He's in Rings of Power which I guess counts as a derivative. I don't want to start a flame war since a lot of people hate that adaptation, but I enjoy it for what it is.
this post was submitted on 02 Apr 2026
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I only watched maybe half the first episode but saw a lot of the arguing online. From what I gather based on what other people said it's not a great adaptation but the creators were constrained by licensing. Someone said if you forget it's LOTR and just treat it as its own thing it's not half bad.
I lost interest because I initially heard it would be about the second age, and I was really really hoping it was going to be about the fall of Numenor.
Also Galadriel being abrasive and domineering fits her character. She followed Feanor out of Aman because she wanted land and people to rule, and she's mellowed a lot by the time the fellowship meets her in LOTR.
Someone said if you forget it's LOTR and just treat it as its own thing it's not half bad.
Basically. I don't forget it's LOTR but I do keep in mind it's not the Peter Jackson trilogy nor a 1:1 from the books.
I was really really hoping it was going to be about the fall of Numenor.
It is, but it's slow burn and a something of an overall B-plot to the titular Rings of Power in the second season and the creation of Mordor in the first.
The main online gripe that I can agree with how the characters "fast travel" as plot demands. I just accept that as necessary to condense things down to a suitable runtime for a TV series.
You mean the character they call GrandELF…..
Bombadil was referred to as "The Hermit" before they revealed his identity when GrandElf (aka Gandalf née The Stranger) crosses paths with him.
Anyone else like the Bear McCreary / Rufus Wainwright “Old Tom Bombadil” rendition they made for the show?
While I did enjoy Tom Bombadil in the books, I'm not surprised he never made it into any adaptation. It's this odd coda in the story which isn't all that important to the overall plot. Sure, it helps to build the world out and show that there are strange things outside the power of the One Ring. But, he's a Chekhov's gun problem. Tolkien sets him up as this amazingly powerful entity, who could probably solve all the problems Middle Earth is facing and who promptly fucks right off for the rest of the story. And his tendency to fuck off is mentioned later to explain why he isn't fixing anything. In the end, he serves no purpose for the story which cannot be easily dealt with otherwise. It just seems like Tolkien really wanted to include him somehow, stuffed him in and didn't have a competent editor to say, "look Ronald, I know you love this character, but this bit really needs to be pulled."
Tom Bombadil was my favourite part of the trilogy, just a nice relaxing downtime section in the woods... such a shame it was removed
just a nice relaxing downtime section
I can't imagine why they cut it from the 12 hour long trilogy
I agree 100%. They just escaped the old forest and haven't encountered the Barrow Wights. It's a nice interlude in between. I often go back just to read that section.
People argue that Bombadil isn't well explained and comes out of nowhere, but I think if you put LOTR against the myths it was emulating it makes sense. The fact nobody knows who he is, including Gandalf, who was around for Arda's creation, adds depth to the worldbuilding.
I think he's more anchored in the story than people think, too. They explicitly mention him at the council of Elrond, and explain why he'd be a bad ring bearer despite the ring not affecting him.
One of my English classes in college focused on remakes and retellings, and I wrote an essay comparing the books to the films. HOnestly can't remember what I wrote but when I told the professor what I was writing about the first thing she said was "You're going to say why they cut Tom Bombadil?"
Tom's incongruity is entirely deliberate. Tolkien worked out Middle Earth in meticulous detail, but thought that a truly believable mythology needed to have a few mysteries, hence Tom.
That entire part of Fellowship with The Old Forest was my favorite. I think Jackson did a fantastic job bringing the books to life, but I really felt the absence of that part.
For the films, it would have ruined the pacing at the very least. And it wasn't needed information for the rest of the story, which is what tends to get cut out or omitted when trying to reduce the amount. Let's be honest, if Jackson had done anything with Tom, it would have added to the drama at the time about how he's ruined everything. Either it wouldn't have been done right, would have been too much or too little, or would have taken away from the core story. All to include a character that book fans still argue about. It was the best decision, just not to have it at all. (Wasn't there some very subtle reference, somewhere?)
He's in the Russian version.