Tomorrow, September 30, Shadow of Mordor is finally released! As evidenced by my previous posts, Shadow of Mordor: Canon or Not? and Celebrimbor: Who Is he?, I’m excited and interested about the latest game set in Middle-earth. Video game blogs like Polygon and Joystiq are giving the game great reviews (9.5/10 and 5/5, respectively). This is wonderful, considering how few LotR games…
Month: September 2014
What Tolkien Thought of Frodo and Bilbo Baggins
September 22 was the birthday of Frodo and Bilbo Baggins. In honor of these two famousest of Hobbits, I thought it would be appropriate to gather some of Tolkien’s thoughts on these characters. On What Made Bilbo Unique Bilbo was in [gift giving] as in other ways an exceptional person, and his Party was a riot of generosity even for a wealthy…
Silmarillion Character Profile: Lúthien
One of the most daunting things about reading The Silmarillion is keeping all of the names straight. I love this, so I want to make it more accessible for the general reader with brief character profiles. Name: Lúthien Tinúviel Immediate Family: Husband: Beren Son: Dior Aranel Home: Beleriand, almost exclusively Doriath Claim to fame: Not only was Lúthien the only one of the Children of Ilúvatar (the…
Lord of the Rings Meaning, As Unearthed by Yahoo! Movies
Yahoo! Movies recently published an article entitled The Hidden Meanings Behind Iconic Movies. If you’re expecting a mind-blowing revelation…well, don’t. Despite some correct and interesting information (I’ve heard the Star Wars interpretation before, but I’ve never seen references supporting the interpretation), writer Rob Waugh is way off on Lord of the Rings meaning. He claims that it’s “REALLY about” the Battle of the…
4 Things You May Not Know About J.R.R. Tolkien
There are a lot of facts about J.R.R. Tolkien that are well-known, both to his fans and even to the general public. He was a good friend to C.S. Lewis, the man who wrote The Chronicles of Narnia. He was a practicing Catholic. He loved trees. He once wrote a biting letter to Nazis. And so on. Of course, Tolkien was…
Silmarillion Character Profile: Melian
One of the most daunting things about reading The Silmarillion is keeping all of the names straight. I love this, so I want to make it more accessible for the general reader with brief character profiles. Name: Melian Immediate Family: Husband: Thingol Daughter: Lúthien Tinúviel Home: Lived in Beleriand for most of the First Age Claim to fame: The only Maia to marry one of the…
What Does Celebrimbor Mean?
Whether you’re a long-time Tolkien fan or you just heard the name from all the hype around Shadow of Mordor, there’s no denying that “Celebrimbor” is a doozy of a name. What does that even mean? According to The Silmarillion, “Celebrimbor” means “hand of silver.” Is that just a generic name or does it have meaning beyond the translation? Keep in mind…