THEM-

THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING 2001 | dir. Peter Jackson

unpopular opinion: the only reason people think LOTR and the accompanying legends aren’t fantasy soap operas, despite being highly dramatic stories of intertwining people’s tragic decisions based on love, lust, power plays and betrayal, is because they were written by a man and predominantly feature the stories of men. Soap operas are the purview of women and silly entertainment not worthy of being enjoyed. So when TROP shifted the protagonist to Galadriel, Bronwyn, and Miriel it became labelled a soap opera and a frivolous take of the original stories.

Shipping, fan theories, poor writing, and various adaptions have always been with us. And just because what someone enjoys or values differs from your view it doesn’t diminish Tolkien’s impact and legacy.

You shall live to see these days renewed. And no more despair.

requested by @the-mawp

this love is alive back from the dead these hands had to let it go free and this love came back to me

ROP Week 2023: Elendil

For #ROPWeek2023, I'm going to do a post on Elendil. Honestly, my favorite character prior to episode 3 was Halbrand, but then Elendil showed up and spoke in his rich baritone and it was like I shoved Halbrand out of the way and latched onto Elendil.

I know very little about him in canon (still working my way through Silm) but the ROP version has won me over. He's like my favorite character parts all rolled into one: a simple man who wants to do right by his people and his family, a family man, and a noble and kind person.

I really appreciate how much work was put into this character. He doesn't write off Galadriel simply for being an elf, he tries to help her, ostensibly because the sea put her in his path--and "the sea is always right"--but also because Elendil is just a Good person. When Halbrand hugs him, he's weirded out, but he doesn't push the guy away, he just kind of nods and moves on. When Galadriel butts heads with Tar-Miriel, he tries to play peacemaker without belittling either woman. When Miriel is blinded, he does his best to support and aid her, while, again, not being condescending or demeaning to her. He respects her as his queen, in spite of her condition.

Someone else on this site pointed out how he's a good PARENT as well. Maybe because I was a daddy's girl when my dad was alive, but Elendil just appeals to me SO much as a character. He does his best to support his children, even if he doesn't always "get" them. When Earien gets the position in the architect guild, he's over the moon. When he finds out Isildur helped, he turns to his son with a happy smile. When he's in the middle of a battle and his son is panicking at the thought of his dear ol' dad being injured, rather than tell him "hey, we're in the middle of a fight, get ahold of yourself", he takes the time to look his son in the eye, lower his voice, grip his shoulder, and tell him, "I'm ALL RIGHT." This even extends to Galadriel. He sees this headstrong, fiery elf warrior maiden and is like, "welp, guess I have another child now." When she challenges the recruits to spar with her, he's watching with a Proud Dad Smile.

I didn't expect to go into Rings of Power and find ANOTHER favorite Tolkien character (whose name begins with an "E", amusingly my favorites are Elendil, Elrond, and Eomer, and my favorite member of the Valar is Este the Gentle) but the writing and acting that went into this character won me over, and I'm excited to see what season 2 holds for my favorite Numenorean captain.

ROBERT ARAMAYO as ELROND PEREDHEL   THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE RINGS OF POWER

Important painting study

Sorry, the Cullens Are Not the Best Vampire Family

These vamps are in a league of their own. (Baseball pun intended.)

Collider Sept 24, 2023

Deborah Harkness, author of A Discovery of Witches, was inspired to write the series after seeing the popularity of paranormal romance novels and wondering why these creatures still captivate us.

 The de Clermont vampire family in A Discovery of Witches is more complex and intriguing than the Cullen family in Twilight, offering a fresh and intimate perspective on vampire dynamics.

 Ysabeau and Philippe, initially distrustful of their vampire son Matthew's witch partner Diana, eventually gain respect and even affection for her, showcasing the power of love and acceptance within the family.

On the surface, it might seem as though A Discovery of Witches draws heavily from the human-vampire romances that preceded it. That assessment's only half-true. Deborah Harkness, author of the New York Times bestselling All Souls trilogy upon which A Discovery of Witches is based, didn't read any vampire literature before penning her novels. But her creativity was sparked in 2008 after seeing the sheer wealth of paranormal romances adorning bookshelves. "It seemed to me much bigger than what had happened with Anne Rice," Harkness explained to The Los Angeles Times in 2011. "As a historian of science, […] I thought, Why do these creatures still exert such a pull on us?" Furthermore, Harkness "[ wondered] if there really are witches and vampires, what do they do for a living?" Her resulting All Souls trilogy is a delightful enterprise and not a copy of Twilight, True Blood, The Vampire Diaries, or any popular supernatural saga. In the paranormal romance world, certain story beats naturally tread similar ground. Harkness, a decorated historian, scholar, and university professor, weaves the forbidden love story of historian witch Diana Bishop (Teresa Palmer) and vampire scientist Matthew Clairmont (Matthew GoodE) together with magic, philosophy, metaphor, and detailed historical accuracy. That convergence makes for a fascinatingly fresh perspective on the genre while never losing sight of its romantic heart. With that said, there's a specific unintentional similarity A Discovery of Witches shares with Twilight — that awkward feeling when your in-laws are vampires. The Cullens of Twilight might welcome you into the fold with a baseball game, but A Discovery of Witches has the better vampire family by a home run mile. Sorry, not sorry.

GIF: mine

More on the de Clermonts in A Discovery of Witches

Ah im, ú erin veleth lîn? Gerich veleth nîn, ada.

Then the heart of Éowyn changed, or else at last she understood it. And suddenly her winter passed, and the sun shone on her.

the high king of the realms in exile and the last rightful heir of númenor

On today's episode of LotR AU: Boromir Lives, it's after the battle of Pelennor Fields! There are so many great possibilities to explore when Boromir finally, finally returns to Minas Tirith--- making the agonizing decision to follow Aragorn through the Paths of the Dead instead of going straight to the city with Theoden, fighting like a demon outside the gates, learning about his father's death, and then choosing to leave again to accompany Aragorn to the Black Gate, but right now it's WHUMP TIME.

Obviously, first up is Faramir. If Boromir is with Aragorn, he won't enter the city until after the battle, and so he wouldn't know anything about Faramir's flight from Osgiliath or the pyre in the tombs.

In the few days between the battle and leaving for the Black Gate, I envision Boromir operating on undiluted adrenaline as the wounded and dead are tended. Who needs food? Who needs sleep? Not Boromir. He's returned to his city at its lowest possible moment and he's going to DO EVERYTHING TO FIX EVERYONE ALL AT ONCE.

The scene where Pippin finds Merry wounded and dazed and wandering the streets, has always been a favorite of mine and was one of the first LotR illustrations I ever did ~20 years ago. In the book, Gandalf is the one who comes to carry Merry up to the Houses of Healing. In this AU, you know it's Boromir.

Anyway, eventually Legolas and Gimli probably have to force some rudimentary self-care.

Boromir Lives AU: Aragorn's Coronation

Boromir Lives AU: Faramir and Eowyn's Wedding

Will never be over the contrast between these two scenes

Suddenly, he leans in--❤️❤️

Next installment of Lord of the Rings AU: It's Fine, Everybody's Fine is Aragorn's coronation, at which Boromir W E E P S:

I think in a circumstance where Boromir lives, or even just in interacting with Faramir in canon, Aragorn would be very aware of the optics of striding in out of the wilderness to take a throne that the line of stewards had been fighting and dying for in his absence (Thorongil cosplay aside). Cool thing is, in this AU, seeing the king's throne filled and experiencing Gondor at peace for the first time in living history is more than Boromir EVER hoped for.

The day the White Tree sapling blooms, Aragorn wakes up Faramir and Boromir like a six-year-old on Christmas:

And then there's that FIRST SUNRISE over the Mountains of Shadow, when day breaks over a defeated east that's clean and clear and Boromir WEEPS AGAIN because he NEVER THOUGHT he'd see such a thing and YES this is a THIRST TRAP why do you ASK

Hell yeah I gave him a tattoo, it's the seven stars of Gondor plus a coastal rockrose that grows in sandy soils along the Mediterranean because I figure that's like Dol Amroth in honor of HIS MOM because I LOVE SYMBOLISM

THE LORD OF THE RINGS The Rings of Power Costume Design by Kate Hawley