Recommended music: Howard Shore – The Passing of the Grey Company
It’s #TolkienThursday, and today we’re looking at another character from Return of the King: the ToyBiz Lord of the Rings Soldier of the Dead!
In J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings, the Soldiers of the Dead, also known as the Oathbreakers, are mountain men who became spirits after Isildur cursed them in the Second Age for not keeping their vow to fight Sauron. They were doomed to haunt Dunharrow and could only find peace when an heir of Isildur asked them to keep their promise.
During the War of the Ring, Aragorn calls on them for help. With Andúril in hand, he asks for their loyalty and promises that if they fight Sauron, they will finally find peace. Their main task is to stop the Corsairs of Umbar, pirates who are attacking Gondor.
In the book, the Oathbreakers use fear as their main weapon. When they appear at the port of Pelargir, the pirates are so terrified that many jump into the water to escape. Once the Oathbreakers keep their promise, Aragorn sets them free and fills the captured ships with living soldiers to help save Minas Tirith.
In Peter Jackson’s film, the Oathbreakers do more than just scare enemies—they fight in battle. After taking the ships, they join Aragorn at the Battle of the Pelennor Fields. They sweep over the battlefield like a green tide of Listerine mouthwash in the old TV ad, effortlessly wiping out Sauron’s armies like gingivitis.
Without the Oathbreakers, Gondor’s reinforcements would not have arrived, the capital would have fallen, and the war would have been lost. They are the key turning point in the battle, showing that Aragorn is the true king and highlighting Tolkien’s themes of loyalty, redemption, and the power of keeping promises.
While ToyBiz released 6″ The King of the Dead as a single-carded figure, the Soldier of the Dead only came out in 2005 as part of the Pelennor Fields Gift Pack. It seems like they planned to release him on his own, since the box sticker only highlights the other two exclusives in the set—the Mumakil Rider and Morannon Orc, making no mention of the repacked Legolas and Gimli.
This figure has a great sculpt with detailed, weathered armor. Instead of the plain green plastic used for the King of the Dead, Toy Biz used a green base with a pale wash on the skin, which really captures the eerie, ghostly look. He also comes with a unique sword and shield that fit the spectral theme.
Despite feeling short compared to the King of the Dead and other figures in the line, and having limited leg articulation that makes posing difficult, its stellar aesthetic makes it a phenomenal spectral grunt that still holds its own on any shelf today. If this figure were more available, it would be a great army builder and custom fodder for an army of the dead.
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