Have Character’s Been Confirmed for the LOTR Show?

It seems like we have our first character confirmation regarding Amazon’s The Lord of the Rings TV Show, which will be set in the Second Age.

According to TheOneRing.net’s Twitter, Galadriel, Elrond, and Sauron are all confirmed characters for the upcoming show. Sauron, of course, is a given considering the biggest events of the Second Age revolve around his actions. You can read our post earlier in the year HERE, we detailed the Second Age timeline and highlighted what we could expect from this show.

Elrond’s confirmation is a pleasant surprise, at the time of our writing the first post we figured the show would focus on the Fall of Númenor. Of course, the show could eventually grow into that storyline, but with the news of Elrond’s presence we think it’s a safe bet to surmise that the show will follow the War of the Elves and Sauron storyline. During this time, Sauron manipulates Elven smiths to create the Rings of Power. While he helps the Elves to create these rings, in secret, he was also making the One Ring. Celebrimbor begins to understand what Sauron is plotting, the Three Rings are hidden, and the War begins. Celebrimbor, Gil-galad, Elrond, and Sauron are all major players in this storyline. I, for one, am really excited about this possibility, we’ll finally get the chance to see Elves fight at the height of their powers. Yes, Legolas was the epic moment generator for the movies but Elrond, Gil-galad, and Celebrimbor are on a different level.

How Galadriel fits into this story we’re, unfortunately, not 100% knowledgeable about that information. We know that Galadriel was around Middle-earth at that time, and that she received one of the Three Rings of power, but as for her part in the Second Age? We’ll need to do some more research into the History of Middle-earth texts because there’s no mention of her name during the War of the Elves and Sauron, not in The Lord of the Rings books. Regardless, since she received one of the Three Rings of Power she had a part to play.

The biggest question we have regarding this news is, who is going to play Elrond and Galadriel? For us, it’ll be very hard to find two actors to top the performances of Hugo Weaving and Cate Blanchett. In our opinion, the studio should make sure they come back and reprise their roles. We’ve heard rumblings of recasting Galadriel to make her a “young Galadriel,” while nothing has been officially confirmed we would pump the brakes on this move. It’s not like Elves age throughout their years like we do. A thousand year old Elf isn’t going to look like a teenager, but before we continue our rant let’s give ourselves a frame of reference.

  • Legolas, according to the movie guide, was 2931 years old in The Lord of the Rings. Other sources have said he’s less than 1,000. The truth is, we don’t know for sure, but we know he hasn’t been around as long as Elrond or Galadriel.
  • Elrond, according to TheOneRing.net (we’ll trust that they’ve done their research, having visited the site often), is over 6,000 in The Lord of the Rings.
  • Galadriel was born in Valinor before the destruction of the sacred trees and before the Kinslaying. We can guess that she’s some age over 7000 years old.

Now, we know (at least from the movies) that Elrond looked the same from the end of the Second Age to the end of the Third Age. The events of The Lord of the Rings took place roughly 3,000 years after Isildur cut the Ring from Sauron’s hand. If Elrond looks the same during The Lord of the Rings and The Last Alliance of Elves and Men (a 3,000 year gap). Then, it’s safe to assume that Elrond will look the same roughly 1,800 years before the Last Alliance during the War of the Elves and Sauron. We feel this logic would also cary over for Galadriel who’s, at least, 1,000 years older than Elrond.

Casting younger versions of these characters just doesn’t make logical sense to us, especially not when we’ve grown to know and love Elrond and Galadriel as Hugo and Cate. Will our words sway the powers-at-be at Amazon? No. Will these characters get recasted for a younger version? Probably. All we’re saying is, there better not be a teenage or 20 year old playing these characters. Cate Blanchett and Hugo Weaving were in their 30s-40s when they shot The Fellowship of the Ring and casting someone 10 years younger than that would look too far off. At least, in our opinion it would, besides, with today’s technology you could age someone down without it being too obvious. It’s our hope that they would choose an an actress and actor close to that age range. Not just because we liked Hugo and Cate but because Elves are immoral beings blessed with long life, that should be shown every chance that you get.

What’d you think about these character confirmations? Are you excited about the returns of Elrond, Galadriel, and Sauron? What about the potential casting? Are we way off base, should we be more open to younger versions of these Elves? Let us know!

Thank you for taking the time to read through this, we hope you’re having a great day, remember, a light from the shadows shall spring.

– The Wandering One

On This Day in Middle-earth

August 1st

All trace of Gollum is lost.

It is thought that at about this time, being hunted both by the Elves and Sauron’s servants, he took refuge in Moria; but when he had at last discovered the way to the West-gate he could not get out.

Months prior, Gollum had been released from Mordor and taken by Aragorn in the marshes. Aragorn then took Gollum to Thranduil in Mirkwood where he remained a prisoner. The Elves were far kinder than the Orcs but it was still an unpleasant place for Gollum to reside.

Once Sauron had discovered that the Elves had this creature he sent his forces to attack Mirkwood. It’s unknown whether or not this attack was to kill Gollum or allow him the means to escape. We do know that Sauron certainly didn’t want Gollum telling the Elves any of his plans. So there Gollum is left, throughly beaten, wandering Middle-earth alone without the Ring.

Thank you for your time, and remember, not all those who wander are lost.

– The Wandering One

Character of the Week

Kratos

Loving Husband, caring Father, teacher, friend of Dwarves, carrier of Heads, God of War.

We never thought Kratos would hold any of those namesakes, except, well, the last two. However, his story in PS4’s God of War showcased how far the God of War had come. A character arch that started out as a revenge filled rampage has turned into a father-son story about trying to honor a mother’s last wish. The loss of his wife quietly hangs over Kratos’ head as he begins to learn what kind of kid his son, Atreus, has turned out to be. At the beginning of the game Kratos was more or less an absent father, he made sure the work around their home was completed and his family was safe. His suffered from recurring sicknesses was left at the house with his mother. This gap in their relationship is obvious because at first Kratos doesn’t understand how a kid could be so clueless, but he hones his father skills throughout the game and becomes more understanding.

This is, of course, all happening while they’re fighting creatures and gods from Norse mythology. As this pair travels from world to world they gain more experience and Kratos grows more in front of our eyes. He’s not just honoring his wife’s last wish, he’s doing everything he can to protect his kid and make him happy. Kratos throughout the God of War series is an incredible warrior, fighter, brawler, beast, whatever you want to call him, but in this game he truly becomes a protector.

We hope you join us this week as we honor Kratos with the Character of the Week title. Thank you for your time and remember, the old that is strong does not whither.

– The Wandering One

Pokémon Lineup (Gen 1)

My challenge? Create a Pokémon lineup with only 6 Pokémon (much like the video games) one of them has to be the starter Pokémon.

Normally, when I play the games I filter through different Pokémon the whole game. My main goal is to train and grow each Pokémon to the same level. That doesn’t always workout, but I usually get to a decent spot with a good bit of Pokémon.

Now on to my six Pokémon.

Poliwrath

One of my favorite water Pokémon. He’s got amazing defense and a solid offense. He also can mix in some fighting moves so you’re not stuck with water attacks. If your opponent comes around with Pokémon that are not weak against water his power is still strong enough to handle them. Once you train him up from Poliwag, who’s a super cute Pokémon, he’s a boss.

Raichu

He’s like the older stepbrother of Pikachu and for some reason no one talks about this guy. I don’t know what caused it but I’ve grown into a Raichu fan, he’s got good strength, his electric attacks are very strong and he’s super quick.

Tauros

He’s just a normal type Pokémon, one that doesn’t get much attention, but he can throw down stomps and get flinches like no one else can. I don’t know what it is about this dude, but man, he’s got that “it” factor you want out of a Pokémon. I’m a little bit biased after all those flinches I was getting, but this dude became one of my favorites.

Venasaur

Yeah Bulbasaur is my favorite starter Pokèmon, he’s cute and also the most practical choice for me. I like spreading around my lineup so that I can always have a Pokémon that is very effective against others. Bulbasaur elvolving into Venasaur is obviously the best grass Pokémon in the game, at least to me it is. Charmander is great but if I want a fire Pokémon I have other options like Growlith and Ponyta. Squirtle is awesome too, but when Poliwag is out there you got another strong option. I can’t think of any other grass Pokémon that can go toe-to-toe with Venasuar. I always tend to gravitate towards the Grass Starters for this reason. Also the first couple of gyms you come up so are susceptible to grass types, Rock and Water.

It just makes sense to go with Bulbasaur, plus as he evolves his defense gets really good too. I essentially have two tanks in my lineup, and I’m about to add a mini-tank next.

Sandslash

Love this Pokémon, definitely one of my favorites, but his defense is crazy good and when you evolve him enough he learns Poison Sting. That move, paired with his defense, can really create a deadly combo. He quickly became a stalwart in my lineup, being the tail end of my “Big 3.” Poliwrath, Venasaur, Sandslash.

Last Pokémon in my lineup. I gotta go with a favorite of mine and a wild card to help combat some of those crazy Pokémon out there.

Kadabra

Would I want to evolve him to Alakazam, yeah absolutely, but I’ve never had one of those system link things so I’m stuck with Kadabra. Don’t get my wrong, I’m not complaining. This dude is OP to the max and he can easily handle most Pokémon. I found myself at times just sitting this guy out because the rest of my lineup needed to catch up to his level. If a Pokémon came up that I didn’t have an immediate advantage for, I can throw this guy out there and he gets the job done.

Honorable Mentions

Flareon, Growlithe, Ponyta

If I wanted to snag a fire type Pokémon I’d be rolling with one of these three. Like I said before, Charmander is great, but there are other fire type Pokémon out there.

Machoke

If you were a kid around the Pokémon hype, the Machop, Machoke, and Machamp cards were a high priority. These dudes looked cool and can kick butt. Would I like to evolve my Machoke into Machamp, yeah absolutely, but again no system link, so Machoke it is.

Arbok

Throwing out a Poison type can help your battling advantage, Arbok is a good option for Poison, just not enough to crack the lineup consistently.

My strategy? I try to put together a good team with a pretty solid defense. It definitely helps in the later Pokémon battles if you have a strong defense. Instead of filtering to one Pokemon type I try to build a lineup of strengths and weaknesses. Meaning, I want to have a lineup that can combat most Pokémon types, and I think I have that covered, with a few exceptions.

Thank you for your time, this was a fun one for me because it was outside the realm of my normal fantasy posts.

Let us know what you’re top six are (Gen 1 only) we’ll get into the other Generations later on.

Thank you again and remember, from the ashes a fire shall spring.

– The Wandering One

Character of the Week

Thorin Oakenshield

Heir of Durin, Longbeard, Wielder of Orcrist, Bane of Azog, and Leader of Dwarves.

Thorin was a hard nosed and gruff leader. He was impatient at times, but he always had an air of greatness around him. Thorin fought for his people when many had already given up, he fought for his ancestors that had fallen before him, and he fought for all of Middle-earth, though he did not know it. Thorin’s plan to retake Erebor from Smaug the Destroyer actively when against Sauron’s plans for the dragon. Had Thorin, with the help of Gandalf, never made a move on the Mountain the War of the Ring would’ve turned out far worse for the Free Peoples.

Throughout The Hobbit Thorin never gave up on his quest, he didn’t let Orcs, Goblins, Wargs, Elves, Men, or Dragons keep him from returning to his families home. His birthright. You might question some of his methods, he was not perfect, but his strength and determination are unquestionable. Thorin inspires us to learn from his mistakes and drives us to achieve his same greatness.

On another note, Thorin’s appreciation of Bilbo as the story goes along is our favorite part of the book. Join us this week as we celebrate Thorin Oakenshield, King Under the Mountain, with this week’s Character of the Week title.

Thank you for your time and remember, the crownless again shall be king.

– The Wandering One

On This Day in Middle-earth

July 22nd

The funeral escort of King Théoden sets out.

As promised King Aragorn left with King Éomer to return Théoden’s remains to Rohan, there he will lie with his fathers before him and his son. Éomer and Aragorn went into the tomb and brought Théoden forth on a golden bier. They brought him through this City in silence and laid him on a great wain of the Rohirrim. Merry being his esquire rode on the wain carrying his armor. Frodo and Sam had their own “steeds” and rode at Aragorn’s side, Gandalf rode on Shadowfax, Pippin rode with the Knights of Gondor, and Legolas and Gimli rode together on Amrod.

Queen Arwen also rode with this company, as did Galadriel, Celeborn, Elrond, Elladan, Elrohir, and the rest of the Elven folk. Faramir and Imrahil rode, and so did many other captains and knights.

No King of the Mark has had such a large procession as did Théoden, Thengel’s son, when we returned home. This man was honored amongst Elves, Men, Dwarves, and Hobbits like no one else. Maybe Aragorn, but I cannot think of a King of Men who has ever been honored this way.

Take time out of your day, watch The Two Towers, see this great king rise from the ashes, defend his people against a monstrous foe, and ride out to meet his enemy on the battlefield. He rose above Isengard, he fought against the forces of Sauron, and he showed Aragorn what a King of Men could achieve.

Thank you for your time, and remember, from the ashes a fire shall be woken.

– The Wandering One

The Battle of Geonosis

As we continue our playthrough of Star Wars Battlefront on Xbox, I thought I’d share with you how the Battle of Geonosis played out. We hope you enjoy.

Our first mission with General Yoda went off as expected. We extracted a group of Jedi from the Genosian Colosseum, the Separatist’s forces were caught off guard and their droids couldn’t match our skill. After, we were given a new objective one that’s simple enough, but not without it’s challenges. We were to destroy the Separatist Army amassing on Geonosis. A difficult task for a group of Clones with little to no recon work, luckily, we had General Windu to help strengthen our forces.

The battle was met with many stalemates, the droids were reluctant to give up their position and were proving to be a formidable foe. We weren’t going to back down, our Clones were prepared to fight till the last man. It wasn’t until Clone Trooper 3163 joined the fight that we gained the upper hand. He piloted the LAAT/I Gunship and led an aerial assault on the Separatist’s Techno Union ships, in a matter of minutes CT-3163 and his men destroyed the ships, effectively cutting off the Separatist’s escape and severely depleting their reinforcements at the same time. CT-3163 brought the gunship down near the East Bunker and led a force into the heat of battle.

After CT-3163 and the Clones shot down the Separatist’s Techno Union ships it was crucial that the Spire was taken for the Republic. The Spire was in the center of the battlefield, as long as it was under Separatist control they could not turn the tide of the battle.

“We’re coming in hot troopers! Gear up!” a novice pilot, CT-3163 did his best to bring their Gunship down with a smooth landing, but was fairly unsuccessful.

As the Clone Troopers landed they were immediately met with blaster fire.

“Follow me!” yelled CT-3163, the Clones hurried up the hill, to the Spire, blaster fire ringing in their ears as they gunned down Battle Droids guarding the entrance.

“Hold position,” shouted CT-3163 as he reached into his pack for concussion explosives and motioned for the others to do the same. They bombarded the interior of the Spire with explosives, and moved in with CT-3163 leading the group. He shot down three Battle Droids near the West entrance while the rest of the Clones cleared the room of the remaining Droids. Not wanting to give up their center location, Superbattle Droids entered the Spire, quickly taking cover the Clones regrouped and reloaded.

“CT-10479, cover me,” CT-3163 dove out from under cover and took out two Superbattle Droids. As the remaining quickly turned towards him they were shot down by CT-10479 and the Clones.

“CT-75487, take some troopers, hold down this position, and guard the East and West entrances until reinforcements arrive. I’ll take the rest and overtake the East Bunker from the South entrance. Once reinforcements arrive rejoin us.”

CT-10479 joined CT-3163’s group and left the Spire, they gunned through Battle Droids trying to enter through the South entrance and charged towards the East Bunker. On their left a Droideka was rolling towards their troop, CT-3163 acted quickly, if the Droideka had time to break out of its roll and power up it’s shield they would be gunned down. Leading the troopers he stopped as they made their way to the bunker and opened fire. His aim was true, as the Droideka broke out of its roll it was met immediately with blaster fire, it never had a chance. Quickly he started to run to catch up with the group, as they reached the bunker they were surprised by a hiding Super Battledroid. It gunned down the unaware Clones with the rest taking cover.

Finally catching up, CT-3163 tossed his last concussion explosive and ran in, he took heavy gun fire at a close range, but with a dive and quick aim he was able to shoot down the Superbattle Droid. A nearby Clone gave CT-3163 a med pack and they held down the East Bunker’s position while the battle raged around them. The Clone troopers battle prowess allowed CT-3163 to survey their surroundings. Clones, his brothers, were falling all around them. Amongst those was CT-10479, he made a promise to himself, they were going to win this battle, even if he was the last Clone standing.

“Hold still brothers! More Droids are on their way!” Shouted CT-75487 as he and their group from the Spire provided reinforcements.  Gathering himself CT-3163 joined the fray, gunning down every Droid he could see.

His Clones were able to gain control of the Spire and the East Bunker territories, the Separatist Army was quickly depleted. CT-3163’s quick action allowed us to finally gain an upper hand.

It wasn’t long before the Driods attempted a desperate attack to turn the tide in their favor. While our forces tried defend against their onslaught the Droidekas and Superbattle Droids broke through. They sent all their forces and recaptured the Spire and the East Bunker territory.

Fortunately, for the Republic, their small victory didn’t change the tide of the battle. By that time, our forces were too many for the Separatist Droids and, quickly, there were only a few droids left. CT-3163 led the charge to capture the West Bunker and the Derelict territories. With that, the battle was won. Furious yells of victory erupted from me and my Clone brothers. We rested easy that night as CT-3163 earned himself a new call sign, Jak. He did everything during that battle.

As the Clone Wars began we knew there were plenty more battles ahead of us, but we knew that together we’d prevail.

For the Republic!

Thank you for your time, this was a little glorious retelling of my playthrough of Star Wars Battlefront on the original Xbox. As I’ve said already, it’s an incredibly challenging and fun game to play. I also enjoyed putting the battle into a short synopsis for you, I hope you welcome the new Clone Trooper Jak with open arms. Maybe he’ll make the jump to Commander one day.

Look for more new Clones to earn their own call signs in my next installment!

Remember, deep roots are not reached by the frost.

– The Wandering One

Character of the Week

Nymphadora Tonks

The wild haired, shape changing metamorphmagus who won our hearts and gained our trust has earned herself a Character of the Week title.

Tonks, as she liked to be called, was a young talented Auror who many viewed at Alastor Moody’s prodigy. As talented as she was, often times she was very clumsy, she tripped over the umbrella stand at Grimmauld Place many times, and when the Order went to get Harry from Privet Drive she was the one making a commotion downstairs. Despite this, Tonks went on to become an important member of the Order of the Phoenix and a strong Auror, she fought against Death Eaters, defended her family, and ultimately sacrificed her life so that her kid could grow up in a better world.

Tonks was someone who did the right thing and remained true to herself through life’s challenges. Unfortunately, we don’t know much about this bright witch’s life as an Auror and her adventures with Moody guiding her. Hopefully one day we’ll be able to see her tackle some unknown dark wizard and bring him to justice.

We hope you join us as we celebrate Tonks with the Character of the Week title.

Thank you for your time and remember, the crownless again shall be king.

– The Wandering One

On This Day in Middle-earth

July 18th

Éomer returns to Minas Tirith.

Éomer had gone back to Edoras to set his people in order and coordinate the rebuilding of Rohan. Saruman’s power in Isengard laid waste to many lands around them. Unfortunately, he missed the wedding but as promised he returned to celebrate and return King Théoden’s remains. When he entered the city he was welcome and they held a dinner in Merethrond, the Great Hall of Feasts. That night Éomer had quite a comical interaction with Gimli. You see, when they had first met Éomer had said some disparaging things about the Lady of the Golden Wood. Gimli having seen her beauty was ready to do battle in her honor.

“And before he went to his rest he sent for Gimli the Dwarf, and he said to him: ‘Gimli Glóin’s son, have you your axe ready?’

‘Nay, lord,’ said Gimli, ‘but I can speedily fetch it, if there be need.’

‘You shall judge,’ said Éomer. ‘For there are certain rash words concerning the Lady in the Golden Wood that lie still between us. And now I have seen her with my eyes.’

‘Well, lord,’ said Gimli, ‘and what say you now?’

‘Alas!’ said Éomer. ‘I will not say that she is the fairest lady that lives.’

‘Then I must go for my axe,’ said Gimli.

‘But first I will plead this excuse,’ said Éomer. ‘Had I seen her in other company, I would have said all that you could wish. But now I will put Queen Arwen Evenstar first, and I am ready to do battle on my own part with any who deny me. Shall I call for my sword?’

Then Gimli bowed low. ‘Nay, you are excused for my part, lord,’ he said. ‘You have chosen the Evening; but my love is given to the Morning. And my heart forebodes that soon it will pass away for ever.’”

A comical interaction in deed, these two warriors agreed to set their differences aside.

Thank you for your time, and remember, a light from the shadows shall spring.

– The Wandering One

Character of Last Week

Halt O’Carrick

Leader, mentor, friend, and father figure Halt was the epitome of the ideal Ranger Corps member.

We must tip our cap to this vastly talented, at times highly strict, Ranger Corps elite. Not only had he grown his archery beyond any member of the Corps, he was also able to train and teach the best strongest cadets. To us, that is the true sign of a great leader, someone who can inspire those below his rank to achieve greatness. For someone in command that’s your job, to train your workers and guide them to be the best they can be. Undoubtedly Gilan and Will become great Rangers because of Halt’s teaching and influence.

Halt was also an immensely humble man. As a war hero and highly skilled member of the Ranger Corps he could’ve lived a luxurious life, yet he lived in the woods in solitude and never thought of himself as a hero. To Halt’s credit, he felt he was just doing his duty and that he didn’t need more than what life could offer him.

We hope you join us as we celebrate Halt O’Carrick with the Character of the Week title. We apologize for missing last week’s, at Of Blades and Kings we strive to maintain consistency, but, life sometimes gets in the way. Regardless, we’re doubling up this week.

Thank you for your time and remember, the old that is strong does not wither.

– The Wandering One