#and I’m fond of the head anon that Frodo’s likeness to thorin | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

reshirement · 3 years

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rereading the lotr series with a new lens and just

okay i’m going to go out on a limb here and just talk about a passage i read with a different interpretation

so we know bilbo pretty much cuts off elrond with his ‘well, yeah obviously i’m going to handle it’ speech during the council here:

but his decision to do so was mentioned by him earlier (if not completely outright at the time) during the exchange where frodo shows him the ring here:(sorry for all the reading)

okay, let’s just ignore the movie take on this moment where bilbo becomes gollumesque and lunges for frodo (which don’t get me wrong, it’s the most solid take but bear with me)

bilbo’s heard a lot about the ring he had, dude was carrying sauron’s ring for decades with no idea. if the ring had zero pull on people, you can’t tell me you wouldn’t want to look at it, like whoa. so, not even going to hold that against him, and ignoring gandalf seems a very bilbo thing to do anyhow especially when it kind of concerns the well being of his nephew

anyway, frodo shows him, and then pulls back from bilbo when he puts out his hand, and it talks about the shadow over them and frodo seeing bilbo as this grasping creature (not his uncle, a creature) and then feeling the urge to strike him.

but nowhere in there does it say this perception is the correct one!

bilbo doesn’t seem to do a single violent thing in this exchange, however, the moment he looks up at frodo’s face he draws back, his hand over his own eyes like he can’t bear what he’s seeing and just says ‘i understand now’ and ‘i’m sorry’ and then immediately launches into a short tirade that later is revealed to be his immediate expectation to take the ring himself, like there wasn’t another option, so that, that was a snap decision and it would have been a damn foolish one if bilbo had been the one so affected by the ring. bilbo isn’t a fool, and not conniving in the way where this could just be a ploy to get it back, so he does intend to try and destroy it.

i think frodo was the one to fall under the shadow here, and bilbo immediately recognized it. was horrified by it. i mean, it’s not like he wouldn’t recognize the look in someone he loves. frodo wanted to strike him, thorin just about threw him over a wall. it’s just a ring this time instead of a stone. especially with that last line about how the shadow passed once the ring was out of sight (safely hidden away) and how that moment was almost instantly forgotten by frodo (acorn scene anyone? boromir? shadows like that do seem to pass in and out of people very quickly in middle earth)

and like honestly him being like ‘well fuck finishing my book I guess, because that’s quite enough of that, you aren’t touching my nephew any more you absolute heathen’ makes sense because he is a caring character but can be very crotchety about it so OF COURSE he would immediately be like ‘I’m sorry this has happened to you’ and then immediately turn around and be like ‘don’t even worry your head about this further I’ll take care of it, this is not your job anymore so let’s talk about better things, now tell me what’s been happening in The Shire??

anyhow, that’s my two cents. what a horrible thing to see twice, poor bilbo.

#lotr #bagginshield #frodo baggins #the fellowship of the ring #and I’m fond of the head anon that Frodo’s likeness to thorin #was one of the more selfish reasons bilbo took him in #or felt he had to #a small reason but a reason nonetheless #with his blue eyes and dark curls #so that just makes this extra sad #also I’m just saying if a relative came at me that way I would not forget it #like twenty seconds later #sorry I’m rambling a little I’m very tired but am having Thoughts

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