Lotrips overview: It's All About the Pretty!

[acari.livejournal.com]

Lotrips: It's All About the Pretty!

Imagine pretty boys and gorgeous men being all over each other, declaring their love for each other, hugging, kissing and just generally being adorable. Every.Single.One.Of.Them. It was just not fair. We had no choice. So Lotrips was born.

I could go on at length about how this fandom is about expanding horizons, sharpening writing skills, and admiring the talent of these fine actors, but I'll spare you all this pretentious nonsense because, when it comes down to it, we are a shallow bunch, as shallow as shallow gets. It's all about the Pretty.

Lotrips is a m/m slash fandom first and foremost. Real people slash, at that. There are femslash, het and gen stories, too. But you have to search for them. Therefore I will focus on the boys.



The Ring Boys and Girls

main focus
Billy Boyd: Pippin
Dominic Monaghan: Merry
Elijah Wood: Frodo
Orlando Bloom: Legolas
Sean Astin: Sam
Sean Bean: Boromir
Viggo Mortensen: Aragorn

playing a bigger role in the fandom
Craig Parker: Haldir
Harry Sinclair: Isildur
Karl Urban: Èomer
Liv Tyler: Arwen
Miranda Otto: Èowyn

actors featured to a certain degree
David Wenham: Faramir
Hugo Weaving: Elrond
Ian McKellen: Gandalf
Marton Csokas: Celeborn

A Little Bit of (schmoopy) History

Peter Jackson did magic in creating the Lord of the Rings trilogy.

The shooting took place in New Zealand. Elijah Wood was the first to arrive in June 1999, it all ended on the 22. December 2000 with the Wrap Party. Because all three movies were shot at the same time the main cast lived in New Zealand for 18 months. Sean Bean went home a bit earlier after Boromir’s death, and Viggo came in a bit late as a replacement for Stuart Townsend. Everyone got their own house or flat to live in, except Dom and Billy, who shared a flat.
They all worked together until they fell over from exhaustion, suffered through flood-like rainfall, mud slides, broken bones and gruelling night shots. Drunken Hobbits peed in a fountain in Wellington; the young guys picked up surfing, went on vacation together, took part in a Bathtub race, and just generally had the time of their lives.
They’ve seen the others at their best and their worst. Relationships faltered, marriages ended, new loves were found. All fellowship actors, only exception being John Rhys-Davis who sent his stunt double, got the elvish letter Nine tattooed. Because Sean Bean had already been at home in England when filming wrapped, Orlando and Elijah hunted him down in New York and dragged him to a tattoo studio.
Basically, what happened is that the movie’s fellowship became a reality.

In the eternal words of Dom: “Well, we are brothers. We're all brothers. Elijah and Sean and Orlando and Viggo and Ian, Billy and myself, we've all gone through this incredible experience. We try as hard as we can to explain to you guys about the time that we've had in New Zealand, but at the end of the day, the only people that really understand what we've been through are the guys in the movie and the crew and the rest of the cast. It's the longest film shoot of all time. You know, you hear actors say how well they've bonded with people over the course of six or nine weeks -- imagine being together for close to two years. It becomes an extension of your
family. We're very, very lucky people.”

And This is Slashy How?

I try to make it short. LotR premiered on the 10. December 2001 in London with Elijah pouncing Orlando on the red carpet, wrapping his legs around his waist like a baby monkey and grinning like a complete loon.
The same year in Cannes Orlando sneaked up on Viggo, who was just giving an interview, called him human scum and gave him a little kiss on the cheek. Last year, Dom and Viggo did who knows what. Dom claims that he’d marry Billy if Billy were a woman, but probably will do so anyway. Orlando worries that what he say makes him sound “like I were in love with the guy”, meaning Viggo who is the usual focus of Orlando’s gushing. When asked to finish the entence: “hobbits who play together make…”, Elijah answers, “... make sweet love together”. At 2002’s Ring*Con Mark Ferguson and Craig Parker re-enact the Aniron scene between Aragorn and Arwen from LotR and talk about how Craig fell asleep on the plane with his head in Mark’s lap. Orlando complains about Karl’s tongue in his ear at the NY premiere of TTT.

They bodily wrap themselves around each other whenever possible.

Do you really need more?

It is remarkable how much these guys love each other and are willing to share it with others. They radiate love. It is such a joy to watch them.

Did I mention they are insane?

So yes, the fandom simply exploded after the release of LotR. Many people came in through Lord of the Rings fandom. It's an odd thing but the lines between RPS and FPS are rather blurry. Both fandoms are interlinked to a degree. Many Lotrippers read and/or write both. This fact made it some sort of gateway fandom for a lot of general and RPS fandom newbies. Anyone participating in a fandom that experienced a sudden massive influx of newbies can probably
imagine that the result was a bit messy.


Okay, let’s talk about the Pretty. I picked out the 7 fellowship members who are the fandom’s main focus. Why only them? For sanity’s sake. Okay, I'll say one or five words about three men and two women, too.


Billy Boyd (Pippin)

Age: 35
Born: 28th August 1968 in Glasgow, UK. (He’d probably prefer if I said Scotland.)

He was cast as the Artful Dodger in a school production of the stage musical "Oliver!" at the age 11. Though when he left school just before his 17th birthday, he trained as a bookbinder for four years. After two more years of actual work, he auditioned for the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama. And got accepted. After graduating, Billy worked at the Byre Theatre in St. Andrews, playing the title role in the musical "Secret Diary of Adrian Mole" and later "The Slab Boys". On television he did guest appearances and acted in supporting roles. His main focus was stage work. Though LotR opened many doors into the movie business – “Master and Commander” - he went back to his roots last year with doing "The Ballad of Crazy Paola" at the Traverse

Billy can sing: strong tenor / light baritone; F# to A above middle C over 2 octaves; and plays the guitar. He’s working on a script together with Dom.
Like the other hobbits, he’s picked up surfing in NZ. Dom and Billy left the shot as closest friends. He has a playboy reputation and looks amazing in a kilt.

The problem with Billy is that he looks like one of the young guys while he’s really in his thirties. So he’s either naiv Pippin or obsessing about losing hair. People almost every time pair him up with Dom, which is a shame, really.


Dominic Monaghan (Merry)

Age: 26
Born: 8. December 1976 in Berlin, Germany

The family stayed in Germany for 12 years, back in the UK they lived in Manchester. Dom has a brother. He got into acting because, being the class clown, his teachers thought he could do well in school plays. He performed with the Manchester Youth Theatre. Dom began studying English literature, drama, and geography when Hetty Wainthrop happened: his first big role on television, which he did for four years. During that time he still managed to appear on stage. The call to play Merry reached him in France where he shot “Monsieur Renard". He had to drop everything and move to NZ immediately, which he did. He relocated to LA in 2001, shortly after shooting wrapped where he lived with Elijah for a while.

He loves music (Beatles), writing, and is a huge Manchester United fan. Dominic’s the monkey boy; the cheeky, flirty clown doing impersonations and accents. While not beautiful in the classical sense, he is dead sexy.
He’s best friends with Billy, with whom he’s working on a script.

He is the fandom’s chameleon. He’s no and any stereotype. While not a cast slut he gets laid a lot. Most common pairings: Dom/Billy, Dom/Elijah


Elijah Wood (Frodo)

Age: 22
Born: 28. January 1981 in Cedar Rapids, USA

He lived together with his mother, his brother Zack, and sister Hannah. His father left the family when Lij was young. Being rather hyperactive as a kid he got into acting to channel some of his energy. He loved it, and the family relocated to LA. His first role was in “Back to the Future II”. He accepted to the role in “Flipper” to play with dolphins. He has stared in films ranging from the amazing “Ice Storm” to experimental flicks like “Black&White”.
To get the role of Frodo he dressed up as a hobbit, went into the woods and shot a few scenes from the books. The rest is movie history.

He owns the One Ring! This guy is a total music geek (Smashing Pumkins). He is a total geek. Full stop. Elijah’s been in the business forever, though he sounds mature and grounded.
He’s very close to Dominic. It seems like he just moved to New York.

He is the fandom’s corrupted angel: it’s the eyes. Someone tell me why he’s almost everytime the bottom in bed? He smokes all the time and swears like a sailor while looking absolutely prestine. Lij is the baby. Most common pairing: Dom/Elijah


Orlando Bloom (Legolas)

Age: 26
Born: 13.January 1977 in Canterbury, UK

He grew up with his mother and his older sister Samantha For the longest time he believed his father was the anti-apartheid activist Harry Bloom who died when Orlando was four years old, though the truth was a bit more complicated than that. Orlando’s wanted to become an actor since he was a kid because he realized he “could become Superman”. He left his hometown at the age of 16 to pursue a career. In 1997 he got his first film role in “Wilde”, having one line as a rent boy. It earned him a scholarship for the prestigious Guildhall School of Music and Drama. In 1998 Orlando tried to climb onto a friend's rooftop terrace, fell three stories and broke his back. He faced the prospect of never being able to walk again, but after surgery he was able to walk out of the hospital only twelve days later. Accident prone is an understatement: Orlando has also broken a rib, his nose, both legs, an arm, a wrist, a finger, a toe, and has cracked his skull three times. Two days away from graduating from Guildhall, he won the role of Legolas.

He’s not the most articulate when excitement shuts down his higher brain functions. I say that with the utmost love. His DVD commentary for LotR sounded something like this, “It’s been amazing. I mean, Ian and Viggo…they’re, like, brilliant, you know. It was just so much fun, man.” He got used to the interview business as time passed, though: no more incoherent puppy-ish excitement. Not as often as before, anyway.
Orlando and clothes: ruffles, velvet and dishcloth shirts. Since he’s become Hollywood’s hottest new thing, he's toned it down.
In NZ he got closest to the hobbits (Sean A., Billy, Dom, Elijah), and Viggo and Sean B. with whom he’d shared a make-up trailer.

Fanon casts Orlando as the slut. When there’s a drug addict, rape victim, cast slut, vapid pretty boy, it’s usually him. He is just too pretty not to torture endlessly with over-the-top angst. Most common pairing: Viggo/Orlando


Sean Astin (Sam)

Age: 32
Born: 25. Febuary 1971 in Santa Monica, USA

He’s the son of well-known actres Patty Duke, one brother. With his wife Christine he has two daughters: Alexandra Louise and Elizabeth Louise.
In 1984 Sean made his debut in “The Goonies”. He studied acting at the Stella Adler Conservatory in Los Angeles and attended the UCLA from which he graduated with honours: B.A. in History and English. Sean’s leading role in “Rudy” has won him many fans. He’s worked in films like: Bulworth, Mephis Belle, War of the Roses and Where the Day Takes You. While in NZ he made the shortfilm The Long and Short of It. His short film Kangaroo Court got nominated for an Academy Award.
He’s also directed episodes of HBO’s anthology series “Perversions of Science” and WB’s “Angel”. He’s living with his family in LA.

His family means everything to him. His older daughter Alexandra and his wife spent a lot of the shot with him in NZ. His relationship with Elijah is very akin to Sam’s and Frodo’s. He looked out for Elijah just like Sam did. He’s a total carer (and a teddy bear).

Not many people write him, though many adore him. He is the stable, responsible type; the one who takes care the drunken hobbits get home safely. When the party’s about to get heated, he needs to go home to kiss his daughter good night. 95 out of 100 stories pair him with Elijah.


Sean Bean (Boromir)

Age: 44
Born: 17. April 1959 in Sheffield,UK

Sean is divorced from three wives. With his second wife Melanie he has two daughters: Molly and Lorna; with the third one, Abigail, he has one daughter: Evie Natasha. He has a younger sister. Sean left school at the age of 16. After doing this-and-that jobs, he discovered acting while attending an art Englandcourse at Rotherham College.
In 1980 he won a scholarship for the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art.
Sean's debut was as Tybalt in the Watermill Theatre production of Romeo and Juliet in May 1983. He’s appeared in various plays in the UK. In the cinema he’s best known for his “bad guy” roles in movies like “Patriot Games“ or „Golden Eye”.

Sean is the bloke, the manly man, or as Orlando’d say,”the northern bastard”. Sean is less huggy, though his grin is deadly.
Sean and footie (soccer for the Americans): he is a die-hard Sheffield United fan. He even has it tattooed on his shoulder. He bonded the most with Orlando and Viggo.

Fanon’s (has been) a bitch to him. He is the choosen meanie (the Boromir effect), the one coming between the OneTrueLurve of Orlando and Viggo. One word: strawberries. Most common pairing: Sean/Viggo


Viggo Mortensen (Aragorn)

Age: 45
Born: 20. October 1958 in New York, USA.

Viggo grew up in America, Venezuela, Argentina and Denmark. He’s been married to the singer Christine Cervenka (Exene), now divorced. They have a son, Henry. Viggo has two brothers. He studied acting in New York and was first seen on the big screen in Peter Weir’s “Witness”. He is a chameleon as an actor, people might not remember Viggo but they’ll remember the character. He’s the kind that gets inside the skin of a character to find out what makes him tick. Viggo wore Aragorn’s coat whenever possible and carried his sword around off set. Besides working as an actor, he’s also a poet, a photographer and painter. He’s published poetry books, been showing his paintings and photographs in various exhibitions. Viggo’s even recorded CDs, though his singing voice is a matter of discussion. He came into the production after Stuart Townsend left due to “creative differences”. It’s all Viggo’s son’s fault, who knew Tolkien’s books and told his dad to go for it. Thank you, Henry.

Viggo is a complete bitch to write. On the one side there’s the soft-spoken poet who chooses his words very carefully and always seems a bit lost in thought, on the other side there’s the Viggo who plays practical jokes and tosses the hobbits into freezing cold water for a laugh.

Fanon makes him up to be the uber-artsy, always brooding guy who’s waxing poetic about the shape of clouds. Lotrips decided that Sean and Viggo are best friends, if they aren’t shagging like bunnies or rivals for the love of Orlando, that is. Most common pairing: Viggo/Orlando


Here ends the fellowship. And now five actors who have stolen our heart. Short, I promise.


Harry Sinclair (Isildur)

Age: 43 or 44 (his birthday is the net's best kept secret); born and living in Auckland, New Zealand. He's first and foremost a director. Karl Urban (see below) stared in his film The Price of Milk. Harry is witty and brilliantly odd. He has no fashion sense.

Fanon!Harry'll pierce your heart with all-knowing eyes, and before you even know what happened he'll pounce and obliterate any coherent thought by a soul-melting kiss. Yes, exactly.


Karl Urban (Eomer)

Born 7. June 1972 in Wellington, New Zealand. He's best known for his appearances in "Xena" as Cupid and Caesar. He has a son, Hunter. Karl drops his pants at cons and grows herbs in his garden. You tell me what he's really like. I think he's crazy.

Stereotypical Karl is all about intensity and burning hazel eyes. Most of the time he has a little evil edge to himself.


Craig Parker (Haldir)

Born 12. November 1970 on Suwa, Fiji. He lives in New Zealand now. In New Zealand he's known for his roles in series like Shortland Street and Mercy Peak. Craig will kill you laughing. Every single one who attended last year's Ring*Con fell hard and have yet to discover. Not that I'm talking from personal experience, of course. Exactly.

Fanon!Craig is all about the funny. He has a dry sense of humour.


Liv Tyler (Arwen)

Born 1. July 1977 in Portland, USA.
She's the daughter of Aerosmith's Steven Tyler. She's come from staring in Aerosmith music videos to becoming Givency's new face. Way to go. She seems very sweet, the kinda girl everybody likes. She married this year.

For Lotrips she plays the role of the wise annoying princess, or she's just a pretty face with no brain to speak of.


Miranda Otto (Eowyn)

Born 16. December in Brisbane, Australia. She's mainly stared in little films; her first bigger thing was Thin Red Line. She's kinda laid back, but has something lady-like going for her. Miranda is just way cool.

Sadly, she is a total Mary-Sue.


The pairing possibilities are endless and nobody mention crossovers, please. Not even Peter Jackson himself is save from us. Yes, I’ve seen a story featuring him.



The Very Sekkrit Lotrips Code

orlandish: the magic ability to come every five minutes
tinhats:“a person who believes in one or more of the following ideas fostered through participation in the (now defunct) Datalounge Prancing Pony forum:
a) Dominic and Elijah have a special relationship with the participants of that forum and communicate with them through anonymous posts, "shoutouts", and clever evasions of the truth in media interviews.
b) The New Line Cinema PR department is able to keep Dominic and Elijah closeted against their will via a "morality" clause in their contract and threats of being blackballed.
c) The state of Dominic and Elijah's minds and the nature of their relationship can be definitively determined by examining photos of them taken at public events.”
BTF: biggest, currently offline, general archive
CTB: closer_than_brothers yahoo group, not to confuse with BTF, formerly known as Closer Than Brothers
D’Or: Dom/Orlando
Kargo: Karl/Viggo (For all that's shiny, don't use this one, please.)
Biggo: Billy/Viggo (see above)
Karli: Karl/Orlando
Harli: Harry/Orlando
... most pairing names are easily to figure out.


Linkage

Lotrips Directory
link directory
Lotrips in a Box
link directory

slash
fellow_ shippers
the main LJ fic community
closer_than_brothers
second biggest list, fic and fic discussion only
lotr_rps
biggest fic list
Beyond the Fellowship
biggest general archive (currently offline, being rebuilt)
mirrormere
second general fic archive (working)
Lotrips Remix
think music remix, only with stories
dombillijah.com
host for many wonderful authors
Slasha, baby
authors gifting each other with stories for Christmas

het
lotr_het
LJ community
lotr_het
list

gen
nope (The stories are scattered around the net. I could link you up, though.)

rec sites
hobbits who play together
large; focuses on Dom, Billy, Elijah
Versaphile / lotrips
Huge! Hasn’t seens an update in ages, though.
Your No1 Fan
Hobbits'n Orli focus
Twinkles and Starlight / lotrips
no special focus
acari.recs
my own (has further rec sites linked)
the Inbetweens /recs
many stories sorted by genre and pairing
lotrips_recs
LJ community; open membership

Personal advice for Lotrips newbies: Don't try the main lists and communities, the amount of stories will kill you and quantity doesn't equal quality. Try the rec sites and find people whose taste you trust.

Credits: Jem and Becca especially; my friendlist for input regarding fanon, BagEndInn for pictures, sagralisse for the tinhat definition.

So, what did I forget that you're dying to know? I didn't include anything about canon issues, or general fandom issues. Though, ask and ye shall recieve.

This endeth my long-winded declaration of love.

Comments

[cleanbc.livejournal.com]

Links aren't working for me.... grrr

I think you should make an amendment about tinkilts...

who believe in the one true lurvvee of monaboyd
i mean
billy/dom
right
and their slogan
"monaboyd4evahomg"

:-) oh man though, good stuff, made me laugh, a lot

[acari.livejournal.com]

tinkilts??? I have never heard that one. But then the expression monaboyd isn't all that old yet.

Well, I would if it were some fandom wide phaenomenon. The tinhats are a huge part of Lotrips' issues with itself so they needed to be included. Rabid fans in general are nothing unusual.

Glad I could make you laugh. Writing it was fun.