Comeback Kids Episode 2: Sundiata and Stories of Exile

In this episode, the Muses have decreed that we’ll be looking at stories of heroes who were exiled from their homes and had to fight to regain what they had lost. There are a lot of epic tales that feature this theme, and it provides a great opportunity to send the hero on some sort of journey, where they can encounter monsters and challenges and all the exciting conflicts that make a story! We'll start with Sundiata Keita, a hero of the Mandinka people, and then explore a few other heroes from around the world.

All stories told on Myths & Muses are original family-friendly adaptations of ancient myths and legends. Stories from ancient mythology can also sometimes deal with complicated topics for young listeners — to the mortal parents and caretakers reading this, we encourage listening along with your young demigods to help them navigate those topics as they explore these epic tales.

Transcript for Comeback Kids Episode 2

If you'd like to share your Comeback Kids story with us, get a Mortal Guardian to help you record it here!

If you'd like to submit something creative you've done inspired by the stories in Myths & Muses, use this form (with a Mortal Guardian's permission!).

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Stuff to Read: 

• Sundiata: 
  • "The true story behind The Lion King" from the Washington Post
  • Sundiata Keita at World History Encyclopedia and National Geographic Education
  • Some information on Sundiata's descendant, Mansa Musa: National Geographic Education and the BBC
• Robin Hood: 
  • The Robin Hood Project - A compendium of many, many original sources, but also has short summaries for each character
  • The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood by Howard Pyle - The Victorian text that is the source for most modern interpretations of the character.
• The Mahabharata: 
  • A summary from Owlcation
  • An in-depth look at its history and context from World History Encyclopedia
• Jason and Medea: 
  • Jason and Medea from Mythopedia
  • The quest for the Golden Fleece at Greek Mythology and World History Encyclopedia

Stuff to Watch: 

•  Learn more about the stories in this episode with our curated YouTube playlist!

Cool Images: 

Sundiata Keita by Carlos Varejão on ArtStation

Sundiata Keita as he appears in the video game Civilization VI

Some Victorian-era images of Robin Hood: 

Reynard the Fox: 

Disney's Robin Hood: 

A Statue of Arjuna in Bali: 

Karna and Arjuna (1899)

Arjuna and a heavenly maiden (1900)

Athena helping to build the Argo (1st century CE, Roman)

Jason arriving in Pelias's palace (1st century AD, Roman)

Medea by William Wetmore Story (1868)

Jason and Medea by John William Waterhouse (1907)

Poster for the 1963 film Jason and the Argonauts

Jason battling skeletons in 1963's Jason and the Argonauts