TNT is running all three Lord of the Rings movies back to back today.  I know that my dad doesn’t like them, mainly because Peter Jackson chose to change or delete some of his favorite elements.  I think they are much more successful than the Ralph Bakshi cartoons at telling the story in a serious way.  I think my dad re-reads LotR every year or every other year.  He recalled that his fifth grade teacher read his class The Hobbit, which I think awakened an interest not only in Tolkien, but also in fantasy literature.  I tried to read it in the sixth grade, but I don’t think I was ready for it.  I did not actually pick up the books until my sophomore year in college, at the behest of my friend Kari (who was my roommate the next year).  I can remember finishing The Fellowship of the Ring about midnight, and just dying to begin the next book.  Finally when I couldn’t stand it any longer, I went downstairs (I lived on the fourth floor of Reed Hall, and she lived in the basement) to see if she was awake.  Thankfully, she was, and also thankfully, she was amused by my desperation for the second book.

I had never seen the final movie, Return of the King, until last night.  The battle sequences were amazing (I loved the Oliphaunts!), and it was great to see Merry and Eowyn kick some Witch-King butt.  You can still catch part of Fellowship and all of the other two movies if you tune in now.