In today’s newsletter I’ve got a roundup of recent Tolkien Treasures,1 or Tolkien-related content that I’m currently enjoying and want to share with you all. Let's get right to it!
Next month a new collection of all six Peter Jackson films is set to release. According to IGN, this set features “the extended and theatrical cuts of all three The Hobbit films and all three Lord of the Rings films on 4K UHD, Blu-ray, and digital.”
(And no, this is a separate release from the Lord of the Rings gift box set that includes a replica of the One Ring and released this past December).
You can preorder the new six-film collection on Amazon.
2. ‘Fate of the Fellowship’ brings Lord of the Rings themes and gameplay to the Pandemic System
This June, a new board game from the designer of Pandemic is releasing that will allow players to cooperatively play as the Heroes defending Middle-earth and helping Frodo on his quest.
“Three years in the making, the game will include 13 playable characters, 14 event cards, and 24 objectives, providing an enormous variety of play experiences. The game will also come with an 11-inch constructible Barad-dûr Dice Tower, Nazgûl miniatures, original artwork of iconic characters, and more.”
A few weeks ago I came across a new book on Tolkien that piqued my interest: The High Hallow: Tolkien’s Liturgical Imagination.
In The High Hallow, “Ben Reinhard examines the liturgical pieties that governed Tolkien’s life from childhood to old age, the ways in which the liturgy colored Tolkien’s theory of myth and fantasy, and the alleged absence of religion in Middle-earth. Most importantly, he shows how the plots, themes, and characters of Tolkien’s beloved works can be traced to the patterns of the Church’s liturgical year.”
I immediately knew when I read this description that it was a book I needed to get my hands on! The publisher has graciously provided me a review copy, so look for more thoughts in the coming weeks!
But if you don’t want to wait, you can order it at the publisher’s website:
War of the Rohirrim is coming to Blu-ray, DVD, and 4K on Feb 18th, and the SteelBook version (containing the movie in 4K, Blu-ray, and on digital) is simply gorgeous.
You can find all the versions I’ve just mentioned on Amazon.
5. The Two Towers audiobook narrated by Andy Serkis
I just finished Andy Serkis’ version of The Fellowship of the Ring last month and am continuing on with his version of The Two Towers. It’s a wonderful way to spend my commutes and I highly recommend his version. I’ve just finished some of the first chapters with Treebeard and Andy’s take on him is simply delightful.
There we have it: my Tolkien Treasures for February!
What have you been enjoying lately (or will enjoy soon) that is Tolkien-related? Let me know in the comments!
Namárië, friends. Go towards goodness!
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“Tolkien Treasures” is an occasional section, or “sub-newsletter” of Jokien with Tolkien. To manage which of these sub-newsletters you’re receiving—Laughs (humor), Lore (deep dives), treasures (roundups), and/or Through the Wardrobe (Wider Sci-fi/Fantasy)—click here.
My newest Tolkien Treasure I've been enjoying is my Idril pin from PookaWorks! Waiting on a necklace after the next restock, too.
I've also been eyeing this kickstarter with pins for the Valar - https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/lucigianart/tolkien-valar-heraldic-devices-enamel-pin-collection-pt-1
I love Andy Serkis’s narration! As an avid audiobook listener, I think he’s the best narrator I’ve ever heard.