Macbeth's Sisters' Familiars

In the spirit of March Madness, here on the blog this month we will be holding the first official Familiar Madness Tournament. 16 of the all-time great familiars from literature, film, and television will face off in a single elimination tourney to decide who is the greatest of them all.

13. Graymalkin, Paddock, and Harpier - the familiars of the Three Witches in Macbeth



The three witches contributed to Macbeth’s boldness, overconfidence, and destruction, aided along the way by their familiars. Greymalkin is the witches' attendant, a gray cat. Paddock is a toad. The familiar of the third witch is Harpier, an owl. These three devils in disguise imbue the witches with supernatural powers that enable them to lead Macbeth to his demise.



As the witches say in the play, "Fair is foul, and foul is fair." Is three company or a crowd for these evil animal companions?

Tomorrow: Meet the feline familiar of a modern day wizard detective.

The Familiars on NovelNovice

Come check out this great series of interviews on NovelNovice! They will be featuring The Familiars all week!

Salem

In the spirit of March Madness, here on the blog this month we will be holding the first official Familiar Madness Tournament. 16 of the all-time great familiars from literature, film, and television will face off in a single elimination tourney to decide who is the greatest of them all.

12. Salem - the familiar cat of Sabrina, the Teenage Witch



"Despite Salem's megalomaniacal desires for world domination, he is generally portrayed as having a good heart and being a loyal friend to Sabrina. He generally served two roles: one as a mentor for Sabrina, as she found it easier to go to him with her messier problems, or the trouble-maker, such as convincing Sabrina to use magic to solve her problems, which generally ended up putting Sabrina in even more trouble than before." (Wiki)



Although he was motivated by his greed, ambition, and most of all, hunger, Salem cared deeply for Sabrina, as any worthy familiar would. Granted, being the loyal animal companion of a suburban witch doesn't quite compare to venturing through Camelot or Middle-earth, but some might say assisting a 16 year old girl is even more terrifying.

Crookshanks, Pyewacket, and now Salem. Which cat would you want as your familiar?

Tomorrow: To be a familiar, or not to be a familiar. That is the question.

Iago

In the spirit of March Madness, here on the blog this month we will be holding the first official Familiar Madness Tournament. 16 of the all-time great familiars from literature, film, and television will face off in a single elimination tourney to decide who is the greatest of them all.

11. Iago - Jafar's pet Scarlet macaw, an intelligent parrot that can perfectly mimic any voice.



In "Aladdin", he mostly does Jafar's dirty work and comments on the action, oft times with angry, sarcastic ranting. But don't mistake him as mere comic relief. There's a reason Iago shares his name with one of Shakespeare's most morally corrupt figures. He is a duplicitous accomplice in crime, aiding Jafar in his evil schemes against Aladdin and the Genie.



Heroes may get the glory, but villains always have more fun. Where do you rank Iago against other familiar baddies? If you were a magician up to no good, would you want him at your side?

Tomorrow: Meet a cat whose pastimes include lint spotting, chasing yarn, and plotting for world domination.

Morgan Le Fay's Raven

In the spirit of March Madness, here on the blog this month we will be holding the first official Familiar Madness Tournament. 16 of the all-time great familiars from literature, film, and television will face off in a single elimination tourney to decide who is the greatest of them all.


10. Morgan Le Fay’s Raven

Traditionally said to represent death itself, the black raven assisted the evil sorceress Morgan Le Fay in her conflicts with the Roundtable. Arthurian legend deems this dark witch and her villainous familiar enemies of the land.



Morgan Le Fay’s raven paved the way for other evil avian familiars that would follow, like Maleficent’s raven, Diablo, and Jafar’s talking parrot, Iago.



Could Merlin’s familiar, Archimedes, take down Morgan Le Fay’s raven in a talon-to-talon fight?

Tomorrow: We let a familiar out of the bottle, so to speak.

Argo

In the spirit of March Madness, here on the blog this month we will be holding the first official Familiar Madness Tournament. 16 of the all-time great familiars from literature, film, and television will face off in a single elimination tourney to decide who is the greatest of them all.


9. Argo - a palomino horse, which happens to be the cavalry horse of Xena, the warrior princess.



Argo has the magical ability to sense danger and issue commands to other horses. Ridden by Xena across the fantastical lands of Ancient Greece, Argo was a hooved Hercules, a God among horses.



Little else is known of this Amazonian familiar, which only grows her legend larger.

Tomorrow: We travel to King Arthur’s Court to meet the familiar of a powerful sorceress.

Flotsam and Jetsam

In the spirit of March Madness, here on the blog this month we will be holding the first official Familiar Madness Tournament. 16 of the all-time great familiars from literature, film, and television will face off in a single elimination tourney to decide who is the greatest of them all.

8. Flotsam and Jetsam - Flotsam and Jetsam are the minions of the sea witch, Ursula, in Disney's "The Little Mermaid."



Named after the driftwood wreckage of a boat or ship, Flotsam and Jetsam are a pair of moray eels who frequently “speak in unison, finish each other's sentences, and intertwine their bodies, almost like they're the same entity, divided into two. Often used as spies, the pair (like evil twins), each had a glowing eye (one for right-sided, the other for left-sided), that they used to allow Ursula to see anything in their vicinity. Ursula would remain in her lair, working from behind the scenes, and watching everything from her crystal ball.” (IMDB)



Two of the meanest of the mean, these evil sidekicks give familiars a bad name… in a good way. They’re double the trouble, and a force to be reckoned with if you’re sporting flippers, not feet. Any poor, unfortunate soul who crosses their path should swim for the surface, as Ursula is never far behind.

Who do you think are the most ruthless Disney henchmen? Could F and J make a run in this tournament? How far?

Tomorrow: Take a ride atop the steed of an Amazon warrior princess.