The Barrow-Downs Discussion Forum - View Single Post - What if the orcs had not captured Merry & Pippin?

Kuruharan · 02-15-2003, 02:24 PM

Hail and fair weather, lmp!

I think that Merry and Pippin had to be captured by the orcs. It was a very important event in the story.

If Merry and Pippin had not been captured by the orcs then Aragorn would not have gone west into Rohan. He would not have received the palantir. Thus, he would not have spooked Sauron or found out about the fleet. He would not have been in such a good position to intercept the fleet before it got to Minas Tirith, and things in that city might have been quite worse than they ultimately turned out.

I think that Frodo would at least have tried to give everybody the slip. If he had not succeeded then I think that Aragorn would have made every effort to get to Mordor with him. If Frodo had succeeded in getting away then Aragorn might have followed him. On the other hand he might have gone to Minas Tirith, to do...something. I don't think that he would have proclaimed himself on arrival. However, Denethor might have known who he was anyway, and might have tried to do something to Aragorn. In any case, it's hard to see what use Aragorn could have been in the city. He was much more useful outside of it, coming to its rescue. So, he needed a reason to be side-tracked halfway across the continent, and Merry and Pippin being snagged by the orcs provided that reason.

[ February 15, 2003: Message edited by: Kuruharan ]

02-15-2003, 02:24 PM	#2
Kuruharan Regal Dwarven Shade Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: A Remote Dwarven Hold Posts: 3,593	Hail and fair weather, lmp! I think that Merry and Pippin had to be captured by the orcs. It was a very important event in the story. If Merry and Pippin had not been captured by the orcs then Aragorn would not have gone west into Rohan. He would not have received the palantir. Thus, he would not have spooked Sauron or found out about the fleet. He would not have been in such a good position to intercept the fleet before it got to Minas Tirith, and things in that city might have been quite worse than they ultimately turned out. I think that Frodo would at least have tried to give everybody the slip. If he had not succeeded then I think that Aragorn would have made every effort to get to Mordor with him. If Frodo had succeeded in getting away then Aragorn might have followed him. On the other hand he might have gone to Minas Tirith, to do...something. I don't think that he would have proclaimed himself on arrival. However, Denethor might have known who he was anyway, and might have tried to do something to Aragorn. In any case, it's hard to see what use Aragorn could have been in the city. He was much more useful outside of it, coming to its rescue. So, he needed a reason to be side-tracked halfway across the continent, and Merry and Pippin being snagged by the orcs provided that reason. [ February 15, 2003: Message edited by: Kuruharan ] __________________ ...finding a path that cannot be found, walking a road that cannot be seen, climbing a ladder that was never placed, or reading a paragraph that has no...