As a long-time Tolkien enthusiast who has spent countless hours immersed in Middle-earth, I must say that the inclusion of Orc families and their backstory in “The Rings of Power” is a fascinating twist to the original narrative. Personally, I find it intriguing to delve deeper into the lives of these malevolent creatures, not just as mindless minions but as beings with their own complexities and motivations.
The highly anticipated second season of “The Rings of Power” has arrived, reigniting intense debates and disagreements among Tolkien enthusiasts that mirror the passion shown during Season 1 (A little less heated discussion could make this a Golden Age for Middle-earth!). One contentious topic dominating social media midway through the season is the introduction of an Orc family in Episode 3, titled “The Eagle and the Sceptre.” In a notable scene, Orc actor Robert Strange (who has portrayed several Orcs throughout the series) reacts fearfully upon encountering the hill troll Damrod, clutching his Orc wife and their newborn baby to him. This depiction of an Orc family is the first time such a familial aspect has been shown in the culture, causing quite a stir online among the opinionated masses.
One example is X user @AgainstTime777, who said, “Rings of Power Season Two is comically bad. They actually try to humanize the orcs. Apparently there are orc women who are waiting for their husbands to get back from war. Tolkien literally wrote that they are grown like plants and only live to kill. So glad I didn’t pay to see.” (There’s plenty of other vitriolic-level stuff like this out there, but you get the idea.) Others were less intense but still skeptical. Film critic Gavia Baker-Whitelaw, for instance, said, “i view The Rings of Power as a very unadventurous and conservative show, creatively speaking, so its always wild to discover that Tolkien diehards are frothing with rage over innocuous background details like ‘orcs can have kids now.'”
Let’s delve deeper into the critique surrounding the origin of Orcs, and the reasons why the allegations against the series by some progressive viewers seem to lack substance.
Orcish origins
Let me pose a query for you: From where did the creature known as Orcs originate? If you’re unsure about the answer, that’s perfectly fine, as even the esteemed author J.R.R. Tolkien never definitively answered this question. Throughout his life, Tolkien frequently changed his mind about the nature and origin of the Orcs. This ambiguity has contributed to some negative perceptions towards Orcish clans. For example, in the early stages of his work, Tolkien toyed with the idea that Orcs simply emerged from the mud. In an early draft of “The Silmarillion” called “The Book of Lost Tales,” he wrote, “This race was bred by [Morgoth] from the subterranean heat and slime. Their hearts were as hard as stone, and their bodies twisted.” When attempting to clarify what exactly Orcs are, Tolkien also pondered making them mechanical beings without souls.
Nonetheless, the primary theory about their origin stems from “The Silmarillion,” where it is suggested that the Elves hold the belief that Orcs are actually corrupted Elves (this perspective sheds light on Adar’s background in the show). Later theories lean more towards the idea that Orcs might have been corrupted Humans instead.
Much of the Orc origin conundrum also hinges on the question of whether Orcs are redeemable creatures. For instance, X user Rock solid vehemently pointed out, “Tolkien SPECIFICALLY wrote the orcs to be irredeemably evil, they are born from evil to serve evil. Trying to make them out to be a marginalized group is beyond stupid. This is like spitting on Tolkien’s writing and legacy.” However, we at Looper would like to challenge that notion. At the very least, the jury is out on the question, and our own research and studying of the source material has led us to believe that, if anything, it’s highly likely that Orcs were, indeed, redeemable. (Trust us. That is a long, dark, and complicated debate.)
Orc families and reproductive activity
Indeed, Orc origins are intricate, and it’s debatable whether they could have been redeemed. Let me shift the focus to their culture and family structure. Was there a societal framework among them, or did Tolkien describe any form of Orc reproduction that wasn’t analogous to plant growth or emergence from mud?
In J.R.R. Tolkien’s “The Silmarillion,” it is mentioned that Orcs originated from Elves, with the book stating, “For Orcs had life and reproduced in a way similar to the Children of Ilúvatar.” The term “Children of Ilúvatar” refers to both Elves and Men, who were solely created by this divine entity. This indirectly suggests that Orcs also have families, as Tolkien hinted at without explicitly stating it; readers must piece together the clues provided in the text.
As a gamer immersed in the world of “The Hobbit,” I’ve stumbled upon an Orc child mentioned in the book, where it reads, “Just a short while ago [Gollum] bore [the One Ring], and snatched a tiny goblin-like creature. Listen to that squeak!” In a letter penned in 1963 to a dear friend, Mrs. Munby, J.R.R. Tolkien shed light on the topic of Orcish women and the culture beyond the battlefields, stating, “It’s safe to assume there were Orc women. However, since our stories often only encounter Orcs as soldiers in the service of the evil lords, we don’t learn much about their daily lives. There isn’t much known.
In “The Two Towers,” Treebeard provides a somewhat unsettling insight into the origin of Saruman’s Uruk-hai. Here, he posits that these creatures could be the result of mixing the breeds of Orcs and Humans.
The Rings of Power isn’t watering down Orcish evil
Is it problematic to introduce Orc families into the landscape of Middle-earth on the show, given that Tolkien didn’t include them in his original stories? Does this portrayal make them seem more human and potentially take away from the authentic Middle-earth experience?
In a TV Insider interview, showrunners JD Payne and Patrick McKay revealed that the character Robert Strange is portrayed as an “orc with a story” – he goes by the name Glüg. The masterminds behind the series further explained that after delving into the mythology, they felt drawn to examine the idea that Orcs lack free will and are under Sauron’s control. Payne added that this suggests there might have been something unique about them before that point, which led them to find the concept of Glüg’s potential journey captivating.
In their interpretation, McKay emphasized that the Orcs in this version remain as ferocious as ever. However, they also provide more complexity and a sense of dimensionality. “Our aim is to enrich the world with more depth and deeper emotions,” he explained further.
The aim isn’t just to portray Orcs as oppressed figures. Instead, we’re exploring what might drive Orcs before they succumb entirely to Sauron’s overpowering and controlling rule. As McKay puts it, “We can’t grasp where [Glüg] ends up if he doesn’t understand his emotional background.” Regardless of the political subtext, this exploration is crucial for storytelling. There’s no need to dwell excessively on the topic.
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2024-09-07 00:00