The G4 Fellowship Wishes A Happy Birthday To J.R.R. Tolkien

AntiquesRoadwarrior

Okay, Voldemort was fueled by hate and evil, making him rather powerful, I'll admit. On the other hand, Gandalf was sent by the freakin' Gods! He's an allegorical Michael or Rafael, while Voldemort's like some fallen angel.

History lesson: Gandalf and the other Istari were once Maiar, lesser Gods of the Valar, and were sent to Middle-Earth to deal with the Sauron problem. Gandalf, or Olorin according to the Valar, began to become like Odin the Wanderer, eventually encountering and enjoying human feelings among the hobbits. Then, of course, there is his resurrection, Jesus-style, after killing the Balrog in Moria.

Voldemort, on the other hand, had his life artificially extended, rather than being a deity, by a bunch of hatred for a little boy he couldn't seem to kill. It's all very Coyote v. Road-runner. Actually, he's on par with Sly's Clockwerk, so maybe Gandalf would just pull out his hate chip, although Sam would lose the use of his legs thereafter.

And, no Symicide, they totally smoke a tobacco-like weed, Tolkien even calls it tobacco. However, Gandalf and Saruman have this spat at the White council meeting about its helpfulness and its effects which has misled potheads into false conclusions. Eventually, though, Saruman is found to have smoked the weed himself, if one remembers the scene in the destroyed Isengard, where Merry and Pippin find some. This also foreshadows that Saruman had some dealings with the Shire-folk, leading to the terrible ending sequence that was thankfully left out of the movie.

At first I thought this video was an excuse to drink alcohol at work, but apparently it's just one of those marketing bribes that would seem seedy in another context. If Roger Ebert got cider from Spielberg or something, people might be POed. I'm fine with it though. You guys should return the gift, though, and just ask for cash instead.