- “If I were a knight of Rohan, capable of great deeds. But I’m not. I’m a Hobbit. And I know I can’t save Middle-Earth. I just want to help my friends. Frodo. Sam. Pippin. More than anything, I wish I could see them again. ”
- ―Merry to Éowyn
Meriadoc "Merry" Brandybuck is a Tolkien character who appears as one of the protagonists of The Lord of the Rings trilogy. Merry is the best friend and cousin of Peregrin "Pippin" Took and accompanies his cousin, Frodo Baggins in his quest to destroy the One Ring.
Merry is voiced by Casey Kasem in the 1981 animated film and portrayed by Dominic Monaghan in the Middle-earth films directed by Peter Jackson.
Canon History[]
Background[]
Meriadoc Brandybuck was born TA 2982 (SR 1382) to Saradoc Brandybuck and his wife, Esmeralda who nicknamed him "Merry." He was an only child and had no recorded siblings. Growing up, Merry became best friends with his cousin, Pippin, and became close friends with their cousin Frodo Baggins, Fredegar Bolger and Samwise Gamgee. He developed a love for maps, boats, and ponies.
One day, he saw Bilbo miraculously disappear when the Sackville-Bagginses were searching for him. Frightened, Merry kid behind the bushes, only to see Bilbo appear out of nowhere. Then, Merry saw Bilbo put away a small golden ring. After reading his cousin's diary, Merry consulted with Sam, Pippin, and Fatty and told them what he saw. The four hobbits decided to keep a closer eye on Frodo after he gained the one Ring known as the "Conspiracy."
The Fellowship of the Ring[]
On the day after Bilbo's 111th birthday party, Merry moved in with Frodo a while after their uncle's disappearance. He protected Frodo from unwanted guests, especially Lobelia and her son. However, Merry mainly did so to keep a closer eye on Frodo and the Ring since Merry saw Bilbo use it once before. After Lobelia told Frodo he didn't have the right to own Bag End, the coveted Baggins family home, and called him a "Brandybuck" before leaving. Frodo, insulted by Lobelia's claim, tossed her out. However, Merry said being a Brandybuck was a compliment.
Seventeen years later, Frodo claimed to be moving to a burrow next to Merry. However, this was just a ploy so Frodo could quietly leave the Shire and travel to Rivendell to decide the Ring's fate. Fearing Frodo would disappear next, Merry suspected after noticing secret conversations between his cousin and Gandalf and the fact Frodo was selling Bag End to Lobelia. Merry agreed and waited for Frodo, Sam, and Pippin. At the temporary home, Merry, Sam, Pippin, and Fatty revealed to Frodo they were aware of his magical ring. After Merry reveals the day he saw Bilbo using the ring, Merry decides to join Frodo, Pippin, and Sam in the Old Forest, with Fatty remaining behind to make others believe he was Frodo living in the abandoned hobbit hole.
Animated films[]
Return of the King (1980)[]
Merry appears in the Rankin and Bass 1980 film. His role is the same in the film as it is in the book by JRR Tolkien. He rides with Theoden into battle and reunites with Pippin on Pelennor Fields. Later, when Eowyn appears on the battlefield, Merry stabbed the Witch-king in the back while Eowyn struck a deadly blow.
He later attended Bilbo's 131st birthday party.
The Lord of the Rings (film series)[]
The Fellowship of the Ring[]
Merry with Pippin in The Fellowship of the Ring.
During Bilbo's 111th farewell birthday party, Merry instructs his cousin, Pippin, to steal one of Gandalf's fireworks, which takes on the shape of a dragon. However, they stick the firework inside a tent, Merry begins chastising his cousin for not putting it outside with Pippin blaming Merry, as it was his idea. As they bicker, the firework goes up, causing them to fall to the ground. Merry decides for them to get another one but Gandalf catches them in the act and has them wash the dishes.
A couple of nights later, Merry and Pippin visit the Green Dragon with Frodo, Sam, and their other friends. Both best friends sing a song while dancing at the table.
In another couple of nights, Merry and Pippin run into Frodo and Sam, who are on their way to Bree. As Sam and Frodo yell at their friends, the four hobbits hear Farmer Maggot coming to catch them in the act. Though they can get away, the four of them fall down a steep hill after Sam accidentally knocks them down while not looking. Before, Merry felt that he had broken something and as he reached down, it was only just a carrot. When Pippin spots mushrooms, Merry and Sam both run to gather them but are forced to hide when Frodo hears the Nazgûl coming down the road. Luckily, as they are crowded underneath a mini-cave, Merry takes a bag of vegetables and throws it in another direction giving them a long time to escape. When nightfall occurs, Merry analyzes the situation and says that the black Rider is looking for something, or someone and knows it is Frodo. The hobbit tells his cousin where he and Sam are going and that they need to get there as fast as possible. Merry leads his friends to Buckleberry Ferry which will take them to the Brandywine Bridge. They encounter the Nazgul but can escape.
During the breaking of the Fellowship, Merry realized that Frodo was missing, as well as Boromir missing. Merry and Pippin both ran to find him, where they found Frodo hiding behind a tree. Merry was the one who realized that Frodo was not coming with them and going to continue the quest alone. Pippin yelled at them as a distraction with Merry joining him. He shot one look at Frodo and told his cousin to run as he and Pippin ran to lead the Uruks away from Frodo as he made his escape. Boromir died defending them in battle, which resulted in Merry and Pippin being carried off by the Uruk-Hai
The Two Towers[]
In The Two Towers, Merry falls ill during his and Pippin's capture by Orcs and Uruk-Hai but the two can escape when the Rohirric people attack and are protected by Treebeard at the behest of Gandalf. Merry later presses on to the Ents to go to war. He is successful when Treebeard sees that half the trees he knew were cut down. He and Pippin later find Saruman's storeroom and steal a longbottom leaf. However, when Pippin asks if they should share the smoking leaves with Treebeard Merry says they must keep it to themselves before pulling out a pipe and imitates Treebeard, unaware he is watching them from outside.
Return of the King[]
Merry as he appears in Return of the King.
While he and Pippin are guarding Isengard, they are reunited by Aragorn, Gandalf, Legolas and Gimli. He was sadly separated from Pippin as he and Gandalf accompanied each other to Gondor while Merry stayed at Rohan, where Merry befriended Lady Éowyn and became an esquire of Rohan in order of the King. However, while Théoden intends to leave him behind, Éowyn secretly takes him with her.
On the way to Minas Tirith, as they take a break, Eowyn tells Merry to take heart with the war almost over. Right now, Merry knows that he is not a Knight of Rohan but a Hobbit and that he can't save Middle-earth. He just wants to help his friends Frodo, Sam, and Pippin and see them again. The army begins ready to move out, where Merry and Eowyn exchange "to battle."
During the Battle of Pelennor Fields, Merry and Eowyn were able to disable an Oliphaunt but they were separated on the battlefield. Merry noticed the Witch-king attacking Éowyn. He helped her by stabbing the Witch-king in the back, which enabled her to kill the evil servant of Sauron. However, in doing so, Merry is poisoned with the Black Breath and is separated from Éowyn while losing his Elven cloak in the process. Later that night, Merry is found by Pippin. He tells his best friend that he knew that he would find him and then asks if he is going to leave him again, but Pippin says he is not going to leave Merry but look after him.
Aragorn later heals Merry from the Black Breath, as he is seen accompanying the army to the Black Gate. During the confrontation between Sauron's emissary, the Mouth of Sauron, and the company, Merry believes Frodo to be dead but Aragorn doubts that he is gone. Fighting and surviving in the Battle of the Black Gate, Merry is reunited with Frodo and joyously hugs one another.
Four years later, Frodo was to leave for the Grey Havens. A tearful Frodo and Merry Hugged each other before he went on the ship. Merry and Pippin with Sam watched as their friends sailed to the Grey Havens.
Personality[]
Film[]
Before the start of the series, Merry used to be a troublemaker, and he was the one who got Pippin in trouble, notably his idea to steal a firecracker from Gandalf's cart. However, he felt a sense of responsibility over Pippin, saying he was always the one to get him out of trouble.
Merry was also well-versed in Middle-earth lore. For example, when Pippin heard sounds in the trees, Merry claimed that the trees could come alive and talk and knew to call them "treehearders" when they met Treebeard for the first time.
Throughout the journey, Merry develops a sense of maturity and loyalty to his friends, to both the friends he has known forever and his newer ones. For example, he joined the Fellowship of the Ring immediately after Sam, showing his unwillingness to abandon Frodo. When the Ents would not help the fight with Sauron, Merry was unwilling to abandon them in their time of need. He even tells Éowyn that his only hope is seeing Frodo, Sam, and Pippin again and doesn't want Frodo to be found by the Orcs. Merry also grew to care for Éowyn, and immediately came to rescue her by stabbing the Witch-king in the back before he hurt her any further.
Overall, Merry is a very lovable person who is willing to protect the ones he loves and cares for.
Appearances[]
In the novel, Merry has light brown curly hair and is about four foot seven feet tall.
In the films, Merry has blond, curly hair and green eyes. He used to wear a brown jacket with a yellow waistcoat over his plain white shirt. Merry also wears a grayish-green Elven cloak.
Abilities[]
- Sword-fighting: Merry is capable of using a sword and has become an expert swordsman, being able to defend himself against an Orc. It could also be because he was taught how to sword-fight by Boromir.
- Leadership: Merry has a sense of leadership, as do the other members of the Army's forces.
Gallery[]
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Trivia[]
- It was rare for hobbits to have blonde hair or any other fair hair colors, as most of them had dark brown curls. Merry is one of those rare cases to have light blonde hair.
- Merry's Hobbit counterpart is Fíli, one of the dwarven companions to Bilbo Baggins. They are both older brother figures to a younger protagonist. For Merry, it is his cousin Pippin and for Fili, it is his younger brother Kili. They both are extremely close and loyal to their friends and family and both often act as the voice of reason for the trouble-making twosome. Both Merry and Fíli are companions to the protagonist and the deuteragonist of the series (Frodo and Sam and Bilbo and Thorin Oakenshield, respectively), as well as companions of Gandalf.
- Merry is fluent at throwing rocks and other objects. He shares those traits with Pippin and Bilbo.
- Merry has a yellow waistcoat in The Lord of the Rings similar to the one Bilbo wears at the beginning of An Unexpected Journey, except in different patterns.
- He is one of the very few hobbits to have light-colored hair.
- Merry is the second youngest member of the Company of the Ring.
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