Snaga

Recommended music: Howard Shore – The Plains of Rohan

Sneaking up this #TolkienThursday, we’ve got the Gentle Giant Snaga!

In the books, a “snaga” is a term for lesser breeds of Orcs. In Peter Jackson’s The Two Towers film, Snaga is an orc scout recruited by Grishnákh to help him escort Merry and Pippin to Isengard. Snaga and the other Orcs become hungry after running for days and desire more than bread for sustenance.

Snaga: “Yeah! Why can’t we have some meat?”

Snaga: “What about them? They’re fresh!”

Uglúk: “They are not for eating!”

…

Snaga: “Just a mouthful. A bit off the flank.”

[Uglúk cuts off Snaga’s head.]

Uglúk: “Looks like meat’s back on the menu, boys!”

Snaga was not included in The Two Towers line or any other Lord of the Rings action figure line by Toybiz. I have not yet made a 1/12 scale custom figure of the character in the 20 years since the toy line. However, I found a great stand-in with this resin bust from Gentle Giant. At just over 7″, he is supposed to be 1/6 scale and is limited to 1500 pieces. While he is missing legs and any articulation, the paint and detail are excellent. Sculpted below the character’s upper half is a stone base with a hidden storage compartment that is just large enough to safely keep your One Ring when not in use.

#LordOfTheRings