Contrary to what most people had to say about The Hobbit: The Unexpected Journey, we loved it. Not as much as we did The Lord of The Rings trilogy, but well enough... (and in true Gollum speak) didn’t “we precioussss”? To someone who read The Hobbit for the first time as a 13-year-old, it is bound to remain the most magical book, ever, and any attempt to adapt it to screen must be scrutinised minutely. The Unexpected Journey passed muster, even though there was very little of the titular Hobbit Bilbo Baggins, played by Martin Freeman, and more of the Dwarf Thorin Oakenshield (but who in their right mind would object to a lot of Richard Armitage? Not us!). With the second part of the trilogy out this Friday, the fan in us lives in hope and dread. Hope that there will be more of Bilbo, the reluctant hero, and more action — from all the trailers and footages we’ve seen so far it seems like the film will deliver on those counts. And we dread that in taking liberties with the book it might do more harm than good. But we shall keep faith in Peter Jackson and hope for an even more “precioussss” experience.

The story so far:

In a hole in the ground there lived a Hobbit...

Bilbo Baggins of The Shire, a Hobbit, sits down to write a tale of his adventures for his nephew Frodo, starting off the story.

Bilbo gets a nasty surprise in the form of an impromptu party he is tricked into hosting by Gandalf the wizard for a bunch of 13 Dwarves.

He is drafted in as the fourteenth member of the team that is off to reclaim their homeland under the Lonely Mountains. His job description? A burglar.

On their way across the lands the company get trapped by trolls and escape only because of Gandalf, who turns them to stone.

They meet Radagast, The Brown, a wizard who tells them about a Necromancer who is poisoning Greenwood.

They are chased by Orcs on wargs but escape them with Radagast’s help and make it into Rivendell, the home of Elrond, an Elf.

Elrond finds hidden directions to a secret door in the map of the Lonely Mountains that the Dwarves can use to enter the mountains, which holds Dwarf treasure guarded by a dragon called Smaug.

On the journey ahead they are captured by Goblins but Bilbo gets separated and meets Gollum, who engages him in a game of riddles, promising to help Bilbo find a way out if he can defeat Gollum. Bilbo wins and then escapes using a ring (Gollum’s precioussss) he found that makes him invisible.

The Dwarves learn that Azog, an Orc war-chief who had killed Thror and had lost his arm to Thorin, was looking for Thorin.

Gandalf helps them escape the clutches of the Goblins and Bilbo joins them but keeps his ring a secret.

Azog ambushes the company and they are forced to take shelter in trees. Bilbo saves Thorin’s life after he is knocked unconscious by Azog.

Gandalf gets help from the Eagles who rescue them and carry them to safety.

We see Smaug open an eye as he is awakened by the sound of a knocking thrush.

What we look forward to: Come now, don’t be shy. Step into the light...

Smaug the dragon: We will get to see the meanest and the scariest dragon in his entirety in this film. His voice, done by Benedict Cumberbatch, sounds very, very menacing. And we can’t keep our excitement of having Sherlock, also played by Cumberbatch, meet his John Watson, played by Martin ‘Bilbo’ Freeman, in such unlikely circumstances.

Beorn: We are eager to see this skin-changer in action. Beorn is a huge man who takes the shape of a bear. He helps the company in their quest to the reclaim the Lonely Mountains.

Bilbo, the hero: Last year we felt cheated because there was only one scene where Bilbo gets to play the hero, whereas in the book there are many other scenarios where the Dwarves are forced to look upon Bilbo with admiration. We just hope that Peter Jackson is done with his epic introduction and his fascination with Thorin and will now give our favourite Hobbit more to do.

Return of Legolas: Yes, we don’t know why he is in the movie, because there is no mention of him in the book. But please, this is Legolas! The beautiful, elephant-skateboarding, crackshot Legolas played by Orlando Bloom! We were glad when there was more of him in the second and third LOTR films and we are sure that no matter what he does in this film we will appreciate it wholeheartedly.

Bard the Bowman: Welsh actor Luke Evans looks dashing as Bard, of the Men from the Long Lake, and a guardsman of Esgaroth or Lake-town. A skilled archer, he is the one who slays Smaug, the dragon, after a tip from a thrush who tells him about a weak spot in the dragon’s armour.

What we dread: Such is the nature of evil, in time all foul things come forth!...

Tauriel: We don’t know who she is, or why she is or where she comes from. It feels like yet another person has been included to take the spotlight away from Bilbo and we don’t like it! Especially since she is not only not in this book but any book ever written by Tolkien about Middle-Earth.

The romance: First Legolas’s father tells Tauriel that Legolas was becoming fond of her and asked her not to give him hope where there could be none. We cringed. Then there were rumours that there might be a romantic entanglement between Kili, one of the 13 Dwarves, and Tauriel and we just died! Definitely not looking forward to this on screen.

The Necromancer: The evil Necromancer is a minor part in the book, but with Benedict Cumberbatch voicing the character we wonder how big a role he will play. We will keep our fingers crossed for this one.

Text: Chandreyee Chatterjee

What are you looking forward to in The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug? Tell t2@abp.in