"The Forbidden Pool" - Jacob's Thoughts

This Frodo is a different character.

This is not the nephew pining for mountains in his lil' Hobbit hole, or cowering before Farmer Maggot, or getting half-eaten by frickin' Willow Trees, or openly lusting after Tom Bombadil's wife, or summoning his adorable little Hobbit courage against the Barrel-Wights, or making an abject fool of himself at the Prancing Pony, or getting mocked by Strider, or frolicking around Rivendell, or what have you. 

No, this is a new character.  Whether that is because this journey has changed him irrevocably, or he was simply never that clearly drawn of a character to begin with and thus changes fluidly based on the needs of the story, is a more difficult question to parse. 

Perhaps the Ring has infected him too much by now.  Or maybe the claim that Smeagol's service has made on his soul has altered it, made something a little more regal of it--Frodo now feels all the heavy responsibility of the Lordship without any of the attendant benefits.  Maybe some combination of all of the above, maybe something else entirely.

In any case, the way Frodo solemnly addresses Faramir, as an equal--and the way Faramir naturally reciprocates, as a kindred spirit--is different from any manner we've seen him behave before.  Don't get me wrong, I like it--and I don't normally enjoy this style of perpetual self-seriousness, but the chemistry between these two characters just seems to click in every scene they share--and I especially appreciate how Faramir's intuitive insight into the souls and intentions of others, including both Gollum's and Frodo's, makes him a natural soulmate for equally-insightful Frodo, thus enhancing the intrinsic tragedy that they will scarcely get a chance to ever let that mutual regard blossom into genuine friendship, such is the cost of war--yet nevertheless, this Frodo here feels as alien and strange to me as he does to Faramir.

This is not the same Frodo I've been journeying with all along.  This Frodo is a new character.  And I don't quite yet know how I feel about it.