Greetings all! This month, we are traveling to one of the island nations in the Nonestic Ocean: Orkland. On this island, just of the SE coast of the Shifting Sands (a.k.a. The Deadly Desert), lies an island exclusively for Orks (not to be confused with Orcs, which is another name for Ogres). Orks are avian-like creatures with various unique features that are useful in their own way. In addition to those features (like those below), this creature can talk and it is very judgmental. So, in this post, we will explore this babbling bird, its origins, its media legacy and ways you can experience this oceanic oddball in your neck of the woods. First introduced in Baum's "The Scarecrow of Oz", Mayre "Trot" Griffin and Captain Bill meet this bird in an underground cavern after all of them got whisked down by a whirlpool (see illustration above). This callous creature talks about himself and Orks in high regard. Talk about being unapologetically you! He resides on an island that is SE of Munchkinland and pass the Deadly Desert (or known as the Shifting Sands on the East side of Oz) called Orkland (See map below). As "The Scarecrow of Oz" takes place around the year, 1907, according to the Royal Timeline of Oz, the Ork can be said to have existed prior to this year. How far prior? Well, that is not certain. In regard to the Ork itself, we are given quite a few details regarding this country, he Ork's life, as well as some notable magical creature facts.
The Ork has been in a few different media adaptations over the years. The very first appearance of this magical beast was in 1996 in an episode of the Oz Kids. It appeared randomly as the kids were flying back from NYC to Oz.. Then, 15 years later in 2011, a small rag-tag group of animators made their own adaptation of the Scarecrow of Oz book that featured the Ork (see below). You can find the movie online; however, fair warning, the audio does not match the video very well. So, of course, you have to check it out! Finally, in 2017, the Ork appeared briefly in an episode ("Scooders") of Dorothy and the Wizard of Oz from Boomerang. (see at top of post). Outside of the film and TV adaptations, the Ork made an appearance in a couple other books like the ones below. The first one is available for viewing on YouTube. The second one is available here: https://www.lulu.com/shop/jack-and-larry-brenton/the-ork-in-oz/hardcover/product-159g95r.html?page=1&pageSize=4 for purchase; however, theozindex.com has a fairly good summary of the plot of the book. So, how can you bring this awesome abnormality to your neck of the woods? Why, check out one of the above adaptations mentioned in this post. You can always create your own puppet figure to add to your Oz collection. However you want to interact with the outstanding Ork of Orkland is up to you. So go fly over the bordering mountains of Jinxland and I'll be seeing you somewhere in the Oz-verse.
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May 2024
AuthorMy name is Vinkus Ken and I have been a long time fan of many things in Oz and how their world truly does emulate much of ours. Did you know that they have a flag of their own? Or did you know that they have a law about only having 9 jurors in their courts? Also, Oz has a court system! I like to introduce facts that seem meaningless and bring meaning to them by comparing them to our world. So, come along on this journey and enjoy the ride. |