The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power

[Flanders]

Really enjoyed episode 3, this show has a lot going for it. I’m also very much liking this and House of the Dragon being on at the same time, it’s a real treat to experience two massive shows that on the surface look similar but in reality are absolute polar opposites in how they tell their stories. 
 

I internally groaned a little bit when I realised we were going to get an extended Harfoot bit, but they won me back by delving into the underlying harshness of their culture - adds a real pathos to them, they’re not just hobbits on a hike. 
 

But the biggest excitement in this episode was all around Halbrand:

 

Spoiler

He’s Sauron isn’t he? Good-looking, silver tongued, suppressed violence, wants to get forging. Or do we think it’s a misdirect?

 

[metallicfrodo]

45 minutes ago, Flanders said:

 

But the biggest excitement in this episode was all around Halbrand:

 

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He’s Sauron isn’t he? Good-looking, silver tongued, suppressed violence, wants to get forging. Or do we think it’s a misdirect?

 

Don’t think that is likely, more likely to be 

Spoiler

Witch King of Angmar if he is destined to be a baddie.

He’s being set up like as if he might have an Aragorn type role, which is probably a misdirect.

 

 

Edit: Although having reminded myself of the story of Numenor your theory could well be correct.

[Darren]

Episode 3 is the best one yet, despite containing zero dwarves.
 

I had assumed that this was set after Numenor 

 

Spoiler

sank

so I was very pleasantly surprised to be proven wrong. Suddenly the scope of a multi-season set of stories doesn’t seem so outlandish. There’s a lot of ground to cover.

[Jamie John]

Episode 3:

 

The visuals are excellent and the sets are incredible...but the writing and acting is a wee bit duff, isn't it? Not all the time, but enough of the time for it to be a problem. Just very stilted in places and unnatural.

 

And slow-mo Galadriel's

Spoiler

happy horseback face gurn will keep me up tonight. That was weird.

 

Still, I thought the ending scene was good. It was a lot more 

Spoiler

violent than I was expecting, as it's all been pretty PG up until now. That bug-eyed hyena wolf thing was pretty fucked up.

 

Lore noob questions:

 

Spoiler

'Isildor' - he's the guy who refuses to chuck the ring into the volcano at the start of The Fellowship of the Ring, right? I liked his dad's character, but I got a bit lost as to where he and Galadriel went off to midway through the episode.

 

And is the island kingdom they get taken to the same place as Minis Tirith, I think it's called? A lot of the architecture looked the same, and there's that tree with the pale blossoms that's made a big deal of in the films. Minis Tirith isn't surrounded by water, though, so I guess it just all...dried up?

 

Apologies if I offend any nerdy sensibilities with my ignorance.

[metallicfrodo]

10 minutes ago, Jamie John said:

Lore noob questions:

 

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'Isildor' - he's the guy who refuses to chuck the ring into the volcano at the start of The Fellowship of the Ring, right? I liked his dad's character, but I got a bit lost as to where he and Galadriel went off to midway through the episode.

 

And is the island kingdom they get taken to the same place as Minis Tirith, I think it's called? A lot of the architecture looked the same, and there's that tree with the pale blossoms that's made a big deal of in the films. Minis Tirith isn't surrounded by water, though, so I guess it just all...dried up?

 

Apologies if I offend any nerdy sensibilities with my ignorance.

 

Spoiler

Yes, that is Isildor, of Isildor’s bane fame.

 

They said they going to a library somewhere on the Island.

 

No this is Numenor, it’s off the coast of middle earth. Minus Tirith is in Gondor in the Southlands near Mordor, the area they show on the map when Galadriel realises it’s not a Sigil but a map. Numenor isn’t there anymore by the Third Age.

 

 

 

[Jamie John]

1 minute ago, metallicfrodo said:

 

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Yes, that is Isildor, of Isildor’s bane fame.

 

They said they going to a library somewhere on the Island.

 

No this is Numenor, it’s off the coast of middle earth. Minus Tirith is in Gondor in the Southlands near Mordor, the area they show on the map when Galadriel realises it’s not a Sigil but a map. Numenor isn’t there anymore by the Third Age.

 

 

 

 

Username checks out!

 

So is all this prequel stuff just from the Simarallion, then, or are there other books as well?

[Chindie]

14 minutes ago, Jamie John said:

Episode 3:

 

The visuals are excellent and the sets are incredible...but the writing and acting is a wee bit duff, isn't it? Not all the time, but enough of the time for it to be a problem. Just very stilted in places and unnatural.

 

And slow-mo Galadriel's

  Hide contents

happy horseback face gurn will keep me up tonight. That was weird.

 

Still, I thought the ending scene was good. It was a lot more 

  Hide contents

violent than I was expecting, as it's all been pretty PG up until now. That bug-eyed hyena wolf thing was pretty fucked up.

 

Lore noob questions:

 

  Hide contents

'Isildor' - he's the guy who refuses to chuck the ring into the volcano at the start of The Fellowship of the Ring, right? I liked his dad's character, but I got a bit lost as to where he and Galadriel went off to midway through the episode.

 

And is the island kingdom they get taken to the same place as Minis Tirith, I think it's called? A lot of the architecture looked the same, and there's that tree with the pale blossoms that's made a big deal of in the films. Minis Tirith isn't surrounded by water, though, so I guess it just all...dried up?

 

Apologies if I offend any nerdy sensibilities with my ignorance.

 

Lore noob responses

 

Spoiler

Isildur is the guy that refuses to destroy the ring after Sauron's first defeat, as seen at the start of Jackson's Fellowship.

 

The place Galadriel and Halbrand end up in is called Numenor. Minas Tirith is in Gondor, which has a history with Numenor.

 

[Chindie]

1 minute ago, Jamie John said:

 

Username checks out!

 

So is all this prequel stuff just from the Simarallion, then, or are there other books as well?

 

The basic outline of what this show should contain is laid out in the Silmarillion (amongst a lot of other stuff that happens before this series), but there's stuff in other works, like the Unfinished Tales, that also potentially plays into things. But the show can't expressly adapt those works and is limited to the references to the events in those works that are referred to in the appendices of Lord of the Rings.

 

As a result, a load of this isn't in the books at all. Galadriel doesn't go to Numenor, Halbrand is a new character, the not-hobbits are completely irrelevant and made up, the meteor man is made up and probably an attempt to introduce things that aren't relevant at this point.

 

But the big 'events' are predominately from the canon. Probably. So far.

[Sabreman]

I'm nerding out quite a bit tonight reading these speculations. I used to have that book Wizcat un(middle)earthed, and I've pre-ordered the upcoming kindle version. 

 

I'm... going to try to read The Silmarillion again. Granted, last time I tried I was 13 and all I remember is that it felt like reading a succession of encyclopaedia entries.

[scottcr]

An awesome episode

 

 

Spoiler

Halbrand is Sauron right???

 

[Sidewaysbob]

Spoiler

I'm not sure how it can be sauron, if the orcs are looking for the "map" on the sword hilt in middle earth. Why is he out in the sea looking for wayward shipwreck elves? 

 

He is rather interest in blacksmith work though. But I though Sauron learned that from the elves, not men.

 

[Chindie]

Character discussion/speculation

Spoiler

Halbrand being Sauron would be a bit rubbish. Having him as the Witch-King works better IMO. Sauron's story involving the events of this series don't really need to be changed at all, it's quite a well done story that doesn't need to be obfusticated.

 

[Chindie]

1 minute ago, Sidewaysbob said:

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I'm not sure how it can be sauron, if the orcs are looking for the "map" on the sword hilt in middle earth. Why is he out in the sea looking for wayward shipwreck elves? 

 

He is rather interest in blacksmith work though. But I though Sauron learned that from the elves, not men.

 

Re. history of that character

Spoiler

Sauron was the 'angel' that most associated with the smith god Aule, and he learned a great deal of knowledge in the creation of things from him, until he chose to follow Morgoth.

 

Sauron seduces the elves into making the rings of power, advising and assisting them on the skills needed to create things of such power. This form he takes is very beautiful, going by the name Annatar, and called 'Lord of Gifts'.

 

[Hanzo the Razor]

Fuckin' hell. That was drier than a Camels chuff!

[jonamok]

Ep 3 was definitely not as great as 1 & 2, but still good. Numenor was very impressive, but the plot there (bar the symbol reveal) was sloooow. And that Galadriel horsey slomo was wank, and rather unflattering to Morfydd.
 

Harfoots are a wacky bunch, aren’t they? Gotta love their weird, casual migration cruelty. I’m also loving Arondir’s story, and excited to see where that goes next.

[Jamie John]

37 minutes ago, DualSense said:

This is great fun.  I liked the Galadriel horsey slow mo oddly…it’s the sheer joy on her gurning face.

 

It's the fact that, up until that point, and after, she doesn't so much as smirk, but for those ten seconds she's suddenly all

 

 

Anyway. Are she 

Spoiler

and that mad lad, Halbrand, or whatever, totally going to get it on, or is that no allowed because of racism reasons? Were Aragorn and Liv Tyler the first human-elf couple?

 

[Mogster]

1 hour ago, Jamie John said:

Anyway. Are she 

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and that mad lad, Halbrand, or whatever, totally going to get it on, or is that no allowed because of racism reasons? Were Aragorn and Liv Tyler the first human-elf couple?

 

 

Nope.

 

Spoiler

Elrond is known as Elrond Half-Elven for a start. I assumed he was the son of an elf and a human, but it turns out both his parents were also half-elven, both being children of elves and humans.

 

[Chindie]

41 minutes ago, Jamie John said:

 

It's the fact that, up until that point, and after, she doesn't so much as smirk, but for those ten seconds she's suddenly all

 

 

Anyway. Are she 

  Hide contents

and that mad lad, Halbrand, or whatever, totally going to get it on, or is that no allowed because of racism reasons? Were Aragorn and Liv Tyler the first human-elf couple?

 

 

On the spoiler

Spoiler

Aragorn and Arwen were the last that Tolkein writes about. Human-elf relationships are very rare and they're usually associated with great tragedy. Besides Arwen and Aragorn there's 2 others - Beren and Luthien, the story of which is one of Tolkein's best 'small' stories and is the relationship he chose to associate with his own marriage, and Tuor and Idril, who are Elrond's grandparents.

 

[Captain Novaforce]

Elrond:

Spoiler

Yeah he was half elven but I think he was given a boon by one of the valar to live as an elf so is basically an elf by this point 

 

Anyway I'm loving this, some of the panning shots are amazing in HD. I even like the harfoots 

[Chindie]

4 minutes ago, DualSense said:

And…

 

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Aren’t Beren and Luthien Elronds great grandparents on the other side of his family. 

I totally loved it when…

 

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They focused on the picture and there was Galadriel.

 

On the first point

Spoiler

Yes Elrond has half-elven ancestors on both sides.

 

Elrond and his brother were actually granted the choice to whether they wished to be elf or human - Elrond choosing elf, his brother human, which was the beginning of greater tragedy...

 

[Waggo]

Thought this latest episode was the best yet.

 

The attempted escape was excellent, and the visuals on display in the human city were absolutely stunning.  To my mind they surpassed anything created for the LOTR trilogy itself, which is some achievement.

 

I think the actress who plays Galadriel is absolutely nailing it, and the amount of superiority and arrogance she displays even in unfavourable situations is perfect for where I think they are taking her role.  
 

Spoiler

To lead Halbrand to his destiny as a great king, only for him to be corrupted by one of the rings and end up as leader of the Nazgûl.

 

[Protocol Penguin]

Possibly idiot-tier questions:

Spoiler

Are the Irish-sounding people Hobbits?

 

In episode 3, we’re the orcs(?) building the area around what becomes Christopher Lee’s tower?

(NB I’ve watched the LotR film trilogy, but never read the books. So I’m not clued up on this. Enjoying the new series so far, mostly, though!)

[Jamie John]

5 minutes ago, Protocol Penguin said:

Possibly idiot-tier questions:

  Reveal hidden contents

Are the Irish-sounding people Hobbits?

 

In episode 3, we’re the orcs(?) building the area around what becomes Christopher Lee’s tower?

(NB I’ve watched the LotR film trilogy, but never read the books. So I’m not clued up on this. Enjoying the new series so far, mostly, though!)

 

I think the Harfoots are ancestors of the Hobbits. One of them is called Brandyfoot, like Brandybuck in the trilogy.

[Melon_Bread]

Really liked the first 2 but found the 3rd episode a bit generic, what happened to Halbrand in this episode I've seen a million times in other movies.

 

I hope they are going somewhere a bit more surprising with his storyline. 

[Boothjan]

22 minutes ago, Protocol Penguin said:

Possibly idiot-tier questions:

  Hide contents

Are the Irish-sounding people Hobbits?

 

In episode 3, we’re the orcs(?) building the area around what becomes Christopher Lee’s tower?

(NB I’ve watched the LotR film trilogy, but never read the books. So I’m not clued up on this. Enjoying the new series so far, mostly, though!)

 

Spoiler

The area they're digging up is what becomes Mordor

 

[Protocol Penguin]

@Jamie John @Boothjan thanks!  Did a bit of digging online just now, didn’t realise it was set so far before LotR, and isn’t based directly on existing material as such!

[Broker]

Well, I only just got round to watching the first episode of this but I’m really surprised to see such a positive reaction. I thought it was pretty bad. It’s got nice effects (though I think foundation has maybe already blown my mind with what’s possible on modern TV budgets), but it’s sorely lacking a POV character in the first episode.

 

The jumping around between a bunch of characters without giving me much reason to care about any of them did very little to get me invested. The dialogue is clunky and so expositional. The narration at the start felt like it was never going to end. Everyone is just describing what’s happening but nobody except Elrond seems to have very much personality. 
 

It did feel like mostly setup, so maybe it will get a bit more focused in the next one. But I feel like they really should have just picked someone, preferably Galadriel, and focused on them instead of throwing out so many characters. The hobbits are awful. Despite not being based on the silmarillion it feels like it, just a description of a series of events with very little character or narrative to get me engaged. Very am dram feeling in places. 

[wev]

Seeing people commenting they find Galadriel unlikeable, that she's got an attitude etc like it's something new. I always felt the Elves thought they were superior to all the other races and that they felt the other races very existence was owed to them (with a few exceptions)

[Waggo]

1 hour ago, Boothjan said:

 

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The area they're digging up is what becomes Mordor

 

I assumed they were searching for: 

Spoiler

The broken blade the kid found under his house in either episode 1 or 2.

 

[Darwock]

I can understand the reasons why if it has been changed, but is the race of ‘men’ (as described in the books) ever actually referred to by the word ‘human’? Galadriel’s shipwreck buddy said something like “it doesn’t do any harm to humans” and in the context of LOTR it sounded odd.