re: When otherwise good movies jump the shark...

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I disagree with this as it takes away from the drama to believe that the hero’s are essentially unstoppable. Why even try to avoid orcs and wargs if you’re superhuman?

I do understand and know that PJ specifically inserted hero moments for the characters. This was the only one that was specifically jarring to me (however I didn’t like the surfing on the shield but from tTT either).

I thought the tone of FOTR was perfect with the orc fights in Moria and at the end. The fellowship was obviously dominant but the characters appeared to be in peril. Legolas being that overwhelming in one scene made me think a battalion of elves could handle their whole army - which took away from the seriousness of the fight.

I hate to nitpick. Don’t get me wrong...I loved these movies...but this is just a pet peeve.

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What I'm talking about isn't really something to agree or disagree with. I'm talking about a particular strain of fantasy. In essence (and Tolkien was very much going for this) high fantasy is supposed to be mythic. It's supposed to be King Arthur only brought down by the last betrayal of his son, Hercules completing the 12 Labors in a fashion no normal man could, Arjuna slaying his enemies by the thousands, etc. Being mythic, the heroes require mythic opponents or trials (such as Beowulf, crippled by age, killing the dragon before dying or Arthur being betrayed) to truly challenge them. In the books, for instance, Glorfindel faced down all the Nazgul by himself. Gandalf could only be taken down by a being almost as powerful as Sauron himself. Even a lesser human like Theoden faced off against the Witch-King.

High fantasy is its own strain of justification and plays by its own rules. Sometimes the results will seem difficult for the practical modern mind to just accept because, yes, it can get a bit ridiculous. This is why high fantasy isn't as popular nowadays as the grittier or more realistic strains. You'll see the same trend in comic books too, especially in terms of the incorruptible/moralistic elements of superheroes.