In the last episode of Rings of Power, we explored the political side of Middle Earth and witnessed the Numenorean consequences of going to battle. It seems the queen (Cynthia Addai-Robinson) will not be crowned, and there will be a shift in leadership. Sauron (Charlie Vickers) has fully ingratiated himself to Celebrimbor (Charles Edwards). They are planning on forging rings for the other races of Middle Earth. This week’s episode, Rings of Power: “Eldest,” starts back with the elves.
Recap
Galadriel (Morfydd Clark) was given permission to go on her quest, but only under the direction of Elrond (Robert Aramayo). This is interesting and a source of conflict for many reasons. The first being that Elrond has no combat experience, and they are literally walking into a battle no matter what they do. He has an even temper. He’s smart, but his mind works politically and not tactically. Him being the one to lead them simply to punish Galadriel seems like an oversight.
We also get back to The Stranger (Daniel Weyman) and his hobbits this episode. He has lost his hobbits, but he has found a new friend, Tom Bombadil (Rory Kinnear). This is a character that was much anticipated by fans. Tom helps our Stranger clean himself up. Also, Tom helps him realize his destiny and role in Middle Earth.
“There’s what you’re looking for and there’s what you find.” This is such a Tolkien line, said with incredible delivery.
Nori (Markella Kavenagh) and Poppy (Megan Richards) wake up in the middle of the desert, not sure where they are. Until they find another colony of Hobbits, very distrustful hobbits, and they get themselves tied up.
The show really seems to thrive on having a secret. The entire structure of the show seems to be built around having a reveal of some kind. Is the Stranger really Gandalf? Is the Dark wizard someone we know already, Saruman perhaps?
Rings of Power: “Eldest”
“Eldest” refers to the entrance of our newest character, Tom Bombadil. He states that, “Tom was here before the river and the trees.” He has been alive for much of history. Eldest comes directly from Tolkien’s writings about Bombadil, it being a title he calls himself. For context for our non book readers, Tom Bombadil was written intentionally to be enigmatic. He was never specifically stated to be a particular being, though some Tolkien scholars posit that he is one of the angelic beings of Valinor.
Our elven soldiers have to fight an army of the undead when they stumble into an ancient burial site. Elrond’s scholarly mind is what saves them. And then there is this incredible match cut from the elves to Arondir (Ismeal Cruz Cordova), Isildur (Maxim Baldry), and their group in the woods looking for Theo (Tyroe Muhafidin).
Arondir calls out Estrid (Nia Towle) on her burn mark. He knows that she bore the mark of Adar (Sam Hazeldine). When they are trudging through the forest Isildur gets himself sucked into the mud, taking Arondir with him. Estrid grabs a tree branch to save them both and it feels very reminiscent of The Princess Bride, which makes it amazing.
Final Thoughts
We get some really great background on how the Hobbit families kind of separated. The fact that a race, that so often Tolkien wanted to highlight and tell entire stories of their strength and kindness, finally gets some origin and some history and lore of their own is really incredible. Tolkien loved his hobbits, and they are being showcased beautifully.
We got a lot more creatures this episode. We got to see a giant mud snake. And more importantly, we got to see Ents. Also, we saw them fighting back against Adar and men felling their forest.
At the end of the episode, Galadriel faces off a pretty sizable group of orcs on her own, but not before handing her ring off to Elrond for safekeeping. It seems the ring not only amplifies the elves’ prophetic ability, but also their healing magic as well. Our very last scene is an incredible cliffhanger of Galadriel being captured by Adar.
Knowing where these characters end up really poses a challenge for the writers. If we know Galadriel and Elrond live, what are the stakes? The way that the tension is written, and the way that the actors lose themselves in their characters, really make the audience terrified for them. As we watch, we are genuinely concerned for their safety, and that is an incredible testament of creativity and skill from the entire creative team. Season 2 is paced so well so far. “Eldest” marks nearly halfway through the season, which feels so fast. However, they are setting up so much, and we are experiencing so many stories each episode. It is really a joy to watch.
