hobbitdosthranduildlrg2The Holiday shopping season is quickly approaching and its time to start thinking about what to get that special Tolkien lover in your life. We’re pleased to to help ease your journey in by narrowing down what we feel are the top 10 Middle-earth related collectibles that fans can easily swing on a holiday budget. You can get any of these amazing collectibles from our friends at Weta Workshop, Artist Jerry Vanderstelt, Sideshow Collectibles, and The Noble Collection. These collectibles range from mini-sword letter openers to giant premium formats all of which help cover any Tolkien Collector in your family.

Here’s our Top 10 List: (In No Particular Order)

  1. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey Extended Edition with Limited Edition Amazon Exclusive Bilbo/Gollum Statue (Blu-ray 3D + Blu-ray + UltraViolet)
  2. One Ring – Tungsten – Gold plated (with or without script) Weta Workshop
  3. Tauriel Necklace (Weta and Noble)
  4. King Thranduil Statue
  5. The Key to Erebor  Weta Workshop
  6. Mini-sword letter openers from Noble – Narsil, LOTR Sting, The Hobbit Sword Set, Thranduil’s Sword, Tauriel’s Dagger, Morgul Dagger
  7. Barrel-riders Weta Workshop – Bilbo Baggins & Bombur the Dwarf
  8. Jerry Vanderstelt’s Middle-earth prints
  9. Sauron Premium Format
  10. Ringwraith on Steed Premium Format
Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey Extended Edition
Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey Extended Edition

We want to simplify the head-scratching surrounding the multitude of versions of the Extended Edition of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey available to fans.

So, based on feedback from you, the fans, the additional information that Warner Bros. has provided us, and the research of TORn staffer Justin, we’ve created this handy infographic that shows what you get with each version. We hope that this will help you get the version you want from your outlet of choice! Continue reading “The definitive buyer’s guide to every version of Extended Edition of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey”

live event To wrap up the week that saw an unprecedented live fan event where fans gathered in theaters around the world with cast and crew, here is a list of things that stood out for TORn staff.

During the event, fans were treated to costume displays, live Q&As, a preview of the end credit music video, and most importantly, 20 minutes of nearly complete, previously unseen footage. As stated in previous posts, this means movie spoilers are coming, so feel free to stop reading now if you wish to spend the next four weeks without knowing what’s to come. Continue reading “Thirteen things we love about The Desolation of Smaug footage”

Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey Extended Edition
“Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” Extended Edition

Warner Bros. has responded to TheOneRing.net’s request for further information about “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” Extended Edition after fans expressed confusion and reported the sets were difficult to find.

TORn’s news leader Demosthenes posted this article about the availability of  on DVD and Blu-ray to highlight the frustrations fans were bombarding TheOneRing.net with. Warner provided the following information for us to pass on to consumers:

“We are thrilled at the fan reaction to The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey Extended Edition. We’ve been made aware that certain retail outlets are sold out, and we are working as quickly as possible to replenish stock so fans can get their copies on Blu-ray 3D, Blu-ray and DVD. We understand that there is some confusion regarding what product is available at each retailer and would like to provide clarification.

There are three products currently available at retailers nationwide:
* 5-disc Blu-ray 3D + Digital HD UltraViolet
* 3-disc Blu-ray + Digital HD UltraViolet
* 5-disc DVD + Digital UltraViolet

Please note that Target will have the Blu-ray and DVD available on December 1st.

In addition to the national product, several retailers have unique product offerings as follows:

Amazon.com
* 3-disc Blu-ray + Digital HD UltraViolet with Bilbo/Gollum Statue
* 5-disc Blu-ray 3D + Digital HD UltraViolet with Bilbo/Gollum Statue

Wal-Mart
* 2-disc DVD including Extended Edition Feature Film and Special Features “The Company of Thorin,” and “Durin’s Folk: Creating the Dwarves”

Best Buy
* 4-disc Blu-ray 3D Steelbook:
– Disc 1: Blu-ray 3D Extended Edition Feature Part
– Disc 2: Blu-ray 3D Extended Edition Feature Part 1
– Disc 3: The Appendices Part 7
– Disc 4: The Appendices Part”

Editorializing a bit: The Wal-Mart 2-disc DVD probably isn’t meant for TORn readers but it is a real pity that casual buyers will fork out money for that edition and never realize that for a relatively small amount more, a treasure trove of beyond-industry-standard content awaits. (A complete review coming soon.) The home video market isn’t what it used to be, but this is a landmark title that consumers I know, including even casual fans, expect to be of the same standard as the history making LOTR EE versions.  However it may serve some audiences perfectly and it may have been a way to manufacture and ship the DVDs early to impulse buyers.

By not flooding stores by Black Friday in the U.S., (an enormous retail day immediately following U.S. Thanksgiving) sales will be less than they could have been. On the other hand, many fans have echoed the same thought through social media and in our in boxes: If it takes longer to release the best possible version of film and extras, it is worth the wait. We will of course provide further information as it becomes available.

Check the gallery below to see the product specifics.

HobbitEE_1400x2100_US Physical (i.e.: Blu-ray 3D and DVD) copies of the Extended Edition of the Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey were supposed to go on sale in stores in the USA on November 5, with the UK follow on November 11.

But the journey from screen to store to the hands of fans has proved to be as challenging as Bilbo’s own adventure. Over the past couple of days, TORn has received numerous reports from perturbed fans via e-mail, Facebook and Twitter.

Fans report that the Extended Edition is unavailable at Target in all forms, difficult to find at Best Buy and Barnes & Noble (where you might grab a Blu-ray copy, but are unlikely to find the DVD), and that Amazon is temporarily out of stock of the DVD and shipments are being delayed by one to three days.

What’s going on? Well, we have reached out to Warner Bros. to find out what’s happening, and provide some firm answers. In the meantime, read our complete report on the issues that fans have been experiencing trying to get their hands on a copy of the EE — and a couple of things you need to be wary of lest you end up with a version that contains less than you expected! Continue reading “Trouble getting a physical copy of The Hobbit Extended Edition? You’re not alone.”

lotrgollumlifesizeblrg2As we march closer to the Holiday shopping season, we need ideas as to what we may want to buy our loved ones. Well, our friends at Weta Workshop in their most recent newsletter have given us several ideas on what from Middle-earth we can get.

Two new items were unvelied in this group with a huge yet cool looking Gollum 1:1 statue and some beautiful Elven Earrings for only $75.

If you’ve been waiting on some good deals on previously released items you can get Balin’s Mace for $150 (only 10 available for this price), Dwalin’s Axes $199.50 (Only 5 available at this price), free shipping on The Hobbit/The Lord of the Rings Art Prints, and The One Ring for $85. These deals are good while these limited supplies last or until November 17th whichever comes first.

You can get the full run down of all the fantastic items Weta has on special right now on their Christmas Specials Page.