Well, that was a finale that delivered on all the promises the series set forth in its premiere. We were shown the identity of Sauron (which I was wrong about last week, although I’ll give myself partial credit for outlining all the ways Halbrand could be Sauron in a previous review), we learned that The Stranger is, in fact, a wizard – although which one, we still have yet to learn. We said goodbye to almost all the Harfoots (thank goodness – let’s let them turn into the Hobbits in peace now). And, ladies and gentlemen, we have rings.
Yes, we have rings. Sure, the Elven rings were, technically, the last of the Rings of Power that were forged in Tolkein’s text. But we have rings. And we also have a Galadriel who is continuing to walk an ever-darkening path, led by a desire for revenge rather than power, who now feels the sting of betrayal* and has the knowledge that Suaron’s continued presence in Middle Earth it wholly her fault. With Halbrand’s true identity known only by Galadriel and presumably Elrond (although he has promised to hold the secret, I don’t particularly trust that he won’t let it slip when it is politically advantageous to him – we need to start seeing the Elrond who will become Lord of Rivendell some day begin to emerge), we can say that yes, these are the three Elven rings – for the Elven-kings, under the sky – and that they were indeed forged with the help of Sauron.
*A big kudos to the writers for more or less concealing that heel turn for Halbrand until this episode. Yes, the groundwork was well-laid, but it wasn’t until he strutted into Celebrimbor’s forge like he owned the place that the penny fully dropped for me. Kudos also to Charlie Vickers for adding some key tells to his work this week, as Halbrand senses his first victory is at hand and he’s managed to scheme his way into the trust of the Elves.
But here’s where the story gets interesting. So much of drama comes from a character (or a few) along with the audience being in on a major secret – one that, if widely known, could throw the whole narrative into turmoil. The episode’s writers, Gennifer Hutchison and J. D. Payne & Patrick McKay, made the smart choice to not simply have Galadriel reveal her knowledge to the Elves at large. Now, should she have? Probably. I mean, you’ve got Sauron, he told you to forge two “crowns,” and Galadriel runs in, soaking wet from the river, and proposes a third “crown” – a check on the power of only having two. And in that moment, she truly believes she’s tempered Sauron’s influence. These rings will not be corruptible by Sauron, despite his clear attempt at sowing division with the suggestion of only two (which, she rightly notes, will lead to betrayal). But her choice was also selfish – seeking to protect herself and her standing by burying the lede – that man I begged you to save is actually the servant of Morgoth who I have been seeking to kill. And I led him right into our home. Also interesting? She knows that having two rings will lead to betrayal, but what of having two secret keepers?
Now, we all know that secrets like these get revealed right at the moment when they can do the most damage. And, if we’ve read our Tolkien or checked Wikipedia to refresh our memories, we know that Celebrimbor at some point in the near future will forge the rest of the rings – save for the One Ring – and will again do so under the influence of Sauron. So, does Galadriel not know of this forging? Does she come in too late to stop it, revealing who Halbrand truly is? I can’t imagine Sauron will have changed his look in the interim – he has earned Celebrimbor’s trust at this point (he, after all, was behind the suggestion to combine the mithril with precious metals). It behooves Sauron to continue in this guise for the immediate future. So, I suspect this particular secret stays hidden until we see the remaining rings forged. For that is the only way there will be trust enough to explain Halbrand’s presence.
And speaking of trust, that is turning out to be the true touchstone of the series. From making Sauron’s new mission “saving” Middle Earth from itself by uniting it under the rule of himself and Galadriel (another call-back or foreshadow to her speech to Frodo in Lord of the Rings about being a Dark Queen with the influence of the One Ring) to highlighting that the different races within Middle Earth need to trust one another in order for them to succeed in the coming war (Prince Durin giving Elrond the mithril saves the Elves, Galadriel’s work with Númenór, Nori working alongside The Stranger), The Rings of Power may be about creating the weapons that will shatter Middle Earth, but it’s also showing us how if each race could only work alongside the others they could resist the call of darkness that is coming. It’s a really nice message – one that we will see in action during The Lord of the Rings – and it’s especially poignant in light of the vitriol that has come at the series from certain corners of the internet. In the coming second season, take some time to track the alliances between the races and see what happens when they work with one another and when they work against.
Things down in Númenór look to be taking a turn, with the king dying and the new Queen blind – a nice metaphor to how she will also be blind to the machinations of her advisor Pharazôn, whose closeness with Sauron will help usher in the doom of their people. One of the reasons I had initially suspected Halbrand might be Sauron was due to his ability to ingratiate himself with everyone he met. And the closeness he forged with the smiths of Númenór was one key clue. We know he must return to there, influencing those susceptible to his charms. And with Eärien, Isildur’s sister, now privy to the prophecies that the Queen has seen, well, that certainly adds a wild card to the deck. I had been wondering about her purpose within the series – since she seemed to exist solely to be the contrarian to her father and brother but entrusting her with this prophecy will turn her into a much more powerful game piece moving forward. How she chooses to wield this knowledge – who she tells, how she interprets what she sees – will likely be crucial to how effective the Queen’s rule can be and how destructive Sauron will be once he returns (and we know he will).
And then there’s the Harfoots. I can honestly say I hope we don’t see hide nor hair of them again until the series finale, when they will magically have built Hobbiton and rebranded, or something like that. Sure, it will be interesting to see how a wizard figures out his identity. But did we need to have Bilbo . . . er, I mean Nori . . . go on the adventure with him? That being said, his journey to Rhûn should be an interesting one. Of all the wizards known in Tolkein’s texts, only three ever made the journey there successfully. Two of the three – Alatar and Pallando – opted to remain there whilst the third – Saruman, you might remember him? – returned after his journey. Sauron also eventually fled there, once Gandalf successfully sniffed him out of his hiding place, prior to his return to Mount Doom and the start of The Lord of the Rings. But, for those guessing that the wizard might be Gandalf (which doesn’t track with the timeline, but I think we’ve tossed the timeline out the window at this point), note that he never made it to Rhûn, so I suspect the true identity of this wizard will be revealed based on how far this journey goes.
With three of the titular Rings of Power now in existence – albeit three that will never be under Sauron’s influence but will provide strength and power to the Elves in the coming Ages – and the identity of the show’s true antagonist revealed, The Rings of Power accomplished a heck of a lot in its first season. Yes, it looked like a billion bucks every episode (those costumes in the debate scene between our four central elves were just incredible to look at). But more importantly, it embraced the magic of Middle Earth in telling a story that put character before flash and crafted the start of what is promising to be a real fantasy epic. Sure, there were some bumps along the road and some arcs never hit the heights they needed to, but with the story now clearly laid out and our heroes well on their way to their preordained destinies, I trust that what is to come will surpass what we have already seen. This series was a massive gamble – one that, it appears, actually paid off.
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