Labyrinth (Labyrinth)

Read my lips and come to grips with the reality!

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The Labyrinth is the main structure in the Goblin Kingdom and the titular main setting of the 1986 dark fantasy movie Labyrinth, and is the primary obstacle the teenage human girl Sarah Williams has to overcome to rescue her infant half-brother Toby from Jareth the Goblin King. The 2 prominent locations found at the center of the Labyrinth are the Goblin City, home to the Goblins, and their cruel monarch's home, the Castle at the Center of the Labyrinth.

In the Return to Labyrinth manga series, Toby, now a teenager after a decade of his half-sister's adventures in the Labyrinth, has to overcome the Labyrinth in order to retrieve his stolen homework. Return to Labyrinth also reveals that the Labyrinth was created by Jareth as a means of protecting himself from the outside world.

Structure

The Labyrinth is formed of many different sections, from walled mazes to thick woodland.

Brick Corridor

The Brick Corridor is a long, seemingly endless corridor is entered through the main entrance to the Labyrinth. It is formed of two linear walls of dark brick, which are periodically topped off with obelisks. The brick work appears to be in poor condition, and is riddled with gaps and holes. Pieces of wood and broken chunks of stone are scattered across the floor, and weeds flourish in the walls themselves. Although it appears to stretch on forever, the corridor actually contains a series of openings that are hidden from plain sight. The Worm and his wife live in a crack in the brick work. Eye Lichen also grows out of the brick-work, silently observing anyone in sight.

This is the first section of the Labyrinth Sarah finds herself in. After Sarah gives up and slumps down hopelessly against a wall, The Worm appears and tells Sarah that there is an opening just across from her. Sarah passes through the hidden opening and finds herself in the next section of the Labyrinth.

The Brick Maze

The brick corridor leads onto its namesake maze, the Brick Maze, which is compromised of a series of oddly shaped walls and steps. The walls in the maze re-arrange themselves randomly, attempting to disorientate whoever is trying to conquer the Labyrinth at the time. Small goblins live underneath the pavings stones, and are easily agitated by the presence of strangers. the Four Guards are resident in the maze, and their riddle must be answered in order to proceed into the next part of the Labyrinth.

When making her way through this section of the Labyrinth, Sarah attempts to mark her path with lip-stick. Sarah encounters The Four Guards, and successfully answers the riddle they present her with.

Oubliette

The Oubliettes are a form of dungeons which is only accessible through a hatch in a high ceiling. Jareth uses these completely shadowed pits to dispose of his enemies as well as traitors and "guests", leaving them until they are eventually forgotten. In some cases, individuals have been left to die in oubliettes. The Labyrinth appears to be filled with individual Oubliettes, however all of them are dark, gloomy and virtually inescapable. The only obvious way in or out of an oubliette is through a hole in the ceiling, which is also the only source of light for any of its occupants.

Sarah Williams falls into an Oubliette after accidentally falling down the Shaft of Hands (also called "Helping Hands"). Jareth sees her trapped Oubliette, and sends Hoggle to release her and lead her back to the start of the Labyrinth. Hoggle is equipped with a portable door that magically generates an exit when the handle is turned in a particular way, and that serves as Sarah's means of escape. This door can either lead an individual out of the oubliette, or into a broom closet.

Its name is based on the French word for "to forget", because people left in the pit were supposed to be forgotten.

Underground Passages

The Underground Passages lead off one of the Oubliettes in the Labyrinth. They consist of dark, dimly lit underground passages that are filled with huge, ominous looking stone faces known as False Alarms that attempt to dissauade anyone passing through from moving forward. The sides of the passages not filled by False Alarms are composed of large slabs of grey stone.

Hoggle leads Sarah from the Oubliette into a series of underground passages that are filled with huge, forbidding looking False Alarms. Jareth waits for Sarah and Hoggle at the end of one of the passages in disguise as a blind beggar, quickly revealing his true identity and confronting Hoggle over his apparent betrayal. Sarah and Hoggle are chased through the passages by The Cleaners, a large, mechanical device operated by goblins and escape by pushing down a weak wall. They then climb a narrow ladder, emerging in a topiary filled courtyard.

Hedge Maze

The Hedge Maze is a bright, neatly cultivated section of the Labyrinth, notable for its air of order and calm. It features a large, stone paved courtyard that features a range of topiary figures and hedges. The courtyard is home to the the Wiseman, who occupies a stone throne set in the midst of it. A section of the floor resembles a giant sundial. A neatly kept hedge maze leads off the courtyard.

After a brief encounter with The Wiseman Sarah and Hoggle enter a hedge maze, where Sarah finds Ludo being tormented by a group of mounted goblin troops. After scaring the troops away, Sarah and Ludo come across two talking door knockers and enter the fiery forest.

Fiery Forest

Sarah and Ludo venture into the Fiery Forest after passing through the doors with the door knockers. Ludo falls down a trap door, while Sarah continues on alone until the encounters the Fire Gang (better known as the Fireys). Sarah runs away from the Fire Gang, running until she reaches a large wall at the inward end of the forest. Hoggle rescues her by throwing down a rope from the top of the wall, allowing her to escape from the Fire Gang.

Bog of Eternal Stench

“	Oh, it doesn't matter what it's like! It's the Bog of Eternal Stench!	„
	~ Hoggle about the Bog of Eternal Stench.

The Bog of Eternal Stench is a vile, foul smelling pool in Jareth's Labyrinth, and is frequently used as a threat directed at people who disobey him. They cross the bog using an old bridge guarded by Sir Didymus. After the bridge collapses, Ludo summons rocks to form a pathway across the bog.

The bog regularly emits unpleasant gurgles, belches, and other noises, and sends forth an repulsive odor. Brackish muddy fluids and bubbling openings dot the area, and sunken tree branches and swamp poke out from the horrid depths. Legend has it that if you put so much as one toe in the Bog, you will smell bad forever.

Hoggle is duly terrified of the bog, and the general atmosphere is such that it inhibits breathing. The bog can be crossed through a bridge, guarded by Sir Didymus later became friends with Sarah Williams and her friends on her jouney to rescue her brother Toby from Jareth the Goblin King, and lies en route to Goblin City. Rotting trees and weeds surround the bog, and the entire area resembles a swamp with dyspepsia.

Enchanted Forest

Next to the Bog of Eternal Stench is another section of the Labyrinth called the "Enchanted Forest", a lush and magical wilderness. Sarah, Hoggle, Ludo, and Sir Didymus walk through this section of forest on their way to Jareth's castle. The characters get hungry on their journey, at which point Hoggle gives Sarah an enchanted peach. Hoggle runs away in shame for betraying Sarah, while Sarah is transported to the Ballroom.

Junk City

The Junk City, also known as the "Junk Yard", a massive land full of discarded objects and other junk, exists on a flat plain between the enchanted forest and the walls of Goblin City.

This so-called "city" is inhabited by a number of Junk People, a race of Goblins who endlessly sift through the various items and pile select pieces on their backs.

Sarah Williams awakens in the Land of Junk after escaping the ballroom fantasy induced by the Goblin King's poison fruit.

The most notable of the inhabitants is the Junk Lady, who tries to trick Sarah into forgetting what she had been searching for prior to succumbing to the effects of the fruit.

Gallery

Images

Videos

The Bog of Eternal Stench - Labyrinth - The Jim Henson Company

Humongous - Labyrinth - The Jim Henson Company

Trivia

According to the film's production notes, the Bog of Eternal Stench was created from 30,000 gallons of water mixed with celabol, a thickening powder used in many wallpaper pastes. Brown and blue dyes were then added, along with tiny glass beads, to create a sludgy yet flexible swamp mass, with additional effects installed to create the bubbling emissions.