 “[The face] belonged to a large Man-like, almost Troll-like, figure, at least fourteen foot high, very sturdy, with a tall head, and hardly andy neck. Whether it was clad in stuff like green and grey bark, or whether that was its hide, was difficult to say.” |
Treebeard
Wow, this is good!
We see now that Merry and Pippin’s road too has been decided by fate.
But how sad! I mean what hope do the Ents and trees have? Most likely they all march to their doom, and Treebeard knows it. It’s just so sad.
The Ents are such a cool race, with such a long history… although like Hobbits they aren’t mentioned in the Silmarillion. Did Tolkien ever draw the Ents? Cause even with his rich description I have a hard time picturing them.
Treebeard and his house are among the most enchanting/magical things in the story so far. I really love it–but it’s odd that Pippin and Merry are the only ones of our original party to experience it. They’ve been so minor till now. But no longer! For without them, the Ents would not have been roused to war, or at least not so soon. And timing is everything to Tolkien.
Very intriguing indeed is some of the new information we get from Treebeard. The relationship between Orcs and Elves is hinted at for the first time in the Lord of the Rings. Then, we learn that Ents are the thought behind Trolls and that Wizards appeared shortly after (I believe) the remnant of Nûmenor landed in Middle-earth. Could Gandalf and Saruman be Númenorian? I dunno…that doesn’t seem to fit. I still lean toward Maiar especially given Saruman’s abilities…not totally unlike the Girdle of Melian. Maybe after Sauron jacked up Nûmenor Manwe sent new Maiar to Middle-earth to help counter ballance Sauron’s presence.
In the end though, even with their tree army, it seems that the Ents are about to start a battle that they cannot win. If fire is their weakness, Saruman and his Orcs will probably have much to give them. And if they are destroyed, their race may very well go extinct. Such a bummer.
Till next time, keep thinking,
Mark-Edmond Howell
Kanazawa, Japan
far(out)
