[Alfirin]

Originally Posted by Alcuin

Radagast simply lost focus on his mission. He was sent to Middle-earth by Yavanna because Aulë sent Saruman. (This part of the legendarium smacks of the kind of jealousy seen in Greek myth between Zeus and Hera, for instance.)]

Actually that brings up a interesting point. It suddenly occurs to me that another reason R. might wish to stay was on the possibility that the blue wizards were still alive (as Saruman, and R. himself demonstrate in the case of wizards "failed in mission" does not automatically translate to "dead") and he had to stay as a counterbalnce. Alatar and Pallando were after all, sent by Orome and so might be a little too fond of hunting (all of the other Istari seem to show proclivites remiscent of the Valar that chose them, so the blues presumably do as well). Maybe dawn of the forth age Radagast was a little worried that, shoud Alatar and Pallando return from the East (If their role truly had been to forment resistance against Sauron in the East, with Sauron gone, they might have wandered more freely) and that ME needed him around to play Lorax.



I think I met Radagast many years ago in Berkley, California. He was running a Ben & Jerry’s, wore Birkenstocks, had a staff, and was followed around by a couple of deer and lots of birds and furry critters.

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It may be, though personally Ive always though of Radagast as looking quite a bit younger (the Ishtari were only supposed to age through the rigors of their labors. Since R. seems to have gone native pretty quicky, and his native live seems (at least until the very end), largely stress free, I imagine he aged less than Gandalf or Saruman. I tend to think of him has having Gandalf's build more or less, tall and slender but with hair and bear that are still largely brown (The image I keep getting is basically somwhere between Ron Moody's Fagin in a pointy hat and Kirby's version of Rincewing plus ten years)

As for Saruman possibly planning to eliminate R. had he come to power, I think this is almost certain. To me, at least the litany Saruman accused Gandalf of wanting were things that Saruman himself desired; had he suceeded in his desires he no doubt would have wished to take Barad-Dur's keys (along with Barad-Dur itself likey) and the crowns of kings. Taking all of the wizards rods, making himself the one and only wizard; holder of all power, would likey sit high on his list. He did desire all five staffs, in fact (If you belive some of the possible fragments about what happened to the blue wizards) he may have already had three of them, as he technically already had one crown, Isildur's original one (mentioned at the end of "The Disaster of the Gladden Fields" in the UT)