3. Female Elves
I sighed when I heard about the first major change to The Hobbitthe three movies. I cringed, and almost wept when I heard about the second: Boyens
et al, in their infinite wisdom, have decided to add a female elf character. Now, The Hobbit is pretty male-heavy, I admit it. I guess The Lord of the Rings is too, although Eowyn emerges as a strong character and her victory over the Witch King of Angmarwho cannot be killed by any
mancan be seen as a feminist commentary on patriarchal culture. But just because a story doesnt have a female character in it doesnt mean you need to add a female character. And the reason why Boyens wanted to add the character makes it worse. Heres a quote from
Comic-Con: We created her to bring that feminine energyWe believe its completely within the spirit of Tolkien. We didnt want her to be a ploy. First, that kind of soundslike the definition of a ploy. Second, I understand if theres a plot-related reason to add a female character: I kind of bought this with adding Arwen in The Lord of the Rings, given she played an importantbut hiddenpart in the books. But adding a female elf to add some feminine energy? What exactly does that mean? I would wholeheartedly support a new fantasy series that highlighted strong female characters. And would even be ok with a well-thought out female addition to The Hobbit. But given the quality of other aspects of The Lord of the Rings that Boyens adapted, Im not holding my breath.