GANDALF! First Time Watching *The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002) Extended Edition - Part 1 

Thank you for 10k homies of the Dork Side family! You can catch part 2 of two towers, here: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-Zs2YvSsU7bY.html

Pippin does a lot of dumb shit, but in his defence he is still considered a child in Hobbit years 😛

“A hobbit laid here” “How do you know??” Aragorn being a Rangers of the North, tracking’s like breathing 😉.

Me searching for the obligatory “Aragorn broke his actual toe when he kicked the helmet” comment that’s on every single reaction to this movie. …. 😂 Edit: welp guess I’m “the guy who says it first” this time … oh the humanities .

That line from Treebeard that he can't even remember what an entwife looked like always makes me so sad.

Frodo did ask Gollum to 'lead them to the Black Gate'. In the book he never really says they are trying to get into Mordor. So Gollum didn't have a reason to tell them about an alternate way in, until he is faced with them trying to enter through the Black Gate.

You’re right. The elven rope is truly magical and came undone when it fulfilled its purpose there.

Actually Aragorn wasn’t letting out a yell of rage, he actually…..wait hold on let me check the comments. Oh, I see I’m not needed here

RIP Bernard Hill. May your spirit find it's way to the halls of your fathers.

Fun fact for this movie straight from New Zealand: Peter Jackson is well known for having an eye for detail. In the book, the hobbits lay under and harvest plum trees in the Shire and staying true to the book - Peter wanted plum trees...but when he saw a plum tree, he realized that the fruit from the tree would be too high for a hobbit to reach. So he had to improvise! Instead, he had his prop department bring in apple trees (apples removed) and manually 'add' plums.

At 24:30, the Dead Marshes were the site of the battle seen in the Prologue to FOTR. In the book, Gollum explains, "There was a great battle long ago, yes, so they told him when Smeagol was young, when I was young before the Precious came...They fought for days and months at the Black Gates. But the Marshes have grown since then, swallowed up the graves; always creeping, creeping." But that was an age and more ago," said Sam. "The Dead can't be really there! Is it some devilry hatched in the Dark Land?" "Who knows? Smeagol doesn't know," answered Gollum. "You cannot reach them, you cannot touch them. We tried once, precious. I tried once, but you cannot reach them. Only shapes to see, perhaps, not to touch..." Sam looked darkly at him and shuddered again, thinking that he guessed why Gollum had tried to touch them.

The medicine the pour down Merrys throat was cola flavoured soda stream syrup... and when they smell man flesh its the riders of rohan they smell which are much closer than aragorns group at that stage.

These movies all have a title-drop in them at some point. And they're all handled really well, too, and don't feel "forced" or anything, even in the SLIGHTEST bit. They just... work.

I still remember this tv sketch from dead ringers back when the movies came out that made fun of the whole gandalf returning thing: "You may have killed gandalf the grey but now i'm gandalf the white" "Ohh, so what happens if i kill you again!" - Kills him but he just reappears in a new cloak - "I just keep coming back. You may have gandalf the white, but now i'm gandalf the tartan!" "This is ridiculous, you cant stop being dead just because you're a slightly different colour" "Wanna bet, you cant win saruman, i've got a whole dulux colour chart at my disposal" XD

I love seeing people get excited over Karl Urban over all these years! When we saw the movie my entire family was going "look, it's Cupid!" 😂 He's been in so much great stuff over the years, but he'll always be Cupid from Xena to me.

It's funny how everyone recognizes Karl Urban but nobody recognizes the voice of Chucky lol (It's Brad Dourif "Grima" for those who want to know)

It’s kind of funny how you say that they clarified without giving spoilers when it literally is a spoiler that Gandalf wasn’t actually dead 😅

At 15:28 you say, "I don't know why it's so epic--like just the fact they're actually running through this landscape is so good." At this point Legolas has a broken rib from falling off a horse, Aragorn has a broken toe from kicking a helmet, and Gimli (John Rhys-Davies' stunt double) has a dislocated knee. True professionals, all. Actually, the camera work is excellent, but Tolkien's Rohan looks quite different from the movie. Rohan is a land of rolling grasslands; there's no place in New Zealand like Rohan, and the tall-grass prairies of Illinois or the Ukraine have all been turned into agricultural fields. In the book, it was hard for the Three Dudes to keep up with the Orcs, as they were following the trail and had to stop at night for fear of missing the track in the darkness. In spite of Gimli's words, they had lembas to eat, just like Frodo and Sam.

"Aragorn letting out a fit of rage!" Actually, Viggo Mortensen broke his toe on the helmet. But it added to it being the sound of anguish! "We can't eats hobbit food!" "What can you eat?" Because of Smeagol's corruption by the ring, he can't live off normal foods, mainly subsisting on things like raw fish, animals and bugs. Gandalf banishing Saruman is one of the most badass scenes.

10:57 Saruman’s villainous monologue is a *major reason* why I love The Two Towers so much! An already great character elevated by Christopher Lee 😈🔮🍿🏰

Treebeard is possibly the oldest living thing in middle earth. He is older than Galadriel who is older than the sun and moon themselves. He is as old as the very first elves, who were born by lake cuivenen

In the books the pursuit of the Uruk Hai by the 3 companions, Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli, is legendary. A feat of remarkable endurance and will.

“Don’t stroke it Frodo!” 😂😂😂

I love that you released both parts on the same day. Great move! Entertaining as always

The journey to throw the One Ring into Mount Doom certainly proved dangerous, yet the behind-the-scenes footage for The Lord of the Rings shows the filming came with its own dangers as well. Numerous cast members suffered painful cuts and broken bones while filming across New Zealand, but their attitude to laugh it off and keep going shows everyone's dedication to the films. Viggo Mortenson (Aragorn) broken toes and tooth, Orlando Bloom (Legolas) broken ribs, John Rhys-Davies (Gimli) severe skin irritatation causing swollen eyes and allergic reaction, Sean Astin (Sam) stepped on a shard of glass in thd river scene and had to be taken to the hospital to stop the bleeding, Viggo almost died when caught in a current between a cliff and got submerged underwater for a lengthy period of time, causing panic amongst the crew, Brett Beattie, who served as John Rhys-Davies' stand-in, dislocated his knee. Viggo almost hit by a real knife instead of a prop in the fight scene in the forest (if he hadn't swatted it away with his sword he could have been badly injured. They were a bunch of troopers though because they never stopped filming.

I always understood the fight between Gandalf and the Balrog as a personal thing. Since both are from the same kind, in origin at least.

8:39 in this part of the book, they took this disgusting liquid and this black paste out of a little leather satchel. They rubbed it on merry’s forehead wound that had knocked him out and split the skin. When they used this weird o4c medicine mixture over his head it almost instantly healed. But it left this ugly mangled scar over his eye. This showed that the orcs were twisted and deranged forms of elves, even their medicine was very similar to the orcish medicine

The Ring Wraiths use winged creatures called "fell beasts". They are no dragons. The last dragon alive was Smaug and he was killed some 70 years earlier (watch "The Hobbit" for that story 😉). There are no dragons left in Middle Earth.

At 41:42, the Elvish name Fangorn is the same as the Westron name Treebeard: "Fang-" = beard, "-orn" = tree, so Treebeard = beard (of) tree. Treebeard is the chief of the Ents, and the oldest living creature in Middle-earth. Westron is the language spoken by the Men of the West of Middle-earth; Tolkien translates it as Modern English.

I remind you that the film was shot in 2001. I remember how my mother said that she was going to see this film with her brother and I was unlikely to like it, I was 11 and I had not read this work. Oh, how wrong she was, it all looked unreal. It was as if I was one of those who walked with them.

What LOTR quotes do you all use in everyday life? I say (or think) "Up up up up up the stairs we gooooo!" pretty much every time I am face with a flight. "Po-ta-toes," "It's a dangerous business going out your door," "You shall not pass!" and "The way is shut. It was made by those who are ____(We fill in the blank with an obstacle like a cat or toddler) and the _________keep it" are all pretty common in my home too.

Gandalf and the Balrog are the same Being - called Maiar

According to the books, I do believe the battle between Gandalf and the Balrog took ten days.

When you realize the actor of worm tongue voices Chucky in Childs Play.

20:28 Aragorn's life as a ranger taught him a lot of useful things, it seems.

Airagorn broke his foot when he kicked the helmet for real

When the movies came out it made me want to reread the books. I was around 21~ years old when the movies came out

Gandalf actually is reading people to filth 😂

Something about the music always makes me feel like I’m actually back in the cinema

@2:20 Gandalf and the Balrog Are Both Maiar. They are equally matched. This is why Gandalf wasn’t sure whether he would win the battle.

The shit the Uruk-hai force-fed Merry was essentially liquid meth. The battle between Gandalf and the balrog lasted for 10 days. Treebeard is the oldest living creature in Middle-earth, his real name Fangorn (hence Fangorn Forest).

Same actor, John Rhyes-Davies, played Gimli and Treebeard. He was also in the first two Indiana Jones movies. He's actually a very large man

Treebeard is based on CS Lewis, tolkiens friend, who could be heard walking down the the hallway at Oxford hrooming and hawing.

So, a fun tidbit; Treebeard and Gimli are played by the same guy.

Awesome. Day after my surgery there is finally something good to watch 🙂

4:45 Yeah. Remember a Hobbit's standards: Pippin ate four whole slices of those. Honestly, I wonder what they USUALLY eat to keep them filled up on normal occasions.

Slight lore things to take into account that I think may make some things about Gandalf a little more clear. Gandalf is an angelic being on par with Sauron at least in terms of species but he isn’t throwing out super spells like a lot of reactors want to see. In the books the Valar/Mair (gods/angels) decided that, while they could defeat Sauron if they did to go to middle earth to confront him, the resulting battle between angels would be cataclysmic for the people of middle earth. So they compromised by garbing a few Mair in a “raiment of mortal flesh” and sent them off to middle earth with their power heavily suppressed for the purpose of guiding it’s people against Sauron themselves. Also as more of a fun fact to think on about Gandalf’s duel with the Balrog, in the book when Gandalf is asked about what he experienced down in that pit they fell too he says that he saw creatures in the deep parts of the mountain. Nameless things that he refused to darken the light of day by uttering their descriptions. So moral of the story, don’t go digging around in the earth unless you’re looking to fight some Cthulhu creatures

i actually love your reactions and I wish you everything best in this world, friend.

Promises of getting misty-eyed?! I _knew_ I was going to like these reaction videos!

Great video! When you finish the trilogy, I hope you'll react to "fellowship of the cast". It's a really wholesome behind the scenes which is a great watch.

Amazing editing Cole! Both with your videos and with your thumbnails. Always such a pleasure to watch! ❤

"They are taking the hobbits to isengard"

You got that right in the beginning: these are indeed the avengers of Middle-Earth, a thing that many first time reactors miss when they wreak havoc on the Uruk hai and they assume it's because the Uruks are just weak (in the first film). These are some of the most hardened and powerful people of Middle-Earth at the time. This also plays a part in the next paragraph You asked why the trio of the "three hunters" running in the wilderness is so epic. I think that, apart from just the cinematic aspect, it's also a nod to the books by the director, as the hunt they engaged in and the distance they covered was an epic feat on its own in the books. They covered 135 miles in 4 days, in an effort to save their friends. Sauron feared Aragorn, not only because his ancestors defeated him, but because he was also the only one who could become King and possibly unite all mankind against him.

BTW, when Vigo (Aragorn) kicked the helmet and screamed? Yea he broke his toe on that exact take, and that's how he got such damn good yell and drama out of it. With Legolas (Orlando) suffering from a cracked rib, and Gimly's stunt actor having something wrong I forget what... all 3 of them then were tasked with running across the country side of New Zealand. So those looong tracking shots of them running, all 3 were injured. Real Troopers those guys.

Love your reactions to these movies. Bit of trivia about the Lembas bread. Only Elvish queens give it put, and it’s very rare for them to give it to non-Elves. If people eat it with other food, it tastes good, but doesn’t have near the potency as it does when it’s the only food. Legolas mentioned it’s physical property of a small amount filling someone up. There’s also a spiritual component to it: it has a slight ability to help the eater hold off the darker emotions like fear and despair.

Yes let's go another one

19:41 You joke, but, yes, that was exactly it: the horses are a culturally appropriate response to accidentally killing Merry and Pippin. Rohan culture was heavily based on Anglo-Saxon culture (Tolkien was a professor of Anglo-Saxon) plus a bit of Vikings - in the film the team occasionally uses actual Anglo-Saxon language as a placeholder for Rohirric. In Anglo-Saxon culture, if you killed someone you paid a blood price, weregild, as an apology. Trained warhorses from Rohan are very valuable. 31:06 Shadowfax is a flesh and blood horse, but his ancestor was another incarnated Maia (incarnated minor angel) - Felarof, the "horse" ridden by the first king of Rohan. Felarof's equine descendents can understand human speech and are very picky about who rides them.

This came out at the same time as Chamber Of Secrets. Dobby and Gollum came out at the same time. And for sure Gollum was better even for me as a Harry Potter megafan.

THANK YOU SO MUCH!! I’ve been looking forward to your reaction on the 2 remaining movies!

Many reasons to go for the books, one is the passage of time that moves so differently in LOTR by Tolkien. Naturally, as 3 massive volumes in just 3 films (and originally they just wanted one film!?). Second are the changes made from the novels. Third is the philosophy, world-building, history and themes. Ideology, myths, the whole treatment of the canon. Btw., no way anyone rides a dragon. I think. Those 'winged wraiths', Nazgul-birds, are the teeny, tiny version of dragons, as Merri might say. Sauron found those age-old creatures, fell-beasts in their hide-out and fed them foul meats to tame them, and after the wraiths lost their black steeds in the river, gave them these to travel with.

Ooh I was waiting for this. And happy birthday to you!

Hi Cole! I hope you're doing well. I'm late commenting (but not watching) due to things being hectic, but wanted you to know I've never clicked on anything so fast when you uploaded this! Just a few clarifications for things you mentioned, as always.. It's 100% a magical rope! You mentioned wondering what the end goal was for Sauron and that he'd just be ruling a bunch of dead people. He'd be fine with that. Sauron is a demigod/archangel type like Gandalf.. and he wasn't always necessarily evil, but his obsession is and always has been absolute order and he strives for it. He wants everything to be just the way he wants it. Less people would make that wish much easier to fulfil. He'd enslave any that lived to torture them and do his bidding. Viggo really broke his toe when he kicked that helmet. That scream of ‘rage’ was real. Lmao So, the bodies in the swamps; those are mostly Legolas’ people (Sindar/Silvan/Woodland elves). The huge battle against Sauron you saw at the start of the first movie is when they died. Instead of their souls returning to the Undying Lands, Sauron's dark necromancy trapped them there and he uses them as guard dogs of sorts. If anyone tries sneaking up on Mordor that way, the lights enchant them and lead them to their deaths. “Don't stroke it!” - THAT'S WHAT SHE SAID! Haha Gandalf fought the Balrog for 2 days and 2 nights. Afterwards, his physical body was dead for around 20 days, I believe. The gods sent him back as the white to finish his mission. The eagle (Gwahir) rescued him from the mountain and took him to Lothlorien (where Lady Galadriel is) two days after the fellowship themselves had left. The cloaks are woven by the Elves and are magical. “May they shield you from unfriendly eyes.” Treebeard is about as old as the earth itself. His memory isn't the greatest after all that time! Theory has it that the entwives preferred the grasslands and shrubs to the forest and that they all died when Sauron scorched it. The area north of Mordor all the way to Lothlorien is called the “Brown Lands” because of this. Continued in part 2!

Been waiting for your reaction man!!!

25:53 That’s good advice for us all.

It was a magic elvish rope. I think in the book it says “the sharp tugs” will undo the knot

And the video I’ve all been waiting for 🙌

Why didn't I see this while I was working? Would have made my day so much better. I get to end it on a good note at least.

"What we need is a few good taters." "What's taters, precious? What's taters, eh?" "PO-TAY-TOES! Boil 'em, mash 'em, stick 'em in a stew... Lovely big golden chips with a nice piece of fried fish." Fun Fact: Aragorn (Viggo Mortensen) is eighty-seven years old. He is a descendant of the Numenoreans, or a Dunedain, gifted with a long life of around 250 years. He is human, but like a different race of human. We meet another, dark and twisted Numenorean right before Aragorn lobes his head right off. Nine Hours Very Old Fact: Bernard Hill would spend up to nine hours in make-up to become the aged Theoden. He wore contact lenses to give his eyes the milky look that very old people can have, but it wasn't sufficiently successful, so his eyes were later tinkered with digitally. Building Gollum Fact: Andy Serkis said he based Gollum's desperation and cravings on the withdrawals of heroin addicts. Andy Serkis said that he based Gollum's voice on the sound of a cat coughing up a hairball. Andy Serkis's hobby of rock-climbing came in very handy for his mainly on-all-fours performance as Gollum.

29:47 Gandalf's memory was still syncing. Download wasn't finished yet lol

Not destiny. In Tolkiens theology its Eru Illuvatar, the One Father, and the Unseen Hand. "And thats an encouraging thought."

Yay! Some great observations here. Not that it’s a big deal, but I like what you notice about the orcs. Would be fun to play one, apart from the makeup. I feel bad for them lol. Bad work environment. Ugly. Unappreciated. XD Eomer 🤝 Treebeard (thinking hobbits are indistinguishable from orcs) You also noticed Gollum’s aversion to Elvish stuff. I might be misremembering, but I think having the ring for so long has made all that painful to him.

Been waiting for this brother!

Steve here checking in. Looking forward to watching your reaction after work in the next 2 hours. From your thumbnail picture its gonna be good.

Welcome back man. - According to Tolkien, Elves could even dream while moving about, "blending living night & deep dream." When Aragorn, Gimli & Legolas are running across the Plains of Rohan pursuing the orcs who captured Merry and Pippin, Legolas never sleeps, even stands watch while his wiped out Dwarf & Human companions are literally tuckered out and even while the other two are asleep. That & out of the entire journey Legolas was both Stoic & ethereal but the one whose heart remained the lightest and kept the fellowship afloat in so many ways ❤. So it was weird how the film gave it all to Gimli! 😂❤️ They have a debate after finding the brooch dropped by Pippin..... continue running through the night (& possibly miss other important signs in the dark), or rest overnight (and let the Uruks get further away from them). In the end, they choose to rest. This also applies to what I explained in earlier comments regarding how Legolas was able to walk ontop of the snow!

Treebeard is actually the oldest sentient being in Middle Earth

the dreaded "does the balrog have wings?" question!!! 😅

Elven cloaks Elven rope Elven bread 🌿🌿🌿

At one point the Balrogs could not fly. It is entirely possible that Tolkien later changed his mind about this, but the earlier situation seems clear. These earlier Balrogs might still have had wings, though as they could not fly and there are no contemporary texts describing them with such it seems unlikely.

I see you're enjoying the Lord of the Rings

That was 100% a spoiler man, I thought Gandalf had died in my first watch

Telling you that Gandalf will be back is a major spoiler

To help with Karl Urban’s character’s name, it’s Éomer, pronounced (Ay-oh-meer).

Let’s gooooo

You mentioning that they should be grateful for the Lembas Bread is an insight into Tolkien's beliefs. Tolkien was a devout Catholic; the Lembas Bread is drawn from his belief in the Holy Eucharist...food for the spiritual journey of Catholics.

Yesssss! 🤩🧙🏻‍♂️🧝🏻‍♂️⚔️🏔️

Ahahahahahahahahaha!!! (about the Balrog) "It's got wings, can't it fly?!" You don't even know man, but you just stumbled into a contentious fight among LotR fans since WAY before the movies existed. See Dan Olson (Folding Ideas)'s video about the Ralph Bakshi LotR movie for further context, but TL;DR: Balrogs can have wings if you want them to have wings. Prob can't fly though.

Epic film ⭐️ Epic T-Shirt ⭐️ Hope your bottom held up better this time 🍑 lol xx 💋

Cinco terribles días había durado la "Batalla de la Cima".

Another bit of useless trivia: the language of Rohan is Old English.

DID YOU KNOW??….

Part 1 of Treebeard(Fangorn) - In the Silmarillion, at the end of the chapter "Of Aule & Yavanna", Manwë states, "But in the forests shall walk the Shepherds of the Trees." This is before the chapter, 'Of the Coming of the Elves'. So, since Treebeard is one of the first three, he is beyond cool. And he is around before the elves arrive in Valinor. However, do not be deceived! The elves taught the Ents speech, even though they were around before. It is often mistaken that ents are trees or were once trees, when they are in fact are a sort of 4th children of Îlluvatar (AllFather) a creation of the Vala named Yavannah Treebeard refers to the elves "started it, teaching the trees to talk" or some such thing. He also refers to the elves curing the ent's "dumbness". People assume the two events are one and the same, when they are not. Obviously, Tolkien meant to be vague and allow the reader to decide what they looked like and just how ent-like huorns could become and how tree-like ents could become. But it is clear they are in the long lists of animals alongside men and harts and bears, etc., not plants. - - Gandalf tells Thèoden that when he meets Treebeard he will be meeting the oldest thing that ever walked. Which is another indication that the ents were around, shepherding the trees, before the elves got to Middle-earth. Tolkien meant to be vague. After all, Celeborn and Galadriel hail Treebeard as "Eldest" when they meet him in LOTR. However, when Treebeard is reciting the poem of the different being, he calls the elves the "eldest of all".

How can you have a channel called the Dork Side and not have watched The Lord of the Rings?

We're all excited for the LOTR movie that's coming this year!

The best line in this whole movie was "Take you're a$$ back to bed, you grumpy a$$ tree!"

👌🙏❣

Galadriel is the one who pleaded the WindLord Gwaihir, one of the eagle formed Maiar), to save Gandalf by going to the top of Durin’s Tower at Zirakzigil. He was recouperated by her own hand and skills. Bringing back a god of sorts is quite a feat which fits her prowess in several fields as she was known to have learned from all of the Valar, all that there was left to teach by each of them. The staff was given to him by Galadriel in Lothlórien and enhanced his powers upon his return. His old brown staff was a gift from Radagast (another wizard of the Istari Order after he escaped from Saruman’s current abode in Orthanc, hand carved from an old branch. The white staff was a gift from Galadriel, made by elven smiths from Mallorn wood. (Mallanornë by the elves. Interestingly looks similar to the elvish word for Friend, Mellon. But that’s just me being inquisitive.) That new staff before he sacrificed it to do a spell of sorts against the Balrog in Khazad-Dûm. That one was called Opening Flower. (His portrayal in The Hobbit movies are a little bit funny but it slightly sort of suits the aspect of that book which was more whimsical so I guess they wanted to make him act much different. Granted Radagast sort of strayed from the path but his main mission was to guard and protect nature itself on behalf of Yavannah. The Valar that chose him as her champion to head into middle earth with the other 4 istari. The white staff was most likely named something along the lines of Marta Nieninquë (Fated WhiteTearSnowflower), or Ninquelotë which is “White/snow Flower”. Or Ninquë Merillë “White Rose”. (Derivatives of Merillë is also Feast and Festive, think of his fireworks for example. Single rose is Meril or like single flower is Elloth. Another Elvish flower term is “ninglor” noun for golden water-flower, gladden. But since Mithrandir is his name by the elves for grey wanderer I wanted to add Mithril to the name of his new staff as it contains similarity to his elvish name so “Mithrillottë” meaning “Flower Of TrueSilver” Or maybe due to the snowy mountain he died upon, the new staff name could be “Olórin olea Ollosë” meaning “The Dream/Vision that bloomed and flourishes upon the Fallen Snow” by how it’s implied. Olórin is Gandalf’s real angelic name so it is basically describing how the dream of hope that rekindled itself in the harshest of conditions. Like a resilient type of flower, Ollosë is the fallen snow. Olea is the action of plants specifically growing & living. Another elvish flower name I love is for Daisy “Eirien”. Lothlórien itself means “DreamFlower”. Galadriel’s realm. ❤️ - (Elvish had grown ALOT over the ages. Even some forms of elvish are even more archaic even for other elves who at times may experience a little bit of difficulty understanding or simply noting one’s accent and speed of which one talks internally.

23:28 Nothing you haven't scene if you've ever scene Rugrats.

I know there were several hints in the books that there may be Ents/Entwives in the Old Forest; Sam's cousin said he saw what looked like an Elm tree walking, & a few characters mention the similarities between Fangorn & the Old Forest. The Old Forest seems to be comprised of Huorn type trees. Is there any references in Tolkien's other work that would refer to the Entwives being in the Old Forest? Its nice to be able to imagine that the Entwives live close to the Shire, but wasn't sure if there was proof.. ❤️❤️❤️❤️ Tolkien writes in two of his letters that he does not believe the Ent Wives survived a ‘scorched earth' policy in the war against Sauron that ended the Second Age. There is a conversation between Sam & Ted Sandyman in the Green Dragon Inn in Chapter 2 of FOTR that discusses sightings of moving trees in the northern part of the Shire. Some have concluded this means Tolkien intended for Ent Wives to survive & be in the Shire. But there's not enough evidence to draw any conclusion. The fact is this part of LOT was written when it was still meant to be a children's book, a sequal to The Hobbit. Tolkien had also written that part before he developed Ents. I suggest reading the entry in its entirety, it should cover everything pretty well. Sam's cousin said he saw what looked like an Elm tree walking This is the best evidence. And Fangorn (Treebeard) is super interested when Merry and Pippin describe The Shire. He asks them if they've seen Entwives there (saying that they would like such a country), and when they depart he begs them to send news should they see any. In a nutshell, it seems likely that there may be Entwives in the forests of The Shire. I certainly like to think so, though there's no further mention of them According to Sam, Hal saw a "Tree-man" "bigger than a tree"; he also says that he was "as big as an elm tree, and walking - walking seven yards to a stride, if it was an inch." An adult elm tree can grow well beyond 100 feet in size. For comparison, Treebeard is describes as being "at least fourteen foot high". The length of his stride isn't given, but l've seen speculations between four and eight feet. Granted, other Ents could be bigger than him, and we don't know whether the Ent-wives were bigger than the male Ents; but unless they were almost ten times as big as their male counterparts, I don't think what Hal saw is likely to have been an Ent. To an uneducated, working class hobbit who is probably likely to exaggerate in pub story time, its possible that may have taken an Ent for a huge tree. much more possible than believing he lied, especially considering the hobbit didn't even know any such creature as a walking tree existed. Sure, but if we concede that the details are unreliable, then all we're left with is the second-hand, probably exaggerated story of a hobbit known for "always saying he's seen things". And if Hal's fantasy was lively enough to turn a Treebeard-sized Ent into a towering, 100-foot giant, it might as well have turned a tree and some shifting shadows into one. I'm not saying it's impossible, don't get me wrong. just think that the source of the rumor, combined with the fact that the details don't even fit very well, makes it rather unlikely to me. The evidence is sparse at best. 1 guess I just have irrational hope that the Entwives exist somewhere & in canon, that's the only likely place. Also, and this is super oblique... Samwise carries Galadriel's box of seeds back to The Shire. Remember, she read many hearts, and who knows what seeds and nuts may have been in that box. I’m by far not the only one who hopes beyond hope that the Entwives may still live somewhere. The Ents' story is quite a sad one if they don't. I personally take heart in Treebeard's words, and the Elvish song he recites. He says: We believe that we may meet again in a time to come, and perhaps we shall find somewhere a land where we can live together and both be content. But it is foreboded that that will only be when we have both lost all that we now have. And the Elves made a song of it that ends with the lines: Together we will take the road that leads into the West, And far away will find a land where both our hearts may rest. Maybe, just maybe, by whatever "road beneath the bitter rain" some Ents and Entwives found their way into the West. just don't think it very likely that Hal saw one in the North Moors. Also, and I hope you don't mind me mentioning it, but there was only one seed (& some earth) in Sam's box suddenly became the salt box in the movie) & that grew into a Mallorn tree. It replaced the party tree I believe. The Ents also are not trees, and I doubt they would have grown from seeds. Old Man Willow I think was a hourn, a really old tree that grows "entish" with age. The ents used to herd the horns like livestock, but without an ent to care for it in the old forest, It became violent and restless. (That last bit about the reason for its violence is a bit of my own head canon) ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️ There's always the fun thought that Yavanna called them to Valinor to avoid their imminent fates when men/sauron took over, and the males were left behind to fight. I mean, Thave O evidence, but as far as head canon goes it makes me feel better than "they all died" I would like to think the Entwives survived but I believe they went to what in the third age was called the brown lands and built their gardens there. I think that the Hurons in The Old Forest (very close to the shire) somehow survived from the first age when the whole of eastern middle watch was covered in forests and as man settled and cut them down and Beleriand sunk they got separate and somehow survived. As long as there's no proof of them being extinct, I like to think they did :) A lot of things were meant for us to do our own work and be scholars just like him. Certain things were left open ended but in his very clever way. Also don’t forget the oath she swore to help Fangorn find Fimbrethil when Beleriand arises from the sea once more. She’d return and help him find her. And she meant it. And she had the largest and clearest foresight out of all the elves. ❤️

Simbelmynë was the name of the flower in Rohan, meaning "Evermind", a reference to the memories of the dead on whose tombs the flower grew. The name thus resembles 'forget-me-not', but a quite different kind of flower is intended. The Elves called them Uilos & Alfirin. Tolkien mentioned that Simbelmyne is an imagined variety of anemone. In appearance, Tolkien compares Simbelmynë to the European anemone, a small white flower growing among the grass or Anemona pulsatilla, the "pasque flower" The Elves called the same flower uilos ("snow white") and alfirin ("not mortal") This flower was inspired by wood anemone (Anemone nemorosa), a European flower of the buttercup family. J.R.R. Tolkien stated this in Nomenclature of The Lord of the Rings. There’s more to the story even for flowers+other plants as well as the other beings within middle earth (our Midgard) This is the genius of Tolkien ❤

The part about the dead marshes includes Legolas’s Father; Thranduil, & Thranduil’s father Oropher, were to join the Last Alliance in from a different angle to achieve a certain war tactic but Oropher and others got waylayed by orcs & many corrupted men which lead to eventually Oropher dying there, this loss effected Legolas’s father so very deeply forevermore. The bond between he and his son is the same bond Thranduil has with Legolas. And the braid he wears is to honour his grandfather. I believe after his death braids became less common. A sort of respect thing I believe. Both his father and Grandfather lived in Doriath(Elu Thingol’s domain[Elwë], which was heartbea of middle earth; Aside from Gondolin which held this mantle until it’s secret location was given up by a tortured elf who was the son of a very important mother who was the sister of the high king Turgon). All on a landmass called Beleriand that sunk under the sea after a set of disastrous events that lead to many greater outcomes much later on in the legendarium. This here is a whole set of stories of which also includes a quite a bit of Galadriel too but moreso other characters during this era. Of Beren And Lùthien comes to mind and Children Of Hurin!! You’ll fall in love even more after the third movie. Then you can enter into the lore videos like Moviejoob and OmarioRPG have done reaction videos too. Amazing stuff. One thing to add though is this scene resembles a lot from the other battle Tolkien was involved in called The Battle Of Somme. Look into it and tell me your thoughts. I’ll add something here though: that clan of elves really didn’t like being under the command of anyone else so they went ahead without the order and let’s just say it didn’t end well. That and they weren’t fond of the Ñoldor… huge history there as to why that is. That and the Sindar subgroup of these clans were a tiny bit more isolationist. But there are many amazing Sindar in the legendarium too Elrond and his two sons and daughter are connected to all of the main clans of men and elves through the union of his half elf father and full elf(quarter goddess) mother. Who essentially played a huge role in saving the world from the original dark lord Morgoth. Gained the Favour Of Valinor. Which subsequently lead to Numenor being a gift from the sea to the men who helped. Becoming blessed. Their land existing within the light of Valinor as it was situated closely to The Undying Lands. (The same ancestry Aragorn has that Èowyn spoke of while they were travelling to Helm’s Deep! (Elrond’s Twin Brother became the first king of Númenor. His name becoming Tar-Minyatur, and those faithful to Eru, the elves and the natural world all of this line carried Tar before their name! Ar for Aragorn is the word meaning Noble in his tongue called Adúnaic. That too is a fleshed out language Tolkien created too. Elvish languages also were placed into the official list of world languages too!