FIRST TIME WATCHING *THE LORD OF THE RINGS: RETURN OF THE KING* (Part 2)

[@bumblebee1300]

The Ride of the Rohirrim is one of THE MOST beautiful scenes in cinema history and no one could have done a better job at giving the speech than Bernard Hill….. RIP may he rest in peace

[@Warspud723]

What's even cooler is alot of the riders were women with glued on beards

[@novocode]

@@Warspud723 Sooooo... Dwarves? ;-)

[@folcotook3049]

His performance there and at the funeral of Theodred are both masterworks of acting.

[@christopherjunkins]

That and his "No parent should have to bury their child."... oof. He was amoung the best and many were on this project so... yea Rest in eternal Peace Mr. Hill.

[@UltimateGamerCC]

@@novocode *Drunken Gimli Laugh*

[@TheCsel]

Sauron couldn’t beat Denethor’s mind, so he made him doom scroll on social media for decades until Denethor gave up.

[@kirklanyoshinaga8953]

That’s a good way to put it. 😂

[@Sylvia-t1f]

The Palantiri are social media. Denethor's son comes back dying, he goes to check his feed and sees "LOL, DUMB HOBBIT CAPTURED." "CORSAIRS STAY WINNING." "Pic of me and the boys #MordorReserves."

[@daysand123]

Denethor in his last bits online was like "why there only fairskin elves? Aint even a drow bitch online. Btw anybody know where to get good wood cheap? Gotta burn my son. He's dead in think."

[@Laxhoop]

Fun fact: In the original 3 books, the ending of the second book is where Sam fights the spider. It ends with Frodo being taken, and Sam (and the reader) unsure if he’ll survive. And because the second two books actually spend their first halves from Aragorn’s perspective, and then their second halves from Frodo’s, we actually don’t know if Frodo survived until halfway through the third book.

[@undertakernumberone1]

Books 3 and 5 are not only Aragorn's perspective. ALso Merry and Pippin. It switches between the 2/3 (once they split up) PoVs. Though Aragorn is the main PoV character. This narrative device also has the Mouth of Sauron at the Black Gate procuring the Mithril Shirt have much more impact, because you don't know yet what had happened. A theory as to what drove Denethor over the edge during the siege of Minas Tirith, that I'Ve seen, is Sauron letting him know that a halfling had been captured.

[@gregorybiestek3431]

@@undertakernumberone1 Book 5? As someone who has read Tolkien since 1971, I know of no books 4 or 5 in Lord of the Rings. In my copies from back then each book is broken into parts 1 & 2; So Book 2 Part 1 and Book 2 Part 2. I know of the Silmarillion, but not any 4 or 5 books in LOTR. What are you referring to?

[@undertakernumberone1]

@@gregorybiestek3431 Fellowship of the Ring: Book 1 and 2. Two Towers: Books 3 and 4. Return of hte King: Books 5 and 6. As Tolkien intended.

[@Angelos42]

@@gregorybiestek3431 There are 6 books, they have been combined in to 3 from the very start. But a lot of books that have the entire series will mark all 6 books (mine as well).

[@Desdemona-XI]

​@@undertakernumberone1 not actually as Tolkien intended, actually. The books were divided because the publisher refused to publish them in their full size thinking that it would be too much for the reader. Tolkien i believe intended it to be either three books or just one.

[@aaronburdon221]

For Ms. Alicia, here is an excerpt of the battle of Pellenor fields from the master himself: ''Still they were unchallenged, and still Theoden gave no signal. At last he halted once again. The city was now nearer. A smell of burning was in the air and a very shadow of death. The horses were uneasy. But the king sat upon Snowmane, motionless, gazing upon the agony of Minas Tirith, as if stricken suddenly by anguish, or by dread. He seemed to shrink down, cowed by age. Merry himself felt as if a great weight of horror and doubt had settled on him. His heart beat slowly. Time seemed poised in uncertainty. They were too late! Too late was worse than never! Perhaps Theoden would quail, bow his old head, turn, slink away to hide in the hills. Then suddenly Merry felt it at last, beyond doubt: a change. Wind was in his face! Light was glimmering. Far, far away, in the South the clouds could be dimly seen as remote grey shapes, rolling up, drifting: morning lay beyond them. But at the same moment there was a flash, as if lightning had sprung from the earth beneath the city. For a searing second it stood dazzling far off in black and white, its topmost tower like a glittering needle; and then as the darkness closed again there came rolling over the hills a great boom. At that sound the bent shape of the king sprang suddenly erect. Tall and proud he seemed again; and rising in his stirrups he cried in a loud voice, more clear than any there had ever heard a mortal man achieve before. Arise, arise, Riders of Théoden! Fell deeds awake: fire and slaughter! Spears shall be shaken, shields be splintered, A sword day, a red day, ere the sun rises! Ride now, ride now! Ride to Gondor! With that he seized a great horn from Guthláf his banner-bearer, and he blew such a blast upon it that it burst asunder. And straightaway all the horns in the host were lifted up in music, and the blowing of the horns of Rohan in that hour was like a storm upon the plain and a thunder in the mountains. Ride now, ride now! Ride to Gondor! Suddenly, the king cried to Snowmane and the horse sprang away. Behind him his banner blew in the wind, white horse upon a field of green, but he outpaced it. After him thundered the knights of his house, but he was ever before them. Éomer rode there, the white horsetail on his helm floating in his speed, and the front of the first éored roared like a breaker foaming to the shore, but Théoden could not be over taken. Fey he seemed, or the battle fury of his fathers ran like new fire within his veins, and he was borne up on Snowmane like a God of old, even as Oromë the Great in the battle of the Valar when the world was young. His golden shield was uncovered, and lo! it shown like an image of the sun, and the grass flamed into green about the white feet of his steed. For morning came, morning and a wind from the sea; and darkness was removed, and the hosts of Mordor wailed, and terror took them, and they fled, and died, and the hooves of wrath overtook them. And then all the host of Rohan burst into song, and they sang as they slew, for the joy of battle was on them, and the sound of their singing that was fair and terrible came even to the City.” -J R.R. Tolkien

[@undertakernumberone1]

We heard of the horns in the hills ringing, the swords shining in the South-kingdom, Steeds went striding to the Stoningland as wind in the morning. War was kindled. There Théoden fell, Thengling mighty, to his golden halls and green pastures in the Northern fields never returning, high lord of the host. Harding and Guthláf, Dúnhere and Déorwine, doughty Grimbold, Herefara and Herubrand, Horn and Fastred, fought and fell there in a far country: in the Mounds of Mundburg under mould they lie with their league-fellows, lords of Gondor. Neither Hirluin the Fair to the hills by the sea, nor Forlong the old to the flowering vales ever, to Arnach, to his own country returned in triumph; nor the tall bowmen, Derufin and Duilin, to their dark waters, meres of Morthond under mountain-shadows. Death in the morning and at day's ending lords took and lowly. Long now they sleep under grass in Gondor by the Great River Grey now as tears, gleaming silver, red then it rolled, roaring water: foam dyed with blood flamed at sunset; as beacons mountains burned at evening; red fell the dew in Rammas Echor. -The Song of the Mounds of Mundburg

[@corruptangel6793]

There is a video on KZbin where they play a recording of Tolkien reading that transcript over the scene from the movie and it is glorious

[@PaulGuy]

It's wild how different Tolkien's writing is compared to so many others. What most writers take a chapter or more to write, he did in a few paragraphs. The whole Battle of Helm's Deep was like a page and a half of actual fighting. Instead of describing long sequences of actions, he used a few words to spark the imagination of the reader, letting our minds paint the pictures.

[@Angrenost02]

​@@undertakernumberone1 Now imagine this being read and acted with the music from the movie. That would be Phil Dragash's audiobook, which imo is the best way to enjoy Tolkien's magnum opus.

[@lemjustlem]

The ONLY time a mortal being was ever directly compared to one of the Valar by the Professor; I cannot imagine that honor...

[@MrGaleanon]

9:00 Aragorn was around when her granddad was kicking. Aragorn was taking care of a grandchild of an old war buddy.

[@J_Isak]

THIS OMG! He was giving Dad vibes and her daddy issues misinterpreted FR

[@undertakernumberone1]

Have to note: The movies did Denethor very dirty! He was a dick in the novel as well, but that was explained there... He had mental fights with Sauron, using the Palantir (the ball Saruman had. Minas Tirith had one as well, as well as Osgiliath, Weathertop, the ruin in Fellowship, and Minas Morgul) to spy on him. Sauron COULDN'T break his will outright! THat's why he drove him to despair showing him the worst possible things he could! The whole "You wish your places had been swapped" speech happens in the novel, but doesn't directly refer to Boromir's death as such. It's about Boromir leaving for the quest and Faramir staying in Gondor, rather than the other way round, since Boromir had convinced Denethor (which makes it all the more bitter to him) to let him, instead of Faramir, go. Denethor also didn't send Faramir out on a doomed assault. In the novel, Faramir got wounded (hit by the Black Breath, basically a poisonous attack, of the Nazgul) while keeping the retreat together as much as he could. Denethor ordered, once the time was right, the Knights of Dol Amroth, lead by his brother in law, Prince Imrahil, to charge out to cover their retreat, which is where Gandalf joined in. Faramir's mother also ended up weakening substantially after his birth and passed 5 years later, leaving Denethor more grim and bitter than ever before. Also: ‘There and elsewhere in many places,’ said Faramir, and sighed. ‘Alas for my brother, whom I too loved!’ He rose. ‘May I have your leave, father?’ And then he swayed and leaned upon his father’s chair. ‘You are weary, I see,’ said Denethor. ‘You have ridden fast and far, and under shadows of evil in the air, I am told.’ ‘Let us not speak of that!’ said Faramir. ‘Then we will not,’ said Denethor. ‘Go now and rest as you may. Tomorrow’s need will be sterner.’ In the movie, Denethor would've just lectured him about how Boromir would've done better. His death is also changed: Denethor dies clutching the palantir to his chest, and ever after, if a user didn't have the willpower, instead of showing him what he wanted to see, he only saw two burning hands. Gandalf vs Witch king, in the novel, happens at the gate of Minas Tirith, since he was chanting additional spells to allow Ghrond to break the gate. Sauron's forces don't even make it into the city, and he also doesn't destroy Gandalf's staff. And last but not least: In the novel, Theoden snatches his standard-bearers horn and, to call the attack, blows it so hard that hte horn bursts.

[@marcusc9931]

I wonder if they changed their minds during filming, because there is some foreshadowing for the Palantir that never gets paid off.

[@lisboah]

And in the book, Denethor had already lit the beacons by the time Gandalf and Pippin were heading to Gondor.

[@Mugthraka]

@@marcusc9931 The movies allready where over 4 hours each uncut, and the crew had to fight with production and the studios to leave some of their scenes in the theatrical cuts, cause the studio wanted to shorten the movies even more So yeah, even tho it is the Best adaptation to date, it is somewhat expected/normal that some things where left out The complex relation between Denethor and Faramir would have needed a couple of additional scenes that they simply din't have the time for, its sad that they where cut and simplified to "Denethor is an ass", but It is What it is Personaly the part that i'm sad that was cut is the Battle for the Shire, cause its my favorite of the whole book, its really at this point that you se how much the Hobbits grew and how they indeed became "Short Kings" heroes ;p

[@undertakernumberone1]

@@lisboah Also to note: The beacones were for calling the fiefdoms of Gondor, one of which was Dol Amroth. Rohan is summoned via a massenger bearing a red arrow.

[@undertakernumberone1]

@@Mugthraka Scouring of the Shire. I am gonna bring that up under part 3 lol

[@davidblaising-wimmer9972]

Fun fact: Tolkien himself served with the British Army in ww1 and a lot of stuff in lord of the rings from the cozy nature of the shire to the apocalyptic violence and the little things like people seeing their children dying all come from his personal experiences in the Great War and serving it.

[@charlessapp1835]

In the book, when the orcs saw the signs of Sam and Shelob's fight, they assumed that Frodo was the servant of a great elf warrior, because only an elf could possibly face Shelob and live. It made Sam feel a few feet taller. Also, a slight defense of Denathor. In the book, he faced Sauron in Minas Tirith's Pelantir and Sauron showed him that he still had 50,000-100,000 men and orcs still in Mordor and not at the siege. And he also showed him that he had captured Frodo. (Not realizing how important he was, or mentioning that he had escaped). So when Denathor saw that Frodo was in Sauron's hands he knew that they were lost since he assumed that Sauron had the ring. Gondor!

[@TrentRushton]

I loved how Peter Jackson makes an cameo in all these movies this one he was the guy Legolas shot on the boat

[@chadbennett7873]

Yes, many people are not aware of that. I love the face he makes too.

[@devinwhite5064]

Thats funny.

[@transformersrevenge9]

Can we just appreciate how inspirational Theoden is as a character. When we first met him, he is grieving, afraid, somewhat prideful and a real doomer about the outcome. None of that changes really. Deep down he is still a doomer who is not at all certain about the outcome. But when Gondor calls, he answered. He showed up, he broke the enemy lines. And when giant elephants are marching towards him, he reforms his lines and takes them head on. He is brave, despite self doubt and a negative outlook. He doesn't let his men see that he has little hope, no he inspires them despite it. I really find him inspirational in that way.

[@soul6733]

FUN FACT: Shelob is last child of Ungoliant, the mysterious spider-like creature of darkness who the Dark Lord Morgoth allied with to destroy the trees of Valinor and steal the Silmaril. Ungoliant, after drinking the fluids of the trees, became so big and powerful that when Morgoth refused to hand her over the Silmaril, she almost killed him (he got saved by his Balrogs). After being driven out, she went hiding and living in a forest, mating with the spiders of the zone and eventually out of hunger, she ended up eating herself to death.

[@chadbennett7873]

Wow, that was fun! Just kidding ... but great information. I had not yet read that part of the lore.

[@hollowbrinethehollowfiedsu6365]

in short term, the giant spider is a demigod/goddess that even the forces of mordor fears

[@officechairpotato]

@@hollowbrinethehollowfiedsu6365 IIRC, Less a demigod/goddess in terms of Tolkiens mythos. She's more of a great old one of lovecraft style (Tolkien calls them "The nameless things", along with the watcher in the water and the terrible creatures Gandalf sees while fighting the Balrog. She has nothing to do with Eru, the Maiar, Sauron and so on. They're not even corrupted angelic beings, but "Others", often predating the creation of the world in true; "Before the universe there was nothing. And before there was nothing, there were monsters" fashion. "Far, far below the deepest delving of the Dwarves, the world is gnawed by nameless things. Even Sauron knows them not. They are older than he. Now I have walked there, but I will bring no report to darken the light of day." - Gandalf "I was awake before the breaking of the first silence." - Sauron Ungoliant is theorized by the Valar to have come from "Beyond Arda", emerging from the darkness between the stars, and is not created by them or Eru. During Gandalfs fight with the Balrog, they stumble into the territory of the nameless things and the Balrog immediately flees. Gandalf pursues it believing it knows the way around the area safely, and knows if he doesn't he is screwed. The two escape, then begin fighting again. From christian mythology this is like the slaying of chaos by god prior to the creation of the world (Not found in modern bible versions, present in others, though people debate this). It's an extremely common trope in religon. Except in tolkiens work, chaos was never slain. It just sort of, hung around. Chaoskampf is the term. "Chaoskampf (German: [ˈkaːɔsˌkampf]; lit. 'the battle against chaos'),[6] also described as a "combat myth", is generally used to refer to a widespread mythological motif involving battle between a culture hero deity with a chaos monster, often in the form of a sea serpent or dragon." (Usually to create the universe). "The Chaoskampf myth is a category of divine combat narratives with cosmogonic overtones, though at times turned secondarily to other purposes, in which the hero god vanquishes a power or powers opposed to him, which generally dwell in, or are identified with, the sea, and are presented as chaotic, dissolutory forces. It may also be used to refer to a dualistic battle between two gods; in that context, an alternative term that has been proposed is theomachy whereas Chaoskampf may be restrained to refer to cosmic battles in the context of creation. " Demons = Bad Creation. Chaos = Uncreation. Fallen creations and evil gods are often fire and darkness associated, while Chaoskampf creatures are usually darkness and water. Ungoliant fits neatly into the "Darkness" narrative, but also arguably the "Watery" aspect of space between the stars. For Christian mythology you have modern reinterpretations arguing it's just a literal nothingness which god deals with to create the world, but that doesn't quite fly with original translations that describe it as; "Formless, void, confusion, vanity, bewilderment" and "The waters". Which sounds more like a "Something" than a "Nothing", though "The void" and "Formlessness" are often associated with chaoskampf entities.

[@undertakernumberone1]

@@officechairpotato not quite. The issue is that TOlkien never really got to finish his work and the Silmarillion was combined and edited by his son Christopher. One idea Tolkien had (which i personally prefer) is that Ungoliant was the personification of primordial darkness. Others think that she is one of hte ainur that turned evil.

[@kirklanyoshinaga8953]

What confused me when I read that in the silmarillion was how a spider could eat itself. lol

[@thedarkknight2221]

If Shelob is THIS terrifying, imagine what her mother Ungoliant, the first, greatest and most powerful of all the giant spiders would’ve looked like in live action! She was so formidable she even beat Sauron’s master Morgoth.

[@charlessapp1835]

Aragorn treated Eowyn with respect for her wishes like a big caring brother she fell in love with who she thought Aragorn was. Big buff warrior. In the book, after Aragorn saved her from the black breath, she embraced the gentler healing side of Aragorn, and became a great healer. Gondor!

[@MrGaleanon]

Their hoofbeats were thunder, their spears flashing lightning, their number was legion, and their warcry was death.

[@matthewzeller5026]

23:48 Sam just beat a Gandalf/Balrog level entity. That spider Shelob is the last daughter of Ungoliant who was a primordial spider that teamed up with Melkor back in the day. Sauron was just Melkors lieutenant.

[@HaganeNoGijutsushi]

The way to solve the war was to bring Sam to Barad Dur, point him to Sauron and say "that asshole wants to hurt Frodo".

[@matthewzeller5026]

@@HaganeNoGijutsushi oh he would be running through Mordor like he was maxed out in Shadow of War. Just a shadow and then suddenly there's an army of dead orcs.

[@Mugthraka]

26:10 There is actually a good lore reason that they yell death. Now i'm going off memory here so i migth have some things wrong, but bear with me At the start of tomes the God of the Tolkienvers Aiu or something, created a Deathless world. AS time and more species came to be, Death became a neccesity and at first the Men and mortal races of Middle Earth din't fear death, cause Death was a gift to those that had a fullfilled live and to give them the opportunity to reunite with their loved ones in Passing, Death was a part of life, not his enemy. Morogth the forst Lord of Darkness, lied to Men and corrupted them, implanting the Fear of Death, and thus made them more susceptible to Corruption and Greed, since they would want to find ways to avoid death and make deals or work for the Lord of Darkness in excahnge for promises of eternal life. The Rohirims Yell "Death" as a defiant call, as a testament, as a way to say "We remember, and we will not be victimes to the Lies of the Darkness, cause we know the truth and in knowing the Truth, we do not fear it and are free of the Ghost of Fear and Despair" Wich is, pretty Metal as fuck.

[@consolescrub4031]

My understanding of that was pretty similar to yours where they're raging against the dying of the light. Sauron's plan was to divide and conquer using the men's fear of death against them. Rohan could have stayed out of the fight at Minas Tirith and thus guaranteed they would survive for at least a few more years at the cost of Gondor (and likely falling in the next invasion). By willingly accepting they will likely die for doing the right thing, it's a direct call of defiance against his strategy that men are selfish and would put their own self interest first.

[@devinwhite5064]

My understanding of it was that it was a bit more basic than that. The orc's main weapon was the ability to strike the fear of dying into their foes. And as such had no defense against an army that didnt fear dying and in fact made it they war cry.

[@shikiextend]

It's a lot simpler than that, the "Death!" cry wasn't an inspirational pre-battle speech by Theoden in the books. It was the now newly-king Eomer who cried it out after he was shocked to see his sister seemingly dead. Eomer was furious and led the Rohirrim on basically a berserker charge. Which was initially very effective but eventually left them vulnerable and surrounded by the time Eomer snaps out of it. It would have been a disaster if Aragorn hadn't arrived with his reinforcements from the south.

[@meewec2091]

in the book one of the guards helped pippin save faramir but because he'd spilled blood in doing so aragorn was obligated to banish him from the city of gondor. aragorn punished him by appointing him as captain of faramir's personal guard since he was appointing him as prince of ithilian and he'd be leaving the city to administer that part of the kingdom.

[@GuukanKitsune]

Yeah, clever on Aragorn's part. He upheld Gondor's law as expected... but in a way that saw Beregond REWARDED for his loyalty and willingness to do what he knew was right even at terrible personal cost. I doubt highly that Faramir forgot that by Beregond's doing he lives... so too do I doubt that Beregond suffered overmuch in his banishment to Ithilien.

[@danielallen3454]

"Very bright was that sword when it was reforged. The light of the sun shone redly in it, and the light of the moon shone cold. And its edge was hard and keen."

[@SigmaGuardian66]

Shelob is absolute arachnaphobia nightmare fuel. They did an amazing job with that scene.

[@lisboah]

Now imagine if they one day make Ungoliant appear on screen.

[@samwallaceart288]

Peter Jackson is deathly afraid of bugs, and he told the VFX people "I want you to trigger me"

[@transformersrevenge9]

And yet interestingly enough Shelob does not trigger my arachnophobia. She is not a big hairy realistic giant spider. Her design has more of a big or a crab vibe to it, when up close.

[@undertakernumberone1]

@@transformersrevenge9 she used to trigger my arachnophobia well enough. No longer though...

[@undertakernumberone1]

@@samwallaceart288 slight correction: PJ is arachnophobic, and demanded WETA to base Shelob on, iirc, the most dangerous australian spider there is. And yes, he also told them that he wanted his phobia to kick in when he saw it.

[@scalyvaporeon2232]

I absolutely LOVED how Gandalf gives Denathar a Eulogy as he runs off on fire before he was actually dead! XD "SO passes Denathar, steward of Gondor" XD

[@undertakernumberone1]

Denethor.

[@bromodragone8405]

@@undertakernumberone1 Well, he did run PAST them.

[@drakeredwingofficial]

*"So passes Denethor, son of Ecthelion..."

[@KnightGuardian-u4t]

19:13 so if my memory serves me correctly there is a KZbinr that broke down the amount of forces each side had at the battle of Minas Trith. Sauron’s forces had roughly between 75,000 - 95,000 orcs and evil men from the East. Gondor at this time since only had about 5-6k defending the city. They do have way more but Denathor in his despair and delusions refused to raise the rest of his army . If he did it’d be around similar numbers of Sauron’s ( so let’s be generous 80k). Now Rohan has roughly 6-7k Calvary army which is only half of their entire force( thanks to Saruman wreaking havoc in Rohan’s kingdom) So if we add everything up in this current battle here is the total for both sides : Gondor and Rohan: 13k-14k Sauron’s forces :75k to 95k And here’s one more piece of info that’ll really put things into perspective. This is only one battle raging right now . Sauron sent multiple armies to attack all the races of middle earth . The woodland elves(Legolas people were fighting a massive army the dwarves and men of Dale way up North at Erebor ( from the hobbit movies )were facing another huge force. All similar in size to the one happening in this film.

[@undertakernumberone1]

except that Denethor had raised the rest of the armies. Sauron's forces were simply overwhelming, and threatening the other parts of Gondor as well, forcing the fiefdoms to send less than the yoculd've mustered elswhere. THe Fiefdom of Pelargir sent no troops because they were under direct threat by the corsairs (which they even kinda have in the movie. WHen Aragorn sees the ships, you can see burning buildings in the background)

[@KnightGuardian-u4t]

@ true but that’s just one costal city. Gondor is the largest kingdom in middle earth . Even if that was the case they still had many more cities, towns and villages to draw upon : Cair Andros,Linhir, Ethring,Henneth Annun, Lossarnach, Anfalas, Belefas, town of Edhellond,villages bordering Rohan,Stybba, City of Dol Amroth, Lebennin, Villages and outposts : to the East Amon Din and Emyn Arnen, as well as many more towns and villages that weren’t named. So yes you may be right about Pelagir, but that’s would roughly take out only 5 -10k Still have 65-70k Gondor could have called upon.

[@ArcHawkeGamesandSkills]

The Ride of the Rohirrim is without doubt my favorite part of this series, and when I hear Theoden's speech I'm always frustrated I don't have a horse or a lance, b/c I would ride into that throng of orcs armored with a bathrobe and a spatula

[@5353Jumper]

Merry and Pippen returning to the Shire as "Knights of the Realm" makes me happy every time. They left as irresponsible thieving rogues, but with good hearts who saw someone who needed help (in their ADHD kinda way). And return as knightly heroes.

[@mjbull5156]

They left as callow young scions of two of the most important families (nearest thing to aristocratic) in the Shire, and returned as heroes in the events that ended the Third Age and birthed the Fourth.

[@corruptangel6793]

They were also kids. Age wise, Pippin was the Hobbit equivalent of a 14 year old and I think Merry was something like 17. I think Frodo was the only "adult" among them

[@HaganeNoGijutsushi]

It's why the Scouring is so satisfying in the book. They get back home and suddenly they're the biggest badasses around 😂. You can tell they levelled up during their whole quest.

[@chris0mega405]

GONDOR! 19:48 Trivia: The guy that Legolas shot accidentally was actually played by Peter Jackson himself. Not everyday you get to shoot your director.😂

[@miggmon]

but fortunately he did survive and was fully recovered by the time he went to get all those Oscars.

[@overlookers]

Albehrt Dreary of Bree, Spear Thrower #4 and Corsair #3- me favorite characters

[@cstains5543]

A little post movie FYI Faramir and Eowyn end up together and found a noble line serving the Royal line of Gondor. Also Eowyn is the king's niece. GONDOR

[@legionaireb]

Shoulda saved that for Part 3.

[@Marleyjr00X]

The Ride of the Rohirrim is the single most greatest cinematic experience I've ever had. The entire theater was going wild yelling DEATH!!!

[@ryanwight9116]

What I mentally hear every time in the ride of the Rhohirrim: “Then the Winged Hussairs arrived!” “Coming down the mountain side” “Then the Winged Hussairs arrived” “Coming down the they turned the tide” “Cannonballs are coming down from the sky” Janissaries, are you ready to die? We will seek our vengeance eye for an eye You'll be stopped upon the steps of our gate On this field you're only facing our hate But, back home the sultan's sealing your fate We remember In September That's the night Vienna was freed We made the enemy bleed Then the winged hussars arrived Coming down the mountainside Then the winged hussars arrived Coming down they turned the tide Storm clouds, fire and steel Death from above, make their enemy kneel Shining armour and wings Death from above, it's an army of kings Fans of Sabaton will know this song/historical event and how it relates so well to this scene

[@undertakernumberone1]

i honestly kinda hate how the song removes everything else from the equation. THe 3,000 winged Hussars were but a part of an 18,000 Horsemen Charge (so 3 times the number of Rohirrim!), puttig the nail into the coffin of the ottoman army, which had already been exhausted an dbattered fighting the Holy League infantry.

[@matsudoambition2509]

@@undertakernumberone1 Yep, the imperial troops were already engaged in battle with the ottoman forces when the cav charged in and routed them, but yeah both sieges in the movie are somewhat vienna coded XD

[@mrraziel4398]

Fun story about that spider (Shelob). Back in the first age, Morgoth (or Melkor) the first dark lord, god of darkness and Saurons' old master encountered a giant spider called Ungoliant, a creature from the void that devoured all light she could find. She and Melkor journeyed to Valinor the land of the gods so they could steal the Silmarillion's the three most beautiful gems ever made, so Melkor could fashion them into his crown. when they arrived Ungoliant devoured the light from Telperion and Laurelin, the two grate trees that illuminated Valinor (their remains would later form the sun and moon) and she grew massively in power as a result. when they got back to middle earth Ungoliant demanded the Melkor hand over the Silmarillion's so she can devour their light but Melkor refuses, Ungoliant then wraps Melkor in webs and try's to take them but he summons his seven Balrogs, among them being Gothmog king of the Balrogs and they burn away the webs and drive Ungoliant away. later Ungoliant hid away and crated many children that spread across the land but eventually her own hunger consumed her body. as the ages passed all of her children were either hunted or starved, all except one. Shelob.

[@charlessapp1835]

I have a great reaction for you to do. I haven't seen ANYONE do it despite being the box office success of 1969. "The Love Bug." It is a great ride with great characters and the practical effects are crazy good for the 1960's. I know you will love it! Gondor!

[@charlessapp1835]

When Théoden cried "Death!" He wasn't crying for the orc's death but their own. In the book, it says how he seemed to shrink for a second when he saw how BADLY they were outnumbered. (Around 50,000-100,000 to 6,000). Would he fight? Or would he lead his people into the mountains to live another day? So by saying "Death!" he was saying "we don't care if we die! We will do what is right!" Also, when his men say that they cannot break the lines of Mordor. He answers with "No. But we will meet them in battle non the less." So good. Gondor!

[@Vectorspace000]

Random fact about how they did the sound effect for the cascading skulls, in the paths of the dead. They used masses and masses of walnuts - which were only borrowed, and had to be returned after. Watch the extended edition making of - its amazing.

[@Wiscocrisco]

So if you rewatch the first movie you'll hear in the opening Galadriel say "Where Hobbits will decide the fortune of all" from the very beginning the key to winning was the "little guy" helping

[@Sylvia-t1f]

So, in honor of Gondor, here's a collection of misc facts/stuff about this segment: 1. Anduril is one of the most gorgeous and iconic swords in film history. WETA knocked it out of the park with all the swords, but Anduril is just on a whole other level. 2. A detail Alicia will really appreciate: For the scene with the pyre, the horse refused to get anywhere near the flames (for obvious reasons). So instead they had the fire in a different location and used a mirror to reflect the image. I don't remember the exact details, but I think as a film student you'd find the behind-the-scenes videos absolutely fascinating. 3. Sam fighting Shelob is great, but the finale is a bit unclear and it's one of my favorite moments in the books. Shelob is basically an eldritch demigod, and her hide is so thick that not even the greatest heroes of old could hope to pierce it. At the end, Shelob tries to slam down on Sam and crush him with her strength, only to impale herself on Sting with all her power.

[@mordirit8727]

The Silmarillion includes a rap battle between Galadriel's brother and Sauron where every line causes the elements to rise and obey each singer. It includes Turin Turambar, a man, facing off the father of all dragons with just a sword - and winning! It includes the insanely epic duel between Fingolfin, king of all noldorin elves, and Morgoth himself: Fingolfin riding through the battlefield with so much hatred in his heart against the Dark Lord that his armies dared not try to stop him and parted ways until he arrives at the gates of Morgoth's fortress, and he knocks on the doors, naming Morgoth coward and lord of slaves, asking why he fears facing him with so much fury that, for a moment, the god _did_ fear facing him. I say all that just to say... I _still_ think that, of every battle, duel and epic moment Tolkien has ever written, _nothing_ tops Samwise Gamgee's duel with Shelob to me. Ever. "Let him go, you filth," and with those words he topped every king, every great lord, warrior and demi god from the lore before him. Sam is king, above all else!

[@firestorm1088]

All these years later and the charge of the Rohirram scene still gives me chills every time. I’ve always felt that Denethor is meant to be a foil for Theoden. Both lost a son, both feel unworthy of their glorious predecessors, and both are facing a hopeless war against impossible odds. Whereas Denethor gives in to despair and gives up, Theoden chooses to ride out to that hopeless battle and go down swinging. Also, yeah when I saw Alicia’s reaction to the Watcher in the Water, I knew this was coming.

[@jjl207]

I saw these movies in theaters, and to this day, Theoden’s speech and the charge of the Rohirrim make my heart start beating faster, I sit up in my seat, and have to fight the urge to go run through a wall. One of the great moments in cinema. I had to stop myself from jumping up and yelling “DEAAAAAAAATH!!!” In the theater in 2003.

[@burrick2245]

One of the things I really prefer in the theatrical is what they do with the ghosts, it leaves off when Aragorn repeats "What say you?" and immediately moves to another scene, we don't see the answer, the corsair ships, we don't know whether the ghosts will fight or even really what happened to everyone. Then during the battle the corsair ships roll up while everything's going to hell and you're thinking "god, more backup for sauron's forces we're so screwed" then aragorn and crew jump out and you're like "???" and BOOM ghost army

[@HaythamKenway383]

12:48 Something worthy of noting is that the whole sequence of the skulls pouring down, Aragorn, Gimli, and Legolas running out of the cave, and then the King of the Dead appearing and saying "We fight!" is not in the theatrical edition, and in my opinion, this is one of the few scenes that's better in the theatrical edition. In the theatrical version, most of the goofy Gimli moments (which, while I do find funny, kind of mess with the tone of the scene) are cut out, and the scene ends with Aragorn saying "What say you?" and the King of the Dead laughing, leaving it unclear if they were successful in recruiting the Dead or not, which makes the Dead showing up at the battle a bit of a surprise. The next time we see them in the theatrical edition is when they show up at the Battle of Pelennor Fields (the scene with the Corsairs was also cut out as well, though I really like the scene in the movie), so we don't know they recruited the Dead right until they appear behind them and start destroying the Orc armies. The extended edition feels weird because we have two separate reveals for the Army of the Dead, but we already know they're with the heroes, so the reveal in the Corsair scene feels redundant. Overall, it doesn't affect my enjoyment of the movie that much, but I am not a fan of the Paths of the Dead scene in the extended version.

[@astrofan1993]

Actually, it would be kind of fun to see you react to the old animated LOTR movies, Alicia. But to clear up any confusion as to why The Lord of the Rings has a different style compared to The Hobbit and The Return of the King, it's because that movie (which adapts The Fellowship of the Ring and The Two Towers) was made completely independently of those other two movies and is actually unrelated to them. The Lord of the Rings was directed by Ralph Bakshi (famous for movies like Wizards, Fire and Ice, and Cool World, amongst others), and was released in 1978. He used rotoscoping for the animation (where they film the actor, then draw the character over them frame by frame, kind of like a predecessor to the motion-capture and CGI that they did with Gollum in the live-action films), but a lot of it was half-finished due to budget constraints, hence why many of the Orcs and even the Ringwraiths still look like they're still live-action instead of fully animated. He had intended on adapting The Return of the King, but plans fell through. Independently of his project, Rankin/Bass Productions (famous for those Christmas specials like Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, Santa Claus is Coming to Town, and Frosty the Snowman, amongst others) created their own adaptations, beginning with The Hobbit in 1977, and followed up with The Return of the King in 1980. Their version of The Return of the King is more of a sequel to their adaptation of The Hobbit than it is a sequel to Ralph Bakshi's film. Interestingly enough, the animation studio they worked with, Topcraft, was a Japanese animation studio. They also collaborated on the 1982 film, The Last Unicorn, adapted from Peter S. Beagle's novel of the same name. Sadly, the studio closed in 1985, but out of the ashes of that studio rose the much-beloved Studio Ghibli (famous for works like Howl's Moving Castle, My Neighbor Totoro, Castle in the Sky, Spirited Away, and so much more). But those movies form a loose trilogy of sorts, adapting Tolkien's most famous works (and they kind of form a cohesive narrative), so people colloquially refer to it as The Lord of the Rings Animated Trilogy, despite the one film not having anything to do with the other two. We wouldn't have another animated Lord of the Rings film until last year (as of this writing), when Warner Bros. worked with Kenji Kamiyama (who worked on multiple anime, such as Burn Up!, Medabots, Ghost in the Shell, Star Wars: Visions, the anime adaptation of Ultraman on Netflix, and Blade Runner: Black Lotus, to name a few) and Japanese animation studio Sola Entertainment (known for Tower of God, The God of High School, as well as the animated Starship Troopers movies, Invasion and Traitor of Mars, amongst other projects) to make The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim. Personally, I am looking forward to your thoughts on The War of the Rohirrim. As a fan of both Tolkien and anime, I thoroughly enjoyed the movie, despite what the critics had to say (they gave it mediocre reviews, calling it clichéd; I call it par for the course for high fantasy, especially Tolkien). My girlfriend, also a big fan of Tolkien and anime, loved the film. Even my mother, who loves Tolkien but not anime (mainly due to the art styles, especially with how they draw the eyes), liked the movie. I was actually planning on seeing it a third time this past weekend (this time, going to my nearest AMC Theater to get the limited-edition warhammer popcorn bucket and stein), but as my luck had it, I came down with COVID and ended up bedridden instead. It's more than likely that, by the time I am well enough to go back to the theater, the movie will already be gone, along with the warhammer popcorn bucket and stein. Besides, the movie has been out for several weeks and has only made $19 million at the box office against a $30 million budget. If you aren't aware, a movie has to make twice its budget in box office returns to break even, and at least three times its budget to be profitable. If it doesn't make twice its budget, it's a box office flop. So to not even make back its budget, that's a disaster. If anything, the movie studios and the theaters are losing money by keeping it in the theaters at this point. In fact, the financial situation is so bad, that they released the movie on digital just two weeks after it opened in theaters. Still, don't let that discourage you from watching it. It's very much a good movie, in my opinion. And if my mother (who, again, doesn't like anime) gave it her seal of approval, you might like the movie too. Do it, Alicia. Do it... for Rohan, for the Shire, and especially FOR GONDOR!!!!

[@dragonson04]

Fun Fact: Sam is the only one to ever wound Shelob. Immortal, Mortal, Wizard or anything else. Sam is the only one. Also, the door that is being held, is the exact same door as Helm's Deep's gate. They reused the set for that level of Minas Tirith.

[@J_Isak]

Fun fact the guy who got shot with the arrow by Legolas (by Gimli's interference) was this movies "Director cameo" he has one for each movie so he had so much fun with this one.

[@samwallaceart288]

The entire 20 minutes at Mount Doom is pure STRESS

[@mathewcooper8505]

Thanks for the reaction! Can’t wait for part 3. Love your thoughts on Faramir, he’s among the best written characters. The live action Hobbit movies are quite the mixed bag. The first one is pretty good… the next to are pretty terrible, maybe funny. Honestly I would read the book first, maybe review that. Or maybe try the old animated Hobbit, a much better adaptation than the trilogy. (Without spoilers: they tried to top LOTR rings, and embarrassingly failed)

[@EternalSentinal]

Kinda want her to play the Shadow of Mordor series and see how she feels about Shelob's glow up

[@ginaswaney514]

We love supportive fiance! I'm so glad that Alicia has such a good person supporting her.

[@SigmaGuardian66]

Having an army of angry ghosts fight for you must be quite the feeling.

[@KuroSensei2]

I'm just imagining Rich in another room suddenly hearing Alicia shouting "Sam!" and "Death!!" repeatedly 😂

[@SkillsLoading]

Jesus, it really is my birthday. Some of my favourite creators posting videos I'm super hyped for. Obviously Alicia didn't post this for me, she posted it for GONDOR!

[@cynic1984]

Well I hope you don’t treat your friends like Sméagol did on their birthday

[@SkillsLoading]

@@cynic1984 Well it is boardgame night tonight, hopefully things don't get that heated...

[@Ryplinn]

@@SkillsLoading "Give me the brick resource, Déagol my love; it's my birthday and we wants to build a road."

[@Twisted_Logic]

The Ride of the Rohirrim is one of the greatest scenes ever put to film, hands down. RIP Bernard Hill.

[@terral-ferma2731]

“Who is the ‘she’ gollom keeps talking about?” That would be Shelob, eldest (living) child of Ungoliant the green un-light. Gollom took a massive risk leading Frodo into her web because if she took the ring for herself then no one, not even the gods, would be able to stop her.

[@bitterzombie]

Fan Theory- when Gandalf hit Denethor with his stick, he gave him a concussion, which made him incapable of recognizing that Faramir was still alive, until he was struck again by Shadowfax, at which point it was too late because he was already on fire.

[@samwallaceart288]

I hope Alicia watches Dune after this. The two daddies of modern fantasy

[@jaxcraft2848]

1:51: Love the way you translate how Gandalf says things. XD 21:01: YESSIR, SAM! This reaction seemed a lot quicker.

[@squeezyjibbz7407]

I had a parent(my dad) who favored my older sibling over me. Mostly because they were a star athlete and a straight A student. While I was born with severe vision problems that stunted my development at a young age, on top of being diagnosed with ADHD when I was 7. I also grew up in the 90s when ADHD was heavily stigmatized. So not only did I not receive proper nurturing from my parents, but I was also relentlessly bullied by my peers and even some of my teachers. To the point that it effected my grades and overall performance in school. It got so bad that I failed my freshman year in high school because by that point I was so depressed that I just didn't care anymore. I was basically seen as the disappointment child, while my older sibling was an overachiever. So I strongly empathize with Faramir's plight. These days I have zero contact with my dad, as does everyone else in our family. Growing up it was either his way or the highway, and he somehow got it in his head that since he made more money than our mom, that meant he didn't have to do any chores around the house. So he spent most of our childhood sitting on his ass gaining weight while screaming at the TV(he's an Oakland Raiders fan) anytime he was at home. We all collectively came to the conclusion that he's a narcissist and now no one speaks to him anymore. Even his own parents and brother want nothing to do with him. Our lives are a lot less stressful and toxic without him around trying at every turn to intellectually dominate everyone because he always had to feel like he was the smartest person in the room. If I don't see him again for the rest of his life, I wouldn't feel any sadness or regret. What he calls love is just poison and toxic, and he's proven over and over again that he's not capable of changing. Only telling us exactly what we want to hear just so he can weasel his way back into our lives and start fights with us again. As soon as he gets what he wants, he immediately reverts back to his old ways.

[@L337M4573RK]

The actor who played Pippin is actually a very accomplished singer.

[@chrysthegoat9501]

33 seconds, new record Love your reactions and all your stories, 100% my favourite reaction channel P.S Gondor

[@KicktheSky34]

Lol your commentary on AragornxEowyn is like the reverse of that incel meme- 'You're so desperate for love you mistook me being a nice to you for romantic interest. Eowyn is the guy at the party serving drinks!

[@thegeneralmitch]

Watching Faramirs doomed charge to retake Osgiliath on Denethors orders and always wondered how many times Tolkien witnessed similar on the western front, A thin line of young men ordered to march out into machine gun fire with little to no hope of succeeding.

[@dz1_randomviewah]

Ride of the Rohirrim is absolutely one of the most goosebump-inducing moments in the entire trilogy. They did a phenomenal job with the scene!

[@Legionnaire_625]

"Arise, arise, riders of Theoden! Fell deeds awake, fire and slaughter! Spear shall be shaken, shield be splintered! A sword-day, a red day, ere the sun rises! Ride now, ride now, ride to Gondor!" Easily the best cavalry charge....maybe ever

[@ReaderViaNil]

Quick reminder, Aragorn is suppossed to be 70ish. He is like PEAK HUMAN MALE, but also, literally an elder

[@sarmadhabibkhan3036]

"Gondor calls for aid" "And Rohan will answer" 20+ years later and I still remember this iconic dialogue

[@brianlangstraat3066]

18:09 In the movies, I propose that Gandalf's lamest moment (coughing while smoking a pipe) is more awesome than Dumbledore's coolest moment (fighting Voldemort).

[@TMAC_burninator]

These movies are one of the best adaptations of the books that I think is possible, even knowing how much had to be left out or changed. They did a great job of keeping true to the spirit of the books. The Peter Jackson Hobbit trilogy is based on one book and had to have a lot of padding added, which makes those movies much less like the book. I wouldn't bother with the new animated LOTR content because it doesn't follow Tolkien's writing, basically being made up from nothing. And the live-action Amazon series is an insult to Tolkien.

[@sergeyromanchenko714]

26:04 You should see how people've screamed "Death!" in the movie theatre at that moment)

[@truthlord956]

It's actually funny you mention smeagol dying to his greed, when in the books him celebrating getting the ring led to his death but they felt Frodo needed to claim a victory so they made him push smeagol in the movie.

[@Vectorspace000]

It's not explained in the film but if I remember correctly, Denethor has a palantir - his use of it, seeing Sauron's growing might, led him to believe Sauron would win. Then he saw Frodo captured, and knowing Frodo had the Ring, believed all was lost and so went mad. That's the downside of the palantirs - they always show you the truth, but only just enough that you can easily misinterpret what you see. Not that that excused anything Denethor did.

[@Mert_Yanik]

For it is said in old lore, 'The hands of the king are the hands of a healer.' And so the rightful king could ever be known.

[@marcusc9931]

26:12 Suddenly, the king cried to Snowmane and the horse sprang away. Behind him his banner blew in the wind, white horse upon a field of green, but he outpaced it. After him thundered the knights of his house, but he was ever before them. Éomer rode there, the white horsetail on his helm floating in his speed, and the front of the first éored roared like a breaker foaming to the shore, but Théoden could not be over taken. Fey he seemed, or the battle fury of his fathers ran like new fire within his veins, and he was borne up on Snowmane like a God of old, even as Oromë the Great in the battle of the Valar when the world was young. His golden shield was uncovered, and lo! it shown like an image of the sun, and the grass flamed into green about the white feet of his steed. For morning came, morning and a wind from the sea; and darkness was removed, and the hosts of Mordor wailed, and terror took them, and they fled, and died, and the hooves of wrath overtook them. And then all the host of Rohan burst into song, and they sang as they slew, for the joy of battle was on them, and the sound of their singing that was fair and terrible came even to the City.”

[@Matej_Sojka]

Lots of people claim this is the greatest book adaptation of all time. I vehemently disagree specifically of how the movie treats Denethor. Faramir that you like so much is the exact copy of Denethor when he was younger. He looks at his son and he sees all his own faults. In the books he was a competent ruler, greatest of his age before Aragorn and had to shoulder defending the entire West of Middle-Earth while all of Gondors allies screwed off and self destructed during his life time. Add to that the fact he had to wrestle with Sauron in order to get actionable intelligence trough Palantír and it is no wonder he was messed up. He sent out Faramir to buy the city time to finish preparations for the siege because no one else could have handled the men and horses in presence of Nazgúl. It was only after he came back injured and he saw it as futile due to Palantír showing him more reinforcements for Mrodor coming that he lost his hope and mind. Ironically it was the black ships coming with Gondorians from coastal regions led by Aragorn, not ghosts that he saw, but he did not know that. Denethor was just as tragic character as Boromir, yet the movie audiences are never shown his good side.

[@jonmercano1138]

Not once have I ever heard someone place even partial blame on Aragorn for Eowyn falling for him. That’s just how he be, he doesn’t mean for it to happen! 😂 The theatrical actually cuts out the ghosts agreeing to fight and the takeover of the ships. You don’t know if we got the ghosts until the ships arrive to the battle I have to imagine the guards that were helping Denethor were thinking “Hey, sorry if you are still alive, Faramir, but this is our chance to be rid of your dad. We’ll build you a statue and name a room after you.” I’m down for The Hobbit trilogy

[@nikgokuhil]

Theoden's speech is my fav of all the LotR speeches

[@richardbarnes4196]

Yes, Elrond is *babygirl*

[@gabthegreat01]

Saurons’ army relied on the fear of death within mens’ hearts. In comes Theoden and the Rohirimm charging in and embracing it!

[@zeroherrera]

Definitely continue watching the series with the Hobbit. It obviously doesn't have the same feel or weight as Lord of the Rings, but it never could. It's still a great ride with impeccable casting and great music.

[@jjhoops023]

By the time you see these comments im sure you already know, buuuuuuut LOTR: The Return of the King, was the first Sci-fi / Fantasy movie to EVER win Best Picture at the Oscars. In fact it was nominated for 11 Oscars and it won ALL OF THEM

[@Maxisamo1]

Fun fact about the Ride of the Rohirrim, most of the riders were women irl because they couldn't find enough trained male horseriders So most of those riders are women in beards

[@HaganeNoGijutsushi]

28:30 "I'm sorry master Meriadoc, I was not familiar with your game."

[@cmtosh2409]

16:20 I’m so fortunate to have supportive parents, they didn’t judge me when I ended up dropping out of college, they supported me when I told them I wanted to move all the way out to Hawaii, no questions asked.

[@ThoraxetheImpaile100]

Gondor 18:10 Man, I still remember when I saw this in theatres, and the audience was just straight up cheering. Also, if Alicia lost her voice in Part 2, I imagine she needed a LOT of eye drops for Part 3 to compensate for all the tears.

[@ryanwight9116]

There’s a video of Tolkien reading the “Ride of the Rhorrim” and it is epic

[@Gfreak250]

We're in this for Alicia AND FOR GONDOR!

[@erik_greymane]

Fun fact: The guy that Legolas "accidentally" shoots on the ship when Gimli pushes his bow, is Peter Jackson himself 😂

[@NickGreyden]

18:08 This is what my circle of friends call the Gandalph ghetto stomp moment. If i was so inclined to have been a pirate back it the day, it is possible i would have edited in a countdown timer to that moment in the bottom right of the video for the thrid movie... if i was so inclined...

[@keechy181]

I would recommend giving The Hobbit movies a look at, they do have their ups and downs, but it does give a look into the events that led up the the original trilogy, including how Frodo's uncle Bilbo got his hand on Saruon's Ring of Power in the first place.

[@ccthomas]

Gandalf: "In matters of opinion and judgement, Alicia keeps her own counsel."

[@scalyvaporeon2232]

"THE WAY is shut! It was made by those where were DEAD......and the dead KEEP IT! The way is shut.....NOW YOU MUST DIE!" and Aragorn causally grabbed the Ghost King by the throat! was it because he had Andurrl? :O

[@tycol322]

I think the sword was inconsequential or at least less important than it seemed. I think the reason he was able to do that was because he accepted his destiny and the moment he received the sword he had sworn to take up his thrown and became the king of gondor in all but crown at that point.

[@kevthepoet]

Alicia's reaction to Aragorn getting the sword gave me goosebumps 😂😅

[@kevthepoet]

And again when the ghost army agreed to fight 🙏🏾😤

[@kevthepoet]

And again when she reacted to the ghost army agreeing to fight. And again when Sam rescued Frodo.

[@Alasdair-d3c]

Just a wee note but most of the riders of rohan you see on screen are women in costume as pj asked for anyone who could ride a horse for this scene.

[@danielallen3454]

"And in that very moment, away behind in some courtyard of the city, a cock crowed. Shrill and clear he crowed, recking nothing of war nor of wizardry, welcoming only the morning that in the sky far above the shadows of death was coming with the dawn. And as if in answer there came from far away another note. Horns, horns, horns, in dark Mindolluin's sides they dimly echoed. Great horns of the north wildly blowing. Rohan had come at last."

[@mrbaldy1665]

Who wouldn't fall in love with Aragorn, future king of Gondor. And to be fair to him, when he was being flirty he thought Arwen was leaving.

[@TrentRushton]

I think Alicia will love Smaug if she watches the Hobbit movies

[@KingAbbadon]

DO YOU NOT KNOW DEATH WHEN YOU SEE IT OLD MAN🗣️🔥🔥

[@sethgibson5148]

The only thing I say that the theatrical version did better than the extended was how they did the attack with the ghost army. In the theatrical it was a mystery until they attacked the ships, and it was awesome. In this they take out all the suspense in that moment, because you already know they have the army.

[@thedarkknight2221]

Whenever I’m playing video game and I’m about to beat a massive boss fight I just yell like Théoden *BRING IT DOWN, BRING IT DOWN, BRING IT DOWN*

[@robertjohnson7877]

Denethor in the books is a bit more tragic. There is a Palantir (seeing stone) in the white tower, and he was using it, but Sauron broke him.

[@Sairin13]

I loved that Faramir and Sam got happy endings, they deserved it

[@IndyRead]

The scene you paused at is one of my favorites in the whole trilogy, I just love Gandalf’s words to Pippin. For Gondor!

[@CeltiesSin]

“I wonder who She is -NYONYONYONYONYO!” 🤣 Edit: the battle for Gondor is such a huge part of this movie that I wasn’t sure where you’d be pausing. I’m just like “where’s even a good spot? Maybe when Rohan shows up? Nope she’s still goin” lol

[@Sylvia-t1f]

So, one of my biggest gripes with the movies (which pales in comparison to my love of them, especially everything else in Gondor), is how they handle Denethor. Denethor isn't anywhere near as much of a dick. He operates the defense of the city incredibly competently (and has been basically all his life). When Faramir is grievously wounded (which notably is from the Nazgul in the books and basically a death sentence if it isn't for stuff later), he is on the verge of losing hope but still holds on for a little bit. At which point he goes to look into the palantir. Unlike Saruman, Denethor's will was too strong for Sauron to break and control his use of the seeing stone (and besides, Sauron was kinda busy with the war right now), so Denethor is able to freely look for a sign that there is still hope. Instead he sees the fleet of corsair ships approaching, Sauron's massive reserve army still waiting in Mordor ready for another war, the other realms of Middle Earth under simultaneous siege and, it's heavily implied, Frodo captured in Cirith Ungol. Denethor snaps because all hope is lost. Sauron is holding all the cards and even if by some miracle they win today it means nothing because Sauron still has plenty of troops. He tries to burn himself and Faramir to spare them the long slow death they'll otherwise have at the hands of Sauron's minions (and Faramir will have regardless at this point, sans an inhumanly skilled healer). I don't remember if it's stated explicitly, but I interpret the choice of burning specifically as to deny him their corpses as trophies to make a mockery of. The point of all this circles back to a core theme of the series: There is always hope. Even when everything seems darkest, there will always be a glimmer that no darkness can touch.