"Elfquest" influenced?

Let's share here any stories we know, whether they be novels, comics or whatnot, that have (or hint strongly at) echoes with "Elfquest."

I'll go first:

"Guardian's Key" by Anne Logston. Meaning no disrespect to her or her skills but it reads to me like a Rayek-centered fanfic carefully prised out of its original setting and painstakingly re-set in a new world to stand on its own.

There is a mysterious, highly magical crystal Palace. The master/caretaker of the Palace is a dark-haired (tho' not dark-skinned, sadly), aloof, arrogant jerk. (To start.) Long, long ago he had a lady-love but she married another after he left to find a way to prove himself worthy. He's still rather hung up on her. (He also does something outrageously self-centered - given how I went off on Mender for a very similar stunt, I think it can be considered to echo (if faintly) the Time Trip.) But he is humbled and learns and changes in the course of the story.
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He is not the first of the masters of the Palace. (I forget what the book called it - going with the simple, here.) The first master has lost her soul and her memory and in the course of the book is restored to herself, rather like Timmain at the end of the First Palace War.

The heroine doesn't necessarily match any of the EQ characters; though I think I could make a case for Shenshen, she could just as easily be a self-insert. (Again, no shame meant for the author - what's fanfic for if you can't write yourself into the fun?)

The story stands just fine on its own and I don't insist this is the only explanation for how she's written it but it sure makes me think...!

At first I didn't think it was likely- but now I'm convinced that George R.R. Martin read Elfquest.

I've never read his books, Lunakat. (My husband has and he told me that, though they're well done, I'd hate them.) What parts echo for you?

If you don't like getting attached to a character and then finding him/her being killed in a horrible way, or being treated like **** over and over again than I guess your husband is right Manga. But otherwise it is a must for anyone who even slightly likes fantasy.

I read them all, but they never reminded me of elfquest in any way. So Lunakat, you make me very curious...

The animated movie Sinbad-Legend of the seven seas. The character Eris reminds me a lot of Winnowill. Both in appearance and personality. I think Wendy herself made a comment about it one time we discussed it, that maybe they got some inspiration from Winnie ^^

I thought the SAME thing when I watched that movie.... OMG her persona is soooooooooo Winnowill!

Hey y'all! I was listening to the audiobook of "A Dance with Dragons." I didn't read the other books- I just saw the TV show. But I had to clean house- so I put on this audiobook to help me along.

So... the first thing that catches my eye is that a character is able to shapeshift- or rather- project his mind into the body of animals. He's been inhabiting wolves. He talks all about what it feels like to be a wolf- and how he wants to leave his body to be eaten by the wolves as a gesture of camaraderie toward them. Then, at another point in the story, "children of the forest" come up. They are ancient beings, about four feet tall, with big eyes and round faces like children, and four fingered hands. They also (i think) shape trees.

Sounds like Elfquest!

...If there will never be a movie, at least Elfquest could be made an audio book of! I have always wondered how the elves voices would sound. I could think of Cate Blanchet's voice for Timmain, Angelina Jolie for Winnowill, Orlando Boom for Skywise...or Christopher Lee's voice for Cutter (after the return of the palace).

Fairyring, there is an "Elfquest" audiobook.http://www.amazon.com/Elfquest-Volumes-Journey-Sorrows-End/dp/0807275751/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1430331489&sr=8-1&keywords=elfquest+audio Me, I didn't like it much because Rayek's voice was too high. Heh.

Pirates of Dark Water which actually took the Saturday morning cartoon time slot that at one point had been optioned to EQ http://www.windowscentral.com/sites/wpcentral.com/files/postimages/5516/PiratesDarkWater.jpg The lead male and female characters are VERY much like Cutter and Leetah.
Of course EQ it's self was great influenced by the cartoon movie Wizards. Early art of EQ makes Cutter look like a carbon copy of Weehawk the main Wizards Elf.

Ahh, I remember "Pirates!" Too bad they never finished it.

Noy j'tat, I agree.

@Lunakat

Ok, I see what you mean. About the wolf/human bond, this reminded me more of Robin Hobbs books actually (the farseer trilogy), where the main character bonds with a dog first and later with a wolf. The way he communicates with his bond animals is much like the wolfriders and their wolves. So maybe Robin Hobb was influenced by Elfquest?! I am pretty sure George Martin read Hobbs books, I believe he praises her work on one of the back sleeves of the series.
It is true though that the way the children of the forest are described does resemble the elfquest elves a bit... so who knows...

People transforming into beasts, sending their spirits into the the bodies of beasts is as old as human existence. The thing with the children of the forests is something else. Forgot how they pictured them in the show XD

Maybe it's the other way around. Maybe we are so influenced by Elfquest we see Elfquest everywhere.

I like your thought, Redhead - it's probably one half of the truth!

Like that thought Red.

But Wendy has used many elements from J RR Tolkien's work. I'm finding more as I go.

I think Elfquest was influenced by a lot of traditional fantasy. Elfquest plays with all sorts of very common tropes of fantasy and gives them a slight twist in turning them sci-fi. But there is almost nothing unique to Elfquest in Elfquest. It's just how it's handled, how it's put together, what it adds up to and the quality and presentation of it.

Has anyone read the 'Fables' comics by Bill Willingham & co.?

In that series (which I highly recommed since it's wonderful), the North Wind falls in love with a wolf, and they have children, one of whom is the 'Big Bad Wolf'. Coincidence? Maybe, maybe not.

Cool, I wanna read! I'd even fall in love with a wolf...

...just kidding!

Oh and I looove how Wendy said that she was influenced by William Shakespeare! It made the elves powerfully eloquent

Leanan wrote:

In that series (which I highly recommed since it's wonderful), the North Wind falls in love with a wolf, and they have children, one of whom is the 'Big Bad Wolf'. Coincidence? Maybe, maybe not.

I don't see the coincidence there, Leanan. Elaborate? I don't see much similarity between Bigby and Timmorn.

Just the idea that someone whom we see a "humanoid" form (which is just one of the forms the North Wind takes to interact with others, he can be anything - just like Timmain, as a conehead, took whatever shape was locally appropriate), and who has (at least!) a human level of intelligence - would have offspring (magical, of course) with a completely ordinary wolf.

But now that I think of it, you're right, ElfQuest didn't get that from nothing. I can't recall if there's any incident with a wolf in Greek myths, but the gods did take animal form, and so on...

(Just for the Greek connection) Mares were said to get pregnant by the wind:
http://www.theoi.com/Titan/AnemosBoreas.html

Anything got pregnant with anything in the ancient times!