Even
though The Lord of the Rings is technically
one novel divided into three parts, The
Two Towers definitely marks a shift in the story. With the members of the Fellowship spread
across multiple plotlines, the structure of the book itself changes. In the first half, we go between Aragorn-Legolas-Gimli
and Merry-Pippin, often spending a few chapters on one group, then backtracking
to catch up with the other. Then, the
second half is pure Frodo-Sam. After
having everyone together through the first book, it’s a big change.
With the
fellowship scattered after the events of the first book, the story takes three
paths. Frodo and Sam have continued
forward alone on their quest to destroy the Ring; on their path, they encounter
Gollum, a former keeper of the Ring driven mad by his desire for it. Merry and Pippin try to escape capture by the
Orcs, and as Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli work to rescue them, their journey
takes them to Rohan, where dark forces are working against a kingdom of men. There are trials, betrayals, feats of
courage, and a climactic battle, and all the while, the Ring gets closer and
closer to Mordor.
For the
most part, I like how the book divides the characters between chapters – it
gives you time to immerse yourself in where you are, and having that relative
space reminds you that the characters in each place have no idea what’s going
on with the others, or if they’re even still alive. However, it is a bummer to wait so long to get anything on Sam and
Frodo, as well as not getting anything
on Aragorn & co./the other hobbits for the second half of the book.
But even
if the way it’s arranged makes me miss the other characters when they’re gone
for such long stretches, I still like what’s going on. Eowyn is a neat new character, the whole
Wormtongue sequence is awesome, and who doesn’t love Legolas and Gimli’s
contest during the battle of Helm’s Deep?
The Pippin-and-Merry plotline doesn’t have as much going on (since being
stuck is a big part of the point!), but there’s still some good stuff going on
there. I especially like how the two try
to look out for each other when they’re in a tight spot.
I know
there are some who feel the Frodo-Sam sections drags, but I love it. I love the interactions between them, the
enormity of these two hobbits forging ahead on this quest, the suspense/tension
that Gollum brings to the proceedings (I really like the fraught dynamic
between Sam and Gollum,) and the section with Faramir is good. It also builds to an intense climax that’s
liable to make first-time readers weep when they realize they probably have to
wait until the middle of the next
book to find out what happens – I know
what happens, and I still don’t want to wait!
Warnings
Violence,
some brief lasciviousness from a baddie, smoking/drinking, serious creep-out
moments, and thematic elements.
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