With all due respect to my Welshicist friends, I did NOT like the Mabinogi starting off. I think it was because I’ve ALWYS come at these texts from the perspective of mythology, I always liked, to some extent, how BROAD the Irish tradition was, liked all the different figures who pop in and out, all the little complexities that you can search out. It’s a bit like running around an endless hamster cage. 

In contrast, the Mabinogi seemed.......flat. Linear. It’s much more a medieval text, in a way that the Irish (with a few noted exceptions, such as a few of the Fenian Cycle texts and Toruigheacht Gruaidhe Griansholus) aren’t. You’re very much in a medieval world with medieval characters, even if I fully believe that there is a mythological underpinning to some of this. The Welsh hid their pre-Christian roots much, much better than the Irish did, presumably because Wales was christianized earlier. And it’s quite confusing, in the sense that there’s a lot that simply isn’t spoken. We don’t KNOW who Lleu’s father is (though quite a few scholars have their guesses). We don’t know WHY he turned into an eagle. He just DOES, and we’re left to go “.......okay.” 

There were aspects of it that I LIKED, overall, but it still seemed a little too dark, weird, and medieval for my tastes. I skimmed it once when I was just getting into the game, then let it accumulate dust for about 6-7 years or so. I could participate in discussions about it, I could listen to my Welshicist friends, but I didn’t really keep UP with it in the way that I keep up with, say, Cath Maige Tuired. 

BUT. But. 

Then I took Middle Welsh. Mainly because it was either that or public speaking, but also because, genuinely, I did want to try something new. I didn’t think I’d get ATTACHED, but I did think it would be worth it to broaden my knowledge and give it another shot, especially since, frankly, I don’t believe that I could really call myself a Celticist if i just knew one of the Celtic languages. A medievalist with a specialty in early Irish literature, maybe, but not a Celticist. (Though note: My definition of the term “Celticist” is going to be different from anyone else’s, not the least because the term “Celticist” is in and of itself controversial.) 

And I kept scoring really, really high marks in Middle Welsh. And then I was the last student standing in my class. 

And my professor gifted me a copy of Buchedd Beuno. 

And then I was volunteering to audit another year of Middle Welsh, because I’d come so far and I didn’t want it to fade in my memory. 

And it’s very, very hard to study a language for nearly two years without developing SOME attachment to it. 

And then I was volunteering for Mabinogi-related fic exchanges because, well, what better way to refresh myself? 

And then I got the Chocolate Box Exchange request for the Mabinogi. And then I was rereading the Fourth Branch to refresh my memory.

And then somehow the new textbook was quoting the Mabinogi. 

And then I was poking at Bláthnait. And that naturally leads to Blodeuedd. 

And then I was rereading all of the Fourth Branch and writing a paper on it. 

And then I was rereading all four branches. 

I genuinely......do LOVE it? All four branches intertwine with one another, but they each have their own distinct FLAVOR. The women tend to be much more proactive and sympathetic than you would really get in Irish literature, the characters in general more rounded. (Look, I can say this, as a Bres Stan: Bres does NOT get the character development, as a villain, that, say, Gwydion does. And I say this as someone who HATES Gwydion. There’s a REASON why I can lay out a point by point analysis for why I hate Gwydion, and it’s because the text BUILDS him. You see how even his arguable best trait, his love for his family, is used to utterly monstrous purposes. Efnysien? Is a MONSTER, but still sacrifices himself to defeat the Irish.) 

Something that me and @cicelythereaper have talked about in our Late Night Mabinogi Discussions is that......the text shows a very keen awareness of women’s vulnerability? To the extent where some scholars have posited, perhaps optimistically, that the Mabinogi was, in fact, written by a woman. I don’t know if I BELIEVE that, but I do think that, whoever it was...they had a keen sympathy for women, even the villainous women in the text. And the relationships in the text tend to be quite lush and built up - You might have characters falling in love at first sight, but then you see how those dynamics grow and change over time, to the point where you can tell whether a couple is meant to be healthy just by whether or not they TALK. 

There’s just. There’s so much to the Mabinogi. So much. Even though it appears really, really flat on the surface, there’s so much depth to it, so much FEELING, and the writing style itself is very, very fine. It doesn’t come across as much in translation, but this IS really the gem of Middle Welsh literature. 

They do a good recap in the first episode, so I don’t think you need to know much about the first two series at all!

I watched the first one (which was fun!!! but not very well done) and only part of the second because I wasn’t very into it and I missed the old cast, as unbelievable as they were.

I think all you need to know is that Wu Xie is an antique shop owner who comes from a family of tomb raiders and ends up going on adventures with the other two characters for a series of reasons – most of them connected to his family (disappearing, leaving notes or clues, etc). That’s it.

Series 1 has only 10 episodes though, in case you’d like to give it a try (to get to know the characters a bit and so on): https://www.viki.com/tv/25731c-the-lost-tomb?locale=en

Series 2 you can skip entirely. (I’m sure many will suggest the exact opposite but... I don’t.)

That said, you can jump straight into the reboot and enjoy it. It has quite a different vibe anyway. The only reason I suggested taking a look at series 1 is because I loved seeing the characters again and I don’t know if you’d connect with them in the same way starting from the new series.

Hope this helps! :)

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PRO TIP: Series 1 is way funnier with comments on Viki turned on.

I edited it, it’s no trouble. 

that outfit looks REALLY familiar. it looks like the one syaoran wore on the volume... 9? 10? front cover?

This one here?

IT’S BEEN TOO loOOOOOONG I’VE TRIED TO BEEEE SO STROONNNG

THE OTHERS ARE WRONG THEY DON’T HAVE A CLUE OR KNOW THE REAL YOOOOU