Originally posted by The Inkeeper
I dont think legolas is too old, why he was sent on behalf of elves is beyond me.I mean think about it, your in Rivendell holding a counsel and need a strong and capable elf, so they sent Legolas. Its not like he was their only choice being in a huge elf settlement.
Legolas, along with Gimli and Boromir were sent because they all arrived with news, or for counsel, just before the Council of Elrond, so it seemed they were involved in these matters by fate, just as Frodo was. It is not by coincidence that Boromir had a dream, that Legolas came to report that Gollum had fled from Mirkwood at the same time as Gimli came to consult Elrond. They were meant to come together. Also, they were all leaders of the younger generation: Legolas son of the king, Gimli son of Gloin of the Lonely Mountains, Boromir son of the ruler of Gondor. Young enough to go questing, but leader enough to represent their kindreds. It would have made sense to send Glorfindel, or Elladan or Elrohir, but I think Elrond suspected that the north would be attacked and they would need their leaders. The Fellowship already had Gandalf. Not to mention that there's that "9" thing, and Merry and Pippin were already dead set on going.
Originally posted by Dresta
actually legolas is something like 4 or 5 thousand years old and the son of the king of mirkwood.
Legolas' exact age was NEVER stated by Tolkien. We can only speculate through some of Legolas' recollections and family history. But he's definitely NOT 4 or 5 thousand years old. Yes, he would certainly be old compared to the rest of the Fellowship, but as an Elf, he's still in his "tweens". For more info, go here.
Just because he's immortal, it doesn't mean that he has lived as long as the other Elves have.
As for the hair:
Tolkien never specified what Legolas' hair color was, nor do I think that he ever intended to, so we're all screwed. It might very well be punkish orange with blue highlights for all we know. The point is, trying to figure out Legolas' hair color is like trying to figure out how many licks it takes to get to the center of a Tootsie Pop. "The world may never know." It all just comes down to personal preference.
Having said that, I prefer my Leggy as a blondie, since I've always seen him that way.
For one, if you're going to bank on him following a genetic trend, the only possibility we're given is blonde, his father's hair color. His father had blonde hair, so it's a *possible* genetic trend. If the elven genome in Tolkien's Middle-earth is the same as ours, blonde hair is recessive and we limit the possibilities of his mother's hair to blonde or brown/brunnete, Legolas could have either 100% chance (mother's hair being blonde), 50% chance (mother's hair being brown but carrying the recessive blonde trait), or 0% chance (mother's hair is brown without carrying the recessive blonde trait). Then again, Legolas' mother could have had silver hair or, though much less likely, red hair. This is all rather complicated and is based on many assumptions.
Second, simply living in a community of brown haired people does not make you and your family have brown hair. Since we know that Thranduil had blonde hair, although he is Sindarin, the question of Thranduil's ancestry comes into this. Perhaps his mother or grandmother was of the kindred of the Vanyar, but an Avari who never went to Valinor.
And third:
"Frodo looked up at the Elf standing tall above him, as he gazed into the night, seeking a mark to shoot at. His head was dark, crowned with sharp white stars that glittered in the black pools of the sky behind."
-- The Great River, FOTR.
It was pitch-black at the time; Legolas could not even see what it was he shot, and his eyes are better than Frodo's. I don't think that the darkness there has anything to do with his hair.
But like I said, it's all up to our imagination.