Drinker's Chasers - This Is Your Aragorn Now

So apparently Wizards of the Coast, makers of Magic: The Gathering, have decided to "reimagine" Aragorn from Lord of the Rings. And it went down about as well as you might expect.

[@LordNithilus]

When Black Aragorn was attacked by two white orcs who said "This is Mordor country" I couldn't help but shed a tear at the oppression I was witnessing.

[@poiuyt975]

Good one! :D

[@theflanman420420]

Very nice

[@grandmufftwerkin9037]

At least Aragorn managed to hold on to his Gondor Subway sandwich.

[@jodo2785]

That's a juicy story right there.

[@whenpigsfly8178]

I heard it was White Hand Orcs saying ''This is Orthanc country'', lol.

[@grandmufftwerkin9037]

When 'reimagined' Aragorn married Nexflix's Cleopatra, and gave birth to Ariel, I knew Tolkien's legacy was in the right hands.

[@TrooperJT]

I thought when reimagined Aragorn married Cleopatra they created Harfoots

[@rev6330]

Well, if this was the actual plot summary of RoP's second season, I wouldn't be surprised any more at this point.

[@pedrooginio]

The new 'Tolken' Legacy... I'll see myself out

[@brokenhalo2001]

stunning and brave

[@Bayofthe91st]

@@TrooperJT more like the Lake monster near the hidden door of Moria

[@sammartin8746]

They also changed Galadriel, a character whose appearance Tolkien was very specific about (at least 6 references to her pale, white, fair skin, and golden hair over barely 2 chapters) And they whitewashed the Easterlings because they sided with Sauron (For those who don't know they are normally described as sallow or olive skinned and fought against the Alliance of at the end of the Third Age)

[@iguran6035]

Whats also funny, and correct me if im wrong, the armies of the west more or less let the easterlings go after mordor fell, as they had been lied too and would only have had death as a reward for victory. Much to their amazment as they were told the men of rohan and gondor were essentialy brutes that enjoyed torturing their prisoners.

[@lamrethal695]

@@iguran6035 I think your mixing up easterlings with the men saruman employed against rohan And none would have death as reward in case of victory, they would just continue to be tools in the hands of Sauron

[@MW-hk2on]

I saw a brief clip of new Galadrial and it couldn't be further away from Cate Blanchets character. The original was elegant but fierce, beautiful and scary. The new one is just an aggressive modern women basically behaving like a 'toxic male'

[@MW-hk2on]

Hahaha just imagine the new characters attempting to pull off the the Oscar winning scenes from the movies. Tbf I could do a better job

[@SpaceJawa]

Funny enough, while Aragorn may be the 'face' of the problem, he's not actually the worst part. They *also* gave the race swap treatment to Eowyn, but kept her full-blooded brother Eomer white, because somehow you can get one black child and one white child out of the exact same parents.

[@marbellaotaiza801]

Certainly they didn't race-swap Arwen, they gotta get those interracial couples up for Joe Biden to notice...

[@Pepespizzeria1]

Probably to include broken family's

[@Facade953]

Miranda Otto will ALWAYS be Eowyn!

[@korawitbuttramee618]

Correct me if I'm wrong but Legolas is also a dark skinned guy with dreadlocks.

[@TheTGOAC]

That's one thing I hate about all the raceswapping. If you're gonna change one character, change their whole family so that it makes sense genetically. You only add to the confusion if two white parents give birth to a black child. Unless the mom was running around with a sperm donor on the side if you know what I mean.

[@vardamir0397]

I remember being a child, my dad reading tolkien to me while I was about to go to bed...and I remember him very clearly saying: ''I don't care what they tell you in books, Aragorn was black.''

[@marbellaotaiza801]

Then an invisible spaceshiep came and two wakandan soldiers came out of it and executed your father, for leaving the kangdom I guess, it was never very clear to me...

[@bo7341]

Can confirm, I was your dad.

[@masteronionnorth2341]

😄

[@serendipityx]

F*** off!!! 😂😂😂😂

[@samblack5313]

I actually am Aragorn, but that is my slave name.. my real name is DJ Supercoolguy.

[@lance134679]

If black Aragorn is fine, white Black Panther is also fine.

[@ranchdressing1037]

Ebom Ebay!

[@Jim-Mc]

BP is already a rip off of The Phantom.

[@Krocxigor]

@@Jim-Mc I always though he was black captain america. Both took a super serum that pushed them to peak human levels and use a vibranium weapon/armor while being the face of their nation.

[@Peanut_Buster90]

​@@Krocxigor White Black Panther.... WACK PANTHER! 😆🤣 GET THIS COMEDY GOING

[@paddington1670]

white panther! white panther! white panther!

[@samblack5313]

Them: “Don’t wear your hair in certain ways, raiycest” Also them: “Why do you have a problem with blakwashing cultural icons, raiycest!”

[@coffeebux]

who is the them in your comment?

[@redstreak_1]

​@@coffeebuxcertain thems

[@antibull4869]

“Evil cannot create, only corrupt” -Tolkien’s words are as true now as they were when he wrote them.

[@MagcargoMan]

Except those aren't his words, poser.

[@BenD0v3r32]

When Aragorn shouted "Wakanda Forever!" before charging orcs at Black Gate I bursted into tears.

[@Das_Kaenguru]

Youuuuuu racist. Those were the White Gates of Privileg….i mean Mordor! 😡

[@lorpuz4664]

The "white gate"

[@Bronimin]

you're both wrong, it was the gamer gate

[@RobertPilla]

That time when Aragorn slapped the Mouth of Sauron with his Pimp Hand.

[@marbellaotaiza801]

​@@RobertPilla while screaming "you keep Arwen's name out of your jokes"

[@lonewolf9578]

I still love that everyone on Twitter was calling me racist for wanting an accurate interpretation of a character from a licensed product

[@buckjones4901]

Probably not everyone half are bots the other half are idiots.

[@LprogressivesANDliberals]

Dam your on twitter, thank you for fighting for me 😂 I refuse to spend time in pointless battles but I support the ones who do ⚔️⚔️ “ Courage merry, courage for our friends”

[@robertshelton3796]

#notmyaragorn

[@proudsaiyanprince2651]

“You’re racist if you don’t like white erasure” “So be it.”

[@rhaegartargaryen9315]

Just remind them on their “quitting Twitter” when Elon took over. Roaches still living there after all the whining.

[@channeling764]

Back in Venezuela we were proud of Viggo Mortensen because he lived in our country for many years and after he left he kept talking fondly of it. It’s very sad to see him erased like that.

[@Chilicharger665]

When did he live there? Was he friends with Chavez?

[@marbellaotaiza801]

@@Chilicharger665 it was during his childhood, when Chavez was most likely not a thing, or a prisoner, as he should've stayed. Chavez was friends with Danny Glover, Sean Penn, and Benicio del Toro, who came to receive budget for movies that never got done Oh, and Michel Moore once banged on the door of his Lido Hotel Royal Suite in Venice (Italy) because Chavez and his hundred people entourage were partying too hard. Then, they took a picture together and Michael Moore took an ambien I guess. True story.

[@channeling764]

@@Chilicharger665 he lived there in the 90’s. No he was not associated with any political parties.

[@andrewfrank7222]

Let's be real. Venezuela rejected Exxon Mobile, BP and the Western Oil Companies... Ask Sadaam how that turns out...

[@user-rl1nv1xp1y]

They can't take the original films away. Just ignore the toxic garbage they turn out now. The Lord of the Rings films are a trilogy...nothing more.

[@bo7341]

The thing you guys are missing is that disapproval is the goal. They don't want us to like black Aragorn, they want black Aragorn to break our passion towards LOTR. This is part of a larger effort to make society abandon its history (which is problematic, dontchaknow), culture and tradition so that whoever is in charge can rewrite morality itself on their whim.

[@SeekingGodsWill]

I agree with you. It seems they are purposefully destroying loved characters from the 80's and 90's. This causes people now in their late 20's-50's an undue stress as I believe as humans we like having things settled. Things we love are one way, when it changes, similar to Invasion of the Body Snatchers ( The Asian DryClean shop owner) it causes mental stress. Whether we deal with it one way or another it is still something we have to deal with mentally. If the Characters, we love were done proper justice it would cause joy and happiness. I do not believe that is the goal of leadership. Contentment yes, but pure bliss and joy of life I do not believe they want the general public in that state. It seems quite obvious they are trying to cause harm and divisiveness. Just staying on guard and loving my neighbors/people around me in real life. Regardless of race or creed. Just that they have love in their heart and do not want harm for others.

[@coffeebux]

im sorry- just so i understand, you are saying... the makers of a card game intend to make society abandon history but changing a fictional character from a fictional place?

[@bo7341]

@coffeebux assuming that you're genuinely asking in good faith, no, that isn't what I'm saying. I'm saying that the makers of this game are beholden to a vocal minority of SJWs, and that group is pressuring them to create diverse characters regardless of what actual fans of the character or game think. While the majority of the vocal SJWs are ignorant stooges, the brains behind these campaigns are working to disconnect people from their history and culture. Black Aragorn does not resonate with anyone, black or white, the way that Aragorn does. They know this and yet they still push for it, because they want people to become apathetic towards the IP and therefore the messages behind it.

[@joelvannatta3266]

Fortunately, with the death of Tolkien, LotR lore is locked, and anything released by the likes of WotC is mere fan fiction.

[@Dynosawrio]

People got tired of them dominating each division. And also, they got bad luck been against Io and LA Knight, both of them were super over for months despite them being heels. It's their time to get the role swap and them be baby faces.

[@nongravis]

It's more than disrespect. It's flaunting their power grab. They're enjoying doing this, that's the only reason they do it. They don't want a black Aragorn, they want to bully people knowing they can get away with it (for now). Edit to add: Vandalism. That's the word I was looking for. They enjoy vandalising things people love because they know they will not be punished for it.

[@joakimareskoug1437]

Thats not why they do this. Its an old religious doctrine that the decisionmakers are following. The believe that blacks n hispanics are inferior races and they intend to wipe em out.

[@tokamara8795]

I'd also call it White erasure.

[@proudsaiyanprince2651]

What these people don’t want to admit or understand is that bloodlines were VERY important in Tolkiens story telling and the blood of Numanor was a heavily guarded and important thing. Apart from mixing with elves who were considered Kin due to Elrond and his Brother Elros, the men of Numanor especially the nobility weren’t really mixing and diluting the blood.

[@marbellaotaiza801]

They hate LOTR fans, that's why they're doing it. Never Give Money To People Who HATE You.

[@marbellaotaiza801]

​@@proudsaiyanprince2651 they kind of were, that's why they were dwindling at the end of the Third Age.

[@BlackWingedSeraphX]

They WANT to divide the people. That's why they do this. They want controversy. DON'T GIVE THEM YOUR MONEY. That's the only way.

[@TherebehoesinAlaska]

Bingoo

[@BruhMoment-fr4zr]

They don't want to "divide" people, they want white people to fuck off and disappear. They're literally writing you out of your own stories.

[@Blizofoz45]

Nah it's just virtue signaling. All of the white people involved in this Aragorn thing are patting themselves on the back, telling themselves how good they are. There isn't some grand vision guiding these people, just detached hubris.

[@dmtaboo_truth7052]

I started boycotting WOTC years ago when they started banning old cards like "Crusade".

[@hope-cat4894]

They want the fandoms to break apart. The fans were fine talking to each other until conversations about politics were forced into discussions because of all the changes happening. Either you are on the bandwagon or you get left behind. Stick together! 🫱🏿‍🫲🏻

[@KitRobin]

It's the same situation with Hermonie in the Harry Potter series...they decided when they did the stage play to all of a sudden make Hermonie black, even though the book just straight up describe her face as white. I am so tired of the race swapping...when you know they would never change a black character to white.

[@steveguthridge6839]

I can't wait to see Viggo Mortensen portray Shaka Zulu!

[@scionofdorn9101]

I demand Sun Tzu as portrayed by Jason Statham!

[@Jasper_Silva]

This kind of stunt legitimately CREATES racists. I can say it with authority cause I am black and I'm tired of it. I imagine a lot of people might get turned off or even reject black characters in the future because of this kind of attitude from those companies that don't actually care about black people or any other groups they claim to represent and are just using us to score social points.

[@BlackDouglas1000]

I think that is the plan.

[@redheadsilver8041]

Correct and with this outcome almost assured, you can rest confident that this "DIE"/ESG/Woke/SJW/representation/diversity narratives were never about fighting whatever past or present injustices but a ladder for power, at YOUR expense. That and they want society fragment fighting each other, so a united cohesive front against them never emerges when the crucial time comes.

[@MarvinHartmann452]

These same companies bend themselves backwards to please to Chinese audiences hiding black characters on their movies posters so no, they don't care. If they cares, then they would use original black characters from stories from everywhere in the world when the black people are from, or create new black characters entirely. I don't know any, besides blade. I'm sure there legends and stories from African countries, Haiti, and America, but I don't know any. Why? Because these companies don't make movies and series about them. They only do this to create controversies and division. And you're right, they don't care.

[@Adrian-qr6gk]

you're right. Whenever i hear or see a new black character in any form of entertainment i automatically feel distanced by it. I automatically assume it fits the stereotype of modern black character writing or depiction. And i take no responsibility in this, i've been raised this way by modern entertainment, used to be people were including black characters in basic or tasteful ways. All we wanted was the same but make them the main protagonist, instead modern entertainment has taught me that if it's black it's gonna be the same cliche woke character. Hell we used to have masculine black men and feminine black women characters and now if i ask for that i'm racist or sexist, to hell with modernity we need to go back to focusing on character first and the rest second.

[@samblack5313]

You’re absolutely correct, mate. If it has a black lead, I assume it will be anti white propaganda.

[@bigbloke2000]

"Pale Face" "Grey Eyes" -- from Tolkein's own words.

[@lorpuz4664]

It's extra stupid considering wizzards uploaded a video showcasing the card "You can not pass" with elijah wood reading the book to check that is the correct quote instead of "You shall not pass". Where was the fact checking on the characters descripción?

[@patrickreville4978]

​@@lorpuz4664 did they really mess up that line? It'd be like messing up Gollum's "my precious". Imagine if he said "My trinkey

[@lorpuz4664]

@@patrickreville4978 check it yourself look for You can not pass Magic

[@clogs4956]

@@lorpuz4664 you impugn Rincewind!

[@joseortega7815]

He was an Albino lol

[@gabler7992]

Aragorn was such an outdoorsman that he turned black to absorb every bit of light in his cold travels. keeps him warm and hidden in the dark.

[@MegaMan-bs3oy]

I have seen so many people on twitter catch themselves "ITS a fictional character! WHO CARES"?! But if they announced a White Black Panther those same people would be throwing bricks.

[@GHOSTVAOfficial]

As far as I'm concerned, that's not Aragorn. The only Aragorn I know is the character in Tolkien's books and Jackson's films. That is it

[@chasehedges6775]

👍👍👍👍

[@chasehedges6775]

Viggo Mortensen and his performance/portrayal can’t be be topped

[@GigglingStoners]

As far as anyone is concerned.

[@AviRox1154]

Agreed. You can nitpick Peter Jackson's LOTR all you want, but the casting choices across the board were about as close to perfect as you can get.

[@ranchdressing1037]

Sorry, your king went BBC.

[@TheFarCobra]

Well, Aragon’s father did go out for a war and never came back.

[@theflanman420420]

Haha

[@DJJ81]

Oooooooh man. Well played

[@andrewnevermind4902]

Kaboom.

[@jaredthehawk3870]

Killed by trolls, literally.

[@PanzerShrek94]

@@jaredthehawk3870 Grandfather...His father was shot in the eye by orcs and killed.

[@KCWilliam]

I like the design of Aragorn but he should be his own character with his own name in his own fantasy world with much more magic. I would watch that!

[@anonimoalfin]

bless u guys, can’t thank u guys enough for the work, for having the conversation, and for actually opening ppl eyes! Wish more ppl would see your vids

[@michaelbermingham2942]

Alot of people think Aragorn says "for Frodo" before charging the Orc lines at the Black Gate of Mordor but this is a common mistake, he actually says "Wakanda Forever!" It's an easy mistake to make though.

[@samblack5313]

I coulda swore I heard him scream “Gondor is built on systemic rayecisemz”

[@rustyhowe3907]

Oh silly me I thought he was yelling the ancient old war chant of "THE MESSAGE!"🤣

[@tjames4597]

"Somehow, racism returned."

[@rayanderson5797]

I mean, it has. It's just called 'progressive' or 'woke' now.

[@whenpigsfly8178]

@@rayanderson5797 Aka Identity Politics.

[@chrisb4131]

But does it fly now.....

[@Jasper_Silva]

We're gonna need racism to return in a couple more years so we can solve it again with the new star wars trilogy.

[@DaDude2011]

RACISM RELOADED

[@nealsterling8151]

If it was an original Character, like lets say a military Leader from the south, who was rebelling against Sauron coming to the north helping Gondor... it would be way better.

[@gabrieltejada1697]

“If you are gonna do a character then at least announce your first one as Gandalf the black” I’m not gonna lie i laughed out loud on that one 😆

[@marbellaotaiza801]

“Evil cannot create anything new, they can only corrupt and ruin what good forces have invented or made.” - DDay Cobra, prolly

[@TheTGOAC]

Oh I though Rey Skywalker said that

[@marbellaotaiza801]

@@TheTGOAC I think the patriarchy stole it from her.

[@brotherskeeper100]

Lol. It was a Tolkien Quote.

[@marbellaotaiza801]

@@brotherskeeper100 lol, we know. We're just messing around...

[@heryanpuservantofanubis1469]

Morgoth approves of this quote

[@Mark-cd2wf]

Viggo Mortenson was an absolutely _flawless_ Aragorn throughout the entire LOTR trilogy. So those who have now race-swapped him can go to hell, and stay there.

[@marbellaotaiza801]

WOTC card: who's Aragorn? Viggo: I am Aragorn Keanu: (sad) I wanted to be Aragorn WOTC card: (pointing at own eyes) look at me, look at me! I'm Aragorn now! Viggo: (unsheathes Andúril and beheads the card in one clean swipe). (Looks at Keanu, rising an eyebrow) Keanu: (raises both hands in a peace sign, then disintegrates into green code)

[@mostlydead3261]

imo he looked a bit too young and effeminate.. Sean Bean was a better fit for that role funnily enough..

[@Mark-cd2wf]

@@mostlydead3261 Sean Bean was a _terrific_ Boromir. Of course, he got killed….😞. Is there one movie Sean Bean’s been in where he doesn’t get killed?

[@markwashington5128]

Race swapped Boromir will be played by Kevin Hart.

[@Vaquix000]

@@Mark-cd2wf Google "10 Sean Bean Movies Where He Miraculously Doesn't Die" there's an article on it

[@YouTubalcaine]

As a Tolkien nerd I don't know what's more offensive, the fact that Aragorn is now black or that the Elvish smiths misspelled Anárion (who never bore the sword, so why they put his name on it in the first place is anyone's guess.)

[@MaverickRhodes-il4hq]

The moment Black Aragon broke out of the cotton fields of Mordor and screamed "I HAVE A DREAM" had JRR Tolkien sitting up in his grave in rapturous applause

[@Haufpunk]

Anyone up for turning Blade another skin colour? Nope, didn't think so. Blade is awesome the way he is.

[@Banana_Split_Cream_Buns]

Yeah, but while they're going to keep him Black, I bet they'll introduce some rainbow diversity into the mix somewhere. Whistler will turn from father figure to "Daddy" or some generate shit like that.

[@Haufpunk]

No doubt. Whistler will get nuked.

[@SlavicHavoc]

I think Jason Statham would be an awesome Blade. And he's actually British, like the character.

[@Haufpunk]

@@SlavicHavoc No race swapping! Established that Blade is a black character in the comics, so actor must be black.

[@SlavicHavoc]

@@Haufpunk For the record, I agree 100%. My comment was more of a "good for the goose, good for the gander." Sorry I didn't make that clear. Blade is just a perfect example since he's a character that completely bypasses the classic "race is integral to the character" argument those who do support race-swapping always fall back on. TL;DR: Stick to the source material, unless it makes SJWs cry.

[@DisposableExtraNumber1138]

"I knew I could not kill them. More powerful men than me have tried. But, if I could get them to kill each other... An empire toppled by its enemies can rise again. But one which crumbles from within? That's dead. Forever." - Baron Helmut Zemo

[@lukesimmons7332]

The astonishing thing is, in and of itself, it's a good design for an original character. Anyone see that and say, "Hey, cool character, awesome sword, looks stoic and heroic. Who is he?" And if the answer were an original character be it an established or new idea would have been met with a nod and a "Cool." Saying it's Aragon from Lord of the Rings is taking some artist's hard work and wasting it.

[@tradissimuscrae2996]

When D’Elessar began his reign by replacing captains of Gondor with social workers, opening new community centers in Minas Tirith AND tearing down its walls, I cried. Justice was finally served.

[@lordtibble13]

Anyone remember Baranor from Shadow of War? 1. New original character 2. Competent 3. Decently written 4. He's a Haradrim that becomes a Captain of Gondor 5. Is a good character in his own right

[@EvilDoresh]

They don't want to introduce _new_ characters. They want to corrupt _existing_ characters.

[@lordtibble13]

@@EvilDoresh Which is why they should be replaced with the writers of the Middle-Earth Shadow games

[@Gnomleif]

Never played Shadow of War, but this actually made me want to try it. If only to see for myself.

[@lordtibble13]

@@Gnomleif Fun as hell

[@SAMagic]

This. We seem to numerically see more bastardised efforts of modifying characters instead of creating new ones. Imagine if Rings of Power was instead about some Southern continent where a minion of Sauron was sent. Pull in lots of factions, fresh characters... something NEW!

[@Tusitala1967]

He threw back his hood revealing the fresh sheen of a Jerry curl, glistening with Elven activator, straight from the airy heights of Lothlorien. There was nary a grey hair to mar his curls, despite his age, on account of black don't crack. His face was the color of teak, a combination of his mother's fae fairness and her Easterling baby daddy's darker tones. His keen dark eyes sat above a broad nose, and they missed no detail of his surroundings. "Barkeep! Another courvoisier here. I have a thirst." And his voice was mellow and deep, like wind blowing low through the ancient trees of his forest home. -- Tolkien's First Draft, recently rediscovered by modern Tolkein "scholars".

[@iggtastic]

as Charlie Sheen might say... "winning!"

[@samblack5313]

“Y’all need to stop runnin yo mouf” Aragorn said firmly to Frodo, as the hobbits were drawing too much attention at the inn.

[@daviswhite3591]

Soul Glo.....

[@LimitedCheetah]

Daymm Arwen, yew gotta flat aysss!

[@Tusitala1967]

@@daviswhite3591 Soul Glo is the name of his blade, born by his four fathers (might have been five, there was that one guy in the bus station bathroom), and forged of mithril in the light of the Two Trees, just like his grill.

[@kinagrill]

Here is a nice little setting of 99% dark/very-tanned skinned people - Earthsea. It's literally set within a setting where palefolk are sort of a rarity that once in a very rare blue moon is seen at ports from tradevessels coming from some way off.... northwestwards iirc. The setting is there, the reasoning for 'skincolor makes sense cuz more sunlight', etc. Also it's a fantasy setting that states this is how it is, so even if it's not 100% realistic that a fairly sub-tropical region would have dark or bronzed skincoloring, it's still a core statement for the setting. And guess what, the horrid mini-show that was done basically raceswapped the cast to whitefolk for now reason and no it was not a popular choice.

[@strawpiglet]

Yeah, I loved the Wizard of Earthsea books, but I watched just a little of the show and it didn't work for me. I think it's a shame it didn't get the respect and budget it deserved.

[@kiltmaster7041]

02:30 - I've actually been personally very impressed with the Miles Morales (Peter Parker Spiderman's accidental successor) story. At first glance, it's easy to think of Miles as a usurper to the Spiderman name, but in many ways, he is his own thing. The character has his own motivations, goals and even a few superpowers which are unique to him. He might have emerged from Spiderman's shadow, but I feel that he is an excellent example of a passing of the torch done correctly, and with the due respect and love for the original source material. Plus, in Into the Spiderverse, there is some absolutely wonderful design language and art style coding that adds additional layers of subtext to the movie that I just really loved. Miles is originally animated at 30FPS to give him an uncomfortable, uncertain, janky feel, but as he becomes more confident in his abilities, he smooths out to 60FPS as the movie progresses. His art language is very heavily inspired by great Graffiti artists, giving the story a very different feel and vibrancy. This lends him and his story a visual uniqueness that is obviously not just a copypasted simulacrum of the original spiderman. Short version - this can be done "right." But so many creators today don't seem to know what they're doing. Your point still stands, but by gum and golly gosh, it isn't an absolute and exceptions do exist.

[@vincent207]

I think Jeremy alluded to one of the issues. It takes time to build up a character to be beloved like Batman or Spider-Man, but current generations are used to getting things quickly, and want the same for reputation.

[@kcrad1527]

Ive been a MTG player for about five years now, ive met many players during that time and a consistent aspect is that every player is there because they fell in love one or all of four things: gameplay, socialization, characterizations, and artwork. The Aragorn card(s)? are midlevel in gameplay power, promote animosity in opinion, wipe away preestablished characterization, and have a strange, sci-fi Afro-Futurism art style. It misses almost every mark for the average player. I dont doubt Viggo Mortensen proxy cards are gonna start appearing a lot more.

[@Honest_Grifter]

Hell no, not for me... I'm slapping black Aragorn in at commander and claiming victory by reparation as soon as I bring him into play... if anyone disagrees, they're just exposing themselves as supremacists... worst case scenario, you could just burn the card table down if you lose because "no justice, no peace"...

[@marbellaotaiza801]

Just stop giving wotc your money. They hate you, didn't you know?

[@orangegalen]

@@Honest_Grifter Lol, great way to be the first one out in any Commander game.

[@VerilyViscous]

@@Honest_Grifter You make me want to build an Azorius deck (mono white but splash blue for Invoke Prejudice) just to counter that.

[@alexstavrianopoulos7385]

@@Honest_Grifter oh man that’s funny, you could call it the “reparations” deck. I have a friend who made a wall themed commander deck and called it the “trump” deck.

[@GhostOfSnuffles]

They tried a Gandalf the black but for whatever reason he vanished and at the same time people's bikes started getting magically stolen.

[@luiszuniga2859]

-You can't change Aragorn -Ralph Bakshi (The Lord of the Rings 1978): hold my LSD

[@blacksheep9505]

When Black Aragorn flexed and broke off his mithril chains yelling ,” Feedom!” I was left astonished.

[@pablom-f8762]

Shoots his bow sideways, yo.

[@godKiller.369]

And the scene where Aragorn shouts UN-LI-MI-TED ME-LA-NINE! and blasts Sauron with brown lightning... so powerful

[@marbellaotaiza801]

WOTC card: who's Aragorn? Vigo: I'm Aragorn. Keanu: (sad) I wanted to be Aragorn... WOTC card: (aims an AK-47 card at Vigo and points at own eyes) look at me! LOOK AT ME! I'm Aragorn now Viggo: unsheathes Andúril, "the flame of the west," and beheads wotc card's head in one clean swipe.

[@ronlittlejohn8046]

Honestly, thanks to the animated movie I always interpreted Aragorn as a Native American man who doesn’t wear pants

[@JerryLSmithII]

John Hurt's voice for Aragorn was great imho.

[@ronlittlejohn8046]

@@JerryLSmithII honestly you could never go wrong with John Hurt. Damn shame we lost him

[@jice7074]

Of course it's for the writers own vanity. And yes, going to parties and bragging about the changes they made and the anger of upset fans is a huge part of it. These are people who are trained to $h!t on the shoulder of giants. Actually working and hoping to make themselves someone who others will someday look towards as a creative giant like those they are exploiting is not on their radar.

[@stephenfitzgerald9769]

_I am WotC and I’m diggin’ muh grave_ _Diggy-dig muh grave, diggy-dig muh grave_ _I am WotC and I’m diggin’ muh grave_ _Diggy-dig muh grave, diggin’ muh grave_

[@manofthewest5395]

That's not Aragorn. That's Jamal.

[@joseortega7815]

Jamal Ginsburg. Hasidic homeboy.

[@marbellaotaiza801]

That's the kang of harad dress up as Aragorn for mardi gras...

[@steffenjensen422]

Miles morales, Django from unchained, black panther, Tiana from kiss the frog,... there is genuine and good black characters in every genre yet they still feel the need to do this

[@Kscoyote80]

Was watching Beverly Hills Cop last night. Can't wait to see the Chris Pine reboot. 😂😂😂😂😂

[@stormsigma]

It's happening so constantly and often now, I can't even be mad anymore. I can just feel happy when the product fails to meet financial projections because people are sick of this shit.

[@BlackWingedSeraphX]

Best way to show disapproval is not giving them our money.

[@RiseInAfterlife]

Sadly this one will sell like crazy. Partly cause of the ultra supreme FOMO WotC uses in it and... well..... MtG players are the dumbest and most brand loyal paypiggies there are.

[@BlackWingedSeraphX]

@@RiseInAfterlife I'm not so sure. Many Woke places have had a severe drop in sales recently.

[@proudsaiyanprince2651]

Watching The Northman was a breath of fresh air for European authenticity.

[@ROMANTIKILLER2]

@@BlackWingedSeraphX here it is more complicated though, because people will still buy sealed pack of cards to open some ultra-rare lottery cards, regardless of black Aragorn.

[@ronaldrodriguez14]

You know, the idea of Blade being played by Ryan Reynolds or Hugh Jackman is not so bad after looking at what they are doing to Tolkien's legacy.

[@shoeflytoo]

Mr. Bean Blade for my money.

[@tkraid2575]

Ryan Reynolds as an unhinged Blade would be interesting to watch 😂

[@The_Real_Frisbee]

Bring back Static Shock, but white. Or The Proud Family, but they're white. OR, if you really wanna piss them off, The Boondocks as white.

[@thebeekeepingboomer2212]

My Grandma told me, “I don’t care what they tell you in school, Cleopatra was Japanese”!!!

[@kevinmccabe7263]

My grandma always said "I don't care what they tell you in school, Cleopatra was a fifty foot monster from the paleolithic era...and she needs about tree fiddy!"

[@CruelDwarf]

The funniest thing about it is that they were in position to score some authenticity points regardless of race swap and make Aragorn clean-shaved. But they still gave him a beard because Viggo Mortensen had it.

[@WideMouth]

The issue is that if you were just making a new adaptation of Aragorn, you would take inspiration from the source material and other adaptations. To make a consistently white character black is an intentional decision to contradict the source material in order to push an agenda, especially when this isn’t a case of choosing a black actor because they played the role well - this is an illustration.

[@dominaun9981]

I appreciate what DDayCobra said. I been waiting for them to just make new characters that are black rather than an existing one. Then they can show off some kind of creativity. But right now what the industry is doing is really making themselves look bad, and they look even worst cuz they want to ask why is everyone mad. As a 34 year old black person I've been Super not empress with the level of story telling of the pass 10 years. I just saw lil mermaid and just as a movie alone it was trash. I get on KZbin right after then I see Aragon is black now my heart for movies and shows has really died. Don't try to fix things that are not broken, but you can make something new and add old ideas to honor the first. That logic is completely dead in everything now.

[@ArchangelsBlade]

What I really want to see is for Hollywood et al to send their writers to Africa. You've got a whole continent rich with folklore, legends, tales, and stories to tell, and barely anything has made the jump to cinema. I'd be thrilled to see some new stories that I've never heard get told, and the best part? You can cast all the black actors you want, and it'll make sense for the plot! You can invent new characters or use old ones, introduce history that a lot of people don't know, and stir up some interest in places that frequently get overlooked in favour of the same old retellings. I'd much prefer that to the appropriation of a story that was intended to give England, a place without much folklore of its own, a mythology simply for the sake of creating controversy.

[@DaDude2011]

All I can say is I’m now dying to rewatch the trilogy where I’m reminded what decent LOTRs is like.

[@twofacetoo75]

I really want to see what they're going to do with Radagast the Brown

[@MontChevalier]

They will make him asian.

[@MarvinHartmann452]

They'll make him a rastafari Jamaican. It could be funny at least.

[@orangegalen]

Radagast the Puerto Rican

[@MontChevalier]

@@orangegalen Hollywood hates Puerto Ricans man. They'd never do that. They'll make him black or some kind of Indian before they make him Puerto Rican.

[@sweetchristmas101]

@@orangegalen How about Samoan? Get The Rock to play him.

[@malevolentmoose]

When I initially just saw the image with no context I had no idea why people were angry because it didn't even crosss my mind what it was. Guess I should have known better after Cleopatra.

[@Red-zh7vq]

6:18 Star Wars has proven time and time again that original characters and stories can be done and leave huge impacts that have nothing to do with the original 6 films. Just look at Revan, Mara Jade, Starkiller, the Mandalorian Wars, etc.

[@Gnomleif]

I think Clownfish Tv's hypothesis might be right - they're throwing this out in an attempt to divert attention from all their other recent screwups, including the OGL debacle, printing _way_ more MTG cards than needed, the fact that the quality of Hasbro's stuff (WotC's parent company) has dropped off a cliff while prices have skyrocketed, and the fact that they sent the Pinkertons (private security company) to some guy's house because someone had messed up and sent him a batch of MTG cards a couple of weeks before the actual release date. In my opinion they're digging a new grave to fill up all the other graves they dug recently, and from what little I've seen they're getting absolutely roasted for it. And WotC and Hasbro deserve every single bit of it if you ask me.

[@suakeli]

The same Pinkertons that were the bad guys in Red Dead Redemption 2?

[@screenmonkey]

They announced this last year, it's just round two.

[@duncanlutz3698]

@@suakeli Its.... a very old company, yes. I was surprised to see it still kicking as well.

[@marbellaotaiza801]

@@suakeli the same Pinkertons that were the good guys in Conan Doyle's "Valley of Terror". Die a hero or stick around long enough to become a villain.

[@marbellaotaiza801]

"they're digging a new grave to fill up all the other graves they dug recently" Beautifully put (chef's kiss)

[@Mister-Six]

Afrogorn, the Kang of Middle-Erf

[@chrisb4131]

This is a severely underrated comment.

[@TherebehoesinAlaska]

We wuz KINGS Breh. Educate yaself

[@marbellaotaiza801]

Have mi like good sir 👍

[@StylePoints14]

I lauffed

[@mamv80]

there's more talent and creativity in 5 minutes of this panel than in all Disney productions in the past 5 years lol

[@beefyronin]

If they made a Blade movie with Chris Pratt as Blade I'd be just as mad as I am with this.

[@wolfkult4320]

Flashgitz had a pretty spot-on animation about the "Diversity/Equity" game

[@charlieblocher7456]

The dumbest part about it is that they could or promote the setting and characters from the Africa-inspired Mirage set back in 1996. They made a new Sidar-Jibari card for Commander a few months ago, without nearly the same degree of promotion.

[@Haufpunk]

That's what's so frustrating about these idiot producers. Plenty of stories from ethnic minorities ignored. Keep using established European stories and race swapping. Patronising and lazy.

[@palladiamorsdeus]

Oh sweet, I used to love Sidar! Good to hear he got some love. Not buying it because screw Wizards but still, cool.

[@masteronionnorth2341]

Remember when studios and creators use to try to stay faithful to source materials? Remember? Good times...

[@DivineFalcon]

With that blinged out sword, "Aragorn" looks more like Marvel's Heimdall, to be honest.

[@kylejenkins7166]

In the TV show Justice League my favorite character was John Stewart who was Green Lantern. I preferred his character to Superman and Flash as John was level headed, logical, and didn't act without a plan. I didn't need him white to identify with him. I don't see why others need a character to look like them to think I could be like them.

[@robertbeisert3315]

For me, the obvious one is Teen Titans' cyborg. Robin was too angsty, and Beast Boy, while fun, I had nothing in common with. Cyborg was the big brother of the team, and I saw myself in him. He was older, bigger, Blacker, and more of a cybernetic superhero than I, but I saw myself in him.

[@kylejenkins7166]

@@robertbeisert3315 Yeah looking back I like Cyborg more than Beast Boy or Robin although when I was younger it was the opposite. One show I'm also looking back fondly on is Static Shock.

[@RaichuWizDom]

Storm from 90's X-Men was one for me. I had breathing issues growing up, so I had to really watch my temper, and learn to stay calm, or I'd end up losing my breath. Storm set a good example, because she also had to watch her temper and constantly maintain self-control, for vastly other reasons, of course. I didn't have to share any other traits to relate to her in that regard. I don't even have claustrophobia, but I can still empathise. Later on, Corran Horn from Star Wars took that spot, though: even though he was a lot older than me at the time, and didn't have any physical issues, he still had a handicap as a Jedi that I could relate to. In general, I'd say the best black superhero overall is still Meteor Man. Guy had a power that was unlimited in scope, but limited in amount of usage, so he had to be careful in what he decided to do with it, which gets especially heartwrenching right near the end. He was a teacher who saw his own students get recruited into gangs, and he actually stepped up and protected his own neighbourhood, none of this political distractions. If there's any superhero who deserves a comeback, it's that one.

[@BurnDoubt]

"Anything sent into a plagued world is bound to come back infected" Flavor text from the instant spell card "Recoil" From a former M:tG player/reader

[@hatsunemikufanboy]

It's like phyrexian oil is seeping through the planes once more

[@BurnDoubt]

@@hatsunemikufanboy Somehow... Yawgmoth has returned

[@marbellaotaiza801]

"former M:tG player" Respect o7 Don't Give Money To People Who HATE You

[@schitflowsdwnhil]

The background makes it look like The Despot has an arm with a YUUUGE hand

[@killaweedbro420]

Poor Tolkiens rapidly spinning corpse.

[@TheTraakon]

As has become so common today, it is a lack of imagination/creativeness, a desire for instant recognition and success. They steal the creativity of the past and rebrand it as their own and want the same level of praise and recognition as the original creator.

[@marbellaotaiza801]

“Evil cannot create anything new, they can only corrupt and ruin what good forces have invented or made.”

[@stc3145]

Only racists here are the ones who race swap characters like Aragorn and Ariel

[@StylePoints14]

Jews are pretty racist. I will give you that

[@luciendevolontat2488]

“Just some Guy” has a great video about it, worth a listen !

[@doomspud6302]

As always, this is all about taking control. They want that pre-existing audience that all these IPs come with. But it needs to be MY version of it, with MY politics and MY morals. It was super obvious with Rings of power. Or rather: Amazon's TM: The Lord of the Rings TM: The Rings of Power TM. And how they released a new printing of the LOTR trilogy novels with Rings of Power scenes on the covers. Even though they don't actually own that part of the story, they wanted to trick everyone into thinking they do.

[@MrAppleOrchard]

That dude looks bad ass, why not just give him his own character and not replace Aragorn???

[@marbellaotaiza801]

It could be the kang of harad dressing up as the King of Gondor and Arnor for mardi gras.

[@Parasmunt]

There are already badass black characters from mega selling fantasy cycles like Anomander Rake that they could have used. The point was to blackwash a beloved iconic white male character, to cause that offence. The Tolkien degenerate family let that happen.

[@orangegalen]

Like honestly! If it was any other set it probably would’ve been a Commander staple. But because they made it Aragorn, no one will play it except for the memes.

[@scionofdorn9101]

That would not serve "THE MESSAGE", would it?

[@Nopeasaurus]

could have been a badass Haradrim king

[@ShadowdaleA]

I for one can't wait for the Martin Luthor biopic starring Ryan Gosling.

[@rokazeravas4904]

I just want to add to this that the last estimated price I heard for a booster box of those LOTR themed cards was starting at ~$500 USD (normal booster boxes are ~$110 post tax). Why you may ask? There’s a limited edition one of a kind art work of ‘The Ring.’ Literally just one special art that will ever be printed. So they’re using that as the justification to charge this insanely steep price for a box set where the cards are not even that great and of course the whole ‘race swapped Aragon.’ This coupled with the Pinkerton scandal from a month ago and then of course when they tried to kill the DnD open game license, it’s a miracle wizards isn’t losing profit. Then again I guess I shouldn’t be surprised by the collector whale factor.

[@TheAmazingAram]

One of the sad things is that the picture itself looks pretty sweet. But its just the fact that it is Aragorn that makes it controversial. It could have been a really cool standalone character.

[@xSilentZeroXx]

I was thinking the same thing. Shame.

[@proudsaiyanprince2651]

Looks like “Heimdall” another European figure that was black washed to further dilute and demoralize.

[@sadeknight9112]

They ruined the sword even if the character is fine. One handed grip with two handed length, an insanely chunky blade and pommel with no cross guard whatsoever, and tribal markings next to clearly Nordic inspired runes.

[@aldunlop4622]

True, if it were some new fantasy character there wouldn’t be a problem.

[@coffeebux]

chic fil a hired a black diversity and inclusion VP. conservatives are calling chick-fil-a woke after 1 day, people got offended when elves got cast as black- not even named characters just actors that were black. the actors of color in the D&D movie caused videos over why elves arent supposed to be diverse. it isnt about aragorn. Critical Drinker and the 100 other sponsor chasers just like him would find something else to criticize.

[@grandmufftwerkin9037]

A live action Batman Beyond with Keaton as an older Bruce Wayne is a golden opportunity staring DC right in the face.

[@RJALEXANDER777]

Well failing that, we can always bring Christian Bale back after a decade or two.

[@chasehedges6775]

Michael Keaton and Christian Bale deserve to rest. They played Batman well

[@doormatt72]

@@chasehedges6775 Lol, true. We all know they'd just be invited back to destroy their own character and pave the way for Rey. Oh sorry, I meant Batgirl.

[@allanbriseno5980]

Ben A when he’s got his white/grey hair look , looks a lot like the Batman beyond look too lol. Probably the strong chin game

[@Spartacus114]

Booo no. That would make it in the same universe as the god awful current DCEU. Make it a continuation of Bale’s Batman

[@artooleetoo]

'darth maul's bottom surgery' is the funniest thing i've heard in ages. xD xD xD well played despot dude. 👍

[@wyattmann8157]

And Aragorn held his magic sword aloft and said, “For The Honor Of Greyskull!”

[@gladiatorscoops4907]

Reading the comments from people from the artists Insta post gives me no hope for the human race. I feel like that moment in T2 when John says to the Terminator - "we arent going to make it are we?" The people commenting in that post just don't get why this is so wrong and don't see that it only ever goes one way. Appropriating something that already exists to push an agenda is wrong. If you truly need to add in people of a certain ethnicity either look into the lore of the LOTR and look at how you can incorporate people from the Southron. Or better yet create new IP's, new stories and new characters instead of changing ones that exist already. These people only see people by the color of their skin, and don't realise if you hold no prejudice then you wouldn't see the color of the skin in the things you watch or your everyday life for that matter. It's the same way I watched The Cosby show or Fresh Prince back in the day I didn't see a family of black people - I just saw a family.

[@samblack5313]

I don’t think we need to insert a skin rainbow into every piece of European literature ever written. It’s ok for white people to tell stories about white people.

[@dragonmaster1360]

@Gladiatorscoops I definitely feel thgr last half, about not seeing skin colour... It wasn't until I started to see this woke crap happening that I started to see skin colour. For a long time, it never even registered to me that Morgan Freeman was black. He was always just a grandfather-like figure in my eyes, a soft-spoken, wise old man that had a penchant for playing the god of the bible. Only recently (in the last decade) did I start to see his skin colour, because everything has been making a huge deal about it. As the man himself said, regarding how to stop racism: "stop talking about it".

[@MagcargoMan]

@@dragonmaster1360 Yeah, if nobody says anything after the KKK guys drag that guy to death with their car, racism will magically vanish as if Thanos snapped it away.

[@palladiamorsdeus]

​@@MagcargoManWhat freaking world do you live in, troll? Because it ain't reality.

[@MagcargoMan]

@@palladiamorsdeus Clearly you don't live in reality because you think doing nothing causes problems to magically disappear.

[@freakwntwatchr]

A Scotsman, an Irishman, a Welshman, an Englishman and an American walk into a bar..,

[@marbellaotaiza801]

Not a single barstool, or bottle were harmed in the production of this video.

[@B0mber44]

You’d think one of them would have seen it.

[@scionofdorn9101]

@@marbellaotaiza801 Define "harmed" 😉.

[@marbellaotaiza801]

Couldn't they get an Australian too?

[@Savaris96]

I mean Black Aragorn looks awesome, Im sure if they would bother trying they could make a cool story starring this guy without having to call him Aragorn, same with Black Ariel, really You have gorgous and interesting looking characters, now make a story to make people care about them and the rest will solve itself

[@Vitrolin2408]

Can't wait until Clifford the Big Red Dog gets reimagined to be a Big Red Dog; but cast a Big Blue Dog to portray that character.

[@jamiearmstrong3487]

The sword guard is amazing, your own blood makes it more efficent

[@maximiliand2544]

I say we need an all Irish cast of an updated Roots.

[@hellgast004]

As a dark brown Indian... If they do black Aragorn.. I'm fuckin burning shit down

[@wildhunt6350]

5:20 I just love that Cleopatra was pretty popular. 1 second silence all at once: LMAO

[@laurenced2916]

Getting really sick of 'modern audiences'

[@chasehedges6775]

Along with the MESSAGE!

[@marbellaotaiza801]

We all are...

[@ITanmanI]

Don't forget "the unspecified virus of unknown origin"

[@godKiller.369]

I want that Blackagorn & Cleoblattra romantic crossover!

[@samblack5313]

Set on the millennium Falcon.

[@Mouse_Metal]

@@samblack5313 On the Dissney´s galaxy starcruiser.

[@marbellaotaiza801]

@@Mouse_Metal lol

[@marbellaotaiza801]

(SPOILERS) They have a child. Instead of the patriarchal Eldarion, this time is Ariel. In her own story, The Mermarillion, she uses the one ring she inherited from Isildur to reclaim the sunken kingdom of Numenor from the evil usurper, Amber Heard.

[@godKiller.369]

@@marbellaotaiza801 But Amber Heard is very powerful with Poopya, the Ring of Brown!

[@weareharbinger914]

One of the biggest problems is the lack of understanding of how it breaks the internal consistency of the story. This isn't one change, it would be a series of changes in his genetic line, meaning he probably comes from a different area, has a different story and thus is NOT Aragorn, especially not as Tolkien wrote him.

[@AionAwakening]

Imagine that soon it will be illegal to own an old set of LOTR movies and us trying to buy DVD players on the black market to be able to watch them in some random basement.

[@derywade9131]

Hmm....Black Aragorn, Black Little Mermaid, Black Cleopatra....If I was a filthy conspiracy theorist, I would be starting to think that something weird is going on.