Is this Girion, Lord of Dale?

If you're familiar with the Hobbit, you know that Bard is the descendant of the last King of Dale, Girion. This quick scene in the latest Desolation of Smaug trailer is clearly a flashback to the attack, and I'm wondering if its also our first look at the doomed lord of Dale. What makes me think so? Notice all the bodies piled around him. Those are soldiers, unless I miss my guess, and they all seem to be wearing the orange/brown cloaks typical of the Dale soldiers we've seen so far. Girion (or who I think is Girion) on the other hand, is dressed in a pretty flashy looking suit of armor . . . he kind of screams nobility. Plus, he just has that noble look to him.

I dunno, what do you guys think?

Another Awesome Desolation of Smaug Poster

Man, they're coming fast and furious now, aren't they? This new poster featuring Legolas and Tauriel might be my favorite, along with the poster of Bard (whom I'm beginning to like more and more). Can't wait for this movie!

New The Hobbit: the Desolation of Smaug Trailer!

It's here! Check out the newest trailer for the Desolation of Smaug. It's . . . pretty much amazing. More screenshots and comments to come later today!

THREE New Desolation of Smaug Posters

Ok, so it's getting redundant now . . . but here are not one––not two––but THREE new posters for the upcoming sequel to the Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey. And what's even better? They're hi-res and "clean" . . . they don't have any logos on them. Enjoy!

Hi-Res Desolation of Smaug Posters

I missed one! Thanks to Dark Jackal over at thorinoakenshield.net for posting higher-res images of not 1, but 2 (!) new Desolation of Smaug posters. Click on either image, then open the image in a new tab to get the full-res version.

Jump past the break to see the other poster!

New Desolation of Smaug Trailer Tomorrow + New Poster

Hobbit news! MSN has released an exclusive new poster for the upcoming The Hobbit: Desolation of Smaug.

A new trailer for the Desolation of Smaug is being released tomorrow, so stay tuned: I'll get it posted up ASAP tomorrow morning.

Later . . .

Fridays at the Mathom House: Quimtuk

It's another fantastic friday, and that means we have another fantastic Middle-earth artist to acquaint you with. Today's art is by Quimtuk (and you should definitely check out the rest of his stuff), and is decidedly lighter in tone and style than a lot of the art I've shown so far . . . I think that's why I picked it. Anyways, he doesn't have a tone of Hobbit-related art, but what he does have is fantastic. Jump past the break to take a look:

The Children of Aulë: A Depressing Illustration of the Forced Migrations of the Dwarves

So I've put together geneological charts for both the elves and men of Middle-earth, and I was really looking forward to doing the same for the dwarves––they've always been my favorite anyways. However, I have to admit that after doing the work and the research to make this chart . . . I'm mostly just depressed. Those dwarfs had a crappy history. No, I'm being serious. You probably don't even want to hear about it. It was that bad.

If you don't believe me . . . well, just jump past the break and you'll see:

JRR Tolkien Sings "That's What Bilbo Baggins Hates"

I always enjoy hearing the songs of Middle-earth out of the Maker's own mouth. Enjoy!

The Men of Dale and Laketown, and the Beornings too: A Brief History of Beorn and Bard, and other Men

So have you ever wondered how a bunch of Men ended up in Dale, Laketown and the eaves of Mirkwood, surrounded by dwarves, elves, goblins and dragons and miles of wilderness? It's actually quite an interesting story that involves a lot of migrations, wars and possibly some inbreeding . . . I'm not really sure. Anyways, jump past the break to read more: