The Tolkien Lore Podcast

Apr 13 2025 299 ep. 25 mins 34

The Tolkien Lore Podcast artwork

Discussing anything and everything related to J.R.R. Tolkien, from Middle-earth to real life.

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Why Was It Harder for Sauron to Regain a Body Every Time He Was Destroyed?

Apr 13 2025 23 mins

Sauron’s history is one of multiple defeats and even destructions of his physical body, and each time it’s harder for him to come back and assume his mantle as Dark Lord. Why is that? Let’s see what Tolkien has to say about it.Other Links: Playeur (formerly Utreon):https://playeur.com/c/TolkienLorePodcast/Rumble: https://rumble.com/c/c-355195Odysee: https://odysee.com/@Tolkie

Tolkien Geek Reacts to “Warfare Experts Rate 13 Lord of the Rings Battles for Realism”

Apr 06 2025 39 mins

Business Insider had a whole troop of warfare experts critique scenes from Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings films (and Rings of Power but who cares about that…), and some of it is useful fodder for a deeper look, so let’s critique the critics!For the full video from Business Insider, click here:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lJMR3s2E4Bo&pp=ygUmd2FyZmFyZSBleHBlcnRzIHJhdG

Why the Members of the Fellowship of the Ring Make NO Sense Strategically

Mar 30 2025 16 mins

Following up my video from last week for Tolkien Reading Day, I thought I would take a closer look at another strange fact about eh Fellowship: Almost none of them are actually there to go to Mordor! Seems bizarre, but it’s not when you look at it through Tolkien’s lense.Last week’s video is here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kYmY25wunscFor Men of the West’s video that h

How the “Company” of the Ring Became the “Fellowship” | Tolkien Reading Day 2025

Mar 24 2025 22 mins

Despite the first volume of The Lord of the Rings being named “The Fellowship of the Ring,” the word fellowship actually barely appears in that volume, and only in its final chapter. Why was the group called the “Company” for so long, and how and why did it become the “Fellowship?”For the full playlist of other TolkienTubers who contributed this year, check out this lin

How J.R.R. Tolkien Almost Ruined His Middle-Earth Mythology

Mar 16 2025 31 mins

Tolkien changed a lot of material in his legendarium over the years, but late in life he almost scrapped the entire cosmology to fit with real world history. Why did he go down this road, and what are some ofthe implications?Other Links: Playeur (formerly Utreon): https://playeur.com/c/TolkienLorePodcast/Rumble: https://rumble.com/c/c-355195Odysee: https://odysee.com/@TolkienLore:f

How Providence Made the Most of Boromir Taking Faramir’s Place

Mar 09 2025 23 mins

One thing that becomes clear with enough time spent in Middle-earth is that Eru can work with anything you throw at him. That includes Boromir taking Faramir’s spot in Rivendell.Other Links: Playeur (formerly Utreon):https://playeur.com/c/TolkienLorePodcast/Rumble: https://rumble.com/c/c-355195Odysee: https://odysee.com/@TolkienLore:fTwitter: https://twitter.com/jrrtlorePatreon:

Are Peter Jackson’s Deviations from Tolkien Really Justified by Adaptation?

Mar 02 2025 19 mins

In response to my video on how Jackson’s Lord of the Rings trilogy managed to win the loyalty of many book fans despite its many changes from the source material, I received a number of comments explaining how his changes were necessitated by the adaptation of a book to a movie. But does that excuse really hold water? I don’t think so.For my video on how Jackson’s trilogy got

Details Peter Jackson Got Right in The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug and The Battle of Five Armies

Feb 23 2025 14 mins

Finally completing this project in one fell swoop, because there's not much good to find here.... For the prior video on An Unexpected Journey, check here:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t8Em1AN16K0 Other Links: Playeur (formerly Utreon):https://playeur.com/c/TolkienLorePodcast/Rumble: https://rumble.com/c/c-355195Odysee: https://odysee.com/@TolkienLore:fTwitter: https://twitte

Did Gandalf Make a Huge Blunder Allowing Frodo to Wait to Leave the Shire?

Feb 16 2025 26 mins

A while back I got an email from a viewer arguing that Gandalf was, to put it politely, a little slow when it comes to making sure Frodo got started on his quest. But just how big a mistake was that, really?Other Links:Playeur (formerly Utreon):https://playeur.com/c/TolkienLorePodcast/Rumble:https://rumble.com/c/c-355195Odysee:https://odysee.com/@TolkienLore:fTwitter:https://twitte

Was Gandalf a Machiavellian Schemer Who Used Others as Pawns?

Feb 09 2025 22 mins

In response to my video about the character flaws of Tolkien’s heroes (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SAn8r-kqD4c),a few people commented that Gandalf’s real issue was the fact that he basically threw other people into dangerous situations to achieve his own ends. Turns out, that’s really not true.Other Links:Playeur (formerly Utreon):https://playeur.com/c/TolkienLorePodcast