{"id":83077,"date":"2013-11-23T07:04:26","date_gmt":"2013-11-23T12:04:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.theonering.net\/torwp\/?p=83077"},"modified":"2013-11-23T07:37:09","modified_gmt":"2013-11-23T12:37:09","slug":"there-and-then-what-the-dwarves-development-in-the-desolation-of-smaug","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.theonering.net\/torwp\/2013\/11\/23\/83077-there-and-then-what-the-dwarves-development-in-the-desolation-of-smaug\/","title":{"rendered":"There, and then what? The Dwarves\u2019 development in The Desolation of Smaug"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Event A flood of trailers, interviews and TV spots have raised all sorts of questions over exactly how events will pan out across The Desolation of Smaug. Here, Captain Salt takes a long hard look at the implications for character development among our beardy friends who are so keen to reclaim their heritage, and the lost treasures of Erebor.<\/p>\n

Needless to say, lots of speculation and lots of potential movie spoilers. If you’re avoiding these, look away now!<\/p>\n

\n

There, and then what? The Dwarves\u2019 development in The Desolation of Smaug (and into There and Back Again)<\/h3>\n

by Captain Salt<\/b><\/p>\n

When The Desolation of Smaug comes out next month it will greatly expand the cast of The Hobbit, just as The Two Towers did for the original trilogy in 2002. Yet despite an influx of Wood-elves, Lake-men, and so on, the core company at the center of the trilogy\u2019s narrative remains that of Thorin Oakenshield. While it remains to be seen just how the Dwarves will develop in films two and three, there have been sufficient hints (especially as of late), that can underpin speculation.<\/p>\n

It seems that Thorin\u2019s growing madness will be the thrust of the Dwarf drama in The Desolation of Smaug, with the once-and-future King falling to dragon-sickness just as Elrond had feared in the recent An Unexpected Journey Extended Edition. Balin\u2019s comment “I fear for you”, (seemingly aimed at Thorin, and possibly from the same scene as his stern remark: “His name is Bilbo.”), and the would-be King Under the Mountain\u2019s remark that his company will “burn together” would seem to confirm that Thorin is slipping into fanaticism as The Desolation of Smaug progresses (a deteriorating state which according to the recent Empire article is spurred on by the hallucinogenic spores on the air in Mirkwood Forest).<\/p>\n

\"15\" Balin, in particular, seems most concerned about this. But how will the others react? The company still has to trust Thorin enough to follow him into war as Richard Armitage has mentioned that the Dwarves emerge from Erebor wearing elaborate armor for the third film\u2019s Battle of the Five Armies:<\/p>\n

\n“It\u2019s bloody heavy!…But it\u2019s absolutely beautiful to look at. Every time they bring something new out everyone gasps. The armor that the dwarves emerge from the mountain wearing at the end of the film will be the armor of all armor.”\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Will there be a rift amongst the Dwarves, and if so, how will it be mended? And how does Dwalin, Thorin\u2019s lieutenant and ostensibly brother figure, react to his elder brother questioning Thorin\u2019s leadership? Both Balin and Thorin are Dwalin\u2019s blood, so with which one will he side?<\/p>\n

The Company split at Lake-town<\/h4>\n

Another pertinent question is, just how and why would Thorin leave his nephews, who are closer to being his sons, and heirs behind? Especially as it seems Kili is in danger of dying after taking an \u201corc wound\u201d that Bilbo notices in Bard\u2019s boat, a wound which Kili received during the barrel escape and may have been taken while protecting Thorin. Does Kili succumb here to the enemy\u2019s poison darts as Faramir does in the Return of the King novel?<\/p>\n

\"75\" Fili stays behind as well (confirmed by Dean O\u2019Gorman in a recent article), as does the company\u2019s \u201capothecary\u201d, Oin. As John Callen says in the first of WETA\u2019s guides to An Unexpected Journey:<\/p>\n

\n“Oin’s purpose and indeed his priorities become evident when we get deeper into the story and he has to make a choice between the Quest and his calling. It affirms his role in the group as a healer, and is done in a way that isn’t soppy, but minutes later he’s back in the fray and giving it all he’s got.”\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Additionally, it seems that Bofur stays behind as well. Of course, these four will at some time make their way up Erebor to rejoin the rest of the company, something hinted at in a feature on Dean O\u2019Gorman:<\/p>\n

\n\u201c[Dean] O\u2019Gorman and fellow dwarf actors James Nesbitt, John Callen and Aidan Turner were dropped off on a mountain in New Zealand\u2019s South Island. The four actors, in full costume, made their way up a hill while second-unit director Andy Serkis filmed them from a circling helicopter. It was then, O\u2019Gorman said, that the actors began humming the theme from \u2018The Lord of the Rings\u2019 films.\u201d\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

So, it seems that Kili, Fili, Oin, and Bofur stay behind in Lake-town after Kili is injured while the others press on. But what would drive Bofur to allow Bifur and Bombur to continue on without him? And why would Gloin leave Oin behind (especially as Peter Hambleton in the An Unexpected Journey Extended Edition features stresses that Gloin realizes his brother\u2019s importance as the company\u2019s soothsayer and strives to protect him)? <\/p>\n

Thorin, Balin, Dwalin, Gloin, Dori, Nori, Ori, Bifer and Bombur are accounted for in footage from the end of The Desolation of Smaug, so they must continue on with Thorin. <\/p>\n

\"thdos-trailer02-095\" Does leaving the injured Kili behind fuel the doubts of the other dwarves — and particularly those of Balin? At this point, Thorin\u2019s drive and fixation on reaching the mountain might be impairing his judgement and sense of compassion — something hinted at in An Unexpected Journey. Richard Armitage does specify that Kili is \u201cheroic\u201d and he and Aidan Turner share at least one emotional scene in later in the story. Is this where they\u2019re separated, or perhaps when they\u2019re reunited? And do Kili, and in particular Fili, who according to O’Gorman, “keenly feels Thorin’s expectations”, side with Thorin or Balin as tensions rise between them?<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Who do you trust?<\/h4>\n

\"thdos-trailer02-015\" It’s still probably not enough to permanently divide the Company; witness Gloin\u2019s argument with Thorin halting simply at the sight of The Lonely Mountain before the band of heroes in the recently-debuted footage. All the Company have an inherent devotion to their cause which seems to overwhelm personal animosity. Their trust in Thorin\u2019s ambition seems to continually out-weigh other concerns.<\/p>\n

Certainly, the issue of trust is one which would seem to play into the Dwarves\u2019 journey. Particularly for the second film: the other Dwarves’ growing trust in Bilbo (who must maintain and nurture this faith from the company though increasingly dangerous circumstances); trust of Thorin (how and will this be shaken?); and distrust of pretty much everyone else, especially Thranduil and Bard (the former seems appropriate, but the later… would the story not have progressed in a different direction had Thorin and the Dwarves fostered allies rather than enemies?)<\/p>\n

Just as the Dwarves\u2019 trust in Bilbo places both support and great burden on him, their antagonistic attitude toward outsiders lead to events which ultimately result in a conflict-ridden ending for the story. <\/p>\n

Other recent comments would lead one to believe not only that there is in-fact some relationship between Kili and Tauriel as has long been rumored; Evangeline Lilly specified that the dwarf actors she most worked with were Turner, O\u2019Gorman, Callen and Nesbitt, hinting that she might well spend time amongst these four in Lake-town. In particular, Lilly specified that she had “a lot of amazing” scenes with Turner. It also seems that Lilly heals Kili’s orc-wound: as recently mentioned, she shot a “powerful healing ceremony with… dwarves around her”.<\/p>\n

\"Tauriel Does what may be Kili\u2019s admiration for\/crush on Tauriel provide more for a divide with his uncle? And if the Dwarves remain in Lake-town, are they still there when Smaug attacks? If so, one imagines they\u2019ll be involved in the action in some capacity, perhaps simply trying to survive, or perhaps ushering Bard\u2019s children (Bain, Tilda and Sigrid), to safety? <\/p>\n

Do the Dwarves in Lake-town believe that the others have been killed when they notice fire burning on the mountain (as the second film\u2019s end credits song “I See Fire” would suggest)? Or does Thorin\u2019s company believe that the four in Lake-town have been killed when Smaug attacks the settlement? If Thorin thinks his heirs have perished, this may fuel his madness and drive to secure the Arkenstone and his kingship.<\/p>\n

Additionally, how will Kili feel about Tauriel when his uncle\u2019s domain is besieged by Wood-elves? And does Billy Connolly\u2019s comment that he had \u201celves to kill\u201d during the Battle of Five Armies suggest that things progress further than in the novel, and blood is shed amongst the Free Peoples? Or was Connolly simply being facetious?<\/p>\n

\"thdos-trailer02-090\" And a final question. How will Thorin\u2019s madness manifest in The Desolation of Smaug without becoming full-blown dementia (culminating in his assailing Bilbo, if that scenes remains, in There and Back Again)? With Thorin slipping into \u201cthreatening\u201d mode in The Desolation of Smaug’s last act, that doesn\u2019t seem to leave Armitage much room for Thorin to grow increasingly obsessed.<\/p>\n

Obviously, we have more questions than answers right now. But many of the latter will be revealed in a few week’s time. <\/p>\n

Captain Salt has been a Tolkien fan since childhood when he played Gloin in a stage production of The Hobbit though as there were only about eight dwarves, he was given other dwarves\u2019 dialogue as well, resulting in a rather strange Gloin who at times talked to himself in a Gollum-ish manner. He\u2019s also volunteered through the years at other film sites and has written for (minor) entertainment publications.<\/p>\n

The views presented in this article are his own and don\u2019t necessarily represent TheOneRing.net or other staff. <\/b><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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