By-The-Bywater: A Podcast about All Things J.R.R. Tolkien

Jared, Oriana and Ned appear live in Portland at Passages Bookshop to celebrate fifty episodes of By-the-Bywater and to talk about Oriana’s choice of topic: Peter Jackson’s adaptation of The Hobbit. To say that there was almost immediate speculation about whether or when Jackson would also adapt The Hobbit following the smash critical and commercial success of his Lord of the Rings films is to understate; over the following years there were further lawsuits, broken agreements, studio questions, planned directorial choices that mysteriously fell through and more besides that seemed to indicate it would be the biggest case of developmental hell ever. But eventually the films did start coming out in a similar yearly pace starting in December 2012, and certainly earned a fair amount of cash. Yet to say that the films have had anywhere near the level of widespread love and cultural staying power than The Lord of the Rings films is to deny the fundamental truth of how poorly these films have aged on several levels, and the various resultant impacts since, up to and including a literal rewriting of a country’s laws to accommodate the production. What were the core differences between the two sets of adaptations on a structural level, and how did that play out in comparative terms? What technical achievements were made much of in the run up to the films’ release, and what impact did they actually have? How did what should be a core relationship between the characters of Thorin and Bilbo get set up as a near love story, and how was that all ultimately undercut in the final edits? And really…Alfrid Lickspittle. REALLY? Show Notes. Jared couldn’t make a doodle for obvious reasons. But look here! Friend of the show and network Gabriel did sketch us! Big ups to Passages Bookshop! Owner David is a fine fellow and you should all check it out next time you’re in Portland. Not only was there our live episode but there was an associated live bingo game for audience members. (Some people got close but nobody got it exactly – pity, that would have been amazing if that had happened!) Oriana’s old podcast American Grift. It may yet return! Whitechapel! Steampunky, yes, but the drinks are great. Our first episode! Different days… The Hollywood Reporter story on Amazon Studio’s somewhat flailing ways, especially in terms of The Rings of Power. That suit filed by the fanfic guy. Where to begin. And if you want the back cover of his totally original book The Fellowship of the King, here ya go. (Debutante ball. Really.) Don’t forget Jared’s upcoming novel! Our Silver Call duology episode – and our Rings of Power Season 1 episode. RIP Barry Humphries , Jackson’s Goblin King. The Hobbit movies. Yup. That’s them. We’ve linked them before but the three parts of Lindsay Ellis’s analysis of The Hobbit films are really something special, a masterpiece of both analysis and reporting. Nathan Rabin’s old Forgotbusters column for the Dissolve. Ah the Denny’s menu. Testimony from one who survived The whole framerate thing was hyped almost as much as the 3D. And it was countered at the time, not just retrospectively… The opening sequence in Erebor is indeed a technical and artistic success. The escaping Goblin-town sequence…is not. The barrel escape definitely isn’t. Dune and Goodnight Moon? Julia Yu has you covered. Thorin and Bilbo fan-art on Tumblr? Wouldn’t know about that… Thorin’s death scene with Bilbo? Very strong, very close in dialogue to the book too. The death scene after it? Well… The Tauriel issue. There’s a lot. Martin Freeman and James Nesbitt can indeed do something together with a sense of dramatic heft and charisma, as seen in this scene from the first movie. Nothing like it happens again. Lee Pace really just needed to do this. The Thorin charge to Azog down the flaming tree, yeah…and the music with it? Why did they do that? Alfrid Lickspittle. Just, no. (We’re sure Ryan Gage is lovely in his own right.) Yeah, Smaug the Golden was a nice touch. Support By-The-Bywater and Megaphonic and help us do more live events!

Jared, Oriana and Ned talk about Ned’s choice of topic: the Rankin-Bass adaptation of The Return of the King. When Rankin-Bass’s 1977 adaptation of The Hobbit was shown on American network TV, the animation studio was already well into planning a further effort adapting The Lord of the Rings in some form as a sequel; the positive attention and ratings success of their Hobbit doubtless made them think they were on the right track. But when Arthur Rankin Jr. confessed in a 2003 interview that their version of The Return of the King was “not a very good film,” that was an understatement to say the least. While their Hobbit had flaws but was still a reasonably entertaining, focused translation of the story into a particular medium heightened by striking background work from their partners at the Japanese animation studio Topcraft, the Rankin-Bass Return of the King, which aired in 1980 and which continued to showcase work by Topcraft, was otherwise at best a muddled mess and at worst just a flat out disaster, with scattered positive elements not offsetting the series of baffling adaptation decisions that look even weirder following the success of Peter Jackson’s version of the book. What makes the pacing of the film so incredibly bizarre and frustrating, and how did the decision to tell which parts of the story in greater detail compromise the wider scope as a whole? How does the vocal casting and the respective performances end up underselling the flow of the story as a whole? Are there any good parts to the whole at all, and do they actually provide any upside to the end result? And why, why, WHY in the world are there so many bad songs throughout – even if there’s disagreement over whether “Where There’s a Whip” slaps or not? Show Notes. Jared’s doodle – and it really is all that is deserved. Come join us in Portland for our live episode recording if you can! April 22, 2023 is the date, we’ll be at Passages Bookshop, and we’ll be there with our fellow podcasts It’s Just a Show and Game Show 1939! News of more Rings of Power casting. Good luck, everyone. Ciarán Hinds really is all that. But as mentioned in a post-recording edit, Ned made a mistake and muddled two There Will Be Blood scenes – the confrontation scene he talks about is absolutely stunning for sure, but the one where for the first couple of minutes Hinds just very carefully watches, smokes and takes it all in is the one nearer the beginning where Paul Sunday first sits down with Daniel Plainview. The UK National Archives post on the newly discovered letters by Tolkien. The Rankin-Bass Return of the King! It sure did return. Our earlier episode on the Rankin-Bass Hobbit. A lot of information on Rankin-Bass in general which also applies to this production is linked there, so we won’t repeat it all here. (And since we do mention Bakshi’s film a couple of times, here’s our episode on that.) Oh I think we all know about the Star Wars Holiday Special. But the forthcoming documentary could be interesting. The John Culhane New York Times piece from 1977 where Rankin’s quote about their plans for The Return of the King comes from. The 1980 LA Times piece by Charles Solomon mentioned is available to read via Newspapers.com though only via a free trial; its first part can be found here along with the awesome Joan Jett photo. If you really actually want to watch the Rankin-Bass Return of the King, don’t say we didn’t want you. Rick Goldschimdt’s interview with Rankin; the quote about Return of the King is towards the end of the clip. The one-album vinyl redaction of the movie from 1980. Want a view of that Seattle Kraken tentacle? Enjoy. Oriana’s fine with the orcs not being depicted in a racist fashion, Jared likes the design of Minas Tirith. We’ll take what we can get. The Last Homely House does look like it should be snow covered in the Swiss Alps or something. Ah the minstrel. Yes. Yes indeed. Where there’s a whip! (But yeah, some love or at least nuance for the orcs, we love to see it, as we argued in our own episode about them.) Barad-dûr is…odd. Neuschwanstein Castle, if you ever want to check it out. Sauron, though, that’s pretty interesting. And definitely not Mike Wazowski. Our Silver Call duology episode. Still a very strange piece of work. Bring on The War of the Rohirrim! crossed fingers Support By-The-Bywater on Patreon. Thanks!

Jared, Oriana and Ned talk about Jared’s choice of topic: worldbuilding. Tolkien is so heavily identified with the concept of worldbuilding that a map of Middle-earth represents the topic on Wikipedia, and his impact in both fantasy and beyond regarding how a world that is not this actual globe we live on is perceived and presented has continuing afterechoes that don’t look to disappear anytime soon. At the same time, what exactly worldbuilding IS is a hardly an agreed upon formal standard anywhere, and the amount of work that’s been put into developing a story setting in any number of media, not just that of fantasy novels much less novels in general, is vast, varied and takes many particular forms. Meanwhile, Tolkien’s own approach as to what worldbuilding is comes out of his own particular personal and philosophical conclusions, and doesn't always take the form of what a more stereotypical approach to the subject might be in the current day. What makes the idea of Middle-earth so compelling to readers entranced by his works, and what drives them to learn more about it or to elaborate on it in their own right? What other creators, in fiction and beyond it, successfully approach similar levels of immersion, and are there particular points of commonality to be found there? Are there particular points in Tolkien’s stylistic approach that signal notable strengths in creating the sense of Middle-earth as an actual place, and how much of that might lie in a difference between received perception and the reality of the work? And how much does Jared’s own forthcoming fantasy novel drive this discussion? (A lot – and we’re going to be talking about that novel a lot over time, don’t you worry – but also listen for initial news about our live episode in Portland in April!) Show Notes. Jared’s doodle – makes you wonder what else is going on in this world shown here… More about the HarperCollins Union contract. Well done, we say again. The Lord of the Rings musical is coming back! We’re still scratching our heads a bit. (Listen in to our 2020 episode about it.) The Watermill. It does seem like a nice theatre… Variety’s report on the Embracer/Warner Bros. Discovery deal and the prospect of more movies. A little more about Mike de Luca from 2011. Still confused about the overall rights issues when it comes to Tolkien in the first place? A handy Gizmodo explainer. The announcement of Jared’s novel! Due for release next year, and we’ll get you a preorder link when there is one. More on that whole Doug Liman/Bourne Identity thing. Ah, Hollywood power politics… Worldbuilding! Yup, Middle-earth, right there. Terry Pratchett, rest in peace. One of the greats. Sub-creation, how Tolkien thought of his own creative impulse ultimately deriving from his own belief in God as the ultimate creator. Our episode on “A Secret Vice,” Tolkien’s lecture about creating languages. NaNoWriMo! It’s a thing, believe us. Our death episode! (Very early days for the podcast and the format’s a bit different but we were still figuring it out!) The Chekhov’s gun principle. Oriana’s Star Wars comments specifically refer to Solo. Ioreth! There should have been more of her but we’re glad we have her. The ‘whispering to date’ Twitter meme origin. (Forgot what Chappie is? So did everyone else.) Ted Bundy – and yes we hope he’s not part of your narrative either. Our Rings of Power Season 1 episode. That did feel good to do. N. K. Jemisin and the Broken Earth trilogy – check it out. As well as: Frank Herbert and Dune! Ursula K Le Guin and Earthsea! Lloyd Alexander and Prydain! Steven Erikson and Malazan Book of the Fallen! The Dark Crystal, still awesome. “As you know, Bob…” The cats of Queen Berúthiel and Carn Dûm. Our food in Middle-earth episode. Enjoy talk about Roman sewers. And Amsterdam’s canals. M. R. James, so awesome. Support By-The-Bywater on Patreon, and thank you if you do!

Jared, Oriana and Ned talk about Oriana’s choice of topic: Gollum. For all the high adventure, heroics great and small and world-shattering consequences and much more that exists in Tolkien’s legendarium, arguably the most fascinating character he created in the end is his most racked, ruined and miserable, first encountered as a mysterious slimy creature living and lurking in a subterranean lake with only one thing of particular value to his name. Tolkien’s introduction of both Gollum and a magic ring into this world was, to borrow a phrase from the narrator of The Hobbit, a turning point in his career, the more when as he embarked on the writing that would result in The Lord of the Rings he realized he needed to rethink and redo the original, much more comically grotesque version of Gollum into a being living out any number of emotional and physical extremities at once. Arguably both this transformation and then the incorporation of this version of Gollum into his grand story became something he never quite got over, based on his various reactions over time as seen most clearly in his published letters on the subject. Why might the strongest scene for the entire Lord of the Rings be the simple gesture of Gollum tentatively reaching out to touch a sleeping Frodo on the way to Cirith Ungol? What is it about Tolkien’s self retcon of what Gollum is at heart that is fascinating still? Does the unspoken backstory of Sméagol and Déagol’s relationship suggest deep waters indeed, and how did Tolkien regard them both? And did Gollum really eat babies in the end or was that just something dreamed up by dirtbag elves? Show Notes. Jared’s doodle – just waiting on some fish as the endless, timeless years stretch on… Was there rain? There was rain. The HarperCollins Union strike looks to be over! Here’s a press announcement. Like we said, rumors, no more, about Embracer and Warner Bros. Who knows. The BBC Repair Shop story is a treat. Just hanging around Tolkien and Gandalf in Warsaw. Lord of the Bins! Well, good luck. Gollum’s touching of Frodo’s knee should be portrayed more in fan art, but maybe we’re not looking hard enough. But there is this at least. All letters quoted taken from the standard Letters of J. R. R. Tolkien collection. The letter to Eileen Elgar quoted later in the episode can be read in full here. Our episodes on Sam Gamgee and the Red Book of Westmarch. Andy Serkis’s retelling on how he first considered the Gollum casting can be found in both the movie documentaries and his own book on the role. Admittedly that Cat in the Hat fish is a punk. Grendel? Fascinating and monstrous character…but not Gollum. John D. Rateliff’s The History Of The Hobbit breaks down the history of the book from manuscript through its later editions, including the abandoned early 1960s rewrite. The Third Man is a great, great film. Were the elves spreading stories of atrocity propaganda? Well… Serkis himself sees Gollum through the lens of addiction, but the evidence that Tolkien himself had that in mind is scanty at best. The David Foster Wallace piece in question – one of several on tennis, his favorite sport – is “The String Theory.” (The exact quote: “It’s the sort of love whose measure is what it’s cost, what one’s given up for it.”) Déagol, shadowy and still crucial. Yeah sure, Midsomer Murders, but really it’s about Rosemary & Thyme as we say. And we do want that TV series we dream up. Goofus and Gallant forever. If you like. How associated is the phrase ‘unstuck in time’ with Kurt Vonnegut? Quite a bit. And go go go Everything Everywhere All At Once! Surely it can win everything. Support By-The-Bywater through our network, Megaphonic, and hang out with us in a friendly Discord.

Jared, Oriana and Ned start the new year with Ned’s choice of topic: the short children’s works Roverandom and Mr. Bliss. Tolkien has been described as a children’s author both with praise and disparagement over time, but a more accurate way to put it is that while he was busy working on his cycle of early Middle-earth stories with its high drama and tragedy in the 1920s and 1930s, he was also a loving father to four young children who often made up many stories and tales for them. The Hobbit itself has strong roots in this activity but whether it’s the Father Christmas letters, the original Tom Bombadil stories, the early versions of Farmer Giles of Ham or more besides, it’s a large creative part of his work in those decades. After The Hobbit was accepted for publication, Tolkien provided the manuscripts for, among other submissions, the stories Roverandom and Mr. Bliss for consideration, though the success of The Hobbit and the request for a sequel led him down other paths, with the two stories receiving separate posthumous publication instead. Is there ultimately anything more to Mr. Bliss than a series of random happenings that the titular character barely seems to be at the center of a lot of the time? How does Roverandom work in notable contrast to Mr. Bliss, with its deeper emotions as much as it has a sense of playful satire? How well does Tolkien’s art for both stories achieve a distinct resonance and beauty? And who wouldn’t want to get a newspaper called Ocean Notions, perhaps most applicable these days if you live in a pineapple under the sea? Show Notes. Jared’s doodle – a beautiful and striking moment from an equally striking story. Join the Megaphonic Patreon! And yes, The Greatest Story Ever Told…isn’t. At least not in that form. As before, support the HarperCollins union. A Silmarillion opera cycle exists! And has for years, who knew – not us! More about it, including a link to a fuller interview, via TheOneRing.net. The Russian Silmarillion musical, whatever it is? There are clips. Yep, pushing ahead with The Rings of Power. We’ll see… Roverandom! Mr. Bliss! Very different to be sure. Earlier episodes on Smith of Wootton Major and Tree and Leaf (with “On Fairy-Stories”) The Wind In The Willows remains top flight. “Goblin Feet”…does not. Marcel The Shell With Shoes On was indeed a good movie. We all know The Velveteen Rabbit. Surely. Well we all DEFINITELY know Toy Story. The Man in the Moon is everywhere! News of the World was a thing. (They shut down because they were completely horrible. Of course Rupert Murdoch was involved.) The tales of Baron Munchausen are wonderful things. (Gilliam’s movie is remarkable…but read this first.) Tolkien’s illustration of Roverandom and the White Dragon, with Scull and Hammond’s commentary. Our early episode on magic. Oh man do we love Ursula K. Le Guin’s Earthsea. (The Folio Society editions are remarkable.) Uin the whale. (He’s in this reproduction of Tolkien’s original 1917 Middle-earth map on the left in the layer of water below the main continents.) Tolkien’s illustration “The Garden of the Merking’s Palace” is a great riot of color in the best way. Support By-The-Bywater on Patreon and you can hang out with us in a Discord AND hear Ned and Jared talk about Charleton Heston!

Jared, Oriana and Ned continue our own epic trilogy with a look at our collective choice of topic: Peter Jackson’s version of The Two Towers. Turning 20 years old this month, The Two Towers built on the success of the previous year’s The Fellowship of the Ring, becoming another holiday blockbuster and continuing the overall story, as well as introducing the wider world to a variety of striking performances, among them Bernard Hill as Theoden, Miranda Otto as Eowyn and most famously and indelibly, Andy Serkis’s compelling performance as Gollum, further interpreted by the Weta digital effects team to bring the character to life as an animation. All three of us have our own distinct memories and experiences of watching it for the first time and we’ve seen it any number of times since, but returning to it as a standalone film – as with our previous Fellowship episode, we went back to the original theatrical cut – made something clear to us: it’s not all that great. Many different moments are absolutely indelible as already noted and there’s no way something like The Rings of Power can even come close to it, but compared to the absolute triumph of Jackson’s Fellowship, his Two Towers is the odd one out of the series as a whole. What about the structure of the story as adapted, filmed and edited meant that this might have always been the weak center of the sequence? What moments in particular are absolutely perfect – and what decisions are baffling then and now? Exactly how much Helm’s Deep did there have to be in the first place – and do all the decisions that go into the making of that sequence as being central rest on the best foundation? And how great does Serkis’s performance and the realization of Gollum as a character remain overall? (Answer: utterly.) Show Notes. Jared’s doodle. If that seems familiar, look back a year… Follow the HarperCollins Union Twitter feed for strike news. Andy Serkis reading the Silmarillion? We are intrigued, we are. Hail and farewell to Jules Bass. We do recommend relistening to our Fellowship episode; plenty of relevant show notes too. The Frodo Franchise is a very good read for sure. The original teaser trailer attached to the end of The Fellowship of the Ring at the conclusion of that film’s theatrical run. The first official trailer is good, no question, but the second one with the Requiem for a Dream music? Man oh man. Kazaa! Ah Internet nostalgia. Phew, that opening scene. What a way to start up again. We do miss the Huorns, even if they showed up a little bit in the extended version – but not by name. It’s a mix of perfect moments and ‘hmmm’ bits but the whole start to the Helm’s Deep battle definitely is key to the film. Arwen was indeed filmed at being at Helm’s Deep and there are background images of her here and there. (Lindsay Ellis’s essay the other month has a bit more about that.) Zulu, the British film from 1964 that inspired Jackson’s take on Helm’s Deep, is…a caution. (As stated, Zulu Dawn is more interesting in comparison.) The look on Theoden’s face after he takes in the explosion – that’s good acting. Edoras, an absolute triumph of set design, construction, visual effects and cinematography – so it was, so it remains. (Here’s a visit to the set area on Mt. Sunday from a couple of years ago.) Feel free to pick up a copy of The Deadwood Bible by Matt Zoller Seitz if you like, and appreciate Oriana’s work helping make it happen! Brad Dourif’s tear (and the scene overall). Wormtongue’s confrontation scene with Eowyn is in the Edoras clip linked above. The Eowyn/Aragorn blade clash/confrontation scene? Good, good stuff. (The warg attack scene, less so.) Where to begin with Gollum? Frustratingly the extended Two Towers documentary segment on Gollum doesn’t appear to be on YouTube but Serkis’s book on working on the character is easily available and a very good read. Do you really want to know about the monkey from the 1997 Lost in Space? Do you? Fine. Enjoy a video tribute. Now Gollum does act like a cat here, true. And the ‘yeees?!?’ moment remains awesome. The self-confrontation scene. You know it. “PO-TA-TOES.” The buildup to Gollum snarling “My PRECIOUS!” at Faramir is truly striking. David Wenham dealing with Van Helsing. The film that is. (And yeah yeah 300.) Gandalf returns and Ian McKellen’s hair levels up. The whole “give up the weapons/wink/’I TOLD you to take the WIZARD’S STAFF’” sequence – just a treat. The meat was always on the menu, really. “The Riders of Rohan” is one of Howard Shore’s most gripping pieces, still. “Gollum’s Song” is really good if you haven’t heard it in a bit. (Emiliana Torrini’s website will be back soon, it seems.) Sheila Chandra = next level. As is “Breath of Life.” Isabel Bayrakdarian = also next level, and so is “Evenstar.” “The Last March of the Ents” is another remarkable moment of music. “Release the RIVER!” Support By-The-Bywater and our network, Megaphonic, on Patreon and you can hang out with us on a friendly Discord!

Jared, Oriana and Ned talk about the inevitable: the first season of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power. Ever since By-the-Bywater began, the show’s creation, filming and buildup to its release has loomed large in our news reports and there were inevitable questions about it the more information was surfacing. But there was always hope that it could in fact succeed and add to the notable if admittedly varied canon of Tolkien adaptations already created over time. Suffice to say that there was a lot of heavy promotion, a whole amount of attention and there are definitely plenty of people out there who have enjoyed the series to one degree or another. The three of us…are not among them. Frankly, not in the slightest, outside of a few particular points and factors, and we try and bring them up as we can. But we’re not going to pussyfoot around the fact that we found this eight episode introductory season to otherwise be a near-unmitigated disaster and are still picking our way through the wreckage like the orcs after the ‘are you kidding us right now’ Mount Doom relighting trick. What choices were made by the showrunners to create incidents and particular character arcs, whether from Tolkien’s own creations or invented characters of their own, and why did so many of them fall so flat? What did the continuing use of non-standard English dialects mean for certain characters and how they’re meant to be perceived or understood? Who were the good actors who actually did something of note with their often confusing or underwritten or just poorly written character motivations? What if anything was in line with Tolkien’s general themes and approaches, and more importantly, what wasn’t? And once again, what in the WORLD with that scheme about Mt. Doom, good frickin’ grief. Show Notes. Jared’s doodle. See, if they’d cast a Celebrimbor who even LOOKED like this… Yup, second season of The Rings of Power is happening. Yup, sure is. Great. The HarperCollins union announces the strike. Again, please honor it. We tend to favor the reactions that look at things with at least a slightly gimlet eye. James Whitbrook’s end-of-season episode recap at io9 had some good tart points, especially on the unnecessary approach making the entire season a prologue or pilot, in essence. Published before the end of the season, Kathryn VanArendonk’s Vulture piece “The Fantasy Prequel Problem,” which also and understandably takes in House of the Dragon as well, also had some sharp observations. Undone is a really, really good series that Amazon has, indeed. Check it out. Repeating from the previous episode’s show notes: Ned’s Twitter threads on the time compression problem in the series with specific regard to Númenor. The actual destruction of the Two Trees in this clip is truly marvelous, an excellent brief summary…and as we say, it immediately falls apart after that. J. J. Abrams’s famous/infamous TED Talk about the mystery box/puzzle box approach he favors, which the ROP showrunners clearly have taken to heart. (We are not fans.) A recent argument about how the Star Wars prequels became more embraced. (The point Oriana notes about having a vision is brought up as a factor.) See also Rian Johnson’s 2020 tweet. The Bronwyn/Theo/orc duel in episode 2 and the Galadriel/Adar barn debate in episode 6 are very good scenes! But they were all too rare in comparison. Our earlier episode on orcs. If you want to delve more into the haphazard weirdness of 1980s/1990s D&D novels – and there are quite a lot to choose from – Rob Bricken’s irregular ‘Dungeons & Dragons & Novels’ series on io9 has been a treat; here’s the most recent entry. Caroline Framke’s Variety piece on the show is much more positive than ours but zeroes in on an inescapable fact: the lack of traction the show has had in terms of wider discussion/interest, especially in comparison to House of the Dragon. Star Wars: Andor! The Wheel of Time! The forthcoming Willow series! There’s so much more that’s just…better out there. Our episode from last year on Peter Jackson’s Fellowship of the Ring. Subscription required but we do indeed recommend Lindsay Ellis’s new video on Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings adaptation choices, as well as the Like Stories of Old’s YouTube video The Rings of Powers Has a Narrative Momentum Problem. The Spouter-Inn’s episode on The Two Towers – the bonus episode with Jared is forthcoming. (Their earlier Fellowship of the Ring episode, as well as the bonus episode with Oriana.) Support By-The-Bywater and our network, Megaphonic. Thanks!

Jared, Oriana and Ned talk about Ned’s choice of topic: cartography. To say that maps help define Middle-earth is to understate; besides the famous map featured in The Hobbit and also given as a key visual element with the book itself, one of two Tolkien drew for it, his own many other maps of Middle-earth he created over time, finalized for publication by Christopher Tolkien both before and after his father’s death, establish a visual sense of what Middle-earth ‘looks’ like in a broad sense, to the point of spawning numerous atlases, charts and online explorations of that wider world. But then again, cartography in a modern sense is a very Eurocentric proposition, and even the fantasy fiction cartography that Tolkien’s maps both drew on and then subsequently influenced in a massive way is very much a product of that wider influence, sometimes in very subtly skewed ways. How do maps function ‘in’ Middle-earth themselves, whether as plot device, something referenced casually or even seemingly not needed at all, depending on the character? What about the historical context of the British Empire and the sense of ‘discovering’ the world might have fed into Tolkien’s own views about how to create his own maps and charts, as much as his own knowledge of medieval manuscripts and maps in turn? How have the various visual interpretations of Middle-earth in other media used maps in turn in their efforts and to what purpose? And how is the long shadow of Middle-earth’s maps and their impact being interrogated by creative artists around the world as newer worlds are envisioned and explored? (And yes…we have some initial thoughts on a certain streaming TV series.) Show Notes. Jared’s doodle. We cover the Middle-earth globe for you. (When it became a globe.) Look we know, WE KNOW. For now we just recommend Gita Jackson’s piece “Whose Fantasy Is This?” Fuck racists and then some. Ned’s Twitter threads on the time compression problem in the series with specific regard to Númenor. Jared’s Patreon piece on the show a few episodes in. Cartography! It’s got a history. The Tolkien Estate’s map section on its website. The Tolkien Society’s closer look at the annotations that Tolkien wrote for Pauline Baynes regarding her poster map. Jonathan Crowe’s two excellent pieces for Tor: “Celebrating Christopher Tolkien’s Cartographic Legacy” and “Where Do Fantasy Maps Come From?” Barbara Strachey’s Journeys of Frodo and Karen Wynn Fonstad’s The Atlas of Middle-earth both remain enjoyable reads, Fonstad’s volume being especially key. Crowe’s Tolkien entries on his own blog, The Map Room. Stentor Danielson’s articles on cartography at the Journal of Tolkien Studies. Sally Bushell’s “Mapping Worlds: Tolkien’s Cartographic Imagination” from her book Reading and Mapping Fiction (you’ll likely need library or academic access to read it directly). Nicholas Tam’s “Here Be Cartographers: Reading the Fantasy Map.” The British Library’s “What Is a Fantasy Map?” A 1999 New York Times piece summarizing the increasing study and work being done throughout the decade working against the Eurocentric cartographic approach. A 2019 undergrad paper by Luke Maxwell on imperialism and Eurocentrism in fantasy cartography. The 2021 Dream Foundry panel discussion, “Fantasy Maps and Worldbuilding from a Non-Eurocentric Perspective,” archived on YouTube. Our episode on the Red Book of Westmarch, a putative source of the Lord of the Rings maps. There are indeed many online Middle-earth maps and atlases – including as mentioned the Minecraft Middle-earth. Other examples include LOTRProject’s Interactive Map of Middle-earth and Arda Maps. On a psychogeographical tip, Nowhere and Back Again might be of esoteric interest. Support By-The-Bywater and its network, Megaphonic, on Patreon. Thanks!

Jared, Oriana and Ned talk about Jared’s choice of topic: food in Middle-earth. As Jared says in his introduction, he was reminded of the subject when a semi-viral Tolkien tweet went around again claiming that The Lord of the Rings is in its various parts like the stereotype of recipe blogs: a lengthy and seeming rambling introduction to an eventual meal. But that’s not in fact the case, and the wider question of how food – and appetites and hunger in many different forms – is described by Tolkien in Middle-earth as a whole raises some interesting questions in turn. (We didn’t even talk about Smith of Wootton Major, come to think of it!) Where did the idea the tweet incorrectly claims come from and why do people apply it to Tolkien when it seems much more apt for the works of other writers? How does evil in general intersect with questions of appetite and destruction, and are there differences in how that is applied both in a literal and metaphorical sense? How does hunger play out in Middle-earth and where, and is it more apparent in some works than others? And what would be your preferred meal to join in on if you were given the chance? Also, we have another rather lengthy news section this time out because a certain series is literally about to premiere mere hours from now… Show Notes. Jared’s doodle. Lembas and stew, who wouldn’t want that? The By-the-Bywater Kitchen Party! It was great. (Catch Jared on the next Kitchen Party live on Megaphonic’s Twitch channel.) One last Rings of Power trailer. And it’s cluuuuuunky. (At this point there are endless features and promo pieces out and if we tried to track them all we’d seize up.) TheOneRing.net’s report about how Alex Jordan has joined the Warner Bros anime. The Embracer rights news, also from TheOneRing.net. The Marquette University exhibition J. R. R. Tolkien: The Art of the Manuscript’s home page. Absolutely go if you can get the chance; here’s links to the three associated lectures and other programming that’s happening. If you just want to buy the exhibition catalog, here ya go. Milwaukee magazine on the exhibition, plus two local TV news reports on it. Bear McCreary’s Rings of Power soundtrack is streaming on all services; unsurprisingly Amazon’s includes extra cuts. The J. A. Bayona interview with io9 with the weird ‘elves are political, men are melodramatic’ comment. Insider’s speculation/semi-behind the scenes piece on Amazon’s financial interest and stances in the series. There’s endless recipes for things ‘inspired by’ Tolkien and Middle-earth online. Tolkien Gateway has a few specific entries on actual food in canon, including lembas of course. Does Redwall have food? Does it ever. Kumis! Ma’amoul! Squid-ink pasta! Try ‘em all. Peter Jackson’s Aragorn with the deer moment from Fellowship. (It’s at 2:07 in this clip.) There is indeed a lot out there on fairy tale food as temptation – this 2013 thesis is almost titled that! Lembas, Tolkien’s Catholicism and the Eucharist – plenty out there as well! Here’s an essay/podcast episode on the matter. A good chunk of Jackson’s Unexpected Party sequence from the first Hobbit film. (Bilbo’s defeated look in his empty pantry is also at 2:07.) No, really, John Carter was a very entertaining film. Support By-The-Bywater on Megaphonic! Thanks!

Jared, Oriana and Ned talk about Oriana’s choice of topic: Legolas Greenleaf. Not originally planned as a member of the Fellowship – the honor was going to go to Glorfindel, who helps Aragorn and the hobbits evade the Nazgûl en route to Rivendell – Legolas ended up as a classic retcon character, introduced as the son of Thranduil, the Elvenking featured in The Hobbit, even though no such character was ever mentioned or described in that book. A brilliant archer who makes light of burdens, literally can walk on snow and isn’t above teasing his suffering companions – but someone who can react badly if his own privilege is ever questioned – he’s at once fascinating and more than a little infuriating, though his unique relationship with Gimli is one of The Lord of the Rings’s more intriguing subplots. What kind of universality can be read into the character as maybe representing what Elves are like – or is he simply his own individual self? How does he come across to the hobbits, who are the ones ‘telling’ the story in Tolkien’s own construction of it, and is he truly relatable to them at all? What does his profound change of mood when he nears the sea say about Tolkien’s deeper conception of not only Elves but how they considered time? And just what do we think of Orlando Bloom’s performance of the character in the Peter Jackson films? (And separately: did we have thoughts on various The Rings of Power trailers? Oh did we ever.) Show Notes. Jared’s doodle. Legolas would do that as often as he could, truly. Jared and Ned did indeed meet for the first time in Seattle for lunch at a Vinason location. COVID’s still a thing – don’t sleep on it. And yes, if you get it, get yer Paxlovid. So, The Rings of Power trailers? Which do you want? This one, this one, or this one? The EW story introducing the Númenoreans. Want to see the SDCC panel on The Rings of Power? Go nuts. Bear McCreary conducting at SDCC. (We still think this might be his masterwork.) Support the Harper Collins Union. A typical interview with the showrunners. Mm. The 1951 letter to Milton Waldman with the ‘other minds and hands’ passage. Our episode on Dwarves and the attendant stereotypes. We’re not saying this kind of thing is what WILL happen with Ar-Pharazôn but you know… Irish fairies and their kid-stealing ways. Adûnaic! If you’d like to learn more. Legolas…we’ve heard of him. Ms. Marvel was indeed a pretty good show. Our episode on friendship. Legolas shoots down the Winged Messenger. The Ask Middle-earth Tumblr on sea-longing. Orlando Bloom’s Legolas in The Return of the King. Just that. That ‘stars are veiled’ moment. The sidelong look happens a bit later. Yes, yes indeed, they are taking the hobbits to Isengard. Shout out to DayQuil! Support By-The-Bywater and its network, Megaphonic FM, on Patreon. Thank you.