Sebastian handles his defeat in a mature and dignified manner
So the battle drums continue to beat, and sixteen weary victors continue on into Round 3 of Middle-earth March Madness 2017! Only YOU (and as many of your friends as you can round up to join in the voting) can decide who will make it on to the Quarter Finals. Let’s see who’s still with us:
First up, the Movies Only category, where characters created by PJ and his gang fight it out in search of eternal (until next year, at least) glory: Aragorn’s loyal Brego had no trouble seeing off Mumak Mahud – clearly the rider is no match for the horse. Figwit defeated Mrs Proudfoot without disturbing a hair on his immaculate head; and it will come as a big disappointment (but perhaps no surprise) to some that Sebastian’s dreams of conquest are over. Yes, despite a brave fight from the spiny mammal, pointy-eared warrior Tauriel came out ahead, and progresses to Round 3.
On to Books Only, where Goldberry and Tom Bombadil continue on without any real problems. They may not have made it into the movies, but they have made it to Round 3 – where, awkwardly, they now have to face each other. Glorfindel joins them, but sadly Quickbeam was too slow to get going in this round, and was defeated by Prince Imrahil.
In Movie and Books, Bilbo is holding the torch for all hobbits; with Merry defeated by Aragorn, Mr Baggins is the only halfling still in the contest, having narrowly beaten Faramir. (With Aragorn and Brego both continuing on, we find ourselves wondering – what if they were to meet in the final? Would Brego be half-mad enough to vanquish his kingly friend, or would he have seen enough of war by then, and concede to the man he saved?)
Finally, in the Wider Mythos set, Luthien and Beren progress together, having seen off Glaurung and Feanor. In The Silmarillion, we learn that of all the Valar, Morgoth feared Varda the most; and well he might, as after a close run battle between them, Varda emerged victorious. But it is in this category that we find the biggest upset of this round – Earendil is sailing on, after a shock victory over Eru! Who would have expected a Mariner to beat Middle-earth’s supreme being? They don’t call it March Madness for nothing, you know…
Here are the full results from the second round:
Round 3 voting is open until March 28th 10pm EST. Will Goldberry final show Tom exactly what she thinks of his yellow boots and his ‘Ring a dong dillos’? In a showdown worthy of the end of the Second Age, will Elrond conquer the dark lord Sauron? It’s up to you – vote now! Continue reading “Middle-earth March Madness Round 2 results – and vote now for Round 3!”
The battles are underway and the clash of arms echoes around TheOneRing.net – we’re into the thick of it with Middle-earth March Madness! As you know (click here for details), our categories this year are Movies Only, Books Only, Movies and Books, and Wider Mythos – so we’ve got some unusual contestants mixing in with familiar fighters. And that means some unexpected results…
In the Movies Only group, Sebastian the Hedgehog was clearly sufficiently recovered from his brush with dark magic, to see off the Goblin Scribe. Alfrid Lickspittle may have been a sneaky survivor (up to a point) in the films, but he’s already out of this contest, resoundingly conquered by the ever lovely Figwit.
Books Only – we’re glad to see that happy couple Goldberry and Tom Bombadil are both through to Round 2, having seen off Fatty Lumpkin and Celebrian, respectively.
Some of the most epic battles thus far have surely been in the Movies and Books category, where after a mighty struggle, the Balrog was able to see off Beorn (did he have wings to help him?). It will come as no surprise that Sauron and Smaug have both made it through; but who would have expected Merry to manage a narrow defeat over Boromir? His pal Pippin will not be joining him in Round 2, having been vanquished by Aragorn; and I’m afraid hot dwarf Thorin is already down and out, with Faramir showing his quality in a fairly convincing win.
Wider Mythos sees Luthien and Beren both progressing; they are joined in the second round by Earendil, who ‘sailed’ through in an easy victory over Finrod. And in the most fiery of battles, Glaurung overcame Ancalagon; could he go on to face Smaug in the Semi-final?
Here are the full results of the first round match-ups. [Click here]
And so on to Round 2! Voting is open until March 25th 10pm EST; show your support for your favourites, and make sure they survive to Round 3! What lies in store – could there be an all tree battle in Round 4, with Quickbeam facing Old Man Willow? Might we see a final showdown between Goldberry and Luthien? Could Sebastian the Hedgehog go all the way to be crowned champion? YOU decide – vote now!
Movies Only – Round 2 March 23rd – March 25th 2016
Books Only – Round 2 March 23rd – March 25th 2016
Movie & Book – Round 2 March 23rd – March 25th 2016
Wider Mythos – Round 2 March 23rd – March 25th 2016
Tolkien was fascinated by the concept he called “the theory of courage”, which exemplified one of the highest qualities in the literary Northern hero: that of unflinching courage, steadfast resolve and sheer determination of will in the face of impossible odds. Continue reading “Northern Courage, Ofermōde and Thorin Oakenshield’s last stand”
If you have a Tolkien/Middle-earth inspired poem you’d like to share, then send it to poetry@theonering.net. One poem per person may be submitted each month. Please make sure to proofread your work before sending it in. TheOneRing.net is not responsible for poems posting with spelling or grammatical errors.
Welcome to our latest Library feature, in which Benita J Prins discusses the belief that Tolkien characters are either totally good, or totally bad, and therefore his characterizations are two-dimensional. She shows that Tolkien did, in fact, write characters that aren’t good, but aren’t entirely bad, and they appear in all of his works.
If you have a Tolkien/Middle-earth inspired poem you’d like to share, then send it to poetry@theonering.net. One poem per person may be submitted each month. Please make sure to proofread your work before sending it in. TheOneRing.net is not responsible for poems posting with spelling or grammatical errors.
Are you of Sam’s opinion, that Gollum is just a ‘stinker’, with ‘naught left in him but lies and deceit’? Or are you on Frodo’s side, believing Smeagol has good in him yet? Does he redeem himself at the end, with his sacrifice, or does an accidental tumble into lava not count for redemption?
In a bizarre piece of news, a court in Turkey has called in experts to debate this very issue. A doctor is accused of insulting the Turkish President by comparing him to Gollum; his lawyer is arguing, in his defense, that Gollum is not a bad character – so a team of five (including a ‘movie expert’) has been put together to decide.
What would your decision be, if you were called to sit on such a panel?!
Read more about this news story here and here. Thanks to spies davem, Lanirth and Manitou333 for sending us the news!
Welcome to our latest Library feature, in which Benita J Prins discusses the belief that Tolkien characters are either totally good, or totally bad, and therefore his characterizations are two-dimensional. She shows that Tolkien did, in fact, write characters that aren’t good, but aren’t entirely bad, and they appear in all of his works.