[Legate of Amon Lanc]

Originally Posted by skip spence

Of course. I don't know what is and what isn't a huorn, ent or tree. Guess my point is that the huorns at Helm's Deep seem very different to Old Man Willow, how should I say, more "alive" and mobile. Old Man Willow is very much a tree, despite his cunning and dark influence.

Well, if you look at what Treebeard says, the trees are actually awakening, which is a process, so there may be "just a tree", then "a tree which feels the presence of others stronger", then "a tree who can move his branch", then "a tree who can move his roots", then "a tree who can actually walk 5 km/h" or something like that. So you see, Old Man Willow may simply be lower on this "awakening ladder" than the Huorns from Helm's Deep are. Or, he simply doesn't want to move. If nothing else, he can move his branches and roots (using both to push Frodo into the water) and make openings in itself to imprison the Hobbits. Of course, if he really is not something different - but something like a huorn is as much probable as anything else, I'd say.

Originally Posted by Nazgûl-king

Perhaps the anger in the forest flows out of Old Man Willow to the rest of the trees, as he seems to be the heart of the forest and the book says that the Withywindle valley where Old Man Willow was is "the centre from which all the queerness comes". I could see Old man Willow being the type to keep the trees angry and full of hate.

Funnily enough, I always associated the "queerness" Merry spoke about with Tom Bombadil; thus, misinterpretating it, or misunderstanding the way it goes in the forest. That's just to mention it, however.