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| Eärendil’s Tale by Bodkin | 72 Review(s) |
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| daw the minstrel | Reviewed Chapter: 12 on 6/12/2005 |
| This was what made his family special. This – service and sacrifice That ties this all together so nicely. And it rings true to me. I'm glad you had the twins arrive, even though Tolkien tells us no one knew what they chose to do. Poor Elrond needs them. His realization of how much they resemble Earendil was interesting. When I think back over your characterization of the Mariner, I can see that. And I liked the glimpses of Maglor, who's always seemed to me to be even more tragic than the rest of Feanor's sons. He was caught up in something he didn't start, and he tried to be decent, but the curse of the Valar was just too much. I also like the faith that they'll all be with Arwen in the end. Author Reply: And the thing that gets me most about Maglor is - the rest of them just died. Yes, I suppose there could be big reasons in some minds why that would be worst - expiring unshriven, unrepentant and all that. But Maglor was stuck with endless loneliness and grief - and pain. I suppose it could be considered his own purgatory - and that, once he had paid for his sins, he could be forgiven and received into the West - but really, it just seems cruel. They've all been working on faith (- service and sacrifice!) and honour since the First Age - they won't give up on it now. Arwen, Elros and Luthien - the half-elven who will be reunited with their kin. And Estel. I can't bear to think of the twins not arriving. And I think, short of a cataclysmic love a la Arwen, they are too elven not to choose to sail to their naneth (and Elrond). They are adventurers, too, which makes them rather Earendil-ish. I wonder if they would fancy a bit of Vingilot piloting. Earendil deserves a few weeks off, I should think, after two ages plus. Thank you. I enjoyed writing this - although I wasn't so sure about half way through! | |
| Jay of Lasgalen | Reviewed Chapter: 12 on 6/12/2005 |
| How wonderful for Elrond (and where's Celebrían?) to be reunited with his sons. They seem so diminished though, by their final years on Middle-Earth. E2 here seem a long way away from the elves of 'Reflections' - though I know earlier chapters refered to this fading. And some of Elrond's memories are so sad: 'dead-eyed warriors, interested in nothing but slaughter, shielded behind a mask of adamant.' It's chilling, but exactly how I imagine the twins in the years after their mother's attack. Great ending to a great story! Jay Author Reply: Celebrian is talking to Tuor and Idril at the moment. Much as she would like to be with the twins! But she will be back in a moment. The story started with Earendil and Elrond and it seemed neater to finish it with them. It took E2 some time to recover from the last years, I think. In my head, the numbness of the land became very draining, almost to the point where the remaining elves lost the will to continue. (Which makes the thought of those left in Arda still bearing the torch a bit contradictory, but hey - I'll think of something! Maybe their focus is narrow enough - and if they stay in the areas where the force is still with them - ley lines and such. 'Fairy rings'.) So many of Elrond's memories must be sad - poor Elrond! He can console himself with the fact that E2 are with him now, but Arwen isn't and she and her children never will be. Beyond the circles of the world down to the third or fourth generation now. Thank you - I'm glad you thought it was a good ending. I've been poring over it for days trying to decide! I'm sorry this story is over - but I suppose it frees me up to start another one! | |
| elliska | Reviewed Chapter: 11 on 6/5/2005 |
| I love Eärendil and Elrond's reaction as they prepare to share a journey on Vingilot. Poor Elrond--I honestly think I'm with him. I love sailing (as long as someone else is in control of the boat) but sailing on the sky would be right out for me. :-) But I'm glad he got to see his father at its helm and I liked how you portrayed him as a different person there. He would be. Well done. Another thing that struck me here that I enjoyed was the memory of the War of Wrath. That is something rarely shown and I like it everytime I get to see a glimpse. I especially liked here the change in the elves when they returned--that was very sad. It makes you aware,’ he said finally, in an attempt to pass on an understanding that it had taken him millennia to develop, ‘that this is only a small part of Elu’s whole. Even the elves, who will live as long as the world exists, are part of this bigger entirety – and our divisions are not for ever.’ ‘Perhaps not,’ Elrond mused, ‘although that is little consolation.’ There are so many levels to this interchange as the chapter goes on to show. Between Elrond and his father, and Elrond and his wife, the separation has finally ended. Between Elrond and his daughter, it has really just begun and he has suffered the loss of his brother for millennia. That was really well done the way you showed that. As you very well know, I love exploring the character's emotions and I thought you did an excellent job showing Elrond's feelings after the loss of his father and brother (and even Maglor) and his interaction with Gil-galad. (‘And that circlet that you say is remarkably over-provided with sharp corners considering that it is round. And council meetings.’ --Love the little inserts of humour!) And then you bring that conversation back around at the end with Elrond saying he is 'content' for her--that is really sadder than grief, isn't it. It's easier to grieve or be angry. It's harder to realize what's done is right even though it hurts. And I really loved how you handled Elrond's desire to find / see / hold hope for Maglor and Eärendil’s response to that. I honestly think this is the best canon gap filler I have read--certainly so for the Silmarillion. I absolutely adored this and I'm sorry to see it end. Great job, Bodkin! Author Reply: (Don't you think the twins ought to become co-pilots for Vingilot? It would stop them from becoming bored in the Blessed Realm.) I think flying the sky-ship is less scary in reality than in imagination. Well, it would have to be. But Earendil has been doing it for a long time and he is at home doing it. Elrond and Earendil reminisced a bit about the dragon and the battle against Morgoth in the first chapter - so I thought I would focus more on preparation and results here. I can see the elves marching confidently to war - and finding it a far more painful experience than they thought. They will have learned lessons about sacrifice and loss that will have shaken them - and, possibly, given them a greater respect for and understanding of those elves who later sailed west. Big sigh. Elrond never gets a really happy ending. Well, none of his family do - sacrifice is definitely a big part of their role in the world. And yet they have the courage and discipline to make that sacrifice every time. I think he would work to overcome his grief to try to accept her choice - and see, better than most probably, that it was better for her. (Not for him of course, but his expectations can't have been high.) And the more characters appear, the more you get fond of - I've really taken to Gil-Galad now. Even Maglor. And I've got myself feeling sorry for Maedhros. I would like to see Maglor brought back - two ages of isolation and regret seem long enough. I'm flattered that you like this and really appreciate your words. I'm sorry to see it end, too! | |
| Redheredh | Reviewed Chapter: 11 on 6/4/2005 |
I liked how this chapter wrapped up some vague things in very practical ways. But then I would. ;) Elwing's tower being an outpost until other elves were attracted to come there was very interesting. Surely, Elwing herself was what attracted the first visitors. Greenland got colonized faster, but then there was a PR campaign to settle there and not Teleri word-of-mouth. Which when you consider it, probably was just as affective. Elrond wondering about Maglor with the following discussion of his personality and morals was touching. You make a case for ending his torment. However, Earendil says it best - "It may take some while." I really like the thought of the Noldor going forth from Aman to free their kin from bondage. I took that to mean their oath and not just Morgoth's grip on their lives. The Valar may have had designs on the Simarils, but did any of the Host, even the Vanyar? I like to think Morgoth was their only target. Acknowledging that war changed the inexperienced Amanyar and how was well described. It brings up questions about how those that were reborn after the experience handled it and how the people welcomed them back. Did time in Mando alleviate the effect? The resulting isolationism is a familiar declaration that never lasts in our reality, not even for Switzerland. It will take bending the world to make it feasible for the Amanyar. Nice reference to the fear of being left out again - doubly forsaken - to describe the surge of ME elves sailing to Aman. After the war with Sauron too. It certainly made it easier for edain to colonize the mainland later. Ah, that delightful time-folding thing again. Just so Earendil could get away once in awhile. That was a nice thing to do for him and Elwing too. ;) On the closing matter of heroes and husbands - Once again, Earendil puts something important in perspective: "...being a son or a husband or an adar. That is, indeed, a matter for joy." And as usual, Elrond puts some common sense into the subject: "- and it is time to be a family." Then you had that very sweet closing line to this chapter and essentially this story. Thanks, this was a wonderful voyage. And I anxiously await an epilogue. Author Reply: I reckon whatever was left of Sirion would seek out Elwing and Earendil. Unless they stayed with Tuor and Idril. The whole 'living in a white tower and flying out to meet Earendil' idea gave me the shivers. Yes, romantic. For a while. But isolation of that level for 6000 years? They have to have assembled their own people - how else could they have eaten? And clothed themselves? What I think about Maglor is that he is one of the less guilty of Feanor's sons, but that he got landed with the worst fate. The others were only killed. And death would take them to Namo's halls - where they could go through the process of redemption. Maglor had to live with his guilt - alone - indefinitely. And there comes a point when that becomes cruelty. I think his case should be brought before the Valar again. I don't think the Silmarils were first in the minds of the Valar's host. They were obeying the Valar's call - which was more about the defeat of Morgoth. And they would see themselves as an army of Lone Rangers riding to the rescue, I think. A nice bunch of elves on the whole - but some would call them confident (and others arrogant). Those who have never seen war do tend to think it will be a simple case of marching in, winning and going home. (I love the 'not even for Switzerland' line!) Do you not think the preparation for rebirth might have to include some thought about dealing with how you died? And why? Otherwise none of the kinslayers would come back. (Minor characters rather than SofF.) And then you get thinking about guilt and culpability. Some people blame themselves for outcomes they couldn't possibly help, whereas others feel totally justified in having done terrible things - so if how you feel about things is part of preparing for rebirth, it could allow some big mistakes. And poor Earendil won't have had any time off in two ages if he can't do a bit of time-folding and place-bending. (I think he needs the twins as substitute Vingilot pilots to give him some time to get away.) Husbands and heroes - well, they need to get some priorities sorted out in a realm where all the great names could end up living cheek by jowl. I am glad you have enjoyed the voyage. Epilogue . . . growing. It just needs to tie some bows - but without becoming too much of an epic. | |
| daw the minstrel | Reviewed Chapter: 11 on 6/4/2005 |
| You take up a lot of questions here that I had never even considered. My experience is that that's one of the things that happens when you try to work out the details that Tolkien left unfinished. Questions pop up all over the place. How odd it must have been for the Exiles to try to reassimilate. That's one of the things I had never considered. Author Reply: Tolkien's world is just so huge, isn't it? So many tempting gaps and things left unsaid. I wonder how those who had never left reacted to the return of cousins / brothers / husbands after an age. And how those who had suffered saw the comfortable secure lives in Aman. Did they end up being treated to the 'well, it was a long time ago and in foreign parts and things like that just don't happen here' attitude? Then there's the whole language issue. Presumably the lingua franca of the Blessed Realm is Quenya - spoken by remarkably few Sindar and possibly no longer the tongue of choice of the younger Noldor. Do you think the elves of Aman would insist on language classes? And laugh at the inability of the immigrants to speak a civilised language? Can't you just see the faces of the non-Noldor elves at having to learn to speak and do business in Elu's banned tongue? There's so much that you just have to overlook, or the story would never get anywhere. | |
| lwarren | Reviewed Chapter: 10 on 6/4/2005 |
| What a wonderful chapter! I've just looked at the clock and it's 1:00 in the morning! No wonder I'm cross-eyed! I just wanted to say this was great and I will review it in more detail in the morning (er...later this morning!) LOL linda Author Reply: It kept you interested until 1 am! Yay! Have a good night's sleep. | |
| lwarren | Reviewed Chapter: 9 on 6/4/2005 |
| Free at last, and finally recovered enough to put two consecutive thoughts together that make a little bit of sense! :-) *wails loudly* I am so far behind in reviewing, tho'! I thought to start here and review the last two chapters of Earendil's Tale - oh, yes, Bodkin, I have been reading...just too swamped to review! This chapter was FULL of wonderful lines and images. I love the pictures you paint, Bodkin...starting with that desperate effort to return to Sirion and take revenge on the Kinslayers! How tragic and terrible to the crew must have been the news Elwing brought...and how much worse for them that Ulmo would not let them return to their families! (I liked how Elrond felt better knowing his father had at least tried to come back for him and his brother!) But I suppose my favorite part came when Voronwe told Earendil that loyalty to one's liege lord did not excuse the killings. He was right, too - better to be foresworn than to commit some atrocity which totally goes against your own values. I've always wondered how those following the sons of Feanor were able to stand what was happening? Were they so seduced/dazzled by the promise of the Silmarils that they lost every value they ever believed in? It's a mystery to me... The trip to the shores of Valinor...the walk into Tirion only to find it empty (a festival, of all things!)...and finally being met and taken to the Valar was all so well done. I love how the light of the Silmaril had become a part of Earendil...and how it all played a part in his ultimate request to the Valar for aid. Just a wonderful chapter, Bodkin! linda Author Reply: The first few days are euphoric - and then time just starts rushing past far too quickly. It was interesting doing this chapter (and the next), because it had to be so closely tied to the actual word of JRRT. Some bits could be - well - interpreted, but where Earendil and Elwing and the Valar speak, their words had to be used. (I thought so, anyway.) Instinct would take you back, I think, even if you knew it was useless. And even 6000 years or so on, you would be glad to know that your parents had tried. I'm glad you liked Voronwe's words! After all, Feanor's Noldor do have to take some of the responsibility for what happened. He demanded that they follow him - but what would have happened if they had just put down their swords and said 'no'? It's one of the cries from war crimes trials over the years - 'I was just carrying out orders', but why would elves carry out orders that required them to kill other elves? Although, having taken part in Alqualonde, perhaps the Kinslayers were in despair and felt themselves to be cursed? The Silmarils can't have had that much influence on the common elf, surely. Feanor only brought them out on high days and holidays and he was very jealous of them. Why make Earendil a star? My answer was that he had borne the Silmaril for so long that it had impinged on his being - and part two of my reasoning was that he had to be willing to surrender it. Possessiveness does not seem to have been a good thing as far as the jewels of Feanor were concerned. Glad you liked the chapter! | |
| Redheredh | Reviewed Chapter: 10 on 5/30/2005 |
..."Valinor is not what you expect," Elwing said softely. "It is not an end, but a beginning. Your existence stops and shifts and begins again." "But there is no going back."... Not after the ban anyway nor later after the world was reshaped. Still, sounds alot like being 'reborn'. Maybe 'healing' is not so diffrent. With the 'beings that needed no halls', you made me think of how Yaweh appeared to the Chosen People. In a form that they could understand yet be sheilded from His absolute awe. Shadows on the wall of a primative creature's mental cave, only hinting at their true shapes within the blinding Light. Then, there is that moment Earendil hands over the jewel to Yavanna and apologizes for Beren and Luthien not getting the other two. What a hobbit moment! 'Course, this Lady is not like that other one. Thank goodness. But, once again the elemental power is recognized and there is an acknowledgement that the moral judgment on how to use it resides the hands of sentient beings with motives of their own. Time does flow differently in different places and circumstance - especially for the Valar and Eldar as compared to Men - and you have used that very well in this entire tale. The benevolance of the Valar was well done too. Earendil's and Elwing's humble obedience is virtuous instead of being manipulated under false pretenses of concern about the fate of Arda or from a simple arrogance as the greatest beings in Arda. It has been interesting to see Earendil sanctified by the Simaril's light. Changed in spirit, but not changed in heart. You make me think he would have always been a good, dedicated person essentially like Voronwe or Finrod. And never like Turgon or Fingolfin. Like Frodo and Faramir, not Boromir or Denethor. The ending reminded me that this is Memorial Day and of all the families whose tradition of service over their genereations have burdened them with the loss of their beloved children. Author Reply: Thank you. You make it sound as if I was being clever when I put various things together rather than just feeling it! Because, really, it's quite tricky putting some of the more epic ideas into the hands of real people. Why would the Valar choose to make a half-elf/half-man into a star? And the Silmarillion isn't too specific on a lot of answers. The Valar are benevolent on a universal scale, I think, but not perhaps too concerned about individuals - except, every now and then, when one comes to their attention. But you know what they say about whom the gods love . . . I thought there might be another two chapters, but I think now that it might only be one. Maybe an epilogue, but I'm not sure. But the next chapter feels sort of like a conclusion to the main story. I'm glad you liked the chapter! Author Reply: There's never any going back. Whatever. All the 'You can't pass over the same bridge twice' stuff. You're not the same person when you revisit the past - and neither is the place you want to go. I'll stop before I depress myself further. | |
| elliska | Reviewed Chapter: 10 on 5/28/2005 |
| I know this sound less powerful since I say it every chapter, but I sincerely mean it--this is absolutely wonderful. The way you describe the Valar in this (and your description in general) is pure poetry of which I am truly jealous. Some favorite lines: I could not believe that it would do my cause any good if I were to fall on my face before them and gibber incoherently. for the humour of it. ‘I felt like a sparrow confronted by eagles. Outranked, outmatched, outshone, outdone.’ What a perfect simile. I loved it. They were – he hesitated – the halls of beings that needed no halls. Simple and so powerful. I loved the portrayal of Eärendil making his plea--the way you showed his emotions was wonderful. That was it--loved that--too true and well done. And of course I loved seeing him turn over the Simaril. He had to, I think, and I liked how you made it happen. And, though I am hard pressed to name a favorite part, it might be Elwing's description of her time with the Teleri. I like the idea of her telling Olwe about his brother (the good parts, especially). I'm happy to know that he got to hear it and I liked the idea that they found healing there and later Celebrian did. How pathetic is it that I cried at the part where they chose their fates and learned that their sons were still alive to be offered the choice too? I loved the description of Vingilot and Eärendil initially thinking it would not be as satisfying as the open sea and Elwing thinking it more beautiful than the sun and moon. But of course the part I liked the best was the vision of Elrond with his sons, watching it each night and Eärendil watching them back. Needless to say, I cried again when I read that Arwen looks at Eärendil with Eldarion. That is too tragic, as you showed, because there is no hope of a reunion there. If anything shows the difficulty of the choice--the fact that it is not a gift but a doom--it is that image. So sad. But hopeful too. At least Arwen and her children do have that connection. Really well done, Bodkin! I love this story! Author Reply: I am so glad you are continuing to enjoy it. It is fun doing the jigsaw here of putting in the bits from the Silmarillion and teasing them apart to add more from Earendil and Elwing. Tricky on occasion. (Did you know just how far Elwing gets put away from Alqualonde and the inhabited portions of Valinor?) I think Earendil had to be willing to surrender the Silmaril - because only in sacrifice could he get to bear it. He saw himself as a custodian of something that belonged to all. The complete opposite of Feanor, really. And who better to give it to than the Valar? Seeing Elwing with the Teleri made me happy. I'm not terribly happy with her fate in the Silmarillion really. Sounds romantic, but I think it's cruel. I would much rather she had been able to spend her time with her kin - I reckon it would have helped the Teleri as much as it would her. Elrond and his children watching Earendil as he watched them is romantic, too, but not as good as being there with them. Better than nothing, though - as is watching Arwen. No. No hope of reunion while Arda lasts. But they will be together beyond the end of days. Two more chapters, probably. I hope they work for you, too. | |
| Elena Tiriel | Reviewed Chapter: 10 on 5/28/2005 |
| I am truly enjoying this story, Bodkin. I like how you work out how the characters must be feeling and thinking - like Eärendil being willing to give up the Silmaril - when Tolkien just didn't give us much information on their interior life. - Barbara Author Reply: I am glad you like it! I thought - what is the difference between Earendil and Feanor when it comes to the Silmaril - and decided that the willingness to sacrifice something for the greater good had to be a major part of the difference between them. (Whereas Feanor was willing to sacrifice the greater good for a thing.) Also that the connection between Earendil and the Silmaril he had borne might have been an element in the Valar's decision as to what to do with him. I am enjoying writing this, but I think it's close to its end now. Perhaps two more chapters. | |