MythTickle by Justin Thompson for March 31, 2010

So where are we going?

To Hell (Hades), I gather.

Gee whiz! –Such light, idle banter while crossing the Styx! (Follow the bright, white light!)

“NR Express”? Does “NR” stand for “No Return”?

Justin…

Yeah, fairy might be one of my “dream jobs” too.

Maybe it means Nether Region. As in afterlife.

Maybe Ravirn can hack Boody out,

In Egyptian mythology (especially as interpreted by Tom Robbins, see “Jitterbug Perfume”), on the far side of the river there’s a judgment: is your heart as light as a feather? If so, you gain immortality. If it’s close, you get a pink ticket, which is still pretty good. Otherwise… back to the scrap bin…

It may be a costume, but that wand is real. Sumtin’ tells me there’s gonna to be a showdown.

I’m lovin’ this! It’s tutu funny!

So…Boody is taking the N R express to hell? Does that make hell Queens or Brooklyn? (I vote Brooklyn)

You’re on the right track, Kerry. ;)

Technically, Hades was heaven, hell, AND everything in between. Tartarus was the bad part.

The design of Charon’s rig looks a bit like a wee nod to the swamp-boats from the old Pogo strip

Where’s JAD to explain it all for us in excruciating detail?

Maybe Boody can come back as a ghost.

“Who’s there?!” “BOOOOOOOO-dyyyyyyy…”

GreenBikeGuy said, about 15 hours ago

Technically, Hades was heaven, hell, AND everything in between. Tartarus was the bad part.

OK, at the risk of being labeled a JAD wannabe, Hades was the God of the Underworld, not a place at all. The spirits of the dead were ferried by Charon to the Underworld where they were judged and sent to either Tartarus for eternal punishment or to the Elysian Fields for a hero’s reward.

Don’t forget the Asphodel meadows, for those who deserved neither eternal punishment nor a hero’s reward.

Reminder- I will be at my own booth, AA12, at Wondercon (in San Francisco) TOMORROW and SATURDAY, signing the new book and some of the old ones too. I won’t be there Easter Sunday though. Please come over and say hi. I know I’ll be very lonely there.

@cutiepie, actually, to be even more technical (and nerdy), Hades was the name of the place, which the god (in Latin also called Dis Pater, or Orcus) adopted as his own. Similarly, he was called Pluton, the Wealthy, from the minerals (especially silver and gold) in the earth.

Sorry, the comic has not updated. I’ve contacted GoComics about the problem- waiting to hear. Again, sorry. This isn’t my fault.

J