Horatius

Was I the only one who didn't find last episode's fight scene ridiculous? Two swords or one sword didn't make much difference to me (although I would have liked to see Dawn), and the fighting style was fairly believable. Spinning the swords wasn't just showmanship, it's a defensive move to redirect blows from angles that he can't see. Every time he actually strikes aggressively, it's with a directed blow instead. Don't take my word for it, watch a HEMA (Historical European Martial Arts) instructor review the fight. Certainly not a historically-based fight, but well within the realm of believability. 

https://www.youtube....h?v=drd8dQKr-oY

(^Link being weird, feel free to watch the whole thing).

My choice would be "Wake Not the Sleeping Bear" since we haven't met Joergen yet, and the story's the most original (IMO). Human nature and the nature of war are always good topics, but not as often explored in Fantasy as I'd like. My next choice is "Potential Energy" which it sounds like you're starting anyway. Can't go wrong with a tale of ambition, magic, and devious plans! Whichever you choose, I'll be sure to read it.

I agree with a lot of the criticism going on, but after seeing the movie for a second time (this time without sneaking around like a burglar so I actually saw the first 20 minutes) I enjoyed it much more. The opening scene with Thorin and Gandalf was very well done, and explains why they went on this quest so woefully unprepared to slay the dragon. All they need is the Arkenstone; then they can unite the dwarf kingdoms and deal with Smaug. I wish they kept that tone the whole way through. My favorite scenes were all the intense, grave ones (spiders, Dol Guldur, and of course Smaug and Bilbo). I think Beth nails it when she says Jackson needed to pick one tone or the other, and stick to it. Gritty would have been fine with me. The barrell scene could have been great, and almost was, with a few ridiculous moments thrown in. The fighting as a whole got ridiculous at parts, which leads me to wonder how the final battle will unfold. If two elves (albeit two of the best) can take apart thirty orcs with no problem, how will armies even work? Besides that point, there's very little fear in the fights that anyone who's an actual character will die. Legolas and Tauriel were never in danger (her shooting the arrow out of the air to save Legolas was one of my all-time least favorite moments) until he brawled with Bolg. That also could have been great, but 1: why did it turn into a fistfight? These are two highly trained princes with their specific weapons, what are the chances both will be disarmed? 2: I don't care how agile Legolas is, Bolg would tear him apart in hand-to-hand. All he needs is to land one blow and Legolas would be finished, while Legolas' punches wouldn't do a thing.

In short, it should have been two movies not three, and with a darker tone to make it LotResque.

I just saw the movie, and have mixed feelings. I certainly enjoyed (most) of it at the time, but on reflection a number of scenes rubbed me the wrong way.

I have finals early Friday! I'm so mad! You don't know how badly I wanted to reply "AND MY AXE!"

Alright, Friday night then. I'm very excited for this one; it looks much more Lord of the Rings-ish than the first (which I very much enjoyed but had some major gripes with). Cumberpatch is gonna rock Smaug and the Necromancer. Bard's gonna be awesome (and the elves)! I'm also very curious where this one's going to end.

Space baker. I'd have a bakery on Ogma Station and serve the finest pastries in the galaxy.

Can't say I'm too terribly sad to see Jonas go, but I'll miss his weaselly ways. What a fun character! And, oh yea, Mordark's pretty much finished. It'll take some clever diplomacy to stave off Xarkon.

So hey, Horatius, did you have anything in particular in mind with that Elven blade? Just wondering.

 Oh, yea, probably should have mentioned that. So quick backstory, Karrel was a young warrior in his tribe when orcs invaded and took him along with most of the tribesmen (and women) prisoner. His home was burned to the ground and he struggled to survive as a slave under the orcs. He started questioning the reason behind his defiance when it only cost him more pain and freedom was impossible. He only defied them on principle, but self-doubt made him likely to break like the others. Before he did break, the orcs were attacked by some unknown foe (he heard elves, or men, or goblins, but isn't sure). With a scavenged elven blade he found, he escaped during the attack and has hunted orcs ever since.

He lives to find the owner of the beautiful blade and pay them homage out of his life-debt. I haven't figured out just who the elf-sword-wielding invaders are, but I thought it'd be a nice place to start a conversation. I'll PM you to discuss it further (for surprise factor).

So I just tried to put myself in the shoes of a suspicious, bloodthirsty, vengeance-seeking warrior who's faced two days of nonstop battles only to be awoken by another group of armed travelers demanding they be followed. Things are getting interesting! Can't wait to meet Sandor anyhow.

I really liked it. From the perspective of a sci-fi fan who's never seen any Star Trek but the new JJ Abrams ones (a mistake I must fix immediately), I thought it was great. 

All in all, great movie even with a less than satisfying ending (only really noticeable on reflection).