Gothmog (Third Age)
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Gothmog is a fictional character from J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth legendarium. He is featured in The Return of the King, the third volume of the fantasy novel The Lord of the Rings as originally printed.
He served in Sauron's army during the War of the Ring. He was the lieutenant of Minas Morgul, second-in-command to the Witch-king of Angmar, lord of the nine Nazgûl (Ringwraiths). He commanded the forces of Morgul during the Battle of the Pelennor Fields after the Witch-king was slain by Éowyn and Merry.
This is the only reference to Gothmog in The Lord of the Rings, and he appears in precisely one sentence.[1] His fate is not stated, although it is strongly implied that he and almost all of the servants of Sauron that fought before the gates of Minas Tirith were killed. Tolkien writes nothing else about Gothmog — not even what race of beings he belonged to.
Gothmog shares his name with one of Tolkien's earlier characters, Gothmog Lord of Balrogs, who is featured in The Silmarillion.
[edit] Adaptations
In the 1977 SPI board game War of the Ring, Gothmog is described as the second-most powerful Nazgûl and chief lieutenant of Minas Morgul from when the city was taken from Gondor in a two-year siege a millennium prior to the War of the Ring; he is one of only three Power Player characters (other than Saruman) who can lead armies in this game with a morale rating between that of the Lord of the Nazgûl and the Mouth of Sauron. This depiction of Gothmog as the second-most powerful Ringwraith contradicts Unfinished Tales, posthumously published five years later, wherein Tolkien names the second of the Nine as Khamûl the "Black Easterling" of Dol Guldur (the only named Nazgûl in his writings).
In Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King film, Gothmog is portrayed by Lawrence Makoare (who also portrays Lurtz) and voiced by Craig Parker (who also portrays Haldir).[2]
Gothmog is interpreted as a deformed Orc with a stunted arm. According to Peter Jackson, Gothmοg's affliction is an elephantiasis-type disease; he dubbed him "the Elephant Man Orc". Jackson asked the Weta Workshop designers to make Gothmog look diseased. Knowing his penchant for outrageous creatures, they piled elephantiasis growths onto a model in such a way that they hoped even he would find it excessive. However, to their surprise, Jackson deemed it to be 'just about right', thus giving Gothmog his "Elephant Man"-type appearance.[3]
In a sequence cut from the theatrical cut but included in the extended DVD cut, Gothmog fights an even duel against Éowyn, but is temporarily incapacitated. While Éowyn lies injured at the hands of the (now dead) Witch-king, Gothmog goes to finish her off but he is killed by Aragorn and Gimli, unaware they have just saved Éowyn.
He is also a playable Mordor hero in Electronic Arts' real-time strategy game The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-earth II - The Rise of the Witch-king, based on Jackson's films as well as Tolkien's writings.
[edit] References
- ^ J. R. R. Tolkien (April 1, 1987), The Return of the King, vol. 3, The Lord of the Rings, Boston: Houghton Mifflin, "The Battle of the Pelennor Fields", ISBN 0-395-08256-0
- ^ Craig Parker interview by SF-Radio. Craig Parker.net. Retrieved on 2006-11-06.
- ^ The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King Special Extended DVD Edition
[edit] External links
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