The Two Towers: is Grishnákh the orc in Fangorn Forest?

Even I doubted what I saw, for many years.

If you’ve seen The Two Towers (film), remember the orc with the evil voice who taunts and threatens Merry and Pippin? His name is Grishnákh. Remember when he comes close to knifing the hobbits before a Rohan spear drives itself through his chest?

Ioreth of Gondor

Making a brief appearance almost halfway into The Return of the King is the character of Ioreth; a woman from Lossarnach and one of the healers in the city of Minas Tirith. No matter the limited number of pages she is present in, she nevertheless maintains a memorable presence in the book.

Fun Post: Scatha the Worm (Smaug’s brother?)

Image by Jeff Murray (JeffMurray.com)

Between Tolkien’s three major Middle-earth works, there is a small number of references to dragons, but even less so have been attributed with particular names or involved in specific events.

Scatha the Worm is one of those rare named dragons about whom we know almost nothing, but this presents an excellent opportunity to analyse and speculate briefly.

The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring Extended Edition – Review (Part III)

It’s finally done! It took me over 2.5 years to complete this review of The Fellowship of the Ring. Well, I say “review” but in truth, it’s more of an analysis and an appreciation of the film.

Here’s hoping the next series of posts on The Two Towers and The Return of the King won’t take as long (yes, I said the same thing when I posted Part II of this review 7 months ago.)

If you haven’t done so yet, check out Part I and Part II.

Enjoy!

The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring Extended Edition – Review (Part II)

The reviewing continues …

Well, here it is. Almost two years later, here follows the continuation of the massive The Lord of the Rings review.

I’m ashamed to state it took me so long. But finally, here it is.

Mind you, this is only Part 2 of 3 of The Fellowship of the Ring, which I’m hoping won’t take as long to write. In the meantime, you’ve got much reading to do in this second part.

I hope you enjoy 🙂 …

The Shire’s Military Structure?

Raising the Shire

They are (or were) a little people, about half our height […] have long clever brown fingers, good-natured faces, and laugh deep fruity laughs

– The Hobbit, ‘An Unexpected Party’, Chapter I

Ranks of skilled archers cleverly readying their bows. Organized groups of infantrymen waiting for the signal to attack. One word and any intruders will find themselves facing serious consequences.

It is hard to conjure up the imagery of an army within the Shire, based on the rather rustic and easy-going characteristics of the above quote.

Riddles, Rhymes and Lilies: The Mystery of Tom Bombadil (Part III)

Having posted Part I and Part II, here continues the rest of the analysis.

To be honest, I never realized it was going to be so extensive!

Expect a conclusion round about the 5th Part … woohoo 🙂

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Riddles, Rhymes and Lilies: The Mystery of Tom Bombadil (Part II)

If you’ve been through Part I and weren’t daunted or put off by the arguments there, here follows Part II of the article for your reading pleasure 🙂

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Riddles, Rhymes and Lilies: The Mystery of Tom Bombadil (Part I)

“Who is Tom Bombadil?”, perhaps this question has been asked to death for years by Tolkien fans – and no matter how detailed and complex the answer is, there’s still no definite conclusion.

Your Quick Guide To Dragons in Middle-earth (and how to tackle one)

Introduction

Following the sudden increase of interest in anything related to these creatures, I thought it would be good to provide you with the essential ingredients that make up a dragon within Tolkien’s own fantasy world.

This “Guide” is meant to present a clear description of what constitutes a dragon in Middle-earth, whilst at the same time providing a “how-to” list on avoiding being burnt to a crisp by one of these creatures – given by Tolkien himself …