Pixar has dealt with the magical world plenty of times in the past. It's given cinematic life to talking toys, talking animals, talking cars, plus superheroes and monsters, but it's never waded so deeply into magic that's already well-established. That changes with Onward, the studio's new fantasy adventure film, which follows a mismatched pair of brother elves on an epic quest. The movie marks the first time creatures have appeared in the Pixar universe, but it's hardly the first time elves have starred in a blockbuster movie.

Of course, there's Elf, the heartwarmingly absurd 2003 film by Jon Favreau and starring Will Ferrell, not to mention a plethora of less critically acclaimed Christmas fare, all of which delve into North Pole elf lore. Onward's elves, however, spring from the tradition of epic fantasy rather than holiday kitsch. And no elves of that variety are more iconic than those of Peter Jackson's Oscar-winning Lord of the Rings trilogy.

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Legolas riding on an Oliphant

Based on a close adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien's classic books of the same name, Jackson's trilogy is, along with the MCU, one of cinema history's most impressive multifilm achievements. It sought to realize Middle Earth on screen in as much detail and with as much reverence as the notoriously meticulous author employed in his writing. Tolkien -- and by extension, Jackson- - gave us formidable characters like Legolas, Elrond and Arwen. These were Elves to aspire to, and their onscreen presence cemented the oft-used creature's modern archetype, one that lives on, for example, in roleplaying and video game form. Onward challenges that archetype in almost every way with Ian and Barley Lightfoot, but the film also touches upon some important themes having to do with the elf's true origin.

Tolkien's Elves are ultimately a myth of his own making. They were influenced by existing folklore, but Tolkien's worldbuilding was so complex, it created what was essentially a new branch known as his Legendarium. He built that world the same way storytellers have been creating fantasies for millennia, using a combination of theology, cosmology, mythology and his imagination. But legends about and belief in elves predate Tolkien's Legendarium by centuries.

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The conception of the being that would come to be known as the elf happened, in the grand scheme of time, almost simultaneously across several cultures during the Middle Ages. As pagan tradition met Christian influence in Norse, Germanic and Old English societies, people looked for ways to make sense of their changing world. Elves could, conveniently, explain all manner of human weakness. Their meddling influence, not your free will, caused you to be sick or drunk or unfaithful. Distinctions between fairytale creatures, religious iconography and actual science have always been blurry, to say the least. Norse elves, for example, fell into two camps -- light and dark -- and possessed some of the traits of angels and demons. Some elves resembled what people think of today as fairies, and can manipulate nature. Though their size and appearances varied from region to region, they had a few key characteristics in common: liminal power, pointy ears and a predilection for messing around in the affairs of measly humans.

Tolkien crafted a race of what are really Super-Elves, born of gods, by cherry-picking from the best of elf mythos. He bestowed them with an ethereal presence, otherworldly beauty, intelligence, patience, incredible athletic prowess and even immortality -- so long as they didn't get themselves killed in battle. And that's not to mention the pointy ears.

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This is where the Elves of Middle Earth and the brothers of Onward begin to take divergent paths, though both seem to enjoy a good quest. Where Tolkien's Elves are superior to humans in just about every way, they still exist in a world that includes them. Onward's elves, on the other hand, seem almost human because, in this corner of the Pixar Universe, there aren't any. Elves are the stand-in for regular people, with an array of bad habits, boring jobs and imperfect body types.

It's also clear from the start that Onward's elves are mortal, a fact that drives the whole plot. It might seem like all Pixar did was render voice actors Tom Holland and Chris Pratt in blue, and extend the tips of their ears a bit, but the way magic is treated in Onward -- as something of cultural significance, meant to be preserved -- is still on par with what medieval poets were trying to accomplish.

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Tolkien originally wanted his Elves to be called Fairies, but a friend convinced him that, by the time of his writing, the term came loaded with homophobia. He'd planned to play out the idea of a once-great Elf race that became more diminutive and less powerful over generations. Interestingly, both elves and sprites (a subset of fairy) are seen in Onward, and the narrative itself has to do with the devolution of a magical society. In that way, Pixar is picking up Tolkien's torch and running with it. By illustrating into being a new kind of elf -- one that cherry-picks elements of their liking, to suit their ends -- Pixar is continuing in the great tradition of mythmaking.

Written and directed by Dan Scanlon, Pixar's Onward stars Chris Pratt, Tom Holland, Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Octavia Spencer. The film arrives in theaters March 6.

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