58. Is Star Wars a Fairy Story? – On Fairy Stories, Part 1

Not sure how this Tom Bombadil came into existence–but he’s definitely incredibly different from Tolkien’s Bombadil.  He’s involved.  He cares about everything.  He lies to Gandalf.  He explains everything. In short, he’s a mentor to the powerful in Middle-earth. And that’s all wrong. BECOME A MEMBER! Get access to the extended edition of this podcast, our private Discord chat, and live chats. You can also join for $5 a month on Patreon 🔗 Episode Links The History of The Hobbit The Annotated Hobbit Join our Discord Community (for free) Get the Extended Podcast Become a Patreon Member 🎧 Subscribe to our Podcast Get the Extended Podcast Become a Patreon Member Subscribe on Apple Subscribe on Spotify 🔍 If You Like Tolkien The History of The Hobbit The Expanded Letters of JRR Tolkien (audiobook) The Expanded Letters of JRR Tolkien (book) The Silmarillion The Children of Hurin The Atlas of Middle-earth Make Tolkien Great Again – Tengwar Hat

10 Sep 20240s

Season 2 of The Rings of Power is here! And with it comes new hackneyed phrases, ridiculous contrivances, and incredible coincidences. Things aren’t looking up. Don’t worry, though… we’ll be back reading thru The Hobbit next week! BECOME A MEMBER! Get access to the extended edition of this podcast, our private Discord chat, and live chats. You can also join for $5 a month on Patreon 🔗 Episode Links The History of The Hobbit The Annotated Hobbit Join our Discord Community (for free) Get the Extended Podcast Become a Patreon Member 🎧 Subscribe to our Podcast Get the Extended Podcast Become a Patreon Member Subscribe on Apple Subscribe on Spotify 🔍 If You Like Tolkien The History of The Hobbit The Expanded Letters of JRR Tolkien (audiobook) The Expanded Letters of JRR Tolkien (book) The Silmarillion The Children of Hurin The Atlas of Middle-earth Make Tolkien Great Again – Tengwar Hat

4 Sep 20240s

We discuss the the latest visions of Middle-earth by Amazon and Warner Bros… we’ll get back to The Hobbit soon! This week we: * React to The War of the Rohirrim trailer * Take a look at how The Rings of Power is changing Bombadil * Examine why Galadriel in The Rings of Power might be the antagonist * Find that Gil-Galad in The Rings of Power is the most inept King. In our extended episode (available for our members) we talk about: * Whether they prefer Rings of Power Elves or Hobbit Elves * Elves in British Folklore * Could the Hobbit’s elves just be teenagers? BECOME A MEMBER! Get access to the extended edition of this podcast, our private Discord chat, and live chats. You can also join for $5 a month on Patreon 🔗 Episode Links The History of The Hobbit The Annotated Hobbit Join our Discord Community (for free) Get the Extended Podcast Become a Patreon Member 🎧 Subscribe to our Podcast Get the Extended Podcast Become a Patreon Member Subscribe on Apple Subscribe on Spotify 🔍 If You Like Tolkien The History of The Hobbit The Expanded Letters of JRR Tolkien (audiobook) The Expanded Letters of JRR Tolkien (book) The Silmarillion The Children of Hurin The Atlas of Middle-earth Make Tolkien Great Again – Tengwar Hat

27 Aug 202457min

In Chapter 3, A Short Rest, for the first time we meet the elves of Rivendell… and they certainly seem different than the same characters in The Lord of the Rings. In this episode, we look at: How Elrond was a “Fortunate Accident”! The indistinct descriptions of Middle-earth–following by the distinct description of Rivendell. What inspired Tolkien’s description of RIvendell. Why are these elves SO different? How elves were portrayed BEFORE Tolkien changed the cultural understanding. In our extended episode (available for our members) we talk about: Gnomes vs Elves — and when Tolkien changed the name! The Rings of Power’s latest trailers and it’s continued changes to Tolkien’s world. BECOME A MEMBER! Get access to the extended edition of this podcast, our private Discord chat, and live chats. You can also join for $5 a month on Patreon 🔗 Episode Links The History of The Hobbit The Annotated Hobbit Join our Discord Community (for free) Get the Extended Podcast Become a Patreon Member 🎧 Subscribe to our Podcast Get the Extended Podcast Become a Patreon Member Subscribe on Apple Subscribe on Spotify 🔍 If You Like Tolkien The History of The Hobbit The Expanded Letters of JRR Tolkien (audiobook) The Expanded Letters of JRR Tolkien (book) The Silmarillion The Children of Hurin The Atlas of Middle-earth Make Tolkien Great Again – Tengwar Hat

20 Aug 20240s

We weren’t huge fans of Tolkien’s changes to chapter 1 of The Hobbit in his abandoned 1960 rewrite–but chapter 2 surprised us with it’s pitch-perfect changes! Some of the things we discuss are: Want the first edition of The Hobbit? Get ready to pay! Middle-earth gains space–and is now the “character” we know Gandalf’s got a horse–and he’s AWESOME! Bilbo is more helpless and forgotten–and it’s better JRR Tolkien’s prose is more expertly crafted Listen to Tolkien Reading “Roast Mutton” In our extended episode (available for our members) we talk about: Why does Tolkien refer to the Dwarves gold as “enchanted” And why is the gold “pale”?  Does is have a greater meaning than just a color choice? The Hobbit film fan-edit — let’s watch it together! BECOME A MEMBER! Get access to the extended edition of this podcast, our private Discord chat, and live chats. You can also join for $5 a month on Patreon 🔗 Episode Links Tolkien Reading “Roast Mutton” The History of The Hobbit The Annotated Hobbit Join our Discord Community (for free) Get the Extended Podcast Become a Patreon Member 🎧 Subscribe to our Podcast Get the Extended Podcast Become a Patreon Member Subscribe on Apple Subscribe on Spotify 🔍 If You Like Tolkien The History of The Hobbit The Expanded Letters of JRR Tolkien (audiobook) The Expanded Letters of JRR Tolkien (book) The Silmarillion The Children of Hurin The Atlas of Middle-earth Make Tolkien Great Again – Tengwar Hat

13 Aug 20241h 1min

Join our Free Discord Channel! It’s not that the trolls aren’t scary… or are they? Did Tolkien mean for them to be frightening? In this episode we get into how the trolls find a balance, of sorts, between, fear and goofiness–and maybe it all starts with their accents (Michael breaks down exactly where their accent is from too!). We discuss: * The Hobbits and The King * Troll Accents * The Brave Burglar * The Incompetent Dwarves * The Incompetent Wizard In our extended episode (available for our members) we talk about: * Dwarven Law and Bilbo’s Contract * What would Dwarf jelly actually taste like… and what if it’s seasoned with Hobbit? * Would the key have also turned to stone if they never dropped it? BECOME A MEMBER! Get access to the extended edition of this podcast, our private Discord chat, and live chats. You can also join for $5 a month on Patreon 🔗 Episode Links The History of The Hobbit The Annotated Hobbit Join our Discord Community (for free) Get the Extended Podcast Become a Patreon Member 🎧 Subscribe to our Podcast Get the Extended Podcast Become a Patreon Member Subscribe on Apple Subscribe on Spotify 🔍 If You Like Tolkien The History of The Hobbit The Expanded Letters of JRR Tolkien (audiobook) The Expanded Letters of JRR Tolkien (book) The Silmarillion The Children of Hurin The Atlas of Middle-earth Make Tolkien Great Again – Tengwar Hat

5 Aug 202448min

Join our Free Discord Channel! We make our way through the first 1/2 of Chapter 2, Roast Mutton… First, though, we reveal a Hobbit fact that makes one big connection between The Hobbit and The Silmarillion! Bilibo finally makes his way out the door–but was it his decision or did Gandalf force him out?  And who is this “king” that’s mentioned? In our extended episode (available for our members) we talk about: * How many editors were there for The Red Book of Westmarch? * Thorin’s dignity in Peter Jacksons films. BECOME A MEMBER! Get access to the extended edition of this podcast, our private Discord chat, and live chats. You can also join for $5 a month on Patreon 🔗 Episode Links The Annotated Hobbit The History of The Hobbit Join our Discord Community (for free) Get the Extended Podcast Become a Patreon Member 🎧 Subscribe to our Podcast Get the Extended Podcast Become a Patreon Member Subscribe on Apple Subscribe on Spotify 🔍 If You Like Tolkien The History of The Hobbit The Expanded Letters of JRR Tolkien (audiobook) The Expanded Letters of JRR Tolkien (book) The Silmarillion The Children of Hurin The Atlas of Middle-earth Make Tolkien Great Again – Tengwar Hat

30 Juli 202430min

Join our Free Discord Channel! When Tolkien set out to rewrite The Hobbit in 1960, much was lost, but much was gained… Do the gains outweigh the losses? We review his rewritten 1st chapter of The Hobbit, newly title “A Well-Planned Party”. We discuss: * Fairy Rabbit’s are NOT Hobbits… but AI can still imagine them. * Fairy Rabbit #1 * Fairy Rabbit #2 * Fairy Rabbit #3 * Fairy Rabbit #4 * Fairy Rabbit #5 * Fairy Rabbit #6 * Tolkien’s grammatical error that created an entirely new word. * The overall tonal and stylistic changes in the 1960 rewrite. * The specific passages that were changes for the worse. * The specifics and details Tolkien added to bring it closer to Lord of the Rings. * Our final thoughts on whether we prefer the original Hobbit or Tolkien’s 1960 rewrite. In our extended episode (available for our members) we talk about: * What did Peter Jackson add to The Hobbit movie that was actually GOOD. * Dragons with 2 legs vs dragons with 4 legs. * Beorn in the battle of the 5 armies and a certain unnecessary scene. BECOME A MEMBER! Get access to the extended edition of this podcast, our private Discord chat, and live chats. You can also join for $5 a month on Patreon 🔗 Episode Links The Annotated Hobbit The History of The Hobbit Join our Discord Community (for free) Get the Extended Podcast Become a Patreon Member 🎧 Subscribe to our Podcast Get the Extended Podcast Become a Patreon Member Subscribe on Apple Subscribe on Spotify 🔍 If You Like Tolkien The History of The Hobbit The Expanded Letters of JRR Tolkien (audiobook) The Expanded Letters of JRR Tolkien (book) The Silmarillion The Children of Hurin The Atlas of Middle-earth Make Tolkien Great Again – Tengwar Hat

23 Juli 20241h 1min