside from the wall, this adds extra protection to the city by stopping a Deadwood Oak-manned ferry should enemies attack. Stella the Good Witch sends him a small box with a frosted glass side that will show him whoever of whatever he wishes to see by chanting a rhyme and requesting what he wants to see. (The "magic television set" is Volkov's portable version of the Magic Picture.) However, it can only show him people and places in Magic Land.

When Urfin attacks the Emerald City, Strasheela and his forces put up a mighty effort, but the Marrans eventually break in and conquer the City. This leaves Kaggi-Karr at a loss as to what to do next.

In Kansas, Annie is about seven years old and is obsessed with Ellie's tales of Magic Land. Ellie even gives her the whistle that can summon Ramina. She shares her obsession with her friend Tim O'Kelly, and when Fred Canning sends them solar-powered mechanical mules named Hannibal and Caesar, they prepare to ride them all the way to Magic Land! Hannibal and Caesar begin speaking when they arrive in Magic Land, and I couldn't help but think of them as some combination of the Sawhorse and Tik-Tok. Also accompanying them is a puppy Totoshka fathered named Artoshka, or Arto for short.

After being helped into Magic Land proper by Carfax, Annie manages to rescue a talking fox who is the king of a community of foxes (basically, a less-anthropomorphized version of Foxville), who gives Annie a silver circlet with a ruby that will make her invisible. Arriving in Munchkin Land, Annie discovers what has befallen Strasheela and the Iron Woodcutter (who's also been locked away by Urfin), so she heads to the Emerald City, where using the circlet, Soporific Water from Underground Land and the whistle, manages to free Strasheela, the Iron Woodcutter and steal the Magic Television Set from Urfin. Then, they head west.

Urfin tells the Marrans that a group of them who were attacking Winkie Country were killed and their bodies cut up and fed to pigs. This spurs them to march to Winkie Country, but Strasheela's use of the Magic Television Set warned him and they do the most surprising way to counter the attack: they have a volleyball game with the supposedly slaughtered Marrans. The incoming Marrans see their supposed dead friends and relatives still alive and realize Urfin was lying to them this entire time and chase him away. Ellie and Tim return home on the mules.

Quite a few more things happened in the book as well, but my above summary gives you the most plot-important bits. The Fiery God of the Marrans works well to introduce Annie and open the door for further adventures, but unfortunately, so much time is spent setting up the siege on the Emerald City that the sudden and quick wrap up with the volleyball game feels quite dissatisfying. It's fun, but I would have preferred a little more of Urfin getting a comeuppance.

Volkov has an afterword where he mentions he considered having this book be the final one, but he wound up starting a fifth book. That was actually the first of the series I'd read, and it wound up having a bit of inspiration for my own Oz spin-off Outsiders from Oz. But just to be fair, I'm going to read it again.

Volkov-thon: The Seven Underground Kings

On to book 3! I hadn't read this one before, but I'd seen the stop-motion adaptation of it, but now that I've read the book, I can tell that that was a very abbreviated version of this story.

Now, one thing Volkov did quite differently from Baum was setting up a backstory. In Baum's books, things are there, and why they're there isn't always explored.

At the start of The Seven Underground Kings, Volkov takes us back to the Land of the Underground Ore-Diggers, explaining why these people live underground. They have seven brothers for kings, and they each one rule one month in turn and each king has his own court. This was very draining on the resources of the Underground Land until they discovered the Soporific Water, which makes someone enter a sleep for a time and when they awaken, they have to be reeducated on who they are. (Basically, Volkov's take on the Water of Oblivion.) The Kings agree that to ease the burden on the kingdom, they and their courts will use the water and sleep in between their reigns.

This system works fine until the close of Urfin Jus and his Wooden Soldiers. The traitor Ruf Bilan fled underground, and while doing so, accidentally damaged the spring the Soporific Water came from, preventing them from using it. Over the months that follow, the Kings and their courts awaken and become a burden on the people again. The Kings finally have to decide to dismiss most of their courts and have one shared court.

Back in Kansas, Ellie goes to school for some months after her last return from Magic Land, before being invited to spend time with her cousin Fred Canning, who prides himself on his adventures until he hears Ellie's tales of Magic Land. The two decide to go visit a cave with Totoshka, but are trapped by a rockslide. They travel underground for many days, nearly starving, until they find Underground Land.

Upon seeing Ellie, Ruf Bilan calls her a powerful fairy and suggests she restore the spring of the Soporific Water before she can leave. Ellie objects since she's just a little girl, but the king sides with Ruf. They are able to send Totoshka to the surface, to Munchkin Country, where he's able to get the word out that Ellie is in Underground Land and being held prisoner. Strasheela plans to attack Underground Land until they get Fred out to Munchkin Country and to the Emerald City to explain the full details. This lets the mechanic Lestar decide that it would be a better idea to find the source of Soporific Water and set up a pump

So it is that Strasheela, the Iron Woodman, the Courageous Lion, Lestar and a regiment of Deadwood Oaks arrive in Underground Land with many gifts. While Lestar works on the pump, Ellie's friends begin to suffer from the damp, requiring Strasheela to stay near a forge (but not too close!) to stay dry, the Iron Woodman to stay in a tank of oil to prevent himself from rusting away, and the Lion has to continually consume medicine for his cold as the Deadwood Oaks begin to swell.

As they hit the water, they discover its vapor can send people to sleep as well, unless they're wearing diamonds. The Kings begin to plot against the each other, wanting to put all the others to sleep so they can rule continually. So the timekeeper Rujero decides that maybe the time of having Seven Kings needs to come to an end, and Strasheela suggests that all the kings and their courts be put to sleep, and instead of reeducating them back into their old lives, to send them into being contributing members of society who will work to keep Underground Land from starving again, and Rujero will move from timekeeper (who kept an eye on the hourglasses to measure when the Kings' time would be up) to the new, single King of Underground Land. This measure is agreed to and they manage to expose all the kings and their courts to the water at the same time.

After the Kings are reeducated, the end of Underground Land arrives. It is decided that it would be best if the Underground people didn't stay underground and move to the surface. They agree to this, though given that many of them are used to living with low light, they will need to adjust to living in the sunlight.

Ellie calls Ramina, the Queen of the Field Mice, who tells her that she can see into the future and that Ellie will not be returning to Magic Land. Ellie says a tearful goodbye to her friends, wanting to hide from them the notion that she won't be back, even though the Iron Woodman feels it in his heart. She, Totoshka and Fred are carried back to Kansas by Oyho the Dragon from Underground Land.

Here we see Volkov fully branching into his own stories. Is the existence of an underground kingdom inspired by the Nome Kingdom? Maybe. The Soporific Water is certainly based on the Water of Oblivion, but its abilities to put people to sleep is an invention of Volkov, as is the idea that with a little reeducation, the people exposed to the water can regain a sense of who they were.

More importantly, Volkov was able to put an end to Ellie's adventures and send her home, while Baum had Dorothy move to Oz. Yet the stories of Magic Land were not concluded. Volkov wrote three more books in his series, so how would they continue?