#lindsey posts

[wyrd-syster]

I’m rewatching wheel of time s1 ahead of starting s2 and I forgot how much I love lan mandragoran’s whole dynamic. like “hello yes I am Lan, this is my bratty young bride, Nyneave and my lesbian soulmate, Moiraine, and they are mortal enemies.”

[wyrd-syster]

Um, hi, thanks for your post about your inbox being open…I didn’t keep up with tumblr for a few days and now what on earth is happening?

a tumblr user (OP) got upset that they were blocked by a few haladriel accounts after claiming that people who like celeborn/are interested in seeing him join trop/multishippers were not real haladriels but antis in disguise. We've also been accused of essentially being "fake fans" who don't care about the lore, which is....so funny to me. **EDIT: I also want to add that I myself do not like Celeborn! But many of my friends do, and some of them write great Galadriel/Celeborn, and even Galadriel/Celeborn/Sauron fic! And while we disagree about this one fictional elf, I support their excitement and creativity!!** there were some responses made by multishippers in support of "ship and let ship" that did not reference the original post or name OP.

At the same time, members of a private discord were airing their frustrations with OP's post and subsequent reaction in a private channel specifically dedicated to venting. A friend of OP was a member of said discord and took multiple screenshots of multiple conversations, then coordinated a release of a handful of cherry-picked photos on tumblr to prove the discord members were "racist bullies."

The screenshots were both taken and shared in bad faith and the ones that "prove racism" were specifically from a conversation between members of color that occurred before OP's friend even joined the discord.

That's pretty much the sum of it. I feel awful that these screenshots were released, not only because of the severe violation of trust, but for those who may have been referenced in them. Venting is not bullying. These conversations were private with no intention of ever being made public because no one involved wanted to cause any harm. Now, harm has been done under the guise of — honestly, I don't know, helping? somehow? "winning" over shippers you don't agree with? — and there's no way to take that back.

And all over fictional elves!!!

[wyrd-syster]

oh s4 is truly terrible i fear (i'm not even watching) but hoping atleast i get good fics of diego/lila out of it all because that's going to be my coping mechanism while i pretend it doesn't exist

this is a very weird segway but you've written my favorite Ever fic of them and idr if i've said thank you for that before so thank you for sharing that masterpiece

I am so glad to hear you've enjoyed my fics!!! Diego and Lila got me back into fandom and they reside in a very special place in my heart <3

I fear I will be watching s4 (unhappily???) but fingers crossed it inspires some fix-it ideas. I've had one percolating about s3 for a while now...

[wyrd-syster]

Story Breaking Halbrand in Rings of Power

As promised, I have written down all of my ideas about Halbrand's narrative arc for all five seasons of Rings of Power, and oooh baby have I spiraled out of control!

Have I read any of the books? Sort of…like over a decade ago. But I have watched the original trilogy more times than any other movie in my life and love to microdose Wikipedia (i.e. being the ADHD partner to a man with ADD).

At the same time, I have been doing a deep-dive into story-breaking podcasts, shows and articles to prep for NaNoWriMo. This has been wildly fun, but has also cursed me to look at every story from a 30,000 foot view and examine it for narrative structure, character arc and thematic elements.

(I am literally begging my brain to enjoy things normally).

Yesterday, my partner and I rewatched Fellowship of the Ring. In the evening, we began discussing Rings of Power and theorizing the directions it could take – not only for the last two episodes in the season, but for the following four seasons (given that this will be a five season story) and how it would align with the prologue in Fellowship. And honestly, I think we cracked it.

But, so much of it hinges on the ongoing Halbrand debate – is he Sauron? Is he a Nazgûl? Is he the Dead King who betrays Isildur and ultimately fulfills the oath to Gondor for Aragorn? Is he the progenitor of Rohan? What’s this guy’s fucking deal?? – that it feels impossible to separate the two.

With every new episode, I find the argument that Halbrand is Sauron to grow weaker. I admittedly have no knowledge of the wider Book!Lore so my entrypoint here is limited, and I’ve read some good theories on it, so I wouldn’t be disappointed if it happened…I just think it doesn’t narratively make sense.

Tldr; Halbrand is not the rightful king of the Southlands, but he killed the rightful king under the enemy’s orders. We will learn at least part of this during the final two episodes of season one and he will spend a majority of season two seeking atonement for his actions and lies. He will ultimately assume some form of responsibility/leadership over the people he’s betrayed before falling sway to the rings of power and becoming a Nazgûl.

Halbrand is Not Sauron

The Man With the (non-existent) Plan

Halbrand and Galadriel meeting on a shipwrecked raft in the middle of the Sundering Sea is not a plan, it is an accident at best. It seems to me that Sauron the Deceiver is never without a plan, so this setting of being both literally and figuratively adrift and left up to the hands of fate just feels…off.

Not to mention, when the survivors chance upon Galadriel, Halbrand defers to the group about her fate. Had that sea worm not surprised them and given him the chance to flee and make his own decisions, Galadriel may very well have been cast back into the ocean whether he liked it or not.

Adar claims to have killed Sauron, but…why should we believe him? Celebrimbor is already starting construction on the tower which we know will ultimately forge the rings of power for the Elves, Dwarves and Men of Middle-earth. And again, limited book knowledge here, but doesn’t he begin this endeavor purely under the influence of Sauron?

Not to mention, when Galadriel realizes the mark of Sauron is actually a map of the Southlands, she notes it also contains all the details of the plan to turn it into Mordor. Adar helps enact this plan at the end of episode six by erupting Mount Doom. Suspicious that he would still be following Sauron’s plans if he, in fact, killed him…no?

Adar is there to throw off the scent for both the characters and the audience alike.

Peace? Piece of Cake

At every single turn, Halbrand begs Galadriel to let him keep his peace.

“I have been searching for my peace for far longer than you know. Please, for both our sakes, let me keep it.”

“You used me. After I all but begged you to let me be.”

“Find another head to crown.”

“I think I’ve helped you quite enough.”

Even when Galadriel is not present, Halbrand is desperate to avoid outright violence. When he runs afoul of those Númenórean guildsmen in the alley, he first attempts to flee them and, once caught, pleads with them not to start a fight.

“Please. Don’t do this.”

The fight spurs him into a wild frenzy, which to me seems more like a trauma response than the Very Great and Super Cool Sauron losing his chill and beating up a bunch of Shakespeare actors pretending to be guildsmen.

All of this is a lot of work for Sauron to put into coming across as a simple “Peace Guy.” Not to mention, what does it gain him? If his goal is to have Galadriel bring him back to the Southlands to enact his evil plan…why put up such a big stink? Also…why have him on the raft…sailing away from the Southlands?

Rings of Power LOVES a Misdirect

ROP loves a misdirect, which they used especially skillfully during episode six to great effect. Consider:

The mark of Sauron turned out to be a map of the Southlands.

The orcs that attacked the Southlanders were revealed to be primarily their own neighbors, a horrifying realization highlighted by the (disgusting) black blood dripping on Arondir’s face as he fought the attacker by the well contrasted with the shocking red blood he draws from the corpse on the ground.

We were led to believe that the tunnels being built throughout the Southlands was to allow the orcs travel during the day, but we learned that their primary purpose was to channel the water of the dam into Mount Doom.

Speaking of which, did anyone else think the breaking of the dam was to drown the village? I sure did, I did not even consider it having a purpose beyond destroying the Southlanders until the shot of the water entering the mountain.

It can’t go without noting that some of the highest fan engagement for this show centers around the ongoing debate of “Who Is Sauron?” I think this fan debate is a misdirect within itself, a way to suggest one narrative structure to the audience before drawing back the curtains and revealing the plot twist. (Remembering, of course, that good plot twists should have breadcrumbs throughout the story that seem obvious in 20/20 hindsight. This isn’t Game of Thrones, pure shock and awe does not a plot twist make.)

I think this is only bolstered by the little “clues” that potentially read as Halbrand being Sauron – the blacksmithing, “looks can be deceiving,” etc. It’s all part of the misdirect.

Sauron is not Halbrand, not Adar, not the Stranger with the Harfoots…he’s someone entirely new. And he’s been here the whole time, hiding under our noses with Celebrimbor, inspiring the creation of the rings of power.

Halbrand is Not the Rightful King of the Southlands

Long Live the King?

@laboratorioautoral​ wrote an excellent line in their post that I absolutely cannot get out of my head…“Everything we ‘know’ about [Halbrand] is basically Galadriel's fanfiction.” 

Look at his lines from episode three when Galadriel confronts him about the sigil:

“That’s funny. I found this on a dead man. [I] Thought the pattern suited me.”

“The heir to this mark is heir to more than just nobility. For it was his ancestors that swore a blood oath to Morgoth.”

“I am not the hero you seek. For it was my family that lost the war.” 

Not only does Halbrand not confirm anything Galadriel says, he evades in third-person, referring to the heir of the Southlands as somebody outside of himself. All of his “I statements,” any time he puts himself in the narrative of the kingship, it’s so say 1) he found the sigil on a dead man, 2) he is not the hero she seeks and 3) his family lost the war.

Why shouldn’t we believe Halbrand when he says he took the sigil off of a corpse? Why do we assume losing the war is linked to the blood oath with Morgoth – it could go deeper than that. 

This is one of the first of only a handful of instances of Halbrand offering bits of his past to Galadriel…and I am inclined to believe him.

And let’s look at one of the penultimate scenes of episode five. Halbrand is sitting alone in the forge, contemplating the sigil when he is summoned by Tar-Míriel. He tosses the sigil down with finality and only returns to pick it back up at the very last second. 

Why would Sauron need to go through these motions for no audience? There is no one around here for him to put on a show for – this is all Halbrand.

Halbrand is not Sauron, but neither is he the rightful king. However, he – or at least, his family – are responsible for the king’s absence. 

DILF

I am deeply obsessed with this post that @ichabodjane​ recently published that theorizes Halbrand lost a child. This was something that really stood out to me during episode six – Adar’s taunts to Halbrand seemed narratively significant. 

“Did I cause someone you loved pain? A woman? Perhaps…a child?”

“A woman” could be read as a dig at Galadriel and her (unbearably obvious) connection with Halbrand. I was shocked by this being followed up with “a child” because my little writer’s brain jumped immediately to, “A woman? Perhaps…your father/mother?” Because nothing so far about Halbrand reads as parental and it would fit with the rest of the show’s examination of parenthood and legacy…unless this is a clue.

@ichabodjane​ cleverly points out Halbrand’s face when seeing children playing in Númenor. And when you compare that to his face as Adar taunts him – the absolute sorrow and pain – then suddenly this becomes loss, not vengeance.

Trauma Momma

Consider Halbrand and Galadriel’s argument in episode five:

H: “Not so long ago, men like me were fighting alongside [the enemy].”

G: “Men like you, not you yourself.”

H: “You're wrong. You don't know what I did before I ended up on that raft. You don't know how I survived.”

This is the first instance of Halbrand directly contradicting Galadriel’s assertions about his actions. Again, we have so few instances of him speaking openly about his past, I am inclined to believe him when he appears truthful.

Halbrand is not innocent. He obviously did something terrible, horrifying even, to be put in a position where he needed to flee the Southlands, where he is terrified of everyone learning the truth.

What’s worse than killing the one hope his people have left? Killing the heir of the Southlands would very much fit that narrative, it’s definitely bad. But bad enough to fear exile from Galadriel and his new allies?

Adar: “Did I cause someone you loved pain? A woman? Perhaps…a child?”

I have two branching theories here.

1. Adar, acting a commander for Sauron, threatens Halbrand’s family and child, holding them hostage unless Halbrand agrees to kill the rightful heir to the Southlands. Halbrand complies, but the enemy slays his family anyways.

Not my favorite of the two, seems a little weak compared to…

2.  Halbrand is compelled by Adar to slay the rightful heir to the Southlands…who happens to have a child, who must then also be killed.

This would be fucking brutal, but hits all the beats!

Halbrand slaughters his people’s hope and doubles down on the horror by giving that hope the possibility of living on through a child…and snuffing that out, too.

His feelings of guilt, shame and loss centered around a child and directed at Adar. (And why would Adar remember one mortal man he compelled to do a terrible act? What is one mortal compared to an Uruk?) 

Habrand is not the rightful king, and in fact, took the sigil off of a dead man.

Halbrand is no hero, he is the cause of suffering and pain and the reason why their enemy gains strength.

To Find the Light, We Must First Touch the Darkness

This is the theme of Galadriel’s storyline, and I would argue Halbrand’s as well.

We Touched the Dark…Now What?

So, let’s say all this is true; Halbrand killed the rightful heir to the Southlands. Now, Galadriel has used his false claim to convince Númenor to go to war to free the Southlands, which ended in the creation of Mordor.

It would make sense, then, for Halbrand’s secret to come out in the final two episodes of season one. Then, Tar-Míriel could point to this deception and blame Galadriel for the defeat and the loss of her soldiers – Galadriel was too focused on vengeance to not see the liar in front of her, Galadriel led innocent men to their death under a false flag, never trust an Elf, etc.

Galadriel’s subsequent anger at Halbrand’s betrayal would force them further apart, a necessary obstacle for them to overcome as episode six had them coming too close together (to be sustainable for five seasons, that is). It could also underscore Gil-Galad’s warnings to Galadriel that her search for vengeance would just bring about more darkness. This betrayal will force her to reexamine her priorities, her trust, and force her to find some way to repent for all that she’s seemingly caused.

(Obviously, Mount Doom erupting would’ve happened whether Númenor appeared or not, but what’s the fun in characters acting logically?)

Halbrand too would then be on a road of repentance. Season two could see him and Galadriel on parallel paths searching for ways to atone for all that they’ve done wrong, while also stepping into leadership roles that fate kind of forced upon them.

From the prologue of Fellowship of the Ring, the rings of power had already been handed out to the Elves, Dwarves and Men before Sauron revealed the One Ring, and that the free lands of Middle-earth fell “one by one.” We also know that the Second Age ends with Isildur cutting the ring from Sauron’s finger at the battle on the slopes of Mount Doom.

Given these big points that need to be hit, it would make sense for Celebrimbor to complete his creation of the rings in season three and for there to be a sense of “ah yes, now the enemy is really gone.”

In this case, season four would be the falling of Middle-earth “one by one.” If Halbrand is indeed destined to become a Nazgûl, which I think is highly possible, then his and Galadriel’s storyline this season could be their quest to stop the effects of his ring from taking hold – ending tragically, obviously. You could even take this time to introduce Celeborn (for those who care…lol) and start developing a friendship between him and Galadriel so that when Halbrand inevitably falls, she has someone to turn to for solace.

Season five then would be the final battle against Sauron, now fully empowered with the One Ring and his Nazgûl, including Halbrand.

Heartbreak Highway

Throughout the show, I’ve been asking myself; how does the Galadriel we see in ROP – fiery, angry, brash, intelligent but not wise – become the Galadriel from LOTR – otherworldly, intelligent and wise, sad, restrained?

Answer: heartbreak.

Here’s the crux of why I truly can’t believe Halbrand is Sauron: it’s not as narratively gratifying. Halbrand being Sauron suggests choice – he chooses to fall, chooses to walk a path of darkness, chooses to lie and cheat and betray.

Halbrand becoming a Nazgûl would deny him the freedom to make a choice about his future. If he suffers through all of this – compelled to commit acts of atrocity, confesses his crimes, puts in the work to atone and become a better man, assumes the mantle of leadership – then him becoming a Nazgûl is a goddamned tragedy. This is the gut-punch, brokenhearted, tragic and nonsensical ending for a man on a hero’s journey of self-discovery, repentance and acceptance during an age of darkness and war.

This is also the pinnacle character arc tragedy for Galadriel – all actions she takes to defeat the darkness end in her losing those she loves. Because then, if all this ends up being true, Halbrand would’ve never returned to Middle-earth on his own. She forced him to, and thus, forced him to his downfall.

Tldr; 

Halbrand is not the rightful king of the Southlands, but he killed the rightful king under the enemy’s orders. 

Season two will see him on a journey parallel to Galadriel’s to atone for all the sorrow he’s caused. 

Season three will feel like a final victory over the enemy and the distribution of the rings of power to the Elves, Dwarves and Men. 

Season four will see the free lands of Middle-earth fall “one by one” and end with Halbrand falling by becoming a Nazgûl. 

Season five will be the final lead up to the war that ends the Second Age with Isildur cutting the One Ring from Sauron’s hand. 

I can’t wait to be completely wrong about literally all of this and look like a fool on the internet lol.

[wyrd-syster]

could you elaborate on the finale of the lost flowers of alice hart? i don’t know anything about the book but i found the ending of the show a little lukewarm and your comments got me really interested/curious

Oh YES I can elaborate. Because I have OPINIONS on this finale.

(Book and show spoilers under the cut)

Just to clarify, Alice only finds out about Charlie in the last, idk, 50 pages or so of the book? She doesn't even meet him until the epilogue. Obviously, they made his storyline more integral to the plot of the show, which I really liked...until ep. 7

For a show that spent a lot of time with characters looking out into the (admittedly, beautiful) Australian landscape, the transition between episode 6 and episode 7 felt rushed.

Things I hated about the finale:

Agnes burning Clem

This ruined the arc of the first part of the book and made no sense. The book literally starts with young Alice considering burning her father. Not because she hates him, but she wonders: "What might it be like, if her father was consumed by fire? All his monsters burned to ash, leaving the best of him to rise, renewed by flames, remade into the man he sometimes was: the man who made her a desk so she could write stories." In the book, Alice started the fire and only survived because Clem went back into the burning house for Agnes and Alice. In the end, Alice gets her wish: Clem Hart's last actions were to rescue the women he tormented at the cost of his own life. A lot of the book explores the complicated duality of the characters, and this moment was important to sit with the uncomfortable idea that he wasn't all bad all the time. Agnes burning Clem takes all that away. Not only that, but it then raises the question of why did Agnes die? the door outside was right there, it was so close she could've had a broken leg and still crawl outside before the fire got too big. So like, what, did she stop for a snack?

Clem attacking June (and wanting to """modernize""" Thornfield wtf?)

In the book, Clem left with Agnes when he found out his mother wasn't going to let him inherit Thornfield.

The last flashback we had of Clem (before ep 7) we saw a young man terrified of failing his mother, not a violent boy or man. How did he jump there so fast? And immediately from where the scene started he seemed like a caricature version of the character? It felt like the show was like "hey we need to show him committing more violence just in case the viewer forgot that he was a bad man."

Showing Clem choking Alice

In every episode before this that featured Little Alice, not once do we see any child abuse, just the before and afters. In ep. 7, the showed Clem fully choking Alice without a cutaway. Again, it felt like the show was making shortcuts to remind us that Clem was bad, just in case we didn't know it yet.

June is suddenly forgiven because??? she died???

And there is NO accountability for ANYTHING. Not her mistreatment and abuse of Alice, or of Clem, or of Candy, or of anyone?

In the book, June dies while Alice is still in Agnes Bluff, so she only learns about it after the fact from Twig and Candy. There is no satisfying ending between the two, which was important. Because Alice's journey only moves forward if her past is completely abandoned.

The implication that Clem was a product of rape and therefore would ALWAYS be bad, he was BORN bad, and all of June's actions are then justified.

The through-line of the book is the cycle of generational trauma. June's grandmother, who founded Thornfield, June's mother -- always about men. In the book, June isn't gay and the Robber Baron is a thief/slick criminal who hides away by the river. June falls in love with him and they have sex. He leaves and comes back a few times but stops just when June finds out she's pregnant.

So first of all, the change for the show? Listen I love gay Sigourney Weaver so the new "how" is fine. But with the way the show kept reminding us that Clem was a Bad Man Who Deserved No Redemption, the implication was that he was simply born bad...because he was a product of rape.

In the book, it's implied that June truly hates men but never confirmed. So first of all, having a son was a struggle for her because she was never going to be able to love him as much if he were a girl. I thought the show, up into this point, was doing such a wonderful job of capturing the nuances of this, showing that June mistreated and, to some extent, abused him, that he inherited the generational trauma just as much as his mother. But all that was thrown away in the finale. No nuance.

Alice burning down the shed

Triggering much??

The shot of Candy in that moment when the shed was burning that seemed like the show was saying definitively that Clem had raped her.

Up until this point, the "did she" or "didn't she" of Candy's history seemed to be left up to the viewer's interpretations. But again, they have to hit us over the head with, "Don't you see, domestic abuse is bad! Clem is bad! remember that!!" so they removed the nuance.

And my biggest gripe of them all:

If this is a story about women and violence, then why did Clem get more flashback/ghost energy screen time than Agnes? Why did we never get her POV? or Candy's or Twig's?

It felt like the show simplified the nuance of the show to make a PSA that Domestic Abuse was Bad. As if we didn't know that already.

This was a lot, and I could go on, but these are my top ones.

[wyrd-syster]

I am rewatching the Hobbit film because I am sick and, now that I know so much more about Tolkien lore, can I just say how UNBELIEVABLY stupid it is for the eagles to save Thorin and co. from Azog and his orcs??? you’re telling me MANWË’S eagles arrived from the blessed realm to simply help the DWARVES escape some orcs?? are you kidding me??? literally the only time I’ve thought the “why didn’t the eagles just fly them to their destination?” argument was valid.

[wyrd-syster]

Heya, I've been pondering over Haladriel a lot lately, and i'm wondering what you think Sauron believes he has to gain, specifically, by being bound to Gal's light? I.e. surely he can achieve/enact his vision for ME with his power alone. But maybe it's more about how her light makes him feel, as opposed to what it can do for him? Idk I loved your understanding of what was going through his head in that last ep (per your fics) and i thought you might be able to shed some light (hah) on this...

Sorry my reply to this is so late! I spent some time thinking about this.

So, the thing is, I don't think Sauron believes he can enact his vision for Middle-earth by himself. At least, not the idealized version of it.

Sauron freely admits he's done evil, he is aware at some level the pain he's caused. He professes to want to heal Middle-earth, and I think a lot of character interpretations are contingent on your view of this claim - is he truly repentant or just afraid of punishment? I personally think it is the much more interesting character choice to believe him; I believe he wants to right his wrongs, wants to atone. I think he truly believes that restoring order and perfection to the world will absolve him of his crimes.

However, the question then arises, how does he do all this without infringing upon his pride (which we know is what stopped him from submitting himself to the Valar for judgement)? How does he balance his thirst for power with his will to do better?

Following this thinking through to the end of the line, the answer is he doesn't. In the end, his lesser demons overcome his better angels. Sauron becomes the greatest evil on Middle-earth, covers the world in a second darkness, yatta, yatta, yatta.

So it seems like we meet him at this crossroads moment - trying to legitimately think of ways to right his wrongs while refusing to compromise on his ego and desire for power. And because he doesn't know how to navigate this cognitive dissonance, he's adrift - both literally and figuratively.

Enter Galadriel, who does not let him fade into obscurity and mope, but instead pesters him until he rises to the challenge of who she wants him to be and takes responsibility for the Southlands. Galadriel is the one who shows him the path forward, and he says as much to her in ep 8: "I'd all but given up, but you...You believed in me. You saw strength in me. You pushed me to heights no one else could have."

I think Sauron is self-aware enough to know he needs Galadriel to "pull him back" when his tendency for darkness overtakes him. I think he knows he will be unable to resist the temptation for self-gain and power without someone there to keep him in check. And Galadriel is the strongest being around capable of doing that, one whose support has "pushed him to new heights." And, importantly, one who is currently exiled from her own people - just think, an incredibly powerful ally in a vulnerable position!

To me, there also seems to be an angle of legitimizing his efforts through binding himself with Galadriel. She is, in many respects, a stand-in for the Valar on Middle-earth. So if she believes in him and supports him, then his work cannot truly be evil, not when it is A+ Noldor Certified!

I also just really vibe with a lot of what @liminal-zone has discussed about Sauron needing a new dom leader. Morgoth had a "clenched fist" around him for ages, and Sauron did his bidding. Now, he needs someone else to boss him around and give him guidance, someone like Galadriel.

Or, you know, he could just want her light to make himself, like, uber powerful. rip to charlie vickers' mentions but my readings of this character are different lol

[wyrd-syster]

dig up the bones (but leave the soul alone) Chapter 1

The Rings of Power Fanfiction Pairing: Galadriel | Sauron Rating: M Chapter: 1 of ? Word Count: 4,686

READ ON AO3

Balance. This world demands balance.

The words taste of oleander petals and belladonna berries, poisoned sweetness that coats her mouth; like bitter hemlock and sour monkshood.

“Then by all means,” Galadriel says, her throat tight. “Let us rule together.” . . OR . . To stop the spread of evil, there is nothing Galadriel won't sacrifice – not even herself. And so, she accepts Sauron's proposal to rule at his side, to balance his darkness with her light.

(Special thanks to @onyour-right and @scriberated for their tumblr posts that helped inspire the direction of this story, as well as @mrspettyferr and @orcas86 for tagging me in them!)