It’s been clear for some time now, but Stephen Colbert is a Lord of the Rings obsessive, and on Friday the host took a few minutes to critique what he saw as a half-baked Tolkien homage by Brazilian scientists.
The problem? Said scientists recently named a new species of spider after Lord of the Rings character Sméagol, for the reason that the arachnid, like its namesake, was “scary-looking” and “lives in caves.” But Sméagol, in fact, is a gentle, peace-loving hobbit; Gollum is the cruel, cave-dwelling creature he becomes after being corrupted by the Ring. One distinction to rule them all, folks.
