After watching the first two episodes of The Rings of Power, we can ask ourselves a legitimate question: why aren’t these characters called “Hobbits”, as we used to call them in Peter Jackson’s films?
Expected at the turn, the series The Rings of Power finally unveiled its first two episodes on September 2, fulfilling a wait of several years!
Orcs, Dwarves, Elves and other Humans, the show features several peoples who will meet, befriend, fight together or enter into conflict.
Among all the creatures that inhabit Middle-earth, the Pievelus have thrilled the spectators, in particular thanks to the revelation Markella Kavenagh, who plays the fiery Nori.
If fans of JRR Tolkien’s work will already have the answer to this question, fans of the two trilogies directed by Peter Jackson will surely wonder.
Why aren’t these forest creatures called “Hobbits” in the series? First of all, to provide an answer to this question, it is necessary to resituate The Rings of Power in the temporality of The Lord of the Rings.
The story takes place around 7000 years before The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. It will relate the major events that occurred on Middle-earth during the Second Age.
We will thus be able to discover the story behind the creation of the Rings of Power, the history of the island kingdom of Númenor, the rise of Sauron and the last alliance between Men and Elves.
These events take place over several thousand years in Tolkien’s books. For the purposes of the series, the timeline has been condensed. Thus, the Hobbits as we know them in the films of Peter Jackson will not be established until the Third Age in the Shire.
IT’S NOT THE FOOT!
Before that, these creatures also called “half-men” lived in the valleys of the Anduin (a long river in the west of Middle-earth) and were divided into three tribes: the Fortauds, the Peaublêmes, and the famous Pievelus. They are therefore part of the Hobbit family.
In the prologue to The Lord of the Rings, Tolkien describes them thus: “The Pieveli were darker-skinned, shorter, and shorter, and wore neither beards nor boots; their feet and hands were nimble and shapely, and they preferred mountains and hills.”
HOBBIT OR NOT HOBBIT?
As for the Hobbits, the author describes them as close to Men: “It seems indeed (even if they have become very distant afterwards) that the Hobbits are related to us: they are much closer to us than the Elves, or even the Dwarves.
They once spoke the languages of Men, in their own way, and had much the same likes and dislikes as Men. But it is no longer possible to discover the exact nature of this relationship. The appearance of the Hobbits goes back a very long way, to the Old Days which are now lost and forgotten.”
As seen in the series, the Woodworms hide from the outside world, staying away from the problems of the other creatures inhabiting Middle-earth. Well hidden in the forest, they enjoy a simple life, in osmosis with nature.
It is for this reason that the character of Elanor “Nori” Pievelu stands out from the rest of her tribe with her desire for adventure and emancipation. With her friend Poppy, they form a duo similar to the Hobbits Frodo and Sam from Lord of the Rings.
After their encounter with the mysterious stranger fallen from the sky, what adventures await our two intrepid Pievelus? See you on September 9 on Amazon Prime Video for the 3rd episode of The Rings of Power!
WE DEBRIEF THE FIRST TWO EPISODES