Glorfindel is one of my favorite Elves. He's on my list with Legolas and Fingolfin. He definitely doesn't get enough attention. I would have loved to see him in more stuff.
The amusing bit is that the pursuing Nazgul must have felt exactly the same way about Glorfindel as the Fellowship felt about the Balrog they encountered in Moria: This is an ancient power, order of magnitude above us.
@@fjccommish Read the Silmarillian. The 5 wizards, including Gandalf were Maia, formed before the world and sent to the Valar to help shape the world in the first age and of the same age as Sauron and Gothmog, the King of the Balrogs. The vast majority of them chose to remain as spirits, a few chose to live in mortal bodies. They could not be killed, only their bodies slain, but their spirit would remain, and could be sent back. Elrond, and Aragorn both decended from the line of Melian (Maia) and Thingol (elven king)
@@alexandermikolas8343 The point many mis is that Glorfindel, destroyed a Balrog, Balrogs are "fallen" myia , Glorfindel was allowed to be reborn and he's was enhanced by Manwe, and sent back to Middle Earth, this is unusual, but not speculation . Tolkien himself ends that...
Tbh, I am more curious about the story of Glorfindel in the first age. I want to know more about him and Echtelion cause it is written that both of them were Turgon’s most trusted lord. Echtelion was dearly loved by Earendil while Glorfindel was the lord most loved by the people of Gondolin. Both of them must be great.
@@jay-1800 When I finished the trilogy in middle school, I asked my older brother if Tolkien had written more books, he said the silmarrilion, so I got it, I simply started to read it, and then I simply stopped reading it. Never did revisit it lol
Exactly. Specially talking about Ecthilion of the Fountain. The guy killed one, two, three balrogs and rounded up Gothmog. How powerful he must have been!
Thank you! Glorfindel has always been one of my favorite characters. One of the things that I detested about the LOTR was Arwen taking Glorfindel's role, followed closely by the appearance of the elves in Helm's Deep. I appreciate getting to know more about him.
Yeah. Hornburg in the books was where the forces of men saw that the elves or dwarves could not come to aid them as they did in the past, and they had to rely on their own strength and spirit to carry them through the long night.
So glad you covered Glorfindal so completely, especially the reembodyment. A very important element of Tolkien's Middle Earth. I most certainly would have loved to seen him in the films. I thought it a shame that Peter Jackson chose to exclude him altogether.
True but from a filmmaker perspective when you're making a movie for people who've never read the books, they'd be asking what's the deal with that random elf who only got 2 minutes of screen time. Using Arwen at least in the movie, introduced her for the rest of the series.
@@Tadicuslegion78 A valid point but once Glorfindal was introduced why make him random? How much screen time did Lord Celeborn get? Or Haldir for that matter.
nah it was a good decision since if he was in LOTR then another movie/series that includes Glorfindel would likely have to be played by a different actor. If Glorfindel appeared in lotr his actor would be 20+ years older right now (2021), not to mention we haven't got Glorfindel revealed as a character for the upcoming lotr show
I understand why they made it so arwen saves frodo near the beginning, they wanted to introduce her character and perhaps since glorfindel doesn’t appear much in lotr they figured this would be a good chance to do so. But the council of elrond at least should’ve been a longer and more complete scene in the movie.
The only reason for PJ replacing Glorfindel with Arwen "Needlework" Undómiel is that Hollywood production committees and audiences do not like "sausage parties". Now if Tolkien had her use "songs of power" in a meaningful way as did her great-grandmother Lúthien, it would be a different story (pun intended).
It's almost certainly a decision-by-committee because they felt there weren't enough kickass female characters in LOTR. Perhaps they felt they needed a third (alongside Galadriel and Eowyn), and that they felt Arwen was too much of a passive "princess waiting for her king". It's probably also why they created Tauriel for the Hobbit, as there was even less female badassery there. I'm not mad at the change, but it's a shame they didn't keep what was already a small part for Glorfindel and find another way to make Arwen great. For instance, they could have invented a harmless extra scene of her magically blessing the reforged Narsil (i.e. Anduril) as it is prepared for Aragorn, or perhaps using the Elven telepathy to keep Aragorn's spirits up when he was flagging or getting beaten up.
Yes we needed more Glorfindel! In both the books and the movies. One of few problems i had with the movies was that Glorfindel was replaced by Arwen in saving Frodo.
I used to play the LOTR tabletop game from Games Workshop. I have a massive elvish army and my love for Glorfindel led to me finding any excuse to field him. He was an absolute monster on the battlefield capable of easily beating literally anyone that wasn't Sauron, The Balrog or Smaug with ease. One of his greatest moments was when he slew 3 armoured Mordor trolls in a single turn which singlehandedly decided the battle right there. Since then I always fielded him as a monster slayer. He never disappointed me.
@@dukes2874 I agree. I love Glorfindel, but honestly, for the movie, the choice Jackson made works way better. Allows the introduction of Arwen, and lets them set up the Arwen/Aragorn love story sooner. Adding a ton of extra characters is fun in a book, because it just further builds out the world, but doing it in a movie just bloats the story. As cool as Glorfindel is, he literally does zero after Rivendell for the rest of the story. Plus, I think Jackson also didn't include him because he didn't want casual watchers to be like "Why aren't they bringing this super powerful dude with the Fellowship?".... we already get enough of that shit about the damn Eagles, lol
Ya, but Arwen in the books, well, just wouldn't sit well with today's audiences, I totally understood why they changed it even if he is one of my favourite characters.
My only distinct memory from my first reading of LotR back in the 1970s is of Glorfindel. Definitely wanted more of him in the book and missed him greatly in the movies.
Imagine a true to book movie of Glorfindel... The battle in gondolin, his musings in the halls of the dead in valinor, his return and confrontation with the witch king at the battle of foremost, and his many adventures before the events of TLOTR.... Stuff of dreams.
Glorfindel became one of my favorite Tolkien characters when I played Battle for Middle-Earth 2 and watched him cleave his way through entire armies of orcs and goblins by himself. Badass.
Awesome video! The tragedy as mentioned at 05:35, being the Witch King flees but them elves don't give chase as technically the Witch King could die by the hands of an elf. Which explains most elvish events throughout the third age, they have the power to do stuff but choose not to. Would be interested to see a comparison video of all that Sauron achieved in the TA vs the White Council.
Only two others are in the same level, Feanor, the mightiest noldor, who alone, faced multiple Balrogs, including the lord of them Gothmog, all at the same time, and Fingolfin, the high king of the noldor, who faced the Dark Lord Morgoth in single combat and was able to injury him.
@@aesir1ases64 ECTHELION! Killed 3 Balrogs and Killed Gothmog...Feanor doesn't belong on any list, for any reason. HE MURDERED HIS OWN PEOPLE...I wish Morgoth would've eaten him...Never forget the Kinslayings..
I'd appreciate if you guys include the links to your thumbnails aswell guys, since you've been using them regularly and not asking for permission beforehand either the least you could do is to add a link to one of my socials or portfolios that you take the paintings from. Keep up the good work. 🍻
In my books, Fingolfin was the greatest warrior the Elves ever produced. He wounded Morgoth 7 times. The only reason he lost that duel was because he literally COULDN'T kill a Valar. He's a beast.
Actually Feanor was the most powerful elf but fingolfin was the bravest and most faithful . The balrogs are not lesser miars they were valarauko spirits of fire they were mair which is why melkor corrupted them to his service they were predisposed to his position
@@brucekitchura3680 I mean, fighting morgoth is the biggest feat in lotr, so logically Fingolfin's the "strongest" elf. But the meaning of "powerful" and "mighty" is very different from "strongest" in Tolkien's world like Morgoth is the mightiest of the ainur, but Tulkas is stronger than him physically. That way we can say that Feanor is the mightiest elf (mostly for his craftsmanship and strength as well) and Fingolfin is the strongest elf (or most powerful elf if using conventional meaning of "power" unlike Tolkien's).
@@monitor-mindtheover-void6712 I understand what you are saying in the silmarillion they describe Feanor Fingolfins half brother as the "the most powerful of all the elf's ever born then or after the like of which will never be seen again" That being said Feanor had a greedy heart and a single mindedness that lead to him only fighting for his own purpose. He also fought melkor and gave him the name morgoth, he died in that battle ,where as Fingolfin 's character traits made him fight for the good of all and against evil Also wanting to distance himself from the curse of the holder. Had Feanor used his great might in the defence of the elves and for the good rather than his own selfish desires he would have been neigh on unstoppable. But as the harald of the valarie warned him yeah though yea be thrice as mighty as eru has made you still you could not defeat any of the valar.I understand your interpretation of strenght and power and fingolfin was the bravest noblest and fearless of all the elves the title would still go to feanor. Although fingolfin as you stated wounded melkor 7 times and gave him the moniker of hopafoot. Melkor also felt the pain of fingolfins wounds for the remainder of his time.So based on those facts Fingolfin could be called the strongest elf and without a doubt the bravest and most fearless of the race . If it any consolation I named my biggest and bravest chocolate lab fingolfin not cranor lol. Awsome post and great conversation with you. Thanks
I played alot of the Games Workshop's LOTR tabletop back in the day and Glorfindel was an absolute monster in my elvish army. One of his crowning moment was when he killed 3 Mordor Trolls *in a single turn* singlehandedly sealed my opponents fate right there.
Absolutely love these videos, as a LOTR fan and I realised that many things were left out from the movies, especially my favourite characters in Tolkien’s books, the elves. I would say Thranduil and Galadriel are one of my favourites. There’s so much depth in their characters which is not portrayed in majority the movies. I know that you’ve previously made a video about Thranduil as well but was hoping that you could tell us more about his entire journey and story as long as Galadriel’s too. Also, Oropher’s story and Sindar Elves are topics that fans are curious about. I’m sure many are waiting for these videos judging by previous comments in other videos which i’ve watched from this channel. Love what you do and keep up the good work!!
*THE* Elf!! As much as I Love glorfindel, I see why he was left out of the movies. He's a rather extraneous piece of lore as far as the core story of the Ring is concerned, and having Arwen show up was in my opinion better for the story. Arwen is barely there in the books, and giving Aragorns love interest And descendant of Luthien a deed worthy of her ancestry was a good move for the movie. As opposed to glorfindel who was a cool lore tie-in but less cohesive for the story. However I'd love to see glorfindel feature in a War in the North story (not the game....game was fine, but... no lol)
Yeah from a movie making perspective, the choice Jackson made was 100% the right one. Lets them beef up Arwen's character a bit, get the ball rolling on the love story, and also... Glorfindel literally never shows up in the story after Rivendell, so why not just use that spot to flesh out another more plot centric character?
Thankyou for such a good look at my favorite elven warrior! Tolkien did not give a lot of back story on Glorfindel and you gave him such life! If I have a criticism of Tolkien, he slighted a number and are very appealing characters, such as GLORFINDEL!
I would have loved more time in the books with him! And I wish he had been included in the films, along with Elladan and Elrohir because the three of them are some of my favorite characters 💛
I don't understand why people find it so hard to see Glorfindel of the first age and third are the same person. As it is said in this video he died fighting a Balrog and returned as did Gandalf but no one doubts Gandalf is the same being after being returned. Iru is a parallel to our God and can bring people back if he chooses that they deserve it.
I wish that the twins and the Grey Company had brought Glorfindel with them to Isengard, and he had been able to join the Battle of Pelennor fields, and at the Morannon. It would have been good to see him in action.
One video i would love to see and none of the rest lotr channels did (unlike most of videos that have been done multiple times) is a video about the rest of the dwawrf clans including any references to their cities as by now we only watched videos about longbeard clan (durins folk)
He should have been in the movies, it was a travesty to have Arwen replace him in his part to save Frodo from the Nazgul. I guess they dropped him because he suggested giving the ring to Bombadil and he was written out as well which is another travesty in its own right. I do still love the movies though they were great. Just knowing things like this from the books makes you wish it were done more in line with the novels. They were really only minor characters in the grand story only having a place in the first book but there place in it was of grand importance all the same and should have been included.
I think what they did in the movies was the right call. Movies are different than books. In books you can toss in cool side characters and it just makes the world richer and more built out, in movies adding side characters just bloats the story and confuses the audience. Glorfindel, as cool as he is, has zero to do with the story after Rivendell. Arwen has lots to do, and is barely in the first book at all. By giving her the job of Frodo rescuer, it allows them to beef up her character a bit, introduce her and the love story earlier, and cuts down on adding extra characters at a point in the story when they are already introducing a bunch of new ones, leading to less confusion for the audience.
@@KS-xk2so I see where your coming from and it does make sense. But he was supposed to speak at the council of Elrond and to me I think Arwen could have waited 5 more minutes to be introduced. Having read the books makes me yearn for some of the finer points that would have looked awesome on screen. To be honest I would like to have just seen more of Gandalfs battle with the Balrog in the Two Towers. The descriptions of how the battle looked to people far away who could see the fire and lightning raging from the Silvertine for days. And some of the chase up the endless stairs. Oh yeah and his skirmish with the Nazgul at Weathertop before the hobbits got there. They should have just made each movie 4 hours and crammed it all in there like it shoulda been. People would have still gone and seen it and it would still be the best movies ever made. And then we could have extended editions that are 5 hours long apiece!
I definitely would've rather seen him squaring off against the Ringwraiths than Arwen. It would've been cool to see the Black Riders pause or become unsettled at the sight of him.
Without a doubt, Glorfindel is in my top 4 favorites. His selfless service to his people of Gondolin, his courage against the most evil and depraved enemies, and his complete disregard for the power of the ring mark him as one of Tolkien's saint characters. The light of the Blessed Realm was in his eyes when would face the 9, which I am sure would strike them with fear, in addition to his own personal capacity.
Sauron and the Nazgûl were distracted by the Battle of Pelennor Fields, just as they were later distracted by Aragorn leading an army to the Black Gate.
@@tominiowa2513 That doesn't quite explain why they were not distracted when Frodo claimed the Ring at the Cracks of Doom and put it on though, does it?
@@sweeperboy Proximity does seem to matter, both in the distance between the One Ring and Sauron and the One Ring and Orodruin. Recall how the One Ring is described as getting physically heavier and weighing more on Frodo's mind the closer they get to where it was forged.
I love glorfindel! He's so cool and perfect I would love to see him more in the movies 😥 you only see him in the background of aragorns coronation 😂 great video! Maybe you could make a video on ecthelion?
Yes absolutely!!! Glorfindel and Haldir are two of my favorite characters and I was really looking forward to seeing them in the movies. I can't even express the disappointment and anger I felt when I realized that Jackson had replaced Glorfindel with Arwen (who is barely in the books at all) and then had Haldir killed at Helm's Deep (pure fiction and idiocy)!!! 🤬 Jackson didn't follow the books because they weren't "exciting" enough to pull in and keep the audience interested (his opinion). So he replaced Glorfindel so he could add all the romantic scenes with Arwen and Aragorn and that's also why he had Haldir killed to make the Battle at Helm's Deep more dramatic. Jackson made changes to almost everything and I completely understand why Christopher Tolkien felt the way he did about the movies and I totally agree.
I would have loved to see him as part of the Fellowship. He could have fought off the balrog in Moria instead of Gandalf. Then when the balrog pulled him down with his whip, instead of yelling, "Fly, you fools!" we would have instead heard, "Not agaaaaaaaaaain........."
Like a giant dildo in a nunnery, he would have stood out like a sore thumb, drawing the Eye and all his forces immediately to The Fellowship, thus putting the quest in constant jeopardy.
I read somewhere in Tolkien's works that Glorfindel was the son of Finrod. Finrod, before his death was the Lord of the House of the Golden Flower. So it would make sense that Glorfindel would take the title on his fathers demise, ironically to Sauron.
Love Glorfindel and this channel! I have always wondered though: If Glorfindel & Elrond joining the Fellowship was ruled out because they were simply too powerful & the Fellowship would rely on secrecy, they why include Gandalf (I know, it was basically his quest & purpose). Just seems like a bit of a contradiction to me.
Gandalf was know as a wanderer across the whole of Middle-Earth, while the others had firm seats of power that they rarely left. For them to suddenly set off into the wilderness with such mixed companions would have instantly raised Sauron’s suspicions, but that is kind of Gandalf’s modus operandi, so Sauron would have paid no more attention than he usually does to the wizard.
I view Glorfindel remaining at Imladris to function as "fleet in being" of sorts. His and other elven lords existence was a threat to Sauron's plans, which always had to include the possibility of Rivendell going full war mode.
I'd argue that Gandalf being what he was, a Maia cloaked in the flesh of men, meant that while he was extremely powerful, he was also probably harder to track. Gandalf wandered for thousands of years, and was never really caught, so clearly Sauron can't track him by his power. Elrond and Glorfindel are just powerful Elven Lords... probably harder for them to keep a lid on their very being just shouting out into the world how strong they are... making them easily trackable. Plus like you said, this was a stealth mission. Clearly they wanted to hit 9 for symbolism, lol... so they got one of each race, the future King, Gandalf, the Ring Bearer, and then they tacked on 3 spare Hobbits, as a further deception. It was known that a Halfling bore the ring. If they set out with 8 badasses and 1 hobbit, its pretty obvious who has the Ring... but by bringing along 4 Hobbits, they can't know which is the Ring Bearer... and we see this deception work when the Uruk's take Merry and Pippin.
Great point, I have thought about that also. There could be several reasons that went into the decision: (1) Glorfindel not going on the quest was an opportunity to allow Merry and Pippin to join the fellowship, with Gandalf's foresight encouraging it. (2) He would have aided the fellowship with his strength, but he was far more valuable as a counselor to Elrond. So even though he would have been valuable in the fellowship, he was more valuable as an advisor is some way - or even on the battlefield.
Leveled up Glorfindel was a beast, short of the dragons and Melkor himself i would pick Glorfindel in a pure 1v1 over any of Melkors servants and yes that includes Sauron. The most powerful elves had insane 1v1 feats and leveled up Glorfindel was arguably one of the strongest ever, no other elf got a power up from Manwe. My fav character in the entire universe, still sad to this day he was not part of the nine, Legolas i never cared for at all.
Gandalf had the best understanding of Bombadil - taking part in the Music of the Ainur and having debriefings with the Council of the Valar, not to mention the occasional conversation with Eru Ilúvatar has its advantages.
What do you think .. the Glorfindel of old was able to kill a Balrog. The reembodied Glorfindel got power almost comparable to a Maiar. So is this Glorfindel the strongest of all Elves?
I'd make an argument for Luthien. She cock slapped Sauron around a few times. Was able to put Morgoth himself to sleep. Pretty epic pedigree too. Half Elven Royalty - Half Maia.
Definietly I would love to replace (return back) the Arwern part of first movie 1 to Glorfindel. It is my favorite character from the whole history of Middlearth. Only tiny ahead of Beren and Luthien. I wish Tolkien had time and wit to finish Lord Of The Rings 2, hoping that Glorfindel could take part in it, greater than in the first trilogy. I believe (cant remember exactly where i read this) in one of appendixes to Sillmarillion there is an information that Glorfindel 1 and 2 are the same person, together with the information that he was "resurected" by Mandos, as an the only one elf who was granted that privilage. Also in some places ware the information, that Sauron without the ring was not affraid of any elven kings of the time of Lord Of The Rings. Nor any of the wizzards. He only was affraid of Glorfindel, and this is why he didnt ordered the attack of Rivendell yet. Glorfindel was the one for whom Sauron was keeping so large army inside the Mordor, and not sending it to Minas Tirith. He was only affraid of the situation, that in the same time, when the siege of Minas Tirith, the Glorfindel would ewentually perform an attack at Black Gate and call him to duel (which Sauron will not accept). Thank you for your video.
In The Fellowship of the Ring, Glorfindel's role in guiding Frodo Baggins to Rivendell is filled by Arwen, though he does appear during the prologue when Sauron is defeated. In The Return of the King, Glorfindel's is seen walking next to Arwen as she is having her vision of her son Eldarion during the journey to The Grey Havens. In his last appearance, he is seen at the crowning of King Elessar, behind Legolas and in front of Arwen. In all appearance in the movies he has no speaking lines.
Extremely powerful Elf the hypothesis is that he was a Son of one of Fingolfin's sisters Irime or Findis and that his father may have been one the Vanyar. The Golden Hair was a trait distinct to the Vanyar and of to those that had Vanyar blood.
it bears remembering that Gandalf wasn't in full possession of his powers as a Maiar as the five Astari were sent to Middle Earth in form of eldery wizards with limits to their magical abilities. that maybe explains why the Witch King was able to overcome Gandalf but was afraid of Glorfindel, who was granted powers close to a Maiar (without said limitations).
I like to think that Glorfindel was one of the many Elves who first woke up in Middle Earth. Maybe he was of the peoples of Finwe, who went with him to Valinor, and that’s the reason he always “served” and loved the Leaders of the Noldor (Fingolfin, Turgon, Gil Galad, Elrond…). I also like to think that Celeborn is one of those First Elves too, but one of the peoples of Elwe (Elu Thingol), and therefore never saw the light of the Trees (Celeborn, one of the first to arrive in Middle Earth, and one of the last to leave it).
I am just picturing Glorfindel going to Moria and getting some Gondolin flashbacks from seeing the Balrog: ”Iluvatar damn it, not this shit again.” And charging the Balrog solo while shouting something about avenging Turgon.
Nicely done. Most tolkien opinion pieces on the internet are garbage but you have clearly done your homework. I take issue two small things. The assumption that he was given the powers of a Maia is a bit of a stretch in that the professor never wrote this. The second is that Erestor sat next to Elrond at the CoE.
I think we can all agree beyond any doubt that Peter Jackson's LOTR was right up there as one of the greatest films of all time. That being said, the choices that were made to leave out or change certain events just don't make sense. I guess trying to make it for a wider audience could be argued but even that is weak at best.
I wish they would release a version of the movies with optional annotations that detail how they are differing from the books. Loose adaptations are fine, as long as they are upfront about it.
Glorfindel is absolutely BASED. He's been around almost the whole time, survived to see the end of both Morgoth and Sauron, fought a Balrog and won, died and skipped the whole line for resurrection because he was so important. The Nazgul flee when they see him, he has a presence in the real world and the wraith world, and on top of all that he is the only being lesser than a Maiar who is considered to be of equal power to them.
I would have loved seeing Glordindel as part of the grey company... seeing him ride side by side with Aragorn and fighting in the battles.... but i guess such a powerfull warrior would have taken alle the attention from the main characters. I also imagine how, if he had joined the fellowship, facing the Balrog in Moria would have been an interesting confrontation...
Would liked to have seen more of him in the films plus Would have liked to have seen and learned more of legolas fathers back story don't think the films did him much justice think there's a lot more to that character than we got to see ie he lost his wife and practically got his face burned off by a dragon 🐉
Thranduil having dragon fire scars is Peter Jackson, not Tolkien. We are never told who his wife/Legolas's mother is. The most traumatic event was likely the Battle of Dagorlad where Thranduil's father and two-thirds of the elves of Mirkwood die in the battle, never to return to the Woodland Realm (the Valar had prohibited reincarnated elves from returning to Middle Earth by this time).
The Valar saw that their interventions on Arda exacted heavy price. They didn't want to exert their full power again after the War Of Wrath, FA 545. Thus they sent the Istari to help in the fight against the allies of Melkor that were still around after his defeat. In one hand I can see Manwë sending some extra help after some Istari were "lost". But I cannot see Manwë overriding Mandos in his watch over the spirits of elves, after all, the elves were supposed to live in the Halls of Mandos until Eru Ilúvatar created a greater song of the Ainur in the end of days.
The Tolkien purist in me gets so annoyed reading comments talking about the movies... The movies are not canon.... Anyway, love Glorfindel... Aside from Fingolfin the beloved he is my favourite!!
We often portray the choice of Arwen over Glorfindel in the film as a choice of 'more female characters in a film with many men'. But I think introducing Arwen is important to explain Aragorn and long a the films may be, there is not enough 'space' to introduce all these characters and have a meaningful arc for the other characters. Not to mention that there is a limit how many characters you can introduce. So all in all I understand the choice for Arwen in the film and it makes sense to me. In the book version of Lord of the Rings...I like that he is somewhat in the background. Characters like Glorfindel make the world feel alive. Besides by the third age the time of the elves is over. Its mens turn to find their courage. If Glorfindel had been part of the Fellowship, it's dynamic would have been different and I think, among others, Aragorns arc would have been effected. (I've pit this a bit straightforward and there is more to it. Could go into this deeper, but wany to avoid an even longer wall of text...) All in all...I'd love more Glorfindel, but I understand why there wasn't both in book and film.
he was in fellowship as Elronds Advisor. since his nephew fallows closely to his own beliefs. Glorfindel chose to become Elronds Advisor for his kingdom. i forgot if he chose to stay in middle earth to help Elronds two sons when they chose to stay when Elrond chose to travel to the undying lands.
I love this character and was very upset and let everyone know he wasn’t in the Jackson films. And people who haven’t read the books just don’t get it. Thanks for the more in-depth break down of the character and glad I found your channel
I think the most important comparison is that Glorfindel and Aragorn with the help of the hobbits chased the Nazgul into the river. As Gandalf said they couldn’t face a Numenorean and an elf Lord unveiled!
In the books, I think it was appropriate. His omission, kind of, from the movies, hurt my heart. (It was, in fact, Glorfindel that led the elvish relief forces to Helm's Deep, even though, in the movie, he was never given a name. Aragorn, on the other hand, was very happy to see such a powerful elf come to his aid.)
? The elf who led the Elvish relief forces to Helm's Deep in the movie was Haldir, the warden of Lothlorien. Also a cool character, but definitely not Glórfindel. Technically Glórfindel appears standing behind Elrond in at Aragorn's coronation/wedding, and is also present at the Council of Elrond. But he has no speaking part. In the books, the elves don't come to Helm's Deep. Glórfindel instead leads a company of Rivendell elves and Dúnedain to Laketown, where they meet up with Thranduil's company, Lothlorien's marchwardens under Haldir, and Dain Ironfoot. This group of Elves, Men and Dwarves ties up a significant number of Sauron's forces such that the defeat of Saruman's uruk-hai at Helm's Deep is a crippling blow. Furthermore, the Grey Company detaches from this united force and does travel south to Rohan: but they arrive after Helm's Deep, not before.
Great video! I have always wondered about the comparison of Glorfindel's power after his reincarnation to that of the maiar. It says, as you said in the video, that his power was *close to* that of a maiar. I've always assumed that meant he was more powerful (however that is meant to be understood in LOTR) than even Gandalf the White. It seems you elude to that as well in this video, though I may have misunderstood that. Would you agree that he was probably more powerful that Gandalf the White? I'm not really sure who is stronger, but the reasons for my skepticism is a little complex. First, is the wizards (Istari) were weakened with they took on the form of man. So, the power level of the wizards (again, however that has meaning in LOTR) was weaker than the average power level of a maiar. This seems to say that Glorfindel was *probably* stronger than the wizards. Second, you could also cite, as you did in the video, that the Witch King fled at the sight of Glorfindel and challenged Gandalf. This also seems to suggest that Glorfindel was stronger than Gandalf. But, this second reason is faulty. (A) The Witch King got a "power boost" before confronting Gandalf. So the Witch King when confronting Glorfindel is a weaker version than the one who confronts Gandalf. So, citing the Witch King's reaction isn't evidence that suggestiong Glorfindel is stronger. (B) It doesn't seem like many knew that Gandalf had a "power boost" as well. He cloaked himself in grey after taking the mantle of The White. It was a surprise to Saruman. Additionally, many didn't even know that Gandalf had died. So, it is not clear if the Witch King knew that Gandalf was stronger than what he was. Plus, Gandalf the Grey was able to fend off all (or was it 7 or 5?) of the Wraiths at Weathertop. So, the second reason for thinking Glorfindel was stronger doesn't look like a solid argument. But, the first may not be all that solid either. While it is true that Glorfindal was close to that of a maiar and the wizards were weakened when they took their physical forms, it's not clear that Gandalf the White, when he was reembodied, had this weakness as well. Gandalf got a signifcant power boost when he came back at the White. So, the only two reasons for asserting the case that Glorfindal is stronger than Gandalf are not very solid arguments. Perhaps there are others? I know it's hard to scale "power levels" in LOTR. So, the question of who is more powerful (Glorfindel or Gandalf) may be starting on the wrong foot already. But, that's the question I'm curious about. What are your thoughts on that?
Glorfindel was most beloved by the Gondolindrim. And Ecthelion, I searched on youtube for videos explaining about Ecthelion of the Fountain but found nothing that could help my curiosity. Would be much appreciated if you could make one. Cheers..
Excellent video and the channel! I have a question: what Tolkien work is the best source to read about the Numenorians? I understand that Silmarillion is a place to start. Apart from that, where else can I find interesting information on that topic? Thanks in advance.
I would indeed say that he is VERY magically gifted. It is very much implied in that he confronts four of the Nine at one time and in Frodo's vision of him as he blacks out at the end.
All you really needed was to say was that he was so awesome that the gods looked at him and said, "That guy is fucking awesome", and at his death went, "He's too awesome to die, and we're going to make him even MORE awesome", and revived his ass with a massive powerup.
Glorfindel is one of my favorite Elves. He's on my list with Legolas and Fingolfin.
He definitely doesn't get enough attention. I would have loved to see him in more stuff.
Agreed
Ectelion was more poaerfull kiled 3 balrogs and Gothmog mins 4
The amusing bit is that the pursuing Nazgul must have felt exactly the same way about Glorfindel as the Fellowship felt about the Balrog they encountered in Moria: This is an ancient power, order of magnitude above us.
Apparently not an order of magnitude above, because Gandalf (one of the Fellowship) killed the Balrog.
@@fjccommish Read the Silmarillian. The 5 wizards, including Gandalf were Maia, formed before the world and sent to the Valar to help shape the world in the first age and of the same age as Sauron and Gothmog, the King of the Balrogs. The vast majority of them chose to remain as spirits, a few chose to live in mortal bodies. They could not be killed, only their bodies slain, but their spirit would remain, and could be sent back. Elrond, and Aragorn both decended from the line of Melian (Maia) and Thingol (elven king)
@@fjccommish You are correct in that he was the only exception, being roughly on par with him. I used "fellowship" as a sort of a shorthand.
@@skraf883 If you look into it, Elrond is realy a heavy crossbreed.
Part Maia, part Noldor, part Vanya, part Man
@@alexandermikolas8343 The point many mis is that Glorfindel, destroyed a Balrog, Balrogs are "fallen" myia , Glorfindel was allowed to be reborn and he's was enhanced by Manwe, and sent back to Middle Earth, this is unusual, but not speculation . Tolkien himself ends that...
Tbh, I am more curious about the story of Glorfindel in the first age. I want to know more about him and Echtelion cause it is written that both of them were Turgon’s most trusted lord. Echtelion was dearly loved by Earendil while Glorfindel was the lord most loved by the people of Gondolin. Both of them must be great.
Read the Silmarrilion.
@@simonmorris4226 I did. I read The Fall of Gondolin too. It’s not just as much as I wanted to because so many things happen in the first age.
@@simonmorris4226 one just doesn’t simply read the Silmarrilion
@@jay-1800 When I finished the trilogy in middle school, I asked my older brother if Tolkien had written more books, he said the silmarrilion, so I got it, I simply started to read it, and then I simply stopped reading it. Never did revisit it lol
Exactly. Specially talking about Ecthilion of the Fountain. The guy killed one, two, three balrogs and rounded up Gothmog. How powerful he must have been!
Thank you! Glorfindel has always been one of my favorite characters.
One of the things that I detested about the LOTR was Arwen taking Glorfindel's role, followed closely by the appearance of the elves in Helm's Deep.
I appreciate getting to know more about him.
Yeah. Hornburg in the books was where the forces of men saw that the elves or dwarves could not come to aid them as they did in the past, and they had to rely on their own strength and spirit to carry them through the long night.
So glad you covered Glorfindal so completely, especially the reembodyment. A very important element of Tolkien's Middle Earth. I most certainly would have loved to seen him in the films. I thought it a shame that Peter Jackson chose to exclude him altogether.
True but from a filmmaker perspective when you're making a movie for people who've never read the books, they'd be asking what's the deal with that random elf who only got 2 minutes of screen time. Using Arwen at least in the movie, introduced her for the rest of the series.
@@Tadicuslegion78 A valid point but once Glorfindal was introduced why make him random? How much screen time did Lord Celeborn get? Or Haldir for that matter.
nah it was a good decision since if he was in LOTR then another movie/series that includes Glorfindel would likely have to be played by a different actor. If Glorfindel appeared in lotr his actor would be 20+ years older right now (2021), not to mention we haven't got Glorfindel revealed as a character for the upcoming lotr show
@@muz9663 The other actors played in other movies after LOTR and they had no problem coming back into Middle Earth, even The Hobbit.
@@vixendoe2545 I'm talking about age, Glorfindel does not age, but actors do. So over 20 years is huge and the actor would look old
I understand why they made it so arwen saves frodo near the beginning, they wanted to introduce her character and perhaps since glorfindel doesn’t appear much in lotr they figured this would be a good chance to do so. But the council of elrond at least should’ve been a longer and more complete scene in the movie.
maybe they could have made the concil scene longer and end the first movie after the fight with the balrog...
I understand that it was a mistake in my opinion. They almost put Arwen fighting along Aragorn at Helm's Deep as well :/
@@rcnyoplait yeah putting arwen in at helms deep would’ve been a huuuge mistake lol
The only reason for PJ replacing Glorfindel with Arwen "Needlework" Undómiel is that Hollywood production committees and audiences do not like "sausage parties". Now if Tolkien had her use "songs of power" in a meaningful way as did her great-grandmother Lúthien, it would be a different story (pun intended).
It's almost certainly a decision-by-committee because they felt there weren't enough kickass female characters in LOTR. Perhaps they felt they needed a third (alongside Galadriel and Eowyn), and that they felt Arwen was too much of a passive "princess waiting for her king". It's probably also why they created Tauriel for the Hobbit, as there was even less female badassery there.
I'm not mad at the change, but it's a shame they didn't keep what was already a small part for Glorfindel and find another way to make Arwen great. For instance, they could have invented a harmless extra scene of her magically blessing the reforged Narsil (i.e. Anduril) as it is prepared for Aragorn, or perhaps using the Elven telepathy to keep Aragorn's spirits up when he was flagging or getting beaten up.
Yes we needed more Glorfindel! In both the books and the movies. One of few problems i had with the movies was that Glorfindel was replaced by Arwen in saving Frodo.
Glorfindel was so OP the gods literally respawned him and sent him back out to do their bidding.
I used to play the LOTR tabletop game from Games Workshop. I have a massive elvish army and my love for Glorfindel led to me finding any excuse to field him.
He was an absolute monster on the battlefield capable of easily beating literally anyone that wasn't Sauron, The Balrog or Smaug with ease.
One of his greatest moments was when he slew 3 armoured Mordor trolls in a single turn which singlehandedly decided the battle right there.
Since then I always fielded him as a monster slayer. He never disappointed me.
Thats badass as hell. And lore accurate 😂
I really wish they would have had him in the movie. As much as I love the scene of Arwen rescuing Frodo, it really should have been him.
Since he was not gonna be used in the movie in some other way, i would say Arwen taking Frodo to Imladris is a good character intro.
@@dukes2874 I agree. I love Glorfindel, but honestly, for the movie, the choice Jackson made works way better. Allows the introduction of Arwen, and lets them set up the Arwen/Aragorn love story sooner. Adding a ton of extra characters is fun in a book, because it just further builds out the world, but doing it in a movie just bloats the story. As cool as Glorfindel is, he literally does zero after Rivendell for the rest of the story.
Plus, I think Jackson also didn't include him because he didn't want casual watchers to be like "Why aren't they bringing this super powerful dude with the Fellowship?".... we already get enough of that shit about the damn Eagles, lol
Ya, but Arwen in the books, well, just wouldn't sit well with today's audiences, I totally understood why they changed it even if he is one of my favourite characters.
My only distinct memory from my first reading of LotR back in the 1970s is of Glorfindel. Definitely wanted more of him in the book and missed him greatly in the movies.
Imagine a true to book movie of Glorfindel... The battle in gondolin, his musings in the halls of the dead in valinor, his return and confrontation with the witch king at the battle of foremost, and his many adventures before the events of TLOTR.... Stuff of dreams.
Glorfindel became one of my favorite Tolkien characters when I played Battle for Middle-Earth 2 and watched him cleave his way through entire armies of orcs and goblins by himself. Badass.
Peter Jackson did him a great disservice
"If you borrow my horse without permission one more time, Arwen..."
For the movies it made a lot of sense I think but its sad that we didnt get to see him nonetheless
Awesome video! The tragedy as mentioned at 05:35, being the Witch King flees but them elves don't give chase as technically the Witch King could die by the hands of an elf. Which explains most elvish events throughout the third age, they have the power to do stuff but choose not to. Would be interested to see a comparison video of all that Sauron achieved in the TA vs the White Council.
There's only one that matches his bravery....ECTHELION!!!! KEEP UP THE GREAT WORK MELLON!
P.S. More Glorfindel?Yes sir!
That man killed 3 balrogs no one else can make that claim. Well aleast no other of the children
I'd argue the Elf that challenged Morgoth to single combat, and proceeded to fuck him up, might be on the same bravery level. Fingolfin is the GOAT.
Only two others are in the same level, Feanor, the mightiest noldor, who alone, faced multiple Balrogs, including the lord of them Gothmog, all at the same time, and Fingolfin, the high king of the noldor, who faced the Dark Lord Morgoth in single combat and was able to injury him.
@@aesir1ases64 ECTHELION! Killed 3 Balrogs and Killed Gothmog...Feanor doesn't belong on any list, for any reason. HE MURDERED HIS OWN PEOPLE...I wish Morgoth would've eaten him...Never forget the Kinslayings..
@@lordofthehouseofstormcrows8615
It takes until the world's ending for Fëanor to repent, apparently.
I'd appreciate if you guys include the links to your thumbnails aswell guys, since you've been using them regularly and not asking for permission beforehand either the least you could do is to add a link to one of my socials or portfolios that you take the paintings from. Keep up the good work. 🍻
I just love Glorfindel.
"How powerful was Fingolfin" is the REAL question.
No Elf would've beaten a Valar. Which makes Fingolfin so admirable.
Balrogs are lesser Maiar.
In my books, Fingolfin was the greatest warrior the Elves ever produced. He wounded Morgoth 7 times. The only reason he lost that duel was because he literally COULDN'T kill a Valar. He's a beast.
Actually Feanor was the most powerful elf but fingolfin was the bravest and most faithful . The balrogs are not lesser miars they were valarauko spirits of fire they were mair which is why melkor corrupted them to his service they were predisposed to his position
@@brucekitchura3680 I mean, fighting morgoth is the biggest feat in lotr, so logically Fingolfin's the "strongest" elf. But the meaning of "powerful" and "mighty" is very different from "strongest" in Tolkien's world like Morgoth is the mightiest of the ainur, but Tulkas is stronger than him physically. That way we can say that Feanor is the mightiest elf (mostly for his craftsmanship and strength as well) and Fingolfin is the strongest elf (or most powerful elf if using conventional meaning of "power" unlike Tolkien's).
@@monitor-mindtheover-void6712 I understand what you are saying in the silmarillion they describe Feanor Fingolfins half brother as the "the most powerful of all the elf's ever born then or after the like of which will never be seen again" That being said Feanor had a greedy heart and a single mindedness that lead to him only fighting for his own purpose. He also fought melkor and gave him the name morgoth, he died in that battle ,where as Fingolfin 's character traits made him fight for the good of all and against evil
Also wanting to distance himself from the curse of the holder. Had Feanor used his great might in the defence of the elves and for the good rather than his own selfish desires he would have been neigh on unstoppable. But as the harald of the valarie warned him yeah though yea be thrice as mighty as eru has made you still you could not defeat any of the valar.I understand your interpretation of strenght and power and fingolfin was the bravest noblest and fearless of all the elves the title would still go to feanor. Although fingolfin as you stated wounded melkor 7 times and gave him the moniker of hopafoot. Melkor also felt the pain of fingolfins wounds for the remainder of his time.So based on those facts Fingolfin could be called the strongest elf and without a doubt the bravest and most fearless of the race . If it any consolation I named my biggest and bravest chocolate lab fingolfin not cranor lol. Awsome post and great conversation with you. Thanks
We need to get Glorfindel in a battle report! ;)
YES! 100%
YES!!!!
I played alot of the Games Workshop's LOTR tabletop back in the day and Glorfindel was an absolute monster in my elvish army.
One of his crowning moment was when he killed 3 Mordor Trolls *in a single turn* singlehandedly sealed my opponents fate right there.
Absolutely love these videos, as a LOTR fan and I realised that many things were left out from the movies, especially my favourite characters in Tolkien’s books, the elves. I would say Thranduil and Galadriel are one of my favourites. There’s so much depth in their characters which is not portrayed in majority the movies. I know that you’ve previously made a video about Thranduil as well but was hoping that you could tell us more about his entire journey and story as long as Galadriel’s too. Also, Oropher’s story and Sindar Elves are topics that fans are curious about. I’m sure many are waiting for these videos judging by previous comments in other videos which i’ve watched from this channel. Love what you do and keep up the good work!!
*THE* Elf!!
As much as I Love glorfindel, I see why he was left out of the movies. He's a rather extraneous piece of lore as far as the core story of the Ring is concerned, and having Arwen show up was in my opinion better for the story. Arwen is barely there in the books, and giving Aragorns love interest And descendant of Luthien a deed worthy of her ancestry was a good move for the movie. As opposed to glorfindel who was a cool lore tie-in but less cohesive for the story. However I'd love to see glorfindel feature in a War in the North story (not the game....game was fine, but... no lol)
Yeah from a movie making perspective, the choice Jackson made was 100% the right one. Lets them beef up Arwen's character a bit, get the ball rolling on the love story, and also... Glorfindel literally never shows up in the story after Rivendell, so why not just use that spot to flesh out another more plot centric character?
agree completely. I don't love all the changes that were made but this one really works for the films, even if I missed Glorfindel.
Late reply but THE elf is Feanor. A horrible character but still the greatest of all the first children of Iluvatar.
@@kimpurcell8851 I mean yes absolutely but the fact that he's a huge butt face docks him a few points in my book lol
That moment when the witch king will go after an Angel but won’t tangle an elf lord. Part of me would love to see a rematch with a Belrog
Thankyou for such a good look at my favorite elven warrior! Tolkien did not give a lot of back story on Glorfindel and you gave him such life! If I have a criticism of Tolkien, he slighted a number and are very appealing characters, such as GLORFINDEL!
I would have loved more time in the books with him! And I wish he had been included in the films, along with Elladan and Elrohir because the three of them are some of my favorite characters 💛
would you be willing to do a similar video on how powerful was Thranduil?
I don't understand why people find it so hard to see Glorfindel of the first age and third are the same person. As it is said in this video he died fighting a Balrog and returned as did Gandalf but no one doubts Gandalf is the same being after being returned. Iru is a parallel to our God and can bring people back if he chooses that they deserve it.
He was definitely one if not the strongest characters in middle-earth. And I was super excited to see this video
I wish that the twins and the Grey Company had brought Glorfindel with them to Isengard, and he had been able to join the Battle of Pelennor fields, and at the Morannon. It would have been good to see him in action.
Glorfindal and fingolfin two beast ass characters. All time favorites
A character of such power deserves to be seen and heard
One video i would love to see and none of the rest lotr channels did (unlike most of videos that have been done multiple times) is a video about the rest of the dwawrf clans including any references to their cities as by now we only watched videos about longbeard clan (durins folk)
Though love the stories as they are I would liked to seen more of Glorindel.
I would have liked to have seen any of him in the movies. I think his character deserved better.
He should have been in the movies, it was a travesty to have Arwen replace him in his part to save Frodo from the Nazgul. I guess they dropped him because he suggested giving the ring to Bombadil and he was written out as well which is another travesty in its own right. I do still love the movies though they were great. Just knowing things like this from the books makes you wish it were done more in line with the novels. They were really only minor characters in the grand story only having a place in the first book but there place in it was of grand importance all the same and should have been included.
I think what they did in the movies was the right call. Movies are different than books. In books you can toss in cool side characters and it just makes the world richer and more built out, in movies adding side characters just bloats the story and confuses the audience. Glorfindel, as cool as he is, has zero to do with the story after Rivendell. Arwen has lots to do, and is barely in the first book at all. By giving her the job of Frodo rescuer, it allows them to beef up her character a bit, introduce her and the love story earlier, and cuts down on adding extra characters at a point in the story when they are already introducing a bunch of new ones, leading to less confusion for the audience.
@@KS-xk2so I see where your coming from and it does make sense. But he was supposed to speak at the council of Elrond and to me I think Arwen could have waited 5 more minutes to be introduced. Having read the books makes me yearn for some of the finer points that would have looked awesome on screen. To be honest I would like to have just seen more of Gandalfs battle with the Balrog in the Two Towers. The descriptions of how the battle looked to people far away who could see the fire and lightning raging from the Silvertine for days. And some of the chase up the endless stairs. Oh yeah and his skirmish with the Nazgul at Weathertop before the hobbits got there. They should have just made each movie 4 hours and crammed it all in there like it shoulda been. People would have still gone and seen it and it would still be the best movies ever made. And then we could have extended editions that are 5 hours long apiece!
Great video as always. Of course, I particularly enjoyed this one about my favorite fictional character of all time. 😉
Keep up the good work!!!!
I'd have liked to see Glorfindel on screen... at all. Arwen's substitution was a bit immersion-breaking.
I definitely would've rather seen him squaring off against the Ringwraiths than Arwen. It would've been cool to see the Black Riders pause or become unsettled at the sight of him.
Elrond said Glorfindel was one of the few who could ride against The Nine by himself.
@@tominiowa2513 of couse he can..he squared off against the Lord of Balrogs himself..the 9 are like kids to him.
@@ivankarim8678 No, it was Ecthelion who fought Gothmog, Lord of Balrogs during the Fall of Gondolin. The balrog Glorfindel fought is unnamed.
Been looking forward to this. Merry Chrimbus and keep up the good work ✌
Without a doubt, Glorfindel is in my top 4 favorites.
His selfless service to his people of Gondolin, his courage against the most evil and depraved enemies, and his complete disregard for the power of the ring mark him as one of Tolkien's saint characters.
The light of the Blessed Realm was in his eyes when would face the 9, which I am sure would strike them with fear, in addition to his own personal capacity.
I want an episode examining Sam's wearing of the ring after his fight with Shelob: why did no Nazgul nor Sauron perceive that?
Sauron and the Nazgûl were distracted by the Battle of Pelennor Fields, just as they were later distracted by Aragorn leading an army to the Black Gate.
@@tominiowa2513 That doesn't quite explain why they were not distracted when Frodo claimed the Ring at the Cracks of Doom and put it on though, does it?
@@sweeperboy Proximity does seem to matter, both in the distance between the One Ring and Sauron and the One Ring and Orodruin. Recall how the One Ring is described as getting physically heavier and weighing more on Frodo's mind the closer they get to where it was forged.
That isn’t very convincing. Sam was closer to Barad Dur when he had the ring than when Frodo did
It's a plot hole
I love glorfindel! He's so cool and perfect I would love to see him more in the movies 😥 you only see him in the background of aragorns coronation 😂 great video! Maybe you could make a video on ecthelion?
Yes absolutely!!! Glorfindel and Haldir are two of my favorite characters and I was really looking forward to seeing them in the movies. I can't even express the disappointment and anger I felt when I realized that Jackson had replaced Glorfindel with Arwen (who is barely in the books at all) and then had Haldir killed at Helm's Deep (pure fiction and idiocy)!!! 🤬
Jackson didn't follow the books because they weren't "exciting" enough to pull in and keep the audience interested (his opinion). So he replaced Glorfindel so he could add all the romantic scenes with Arwen and Aragorn and that's also why he had Haldir killed to make the Battle at Helm's Deep more dramatic.
Jackson made changes to almost everything and I completely understand why Christopher Tolkien felt the way he did about the movies and I totally agree.
I would have loved to see him as part of the Fellowship. He could have fought off the balrog in Moria instead of Gandalf. Then when the balrog pulled him down with his whip, instead of yelling, "Fly, you fools!" we would have instead heard, "Not agaaaaaaaaaain........."
Like a giant dildo in a nunnery, he would have stood out like a sore thumb, drawing the Eye and all his forces immediately to The Fellowship, thus putting the quest in constant jeopardy.
@@Strontyum Nah, I don't think so. Certainly not any more than Gandalf or the Ring.
@@Sindraug25 which is why the ring bearer was an inconspicuous hobbit, and one of the reasons Gandalf never bore it.
@@Strontyum Ok, but I didn't say Glorfindel should bear the Ring; I said I'd like to see him in the Fellowship.
I read somewhere in Tolkien's works that Glorfindel was the son of Finrod. Finrod, before his death was the Lord of the House of the Golden Flower. So it would make sense that Glorfindel would take the title on his fathers demise, ironically to Sauron.
Wrong. Finrods lady Amarie had remained in Valinor and he did not marry. Plus he was the King of middle Earth not the Lord of any house.
Always one of my fave characters, never to much content on him, so thanks for more.
Love Glorfindel and this channel! I have always wondered though: If Glorfindel & Elrond joining the Fellowship was ruled out because they were simply too powerful & the Fellowship would rely on secrecy, they why include Gandalf (I know, it was basically his quest & purpose). Just seems like a bit of a contradiction to me.
Gandalf was know as a wanderer across the whole of Middle-Earth, while the others had firm seats of power that they rarely left. For them to suddenly set off into the wilderness with such mixed companions would have instantly raised Sauron’s suspicions, but that is kind of Gandalf’s modus operandi, so Sauron would have paid no more attention than he usually does to the wizard.
I view Glorfindel remaining at Imladris to function as "fleet in being" of sorts. His and other elven lords existence was a threat to Sauron's plans, which always had to include the possibility of Rivendell going full war mode.
I'd argue that Gandalf being what he was, a Maia cloaked in the flesh of men, meant that while he was extremely powerful, he was also probably harder to track. Gandalf wandered for thousands of years, and was never really caught, so clearly Sauron can't track him by his power. Elrond and Glorfindel are just powerful Elven Lords... probably harder for them to keep a lid on their very being just shouting out into the world how strong they are... making them easily trackable.
Plus like you said, this was a stealth mission. Clearly they wanted to hit 9 for symbolism, lol... so they got one of each race, the future King, Gandalf, the Ring Bearer, and then they tacked on 3 spare Hobbits, as a further deception. It was known that a Halfling bore the ring. If they set out with 8 badasses and 1 hobbit, its pretty obvious who has the Ring... but by bringing along 4 Hobbits, they can't know which is the Ring Bearer... and we see this deception work when the Uruk's take Merry and Pippin.
Great point, I have thought about that also. There could be several reasons that went into the decision: (1) Glorfindel not going on the quest was an opportunity to allow Merry and Pippin to join the fellowship, with Gandalf's foresight encouraging it. (2) He would have aided the fellowship with his strength, but he was far more valuable as a counselor to Elrond. So even though he would have been valuable in the fellowship, he was more valuable as an advisor is some way - or even on the battlefield.
I hope they add him into the TV series along side others they missed or gave little details about in the books or movies
Leveled up Glorfindel was a beast, short of the dragons and Melkor himself i would pick Glorfindel in a pure 1v1 over any of Melkors servants and yes that includes Sauron. The most powerful elves had insane 1v1 feats and leveled up Glorfindel was arguably one of the strongest ever, no other elf got a power up from Manwe. My fav character in the entire universe, still sad to this day he was not part of the nine, Legolas i never cared for at all.
Yes absolutely. Sauron hasn't won very many fight, especially 1v1. Glorfindel would easily destroy him, without a ring of power.
He didnt get a power from Manwe himself though, thats fake.
*Glorfindel joins the fellowship*
*Balrog makes an appearance in Moria*
Glorfindel: "Hold my beer. I got this."
Could you talk about the Rhudaur ?
Glorfindel seems to be the only one who fully appreciated Tom Bombadil's power.
Gandalf had the best understanding of Bombadil - taking part in the Music of the Ainur and having debriefings with the Council of the Valar, not to mention the occasional conversation with Eru Ilúvatar has its advantages.
What do you think .. the Glorfindel of old was able to kill a Balrog. The reembodied Glorfindel got power almost comparable to a Maiar. So is this Glorfindel the strongest of all Elves?
Fëanor fought off *all* the Balrogs for a considerable period of time.
Just like Gandalf, kill a Balrog and you get to come back to life more powerful than before!
Feanor is the mightiest of all Children of Eru. The Valar said It.
I'd make an argument for Luthien. She cock slapped Sauron around a few times. Was able to put Morgoth himself to sleep. Pretty epic pedigree too. Half Elven Royalty - Half Maia.
The movies have been bad for his reputation but as a reader of the books he is one of the greatest characters
Battle of Minas Tirith:
Gimli: I killed 200
Legolas: I have 350
Glorfindel:OneThousandSevenHundredAndFiftyTreeeeee
Definietly I would love to replace (return back) the Arwern part of first movie 1 to Glorfindel.
It is my favorite character from the whole history of Middlearth. Only tiny ahead of Beren and Luthien.
I wish Tolkien had time and wit to finish Lord Of The Rings 2, hoping that Glorfindel could take part in it, greater than in the first trilogy.
I believe (cant remember exactly where i read this) in one of appendixes to Sillmarillion there is an information that Glorfindel 1 and 2 are the same person, together with the information that he was "resurected" by Mandos, as an the only one elf who was granted that privilage.
Also in some places ware the information, that Sauron without the ring was not affraid of any elven kings of the time of Lord Of The Rings. Nor any of the wizzards. He only was affraid of Glorfindel, and this is why he didnt ordered the attack of Rivendell yet. Glorfindel was the one for whom Sauron was keeping so large army inside the Mordor, and not sending it to Minas Tirith. He was only affraid of the situation, that in the same time, when the siege of Minas Tirith, the Glorfindel would ewentually perform an attack at Black Gate and call him to duel (which Sauron will not accept).
Thank you for your video.
awesome cool vid Jake enjoyed it
Thanks for listening to what people suggest in the comments.
In The Fellowship of the Ring, Glorfindel's role in guiding Frodo Baggins to Rivendell is filled by Arwen, though he does appear during the prologue when Sauron is defeated. In The Return of the King, Glorfindel's is seen walking next to Arwen as she is having her vision of her son Eldarion during the journey to The Grey Havens. In his last appearance, he is seen at the crowning of King Elessar, behind Legolas and in front of Arwen. In all appearance in the movies he has no speaking lines.
Awesome video like always
Great to see this detail on an amazing character
so when fighting a balrog, never... ever, fight it on a cliff
Or near a really deep fountain.
Yes, I would definitely like to have had more of his story.
Awesome keep up the good work
My Favourite character!!
Extremely powerful Elf the hypothesis is that he was a Son of one of Fingolfin's sisters Irime or Findis and that his father may have been one the Vanyar. The Golden Hair was a trait distinct to the Vanyar and of to those that had Vanyar blood.
it bears remembering that Gandalf wasn't in full possession of his powers as a Maiar as the five Astari were sent to Middle Earth in form of eldery wizards with limits to their magical abilities. that maybe explains why the Witch King was able to overcome Gandalf but was afraid of Glorfindel, who was granted powers close to a Maiar (without said limitations).
I like to think that Glorfindel was one of the many Elves who first woke up in Middle Earth.
Maybe he was of the peoples of Finwe, who went with him to Valinor, and that’s the reason he always “served” and loved the Leaders of the Noldor (Fingolfin, Turgon, Gil Galad, Elrond…).
I also like to think that Celeborn is one of those First Elves too, but one of the peoples of Elwe (Elu Thingol), and therefore never saw the light of the Trees (Celeborn, one of the first to arrive in Middle Earth, and one of the last to leave it).
Glorfindel’s life would make an amazing TV series.
I am just picturing Glorfindel going to Moria and getting some Gondolin flashbacks from seeing the Balrog: ”Iluvatar damn it, not this shit again.” And charging the Balrog solo while shouting something about avenging Turgon.
Jackson’s adaptation left out a lot of the more interesting and colorful characters from Tolkien’s story.
Nicely done. Most tolkien opinion pieces on the internet are garbage but you have clearly done your homework. I take issue two small things. The assumption that he was given the powers of a Maia is a bit of a stretch in that the professor never wrote this. The second is that Erestor sat next to Elrond at the CoE.
I think we can all agree beyond any doubt that Peter Jackson's LOTR was right up there as one of the greatest films of all time. That being said, the choices that were made to leave out or change certain events just don't make sense. I guess trying to make it for a wider audience could be argued but even that is weak at best.
I wish they would release a version of the movies with optional annotations that detail how they are differing from the books. Loose adaptations are fine, as long as they are upfront about it.
Glorfindel is absolutely BASED. He's been around almost the whole time, survived to see the end of both Morgoth and Sauron, fought a Balrog and won, died and skipped the whole line for resurrection because he was so important. The Nazgul flee when they see him, he has a presence in the real world and the wraith world, and on top of all that he is the only being lesser than a Maiar who is considered to be of equal power to them.
I wish there had been more of Glorfindel book and I wish he had been included in the movie.
One of my top favorite characters
I would have loved seeing Glordindel as part of the grey company... seeing him ride side by side with Aragorn and fighting in the battles.... but i guess such a powerfull warrior would have taken alle the attention from the main characters.
I also imagine how, if he had joined the fellowship, facing the Balrog in Moria would have been an interesting confrontation...
Would liked to have seen more of him in the films plus Would have liked to have seen and learned more of legolas fathers back story don't think the films did him much justice think there's a lot more to that character than we got to see ie he lost his wife and practically got his face burned off by a dragon 🐉
Thranduil having dragon fire scars is Peter Jackson, not Tolkien. We are never told who his wife/Legolas's mother is.
The most traumatic event was likely the Battle of Dagorlad where Thranduil's father and two-thirds of the elves of Mirkwood die in the battle, never to return to the Woodland Realm (the Valar had prohibited reincarnated elves from returning to Middle Earth by this time).
@@tominiowa2513 thank you for the info really appreciated it
The Valar saw that their interventions on Arda exacted heavy price. They didn't want to exert their full power again after the War Of Wrath, FA 545.
Thus they sent the Istari to help in the fight against the allies of Melkor that were still around after his defeat.
In one hand I can see Manwë sending some extra help after some Istari were "lost". But I cannot see Manwë overriding Mandos in his watch over the spirits of elves, after all, the elves were supposed to live in the Halls of Mandos until Eru Ilúvatar created a greater song of the Ainur in the end of days.
Finally, thank you! 😊😊😊
The Tolkien purist in me gets so annoyed reading comments talking about the movies... The movies are not canon....
Anyway, love Glorfindel... Aside from Fingolfin the beloved he is my favourite!!
I wish people that watched the movies would read the books so they would know what is Tolkien and what is Jackson.
He’s just plain bad ass
Gandalf was re-embodied, why is that such a hard thing with Glorfindel?
We often portray the choice of Arwen over Glorfindel in the film as a choice of 'more female characters in a film with many men'. But I think introducing Arwen is important to explain Aragorn and long a the films may be, there is not enough 'space' to introduce all these characters and have a meaningful arc for the other characters. Not to mention that there is a limit how many characters you can introduce. So all in all I understand the choice for Arwen in the film and it makes sense to me.
In the book version of Lord of the Rings...I like that he is somewhat in the background. Characters like Glorfindel make the world feel alive. Besides by the third age the time of the elves is over. Its mens turn to find their courage. If Glorfindel had been part of the Fellowship, it's dynamic would have been different and I think, among others, Aragorns arc would have been effected. (I've pit this a bit straightforward and there is more to it. Could go into this deeper, but wany to avoid an even longer wall of text...)
All in all...I'd love more Glorfindel, but I understand why there wasn't both in book and film.
he was in fellowship as Elronds Advisor. since his nephew fallows closely to his own beliefs. Glorfindel chose to become Elronds Advisor for his kingdom. i forgot if he chose to stay in middle earth to help Elronds two sons when they chose to stay when Elrond chose to travel to the undying lands.
I love this character and was very upset and let everyone know he wasn’t in the Jackson films. And people who haven’t read the books just don’t get it. Thanks for the more in-depth break down of the character and glad I found your channel
I think the most important comparison is that Glorfindel and Aragorn with the help of the hobbits chased the Nazgul into the river. As Gandalf said they couldn’t face a Numenorean and an elf Lord unveiled!
In the books, I think it was appropriate. His omission, kind of, from the movies, hurt my heart. (It was, in fact, Glorfindel that led the elvish relief forces to Helm's Deep, even though, in the movie, he was never given a name. Aragorn, on the other hand, was very happy to see such a powerful elf come to his aid.)
? The elf who led the Elvish relief forces to Helm's Deep in the movie was Haldir, the warden of Lothlorien. Also a cool character, but definitely not Glórfindel. Technically Glórfindel appears standing behind Elrond in at Aragorn's coronation/wedding, and is also present at the Council of Elrond. But he has no speaking part.
In the books, the elves don't come to Helm's Deep. Glórfindel instead leads a company of Rivendell elves and Dúnedain to Laketown, where they meet up with Thranduil's company, Lothlorien's marchwardens under Haldir, and Dain Ironfoot. This group of Elves, Men and Dwarves ties up a significant number of Sauron's forces such that the defeat of Saruman's uruk-hai at Helm's Deep is a crippling blow. Furthermore, the Grey Company detaches from this united force and does travel south to Rohan: but they arrive after Helm's Deep, not before.
This guy was one of the main heroes in Battle for Middle Earth II for the hero story.
Great video!
I have always wondered about the comparison of Glorfindel's power after his reincarnation to that of the maiar. It says, as you said in the video, that his power was *close to* that of a maiar. I've always assumed that meant he was more powerful (however that is meant to be understood in LOTR) than even Gandalf the White. It seems you elude to that as well in this video, though I may have misunderstood that. Would you agree that he was probably more powerful that Gandalf the White? I'm not really sure who is stronger, but the reasons for my skepticism is a little complex.
First, is the wizards (Istari) were weakened with they took on the form of man. So, the power level of the wizards (again, however that has meaning in LOTR) was weaker than the average power level of a maiar. This seems to say that Glorfindel was *probably* stronger than the wizards. Second, you could also cite, as you did in the video, that the Witch King fled at the sight of Glorfindel and challenged Gandalf. This also seems to suggest that Glorfindel was stronger than Gandalf. But, this second reason is faulty.
(A) The Witch King got a "power boost" before confronting Gandalf. So the Witch King when confronting Glorfindel is a weaker version than the one who confronts Gandalf. So, citing the Witch King's reaction isn't evidence that suggestiong Glorfindel is stronger.
(B) It doesn't seem like many knew that Gandalf had a "power boost" as well. He cloaked himself in grey after taking the mantle of The White. It was a surprise to Saruman. Additionally, many didn't even know that Gandalf had died. So, it is not clear if the Witch King knew that Gandalf was stronger than what he was. Plus, Gandalf the Grey was able to fend off all (or was it 7 or 5?) of the Wraiths at Weathertop.
So, the second reason for thinking Glorfindel was stronger doesn't look like a solid argument. But, the first may not be all that solid either. While it is true that Glorfindal was close to that of a maiar and the wizards were weakened when they took their physical forms, it's not clear that Gandalf the White, when he was reembodied, had this weakness as well. Gandalf got a signifcant power boost when he came back at the White.
So, the only two reasons for asserting the case that Glorfindal is stronger than Gandalf are not very solid arguments. Perhaps there are others? I know it's hard to scale "power levels" in LOTR. So, the question of who is more powerful (Glorfindel or Gandalf) may be starting on the wrong foot already. But, that's the question I'm curious about. What are your thoughts on that?
No way glorfindel is as powerful as Gandalf the white. Gandalf was ALREADY a maiar and then came back as an even stronger one. Gandalf takes him 1 v 1
I would've loved to see more of him in the movies.
Glorfindel was most beloved by the Gondolindrim. And Ecthelion, I searched on youtube for videos explaining about Ecthelion of the Fountain but found nothing that could help my curiosity. Would be much appreciated if you could make one. Cheers..
He might not be a wizard, but he is Glorfindal the Gold
I’d love to animate/see an animated film of fall of gondolin
Glorfinder, Gandalf and Sam. Are my favorites.
I wish I could like this more than once
Excellent video and the channel! I have a question: what Tolkien work is the best source to read about the Numenorians? I understand that Silmarillion is a place to start. Apart from that, where else can I find interesting information on that topic? Thanks in advance.
The Book of Lost Tales provides much information on Númenor.
@@VIProfessor Thanks
More Glorfindel MORE!!
I would indeed say that he is VERY magically gifted. It is very much implied in that he confronts four of the Nine at one time and in Frodo's vision of him as he blacks out at the end.
All you really needed was to say was that he was so awesome that the gods looked at him and said, "That guy is fucking awesome", and at his death went, "He's too awesome to die, and we're going to make him even MORE awesome", and revived his ass with a massive powerup.