It's time to figure out what went wrong. In this episode, Andrew and Monica spend half an hour analyzing The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey and discussing the things that work and the things that keep it from being great. How is it similar to The Fellowship of the Ring? Why are there so many references to the other films? And what's up with that Necromancer dude, anyway? Tune in to find out.

SHOW NOTES:

0:22 - Intro and clip

3:58 - The opening 20 minutes. Why is Frodo here?

6:38 - Radagast, the High Council, The Necromancer

12:25 - Less menace, lower stakes, Azog

16:13 - Comparisons with The Fellowship of the Ring

19:54 - The visual effects: have they improved?

25:10 - The Ring's agency

26:50 - Bilbo's decision to spare Gollum, his overall arc

30:30 - Some final general thoughts

34:03 - Show close

DON'T FORGET: You can contact the show by emailing [email protected]. Thanks for listening!