The Fellowship of the Ring: Epic Edition

What would the Fellowship of the Ring be like if its members were from the First Age? Introducing the Fellowship of the Ring: Epic Edition

*Warning: this post is purposely very silly 😁

Frodo and Sam —> Lúthien and Huan

Luthien and Huan literally showed up at Sauron’s fortress during the height of his power, killed a bunch of orcs, werewolves, and vampires, tore down the walls, freed the prisoners, and last but not least BEAT-UP SAURON… all without any army or weapons. 

Outside of her obvious qualifications, Luthien would make a fantastic ring-bearer, as she has a high resistance to evil. For instance, she came face to face with Morgoth and walked away completely unscathed and unmarred. Furthermore, everybody else would be too scared to take the ring from her. Even the son’s of Fëanor, who were under oath to take back the Silmarils, just decided to completely ignore the fact that she had one for like 70 years. 

Like Sam is to Frodo, Huan is extremely loyal to Luthien. He has her back no matter what, even against his former master Celegorm. He’s also pretty much invincible — giant immortal talking dogs are an Elf’s best friend! 

Gandalf —> Ecthelion 

Gandalf is a Maia with magic powers, so normally it would make sense to replace him with someone even more powerful. However, Gandalf and the other Maiar are not allowed to use their powers to their full extent, nor fight the battles of Men and Elves. So, it would be most logical to replace him with and Elf or Man who IS allowed to use his full abilities. An exceptionally qualified candidate would be Ecthelion. He killed four Balrogs, including Gothmog, the very worst of them. Plus, he could play some awesome tunes on his flute. 

Aragorn —> Fingolfin

The new fellowship needs a leader, and Fingolfin would be just the character. Like Aragorn, he would not shirk at the idea of responsibility, nor the possible need of facing Sauron’s most formidable forces directly. After all, he did 1v1 Morgoth just to prove a point.

Legolas and Gimli —> Beleg and Finrod

Beleg is the best archer to ever live in Middle Earth, making him a good replacement for Legolas. Beleg’s advanced navigation and tracking skills also make him a valuable asset on the journey as a whole. 

Finrod is probably one of the most hardcore Elves, making him a good replacement for Gimli. He started his own secret kingdom, discovered the first of the Edain in Middle Earth, and straight-up bit a werewolf to death.

Merry and Pippin —> Elrond and Elros

Elrond and Elros are at least 5 times more intelligent and skilled individually than Merry and Pippin are combined. However, similar to Merry and Pippin, they are a pair significantly younger than everyone else in the new fellowship, leaving opportunity for lighthearted laughs. Thus, the comic relief/younger member dynamic in the Fellowship is preserved but the net competence level is increased… drastically.

Boromir —> Maedhros

Both Boromir and Maedhros are strong, hardy warriors and skilled political strategists who are somewhat questionable in their actions, but have a soft spot for the Merry/Pippin or Elrond/Elros of the fellowships respectively. However, Maedhros is less arrogant in his leadership, and (generally) more knowledgeable and accomplished. 

Possible Problems: (and how they’re avoided)

1.) Lack of Secrecy - Sauron would definetly notice if this bunch went marching about Middle Earth in the direction of Mordor. However, they have such a reputation that most of his allies would probably be too scared to approach/attack them individually, never mind as a group. In fact, if Sauron himself saw Luthien and Huan had the ring, he might just give up. 

2.) Group Unity - Some of the new fellowship are Noldorin and others are Sindarin, a difference which may cause tension. That said, most of them are not explicitly involved in the drama. Additionally, Finrod, Elrond, and Elros have ties to both groups which would improve the Noldor and Sindar relationship within the fellowship. 

3.) Maedhros - Yes, he is kind of a crazy war criminal, but only when the Oath of Fëanor is involved. Since the fellowship and their journey have nothing to do with Silmarils, and Maedhros prefers to be good anyway, everyone should be fine. This is his redemption!