September 15, 2003

Elves and Less Balrogs
Tuor

Well, I was going to write about eagles, but I think Foxy and Bob Praz got it right. So, I guess I’ll write about elves. The greatest elf, in terms of accomplishments, for me is Feanor. He was one of the elves that created the silmarils (correct me if I’m wrong, I don’t have my books with me) and also part of the group that enacted the Curse of the Noldor. Said curse was also ONE of the reasons for several of the wars against Melkor. Though I’m sure Melkor would have been just as popular without stealing the silmarils.

Annatar, I concede defeat on the balrog’s weapons. I only knew what its weapons were, not where they came from. If I’ve read the book that contains the theft of its weapons, I must have missed it. I do like the way PJ’s balrog looks better than others I’ve seen (example: in the Hildebrandt gallery-it’s the link right above Lilly’s poll). Now that I’ve thought about it, the books actually say balrogs are beings “wreathed in” shadow and flame, not “of” shadow and flame. This makes more sense, as it would be hard to stab something that isn’t even solid. And I still think balrogs, at least one anyway, have wings.