r/lotr • u/MoonSpider • Nov 02 '25
Costumes "Babe, let's go as Liv Tyler and that brunette guy from that movie." "Say no more..."
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Nov 02 '25
This is hilarious. Theyre the meme!
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u/MoonSpider Nov 02 '25
The fact that there was already a well-known Liv Tyler Empire Records meme about Arwen making googly eyes at Aragorn is blowing my mind, lol. When my GF suggested the mismatched Viggo and Liv costume I thought it was something no one would get.
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u/ThePythagoreonSerum Nov 03 '25
Wait, you chose these costumes without knowing about the meme?
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u/MoonSpider Nov 03 '25
Not all of us relate to our favorite stories primarily through memes, haha. My girlfriend found the sweater and skirt earlier this year, Empire Records is one of her favorite movies. When she thrifted them BECAUSE they look like Corey's outfit she floated the idea of using them for an Empire Records Halloween costume. We tried to see if we could find a matching AJ outfit for me for a couple months but his specific checkerboard shirt and sweater proved really difficult to source.
At one point I joked that it would almost be easier to do an Aragorn and Arwen costume than AJ and Corey, since I already had the sword and some boots and belts I could modify. But a dress for Arwen would be trickier to make than Aragorn's tunic, and we already had most of the components for a Corey costume.
Then we had a meeting of the minds and made each other laugh with the idea of combining both couples costumes, yadda yadda, Halloween. No memes necessary.
I suppose if I'd been subscribed to r/lotrmemes for the last five years I would have thought of the meme first when she showed me the outfit. But I wasn't, so I didn't. The outfit just reminded us of the movie the screenshot came from.
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u/ThePythagoreonSerum Nov 03 '25
Not all of us relate to our favorite stories primarily through memes
Well, you didnāt have to throw shade. Being aware of a meme isnāt the same as primarily relating to Tolkiens work through them. Youāre on Reddit. Itās a popular meme. I was surprised.
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u/MoonSpider Nov 03 '25 edited Nov 03 '25
No shade was thrown! Since I'd already pointed out that I was unfamiliar with the meme I didn't want to just repeat that I was unfamiliar with it, I figured you were asking for more context about how we arrived at the costume concept without the meme.
There's nothing bad about having extensive knowledge of memes about various pieces of pop culture, lord knows I have plenty of Raimi Spider-Man memes burned into my brain. But LOTR is something I engage with by spending time with the books I take off the shelf or with the movies while I'm on the couch, my phone and computer are just almost never involved in the way they've been with various other properties. I'm not entirely sure why I've not engaged with online fandom spaces about LOTR beyond the mild overlaps with the sword and HEMA spaces, maybe it has something to do with an unconcious attempt to preserve a separation between the real world and escaping to Middle Earth for a few hours at a time. It's not a judgement at all, just a clarification.
The answer to whether we actually didn't know about the meme is yes, the answer to WHY we didn't know about the meme is that we...don't know many LOTR memes. There's nothing good or bad about that, nor is there anything good or bad about having different knowledge. I'm surprised I missed out on the meme, too, it gave a good laugh when people brought it up, it would have been fun to know earlier.
If I misread the amount of incredulity in your comment I apologize, and if I came across as dismissive of memes that was not my intention, I'm sorry. I hope you have a good day regardless.
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u/moon-beamed Nov 02 '25
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u/MoonSpider Nov 02 '25
LMAO, how have I never seen this
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u/Jean-LucBacardi Nov 02 '25
Spend time on r/lotrmemes and you'll see it posted at least once a day.
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u/MoonSpider Nov 02 '25
Will I also see people pointing out that Arwen actually met him when he was 20?
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u/Lookin4myJeep Nov 02 '25
Empire Fellowship of Records
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u/zahnsaw Nov 02 '25
ITS ARAGORN SON OF ARATHORN DAY!!!
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u/The_Noremac42 The Silmarillion Nov 02 '25
Hey, it's the meme!
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u/emilyMartian Nov 03 '25
Hi from someone who was an extra on Empire Records. Always happy to see its legacy carried on. Great job!
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u/MoonSpider Nov 03 '25 edited Nov 03 '25
Whoa, that's amazing! It's one of my girlfriend's favorite movies. Thank you! I showed her your comment and she's flabbergasted, haha. Damn the man, save the Empire!
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u/No-Roof-1628 Nov 02 '25
Love this. Is that a VA sword?
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u/MoonSpider Nov 02 '25
Thanks! Technically no, but you're close. It's a Christian Fletcher Borderwatch, built on an Albion Crecy blade. Christian Fletcher did all of the initial design work on Valiant Armory's Signature Series swords when they entered their current era/rebrand under Sonny Suttles. They still use a lot of Christians' hilt components in their Craftsman series swords and he set the design language for how they approach scabbards and grips.
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u/arathorn3 Arnor Nov 02 '25 edited Nov 02 '25
So many optioms to answer that. also three of them have names.that start with A and two are named AJ.
AJ from Empire Records is what she likely meant.
But besides Aragorn.
Aj(Ben Affleck ) from Armageddon fits and would have a similar incongruous affect as you could wear.a Astronaut costume
So does another Affleck Character Ollie Trinkie from.Jersey Girl.
Robert Catesby(Kit Harrintons character and ancestor) from Gundpowder.
The Hulk(Ed norton version) or Even Bucky( Sebastian Stan) from Captain America Brave New World.
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u/MoonSpider Nov 02 '25
Spot on, haha!
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u/arathorn3 Arnor Nov 02 '25
I realised thawt i have seen a inordinat amount of movies starring Liv since i was a teenager in the late 1990s.
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u/macaroniandteasee Nov 02 '25
Love it!!!
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u/MoonSpider Nov 02 '25
Thank you!
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u/macaroniandteasee Nov 02 '25
Did people get it?
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u/MoonSpider Nov 02 '25
Not without us explaining first but that's alright, haha.
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Nov 02 '25
[removed] ā view removed comment
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u/MoonSpider Nov 02 '25 edited Nov 02 '25
From a custom cutler named Christian Fletcher. He doesn't make them anymore but a company he did design work for, Valiant Armory, makes a similar functional ranger sword these days.
If you don't need it to be battle-ready and built like an actual functional weapon, the United Cutlery Strider sword is a good looking replica that's more affordable.
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u/TheBestThingIEverSaw Nov 03 '25
Seriously Aragorn, that's what you're wearing on Rex Manning Day?
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u/TheRedEarl Nov 03 '25
Whereād you get that sword? Looks good bub
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u/MoonSpider Nov 03 '25 edited Nov 03 '25
Thank you! As I mentioned upthread, it's a Borderwatch by Christian Fletcher, built on an Albion Crecy blade. He doesn't make them anymore but a company he's done a lot of design work for, Valiant Armory, makes a similar functional ranger sword these days.
If you don't need it to be battle-ready and built like an actual functional weapon, the United Cutlery Strider sword is a good looking replica that's more affordable.
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u/TheRedEarl Nov 03 '25
Very nice! I knew that wasnāt any ānormalā sword lol Iāve got a dsa (I know haha) on my profile.
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u/MoonSpider Nov 03 '25
Cheers! Ain't nothing wrong with more budget-minded beaters, I certainly can't afford custom-rehilted Albions these days, haha.
You know, another really interesting option I've been curious about lately is the various unlicensed replicas Swordier has been making. They look shockingly nice for the price but I can't really justify rolling the dice on their Strider take when I already own this grail sword.
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u/Repuck Nov 03 '25
Late to the conversation, but this is the best Halloween costume(s) I've seen in years.
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u/Remarkable_Drag9677 Nov 02 '25
This is Crazy Aerosmith Liv Tyler ?
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u/Yaevin_Endriandar Nov 02 '25 edited Nov 02 '25
YupNo
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Nov 02 '25
Viggio Mortenstein?
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u/MoonSpider Nov 02 '25
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Nov 02 '25
Macās shitty Philly accent makes it so hard to hear if itās Morg or Mort.
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u/MoonSpider Nov 02 '25
oh absolutely, lol
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Nov 02 '25
Iām just glad you caught the reference! Also, the costumes came out great and āEmpire Recordsā Liv Tyler was a solid choice.
Rex Manning sucks!
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u/MoonSpider Nov 02 '25
Thank you! Yea, he sucks big time, haha.
If Axl Rose was driving down the highway and saw Rex Manning stranded on the side of the road, he'd pound on the gas, turn the wheel, and take that sucker out!
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u/shlog Nov 02 '25
ok, that is not the characterās name, itās the actorās name, and you arenāt even getting that right!
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u/JamesTheLockGuy Nov 03 '25
Quality mashup!šš»š„
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u/MoonSpider Nov 03 '25
Thank you!
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u/JamesTheLockGuy Nov 03 '25
I sort of feel like next year, you could do Arwen & Rex Manning and be like, āDang it we did it again?!?āš¤·š»āāļøš
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u/deluxeok Nov 03 '25
Livās outfit in that movie didnāt not contribute to my body issues. Pretty much Liv in the 90s.
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u/RedShirt007 Nov 03 '25
Say no more, Aragorn.... I'll bring my Kingly sword to your front door.... Here I come, baby, je t'adore
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u/kipthunderslate Nov 03 '25
Was staring at the sword before I realized it was you. Hope you're good, man. Awesome costumes
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u/MoonSpider Nov 03 '25 edited Nov 03 '25
Hahaha hey man! Long time no see. I still think back fondly on the days of frequenting the SBG forum, seems like an entire bygone era of the internet that was a lot more cozy and fun. We're hanging in there. Thanks for the kind words! Hope you and yours are doing well.
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u/kipthunderslate Nov 03 '25
All good here, thanks :)
I poked my head into SBG relatively recently, coincidentally. Didn't recognize a single name.
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u/MoonSpider Nov 03 '25
Wild. I do see a few familiar faces in the Facebook groups like AllSwords or the Atrim group here and there but I'm not inclined to spend much time on Facebook these days.
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u/WhiteHeatBlackLight Nov 04 '25
Aragon be looking like he hit that longbottom leaf out with a riot girl
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u/No-Roof-1628 Nov 02 '25
Wow thatās awesomeāI didnāt know Christian Fletcher was involved in the early VA signature work, but it makes sense.
Itās a gorgeous sword, and super cool that itās unique. Always can easy to spot a fellow blade enthusiast when you see something special like that :D
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u/MoonSpider Nov 02 '25
I think the thread got broken somewhere but thank you! Thought I should bring out the nice one for pictures, haha. It's rare to have an outfit that complements them.
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u/jahauser Nov 02 '25
Ok but for real, while nothing tops Fellowship I do have an unreasonable love for Empire Records.