The Two Towers
The Two Towers, Tolkien’s second installment in the Lord of the Rings trilogy, forces the fellowship to go its separate ways as Frodo and Sam continue their journey to Mordor. As Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli set off to find the lost hobbits Pippin and Merry, they go through a series of adventures and perils, from encounters with soldiers of the enemy to unexpected reunions. Meanwhile the lost hobbits are hoping to be found, encountering perils and new friends of their own. The split parties travel on, hoping to converge again and to succeed in their original quest before darkness befalls all of Middle Earth.
I’ve often heard people refer to this book in the series to be “the one where they’re still walking around,” and though I think that’s absolutely true, I enjoy all the adventures and character interactions along the way. Every great quest requires lots of adventuring on horseback and on foot, after all. I didn’t find myself wondering when everyone would stop wandering around and get to point “XYZ.” It was a shorter installment in the series, but appropriately so and paced well as Tolkien covers lots of ground to cue you into what each member of the fellowship has been up to since they split up.
I enjoyed the colorful characters that you meet along the way in this story, including the ents, Smeagol and even Shelob, though I was more disturbed by the latter creature when she was introduced. I love the mystery of the entwives, and the entmoots where the ents are known for their “‘unhasty’ language” and taking days to say “Good Morning” and all of their names. The iconic exchanges between Sam and Smeagol always make me laugh, when Smeagol accuses the hobbit of trying to kill him with lembas bread and despises how Sam cooks rabbit. The whole exchange between Smeagol and Sam about potatoes is my favorite, and also the scene where Sam accuses Smeagol of sneaking and Smeagol agrees with him.
I’m intrigued by the mystery of Shelob the Great, how ancient she is and how scary the thought is that she has existed in the darkness since the beginning of time and no one knows how she arrived in Mordor and how she has been there even before the current evil that lurks there and threatens Middle Earth in the series. She is the scariest thing about the series for me, the evil eight legged creature that lurks in the shadows, unrivaled in her power.
Among other favorite parts, I can’t ruin them because they’re far too important to the overall story. But I love Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli as the star trio of this story and the surprising encounters they have, as well as Sam’s purity of heart and loyalty to his dear friend Frodo. Pip and Merry always provide comedic relief in the series, and serve as great balance between the sad and tense moments in the story. This book was gripping as always, and had great descriptive imagery that I’ve come to expect and to love in Tolkien’s world. The book also ended on a good cliffhanger if you don’t know what happens next. Overall I never seem to have trouble liking any main characters, good or bad, and I always enjoy the plot. Everything and everyone seems to work well and I love it all. Except for maybe Saruman, who just talks smack from his tower and gets silenced, and his trusty slimy companion Wormtongue and his sinister shenanigans.
This story is for those who love traditional fantasy and descriptive writing, epic journeys, darkness, suspense and light comedic notes throughout. Tolkien remains steadfast in his style and he delivers what he promises throughout the whole second installment, setting up the final part of the story very well at a point where the suspense is at one of its highest points before the story’s epic conclusion.
Reference
Tolkien, J.R.R. The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers. HarperCollinsPublishers, 2020.