Confession time: I consider myself a fan of Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings trilogy. Shocking, I know, but it is just a wonderful trifecta of blockbuster filmmaking, made by an undeniably talented director (though his talents have been a bit dormant lately), cast, and crew, with all the tools and TLC necessary to bring to life an entirely new world for the big screen. And nothing illustrates this successful combination better than the series’ view of life in the Shire. It is nothing short of a pastoral wonderland, a terrific image of happiness and security before our dear hobbit friends must go on a dangerous adventure far away from it. The whole series, literally and figuratively, begins with the Shire, and the farther the characters go, the better the Shire looks to them (and the movies look to us, since it gives the audience a solid foundation). And, damnit, the more time goes on without new sights of the Shire, the more I long to go back there again as well. Luckily, Peter Jackson just wrapped up filming The Hobbit and, judging by this new poster, it doesn’t appear that he is skimping on the idealized Shire. Take a gander after the jump.

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Gandalf is rocking out on a longboard, slowing traffic the fuck down. Why are you going to watch this? Because it’s what our culture is, yo. Spectacle. Nonsensical, empty, spectacle. Don’t fight it. Embrace the rot.

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Here, have some more hi-res images of Bilbo and Gandalf from ‘The Hobbit’. Goddamn, does Ian McKellen still look perfect. Eternal, McKellen the grey!

Hit the jump for the images.

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[face of a franchise presents two individuals that’ve fulfilled the same role. your task — choose the better of the two and defend your choice in the rancor pit that is the comments section]

The wise old man may be my favorite archetype of all. This is the dude that lives on the outskirts and is ostracized by regular folk because his otherworldly knowledge frightens them. Fortunately, this geezer’s benevolence keeps him buoyant enough to guide a callow protagonist on his epic journey, imparting wisdom along the way.

Oh, he’s also been known to die   mid-journey. But don’t worry, he’ll probably return from the grave. And if he does, the chief’s going to have plus-thirty Sick Powers.

Virgil. Pai Mei. Merlin. Odin. Henry. All wise old men. All bosses.

But there are two that stand shoulders above the rest, not only fulfilling the role of the helpful wizard but defining it for new generations. I’ll make a case for each and then let you hit up the comments section with your choice. Omega-Readers, short or tall, who is the dopest wizard of them all?

Ben Kenobi or Gandalf?

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