Here’s another minor irritation: the ship Galadriel was on was a sailing ship, yes? Then why was the only sail not being used (rigged fore-to-aft and completely flat and still)? And if the ship was propelled by other forces, why have a sail? And if the sail is for backup propulsion, why have it unfurled so it can cause drag on the movement of the ship?
ditto. It seems like a fine name for a Harfoot.
pretty much everything about the ship scene bothered me. I hadn’t actually noticed that, but now that you mention it, yeah, that’s annoying, too. Better to just leave off the sail and accept that the propulsion is magic.
I’m pretty sure the showrunners are not familiar with boats. 
Nor the writers nor the art director.
It’s worse than that, her name is “Elanor” , “Nori” is a nickname, and “Elanor” was the name of Sam’s daughter, which I’m pretty sure was the first hobbit by that name.
Not sure why you think that Elanor hadn’t been used before Sam’s daughter, over the course of 4500 years or so. How would anyone know, considering the scale and scope of the events between?
4400 years earlier, I think it is fine for the Harfoots living near the Anduin to use the flower name Elanor. Though no indication that the flower was already in Lothlorien that early.
FYI, Valinor, or the Undying Lands, at this point in the story are physically part of the real world. Kind of like Mt. Olympus. Elves could sail back-and-forth without anything mystical happening.
When the cataclysmic events happen (that we will hopefully see in the series) the world was literally made round but Valinor did not move. Think of it as a yardstick balanced on a basketball. The ships of Men were stuck to the surface of the basketball, but Elves could still sail on the yardstick to Valinor.
Same here. It reminded me of a line from one of the Conan books where his ship sinks under him " and he sets out to swim the Western Ocean, which he does with perfect aplomb."
I’ve not read the books, but the in the movies, the way Legolas jumped thru the air and did gravity defying moves constantly was in stark contrast to elves using axes and crampons to climb the mountain. Legolas would have simply jumped from ledge to ledge all the way to the top without breaking a sweat.
I thought he looks like this guy:
What was up with the gate/light the ship sailed thru? Is it magic? Is it a wormhole? Why is it in the middle of the ocean where anyone could sail thru it?
Am I the only one that thinks too much of the budget was spent on rouge for most of the women? Almost all of them seemed to have heavily rouged cheeks.
I couldn’t read the books, found them boring. Really liked the movies, but have never re-watched them so they are kind of hazy for details in my mind. That said, I’m enjoying this so far. I’m ignorant of all the timeline stuff and a lot of the names, so none of that stuff bothers me. Unless it really drops in quality, I’ll be watching until the end.
I noticed that too. The Elves in this show are not doing anything particularly Elvish.
I seem to remember the book saying something to that effect.
Yes, it’s magic. It’s……kind of heaven, I think? And you’re not getting in without permission.
I know it’s been asked before, but what was up with the antler guys?
Because that’s the name of the flower in Sindarin, not the name the Harfoots would’ve been speaking.
Well, yes and no. There are no souls of dead Men or Dwarves there — just physical elves and the physical manifestations of the gods (the Valar).
But you can’t get in without permission.
Huh. I got the feeling it was a return to their homeland. Is it a one way trip?
I thought they were moose antlers at first, but I can’t imagine toting those around for no reason. Maybe more like giant bat wings?
Also, IIRC, the flower is not found outside Lothlorien, so they won’t even have a name for it in their own language.
Maybe harvesting them for some reason
One of the points of the name Elanor is that you don’t need to use a nickname, so “Nori” is even worse:
‘Well, Sam,’ said Frodo, ‘what’s wrong with the old customs? Choose a flower name like Rose. Half the maidchildren in the Shire are called by such names, and what could be better?’
‘I suppose you’re right, Mr. Frodo,’ said Sam. ‘I’ve heard some beautiful names on my travels, but I suppose they’re a bit too grand for daily wear and tear, as you might say. The Gaffer, he says: “Make it short, and then you won’t have to cut it short before you can use it.” But if it’s to be a flower-name, then I don’t trouble about the length: it must be a beautiful flower, because, you see, I think she is very beautiful, and is going to be beautifuller still.’
Frodo thought for a moment. ‘Well, Sam, what about elanor, the sun-star, you remember the little golden flower in the grass of Lothlórien?’
‘You’re right again, Mr. Frodo!’ said Sam delighted. ‘That’s what I wanted.’
From seeing the male elves, we have learned that they invented blow dried and moussed hairstyles back then. I guess every fashion goes in and out of style over millenniums.
Regarding sailing to Valinor (spoiler alert for later in the series, hopefully):
In the Silmarillion, persuaded by Sauron that they can claim immortality, the Numenoreans (humans) sail to Valinor (The Undying Lands). They are able to sail there and land on the shores. The Valar then “lay down their guardianship” and call on Eru (God) who goes biblical on them. That’s when Numenor (Atlantis) is sunk and the world is made round (as mentioned above). From then on, only Elves (and a few Hobbits) are allowed to sail the straight path.
If i recall correctly…
The elves were created in the shadowlands of middle earth, before the creation of the sun and the moon. Some of them were found by the Valar, who loved them, and offered a trip to Valinor, the home of the Valar. Some of the others were found by Morgoth (or possibly Sauron, but i think Morgoth) and corrupted to become orcs, and others remained living as elves in middle earth.
Of the ones taken to Valinor, some returned to middle earth, and were magically better than the ones left behind. Taller, wiser, all that stuff. They were called high elves. But the high elves always longed to return to Valinor. Those who choose to return don’t get to go back again.