Winged Beasts, a squandered resource?

[Ibrîniðilpathânezel]

Originally Posted by Gordis

I don't think so. I believe Morgoth's response to Manwe's Eagles were definitely the Dragons: Morgoth had indeed put a lot of work in Glaurung, Ancalagon and the rest of them and got impressive results.

I'm not saying that the beasties were the intended final product of an attempt to parody the Eagles, but rather that they were a step along the way toward that eventual development, set aside if not entirely discarded because they were not sufficiently the result Melkor had in mind. I rather tend to think of Melkor like some mad scientist breeding things in a genetics lab -- a strange sort of Dr. Frankenstein, obsessed with the idea of creating life on his own, but lacking that ability, content to corrupt and twist what life exists into monsters who will wreak havoc on the world he hates. These critters are his "children," and like any bad narcissitic parent, he will keep them all about him, some to be praised, others to be punished, but all to serve. In LotR, they are the evil parallel to the Eagles, since the dragons and other more impressive flying nasties appear to have died out with Smaug.

Well, it's another thought.

[Gordis]

With that I readily agree, Ibrin.