Recommended music: The Drifters – White Christmas
Merry Christmas and happy #TolkienThursday! For our final LOTR figure of the year, let’s check out the ToyBiz Lord of the Rings Return of the King Faramir in Gondorian Armor.
Faramir, the youngest son of Denethor, Steward of Gondor, consistently lives in the shadow of his older brother Boromir. Although Faramir demonstrates bravery and nobility, his father fails to recognize these qualities and regards him as a lesser version of Boromir. Following Boromir’s failure to return from Rivendell, Faramir assumes responsibility for defending Gondor’s borders against Sauron’s expanding forces, facing significant challenges. At this point, Mordor has become extremely powerful, and war descends upon Gondor with great intensity.
ToyBiz previously released the ‘Boromir, Captain of Gondor’ figure for The Two Towers (see last week’s post). However, the Faramir figure was not introduced until the second wave of Return of the King figures the following year. This aligns with the movies, as Faramir does not wear this armor in the Boromir flashbacks in The Two Towers Extended Edition. He dons the Gondorian Ranger outfit later in Return of the King.
Since Faramir is frequently compared to Boromir, this figure is about 85% the same as the Gondorian Boromir figure. There are only a few small paint changes, and Faramir uses the same body sculpt but with a smaller head. The head doesn’t look as much like David Wenham as the first Faramir figure did. The left forearm is also changed because Boromir’s armor was sculpted on the bottom of his arm. Faramir comes with a new helmet (Boromir would never need a helmet *in Denethor’s voice*), a scabbard on the same side as the costume, and a sword. This Faramir was not given a cape, as he was no longer serving as a ranger, and the military budget must have been stretched too thin by the time of the Battle of Osgiliath.
I just realized I skipped ahead by showing this Return of the King figure, but I’ve always displayed it next to my Gondor Boromir, and am looking forward to more #TolkienThursday posts in 2026!
#ActionFigurePhotography
#LordOfTheRings
#LOTR
#ToyPhotography
Dale's Toys 