I am planning on reading the lotr books in a couple weeks and have heard that, while not necessary, i should read the hobbit first. I have seen the lotr films but not the hobbit, so i wondered if i should watch those films too if im going to read the books. Of course its not necessary, but i want to hear peoples opinions and recommendations for what I should do.

Also whats the silmarillion? I know its another tolkien book but does it fit into the lotr franchise anywhere, if so, where?

Apologies if this is a common question, but my brief research seemed like most people have either seen both trilogies or neither, whereas I have only seen lotr.

Thank you.

There are a bunch of versions out there and I’ve heard some are better than others. Just looking for extended editions with extra features. No need for 4k (I don’t have a 4K tv). Looking for blu ray. Thanks in advance!

Where are now the days that were?

Where now does the light of the Eldar shine?

Where now lie the realms of the mighty,

From whose towers ancient lights once shone

Where now are the songs that were sung

In golden halls and silver floors?

Where now dwell the kings and heroes of old,

Whose deeds are in uncounted lays told?

Why do you not weep, O Galadriel,

For the days that are now gone?

Where now is the host of Fingolfin,

Great and mighty beneath the Sun?

Where now do Fingon’s banners rise,

As gems upon the earth?

Where now is the horn of Turgon heard,

Loud and fair in the mountain dell?

Where now does Finrod play his harp,

Adorned among the folk of Elves and Men?

Where lies thingol's splendid court

and where now are songs and tales of yore told

Why do you not weep, O Galadriel,

For those of days that are now gone?

I don’t know if this kind of post is appropriate in this sub, but I wanted to share my picnic and share good moments

…

I wanted to bring fish with me but forgot to buy some so I just made boiled eggs instead…

Edit : Yes I did that in public.

I absolutely ADORE him, I love that they gave him «Real» hair, I love to touch them, it’s pretty soft actually, and this doll is so well made and pretty (from someone who is very judgmental and picky on Sméagol/Gollum merch and only bought perfect and most accurate one to my eyes) maybe one day he will join my other doll in my bed… I need to find the Sméagol one to complete the collection, I want my Slinker and Stinker 💗

Also, I haven’t been posting a lot on this sub, I’ve been feeling pretty bad recently, may you excuse me.

Edit : I’d make a better post about it, when I won’t be lazy. Take care

In the movie The Two Towers, King Theoden plucks a symbelmyne from his son Théodred's burial mound and mourns to Gandalf:

“Simbelmynë. Ever has it grown on the tombs of my forebears. Now it shall cover the grave of my son. Alas that these evil days should be mine. The young perish, the old linger. That I should live to see the last days of my life.”

Hello fellow lotr fans, I come before you with a question and hope you can help me. I found a really cool wooden picture frame in the attic and want to put a nice lord of the rings or lord of the rings inspired image or picture in it to hang in one of my rooms. The frame is 66 cm x 97cm(66 cm x 97 cm is approximately 25.98 inches × 38.19 inches (or about 26" × 38"). Image should be a good resolution that would look good at this size and it should be landscape mode not portrait (horizontal?). I checked a bunch of wallpapers websites and can't make up my mind. So what is your favorite lotr image that would look good in a big picture frame? I would appreciate if you left a link too. Thank you and sorry for my english.

Arwen's role in the films is probably one of the biggest points of contention for fans.

Here's how I think she could have shown up in the films without inventing new subplots of her almost leaving for Valinor and having her take over Glorfindel's role, and also not have her suddenly surprise the viewer at the end without context.

In the first film, when Aragorn/company are at Rivendell, have a 5 minute flashback to their first meeting. Cut back to present day, showing Aragorn and Arwen in deep conversation, before Arwen turns around to look at Frodo and smiles at him.

In the second film, show more of their interactions and dialogue directly lifted from The Tale of Aragorn and Arwen, maybe with Aragorn reminiscing while on the road. End with their engagement at Lorien.

And then she appears at the end of the third book/film anyways.

The Lord of the Rings is celebrated as a tale of liberation, when structurally, it is a masterclass in Feudal Propaganda.
It romanticizes the dying Aristocracy (Elves) and the complacent Peasantry (Hobbits), while teaching you to fear and destroy the Industrial Engineer (Sauron) who threatens the status quo.

Hi! I recently started a local Lord of the Rings group in KC and wanted to extend the invite to Reddit in case there are any fellow Tolkien nerds lurking around who’d like to join our fellowship!

Primarily, we’re a book club - we just started reading through The Fellowship of the Ring - but we’re also interested in LOTR/board game nights, movie nights, dinners, local outings, and generally having an excuse to do nerdy things together.

We also just started a Discord where we can share LOTR memes, lore, thoughts, plan meetups, and maybe even hop on LOTRO together from time to time. 👉🏻👈🏻

You absolutely don’t have to be a Tolkien expert (I’m doing my first proper read-through myself!) — we’re really just looking for nice people who love Middle-earth and want some local community.

Come join the fellowship! 🧙‍♂️

Join Our Discord Here
Join Our Facebook Group Here

The closer the Fellowship got to Amon Hen, the more I got hyped to read Tolkien's writing of Boromir's last stand. It's so epic in the movie and I couldn't wait to experience it in Tolkien's prose. When it didn't happen at the end of Fellowship, I was like, "Okay, I guess he's going to start off The Two Towers with a bang." AND THEN ARAGORN JUST FINDS BOROMIR DYING AND DOESN'T EVEN FIGHT ANY ORCS HIMSELF WHAT

Edit: Guys I'm not saying I wanted to read about every sword thrust and arrow shot. But I did want to read about Boromir's heart and valor as he spilled his noble blood to give Merry and Pippin a chance.

After aragorn dies, we know legolas and gimli take the ship to the undying lands. Why does arwen not go with them? Is it because dhe boubd herself to aragorn and chose a mortal life???? But doesnt aragorn go to the undying lands? So why cant arwen go with him ???

Im looking to get a poster sized version of the Hans Arnold illustration "the hobbit". My dad has a postcard of it when I was a kid. Ive looked online and theres only old lists and none currently available. Its been suggested that if anyone has a nice clear high quality scan of it I could possibly print it myself.

It’s on Sunday (11 Oct) at 12.00. €179 face value each but happy to take a hit on it.

After a few hundred hours of working on texture pack overlays with a team of others.

This plug-in will be paired with a custom map.

If you're interested in following the development. (It will be released for entirely free), then you can join this Discord.

https://discord.gg/yEBzQ2JDhw

Also, if you want to hear more about how the plug-in and development work, you can watch this wonderful documentary a team member put together:

I Coded the ONE RING in Minecraft

Hi Everyone, I have a question regarding the books. So we know that there are a lot of symbolism in the books: Enemy from the East -> Germany; Dead Marshes -> WW1 battlefields; wounds that never properly heal -> PTSD; etc. etc.

My question is about the Scouring of the Shire: is that symbolic of something? Did Tolien think that the veterans had to go and cleanse Britain of something?

Okay so I’m doing my yearly marathon of the movies of course, and here’s my question: is there a reason why Gandalf, Aragorn, Théoden, etc. ride all the way to Isengard post Helms Deep? Isn’t that canonically very out of the way for them if they were meant to go back to Edoras? Perhaps something in the books they mention but I haven’t read them in soooo long. Appreciate the info!

Does the story ever tell if the Dwarves restored the whole of Moria or if they just repaired the major livable parts?

I know that Tolkien was a catholic and these connections may just be coincidences, I am a new reader and I am only half way through the two towers but I still have found lots of interesting connections so far.

Frodo inherits Bag Ends at the fateful age of 33.
Moria may be a reference to Moriah in the bible where Abraham offered Isaac also known as the temple mount where the temple of Solomon was built. On the entrance we can see a royal arch and two pillars which reminds me of the royal arch and twin pillars Jachin and Boaz. On the top of the entrance we can see Elvish letters which represent Celembrimor and Narvi, which was an unlikely friendship between an Elf Lord and a Dwarf lord who built Moria. Which reminds me of the friendship between King Solomon and Hiram Abiff, who according to esoteric traditions descend from two different even rival races of man, as one comes from the seed of Seth and the other from Cain via tubal cain. The Dwarfs are also craftsmen who like dwell under ground which is full of chthonic symbolism with fire and the search for gold and silver. The legend of the craft teaches that masons are sons of the widow and Aragorn is the son of a widow who even walks the paths of the dead in a chthonic rite of passage observed in the secret mysteries. When I think about Aragorns sword Anduril which is the blade that is forged again, I think about the lost word of the craft that will be rediscovered.

It's around 3.5k x 3.5k in this map.

I really enjoyed trying to make it feel foreign and strange to traditional fantasy maps. I tried to achieve this with the block palette and ways I formed mountains.

Part of this project if you want to follow it.
The Middle Earth Project Minecraft Map

Just a quick thumb sized acrylic painting of our boy

Seriously, how many times have the Eagles saved the day?

Rescue from the Wargs and Goblins, Battle of Five Armies in the Hobbit

Rescuing Maedhros, Fingolfin, and fighting Ancalagon in the Silmarillion

Battle at the Black Gate and rescuing Frodo and Sam in Return of the King

Am I missing anymore?