Last night Weta Workshop released two more prop replica items from The Hobbit Trilogy. The first is an item I have personally been looking forward to getting since the films were announced. The escape from Thranduil’s halls is one of the best parts of the book and this item plays a pivotal role in that escape. Fans can now own their own replica of The Mirkwood Gaol Key that Bilbo uses to rescue the Dwarves. As we all know the Dwarves were given seven rings of power and one of these rings went to Thoror who was the King of the Longbeards. Thanks to the craftsmen at Weta you can now bring home this ring of power. Collectors can snag The Mirkwood Gaol Key for $29.99 and Thror’s Ring of Power for $174.99
Category: Shop
Welcome to this months “Getting to know you” Q&A, this month we’re talking to talented Tolkien artist, Jerry VanderStelt.
As excitement for the release of The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug builds, there are all kinds of goodies coming out to go along with the movie, including some fabulous movie tie in books, as well as some new editions of The Hobbit itself. Our good friends at Harper Collins, publishers for all things Tolkien in Europe, have given us some amazing sets of NINE (well, actually 12, as one is a box set of four!) books to give away to four lucky readers! The winners will receive:
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug Movie Storybook
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug Official Movie Guide
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug Ultimate Sticker Book
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug Visual Companion
A box set of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings paperback editions with movie tie in covers
Pocket Hobbit – a mini, hardback edition of the book!
A new paperback edition of The Hobbit with Desolation of Smaug movie tie in cover
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug Chronicles – Art and Design from WETA
All of these books could be yours! And because we love our readers everywhere, this competition is open worldwide. All you have to do to win, wherever you are in the world, is answer one simple question and complete the form below. The competition runs until the opening of the movie, on December 13th; after which we’ll pick four winners at random, from all the correct entries.
Continue reading “Harper Collins competition – win a complete set of new Hobbit publications”
The 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)
- The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey Extended Edition with Limited Edition Amazon Exclusive Bilbo/Gollum Statue (Blu-ray 3D + Blu-ray + UltraViolet)
- One Ring – Tungsten – Gold plated (with or without script) Weta Workshop
- Tauriel Necklace (Weta and Noble)
- King Thranduil Statue
- The Key to Erebor Weta Workshop
- Mini-sword letter openers from Noble – Narsil, LOTR Sting, The Hobbit Sword Set, Thranduil’s Sword, Tauriel’s Dagger, Morgul Dagger
- Barrel-riders Weta Workshop – Bilbo Baggins & Bombur the Dwarf
- Jerry Vanderstelt’s Middle-earth prints
- Sauron Premium Format
- Ringwraith on Steed Premium Format
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TORn’s good friend and artist extraordinaire Donato Giancola, who was part of TORn’s art show in Los Angeles last February, has recently completed a new masterpiece: a commissioned painting showing a scene from The Silmarillion, when Huor and his brother Hurin are rescued by eagles. The work is huge – roughly 9 foot by 6 foot! – and perfectly showcases Giancola’s skill in capturing landscape and living beings alike. (The image of Donato himself sitting in front of the painting gives you an idea of the scale of the piece!) The majestic scenery is breathtaking, with beautiful play of light and shadow over the mountains and the valley floor. The patches of glimmering snow on the peaks in the foreground of the picture are mirrored in the white towers of Gondolin,which gleam ‘like … spike[s] of pearl and silver’.
You can read about Giancola’s inspiration for his work – from artists in the Hudson River School of landscape painters, for example – at his website, here. You can also see more of his incredible Tolkien paintings in his book, Middle-earth: Visions of a Modern Myth. Tolkien isn’t the only writer who inspires Giancola; readers who are fans of George R R Martin’s Song of Ice and Fire can look forward to a calendar in 2014, for which Giancola will create 12 new paintings inspired by that world.
Meanwhile, enjoy Huor and Hurin Approaching Gondolin.
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.
