50 reasons Star Wars is better than Lord of The Rings

27. Tatooine vs. Shire

What Was Tatooine? Luke’s home planet

What Was the Shire? Frodo’s homeland

Verdict: On paper, you go with the Shire. Compared to Luke’s arid, inhospitable desert planet, it looks like absolute paradise. Even if the housing market isn’t made for those of us of human size, it’s still better than living in a pit literally farming moisture from the air.

Think about it in terms of character-building though. Luke’s struggle to stay alive in his childhood prepared him particularly well for his adventures in the Rebel Alliance. Would he have survived the openly hostile environments of Hoth and Dagobah had he grown up in some poshier place with better schools and a Trader Joes just around the corner? Probably not! While half of Luke’s success is based in the Force, the other half is built upon the scar tissue of growing up on a garbage planet.

In contrast, we have the Hobbits. A well-meaning and occasionally brave race, they are also immeasurably soft. Rarely is their well-being or comfort at stake in their day to day lives. They live in a bucolic paradise, tending to fields and raising animals, eating upwards of ten meals a day. It’s no wonder Gandalf entrusted the ring to Frodo: he was so pampered his entire life that greed, avarice and anger weren’t just in short supply in his wheelhouse, they were likely completely foreign concepts to him.

If you’re going to pick the hero you need to go through hell and back in order to save the galaxy/world, from which place would you pick? You’re right. It’s Tatooine.

Star Wars wins

Next: 26. Force vs. Magic