Top 10 Mythic Creatures in Middle-earth

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Timestamps:
Intro - 0:00
#10 - 3:17
#9 - 5:31
#8 - 8:45
#7 - 12:08
#6 - 15:20
#5 - 18:48
#4 - 20:37
#3 - 24:26
#2 - 27:18
#1 - 30:26
Honorable Mentions - 34:17
Disclaimer: Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for fair use purposes such as criticism, commentary, parody, news, reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. All works used in this video (images, audio, etc.) belong to their respective authors and are used with permission or in accordance with the copyright holder's stated usage policy.
🖌️Art Credits🖌️
A full list of artworks, including links, is found here:
docs.google.com/spreadsheets/...
Thumbnail Art Credits:
"Gandalf and Balrog" by Xavier Collette: www.xaviercollette.art
Artists (in order of work’s first appearance):
1 - Rui Gonçalves: www.artstation.com/rui_goncal...
2 - Bre Melvin: www.artstation.com/bremelvin
3 - Donato Giancola: donatoarts.com/
4 - Greg Rutkowski: www.artstation.com/artwork/6gOW
5 - Raymond Gaustadnes: www.deviantart.com/shockbolt
6 - Jay Carpenter: www.jaylockwoodcarpenter.com/
7 - Joshua Cairos: www.deviantart.com/1oshuart
8 - Joseph Feely: www.artstation.com/joefly
9 - Nick Keller: www.nickkellerart.com/
10 - Ralph Damiani: www.artstation.com/ralphdamiani
11 - Justin Gerard: www.artstation.com/artwork/WLedN
12 - Andrea Piparo: www.andreapiparoart.it/projec...
13 - Maéna Paillet: www.artstation.com/maena
14 - Anato Finnstark: www.artstation.com/anto-finns...
15 - J. Csotonyi / A. Lefort: Fossils of the 2018 National Fossil Day Artwork (U.S. National Park Service) (nps.gov)
16 - Andi Luscan: www.artstation.com/andi-luscan
17 - Peter Xavier Price: www.deviantart.com/peet
18 - Ted Nasmith: www.tednasmith.com
19 - Turner Mohan: www.deviantart.com/turnermohan
20 - Borja Pindado: www.artstation.com/borjap
21 - Magdalena Katańska: www.artstation.com/magdalenak...
22 - Gerwell: www.deviantart.com/gerwell
23 - Sarah Weizhen Xu: www.artstation.com/sarahweizhen
sarahweizhenxu.com/
24 - Asha Venger: www.deviantart.com/kaprriss
25 - Jonathan Guzi: jonathanguzi.com/
26 - Mariusz Gandzel: www.artstation.com/mariusz
27 - HP Gaskins: hpgaskins?...
www.artstation.com/hpgaskins
28 - Mathia Arkoniel: www.artstation.com/hpgaskins
29 - Pete Amachree: www.artstation.com/summerpudding
30 - Axel Sauerwald: www.artstation.com/artwork/Za...
31 - Ducos Guillaume: www.deviantart.com/herckeim/a...
32 - David Alvarez: www.artstation.com/artwork/yD...
33 - Alystraea: www.deviantart.com/alystraeaart
34 - Even Amundsen: www.artstation.com/mischeviou...
35 - Xavier Collette: www.xaviercollette.com/
36 - Klaus Wittmann: www.artstation.com/klauswittmann
37 - Lída Holubová: www.deviantart.com/aegeri
38 - Lucife56: www.deviantart.com/lucife56/g...
39 - MGCoco: / mgcoco
🎵Music Credits🎶
Where required, a license has been purchased for use of music.
Epidemic Sound: www.epidemicsound.com/
Tracks Used:
"Follow the Falcon" by David Celeste
"In This Moment" by Gavin Luke
"Midnight Textures" by Silver Maple
Fesliyan Studios: www.fesliyanstudios.com/
Tracks Used: "Cathedral Ambience," "Tranquility," "Elven Forest"
Royalty Free Zone: / royaltyfreezone
Track Used: "Behind the Memories"
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#lordoftherings #tolkien #balrogs

[@a-shaman-head]

Confusingly sentient mountains (Caradhras) are deeply offended by the omission. You will not be allowed over the Redhorn pass.

[@Rick586]

I like the way Tolkien referred to his earlier writings as if they were documents he uncovered and translated and was still working on interpreting. It helps Middle-Earth feel even more mysterious and compelling :)

[@666Crenado]

As they will read upon our scripts, and say.. WTF?

[@cliffgulliver4626]

It’s really Manbearpig. I’m cereal.

[@heatrayzvideo3007]

Tolkien was amazing

[@heatrayzvideo3007]

​@@cliffgulliver4626totally cereal

[@GravesRWFiA]

I'm still of the opinion that the walking thing north of the shire was an ent, or more likely an ent wife, not a mis identified giant. a real giant in the relatively flat land would easily stand out but something like an elm tree?

[@estherandreasen366]

wow... hold the phone!! Someone actually acknowledged the fox from chapter 3???? This has made my... something idk what but something

[@jeffsnyder7290]

I second the inclusion of an honorable mention for the ravens that speak to the race of Durin and the magical thrush who communicate with the men of Dale. Great list.

[@thomaseubank1503]

ravens can speak in real life, "Nevermore"

[@jeffsnyder7290]

@@thomaseubank1503 Now that's a very Poe example.

[@greendragn]

Beornings i think are descended from Elurin and Elred grandchildren of Melian the Maia. Whose sister got changed into a giant bird by Ulmo. Melian or Yavanna changed Elurin and Elred into bears when they were lost in the forest. They also were taking in by the refuges from Dorthonian lead to Brethil by there grandmother on Berens side Emeldir. So they became the leaders of the Beornings.

[@GirlNextGondor]

That... is an unexpectedly plausible explanation, and I now have to reconsider all my headcanons.

[@istari0]

I like that idea!

[@Crafty_Spirit]

I thought they were sent to a farm where they could play all day long...

[@Neckbeardlevel]

I always wondered what the deal was with the thinking fox in chapter 3. I assumed it was a holdover from earlier drafts that were more like "the hobbit". But it could be Tolkiens way of showing that the animal's of middle earth are more sentient than most humanoids realize.

[@EriktheRed2023]

Possibly a bored or enthused copyist added a little something of their own at some point. After all, the original Red Book did not survive the long ages itself.

[@Rick586]

​​@@EriktheRed2023 Maybe Samwise added it in while telling Bilbo's story to his children. I doubt he'd alter the original text, but sometimes little additions like that stick around through oral tradition alongside the text itself, and eventually they combine.

[@anchuisneoir3973]

So the fox didn't make it onto the top ten? There's something mighty queer behind this.

[@owenb8636]

And WHERE is the troll's talking wallet?

[@ProjectRedfoot]

​@@owenb8636What does a talking wallet eat? Probably prefers gold, right?

[@armagodn]

Lol what fox

[@interestedparty497]

⁠@@armagodn The fox in the Shire that’s perplexed at the sight of three hobbits hiking at night as Frodo, Sam, and Pippen make their way to the house at Crickhollow.

[@Brungyslol]

​@armagodn a random talking fox has a brief monolog about "how queer" it is to see a bunch of hobbits sleeping naked under a tree. It feels bizarrely out of place to some readers; I see it as a kind of demonstration of how even the local wildlife knows that this adventuring simply isn't how hobbits operate, and just how counter to hobbit nature (even this comparably early and tame) their adventure is.

[@EriktheRed2023]

"But where did they come from, Grandad?" "Uh, spirits, probably. Now do you want to hear this story or not?" Thanks Lexi! Fun list!

[@sakomanlee]

Peter Falk as Gandalf describing the watcher in the water: Those are the shreaking Eels Boromir. Stop throwing stones in there! PS: now i wish we had Columbo the Grey. Uhhhh, just one more thing Denethor, when did you start using a Palantir?

[@bigsarge2085]

I always appreciated Tolkien's "monsters," especially dragons. Thank you for this awesome deep dive!

[@themightypen1530]

Tolkien had a way of making a world that was both fantastic and believable.

[@Pixis1]

I always assumed that werewolves and wargs were distinct but related creatures. In Fellowship, Gandalf mentioned both werewolves and wargs as being among Sauron's servants, suggesting that they're different creatures. Werewolves, as you pointed out, were either fallen Maiar in wolf shape or wolves inhabited by evil spirits. Wargs, on the other hand, are an especially large and evil breed of wolves but don't seem to have the capacity for speech that werewolves do (other than their own warg-language). Perhaps they're the result of breeding between werewolves and ordinary wolves.

[@pietersleijpen3662]

I was going to comment on the giant spiders. I would argue that from a story perspective they have much bigger role than giants or even trolls. Not only in the destruction of the trees, but also in Bilbo's and Frodo's story. They are also different from wargs/werewolves/vampires and their ilk in their origin. They deserve so much more than just an honorable mention ;)

[@beatleblev]

Ten thoughts in reverse: 1. If Morgoth ever had a Melian moment with a Balrog? a beast 'red of tooth and claw'? Who knows? What I do know is that if Morgoth has a "chip off the ole' block," it's Glaurung the Golden. The scales are different (and Morgoth wins if this is a factor) but it is difficult to tell who is the most egregious a-hole. They both turn the Malice dial straight up to 11. It also occurs to me that Glaurung knew that his Dear Old Dad, and that arrogant ass Turin's dear old dad could both see all the fun things that big G got up while roasting elves. He's the kinda dragon that would play "Jump" (Van Halen) to a weeping sister/wife. 2. Ents seem to be adopted Children of Eru like Dwarfs. They are the Children of Yavanna as Dwarfs are the Children of Aule. Eru is their Allfather, but Mahal is their Dad. 3. If Morgoth doesn't want to personally "expend" himself, as with Glaurung, he can order a subordinate to do so. . Annnnddd....if that Orc-demon goes down into the dungeon in Angband and (we will choose the more Tolkien term here and go with...) "breeds" with the tortured souls below to make a clone army then, why not? If it is his most grievous sin, that's a feature not a flaw. Does it make little brother, Manwe sad? Awww. Then Dad should have just given me WHAT I WANT! 4. Manwe loves birds. It's not surprising that the things he loves might take shape and be granted the Breath of Life. 5. Barrow Wights, the everlasting reminder of the Witch King's greatest accomplishment. If the Witch King ever chuckles, its at the thought that his "fell spirits?" inhabit the bodies of his slain foes and dress up in their stuff. I would lay down a Benjamin or two on a bet that there are Morgul-Wights in the Tower of Dark Sorcery and I would also guess that Aragorn thinks so too. 6. Because I have run RPGs with all of these creatures (The Legendarium is the hardest world to truly translate to an RPG, by the way), I have had to parse out the variety of canines. First we have Dire Wolves, as seen on Game of Thrones. They are big wolves used in this case by orcs. After battles, there are a lot of Dire Wolf corpses. If you have a Necromancer or one of his pupils handy, waste not want not. Do they shove the dead wolf's spirit back into its necromancy enhanced body? Do "fell spirits" inhabit the bodies of the dead dire wolves? Either way, Wargs! That leaves Sauron's pet project, werewolves. The Silmarillion covers their creation with the most claity. The werewolves and vampires are perhaps meant to be representative of the multitude of creatures, hybrids, failed experiments, and unspeakable horrors lurked in the halls of Angband and underneath the far north of Middle Earth 7. On the outer edges of the Legendarium is a lingering bit of Faerie animism. Badger Kings, Goldberry and her parents, and maybe even the grumpy spirit of Caradhras. I've always thought of these Maia as the construction workers of Arda that became the change they wished to create. Perhaps the skinchangers are their descendants? 8. If Manwe's love for avians incarnates itself as Giant Eagles, it would also not surprise me if Sauron did not catch and corrupt several of their descendants. The corruption bit is always the cherry on top for Dark Lords. Presto! Chango! Fell Beasts. 9. I remember reading somewhere about Sauron having a half-troll breeding program with black trolls and the Variags of Khand, but I cannot remember where I might have read that. Any ideas? 10. Orcs, Balrogs, cantankerous Dwarfs, and Giants, come see them all on your scenic trip through the Misty Mountains. A multidimensional Mountain range found in many a world throughout Ea, subcreated by disciples of the creator. Book your adventure today!

[@fuseblower8128]

Melkor was into a lot of freaky stuff. He "... conceived in his thought an evil lust and a design more dark than any that had yet come into his heart..." when Luthien appeared before him. And then there was the whole thing with Arien. As for Sauron : he was of the people of Aule. Aule made the dwarves but couldn't give them independent life (Eru gave them that, being moved by Aule's desire). I wonder if Sauron did something likewise but by more devious means. Orcs were ransacking Beleriand before Melkor returned from Valinor but there's no word of them before he was imprisoned there. Of course, there's the whole "dark rider thing" where Elves were kidnapped and perhaps taken to Utumno to be turned into Orcs. Saruman was also of the people of Aule and a kind of colleague of Sauron and he was into Orc breeding too. Aule has a lot to answer for 😁 I like to think the (World of Warcraft) Gnomes were created by Sauron as his little helpers and in mockery of the Dwarves, prompting Melkor to comment that Sauron's mocking leaves a lot to be desired 😅

[@that1otherJake]

You are definitely one of my top five favorite tolkien lore enthusiasts. Thank you so much for making this video, it was a blast to listen to.

[@Rakhamon]

Great video. I always thought Tolkien's description of the winged steeds of the nazgul to be inspired by the public fascination with the proper description and mass media appearances of pterodactyls in the Victorian era. Apart from Conan Doyle's famous "The Lost World" there were MANY stories of varying quality about humans encountering pterosaurs, and it's always struck me that maybe Tolkien read some of the British ones or read some article or other about them when he was young. He was certainly of the right generation for it. A small note on "skin-changing". This is an established mythic concept in the Scandinavian myth and legend that Tolkien derived much of his lore from, with gods and mortals achieving the shape of another by literally wearing their skin. In the (in)famous myth about the building of the walls of Asgard, for example, Loki distracts the giant mason's horse by wearing a horse-skin and becoming a mare, which leads to the birth of Sleipnir. That kind of belief remained up here for centuries after too, and is often the explanation for werebear stories from northern Sweden from as late as the 1800s. So definitely something that was within Tolkien's vast field of knowledge, I think.

[@htilden42]

the sheer scope of Tolkien's works and world is astounding; no matter how much Legendarium content I consume, I always seem to learn about something new, like that great orc captains might actually be embodied Maiar

[@carlcramer9269]

A fun quirk dragons have is that all the dragons we know to have been slain, were slain by humans. Well, the giant eagles killed lots of them during the drowning of Beleriand, but otherwise all tolkinian dragons I have heard of being slain were slain by humans, not elves or dwarves. Dwarf metal masks protect against dragonfire, and the dwarfs could drive a dragon back, but are not said to have slain any.

[@Crafty_Spirit]

Dwarves (allegedly) killed a dragonslayer though, that is something to brag about ;-)

[@mjlamey1066]

Babe! Wake up and get out of the Renaissance faire! New GnG just dropped!

[@jarrodcarver9001]

Thanks, Lexi! Watching now!

[@larrykuenning5754]

@34:58 Crablore, "said to be a hideous crustacean warped by a dreadful oath taken long ago" -- wait, what? Why don't I remember this from any of the Tolkien stuff I've read? I mean it's not even in there with Fastitocalon or the Mewlips from _Adventures of Tom Bombadil_. Where is this in Tolkien? Maybe in that recent-ish release _The Nature of Middle-earth_ that I've read only once and then mislaid my copy of?? Or is this just old-age based mental decay on my part?

[@larrykuenning5754]

Oh wait, is this a fanfic take on Maglor "singing in pain and regret beside the waves"? (Never heard the crab version before.)

[@GirlNextGondor]

The story of Crablor seems to have originated in that ancient repository of Tolkien wisdom, tumblr 😆 I don't know *all* the details but it's become a bizarre joke among some fans that Maglor turned into a crab. He even has his own week.

[@Archgeek0]

@@larrykuenning5754Clearly Maglor just kinda carcinized over the millennia. XD

[@zimmerwald1915]

@@GirlNextGondor I suppose we now know the nature of the "everlasting darkness" the Fëanoreans invoked upon themselves.

[@MintyScales]

what's this? a package on my doorstep? why... its a clock-AND ITS SQUAD TIME!!!

[@squashedeyeball]

The legendary scale of GNG is mythic in proportions of sheer greatness. Bless you Lexi! Will watch it as soon as I can :) yes, there are several creatures that were thrown here and there, which are easy to miss :)

[@GirlNextGondor]

Thank you as always, my dude! Yes, many odd little critters sprinkled here and there with no explanation... left to torment the minds of the lore-scholars until the End of Days 😅

[@squashedeyeball]

@@GirlNextGondor haha that's part of the fun :)

[@tiltskillet7085]

I was outraged--outraged I tell you!--by the injust omissions of giant spiders and Crablor, but you did not let me down. :)

[@omarsalama484]

I just love this channel

[@DoktorApe]

What about birds besides the eagles? Talking ravens and the thrush from the Hobbit, and the crebain from LOTR?

[@emtiger3]

Wonderful, Lexi! I never knew of the crab creature you mentioned. I learned something completely new!!

[@paulgaras2606]

I love when you post videos on Sunday that are the exact duration of my Monday commute.

[@solitudessilentgroove]

Just noticed only 18k subs. Most underrated channel on here.

[@EriktheRed2023]

That's near to a doubling in six months. Things are looking up!

[@bobsbigboy_]

Thats a massive amount tho.

[@PenguinofD00mxxx]

Yes! I was so looking forward to your next upload, and so happy to see it today.

[@brendanmooney7607]

Crablor is evidence that carcinization exists in Arda, assuming the misguided oath you swore about your dad's jewelry makes you emo enough...

[@jaytucker7873]

Smite the like button? No no, I shall like the fox, "pass through the wood of youtube on business of my own. I shall stop for several minutes and sniff 'Mythic Creatures!' I think. 'Well, what next? I have heard of strange doings in this land, but I have seldom heard of a list without giant spiders on it. Ten of them! There's something mighty queer behind this.' I may never found out any more about it if I don't press that like button before carrying on!

[@valaraukar_595]

If the hounds of farmer Maggot are not on top, I'll riot! 👻

[@dominushydra]

Should make a Top 10 Thirstiest Characters in Middle-Earth.

[@estherandreasen366]

What would your top 10 listing for then be?

[@dominushydra]

@@estherandreasen366 there isn't a shortage of candidates lol.. Maeglin, Eowyn, Gimli, Daeron, Finduilas, Grima, Melkor, Beren, Curufin, Treebeard, Samwise.. in no particular order. There's a whole lotta simping going on in Arda

[@robertherring9277]

Awesome! Thanks Lexi!

[@primal1233]

Awesome video, nice job 👍

[@SethWilson]

This is wonderful! I don’t know if my own list would be in the same order, or even contain the same critters, but this is engaging and entertaining food for thought!

[@VikingerOnYT]

Love the way you explain things ❤

[@garyvance4172]

Great video.Of all the artwork in this video I have only seen one example anywhere else.Thanks for the new visuals.

[@squashedeyeball]

19:50 The Barrow Wights' chant also interested me. The prospect of who exactly worded it (The Witch king? Or Sauron himself?). And what other chants are there, used in places we don't know of, by beings we never knew existed. 35:55 That is true, alive dragons are no matter for jokes. If a dragon tells you something funny, chuckle with caution. For example, when you hear, "I will not part with a single coin", reply with a: "haha". Only if the dragon then looks at you expectedly, add "lol". Never assume that it's safe to combine "haha lol".

[@joannakeenan3355]

I always imagined the Kine of Araw as a supersized form of Arochs, the wild ancestor of domestic cattle, proportioned as the Mumakil are to elephants. Bull Arochs were up to 180 cm tall at the shoulder, and had substantial horns.

[@ellerose9164]

What about Shadowfax and his kind? Most fabulous horse ever deserves an honorable mention at least 🐎

[@twotonepostmalone2239]

Just click this video cuz I was watching some LOTR vids and I just noticed your channel name. Just subbed. Best channel name I've seen thus far😊

[@EriktheRed2023]

Ents clearly consider themselves a 'people'. Learn now the lore of Living Creatures. First name the four, the free peoples: Eldest of all, the elf-children; Dwarf the delver, dark are his houses; Ent the earthborn, old as mountains; Man the mortal, master of horses.

[@jasonbrown9142]

Definitely need Ungoliant, Shelob and her broods in Mirkwood. I don’t think vampires and vampire bats are intended to be the same thing, nor werewolves and worgs, though its possible the former are the Maiar infested versions while the later are diminished offspring. They clearly are not meant to be like Hollywoods werewolves and vampires, however. You left out the great worms mentioned in the Hobbit and the delvers Gandalf mentions in Moria though perhaps those are the worms also. The very fact that there is an Ettinmoors, an Ettin being a two headed troll or giant along with the reference to multiple headed trolls, suggests that Tolkein instended such creatures to exist. You also left out the Pukil (?) men, the dead of dunharrow, the spirits haunting the dead marshes and surely a few others. Maybe it needs to be a top 20 list?

[@GirlNextGondor]

Agreed! 😅

[@ajalvarez3111]

I second the idea of a top 20 list.

[@user-sd7ri9fy4i]

Nice work thanks

[@robertherring9277]

Also cool you know the Demiurge! Cool gnostic reference!

[@michaelsmyth3935]

5:00 that makes perfect sense. I also agree concerning Poetic.

[@matthewdunham1689]

Balrogs initially didn't have wings. They had to earn them. Because as teacher used to say, "Every time a bell rings, a Balrog gets its wings."

[@stnylan]

I am surprised not even a passing mention of the Mearas. Or the nameless things, whatever they are. I always love how Tolkien describes his mystical though. Shadowfax "foaled in the morning of the world" for example. The more you read the more you realise Tolkien was actually writing poetry, just pretending it was prose :)

[@ajalvarez3111]

Excellent takes. Maybe Unicorns were a little too cliche at the time?

[@TheDeadlyKnight]

Some random thoughts: 1. I think it’s interesting that Tolkien’s bestiary (& much of High Fantasy’s) exclude unicorns. Odd that such a fantastical mythos would lack such a widely-imagined, familiar legend. 2. Cheers for excluding the Great Spiders off the list. As someone who suffers a little arachnophobia, Tolkien’s are particularly harrowing for my imagination. What’s not to loathe? They’re gargantuan. They secrete a blinding, despair-inducing gloom akin to octopus ink. They possess immortality apparently, of similar sort to elves or flesh-incarnated Maiar. They have malevolent sentience. & Outer Space could’ve been infested w/ MORE of them. 3. I agree Tolkien’s wargs, werewolves, & vampires were likely not the prevalent humanoid versions; the hybrid monsters like Dracula & lycanthropes. I imagine they’re monstrous-sized versions of natural bats & wolves, like prehistoric direwolves

[@lhadzyan7300]

What about the NAMELESS THINGS of the deepest pits of Moria?

[@ghostdreamer7272]

You showcase some awesome art! Is there a list somewhere with the sources? Would love to save a few for desktop wallpaper.

[@GirlNextGondor]

My videos have a google doc with links to each artwork in the description. 🥰

[@boredguy1297]

I think what a lot of readers underestimate the number of Maiar and lesser spirits that came with the Ainur. We know all the Ainur, several Maiar, and three anomalous spirits (Ungoliant, Tom Bombadil) all by name (and one we don't know: the Gnawers at the Root of the World). The Children of Illuvatar were hand-crafted spirits, Which Aule "saw" in the song of creation and playfully copied. All spirits eventually embodied some physical form as they passed into Arda, but only the Ainur and Maiar could shed and change their forms at will. But despite all the ones that we know, imagine the flood of unnamed Lesser Spirits that followed the gods! Billions maybe? And, they all would have inhabited the world; giving rise to plants and animals, the greatest of which becoming the mythological creatures such as the Ents, Hounds, Horses, Giants, Skin Changers, and Eagles, and the spirits that were enthralled and corrupted by Morgoth would end up as Spiders, Wargs, Trolls, Vampires, Dragons, Balrogs and Fell Beasts.

[@Valdagast]

What if a female Beorning gets pregnant while a bear? Or transforms into a bear while pregnant?

[@EriktheRed2023]

Poor Lexi is audibly squicked by Túrin and Niënor. Let's not go there. 😆

[@Rick586]

I believe Beornings to simultaneously be humans as well as bears, so it (hopefully) wouldn't make much difference. Picture a pyramid like those at Giza. From the side it appears to be a two-dimensional triangle. From the top it looks like a two-dimensional square. It is, of course, a three-dimensional object so it contains both of those shapes simultaneously. Beornings are similar. They are simultaneously bears and humans the way the pyramid is simultaneously a triangle and a square. Beornings just get to choose which angle the world views them from.

[@gabrielblanchard3921]

Re Beorn and the Beornings, I have a theory. Consider a few points. 1. In one place, Tolkien says there are only three unions of the Edain and the Eldar (sc. Beren and Luthien, Tuor and Idril, and Aragorn and Arwen). But we _do_ have confirmation of at least one more union of a Man with an Elf: Imrazor and Mithrellas. (Perhaps "Eldar" should be understood in the strictest sense and Mithrellas wouldn't count, being a Nando? -- or perhaps even an Avar who came to live among the Nandor? a little like Eol among the Sindar, excepting the nasty disposition!) The princes of Dol Amroth still show Elven ancestry, hundreds of years later. 2. We also know that, though doing so is rare, Maiar can take on fully incarnate forms, up to and including reproducing with the Children of Eru. Melian is the go-to example, and her decision is given a kind of justification -- implying that it _needs_ some kind of justification -- as aligning with her fate as the mother of Luthien; but this is not said to be a unique power of hers, and the sending of the Wizards does imply otherwise. That said, Melian's union with Thingol is the only one we're told about, and it _sounds_ like it's the only one that was "approved." 3. We _also_ also know that Morgoth 'n' Friends (a) don't care much about the rules, (b) have dealt extensively with Men in the past, and (c) have interfered enough with Elves and/or Men to produce Orcs. (Even a being as comparatively low-power as Saruman successfully creates Man-Orc hybrids.) 4. Unlike Orcs, who seem practically incapable of repentance, Men are unusually independent of the Music; even the Edain are supposed to be descendants of Men who had at one point worshiped Morgoth, but had revolted. (Think, too, of Bor the Easterling and his people, who, despite being recent immigrants to Beleriand and long under Morgoth's domination, prove loyal to the Elves, _even in the Nirnaeth Arnoediad._) So Men have a definite spiritual flexibility which can show up in unlikely circumstances. So: could the powers of the Beornings be due to their descent from a, cough, _extracurricular_ union between one or more corrupt Maiar and one or more Men? These Men-Maiar would presumably be to ordinary Men roughly what Wargs are to wolves. We'd expect such beings to be hostile to the Free Peoples, of course, which may not seem to fit with the Beornings' general friendliness to other Men, Dwarves, and Elves, still less to Radagast and Gandalf (though you might see a trace of this hostility in Beorn's ornery disposition!). But of course the Men-Maiar might have repented, or a subset of them might have done so, and thus become the Beornings.

[@ProjectRedfoot]

I can't be the only one who breathes a sigh of relief when someone reminds them of a mythical place/time... right? lol

[@lukasbauer8783]

Well, the Ents certainly do count themselves as being one of the free peoples and the impression is that Gandalf and the Eldar do so as well. I think the Ents were a creation of Yavanna and adopted by Eru like the dwarves were.

[@LeHobbitFan]

I had no idea the Boldog were a thing, fascinating stuff!

[@Emperor_Oshron]

on the fell-beasts, "pterodactyl" is a common misnomer for any of the pterosaurs--you'll more often see it used for _Pteranodon_ (one of the most famous--they've featured in all sorts of dinosaur media, but you might specifically remember them from _Jurassic Park ///_ and _Jurassic World)_ than for _Pterodactylus;_ with the full context of that, Tolkien would almost certainly have been referring to that entire group of flying reptiles (NOT dinosaurs, though closely related ;)) rather than to any specific genus of them, and without _Quetzalcoatlus_ they would of course have coincidentally been much bigger than any known in Tolkien's lifetime

[@GirlNextGondor]

I had way too much fun 1) getting confused about the different 'pter' words 2) looking up images of nonpterodactyl pterosaurs and 3) looking up *size comparisons* of pterosaurs, shortly before vowing to never sleep again.... I agree that Tolkien's point was likely more 'it's like a pterodactyl but not exactly the same' and not so much suggesting that he had a specific alternate species in mind 😆

[@Emperor_Oshron]

@@GirlNextGondor yeah, the big contextualizing thing would definitely have been "scaly, like a bird or bat but not", which all neatly slots into both pterosaurs and fell-beasts ;) i'm a paleo-nerd, so i felt compelled to speak up about the common mistake with "pterodactyl"

[@kaptcha]

Oh hell yes. A new Tolkien channel summarizing in-depth lore with occasional clever, snarky jokes and comments. I knew I was in for a treat when I saw your channel name. Instasub!

[@GirlNextGondor]

Thank you! 😁 hope you enjoy!

[@tabby_cat]

Jurassic Park the prequel: Sauron got some funny ideas and now the Nazgul are flying around on Azhdarchidae :D

[@colindunnigan8621]

What!? You're doing a top ten list? I'm telling Rainbow Dave on you!

[@Swiftbeorn]

Didn’t you have a Rehabilitating Haldir video? I was hoping to watch it again.

[@Stresscat1]

Could you do a vid on Tom Bombadil?

[@weeaboobaguette3943]

Dragons seem like a bad investment. The resources sank into one dragon could probably have been used to produce thousands upon thousand sof orcs instead, which would be much more valuable, since they both seem to occupy the same niche, territory control, and have the same weakness, high moral armies and superwarriors. A dragon general could be a great investment though. You diminish to the minimum the risk of death, and have a near-invulnerable very smart, charismatic, fearsome strategist leading your troops. Morgoth's biggest flaw is mismanagement, he definitely got what he needs to succeed, as evidenced by the amount of Eru Ex Machinas in his defeats.

[@danwillburn]

Your username is epic. Well done.

[@ianlansley9228]

For once I like the explanations. You have read well. All the best. Ian

[@jdriley24]

"Tom Bombadil, whatever the heck he is" 😂😂 thank you, good to know I'm not the only one confused by him

[@Aettaro]

I've got two questions about Balrogs which I've never heard a good answer. They refer to them as 'Balrogs of Morgoth' does that mean there are Balrogs not of Morgoth? And secondly, does Sauron have any command over them? Or are they equal in power under Morgoth?

[@GirlNextGondor]

A serious answer to the first question would be that there's no evidence of non-Morgoth Balrogs (if anything the phrase might be a holdover from the earliest days of Elven history, when 'balrogs' ie 'demons of terror' were *not* understood to be 'of Morgoth,' and when the Elves figured it out they overcorrected for the sake of clarity and the phrase stuck?) I have to confess, though, that I think 'freelance Balrogs' is a glorious idea. I don't think Sauron has any particular clout with the Balrogs either, apart from them all being on the same general 'side.' From what little we know of the internal organization of Morgoth's armies, Gothmog, Gorthaur/Sauron, and Glaurung would probably have viewed each other as rivals rather than partners, and that attitude may have carried over post-War of Wrath.

[@wagon9082]

Good video

[@ishmaelforester9825]

They say Sam's cousin saw an Ent in the woods. He saw one. One of my favourite quotes in LOTR: 'Your Hal's always seeing things. Maybe he's seeing things that ain't there.' But that's Ted Sandyman. Maybe it was there.

[@GirlNextGondor]

I always think of Hal's 'walking tree' when Treebeard starts asking if Merry and Pippin have seen any Entwives around the Shire. They say no -- Treebeard should have asked Sam!

[@ishmaelforester9825]

@@GirlNextGondor Yeah, there was probably an Ent around Hobbiton. Entwife, maybe not. I always thought hobbits were definitely protected supernaturally. Not just by Gandalf and the Elves and Dunedain.

[@ishmaelforester9825]

How else could the Hobbits be what they are? The confounding of the dark lord, through ingenious humility

[@allisonkreutzberg6079]

Very fun video! However, I do wonder if Glaurung really managed to mess up Turin’s life anymore than Turin would himself 😂

[@mossfree]

Got the watering done and sitting down for lunch and a GNG vid. Excellent 🎉

[@nikhtzatzi]

Note about the "mockery of ents / mockery of elves" analogies . treebeard implies that the end of ents is gradually turning to trees. So i like to imagine they initialy didnt look like trees, But we meet them at their later days

[@specialnewb9821]

Elwing I think it was, became a swan though I think that's a Valar thing.

[@hglundahl]

28:58 Is Alystraea Swedish? I know of a Swedish youtuberess, who looks like she could be the model for Legolas in this art.

[@KipIngram]

Stephen King picked up on the crab cryptids in The Dark Tower - Roland lost a couple of fingers to a "lobstrosity" before he figured how devilishly fast they went from innocuous to ravenous. They wound up being good to have around, though, serving as Roland and Eddie's primary food supply for a large part of their journey together.

[@lukasbauer8783]

Tolkien in his letters claimed that dragons went on for many more millenia after the War of the Rings, almost "up until our own times". I see this as a hint that "Farmer Giles of Ham" indeed is part of the Legendarium, with Chrysophylax (Chrysophilax?) being a distant, vastly less impressive but relatively amicable descendent of Ancalagon the Black, and the evil, despotic yet inept and ridicuous king who eventually is overthrown by the titular hero being the last ruling descendant of Aragorn (Tolkien explicitely said in a letter that it would not take long for Aragorn's descendents to degenerate into mediocre tyrants but "Divine Right of Kings, Yay!!!!!!" I guess.).

[@permeus2nd]

24:45 so these are the ones that bug me the most as their popular description nowadays is nothing like their description in the books, I would say that their book description is actually far closer to that of a Ginn than the film versions more bat like looks (basically something ied expect to see on the cover of a heavy metal LP from the 80s, or if anyone is familiar with the black and white film “”night of the demon”” from the 1957 in the US it’s called “”curse of the demon”” the balrog reminds me of the demon from that film) it’s like how the Windigo now has looks closer resembling a dear skull but their original form was basically just a ghoul. To be honest while the film version is more monstrous I think the man made of fire and smoke is more disturbing and scary.

[@blacksage2375]

Dragons and their grandeur give us a glimpse of what could have been had Melkor been the Adversary but not also the Enemy, a constructive force challenging and pushing the shaping of Arda to glorious highs none of the Ainur might have achieved through harmony alone.

[@matthewhansen2126]

I made up an explanation for the Beornings. Radagast conferred on a Northman of the Vale of Anduin the ability to shape-shift into a bear in order to protect the Men of the Greenwood against orc raids. This was against the rules for a Maia , sharing “magic “ with mortals, but the power was conditioned by its being used only against the Enemy, never in the service of Sauron. Radagast, we know, had not remained “true to his mission” but he was still no friend of Sauron. Said Northman was either Beorn or his descendant, for the family retained the ability.

[@Y0sh1no5am]

Reason why Gandalf didnt wanna enter Moria was because of the Balrog but in same time he kinda had to. Coz Gandalf is the only maia in our ranks that has the power to match with the Balrog and I think Gandalf know that The Balrog must be dealt with. Just like Sauron, Balrog is a big threat to everything in Middle Earth, if that beast would escape Moria and join Sauron of all places it can cause devastating disaster. And by defeating the Balrog, Gandalf were granted a super upgrade. Which was good coz that helped him become stronger than Saruman and could save Theoden and Gondor.

[@Firmth]

Atavistic. Nice

[@danubiosalas4231]

I wonder how long did @GirlNextGondor took to decide the “smash the like button like…” image, considering all the smashing examples in the Lore. Gurthang, maybe?

[@lukasbauer8783]

Tolkien very strongly insisted that there were no multi-headed dragons in Middle-Earth (he basically treated the idea as proposterous), but he wasn't anywhere near as adamant concerning multi-headed trolls. "Pterodactyles" was often used as catch all term for what is more correctly called pterosaurs before more accurate paleontological knowledge spread more and more to the general layman public.

[@DCJMS]

smooth move keeping the names off of the chapters 😅

[@micheleandhenrycasavant386]

Very eloquent. Your essay reminds us of how much effort Tolkien invested in world building that we, the reader, take for granted.🤔🧐😊

[@lukasbauer8783]

The barrow wights I suspect were human souls (possibly in undead, zombie like bodies) enslaved and corrupted by Sauron and they may have been able to turn at least limited numbers of victims into more of their own number.

[@captainidiot4301]

Bruh. Is your end card Feanor and Galadriel at the kinslaying? That's... kind of dark, and kind of bloody savage.

[@jameshumphrey2345]

As usual this video got me thinking (insert dad joke about how that's always dangerous). Magical beings seemed to pop up for their own sake, or at most to facilitate a Perils of Pauline episode, a lot more often and conspicuously in Book 1 - whereas in the rest of LOTR, encounters with Ents, Shelob, etc. tended to have specific functions in the development of the protagonists' characters. I wonder if that was Tolkien intentionally providing a transition for fans of The Hobbit and letting the magical aura fade a little as the quest advanced? Or did he just get so progressively absorbed in the relationships between characters that he simply no longer felt the need to have a Bombadil or a barrow-wight creating twists every other chapter?

[@WaggaDaBagga]

In The Hobbit, where Bilbo Baggins (Frodo's Uncle) goes on an adventure, he is given a mission by Gandalf to be a helper to the Dwarves (home in the lonely mountains). Oakenshield and his men want to conquer back, since Oakenshield is king heir to the previous king (his father). But one problem remains the Dragon Smaug. Some creatures are very large and resemble giants, such as Azog the white Orc (wolf rider). And his son Bolg. They had an army. Azog is called: "The Defiler". His master is in "Dol Gur" and is called: "The Nechomanser". By Radagast the Brown. Gandalf finds out that it is their old enemy Sauron. Mysterious creatures on Middle-Earth are the following: Balrogs (formerly Maia). Made by Melkor (Morgoth). But not in the same way as Eru's children. Because only Eru can create life. But the first dark lord. Captured many of Eru's children, locked them up and corrupted them by torture and manipulation and suddenly they became Morgoth's loyal servants. Like dark spirits in flames. Others became Orcs of Mordor. Goblins and Trolls were also allies of Morgoth. After Morgoth was chained with the chain forged by Aule(a vala) and Valinor's smith. And thrown into a bottomless black hole. Took Mairon(Maia) a powerful fire spirit over after Morgoth's arrest. And became known as the second dark lord "Sauron". Who tricked Celebrimbor and later in Mordor forged a ring for himself and tricked everyone. And he became known as the Lord of the Rings. The Nazguls are the Ringwraiths, nine black spirits, who are only shadows of their former selves (Black Numenoriens). So Nine mortal men. Who transformed into Sauron's loyal servants and the deadliest of all. 1 of the 9 is known as the Witch King of Angmar. "The commander of the remaining 8 of 9". The black big creatures in the Mirkwood forest, were evil and ate fresh flesh like spiders do. They drug them with poison so that they sleep and look as if they are dead like a fish. Spin them into the spindle weave and hang them upside down. When they are hungry, they suck out the liquid inside them. They are probably the grandchildren of: Ungolianth. And Ungolianth is probably Shelob's mother.

[@deathshredking]

How about the wereworms and boulder throwing giants?

[@joshuapatrick682]

I always thought the Eagles were Maiar of Manwe. They seem capable to take on both Dragons and Ringwraiths with thier Fellbeast steeds for one. The second of which they are specifically referred to as the Eagles of Manwe as if distinct from the Kelvar that Yavanna brought in to being. Huan is another example of a Maia IMO but I could be wrong. It's how I always interpreted them mainly because they seemed to exist in a time before the rest of the living things of Yavanna were created.

[@robgau2501]

It's interesting that Sauron is a werewolf but a giant wolf is meant to devour Odin at Ragnarok. And Gandalf is obviously modeled after Odin.

[@waelisc]

They both take the form of wandering old men, but are there any similarities beyond that? Odin's ravens, missing eye, gathering of the dead, Odin's wife, children, his spear,... Gandalf doesn't share any of it. They both have magical horses?

[@robgau2501]

@@waelisc I didn't say he was Odin.

[@waelisc]

@@robgau2501 No, but I'd say "obviously modeled after" is putting it too strongly for characters who have so little in common. I can believe Gandalf as a wandering old man is an homage to Odin, but their characters and mythological roles are chalk and cheese

[@Crafty_Spirit]

​@@waelisc Could it be smelly cheese? Like people catch a familiar scent but discover a different body behind it?

[@jacobvardy]

"... remember never to laugh at live dragons..." I wish i had remembered that about four months ago...

[@KevDaly]

Tolkien's vampires seem effectively were-bats: their distinguishing feature seems to be being monstrous bat-like creatures more particularly than blood drinking.

[@TheDarvec1]

I've always hoped the wandering tree in the Ettenmoors was one of the lost Entwives. Probably not though.

[@Enerdhil]

How about the Mewlips? What about Crebain?

[@Theorak]

Like the real world it is not better with the existence of unexplainable evils and monsters. But knowing that there are peoples that fought against them or creatures that are terrifying but good in nature, that makes it a better world.