The Fellowship of the Ring: Ch 1-4

[00:00:00] Okay, anyway speaking of lines that were in the movie, what was it? The second chapter or whatever it was had almost every important line that is in the movies and at least in the first movies smushed in just one chapter. Like we'll go over that when we go over that. I was shocked how many of those lines were in just one chapter. But anyway, we'll talk about that in chapter two.

[00:00:24] It's hard to compare to the movie because it's been so long. What did you guys think? How did you guys like the first four chapters? I loved it. Really? Yeah, it really did. I thought it was really good too. Really? I was surprised. I skipped the prologue. But I still don't know if that was the right call. But when I started reading the prologue, I was a little bit confused and cautious because I just didn't want

[00:00:54] you to get caught up in it and not enjoy it. Where I'm thinking story first, I want you to get connected with some of these characters and care what they're going through. And the prologue felt like it interrupted that. And it's good for people who already read The Hobbit and they want to know, well, how does this relate to that? But if you didn't read The Hobbit, that's not important.

[00:01:13] Yeah. And correct me if I'm wrong. He wrote it first. And then there was a big gap. And then this all came afterwards. That was kind of what I was thinking. At least that's what the story is. So yeah, Lizzie?

[00:01:31] I read the prologue first, but I kind of approached it like don't get stressed out by it. And if I need to go back to it to reference something, I will. But yeah, it was just like really information heavy and like a lot of extra stuff.

[00:01:48] It was just details on Hobbits, where they come from. And then there was like a few pages on pipe weed.

[00:01:53] Yeah, that was kind of funny too. I was like, whoa.

[00:01:56] It was kind of cool.

[00:01:57] I liked that. I was like, oh, okay.

[00:01:59] Wait, we're like smoking a pipe?

[00:02:00] Mm-hmm.

[00:02:01] Yeah.

[00:02:01] Uh-oh.

[00:02:02] It's their little...

[00:02:03] I don't know.

[00:02:04] Yeah, I'm glad that he was.

[00:02:05] And yes, at some point, we're going to have to get a pipe in here for an episode.

[00:02:08] Yeah, clearly. Yep. Absolutely.

[00:02:10] Some long bottom leaf.

[00:02:12] Do you want more than one or just one of these cookies?

[00:02:15] Well, every time I say one and then I'm like, I want another one.

[00:02:18] I'm going to leave it over here.

[00:02:20] Mm-hmm.

[00:02:20] Very good.

[00:02:22] Oh my gosh.

[00:02:23] Not right next to me.

[00:02:25] Oh, I just...

[00:02:26] I went...

[00:02:27] I went straight into it doing the same technique of

[00:02:30] just writing all up in the margins.

[00:02:33] Yeah, I just love that.

[00:02:33] And smaller margins, but I made it work.

[00:02:37] So I'm just going to see what I wrote in...

[00:02:40] Oh, I was so excited they had a map.

[00:02:42] Yeah, same.

[00:02:43] Instantly, I was like, oh yeah, that's part of what I think is going to make this book,

[00:02:50] this world feel bigger.

[00:02:52] Yeah.

[00:02:53] And I don't know what...

[00:02:54] Did we conclude what high fantasy really means?

[00:02:57] I don't know if we did, but to me, that's like a mark of high fantasy.

[00:03:02] When there's a map, I'm like, oh, this is a complex world.

[00:03:05] You're not just making things up.

[00:03:06] It might just be like a singular map of like one location.

[00:03:10] What?

[00:03:12] I love that there are maps.

[00:03:14] JK didn't have any, but it's helpful and adds to the world.

[00:03:18] Yeah, absolutely.

[00:03:19] Yeah.

[00:03:20] Even when I was listening to it, someone was like, do you have a map in front of you?

[00:03:23] Because it's kind of fun to follow, especially the Concerning Hobbit chapter.

[00:03:27] It's fun to have a map in front of you when you're reading that chapter because they show

[00:03:30] locations for where they were.

[00:03:32] All sorts of crazy stuff.

[00:03:34] And it was fun.

[00:03:34] Like they made mention of a bunch of random things in this that I like Googled real quick

[00:03:39] when I was doing it.

[00:03:40] And like the one dragon that they mentioned, I forgot where they mentioned that, but there's

[00:03:47] so much cool information about that.

[00:03:49] And I was talking to other people when they were like listening to it with me and the dragon

[00:03:53] is like the size of a mountain.

[00:03:55] It is, I think one of the biggest dragons in fantasy lore ever.

[00:03:58] Like they talk about the house of the dragon dragons and they're like, this one is like literally

[00:04:02] a hundred times that size.

[00:04:03] And then they said Elrond's father defeated that thing single-handedly with like the help

[00:04:08] of some eagles, but he like single-handedly beat that thing.

[00:04:11] I want to see that.

[00:04:13] That is nuts.

[00:04:15] Now we're sad about that because the dragons can actually destroy rings.

[00:04:19] Yeah, I know.

[00:04:20] Seriously.

[00:04:20] Good catch.

[00:04:21] I know.

[00:04:21] That was a great catch.

[00:04:22] Well, they weren't sure.

[00:04:23] I was about that.

[00:04:24] Because yeah, I was like, that's pretty intense.

[00:04:27] But they, I think it said something that took that option away or it was like Gandalf was

[00:04:31] like.

[00:04:31] There's no dragons left, I think.

[00:04:33] Yeah.

[00:04:33] No dragons left.

[00:04:34] Yeah.

[00:04:34] But then I thought he even said, but even if there were, I don't think that would work

[00:04:39] for this ring.

[00:04:40] Maybe you're right.

[00:04:41] Yeah.

[00:04:41] I think maybe it said that.

[00:04:44] Because it's the one room.

[00:04:44] But wait, but Lizzie, how do you like it?

[00:04:47] Prologue aside or included.

[00:04:50] It's not like incredible to me so far.

[00:04:52] Okay.

[00:04:52] I'm not like super hyped, but.

[00:04:54] You're reading.

[00:04:55] Like.

[00:04:55] No, I listen to this.

[00:04:57] Oh.

[00:04:58] Because.

[00:04:58] Well, that's the same to me.

[00:04:59] Convenience.

[00:05:00] No, it is.

[00:05:00] I know, but I was entertained by it.

[00:05:02] So I was just curious if the voices helped or not.

[00:05:05] You're doing the same one I am, which is the.

[00:05:08] Yeah.

[00:05:09] Andy Serkis one.

[00:05:10] She's doing the library.

[00:05:12] The old guy.

[00:05:12] Oh, nice.

[00:05:14] I'm trying to read it.

[00:05:16] I just needed to audio book it this week.

[00:05:19] But.

[00:05:19] Yeah, but you said good one.

[00:05:22] You don't even know the other one.

[00:05:23] I just.

[00:05:24] If John's saying that, I'm like, if it's like Goldfinch, then.

[00:05:29] Mm hmm.

[00:05:29] Maybe you're one of those people that likes like a dull reader.

[00:05:33] There is.

[00:05:33] Well, okay.

[00:05:34] I was attacking.

[00:05:37] But because it is easier for.

[00:05:39] It leaves room for your own imagination, you know?

[00:05:43] Nemo, for who's like our Lord of the Rings expert, as I mentioned before, he said that

[00:05:47] there's the best one is this person who did it independently online, who like incorporates

[00:05:51] the music for the movies into it.

[00:05:52] Ooh, that's.

[00:05:53] And so I actually want to check that one out, too.

[00:05:54] Maybe I'll listen to that for some of the chapters.

[00:05:57] So Nemo, whenever you have that, send it to me because I would love.

[00:06:01] Love that one.

[00:06:04] Yeah.

[00:06:05] I didn't use that as an insult.

[00:06:07] I would just prefer to read it anyway so that I can make it up in my own mind and like have

[00:06:12] my own imagination.

[00:06:13] Yeah, right.

[00:06:14] Right.

[00:06:15] Yeah.

[00:06:15] I'm not that creative.

[00:06:17] Although there are a lot of names that it would be nice to hear with authority, like

[00:06:22] how to pronounce them.

[00:06:23] Because I might be making things up wrong or at least like names of places and stuff.

[00:06:27] I think that's another reason why I like it.

[00:06:28] Because I don't get stuck on things.

[00:06:30] Yeah, true.

[00:06:31] Yeah.

[00:06:31] Just, yeah.

[00:06:32] If you miss something, you just go with the next part.

[00:06:34] Yeah.

[00:06:35] Yeah, but then I won't know anyone's name.

[00:06:37] If I just keep skipping.

[00:06:38] When we try to talk about it, you can catch your names and that's pretty much it.

[00:06:41] What about the E?

[00:06:42] That's one thing that if I came across somebody who wasn't in the movie, I'm like, oh, I guess

[00:06:45] they're not important.

[00:06:46] And then I was like, wait, wait, wait.

[00:06:47] That's funny.

[00:06:49] This is why we're reading it.

[00:06:51] Yeah, exactly.

[00:06:51] I know.

[00:06:52] Yeah.

[00:06:54] But let's get into it.

[00:06:55] Welcome to the podcast.

[00:06:56] I'm John.

[00:06:57] Jen.

[00:06:58] Danny.

[00:06:59] I'm Lizzie.

[00:07:00] And this is the Fellowship of the First Time Readers.

[00:07:16] Hey, would you give this podcast a rating and review wherever you listen to podcasts?

[00:07:21] And if you're listening on YouTube or watching on YouTube, can you give it a like or give

[00:07:24] us a comment?

[00:07:25] Let us know who your favorite Lord of the Rings character is.

[00:07:28] We're going through the entire series and we're very excited about it.

[00:07:31] And we're going to do the movies interspersed with it.

[00:07:32] So if you want, follow along on our journey of the Fellowship of the First Time Readers.

[00:07:37] We're really, really appreciative of your support.

[00:07:39] If you want to follow us or email us, you can find all that information on our Discord,

[00:07:43] which is r slash first time readers.

[00:07:45] Sorry, not our Discord, our Reddit, which is r slash first time readers.

[00:07:49] You can also join our Discord where we post lots of stuff about Lord of the Rings, Harry

[00:07:53] Potter, a bunch of other nerd stuff like Star Wars, which we're doing.

[00:07:56] So we're doing a bunch of other stuff as well.

[00:07:58] Go check out our YouTube channel, which is where we live stream all these.

[00:08:01] And we just do a bunch of other stuff.

[00:08:03] The YouTube channel in the new year, which is going to be 2025, is going to be a lot more

[00:08:07] in depth.

[00:08:08] We're going to have a lot more videos going on.

[00:08:10] We're going to kind of push into that a little bit more.

[00:08:13] So if you want some more nerd content, check that out.

[00:08:16] That is definitely for you.

[00:08:17] And then first time readers at gmail.com.

[00:08:20] And you can find all the other stuff.

[00:08:21] If you really want to reach out to us in any way, go check out our Reddit, go check out

[00:08:24] our Discord or YouTube channel.

[00:08:26] You'll be able to find us any way.

[00:08:28] Thank you so much for listening.

[00:08:29] We're very excited about this journey of the Fellowship of the First Time Readers.

[00:08:33] So enjoy these chapters, chapters one to four of the Fellowship of the Ring.

[00:08:40] Okay.

[00:08:41] So chapter one, let's all do a quick summary of chapter one.

[00:08:46] What is this chapter about?

[00:08:48] It's called A Long Expected Party.

[00:08:53] The 111th birthday of Bilbo Baggins.

[00:08:59] And quiz for you.

[00:09:00] How old is Frodo in the first chapter?

[00:09:02] 33.

[00:09:03] Nice.

[00:09:04] Well done.

[00:09:06] Only because we're right there, Lizzie.

[00:09:08] September 22nd.

[00:09:10] Nice.

[00:09:11] Love that.

[00:09:12] There we go.

[00:09:12] Crushing it.

[00:09:13] That I didn't know.

[00:09:14] I actually thought it was kind of interesting.

[00:09:16] They said in the beginning of the chapter, Hobbits come up age at 33.

[00:09:19] Yeah, that is interesting.

[00:09:20] That was a fun little tidbit.

[00:09:21] And it put it into perspective a little then why they look so young in the movies.

[00:09:27] Because I couldn't quite shake that view.

[00:09:30] I'm like, oh, I thought they were like teenagers.

[00:09:33] Like 20, maybe.

[00:09:35] So 33 sounded old until the end of the chapter.

[00:09:39] Or the next one when I was like 50?

[00:09:40] He was 50 years old?

[00:09:41] He was 50 when he said on the show.

[00:09:43] I know.

[00:09:43] That all blew my mind.

[00:09:44] Me too.

[00:09:45] I was like, wow, that was so off.

[00:09:47] Yeah.

[00:09:50] Just classic.

[00:09:52] I did write a note that there were so many edits because I read the notes on the text.

[00:09:58] And I was blown away by how meticulous Tolkien was in all of the words.

[00:10:06] And everything kept getting edited.

[00:10:08] But every time something was published, he would go back and change things.

[00:10:13] Because they would edit things that he thought were important.

[00:10:16] Little notes or words or letters or accents.

[00:10:20] And the amount of versions.

[00:10:22] UK and England.

[00:10:24] Or UK and US.

[00:10:27] Back and forth.

[00:10:28] It felt like he was spending his whole life just going between publishers and correcting everything.

[00:10:33] I love that.

[00:10:34] It was just kind of weird how much work he put into it.

[00:10:36] So much so that someone wrote a book just to keep track of all of the edits.

[00:10:41] And the journey of that.

[00:10:42] I will say, getting into this one, it is innumerably more detailed than anything that Rowling has ever written.

[00:10:49] Or maybe not ever.

[00:10:50] But the level of intricacy that he goes into with everything.

[00:10:53] There's just conversations that happen that aren't even needed.

[00:10:56] That don't really drive the plot along.

[00:10:58] That I feel like Joe Rowling would never have done.

[00:11:02] She's a great writer.

[00:11:03] I think she's a good storyteller.

[00:11:04] But this level of world building is fun to experience.

[00:11:08] Because it's like...

[00:11:11] It's a different reading experience.

[00:11:12] Where I'm more patient with the read.

[00:11:15] I'm like, okay, these things are going to happen.

[00:11:17] I'm excited to learn more about these characters.

[00:11:19] But even just random things that happen throughout this whole series and throughout the story.

[00:11:25] Like conversations that characters happen don't really have any significance to what's happening.

[00:11:29] But he's just building side stories out.

[00:11:32] Like the Sackville Bagginses wanting a bad end.

[00:11:36] I'm like, there's no real serious plot device here.

[00:11:39] But they're so annoying.

[00:11:40] And then he adds so many little comedic elements in the chapters too.

[00:11:45] That I was pretty blown away by the level of detail that he went into in this.

[00:11:51] In these first four chapters.

[00:11:54] Yeah.

[00:11:54] I'm excited to go into more.

[00:11:56] Agreed.

[00:11:56] Another thing from the foreword.

[00:12:01] That J.R. Tolkien.

[00:12:04] Maybe I'll just keep calling him Tolkien or J.R.R.

[00:12:08] He said it's not an allegory.

[00:12:10] So I thought that was interesting too.

[00:12:11] Because it felt like it freed me a little bit.

[00:12:13] I don't mind when something's an allegory.

[00:12:15] But then I feel like there's an agenda or you can predict something.

[00:12:20] So I love that he took that out of there and said any meaning you can find in here.

[00:12:23] Beyond the story itself is just happenstance.

[00:12:29] And then it got a little bit funny in general.

[00:12:33] And then into the prologue.

[00:12:34] Lots of details.

[00:12:36] But I was into it from the start.

[00:12:39] But do you understand the first age, second age, third age?

[00:12:43] Okay.

[00:12:44] I don't either.

[00:12:44] Not yet.

[00:12:46] I don't know what differentiates the ages.

[00:12:48] I don't know any of that kind of stuff.

[00:12:51] I'm curious if we're going to get it.

[00:12:52] I don't think we're going to get it.

[00:12:53] I think it's like understood that.

[00:12:55] Or not understood.

[00:12:56] I think he's just like threw it in there.

[00:12:58] It was part of his brain.

[00:12:59] This is more like of a story.

[00:13:00] I think the Silmarillion or whatever, however you say it, is how he divides up the ages.

[00:13:05] And like the more boring history of the entire series.

[00:13:09] Hmm.

[00:13:10] So maybe we'll get there.

[00:13:12] I kind of doubt it.

[00:13:12] But we'll see.

[00:13:14] Hmm.

[00:13:16] What notes do you guys have for chapter one?

[00:13:18] Anything?

[00:13:24] I just find it funny that I'm, it's like I'm visualizing the movies while reading it.

[00:13:30] But then with so much detail, I'm able to like kind of expand on.

[00:13:35] Yeah.

[00:13:35] On that.

[00:13:36] Like the fireworks with the dragons and stuff.

[00:13:39] I don't know.

[00:13:39] Was it the first chapter?

[00:13:41] Mm-hmm.

[00:13:41] And I was like, oh, that's cool.

[00:13:44] Was that in the movies?

[00:13:45] I don't remember.

[00:13:46] But I loved how detailed it was about it.

[00:13:50] I'm excited for when you watch the movies too, because it's going to be fun going back

[00:13:54] and forth with them.

[00:13:55] Because that was, there's a, there's like a small little change of a character, two characters

[00:13:59] that they introduced during the fireworks scene in the movies that I loved.

[00:14:02] I thought it was a great introduction.

[00:14:03] And they don't introduce them here.

[00:14:04] It's just like Gandalf just has fun with the fires.

[00:14:07] Right.

[00:14:07] With fireworks, not the fires.

[00:14:09] And then I'm going to Rings of Power.

[00:14:11] See, I'm like a very visual person.

[00:14:12] So then I'm going to Rings of Power.

[00:14:13] I'm like, oh, are these, those people like the little Hobbit people?

[00:14:19] If you do Rings of Power, you might like Concerning Hobbits because it goes into the

[00:14:22] Harfoots.

[00:14:22] It goes into some of the other stuff.

[00:14:23] Harfoots.

[00:14:24] That's where they come from.

[00:14:26] Huh.

[00:14:26] I'm not allowed to watch anything.

[00:14:28] Everything's spoilers.

[00:14:30] I'll just watch it when you're, when you're working.

[00:14:35] What was the first chapter?

[00:14:38] It just kind of starts with party planning and it ends with Frodo getting Bag End in the

[00:14:43] ring.

[00:14:43] I'm glad that they shrunk that for the movie.

[00:14:46] Yeah.

[00:14:47] Yeah, for sure.

[00:14:48] I thought, um, I mean, I think we're going to talk a lot about movie to book changes here

[00:14:55] because like, I love the movie so much.

[00:14:57] Yeah.

[00:14:58] But, uh, but we're not gonna leave you out.

[00:15:00] Don't worry.

[00:15:01] But the, um, the differences between Bilbo, between just Hobbits in general and between

[00:15:08] Frodo is actually kind of interesting.

[00:15:10] We'll talk about Frodo a little bit more, but Bilbo seemed a bit more, um, I don't know.

[00:15:18] Um, like I think they do a pretty good portrayal in the movies, but he almost seemed a bit

[00:15:22] more possessive of the ring.

[00:15:24] Like I, there's, there's a one scene in the movies where he like gets very, very possessive

[00:15:28] of the ring and like wants to fight Gandalf.

[00:15:30] And I think they did it well.

[00:15:31] But when I was reading the book, it was like a few pages of them going back and forth between

[00:15:36] Gandalf being like, like give up the ring.

[00:15:38] And Bilbo was like, no, I'm not, I'm not going to do this.

[00:15:41] I want it.

[00:15:42] And it was, he seems like a little bit more vain, I guess.

[00:15:47] I'm trying to figure out the differences, but did you guys like Bilbo as a character?

[00:15:54] I did.

[00:15:54] I like that.

[00:15:55] He's like adventurous and has gone out and like done all these things.

[00:15:59] Yeah.

[00:15:59] And I think it said he taught Frodo how to read and like, so he could continue his story

[00:16:05] and write.

[00:16:06] So I like that he's like going out and doing big things and not just being, you know, stuck

[00:16:12] in the shire all the time.

[00:16:13] Yeah.

[00:16:13] But then obviously he finds the ring.

[00:16:16] So.

[00:16:18] Would you guys want an 1100 and, or what is it?

[00:16:22] An 111 birthday?

[00:16:24] You guys want to live to being 111?

[00:16:26] Nope.

[00:16:28] Yeah, sure.

[00:16:29] Why not?

[00:16:30] If he's fully functioning.

[00:16:32] Yeah.

[00:16:32] Exactly.

[00:16:32] Yeah.

[00:16:32] If I was mentally there, then yes.

[00:16:35] And I had this question too, because in, in later chapters, they talk about some of the

[00:16:39] Gollum stuff.

[00:16:40] Hmm.

[00:16:41] And I think it's really interesting, but, um, I don't, I should ask this too.

[00:16:46] Maybe someone can talk to me, uh, in this real quick about it, but, um, why, how, how

[00:16:52] old the hobbits typically live till?

[00:16:54] I think Bilbo is exceptional on that.

[00:16:56] Did they say that anything?

[00:16:57] It did say something like that.

[00:17:00] I think somebody lived to be 120 and that might've been the oldest.

[00:17:04] Huh.

[00:17:04] Okay.

[00:17:05] Or something like that.

[00:17:06] But on his own, on their own or with the help of some magic?

[00:17:10] No, like just normally.

[00:17:11] I forget if it was prologue or what, but somewhere it said like, 100 is a good age for a hobbit.

[00:17:17] It's like rare, but not unheard of.

[00:17:20] Someone's mom lived to the 120, I think.

[00:17:24] Hmm.

[00:17:24] Hmm.

[00:17:24] I thought.

[00:17:25] Yeah, it could be.

[00:17:25] And it said like, oh, he has a long line of long livers or something like that.

[00:17:31] Oh, in the family, like.

[00:17:32] Yeah.

[00:17:33] Yeah.

[00:17:33] Yeah.

[00:17:33] In the Baggins family.

[00:17:35] Mm-hmm.

[00:17:36] But.

[00:17:37] Someone said 130 was the oldest.

[00:17:41] But they're not like youthful at that age, right?

[00:17:43] Yeah, exactly.

[00:17:44] Right.

[00:17:44] And he was like still popping around and excited and like, you know.

[00:17:47] He, he essentially did the whole party himself, which was astounding.

[00:17:51] Like he's doing all the invitations.

[00:17:52] I love that.

[00:17:53] Yeah, I love that too.

[00:17:54] Well, they're giving gifts out to people instead of receiving them for their birthday.

[00:17:57] It's kind of crazy.

[00:17:58] It's like the opposite.

[00:17:59] Interesting.

[00:18:01] It's really funny.

[00:18:03] But I think it's, it was an interesting point too, because Gollum, I think they said, or people that I was talking to, they said that he was 500 to 600 years old.

[00:18:13] What?

[00:18:14] And so like the aging stops when the ring takes you.

[00:18:17] But I was curious because I'm like, Gollum lost the ring.

[00:18:20] Why didn't he not just die immediately after that?

[00:18:23] And I think it's because the ring still has a hold on you.

[00:18:26] So I think it's, they, people were talking about that even with Bilbo, like when he gives up the ring, you know, he starts to age.

[00:18:31] A little bit more, but the ring still has somewhat of a hold on him.

[00:18:35] So that's why he's like not dying immediately from, or like immediately getting old and like, you know, he's unable to walk and age just catches up to him right away.

[00:18:43] But I don't know.

[00:18:44] I'm curious to see the, what do you guys think of that actually, the effect that the ring has on the person?

[00:18:48] I don't know what the ring does.

[00:18:50] I know like from the movies and everything like that, but I don't know legitimately what the ring does yet.

[00:18:55] It just seems to.

[00:18:57] I mean, you're talking about in the first four chapters?

[00:18:59] Yeah, the first four.

[00:19:00] Yeah.

[00:19:01] Yeah.

[00:19:01] Yeah.

[00:19:02] I don't quite understand it.

[00:19:03] And can, I think one of the questions I had was, can the ring move?

[00:19:09] Can it influence anything in the physical world or does it just impact the person?

[00:19:16] Like, and then at some point when it left Gollum, did Gollum just drop it somewhere in the cave?

[00:19:23] And it was all Gollum physically moving it.

[00:19:25] Or in the movie, I'm picturing a bounce and the ring is like twirling where it can kind of do a little more than just force its owner to drop it or forget it or something.

[00:19:36] But yeah, I don't understand its power yet.

[00:19:39] What seems to have like a pull on people.

[00:19:42] Like, it seems like it has, I don't know, in a sense, I don't know how to word it, but like a brain of a mind of its own.

[00:19:50] Because didn't, when Gollum, like when Bilbo was near Gollum, the ring knew like I need to transfer to him because I'll be in this cave forever.

[00:20:02] Forever, yeah.

[00:20:03] Wasn't that one of the things?

[00:20:05] Because the ring is trying to get back to the owner, right?

[00:20:08] But isn't the owner...

[00:20:09] Sauron?

[00:20:11] Oh.

[00:20:12] Sauron?

[00:20:12] Isn't the owner...

[00:20:14] Sorry.

[00:20:15] No, because Sauron is the maker.

[00:20:18] But in the movie, doesn't somebody have it on right at the beginning and then...

[00:20:23] Yeah.

[00:20:24] We can't talk about that.

[00:20:26] Okay.

[00:20:27] But it's trying to get back to some, to Sauron.

[00:20:30] It's trying to get back to its maker.

[00:20:32] Back to its maker.

[00:20:32] Which is why Rings of Power was helpful to watch before this, even though he won't let me.

[00:20:38] Well, I haven't watched that.

[00:20:39] You should watch the...

[00:20:40] Well, I think it's a lot.

[00:20:43] I don't think I've seen the Hobbits.

[00:20:44] I think it is.

[00:20:44] Honestly, I don't think it would interfere with anything.

[00:20:46] The first season and like the beginning of the second season just is helping me understand who the maker is of the rings and understand that concept.

[00:20:55] Yeah, yeah, true.

[00:20:56] Otherwise, I would...

[00:20:58] But I need visuals to make it.

[00:20:59] It was interesting too because I'm like only the movies guy.

[00:21:02] And when I started watching the Rings of Power, it does help you understand who the people were who had the rings too, which is kind of fascinating.

[00:21:08] Like in the movies, you kind of understand who some of the people are.

[00:21:11] No, I had no idea about rings.

[00:21:12] Yeah.

[00:21:13] And that's why I'm kind of like...

[00:21:16] Yeah, I'm interested in...

[00:21:17] Yeah, well, talking about the elves and the dwarves and the...

[00:21:21] I didn't even know there was other rings.

[00:21:23] Yeah.

[00:21:24] I thought they were just the one ring.

[00:21:26] So that's...

[00:21:27] It's one ring to rule them all.

[00:21:29] I actually missed all of that stuff, that little poem, because it was so far at the beginning.

[00:21:34] Yeah.

[00:21:34] It was like before even the index.

[00:21:36] So then I was like, I can't have missed it.

[00:21:39] And I listened to the audio book.

[00:21:40] I'm like, where is this coming from?

[00:21:41] I had to look back and then I found it.

[00:21:42] I was like, oh, that's awesome.

[00:21:45] It was in...

[00:21:45] What chapter was it in for these though?

[00:21:47] Because when the...

[00:21:48] I think it's in the second one.

[00:21:50] Is it like Gandalf?

[00:21:50] When the inscription is on the ring.

[00:21:51] Yes.

[00:21:51] Gandalf talks about it.

[00:21:52] He reads the inscription.

[00:21:53] But he doesn't fully read it.

[00:21:54] Well, because the inscription is only the last two lines of...

[00:21:58] Of the poem, yeah.

[00:21:59] The whole thing.

[00:22:00] Oh, interesting.

[00:22:02] Or maybe even just the second to last line.

[00:22:06] But the ring like allows you to disappear.

[00:22:08] Yeah.

[00:22:09] It's anti-aging.

[00:22:11] Yeah.

[00:22:11] Which is kind of nice.

[00:22:12] Two great things though.

[00:22:13] Yep.

[00:22:14] And then...

[00:22:15] But then it like calls...

[00:22:17] It like slowly sucks your soul into the darkness.

[00:22:22] Yeah.

[00:22:22] It feels like.

[00:22:24] And then it's calling for its owner to find it.

[00:22:28] Because there was a note in these chapters too where Gandalf was pretty shocked that the

[00:22:32] effects of the ring didn't have that much more of an effect on Bilbo.

[00:22:35] Right, right.

[00:22:36] Where he was like astounded by it.

[00:22:37] And I think this is kind of where he hatches this plot.

[00:22:41] Bilbo or Gandalf seems very Dumbledore-esque to me.

[00:22:44] Where he's like hatching this plot behind the scenes.

[00:22:45] So true.

[00:22:45] So like...

[00:22:46] I wrote Dumbledore in the margins like four times.

[00:22:48] Yeah.

[00:22:49] He really seems like he pieces together that, okay, this ring.

[00:22:53] Doesn't have a huge effect on hobbits.

[00:22:55] So how am I gonna...

[00:22:56] How am I gonna get this thing rolling?

[00:23:01] He picks...

[00:23:02] He knows Frodo is a crazy brave hobbit.

[00:23:04] Like Frodo's bravery blew me away in some of these chapters.

[00:23:06] So true.

[00:23:07] And then he kind of like...

[00:23:08] Not manipulates.

[00:23:09] I don't want to say that.

[00:23:10] But kind of manipulates him to like have the ring.

[00:23:14] Frodo's like, I love the Shire so much.

[00:23:15] I don't want to keep it in the Shire because it'll destroy the Shire.

[00:23:18] So I have to take it away.

[00:23:19] Bilbo's like...

[00:23:20] Or again, I was like, perfect.

[00:23:21] This is exactly why.

[00:23:22] Great answer for that.

[00:23:23] I'm gonna bring it here and I'll meet you there.

[00:23:24] I'm gonna do some research on my own.

[00:23:26] I'll see you in 17 years.

[00:23:29] Ridiculous.

[00:23:30] That was crazy.

[00:23:31] I know.

[00:23:32] Oh, yeah.

[00:23:32] And the last nine, he didn't show up at all.

[00:23:34] At first, I thought it was that whole time.

[00:23:36] But then you kind of fill in the gaps.

[00:23:38] Anyways, we're not there yet.

[00:23:39] But...

[00:23:40] That was astounding to me.

[00:23:41] Ridiculous.

[00:23:42] Yeah.

[00:23:45] I did mark something.

[00:23:48] Dwarves came to the birthday.

[00:23:49] I thought that was cool because something that wasn't in the movies.

[00:23:51] I didn't realize that...

[00:23:53] I didn't even realize that.

[00:23:54] Yeah.

[00:23:54] When Bilbo left, he left with the dwarves.

[00:23:58] So they came.

[00:23:59] And maybe they weren't at the birthday, but they already were at his house because they

[00:24:05] came by a separate cart before Gandalf did.

[00:24:07] Right over my head.

[00:24:08] So I just thought it was cool that dwarves were there.

[00:24:11] They were staying in the house with Bilbo and then Bilbo left with them.

[00:24:15] Something that was never mentioned.

[00:24:20] So I thought that was cool.

[00:24:22] Also...

[00:24:22] Were they the original?

[00:24:23] Were they the dwarves he went on the journey with?

[00:24:24] Well, it never mentioned anything more.

[00:24:26] It just said a few dwarves.

[00:24:27] I think it said three.

[00:24:28] It's gotta be them, right?

[00:24:30] But yeah, I would think so.

[00:24:31] That's why I was hoping it would give a name of someone we knew.

[00:24:33] Um, let's see.

[00:24:36] Dwarves with long beards and deep hoods.

[00:24:40] Outlandish folks singing strange songs.

[00:24:43] Um, yeah.

[00:24:46] So I just thought it was another little cool touch.

[00:24:48] Um, oh yeah.

[00:24:50] Uh, what's...

[00:24:51] Where's the line?

[00:24:55] That...

[00:24:56] Oh, another one where dwarves are mentioned.

[00:24:59] That the old man helped by Bilbo and some dwarves had finished unloading.

[00:25:03] Bilbo gave a few pennies away.

[00:25:05] But not a single squib or cracker was forthcoming.

[00:25:09] Whoa!

[00:25:10] And I was like, squib, whoa!

[00:25:12] Because it's just funny to see it as an actual word.

[00:25:14] Yeah.

[00:25:15] Um, so, you know, nice little Harry Potter reference in there.

[00:25:18] I also loved Bilbo's Irish exit from the, uh, from the party.

[00:25:22] So great.

[00:25:23] Inspiring.

[00:25:24] And not even from the party, from life.

[00:25:26] Yeah.

[00:25:27] He was living my ideal life right there.

[00:25:30] See you guys.

[00:25:31] I'm out.

[00:25:32] And disappeared.

[00:25:32] So great.

[00:25:33] He just disappears.

[00:25:35] Oh.

[00:25:36] It's probably too early, but the hobbit...

[00:25:38] The hobbit...

[00:25:38] Him being a hobbit is, like, important having the ring.

[00:25:42] I'm assuming.

[00:25:45] Well, yeah, only...

[00:25:46] Like, it's a benefit for, like, good...

[00:25:50] And the good versus evil.

[00:25:51] Because it was like, it seemed like the ring was designed to corrupt people.

[00:25:59] And Gandalf worded it saying that Sauron overlooked hobbits just like everybody else.

[00:26:06] Right.

[00:26:06] And didn't even consider the possibility that it would end up with a hobbit.

[00:26:10] So they have a certain immunity to the evil.

[00:26:14] Um, so them being overlooked is their superpower.

[00:26:17] Power.

[00:26:18] But also, it's like, what is their power as a...

[00:26:22] As a...

[00:26:24] Being.

[00:26:25] Pure hearted?

[00:26:27] Right.

[00:26:28] Maybe.

[00:26:28] Well, that's where I'm like, if anyone else had the ring, because, you know, Gandalf is

[00:26:33] a wizard, so he's powerful.

[00:26:35] And humans, I don't know what...

[00:26:37] They would be killing each other for power.

[00:26:42] Yeah.

[00:26:42] Because they talked about how, um, I think this is in the next chapter, when they're having

[00:26:47] the discussions on the rings.

[00:26:49] Um, next chapter is Shadow of the Past, and they're having these discussions on the

[00:26:53] rings, and it seems like they talk about the elves' rings were untainted.

[00:26:59] Like, they were still pure and good rings.

[00:27:02] The dwarves' rings, what'd they say?

[00:27:05] Three of them went into, like, the dragon?

[00:27:07] Or three of them survived, and then four of them got eaten by dragons or something like that?

[00:27:12] I think.

[00:27:13] So, I mean, I always had the question, it's like, are those dragons super dragons now?

[00:27:16] Do they have the ring just in their belly?

[00:27:17] And do they have the powers of the ring?

[00:27:19] Because if they do, maybe they're just invisible flying around and, like, wreaking havoc, and

[00:27:23] we just don't know.

[00:27:24] Whoa.

[00:27:24] I'm kidding.

[00:27:25] Um, and then the nine was the...

[00:27:28] That corrupted the hearts of men, and those are, like, forever gone.

[00:27:35] But, um...

[00:27:36] I forgot where I was going with that.

[00:27:38] Oh, well.

[00:27:40] Do all the rings have the same power of the one ring, or is that...

[00:27:45] And, yeah, like, what kind of crossover power is there?

[00:27:48] Yeah.

[00:27:48] Because, like, for the humans who have their rings, like, what does that do for them?

[00:27:54] Right.

[00:27:54] Like, why do they all have their rings?

[00:27:56] It seems to corrupt them, but do they also get to be invisible?

[00:28:00] Yeah.

[00:28:00] Are they also obsessed with their rings?

[00:28:02] But the...

[00:28:03] And what else?

[00:28:03] There has to be, like, a reason why.

[00:28:05] Yeah.

[00:28:06] Or I think, like, even different for each type of person that gets it.

[00:28:10] Like, the elves have...

[00:28:11] I don't know.

[00:28:12] What would an elf want?

[00:28:13] What would a dwarf want?

[00:28:14] Well, it was to save their land.

[00:28:18] For the humans?

[00:28:20] For the elves.

[00:28:21] Oh, yeah.

[00:28:22] Yeah.

[00:28:23] That's the rings of power.

[00:28:24] So this is not fair, probably.

[00:28:25] But the elves also...

[00:28:27] We'll probably get more detail in here.

[00:28:28] ...were able to resist the power or something.

[00:28:32] Yeah.

[00:28:32] It seems like it helped them and it didn't corrupt them.

[00:28:36] But they're elves.

[00:28:36] If it backfired or what, but it seems like...

[00:28:40] I don't know the full story.

[00:28:41] It was just kind of hinting at, like, they're okay.

[00:28:46] They are not evil and they're not dead.

[00:28:50] Yeah.

[00:28:51] They're just still elves.

[00:28:52] So, hopefully we hear a little more about that.

[00:28:56] But, yeah, it was weird.

[00:28:58] And didn't Gandalf, though, also say about the ring how it wanted to go with Bilbo?

[00:29:04] And then he was saying something about how Frodo...

[00:29:09] Yeah.

[00:29:09] ...this is your time.

[00:29:11] Like, I think this is a good thing that you found it and you're able to, like, resist it somehow.

[00:29:18] Yeah.

[00:29:18] I don't know how to word it, but, like, it was, like, as if the powers...

[00:29:22] ...shifted.

[00:29:23] And he's like, oh, good is, like, intervening with this power of evil pulling the ring.

[00:29:31] Hmm.

[00:29:31] It's such a good point because I was reading that and...

[00:29:38] When Gandalf leaves, he doesn't fully know that it's the ring.

[00:29:42] Right.

[00:29:42] Even when he returns, he doesn't fully know it's the ring until they throw it in the fire.

[00:29:45] He's like, now I have, like, perfect understanding that it is.

[00:29:49] Yep.

[00:29:49] But I think Gandalf has a good understanding that it is the ring.

[00:29:52] So, one of my questions, too, is with this, with exactly what you said, like, Frodo seems

[00:29:56] to be less corrupted by its power than a lot of other people.

[00:30:00] But I'm like, why don't you start the journey then?

[00:30:03] Even if this isn't the ring.

[00:30:05] Like, you know, start walking.

[00:30:06] Start walking.

[00:30:07] Because by the time...

[00:30:08] Because 17 years passes.

[00:30:09] I'm like, how does Gandalf not think that the ring could have a hold on someone over 17 years?

[00:30:15] Like, if the ring is even just chilling in, like, a compartment.

[00:30:18] Like, he doesn't even give instructions, really, for Frodo.

[00:30:21] Well, he said not to wear it.

[00:30:22] Yeah, he said not to wear it.

[00:30:23] So, he has it on the chain.

[00:30:24] But he must have really trusted Frodo.

[00:30:25] But I'm like, yeah, that is some significant trust.

[00:30:28] Which maybe Gandalf really knows Frodo.

[00:30:29] He probably also didn't know how wearing it would be bad because Bilbo has been putting

[00:30:35] it on and off for so long.

[00:30:37] So, why would he think...

[00:30:38] And Bilbo seems decent.

[00:30:39] Why would he think anything different?

[00:30:41] That's a great point.

[00:30:42] But he was so fixated on the ring with Bilbo.

[00:30:45] And Bilbo's literally walking in the right direction.

[00:30:48] At least he's moving away from the Shire.

[00:30:50] He's got the ring.

[00:30:52] Why would that be so bad?

[00:30:53] And he's like, but Bilbo, you promised.

[00:30:55] And he's, like, really fixating on, like, Bilbo has to leave this ring behind.

[00:30:59] And even that felt weird because it seems to imply he already knew it was bad.

[00:31:04] It was some kind of evil.

[00:31:07] It sounded like he was collecting information before he's visited them, though.

[00:31:12] But he really wanted the ring to stay in the Shire.

[00:31:15] Before that.

[00:31:16] Because it was protected until Gollum gave the info that the Shire is where the ring is.

[00:31:23] So, in that time period, I don't know where the timeline is.

[00:31:28] But Gandalf could have thought it was safer in the Shire at that time.

[00:31:33] Yeah.

[00:31:33] It's great.

[00:31:34] Because he has this line when he's talking.

[00:31:38] He says,

[00:31:38] You say the ring is dangerous.

[00:31:40] Far more dangerous than I guess.

[00:31:42] In what way?

[00:31:44] In many ways, answered the wizard.

[00:31:46] It is far more powerful than I ever dared to think at first.

[00:31:49] So powerful that in the end, it would utterly overcome any one of the mortal race who possessed it.

[00:31:55] It would possess him.

[00:31:57] I'm like, if he thinks that or if he's like, that's like even slightly in his array of like, what this thing could do.

[00:32:04] Wait, this is to Bilbo?

[00:32:06] That was to Bilbo?

[00:32:06] Yeah, this is to Bilbo.

[00:32:08] Or Frodo.

[00:32:09] This is to Frodo, actually.

[00:32:11] That's why I feel like the way he was talking about it, it felt like he didn't fully know.

[00:32:18] Yeah.

[00:32:19] That it was like wanting, that the darkness wanted it back.

[00:32:25] I'm not sure.

[00:32:26] And Gandalf is like, yeah, almost discovering its significance as well.

[00:32:30] Like he still knows about it.

[00:32:31] But I think they thought it was safer there.

[00:32:34] Yeah.

[00:32:35] Gandalf knew about Gollum and how he got it from him too.

[00:32:39] So that's confusing to me.

[00:32:40] Like why?

[00:32:41] Like, I feel like if you saw that happen to Gollum, you would immediately like warn him.

[00:32:46] And I know he does tell Frodo, I don't know like at what point in the timeline that was.

[00:32:50] But even if I'm Frodo and I know what happened to Gollum, then I feel like I would almost,

[00:32:55] like if I had that sitting in my house for 17 years, I'd be like, why did he pick it up?

[00:33:00] You know?

[00:33:00] And then I would like go pick it up and be another Gollum.

[00:33:04] Oh my gosh.

[00:33:05] Because they knew that that happened to him.

[00:33:08] So.

[00:33:11] But did Frodo want to follow in Bilbo's footsteps?

[00:33:15] In what way?

[00:33:17] Anyway.

[00:33:18] I feel like he did in a lot of ways.

[00:33:20] He did.

[00:33:21] I feel like he wanted an adventure like Bilbo had.

[00:33:24] I got, in this too, I got, Frodo has almost more admiration for Bilbo than I even remembered

[00:33:29] in the movies.

[00:33:30] So I think that's a really good point.

[00:33:31] Like I think Frodo does just want to follow in the footsteps of Bilbo in like every aspect

[00:33:35] of Bilbo's life.

[00:33:36] Like even when Bilbo left, Frodo was like, oh, I wish I could have gone with him.

[00:33:39] Um, which I, that's like a remarkable thing.

[00:33:43] I think.

[00:33:44] Hmm.

[00:33:44] Hmm.

[00:33:45] I was very impressed by Frodo in these chapters and the movies.

[00:33:48] Same.

[00:33:48] He's a little annoying.

[00:33:50] Um, not like, you know, super annoying, but, um, Sam's kind of like the main character to

[00:33:55] me in the movies.

[00:33:56] And this is different.

[00:33:59] Frodo really seems like a resilient, like really pure hearted and innocent or not innocent,

[00:34:05] but just like loyal person.

[00:34:06] And I really love it so far.

[00:34:09] Um, but I also love some of Sam's lines, Sam's lines, Sam still did feel like the main character

[00:34:13] in a few of these chapters.

[00:34:14] I was like, that is, yeah, it was so good.

[00:34:17] Um, I was surprised that Frodo knew about the ring before he got it.

[00:34:21] So that means the ring, he knew about Bilbo's plan, knew about the ring and was kind of like,

[00:34:26] oh, this will be useful.

[00:34:27] Cool.

[00:34:27] So that, that was weird to me.

[00:34:29] Um, yeah, I, I guess so many of these little details were being filled in as I was reading

[00:34:37] that added a lot of depth.

[00:34:39] Um, even his relationship with Mary and Pippin, because we don't meet them or see them in the

[00:34:44] movies till a little later.

[00:34:45] Um, so it was cool having them kind of pop in and out a little bit and realizing that they

[00:34:50] were like really good friends, not just casual Hobbit acquaintances.

[00:34:57] Um, I also was curious if Bilbo is the reason Hobbits are being infected with adventurousness

[00:35:03] because before Bilbo, it sounds like Hobbits don't leave the Shire.

[00:35:07] They don't talk to outsiders, but now all of a sudden this new generation, specifically

[00:35:12] Frodo and Sam, who's willing to just go on this adventure drop of a hat.

[00:35:17] But even Mary and Pippin, it just feels like there's a certain adventure to them that maybe

[00:35:22] didn't exist before they grew up hearing stories from Bilbo.

[00:35:26] So I'm going to give him a little bit of credit in my, in my, uh, headcanon.

[00:35:30] Where was the, uh, hold on.

[00:35:32] I gotta find this too.

[00:35:33] Sorry.

[00:35:34] I also feel like I was appreciating the, the writing of this because anytime I was like

[00:35:40] kind of confused about something in the next chapter or the next few paragraphs, it was

[00:35:47] like kind of explained in more detail.

[00:35:50] It's not any question that like, like I didn't have to wait that long to like, wait, I didn't

[00:35:55] catch that.

[00:35:56] And then it was explained like again differently, especially what one with Gandalf.

[00:36:03] I think it was, but yeah.

[00:36:09] I begin to wish that somehow I had gone to Frodo really wanted to like go with Bilbo.

[00:36:17] But what was Frodo like doing though?

[00:36:20] I feel, I was like, what was his life like?

[00:36:22] What's his job?

[00:36:23] What is his job?

[00:36:23] He doesn't even say.

[00:36:25] What do any hobbits do that?

[00:36:26] Like did he have a crush on some girl in the Shire?

[00:36:29] Like there's nothing, there's no background.

[00:36:32] Yeah, that's true.

[00:36:33] Bilbo and I want to be like him.

[00:36:36] Yeah.

[00:36:37] And I guess if he didn't, he wasn't even a man yet until 33, that's a lot of time to

[00:36:43] do nothing in the Shire, I guess.

[00:36:44] But like what they don't even talk about.

[00:36:46] Well, maybe I missed it, but it didn't seem like.

[00:36:48] Yeah.

[00:36:48] What is your daily?

[00:36:49] What is your day look like?

[00:36:51] Yeah.

[00:36:51] In a week.

[00:36:53] Did he already mention of money?

[00:36:55] I think that the bag of the excuse seemed pretty rich and Bilbo seemed to be taking care

[00:37:00] of Frodo.

[00:37:00] Yeah.

[00:37:01] So he just didn't need to earn anything.

[00:37:03] Yeah.

[00:37:03] He has what he needs.

[00:37:04] I mean, we know that he went to steal mushrooms.

[00:37:07] Yeah.

[00:37:07] Yeah.

[00:37:07] Yeah.

[00:37:07] That's what I was going to say.

[00:37:08] The only thing we really know of his childhood is he was deadly afraid of Farmer Maggot.

[00:37:13] Yeah.

[00:37:13] And he realized that he's like a pretty cool guy.

[00:37:15] Great guy.

[00:37:16] Yeah.

[00:37:16] That was a great, great little foray into it.

[00:37:20] Yeah.

[00:37:21] I actually kind of wish we got that too.

[00:37:23] I wish we got some of his day to day life.

[00:37:24] But then I was like, maybe it was in the prologue and I didn't read it.

[00:37:28] I don't think he was mentioned in the prologue.

[00:37:31] But hobbits in general were discussed.

[00:37:34] You should go back and read it now.

[00:37:36] Yeah.

[00:37:36] You might like it.

[00:37:37] Might.

[00:37:38] Might.

[00:37:38] I feel like you should.

[00:37:39] Yeah.

[00:37:40] So I feel like we're kind of talking.

[00:37:42] We'll see.

[00:37:43] Chapter two.

[00:37:44] Yeah.

[00:37:44] We're already on chapter two.

[00:37:45] We'll just keep cruising through seeing what it is.

[00:37:46] Chapter two is a whole.

[00:37:48] It's just like him and Frodo having a full discussion.

[00:37:51] There were so many great lines in that one too.

[00:37:53] Like Gandalf and Frodo.

[00:37:54] Yeah.

[00:37:54] Yeah.

[00:37:54] And it ends with Sam saying he'll leave the Shire with Frodo.

[00:37:58] Which is, yeah.

[00:37:58] Oh, because he was eavesdropping.

[00:38:00] Yeah.

[00:38:00] He wasn't dropping no use.

[00:38:02] This house doesn't even have eaves.

[00:38:04] He was sheer, sheer dropping.

[00:38:08] Nice.

[00:38:10] It did a little bit bother me.

[00:38:12] I guess I got in the high fantasy mode.

[00:38:15] Oh, why did you give him this term?

[00:38:17] A Roman calendar.

[00:38:19] Because I was like, their dates, they use the same months that we do.

[00:38:25] So that was just a little funny.

[00:38:27] But then I realized you have to draw that line somewhere.

[00:38:29] You can't make everything different.

[00:38:31] Then age doesn't mean anything.

[00:38:33] It's funny too because I was listening to it and Andy Serkis gives, I think, Mary or Pippin,

[00:38:37] one of the two, a Scottish accent, like a deep Scottish accent.

[00:38:40] And I was like, oh, Scotland exists in Middle Earth.

[00:38:42] Yeah.

[00:38:42] That's funny.

[00:38:44] I loved it.

[00:38:45] It's kind of great.

[00:38:46] I love a good Scottish accent.

[00:38:50] In that whole conversation.

[00:38:51] So when Gandalf and Frodo were talking, there was a few things that I was kind of alarmed at.

[00:38:56] But the whole conversation I had with Gollum was kind of alarming to me.

[00:38:59] And that Gollum is darker than I even imagined.

[00:39:01] Oh, I know.

[00:39:02] When he got out of the caves again and was like looking for the ring, he was like hiding in trees, like eating children.

[00:39:08] Yeah.

[00:39:09] It was so dark.

[00:39:10] Wait, I missed that part.

[00:39:12] He said something about him.

[00:39:14] Eating children?

[00:39:15] Stealing babies out of cribs.

[00:39:17] Yeah.

[00:39:17] Granted, it did say that that was like a rumor.

[00:39:20] Yeah, it made it up in rumors for sure.

[00:39:22] But still.

[00:39:22] But still, I was like, there's a reason they didn't show that in the movies.

[00:39:26] That would be creepy too, living with like a creature like that, that you just have rumors with and legends.

[00:39:31] Like I think of, I don't know if I've ever mentioned or I've talked to you guys about this, but this I probably have.

[00:39:40] But there was a guy in Maine who was the North Pond Hermit, they called him.

[00:39:45] I think I've mentioned this somewhere.

[00:39:46] And he was on, he was in the woods of North Maine for 21 years.

[00:39:55] Only said one word in those 21 years to one passing hiker that he just randomly stumbled across.

[00:40:01] But he wouldn't hunt.

[00:40:02] He wouldn't gather.

[00:40:03] He would steal from vacation homes.

[00:40:05] And so he was exceptional at stealing, like breaking and stealing.

[00:40:09] And people were so unsettled by him.

[00:40:11] They couldn't find him.

[00:40:13] They didn't know where he lived.

[00:40:14] They had no idea for where this guy was.

[00:40:16] And I was like, that would be creepy to live with that.

[00:40:19] But like everyone knew he was harmless.

[00:40:21] It was okay.

[00:40:22] Yeah.

[00:40:22] Me Smeagol coming in and stealing your baby.

[00:40:24] I don't like that.

[00:40:26] Oh my God.

[00:40:26] He's like, oh, that would be terrifying.

[00:40:29] But also the way.

[00:40:30] He was dark.

[00:40:31] Yeah.

[00:40:31] But in, well, I was listening to it while walking.

[00:40:35] So I'm not sure if I caught everything.

[00:40:37] But it sounded like he, even when he felt the sun on him, it was like too light.

[00:40:44] Like I need to be in like caves and be like hidden because I want none of this.

[00:40:50] But then that's like so crazy to me because it's like, that's like how the ring makes you feel.

[00:40:56] Like you don't want to be with other people and you want to.

[00:41:00] It isolates you.

[00:41:01] That's a great point.

[00:41:02] Want to run away.

[00:41:03] Yeah.

[00:41:03] Yeah.

[00:41:04] Like it makes you hate the sun.

[00:41:06] No, but I was just like, well, you literally don't want like the sun.

[00:41:11] I feel like that is you happy and it's in light.

[00:41:16] I don't know everything about it.

[00:41:18] I was just like, whoa.

[00:41:20] Because even in the next chapter, when Sam gets in the conversation with the elves and they have it with Frodo as well.

[00:41:28] One of the biggest advice that the elves give to Frodo is to not do it alone.

[00:41:33] And I love that.

[00:41:35] Maybe there's a point to it where like the ring seems to isolate you and like drag you away in your isolation versus if you can do this with other people.

[00:41:43] Like if you can.

[00:41:44] Yeah.

[00:41:45] Conquer, you know, the power of friendship.

[00:41:47] That's just the power of the fellowship of the rings.

[00:41:49] That's what I think is like a perfect segue into what the actual.

[00:41:53] Evil wants you to be alone so he can control you.

[00:41:55] Yeah.

[00:41:56] Dude.

[00:41:57] Great point.

[00:41:57] Well, I mean, that's I think what he's getting at.

[00:42:00] Yeah.

[00:42:01] But that's what you're getting at, too.

[00:42:03] Yeah.

[00:42:04] I have a great point.

[00:42:05] You're reading where I said that's what I say to Jen.

[00:42:07] If I read what you actually underline.

[00:42:10] Because I underline so many things you can't even see which one is the important one.

[00:42:13] But I always write it right next to what I underline.

[00:42:15] Such matters were best left until daylight.

[00:42:18] Like you do tell me this.

[00:42:19] I always say that.

[00:42:20] I always say this is a daylight conversation.

[00:42:22] Because I just feel like certain things, it's too late at night.

[00:42:25] Yeah.

[00:42:25] Like, look, I can't even think clearly or nothing good happens past midnight.

[00:42:29] That's a classic one-liner.

[00:42:30] So I'm like, this is a daylight conversation.

[00:42:33] I know.

[00:42:33] And you've already established.

[00:42:33] Bring this up when the sun is shining.

[00:42:35] And then when the sun is shining, it's fine.

[00:42:38] Yeah, exactly.

[00:42:39] That makes it a little better.

[00:42:39] You can have it in like, you know, nice weather.

[00:42:42] I'm trying to read up on these rings.

[00:42:43] It doesn't matter anymore what I wanted to bring up because it's so late.

[00:42:46] Yeah, because then you just forgot it.

[00:42:47] And it's like, it doesn't matter that much anymore.

[00:42:48] It doesn't seem important.

[00:42:49] It's great.

[00:42:51] That was funny.

[00:42:52] I love the, there was a bunch of good lines in this chapter.

[00:42:56] But like one of them I loved was, I wish, I wish it need not have happened in my time,

[00:43:01] said Frodo.

[00:43:02] So do I, said Gandalf.

[00:43:03] And so do all who live to see such times.

[00:43:05] But that is not for them to decide.

[00:43:07] All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us.

[00:43:11] Like classic movie lines.

[00:43:12] Oh, that was so good.

[00:43:14] This whole chapter was packed with so many good ones.

[00:43:17] And then one of my, my absolute favorite.

[00:43:20] So we, I'm not, we don't do favorite lines quite yet, but this is a foray into my favorite

[00:43:25] line.

[00:43:26] And my search would have been in vain, but for the help that I had found from a friend,

[00:43:31] Aragorn, the greatest traveler and huntsman of this age of the world.

[00:43:37] Nice.

[00:43:37] I was like a little name drop for Aragorn before we actually, you know, I'm like, that

[00:43:40] was so much earlier than I thought.

[00:43:43] Yeah.

[00:43:44] I love that.

[00:43:45] I love.

[00:43:45] He was my favorite, right?

[00:43:46] That's the sword guy.

[00:43:48] Yeah.

[00:43:48] Sword guy.

[00:43:49] I love how put together it is right now.

[00:43:51] Like even.

[00:43:52] Yes.

[00:43:52] In the, in the movies are like, okay, so he's a good, like, you know, tracker.

[00:43:55] He's a good huntsman.

[00:43:56] And, but Ganoff's like, no, this guy is the greatest of the age.

[00:43:59] I'm like.

[00:44:00] And I love that they already had an adventure together.

[00:44:02] Yeah.

[00:44:02] You know, like they're already hunting down Gollum.

[00:44:04] I'm like, that's so cool.

[00:44:06] Now I'm, I'm curious if they're making a new movie about the hunt for Gollum.

[00:44:10] I'm curious if this is going to be what it's about.

[00:44:12] That didn't even occur to me.

[00:44:14] That would be awesome.

[00:44:15] I would love that if it was, if it was.

[00:44:16] Cause it would be bringing back classic characters.

[00:44:19] And the same characters are reprising their roles too.

[00:44:23] So it'd be great.

[00:44:24] So I would love if they had like a Gandalf and Aragorn adventure where they're tracking

[00:44:28] down Svegl.

[00:44:29] That would be fantastic.

[00:44:31] This is so weird.

[00:44:32] Cause I'm like, it's like a Dumbledore Gandalf like character in my mind.

[00:44:37] And I think we'll have to compare them at many different points.

[00:44:40] But so far I think Gandalf is doing the same thing I didn't like about Dumbledore leaving

[00:44:49] hobbits in the dark.

[00:44:50] Yeah.

[00:44:50] Um, but I also am giving him a little bit more.

[00:44:54] I'm giving him credit just like with Dumbledore.

[00:44:57] I'm assuming he knows much more than we do and much more than he's letting on because it

[00:45:04] just feels like he's got this confidence where I'm just saying, all right, I trust him.

[00:45:10] He's kind of nudging in certain directions where I don't know why, but he seemed to trust that

[00:45:15] Frodo could have the ring for years and years and years and it wouldn't be dangerous.

[00:45:18] He seemed to know Frodo needs a friend for this journey.

[00:45:22] Oh cool.

[00:45:23] Random guy.

[00:45:24] First one to find.

[00:45:25] He's the one.

[00:45:26] Like it just feels like he's got an intuition and it makes me think he already knows something.

[00:45:32] I don't know if we'll ever find out what, um, or if he just has good intuition.

[00:45:36] That's an interesting read on Gandalf too.

[00:45:38] I, I pictured Gandalf as yes, knowing like a lot of the story, but being a bit more like

[00:45:44] rugged than, uh, like almost like he doesn't know what he's getting in, getting himself

[00:45:49] into.

[00:45:50] So like he tries one way.

[00:45:52] It doesn't work.

[00:45:52] Tries another way.

[00:45:53] Cause that is a very fair point.

[00:45:56] I was curious about this and I'm curious what your guys thoughts on this line are too.

[00:46:00] But Gandalf says I endured him as long as I could, but the truth is desperately important.

[00:46:05] And in the end I had to be harsh.

[00:46:07] I put the fear of fire on him and run the true story out of him bit by bit together, which

[00:46:13] together with much sniveling and snarling.

[00:46:15] Oh, did Gandalf torture Smeagol?

[00:46:19] I mean, I like to think he threatened him, but didn't actually do it.

[00:46:26] That it was all fear of torture, not actual torture, but he might've.

[00:46:33] How did you read that?

[00:46:34] Isn't there a scene though with Bilbo?

[00:46:36] Isn't there like in the book where he gets in that angry.

[00:46:42] There's like a cloud that it's like, yeah, he casts a shadow over the whole room.

[00:46:46] Yep.

[00:46:47] So.

[00:46:48] So we know he's willing to flex those wizard muscles if need be.

[00:46:52] And I keep thinking of visuals, right?

[00:46:56] Thinking of the show.

[00:46:58] What?

[00:46:58] Jen's always going to go back to the reason.

[00:47:00] It's so bad.

[00:47:01] Maybe it would have been good to read a book without any.

[00:47:04] I just flipped to this other thing I underlined.

[00:47:07] Then you will see Gandalf the gray uncloaked.

[00:47:10] Naked.

[00:47:10] I like it.

[00:47:13] Because I think this is actually where he kind of says that.

[00:47:17] And that's when Bilbo backed away to the wall.

[00:47:21] So I assume he means something else with uncloaked, but it's like he's holding his power back.

[00:47:26] And if he ever needed to.

[00:47:28] The cloak.

[00:47:28] Also, what's the white council?

[00:47:30] Intriguing.

[00:47:31] Yeah, seriously.

[00:47:32] And most people online too are saying that like our designated Lord of the Rings nerds are saying that it's not really a characteristic of Gandalf.

[00:47:41] Like they can never picture him torturing someone.

[00:47:43] So probably more like a threat.

[00:47:44] Oh, okay.

[00:47:44] Good, good.

[00:47:45] I do like that.

[00:47:46] But right now I don't know that.

[00:47:47] Right now.

[00:47:48] I know.

[00:47:49] He tortured him.

[00:47:49] But he says later like you can't be the one to deal out judgment.

[00:47:53] Yeah, agreed.

[00:47:53] So that makes me think that he wouldn't.

[00:47:57] Dumbledore kind of did the same thing.

[00:47:59] He's like, you guys shouldn't put out judgment.

[00:48:01] Meanwhile, he's like extracting information from people.

[00:48:04] He's like anything for the truth.

[00:48:05] And that's what Gandalf says in this.

[00:48:07] He's like anything for the truth.

[00:48:08] The truth is more important than his life almost.

[00:48:11] Where he's like, I need to extract this from him.

[00:48:13] I trust and I like Gandalf so much better than Dumbledore.

[00:48:16] But to me, Gandalf is more in the same boat as everybody compared to Dumbledore who has

[00:48:22] like a really intense power dynamic with like being in power.

[00:48:27] But then like them being kids.

[00:48:28] But then hobbits are still innocent.

[00:48:30] But I think Gandalf is more just like, hey, we need to get this done.

[00:48:34] Like no matter what.

[00:48:35] And like, let me help you.

[00:48:37] That's a great point because in that story, as long as Dumbledore was alive, you didn't

[00:48:41] really fear the dark side.

[00:48:42] When he died, that's when you're like, oh crap, this is going to be rough.

[00:48:45] Gandalf, this seems different where it's like Gandalf already is fearing what's going to

[00:48:49] happen.

[00:48:49] Like the dark seems a lot larger.

[00:48:51] That is so true.

[00:48:52] Than what Harry Potter feels like.

[00:48:53] And it feels like he's more in it.

[00:48:55] Yeah.

[00:48:56] Even though he does leave Frodo alone for quite a while, it still feels.

[00:49:00] Yeah.

[00:49:00] Just something about it feels a little more in it where Dumbledore felt a little more

[00:49:04] like, go do your thing.

[00:49:06] I'll talk to you at the end of the book.

[00:49:07] You know?

[00:49:08] Yeah.

[00:49:10] Yeah.

[00:49:11] So it is different, but I'm going to, I'm going to be accidentally comparing the two.

[00:49:14] Yeah.

[00:49:15] Me too.

[00:49:15] All the time.

[00:49:18] Yeah.

[00:49:18] And that is a huge point too, because they do talk about like second chances in this where

[00:49:22] he says, deserves that I dare say he does.

[00:49:24] Many that live deserve death and some that die deserve life.

[00:49:27] Oh yeah.

[00:49:28] Can you give it to them?

[00:49:29] Then do not be too eager to deal out death in judgment for even the very wise cannot see

[00:49:35] all ends.

[00:49:36] I have not much hope for Gollum that he can be, he can be cured before he dies, but there

[00:49:40] is a chance and he is bound up with the fate of the ring.

[00:49:44] My heart tells me that he has some part to play yet for good or ill before the end.

[00:49:50] And when that comes, the pity of Bilbo may rule the fate of many.

[00:49:54] Yours not least.

[00:49:55] I like the idea of like, you know, giving people second chances, but it doesn't seem

[00:49:58] like Gandalf really is giving him a second chance.

[00:50:01] Maybe he is.

[00:50:01] I don't know.

[00:50:03] Too soon to tell.

[00:50:05] Yeah.

[00:50:05] Too soon to tell.

[00:50:06] Exactly.

[00:50:09] I feel like a second chance would imply that you're changed after though.

[00:50:13] And he doesn't really change.

[00:50:15] Yeah.

[00:50:15] Yeah.

[00:50:16] I agree.

[00:50:16] So he just kind of persists.

[00:50:21] I also think that like Gandalf, like if he was torturing going back to that, it was

[00:50:28] like for the greater good.

[00:50:32] We're choosing that here.

[00:50:33] The greater good.

[00:50:36] Well, if it's that serious though, and they were hunting him down to get information, he's

[00:50:43] got to do whatever it takes to a next step.

[00:50:46] I guess.

[00:50:46] I don't think it would like physically hurt him.

[00:50:49] Well, I was also thinking like, what are Gandalf's powers?

[00:50:51] I don't really know.

[00:50:52] But like, could he make you think that you're being tortured and he's not doing anything,

[00:50:57] but like you're seeing things or feeling things, but he's not actually touching you.

[00:51:02] Is that still torture?

[00:51:03] Maybe.

[00:51:05] Psychologically.

[00:51:07] The powers seem like more untamed and raw in this so far.

[00:51:11] Like we don't know what the ring does really yet.

[00:51:14] Like it's almost the same thing in Harry Potter, but maybe it's just the level of information

[00:51:19] that we have.

[00:51:20] Like even, I think that's even true in the movies too.

[00:51:23] You don't know that much what Gandalf does.

[00:51:26] He seems to have power, but it's like, okay, what is he actually doing day to day with his

[00:51:30] magic?

[00:51:31] Fireworks.

[00:51:32] Yeah.

[00:51:32] Right.

[00:51:32] He has really good fireworks.

[00:51:34] That's like it at the moment.

[00:51:35] Yeah.

[00:51:35] That's kind of it.

[00:51:36] So I like that everyone seems like a bit more untamed at the moment, which I think is

[00:51:41] a good addition for these books.

[00:51:46] But yeah, Frodo is an incredible character in this.

[00:51:49] Like I love it.

[00:51:49] Even at the end of the chapter one, it says he went to the window and drew aside the curtains

[00:51:53] and the shutters.

[00:51:54] Sunlight streamed back into the room.

[00:51:56] Sam passed along the outside path, whistling.

[00:51:58] And now, said the wizard turning back to Frodo, the decision lies with you, but I will always

[00:52:02] help you.

[00:52:03] He laid his hands on Frodo's shoulder.

[00:52:05] I will help you bear this burden.

[00:52:07] As long as it is yours to bear, we must do something soon.

[00:52:11] The enemy is moving.

[00:52:12] And then Frodo just jumps into action and he's like, okay, I got it.

[00:52:16] I'll take it from here.

[00:52:17] I think Frodo is incredible in these chapters so far.

[00:52:22] I would have thrown the ring back.

[00:52:24] I don't want it.

[00:52:27] I was wondering if Smeagol was evil already or if it was kind of he was so instantly influenced

[00:52:37] by the ring that he was willing to murder right away because I was trying to contrast

[00:52:41] that to Bilbo and Frodo, how they could be near the ring.

[00:52:46] They could see the ring, hold the ring or even use it and still have a purity to them,

[00:52:51] even though Smeagol or Gollum seems to be corrupted almost instantly.

[00:52:58] Or maybe he was already kind of evil.

[00:53:01] And then this just escalated it.

[00:53:03] Isn't he like not a completely true hobbit though?

[00:53:06] Yeah, he's like hobbit adjacent maybe.

[00:53:08] I forget how I worded it.

[00:53:10] Oh yeah, that's true.

[00:53:11] Does that like change their character?

[00:53:11] And a long time ago.

[00:53:13] Yeah.

[00:53:13] Because like that's the whole hobbit thing is that they're so, I don't know.

[00:53:17] I think they're like childlike and innocent.

[00:53:19] Yeah.

[00:53:20] Like very innocent.

[00:53:21] Hard.

[00:53:23] Yeah, maybe 600 years ago they weren't.

[00:53:25] They were completely different.

[00:53:26] Completely different breed.

[00:53:29] But it was a different, yeah, breed.

[00:53:32] Yeah.

[00:53:34] What are the politically correct?

[00:53:35] I don't even know.

[00:53:38] The breed of hobbit.

[00:53:41] Oh, and he was fishing with invisible fingers.

[00:53:43] I was like, wow, that would be so much easier to fish.

[00:53:46] Yeah.

[00:53:47] Ring on, whatever.

[00:53:48] Seriously, yeah.

[00:53:48] Gollum likes sushi.

[00:53:50] He ate them raw.

[00:53:51] Ew, I just picture it.

[00:53:52] It's gross.

[00:53:54] Just wait till the third movie.

[00:53:57] I can see that one actually.

[00:54:03] Yeah.

[00:54:04] I don't know.

[00:54:05] These...

[00:54:05] That is so interesting the way you said how it easily...

[00:54:09] Or could it be that like over time it's lost its power?

[00:54:15] Gollum found it when it had just come off of the owner.

[00:54:21] Yeah.

[00:54:21] Or like not too far from then.

[00:54:24] And then if he's 500 years old, 500 years with the ring and then Bilbo.

[00:54:30] Could that be...

[00:54:32] Could that affect it?

[00:54:33] Do you guys think that...

[00:54:34] Okay, so there was...

[00:54:37] I don't know if this is ambiguous or not.

[00:54:38] Maybe I got to help my reading of this.

[00:54:40] But did the ring choose Bilbo?

[00:54:43] Yes.

[00:54:44] That's how I read it.

[00:54:45] Really?

[00:54:46] I did not think so.

[00:54:49] I thought it just chose to reject Gollum.

[00:54:52] Yeah.

[00:54:53] And see what would happen.

[00:54:55] Oh, okay.

[00:54:55] So I'm...

[00:54:56] I guess that's fair.

[00:54:58] I'm saying Bilbo was the first person to be near him.

[00:55:03] Yeah.

[00:55:03] And he's like this is my way out.

[00:55:05] So that's me choosing Bilbo.

[00:55:07] Oh, okay.

[00:55:08] It could have been.

[00:55:09] I don't know though.

[00:55:11] I'm kind of with you, Jen.

[00:55:12] And like my reading of this was like Bilbo or Gandalf made it seem like it was so coincidental

[00:55:17] that Bilbo had walked in at the exact moment that the ring decided to abandon Gollum.

[00:55:22] Like there could be no other option.

[00:55:24] Like then the ring decided this.

[00:55:26] I forgot we got that story from Gandalf.

[00:55:27] Or maybe it was like fate or something like that.

[00:55:29] Where the movies have this line where it says the ring abandoned Gollum.

[00:55:32] And then something happened that the ring did not intend.

[00:55:34] It fell into the hands of a hobbit named Bilbo Baggins.

[00:55:38] It literally says that?

[00:55:39] I forgot.

[00:55:39] Yeah, you're right.

[00:55:40] You're right.

[00:55:40] So I'm like they're spelling it out for you.

[00:55:42] But when I'm reading this, I'm like it seemed like the ring chose Bilbo.

[00:55:46] So even further than that, do you think that the ring is choosing Frodo now in any way?

[00:55:52] I don't think it's the ring.

[00:55:53] I think it's the counter of the ring.

[00:55:56] Does that even make sense?

[00:55:57] Yeah, like the good ring.

[00:55:59] The good.

[00:56:00] Like good fate.

[00:56:01] It also is interesting that one of the lines.

[00:56:04] Like interceding it.

[00:56:05] It says the ring never abandons its keeper.

[00:56:10] A ring of power looks after itself, Frodo.

[00:56:12] It may slip off treacherously, but its keeper never abandons it.

[00:56:17] But I thought, again, speaks to the purity of hobbits because Bilbo kind of did.

[00:56:22] Yeah.

[00:56:23] And he willingly, you know, he resisted, but he actually left it behind of his own volition.

[00:56:30] And that says something.

[00:56:34] That's pretty powerful.

[00:56:36] I said a complex ringlationship.

[00:56:40] Hey.

[00:56:42] So a keeper never abandons it, but I guess it can.

[00:56:45] Yeah, that does show a serious amount of resilience.

[00:56:47] He's even had it for like, you know, a few, probably half a decade or something like that.

[00:56:52] Or half a century.

[00:56:53] And he's able to abandon it.

[00:56:54] I'm so honest.

[00:56:55] He did mention it in his letters.

[00:56:56] I thought that was funny.

[00:56:57] Back to Frodo.

[00:56:58] How's the ring?

[00:56:59] Yeah.

[00:57:02] But it became such a part of him that he didn't even know that he, right?

[00:57:07] Isn't like the first chapter where he's trying to get like, oh, I put the ring down, but then

[00:57:11] it's actually in his pocket.

[00:57:13] So like, he's not even fully like, I feel like if Gandalf wasn't there, he would have thought

[00:57:22] he like left it, but it actually was with him.

[00:57:25] Yeah.

[00:57:26] Right.

[00:57:26] Right.

[00:57:27] I agree.

[00:57:28] If that makes sense.

[00:57:29] Honestly, like maybe this is, you know, asking too much, but it would be funny or interesting

[00:57:33] at least knowing what Tolkien's opinion of Bilbo is.

[00:57:37] And if Bilbo could actually do the job that Frodo is doing, or is Frodo like the highest

[00:57:40] kind of being for this?

[00:57:41] Like Bilbo would need some, you know, assistance, like a fellowship with him.

[00:57:50] But is Bilbo, if Bilbo knew this was the one ring, like Frodo knows this one ring, would

[00:57:55] Bilbo want nothing to do with it?

[00:57:57] Or would Bilbo be too attracted to its power?

[00:57:59] I don't think, I don't think he would be because I think he's able to resist it in some way,

[00:58:04] but I don't know.

[00:58:05] But it was Bill, did Bilbo have friends?

[00:58:09] He did because these are the people from his birthday party and stuff.

[00:58:13] Yeah.

[00:58:13] It actually, I kind of read it like the hobbits were not his friends.

[00:58:17] His friends are everywhere else.

[00:58:18] I feel like he had dwarf friends and Gandalf and elf friends and others around the world,

[00:58:25] but I kind of feel like he didn't consider the hobbits his friends.

[00:58:30] Only because I'm thinking of him as like the adventurer and like going solo on trips, which

[00:58:36] I don't even know where I'm getting that from because I don't know if it actually said that.

[00:58:40] So then I was thinking the ring.

[00:58:45] That's why I said he also chose Bilbo because he wanted to go out on adventures and maybe

[00:58:53] he'd get close, it would get closer to its owner when you originally asked that question.

[00:58:58] Yeah.

[00:58:59] And like Bilbo's the best option.

[00:59:01] Yeah, because, oh, he like travels and he goes all these places and he's not afraid.

[00:59:06] So that's true.

[00:59:07] That's what I also thought.

[00:59:09] And then I thought when you were just saying now, would Bilbo have been able to do it?

[00:59:13] Could he have been on him?

[00:59:14] He seems to like free spirit and like Frodo's never left the Shire.

[00:59:18] So like he's more innocent or like more.

[00:59:23] That's a great point.

[00:59:25] I'm excited to get to the Hobbit with you too, because that's when you know a little bit

[00:59:27] more about Bilbo.

[00:59:29] That'll be kind of fun, I think.

[00:59:31] But does the ring just count on its own power being able to overcome the keeper and then

[00:59:38] then it can go back to where it started?

[00:59:41] Yeah, I kind of think so.

[00:59:42] Does it have knowledge of the character of that person?

[00:59:46] Because then I feel like it could just be anybody and the ring is just like, oh, I'm

[00:59:49] strong enough to get back.

[00:59:52] Yeah, right, right.

[00:59:53] It could overpower them.

[00:59:54] It almost seems like, I'm going to use another nerd analogy here, like the force.

[01:00:00] Like you can, in like the, what do they say?

[01:00:05] That it has the ability to persuade a weak mind or something like that.

[01:00:08] Or like, you know, an Obi-Wan, because you just saw it.

[01:00:12] I know Star Wars references.

[01:00:14] These aren't the droids you're looking for.

[01:00:16] Yeah, you know it.

[01:00:16] Like it has power over the weak minded.

[01:00:18] Whereas maybe the ring is kind of the same thing.

[01:00:21] Like I don't think, weirdly, I think it's actually not the weak minded so much as the

[01:00:26] powerful.

[01:00:28] Like those who have no power are able to wield authority over it.

[01:00:32] And those who have power, it's able to corrupt them so much significantly.

[01:00:35] So much more.

[01:00:36] Isn't that why Gandalf didn't want it?

[01:00:37] Yeah, Gandalf doesn't want to touch it.

[01:00:39] Because he knows.

[01:00:40] But that's how, how do you say his name?

[01:00:42] Sauron?

[01:00:43] Sauron.

[01:00:44] Sauron.

[01:00:45] Saur.

[01:00:46] Sauron.

[01:00:46] Sauron.

[01:00:49] It was meant for him.

[01:00:51] And he was supposed to be the most powerful, like, person to overtake everything.

[01:00:57] So it wants someone like that.

[01:00:58] Yeah, I think so.

[01:00:59] That's actually a great point.

[01:01:01] Like, that's what the ring wants.

[01:01:02] It wants someone super powerful so that it can, like in the hands of a hobbit.

[01:01:06] It's like, okay, who's the next person that I can like, you know, take?

[01:01:09] Because I can't take a hobbit, you know, to the promised land.

[01:01:12] Yeah.

[01:01:13] I also think Gandalf's understanding of the ring, they're talking about Gollum and he says

[01:01:20] pity.

[01:01:20] It was pity that prevented Bilbo from killing Gollum.

[01:01:25] Pity and mercy not to strike without need.

[01:01:28] And he's been well rewarded, Frodo.

[01:01:30] Be sure that he took so little hurt from the evil and escaped in the end because he began

[01:01:36] his ownership of the ring.

[01:01:38] So with pity.

[01:01:39] So, again, just the contrast of Gollum begins his ownership with murder.

[01:01:46] And that was why the ring had so much power over him.

[01:01:49] But then Bilbo started his ownership with pity and mercy.

[01:01:54] And I don't know what Frodo started it with, but maybe innocence.

[01:01:59] Yeah.

[01:01:59] Um, that's a great point.

[01:02:01] He didn't even want it.

[01:02:02] What their starting journey is like, yeah.

[01:02:04] Which isn't quite as pure as pity or mercy, but it's something.

[01:02:07] Or maybe it's better.

[01:02:08] I don't know.

[01:02:09] Well, he didn't even want it, did he?

[01:02:12] Yeah.

[01:02:13] It's like best case scenario.

[01:02:14] It's a classic trope of like the people who should be in leadership are the ones that

[01:02:17] don't want it.

[01:02:17] Yeah, you're right.

[01:02:19] Like Bilbo is maybe a little different than he actually wanted the ring.

[01:02:21] He kind of found this and was like, oh, hmm.

[01:02:24] I think Punk is this bad boy.

[01:02:25] Hmm.

[01:02:26] Um, Frodo wants nothing to do with it, which I think it makes him like perfectly positioned

[01:02:30] to actually be the one that deals with this.

[01:02:33] Gandalf says a line of like, you were meant for it.

[01:02:37] Like this to carry this.

[01:02:40] You were meant for the ring.

[01:02:41] Yeah.

[01:02:41] It's like the, the two extremes and then the one in the middle, like each of those people.

[01:02:47] Yeah.

[01:02:49] Yeah.

[01:02:50] And then, yeah, like Smeagol gives into the ring so instantly that I feel like once

[01:02:54] you, once you do that, then there's like no coming back from it.

[01:02:57] And then it's kind of just like each one takes longer to give into it.

[01:03:02] Cause like Bilbo is kind of like a slow, like toe in the water occasionally.

[01:03:06] And then Frodo was like, I don't even want this in my house.

[01:03:10] That's a great point because it's not just power.

[01:03:12] It's like, it's like the X and the Y axis.

[01:03:14] It's like power.

[01:03:15] It'll corrupt you.

[01:03:16] If you have power, it'll use you.

[01:03:17] If you have power and it also will use you if you're weak.

[01:03:20] So you have to not want power and be strong.

[01:03:23] Yeah.

[01:03:24] Which is what right.

[01:03:25] Right.

[01:03:26] I'm sure Bilbo is in that little square, but Frodo comprises that probably to the best.

[01:03:31] Yeah, you're right.

[01:03:32] And I feel like all of the hobbits that he's with right now, like Mary Pippin and Sam all

[01:03:39] exemplify that to some extent, maybe Frodo the most, but Sam pretty darn well, I feel like

[01:03:45] could be uncorrupted by this thing.

[01:03:47] Like almost more, like Sam's lines in the next chapter and the chapter after that are

[01:03:51] astounding.

[01:03:52] Like how brave this guy is.

[01:03:53] I love him so much.

[01:03:55] If Frodo died, I 100% think that Sam could do it.

[01:04:00] But I don't think Bilbo would ever destroy the ring, like in my mind.

[01:04:04] I don't think he would either.

[01:04:06] Yeah.

[01:04:06] Yeah.

[01:04:06] I think cause he, he wore it.

[01:04:08] He had a taste of it.

[01:04:09] Yeah.

[01:04:09] Frodo never really did.

[01:04:11] Yeah.

[01:04:11] He had a taste of it and he didn't exactly know what it was.

[01:04:13] He like knew it was a ring of power, but didn't know fully what it was.

[01:04:17] So maybe if he knew what it was, he'd be disgusted by it.

[01:04:20] But he's just kind of like dabbling in this.

[01:04:21] He's kind of intrigued by this and likes it.

[01:04:23] I guess that's not fair because he didn't know it was like this evil.

[01:04:26] Yeah.

[01:04:27] But I do love, I mean, chapter three and four is essentially like them starting their journeys

[01:04:31] and like chapter four is like they have the conversation with a farmer maggot, but

[01:04:36] I love how they're actually on this journey together.

[01:04:39] Like, I don't have a ton of notes about this because this is essentially there's them

[01:04:42] starting their journey and I love the fact that they start this with other people.

[01:04:48] What do you got, Danny?

[01:04:49] I just love how you said, I don't have a ton of notes and I'm looking at this book and how

[01:04:54] many underlines.

[01:04:55] Just tons of notes.

[01:04:58] Yeah.

[01:04:59] I'm getting distracted.

[01:05:01] Gollum in prison with the wood elves.

[01:05:03] Interesting.

[01:05:04] Which is crazy.

[01:05:05] Never knew that.

[01:05:05] Never knew that.

[01:05:06] So.

[01:05:07] Wood elf.

[01:05:08] Yeah.

[01:05:09] And they treat him kindly.

[01:05:09] The wood elves have him in prison.

[01:05:10] They treat him with such kindness as they can find in their wise hearts.

[01:05:14] Yeah.

[01:05:15] Which is a different characterization of elves than I thought too and that they're like kinder.

[01:05:20] Yeah.

[01:05:21] Like in the movies, they're like ethereal and they're like almost distant from everyone.

[01:05:25] And that made me read some of the elf lines with a little more sarcasm at first.

[01:05:30] Yeah, seriously.

[01:05:31] And then I was like, oh wait, actually, I think, I think they're being serious.

[01:05:35] I think this is genuine.

[01:05:36] I think they're laughing with Frodo when he tries to speak elvish.

[01:05:40] Yeah, seriously.

[01:05:40] Not at him.

[01:05:41] Yeah.

[01:05:41] And so at first I thought they were being like, ha ha ha, he thinks he's speaking.

[01:05:45] He doesn't know anything.

[01:05:46] But then in the end, I'm like, oh, actually, I like these elves.

[01:05:49] They seem cool.

[01:05:50] Yeah, same.

[01:05:51] They actually grew on me in the next chapter when they're actually having the conversation

[01:05:54] with the elves.

[01:05:54] Like the elf didn't look down on Frodo.

[01:05:57] The elf was like, you're in a unique position here.

[01:06:00] I'm like not going to offer you advice.

[01:06:01] He's like even just speaking wisely.

[01:06:02] He's like, I'm not going to offer advice, but I will if you ask for it.

[01:06:06] And then he asked for it and then he's like, don't do this alone.

[01:06:09] He like, he, I think he sees almost the potential on Frodo, which is like shocking because in

[01:06:15] the movies and like my perception of elves is like they're way too high and mighty.

[01:06:19] They're like, yeah, like we're better than you.

[01:06:21] We're immortal.

[01:06:23] We're like the bee's knees.

[01:06:25] Yeah.

[01:06:25] I never liked the elves in the movies and like none of them have really standout personalities

[01:06:30] either.

[01:06:31] Like they all seem very superior, but I feel like in the book, I think the elf personalities

[01:06:36] and like the differences between the different kinds, or I hope that that's going to come

[01:06:40] out more.

[01:06:41] Yeah, for sure.

[01:06:42] Because yeah, they all kind of just like blend into one like, ha, we're elves.

[01:06:46] Like we're better than everyone.

[01:06:48] But that's what I want from the books.

[01:06:50] Like more elf personality.

[01:06:52] More elf.

[01:06:53] Maybe it's just the wood elves are kind.

[01:06:55] Maybe the other elves aren't kind.

[01:06:56] I don't know.

[01:06:58] Because I do know in the Hobbit, the elves from Mirkwood aren't very kind.

[01:07:04] I don't know.

[01:07:04] We'll see.

[01:07:05] Maybe they have beef.

[01:07:06] Maybe this is what we'll learn about.

[01:07:07] That's true.

[01:07:08] That's true.

[01:07:08] They got beef.

[01:07:10] Absolutely.

[01:07:12] The house of Elrond half elven.

[01:07:16] What's his other half?

[01:07:17] What's the deal with Elrond?

[01:07:18] I didn't know he was half elven.

[01:07:19] He's half elven?

[01:07:20] I mean, that's his last name.

[01:07:21] So then I'm like, what's that mean?

[01:07:25] Maybe it's like his mom and his dad.

[01:07:28] You combine the names.

[01:07:30] Oh, yeah, yeah.

[01:07:30] He's young in Rings of Power.

[01:07:32] Yeah.

[01:07:34] Sorry.

[01:07:35] I have to have quotes though.

[01:07:37] Yeah, so true.

[01:07:38] I don't know how old he is.

[01:07:41] Oh, I was thinking about bringing wine because they drink wine.

[01:07:45] Are men the only ones in this book that have like a normal lifespan?

[01:07:49] Is everyone else really?

[01:07:51] No.

[01:07:51] All elves live.

[01:07:52] All elves are immortal.

[01:07:54] I don't know the full lore.

[01:07:56] When I was discussing some of this like a long time ago, I think when I was, I forget

[01:08:01] what I was watching.

[01:08:03] But there was a point where someone said that there's like a deity in Lord of the Rings

[01:08:13] and that deity bestowed the gift of mortality upon man, which is weird.

[01:08:20] Whoa.

[01:08:21] I don't know what that means at all.

[01:08:23] I'm actually kind of curious to get into that lore a little bit.

[01:08:25] But like mortality is an actual gift that men possess.

[01:08:33] And elves are immortal.

[01:08:36] I don't know.

[01:08:37] I think all like, yeah, all elves are.

[01:08:39] They can die in battle, obviously.

[01:08:41] But like men and women elves are all immortal.

[01:08:44] But I don't know.

[01:08:45] They can't.

[01:08:46] They can.

[01:08:47] They can't die in battle?

[01:08:48] They can.

[01:08:49] They can be killed.

[01:08:50] So then how is that immortal?

[01:08:52] Well, because you wouldn't die naturally.

[01:08:54] If you don't die.

[01:08:55] Well, I mean, seems like you shouldn't die at all.

[01:09:00] Well, maybe the two types of immortality.

[01:09:04] A funny thing I saw when they were in chapter three, a few creatures came and looked at them

[01:09:15] when their fire had died away.

[01:09:17] A fox passing through on business of its own stopped and sniffed hobbits.

[01:09:24] He thought, well, what's next?

[01:09:27] I've heard of strange doings in this land, but I have seldom heard of hobbits sleeping

[01:09:32] out of doors under a tree.

[01:09:34] Three of them.

[01:09:35] So it's like this fox having thoughts about specific things in properly formed sentences.

[01:09:42] It just made me wonder about this world where the line is drawn between animals with sentience

[01:09:48] and not.

[01:09:50] Yeah, that's a great point.

[01:09:52] It seems much more fluid than anything else because they were having the debate about,

[01:09:56] what was it?

[01:09:56] The elm tree or something like that that was walking.

[01:09:59] Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah.

[01:09:59] And they weren't sure if it was like, they were like, oh, then it wasn't an elm.

[01:10:03] It was, or it wasn't a tree.

[01:10:05] Yeah.

[01:10:06] Because it was like walking and it can't be walking.

[01:10:07] And they're like, no, no, no, it definitely was.

[01:10:09] Oh, I love that scene.

[01:10:10] It's like you're kind of getting like hints a little bit.

[01:10:12] Mm-hmm.

[01:10:14] More magic for sure.

[01:10:16] Yeah.

[01:10:16] And this is movies.

[01:10:18] Yeah.

[01:10:19] It's like my favorite part.

[01:10:20] So I'm excited to get there.

[01:10:24] Jen, I have one question for you because you don't know.

[01:10:27] You kind of have watched the movies a long, long time ago.

[01:10:29] Do you know who the-

[01:10:31] It's like Star Wars intro.

[01:10:33] Who the hooded horsemen are.

[01:10:36] The dark cloaked people.

[01:10:38] No, I don't remember who they are.

[01:10:40] It is so eerie in these.

[01:10:43] Like it's eerie, way eerieer in the books too.

[01:10:46] When like you're going through this and like there's just these horsemen that are going around

[01:10:50] like Hobbiton looking for-

[01:10:52] I know, it reminded me of the, what's his name?

[01:10:55] Halloween.

[01:10:56] The headless horseman?

[01:10:57] Yeah.

[01:10:58] Yes.

[01:10:59] There you go.

[01:10:59] Sir Nicholas.

[01:11:00] Mm-hmm.

[01:11:01] But then you have it on the cover and I was like, I don't remember.

[01:11:04] Like when he first started reading this, right?

[01:11:06] It's on the cover.

[01:11:07] Yeah.

[01:11:08] And I was like, I don't really remember that scene.

[01:11:11] And then when we're reading it and it came up so quickly, I was like, oh my gosh, I forgot

[01:11:16] that whole first movie where they're like hiding and like running away.

[01:11:21] I don't remember who's under it at all.

[01:11:27] I think they're bad though, right?

[01:11:29] It seems like it.

[01:11:30] I don't even remember.

[01:11:31] It definitely seemed bad.

[01:11:31] Yeah.

[01:11:32] Because the whole conversation-

[01:11:33] And then I'm like, are they elves though?

[01:11:35] No.

[01:11:35] I don't think so.

[01:11:36] I love Farmer Maggots standing up to these guys.

[01:11:41] Like Hobbits have moxie.

[01:11:42] Like what?

[01:11:44] Because Farmer Maggots is a Hobbit or of some sort.

[01:11:47] No?

[01:11:47] Right.

[01:11:48] He's a Hobbit of some sort.

[01:11:48] So they say Hobbits are shorter than I even imagined them because I think they say they're

[01:11:54] two feet to three feet.

[01:11:56] Most of them are around two feet.

[01:11:58] Maybe I misread that or something like that.

[01:12:00] They're short.

[01:12:01] Yeah.

[01:12:01] I'm like, imagine this little Hobbit sticking up to this guy on a full grown horse on a full

[01:12:06] man sticking up to this guy.

[01:12:07] I'm like, that is brash.

[01:12:10] Yeah.

[01:12:11] Exactly.

[01:12:12] Chihuahuas.

[01:12:12] Yeah.

[01:12:13] Right.

[01:12:13] Little chihuahuas running after him.

[01:12:15] It's such a funny point.

[01:12:16] Like, I don't know.

[01:12:17] I just think that's so fascinating.

[01:12:18] This guy, he's a farmer and he's like, this horseman comes.

[01:12:23] He's like, I need to find Bilbo Baggins or I need to find Frodo and I need to go along

[01:12:31] on this road.

[01:12:31] And the farmer Maggots is like, nope, go back the way you came.

[01:12:35] Don't come back on my property.

[01:12:37] What are you saying?

[01:12:37] Don't come on my property.

[01:12:38] It's the hooded guy.

[01:12:40] The hooded guy.

[01:12:42] I just don't know if he's good or bad.

[01:12:44] So yeah, that's funny.

[01:12:46] Great.

[01:12:46] Now I'm in the outs.

[01:12:48] Everyone else knows what's going on.

[01:12:49] Only for like a chapter though.

[01:12:50] But it's good insight because yeah, you're going to learn things quick and then we get

[01:12:55] to see what it's like to be a first time fellowship.

[01:12:58] Oh my goodness.

[01:13:02] I know how it ends.

[01:13:05] I did think there was that song they were all singing together, like that Hobbit song.

[01:13:12] And I thought that last paragraph of that song was really interesting.

[01:13:17] Kind of movie spoiler.

[01:13:19] It felt like that was Pippin's song that he sang to Denethor in the movie.

[01:13:27] It was, yeah.

[01:13:27] Why should your songs not be fit for my halls?

[01:13:30] It's like not quite, but it's close.

[01:13:32] So I feel like it was pulled from that.

[01:13:34] So it was cool to get that so early on, you know, representing Innocence and the Shire

[01:13:38] and all that.

[01:13:44] Yeah.

[01:13:44] Some of the songs, Andy Serkis didn't do that according to Mary, the way how Billy Boyd

[01:13:49] sang it.

[01:13:50] And I was a bit bummed because he did it in like some other dumb way.

[01:13:53] I was like, you have the opportunity.

[01:13:55] It was like my favorite song in the whole thing.

[01:13:57] It's just like, you know, sing it as how Billy Boyd sang it.

[01:14:00] It was perfect.

[01:14:01] Perfect.

[01:14:04] But yeah, there's, yeah, again, I was, I was saying this before, but I feel like these

[01:14:09] first, especially three chapters lay like the rest of the found work for some of the

[01:14:14] books.

[01:14:15] Like they pick out so much from these, from the movies.

[01:14:17] Like there's the songs that they have in all these.

[01:14:19] They have so many different quotes that they just kind of piece throughout these books.

[01:14:22] I'm curious if it's going to be this much, there's going to be this many like good quotes

[01:14:27] in the rest of the series or if they're just like, Tolkien was just like packed a bunch in

[01:14:30] the beginning and you kind of just hand choose or hand pick them from there.

[01:14:35] Yeah.

[01:14:36] All these elf things I keep writing, like I can't tell if they're being mean or not.

[01:14:41] The one line is blatantly kind of mean, unless he was joking.

[01:14:45] He did laugh.

[01:14:46] We have no need of other company and hobbits are so dull.

[01:14:49] I was like, that's not the nicest.

[01:14:52] I love that too.

[01:14:54] There's, there's like hobbit rivalries.

[01:14:57] Like the guy from Farmer Maggot didn't really like like the Hobbiton variety of Hobbit.

[01:15:06] Like there's little neighborhoods and factions.

[01:15:09] Variety of hobbits.

[01:15:09] I don't know what to call them.

[01:15:11] Neighborhood.

[01:15:12] We'll just say neighborhood.

[01:15:15] All right.

[01:15:15] Maybe it's chapter four.

[01:15:17] Yeah.

[01:15:19] I don't, there's not a ton else in chapter four.

[01:15:22] I love chapter four is called A Shortcut to Mushrooms.

[01:15:24] They just have the discussion essentially with Farmer Maggot, but.

[01:15:31] Oh, and it ends at the ferry.

[01:15:33] Yeah.

[01:15:33] When Mary joins them.

[01:15:34] Okay.

[01:15:35] I truly, truly, the only thing that I really cared about in this chapter was Sam's dialogue

[01:15:41] at the end.

[01:15:42] And like Farmer Maggot was interesting because you actually got to meet him.

[01:15:47] He's actually a kind of cool dude.

[01:15:49] Like I did, I kind of liked meeting him, but he's.

[01:15:55] No, he doesn't seem like a neutral character, but he was like just a, he just displayed some

[01:16:00] information.

[01:16:02] Like all we got from Farmer Maggot.

[01:16:04] Essentially, he's like a storyteller.

[01:16:05] He's like winding it up.

[01:16:07] He's like, Oh, these, you don't know what these horsemen are.

[01:16:11] Let me tell you.

[01:16:12] These horsemen came looking for, and he like paused it.

[01:16:16] He's like, for you.

[01:16:17] I'm like, all right, dude, stop being so dramatic.

[01:16:20] And then Frodo's like, no, okay, we have to leave now.

[01:16:22] And then Farmer Maggot's like, no, you're going to stay for dinner.

[01:16:25] And then he's like, no, no, no, we can't.

[01:16:27] And he's like, fine.

[01:16:28] Yeah.

[01:16:28] I'm going to take you, you know, in my little carriage.

[01:16:30] So I really like this guy.

[01:16:31] I feel like he's like helping him out, but he's a little annoying to me.

[01:16:35] Um, but I love Sam's dialogue at the end.

[01:16:38] That's like my favorite part of these chapters, how loyal he is and how like brave he is.

[01:16:42] And now like he's not leaving.

[01:16:45] And I, I just could not get enough.

[01:16:48] The elves said, don't you leave him.

[01:16:51] And he said, I never mean to.

[01:16:52] I'm going with him.

[01:16:53] If he climbs to the moon and if any of those black riders try to stop him, they'll have

[01:16:58] Sam Gamgee to recognize.

[01:16:59] Yeah, it's so good.

[01:17:00] And I love that.

[01:17:01] Um, cause it speaks to Sam's character.

[01:17:03] And the way the elves so specifically said, don't leave him.

[01:17:08] Yeah.

[01:17:09] Um, it felt like they knew more and I liked it.

[01:17:15] It felt like they, they're centaurs.

[01:17:17] They're looking into the future a little bit.

[01:17:19] They're just like, there's something more here.

[01:17:21] They're saying, Sam, you're important to this quest.

[01:17:24] Yeah.

[01:17:24] You can't leave him.

[01:17:25] And there's a point too, that, um, the movies and even circuses interpretation of some of

[01:17:31] this makes it so serious.

[01:17:33] But I even liked that.

[01:17:34] The last thing that it says after it is they laughed like these characters.

[01:17:39] Yeah.

[01:17:39] Yeah.

[01:17:40] Yeah.

[01:17:40] Seems so normal.

[01:17:42] Sam is saying this not out of like, he is saying this out of bravery cause he is a brave

[01:17:47] person, but he's saying this almost to make the other guys laugh.

[01:17:50] Like, yes, he's like, Oh, these people come, they're going to have me to reckon with.

[01:17:53] And like everyone else in the company just starts kind of cracking up cause they're like, yeah,

[01:17:57] what are we going to do?

[01:17:58] But they're still super brave and they're still super loyal.

[01:18:01] Nonetheless, like it really is showing the actual character of Sam.

[01:18:03] So I think it's just, I think it's great writing.

[01:18:07] Um, I think he's a good storyteller so far.

[01:18:10] I think it's, it's pretty, I'm, I'm pretty into it.

[01:18:13] It's much, it's not like paste.

[01:18:16] Like the, I love the Harry Potter story so much cause it's like paste a little bit better.

[01:18:20] I think like this, it's a bit more meandering, which I don't mind.

[01:18:23] I kind of like that at the moment where you're kind of getting to know other characters that

[01:18:27] you don't know, but yeah, I, I love, I love the book characters.

[01:18:33] I love the characters already the book habits more than I like the movies and the movies

[01:18:37] that go great with these characters.

[01:18:39] So I'm into it.

[01:18:42] Um, I liked that there, when they were trying to cut through this actual shortcut, um, Pippin

[01:18:49] was saying one thing, Frodo was saying another, they were kind of saying, Oh, I think we're

[01:18:53] too far off.

[01:18:54] And Frodo said, no, we don't want to zigzag.

[01:18:55] Let's keep going.

[01:18:56] I kind of liked that Frodo was wrong.

[01:18:59] Um, in the end, Pippin was right.

[01:19:01] They were going too far off track.

[01:19:03] Um, just showing that he's not perfect.

[01:19:06] He is fallible.

[01:19:08] Um, and then maybe he can trust his friends a little more.

[01:19:11] Um, and then I realized also if they've never left the Shire navigating would be difficult.

[01:19:19] Yeah.

[01:19:19] Like you can only get so experienced navigating.

[01:19:22] You've barely left your home.

[01:19:24] Yep.

[01:19:24] Which is why I love, I'm sure they'll probably meet him soon, which is why they, I love, I

[01:19:29] love that they meet Aragorn and then they become, all they have to do is just trust in this guy.

[01:19:34] Yeah.

[01:19:34] Yeah.

[01:19:34] The greatest tracker of the age, you know?

[01:19:37] What else do you guys have?

[01:19:38] Anything else before we wrap it up?

[01:19:41] Um, I was skeptical of Farmer Maggot.

[01:19:44] I didn't know what he was going to do.

[01:19:46] Yeah.

[01:19:46] To the very end, I was like, is he leading them to some kind of trap?

[01:19:50] Um, and then I was glad he didn't.

[01:19:52] And I was like, oh, he is nice.

[01:19:53] I like this guy.

[01:19:54] Yeah.

[01:19:56] Yeah.

[01:19:56] That, I was a little, yeah, I was a little set, like suspicious of him, a little skeptical

[01:20:00] of him at first.

[01:20:02] Um, but I'm glad that they kind of went, went ahead and he was actually good.

[01:20:08] Um, um, 14 sat down to eat at Farmer Maggot's.

[01:20:13] I said, good thing it wasn't 13.

[01:20:19] How did you track all this stuff?

[01:20:24] Cause you take notes.

[01:20:25] Well, of course we have to, we have to figure out what are we going to call?

[01:20:31] We obviously a hot tamale in this chapter.

[01:20:33] We have to do a hot tamale.

[01:20:35] We have to do, um, rather than a house cup, we can award the ring.

[01:20:41] I don't know if that's a good thing though.

[01:20:43] I feel like that's bad.

[01:20:45] Um.

[01:20:47] Can we get the ring of something else?

[01:20:49] The ring of whatever.

[01:20:50] The ring of good fortune.

[01:20:52] The ring of, uh, we got to figure out what we call it.

[01:20:58] We'll call it the ring of power for now.

[01:21:00] Yeah.

[01:21:00] We'll come up with a better term for it.

[01:21:02] And then favorite moment.

[01:21:05] We can call that one just the favorite moment.

[01:21:07] Just the.

[01:21:09] Yeah.

[01:21:11] It's easy.

[01:21:11] So what are your guys in these, in these chapters?

[01:21:14] Unless you had anything else that you wanted to discuss before.

[01:21:22] Nice.

[01:21:23] I like that they were on their way to the, uh, the, oh, is it the brewery or whatever?

[01:21:29] Not the brewery.

[01:21:30] Yeah.

[01:21:30] Yeah.

[01:21:30] Right.

[01:21:31] Right.

[01:21:31] The ale house.

[01:21:33] I'm kind of afraid what it was called.

[01:21:34] And then the farmer ragged's like, no, I'll give you a beer.

[01:21:37] Don't worry.

[01:21:37] And then they were like, okay, now we can relax a little bit.

[01:21:41] Yeah.

[01:21:44] So I think my favorite character in this is definitely Frodo at the moment.

[01:21:52] I think Sam is hot to Molly energy.

[01:21:54] Yeah.

[01:21:55] I think Sam's kind of like keeping everything nice.

[01:21:56] Oh, yeah.

[01:21:56] That's nice.

[01:21:57] Nice.

[01:21:57] Light and easy.

[01:21:58] Frodo, I think truly is my favorite character.

[01:22:01] And he's like, he's, I don't want to say like less weak because he's not really weak

[01:22:07] in the movies, but a little bit.

[01:22:09] He's like, he's just brave and, and will do what he needs to do in order to keep people

[01:22:16] that he loves.

[01:22:16] He loves alive.

[01:22:18] And it was a great quality of that.

[01:22:20] And it's awesome.

[01:22:21] Yeah.

[01:22:22] So I'm a Frodo fan with Sam being a hot tamale.

[01:22:27] Great choices.

[01:22:29] I'm going to say Frodo is my favorite.

[01:22:31] And then Maggot is the hot tamale.

[01:22:33] Oh, Maggot is definitely good.

[01:22:36] He like controls the situation.

[01:22:38] Ooh, someone says the basket of mushrooms.

[01:22:42] We could award the basket of mushrooms to someone.

[01:22:45] That's so good.

[01:22:48] Thank you, Valathor.

[01:22:50] That is a perfect, you sound like a Lord of the Rings character too.

[01:22:53] I was just going to say, you got a character in chat.

[01:22:56] It's great.

[01:23:00] The basket of mushrooms.

[01:23:02] Hmm.

[01:23:02] It's great.

[01:23:05] Wait, as your favorite character?

[01:23:07] Yeah.

[01:23:08] Yeah.

[01:23:08] Like the basket of mushrooms.

[01:23:10] Goes to.

[01:23:11] You can go to the Sackville bag.

[01:23:13] Obviously.

[01:23:14] I guess I'm talking.

[01:23:16] Go ahead.

[01:23:16] All right.

[01:23:16] Frodo.

[01:23:17] Why?

[01:23:17] Because I don't know anything.

[01:23:20] Frodo.

[01:23:21] I feel like does deserve it.

[01:23:24] I kind of like Gandalf too because he was getting information.

[01:23:29] Yeah.

[01:23:29] Even though it was annoying.

[01:23:34] The timeline that he would come back to give him the information.

[01:23:41] Hot tamale.

[01:23:44] Gollum.

[01:23:49] Hot tamale indeed.

[01:23:50] Kind of gives a little bit of hot tamale energy to be honest.

[01:23:53] It goes after everyone wants.

[01:23:54] It's like too hot.

[01:23:55] Yeah.

[01:23:56] Boiling tamale.

[01:23:58] Yeah.

[01:23:59] He's a.

[01:24:02] No.

[01:24:05] Yeah.

[01:24:05] I'll just pick someone different because I had the same ones as John.

[01:24:09] Yeah.

[01:24:09] Well, they're.

[01:24:10] I could give a.

[01:24:11] Bilbo.

[01:24:12] The hot tamale tube for the sole reason of he.

[01:24:15] His gift of the spoons to the Sackville.

[01:24:18] Or the.

[01:24:18] That was real good hot tamale energy.

[01:24:20] Like he leaves and he realizes the Sackville Bagginses are stealing his spoons.

[01:24:25] And then when he comes back, he realizes that.

[01:24:26] So his inheritance gift or his birthday gift to them is the rest of the spoon case.

[01:24:30] And then.

[01:24:31] What was her name?

[01:24:32] Thelia.

[01:24:34] Sounds right.

[01:24:35] The lady Sackville Baggins realized it was like.

[01:24:38] No.

[01:24:38] He knows.

[01:24:39] I'm like that is a great move.

[01:24:42] It's so petty.

[01:24:42] I love that.

[01:24:45] Um.

[01:24:46] I think I'll do a basket of mushrooms.

[01:24:55] Gotta go Frodo.

[01:24:56] Just like Harry Potter.

[01:24:57] I felt like.

[01:24:58] The books.

[01:24:59] It's better than movies.

[01:25:01] But you just.

[01:25:02] You get so much more of the character.

[01:25:03] Yeah.

[01:25:03] That I feel like when building a world.

[01:25:06] You trust.

[01:25:07] You'll learn about the main character eventually.

[01:25:09] So they kind of leave them bland a little bit.

[01:25:12] So getting to actually understand his mindset.

[01:25:16] Um.

[01:25:17] I view him so much more highly already.

[01:25:19] That that's been.

[01:25:20] Uh.

[01:25:20] Great.

[01:25:21] Um.

[01:25:22] And then.

[01:25:24] Hot tamale.

[01:25:25] I do like Bilbo.

[01:25:27] For.

[01:25:29] That scene.

[01:25:30] That's a good one.

[01:25:30] Yeah.

[01:25:30] And if it wasn't him.

[01:25:31] It would have been Gildor.

[01:25:32] Because that was my favorite moment.

[01:25:34] Talking to the elves.

[01:25:35] That was a cool moment.

[01:25:36] Yeah.

[01:25:36] Seeing Frodo out there.

[01:25:38] Speaking elvish.

[01:25:39] Kind of talking to foreigners.

[01:25:41] Which wouldn't have been that common.

[01:25:42] I felt like he was leading the crew.

[01:25:44] It's like their first adventure kind of.

[01:25:46] Yeah.

[01:25:46] Real adventure.

[01:25:47] And fulfilling.

[01:25:48] Uh.

[01:25:49] Sam's dreams here.

[01:25:50] You know.

[01:25:51] I thought that was.

[01:25:52] That was fun.

[01:25:53] He was like giddy.

[01:25:53] I love how cute he was.

[01:25:55] It was great.

[01:25:56] I like they described him as like a puppy.

[01:25:58] Yeah.

[01:25:58] He was just so like eager all the time.

[01:25:59] Yeah.

[01:26:00] It's great.

[01:26:01] Yeah.

[01:26:02] That was a great moment.

[01:26:03] I think my favorite moment was.

[01:26:05] Prior to the conversation that Frodo and Gandalf were having.

[01:26:07] I just.

[01:26:08] I felt like.

[01:26:08] I was hooked when I was reading that.

[01:26:10] It was great.

[01:26:10] Mm.

[01:26:11] Um.

[01:26:13] He's good at writing dialogue.

[01:26:14] I think in this.

[01:26:15] Yeah.

[01:26:16] You guys have a favorite moment.

[01:26:17] Or you want to pass?

[01:26:18] I like the party.

[01:26:20] Like that.

[01:26:20] Yeah.

[01:26:21] Honestly.

[01:26:22] It was a great party.

[01:26:22] And his like speech at the end.

[01:26:25] And just goodbye.

[01:26:26] Yeah.

[01:26:26] Like that.

[01:26:26] I really like.

[01:26:27] I like that the hobbits didn't want a long speech either.

[01:26:30] Yeah.

[01:26:30] Yeah.

[01:26:31] Like Bilbo was going on.

[01:26:31] And they're like.

[01:26:32] Oh great.

[01:26:33] And then.

[01:26:33] Then he was like.

[01:26:34] And third.

[01:26:35] My third and final point.

[01:26:36] And all of them were like.

[01:26:37] Finally.

[01:26:38] Okay.

[01:26:38] Excited.

[01:26:40] It was a good.

[01:26:41] Good party.

[01:26:44] Yeah.

[01:26:44] It was.

[01:26:45] It was good.

[01:26:46] I.

[01:26:47] I did go to the Shire when I was in New Zealand.

[01:26:50] Yes.

[01:26:50] So I kept thinking back to it.

[01:26:52] Magical place.

[01:26:53] Right.

[01:26:53] No.

[01:26:54] Truly magical.

[01:26:55] But I'm like.

[01:26:56] I want to have a hobbit party.

[01:26:58] Yeah.

[01:26:58] You know.

[01:26:58] Just hanging out.

[01:26:59] We'll do that.

[01:27:00] Eating good food.

[01:27:00] For the tent.

[01:27:01] Outdoors.

[01:27:02] After we finish these.

[01:27:03] We'll have a hobbit party.

[01:27:04] Yeah.

[01:27:04] Nice.

[01:27:04] In the summer.

[01:27:04] Somewhere in the grass.

[01:27:05] We got to create a Shire somewhere.

[01:27:07] It'll be perfect.

[01:27:08] You got to put a tent around a tree.

[01:27:09] Yeah.

[01:27:10] Yeah.

[01:27:10] Something like that.

[01:27:12] Great.

[01:27:12] So good.

[01:27:15] Oh boy.

[01:27:16] You guys.

[01:27:18] Thanks for joining us on our journey of the fellowship of the first time readers.

[01:27:22] Sounds good.

[01:27:49] Elvish is not a complete language.

[01:27:51] I must have been making that up because.

[01:27:52] I could have sworn it was there too.

[01:27:53] One from Game of Thrones is there.

[01:27:55] Interesting.

[01:27:55] And the one from Star Trek is there.

[01:27:57] There might have been one other like fantasy language.

[01:28:00] But Elvish is not a complete language.

[01:28:03] You can't speak it.

[01:28:05] Can't write it?

[01:28:05] You couldn't have a conversation with someone in Elvish.

[01:28:07] Really?

[01:28:08] There's not enough of it.

[01:28:09] And I was like.

[01:28:10] Oh that's fascinating.

[01:28:11] We just haven't found the Rosetta Stone of Elvish yet.

[01:28:14] Yeah.

[01:28:14] Yeah.

[01:28:14] Exactly.

[01:28:15] There's a missing piece of it.