Or thereabouts. A very serious sounding business, isn’t it?

Well, we have fewer enemies and more allies than Peter Jackson’s crowd. We also have fewer extras and less CGI–though some of us may CGI a little for dates on the weekend.

But we are each of us bloggers who think and write about J.R.R. Tolkien and other Hobbitish topics. We are individually excited about the release of The Hobbit: The Battle of Five Armies, and some of us have been blogging and tweeting all things Hobbit for a few days now. Now it’s time to go head to head (to head, to head, etc.).

There are six of us in this Battle of 5 Blogs. Don’t worry: this will be less confusing than about 1/3 of the film. Here are the bloggers (see the bios and twitter handles below):

Sørina Higgins of The Oddest Inkling
Crystal Hurd of CrystalHurd.com
James Moffett of A Tolkienist’s Perspective
Matthew Rettino at The Vinciolo Journal
Kat Sas of Raving Sanity

And, of course, myself of www.aPilgrimInNarnia.com. This battle group represents people from three countries, both men and women, students and teachers, writers and readers, and various age groups. Some will be fans of the film series; some will condemn the fans as heretics and send them to Mordor for milk.

We will each be writing and posting our own blogs and linking to one another. On Friday morning I will do my own blog and a round up. Make sure you follow each of the blogs. I would encourage readers of A Pilgrim in Narnia and each of these blogs to jump in on the comments and dice it up a little (perhaps in a Brandybuck fashion rather than an Orcish fashion–no trolls allowed!). If you have published your own review or preview or artist response to the film, be sure to link it!

Blogger Biographies

Brenton Dickieson (@BrentonDana) is a faith, fantasy, and fiction blogger here at www.aPilgrimInNarnia.com. He teaches religious studies at the University of Prince Edward Island and Maritime Christian College, and is working on a PhD in Theology and Literature at the University of Chester.

Sørina Higgins (@Oddest_Inkling) is an English teacher, writer, editor, and Inklings scholar. The Oddest Inkling is an exploration of the works of poet Charles Williams (1886-1945). See her work as a whole at www.SorinaHiggins.com.

Dr. Crystal Hurd (@DoctorHurd)  is an educator, writer, poet, and researcher from Virginia. She lives with her husband and three dogs in southwest Virginia. She is a staff writer for Legendarium and blogs about life, literature (mainly C.S. Lewis), and leadership at www.crystalhurd.com.

James Moffett (@TolkienistView) is currently reading for an MA in Professional Writing at Falmouth University. He is interested in all aspects of writing and filmmaking. When not working, he’s either attempting to write poetry and opinion pieces, producing experimental short films, or reading. A Tolkienist’s Perspective is meant to be an online haven for other Tolkien enthusiasts.

Matthew Rettino (@MatthewRettino) studies at McGill University in the English MA program, where he researches contemporary Canadian fantasy, and works on short stories and a historical fantasy novel in his spare time. The Vinciolo Journal includes various book reviews, essays, art, and poetry related to his research and creative endeavours.

Katherine Sas (@Katherine_Sas) graduated from Messiah College in 2009 with a B.A. in English Literature. Kat is a student of all things arts and humanities, in particular Tolkien, the Inklings, and the fantastic and imaginative tradition in storytelling. Raving Sanity is the place for ramblings and musings, be they coherent or otherwise, and especially a venue to connect with others who love to talk about these things.