6 ms·

Bored of the Rings

55 points by sgt101 9y ago

zipwitch 9y ago
I've found BotR an invaluable inspiration for RPG characters of the less-serious sort. I wish all my wizards could have that ancient weapon known to the Elves as a Browning semi-automatic.
beagle3 9y ago
There are also text computer games, "Bored of the Rings"[0], and "The Boggit"[1] which were quite funny (and better than e.g. "The Hobbit" adventure game). Surprisingly, Google cannot find any of the game quotes I remember... [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bored_of_the_Rings_%28video_game%29 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bored_of_the_Rings_%28video_ga... [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Boggit https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Boggit
sgt101 9y ago
"He would have finished Goddam off then and there, but pity stayed his hand. 'It's a pity I've run out of bullets, he thought.'"
valuearb 9y ago
Doug Kenney was the best.
WalterBright 9y ago
> the paperback cover art for Lord of the Rings prevalent in the 60s, then famous, is now obscure. http://lotrscrapbook.bookloaf.net/gallery/bookcovers/pages/04.htm http://lotrscrapbook.bookloaf.net/gallery/bookcovers/pages/0... It is far and away my favorite artwork for the books, and I had to do some searching to get those particular editions.
DanHulton 9y ago
Bizarrely, I read this before reading Lord of the Rings, in something approaching fourth grade. It was still quite funny, even though I didn't understand what the heck it was parodying.
- brasey 9y ago
  Maybe bizarre, maybe not. I did the exact same thing at the same age.
Finnucane 9y ago
Every few years I have to take this out and reread it (it doesn't take long). I'd say, does wikipedia really need to explain all the puns? But then, I suppose the kids today don't get jokes about the inauguration of Harold Stassen.
- chiph 9y ago
  I first read BotR back in high school (late 70's) and even back then I didn't get all the references. The current generation doesn't have a prayer of knowing what they all are.
- TheCowboy 9y ago
  Detailed explication, for any work, is also valuable to people who speak English as a second language.
H4CK3RM4N 9y ago
There’s also The Last Ringbearer, a Russian novel which attempts to fill in most of the gaps in Tolkien’s worldbuilding. http://ymarkov.livejournal.com/280578.html http://ymarkov.livejournal.com/280578.html
- throwaway7645 9y ago
  Read the Wikipedia page and I like the concepts at least.
- arvinjoar 9y ago
  Recommended by Peter Thiel
winestock 9y ago
While we're on the topic of reinterpreting The Lord of the Rings, someone speculated (based only on the texts of Tolkien, themselves) that Tom Bombadil was a sinister character. The Terrible Secret of Tom Bombadil Original Post: http://km-515.livejournal.com/1042.html http://km-515.livejournal.com/1042.html Hacker News discussion: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9982237 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9982237
- hajile 9y ago
  That's what someone gets for reading just a little. It is clearly indicated that Bombadil is friends with farmer Maggot (Tolkien states that Bombadil is a Hobbit name). Merry says that Maggot used to go into the Old Forest. If he did so, then meeting Bombadil would be very likely. Gildor's friends apparently sensed the great urgency, so they would have taken a very direct path which would have led them straight through the Old Forest (after all, Elves have little fear of such things). The statement that Elrond "has never heard of Tom Bombadil" is clearly wrong given Elrond's comments about Bombadil at the council. > In those lands I journeyed once, and many things wild and strange I knew. But I had forgotten Bombadil, if indeed this is still the same that walked the woods and hills long ago, and even then was older than the old. That was not then his name. Iarwain Ben-adar we called him, oldest and fatherless. But many another name he has since been given by other folk: Forn by the Dwarves, Orald by Northern Men, and other names beside. He is a strange creature, but maybe I should have summoned him to our Council.’ -- Elrond Likewise they are wrong about the danger. The Old Forest is not particularly dangerous (as the Hobbits showed by burning part of it down) and while the Barrow Wights (sent by the Nazgul witch king) are dangerous, they seem to hardly compare in danger to caves of dead spirits, haunted pools, orcs, trolls, etc. A war of Gondor against all the evils of Bombadil's domain would be over almost as soon as it started. I know of no statements that the Withywindle is cursed. Goldberry met Tom there though, so it is likely he sticks around because she cannot leave her river. There is even less evidence that willow trees can appear human (plus the truly bad tree is an "Old Man"). If (like many conjecture) Tom (and perhaps Goldberry) is the physical manifestation of the spirit of Middle Earth itself, then it makes sense for him to withdraw to that area. Arthedain remains relatively undisturbed throughout the third age. The Old Forest and Barrow downs are unoccupied (save for a few Wights) and the Hobbits are a people who prefer the Earth. In fact, almost the entire area of Eriador is unaffected by the War of the Ring save for the Scourging of the Shire (though a big event for Hobbits, it hardly compares to everything else that happened).
ourmandave 9y ago
The first text a browsing reader is liable to see purports to be a salacious sample from the book, but the episode never happens in the main text, nor does anything else of that tone: the book has no explicit sexual content. To quote Otto from A Fish Called Wanda, "Disappointed!"
zebraflask 9y ago
One of my favorites. The first few opening chapters are comedy gold.
- kabdib 9y ago
  Also, the next chapters. And the ones after that. Until the end, pretty much. Two, four, six, eight Tiptoe, sneak and infiltrate Cha cha cha!
  - zebraflask 9y ago
    "And what is this ring?" said Frito, eyeing the possible exits from the hole."
mirimir 9y ago
The First Law trilogy by Joe Abercrombie is a grim satire. Villains who think of themselves as heroes, and vice versa.

55 points by sgt101 9y ago

I've found BotR an invaluable inspiration for RPG characters of the less-serious sort. I wish all my wizards could have that ancient weapon known to the Elves as a Browning semi-automatic.

beagle3 9y ago

There are also text computer games, "Bored of the Rings"[0], and "The Boggit"[1] which were quite funny (and better than e.g. "The Hobbit" adventure game). Surprisingly, Google cannot find any of the game quotes I remember... [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bored_of_the_Rings_%28video_game%29 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bored_of_the_Rings_%28video_ga... [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Boggit https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Boggit

sgt101 9y ago

"He would have finished Goddam off then and there, but pity stayed his hand. 'It's a pity I've run out of bullets, he thought.'"

valuearb 9y ago

Doug Kenney was the best.

WalterBright 9y ago

> the paperback cover art for Lord of the Rings prevalent in the 60s, then famous, is now obscure. http://lotrscrapbook.bookloaf.net/gallery/bookcovers/pages/04.htm http://lotrscrapbook.bookloaf.net/gallery/bookcovers/pages/0... It is far and away my favorite artwork for the books, and I had to do some searching to get those particular editions.

DanHulton 9y ago

Bizarrely, I read this before reading Lord of the Rings, in something approaching fourth grade. It was still quite funny, even though I didn't understand what the heck it was parodying.

brasey 9y ago
Maybe bizarre, maybe not. I did the exact same thing at the same age.

Finnucane 9y ago

Every few years I have to take this out and reread it (it doesn't take long). I'd say, does wikipedia really need to explain all the puns? But then, I suppose the kids today don't get jokes about the inauguration of Harold Stassen.

chiph 9y ago
I first read BotR back in high school (late 70's) and even back then I didn't get all the references. The current generation doesn't have a prayer of knowing what they all are.
TheCowboy 9y ago
Detailed explication, for any work, is also valuable to people who speak English as a second language.

H4CK3RM4N 9y ago

There’s also The Last Ringbearer, a Russian novel which attempts to fill in most of the gaps in Tolkien’s worldbuilding. http://ymarkov.livejournal.com/280578.html http://ymarkov.livejournal.com/280578.html

throwaway7645 9y ago
Read the Wikipedia page and I like the concepts at least.
arvinjoar 9y ago
Recommended by Peter Thiel

winestock 9y ago

While we're on the topic of reinterpreting The Lord of the Rings, someone speculated (based only on the texts of Tolkien, themselves) that Tom Bombadil was a sinister character. The Terrible Secret of Tom Bombadil Original Post: http://km-515.livejournal.com/1042.html http://km-515.livejournal.com/1042.html Hacker News discussion: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9982237 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9982237

hajile 9y ago
That's what someone gets for reading just a little. It is clearly indicated that Bombadil is friends with farmer Maggot (Tolkien states that Bombadil is a Hobbit name). Merry says that Maggot used to go into the Old Forest. If he did so, then meeting Bombadil would be very likely. Gildor's friends apparently sensed the great urgency, so they would have taken a very direct path which would have led them straight through the Old Forest (after all, Elves have little fear of such things). The statement that Elrond "has never heard of Tom Bombadil" is clearly wrong given Elrond's comments about Bombadil at the council. > In those lands I journeyed once, and many things wild and strange I knew. But I had forgotten Bombadil, if indeed this is still the same that walked the woods and hills long ago, and even then was older than the old. That was not then his name. Iarwain Ben-adar we called him, oldest and fatherless. But many another name he has since been given by other folk: Forn by the Dwarves, Orald by Northern Men, and other names beside. He is a strange creature, but maybe I should have summoned him to our Council.’ -- Elrond Likewise they are wrong about the danger. The Old Forest is not particularly dangerous (as the Hobbits showed by burning part of it down) and while the Barrow Wights (sent by the Nazgul witch king) are dangerous, they seem to hardly compare in danger to caves of dead spirits, haunted pools, orcs, trolls, etc. A war of Gondor against all the evils of Bombadil's domain would be over almost as soon as it started. I know of no statements that the Withywindle is cursed. Goldberry met Tom there though, so it is likely he sticks around because she cannot leave her river. There is even less evidence that willow trees can appear human (plus the truly bad tree is an "Old Man"). If (like many conjecture) Tom (and perhaps Goldberry) is the physical manifestation of the spirit of Middle Earth itself, then it makes sense for him to withdraw to that area. Arthedain remains relatively undisturbed throughout the third age. The Old Forest and Barrow downs are unoccupied (save for a few Wights) and the Hobbits are a people who prefer the Earth. In fact, almost the entire area of Eriador is unaffected by the War of the Ring save for the Scourging of the Shire (though a big event for Hobbits, it hardly compares to everything else that happened).

ourmandave 9y ago

The first text a browsing reader is liable to see purports to be a salacious sample from the book, but the episode never happens in the main text, nor does anything else of that tone: the book has no explicit sexual content. To quote Otto from A Fish Called Wanda, "Disappointed!"

zebraflask 9y ago

One of my favorites. The first few opening chapters are comedy gold.

kabdib 9y ago
Also, the next chapters. And the ones after that. Until the end, pretty much. Two, four, six, eight Tiptoe, sneak and infiltrate Cha cha cha!
- zebraflask 9y ago
  "And what is this ring?" said Frito, eyeing the possible exits from the hole."

mirimir 9y ago

The First Law trilogy by Joe Abercrombie is a grim satire. Villains who think of themselves as heroes, and vice versa.