From the two sides to every story department, we present The Last Lost Eye by Marco Etheridge.
It appears that the great monsters of yore might have valid complaints about dealing with human beings. After all, did King Kong ask people to come to Skull Island? Did Frankenstein ask to be made?
Then again an effective counter argument could be had in the case of Godzilla, for it is unlikely that Tokyo encouraged his Keith Moon-esque visits.
Still, the first thing humankind does upon encountering a singular being is spear first and ask questions later. I think it is a series of unfortunate misunderstandings that lead to the Cyclops blinding. Maybe he didn’t mean to dash the heads of Odysseus’ men. Maybe they tripped. Twice. Once smashing their heads, the second time, though dead from their head injuries, again tripping and falling into the Cyclops’ mouth. (Note: I know s’s is proper, but I hate the way it looks, so I don’t do it).
Anyway, Marco gives us a tale featuring a thoughtful Cyclops. And we hope those who missed it the first time around, enjoy it.
Q. Ever since childhood I have rooted for the movie monsters. I find them usually far more interesting than the human characters. How about you
Q. Is there anything you would change in this story now that it has a few years behind it?
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Marco’s responses:
Q. Ever since childhood I have rooted for the movie monsters. I find them usually far more interesting than the human characters. How about you?
Since you and I are of about the same vintage (getting better, not older… maybe) I am reasonably sure we watched the same monster movies and TV fare. Saturday Creature Features was a solid date for me and my hoodlum pals. Night of the Living Dead, Godzilla (over and over), plus all the classic Bela Lugosi stuff, on and on it went. And guess what? The monsters were always more interesting than the stupid humans that were trying to defeat them. Yet time and again, the lame-0 ‘hero’ managed to defeat a monster who was bigger, faster, stronger, and smarter. Puny humans, Bah! Sure, I rooted for the monsters. It was akin to my growing up rooting for the Chicago Cubs. Gloom, despair, and agony were my assigned lot in childhood.
The other genre of movies that fascinated me was the early stop-motion flicks. Biggest example: Jason and the Argonauts. Mythology on a snowy Saturday in Chicago! How could it get any better? This leads us, of course, to sympathy for the devil, the monster, or in the case of my story ‘The Last Lost Eye,” for the poor, blinded cyclops.
Q. Is there anything you would change in this story now that it has a few years behind it?
If I was rewriting this story, I would heap more insults on Odysseus. That sorry so-and-so was too clever by half. I’m not sure I could make the Cyclops a more sympathetic character, but I could damn sure see my way clear to drag Ody’s name through a bit more Grecian mud. He deserved it. For one justification, read the account of Odysseus and his son, Telemachus slaughtering Penelope’s suitors. Okay, maybe they were a bit drunk, a tad obnoxious, but wholesale slaughter? I’m telling you, Ody was a bastard.
literally stories 
Thank you Marco
You are right about the vintage and memories. Excellent responses. You are also right about the old time good guys being so dull.
Long live the works of O’Brien, Harryhausen (sp) loved the sword skeletons.
Leila
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Many thanks and tip of the porkpie writer’s lid to the Literally Stories Editors. I’m honored to have my story featured in the Sunday Reruns.
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So many old people. My touchstone is the original “The Thing” movie. If you have paid attention, you know that it was the basis for “Brave Newt World”. I use the Odyssey, perhaps inappropriately as Marco suggests, as a model of and for Perdition and Redemption in story telling. Guy goes bad, but comes back for hero time.
Just got an old LP from the bookstore where I volunteer. One of the songs “I’m Gonna Live Till I Die”. Works for monsters and people.
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Im suprised I didn’t comment on this the first time around. The legend / myth of giant men with one eye (according to some expert) derived from elephant skulls. The trunk hole was imagined as an eye socket. At the time the myth started, there may not have been live elephants around to compare to the skull.
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I remember this one from back in the day, always good to get the other side of the story, and I feel sorry for the poor Cyclops, he was just trying to live in peace. Yes, a good idea to have the Cyclops hurl more insults, as well as the pieces of the cliff.
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As a latecomer to LS, I love the Sunday Re-Runs. This is a gem. The narrative is faultless, it could have been one of those nineteenth century re-tellings of Homer. Thank you.
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Hi Leila / Marco.
Brilliant job as always Leila.
Marco this is one of those stories that I just need to see to remember.
I also have a love of the old monster stories and I have thought for many a year the term ‘monster’ was not necessarily aimed at the correct being!!
All the very best my fine friends.
Hugh
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