I've played a couple of ranger in 3.5, and overseen (as DM) several more. Even the TWF ranger didn't suck too much; he went with a breastplate, low Dex and used a two-bladed sword.
The ranger I'm currently playing is 4th-level and took archery (on the grounds that TWF really sucks at low levels compared to archery). He also has a finessed short sword for combat with humanoids and a spear for combat with boars and the like. He's the only party member who hasn't fallen unconscious, and I've had multiple opportunities to use his unique skills. Heck, he's so tough he deliberately provided cover for hostages* when a lot of fighter-types were available. Plus, I've been given the "Terminator" designation for the only one to make it through the acid-pit combat plus my good attack bonus
Aragorn isn't tough (he
never gets hit, suggesting a high Dex and class bonus to Defense), and Faramir was practically a wimp, so there's little in Tolkien's works that indicate that rangers are somehow tough. Perhaps you're thinking of the Endurance feat?
If you were to remove the magic from the ranger class you could easily replicate Aragorn and Faramir with them.
* By hostages, I mean lamp oil. We were on a wagon, with
lots of lamp oil, and an evil ranger was shooting at the lamp oil with flaming arrows. She was an accurate shot...