No products in the cart.
The Rings of Power seasonseason 2,2, episodeepisode 66 recap:recap: SomethingSomething wickedwicked thisthis wayway comes!comes!
In a long-overdue review this week, we return to Middle-earth for yet another instalment in the second season of The Rings of Power (TRoP), an episode entitled “Where is He?” Whilst the writing for this season has been decidedly inconsistent, the last episode did provide some interesting characterisation and developments. It focused on the more engaging of this show’s plotlines. Was this a fluke, or can we also expect better from The Rings of Power S2 E6?
Without giving too much away, all is not yet lost as we delve into The Rings of Power world. The series teeters on the edge of disaster.
WARNING: Spoilers and heavy themes discussed below!
Characters discussed in order of first mention:
- Ismael Cruz Córdova plays Arondir
- Charles Edwards plays Celebrimbor
- Charlie Vickers plays Sauron, also known as Annatar
- Amelia Kenworthy plays Mirdania
- Sam Hazeldine plays Adar
- Morfydd Clark plays Galadriel
- Lloyd Owen plays Elendil
- Trystan Gravelle plays Pharazôn
- Daniel Weyman plays The Stranger
- Markella Kavenagh plays Nori
- Rory Kinnear plays Tom Bombadil
- Megan Richards plays Poppy
- Gavi Singh Chera plays Nobody, also known as Merimac
- Peter Mullan plays Durin III
- Owain Arthur plays Durin IV
- Sophia Nomvete plays Disa
- Ema Horvath plays Eärien
- Cynthia Addai-Robinson plays Miriel
- Kevin Eldon plays Narvi
- Robert Aramayo plays Elrond
The Rings of Power S2 E6
The episode opens with Arondir hunting Orcs, an action sequence that feels utterly superfluous. It serves only to reveal to him their planned siege of Eregion.
Within this elven stronghold, we meet Celebrimbor, growing ever more restless and impatient as he encounters difficulty crafting the all-important final nine rings. His smiths grow concerned by his increasingly despotic and erratic behaviour, and poor Mirdania takes it upon herself to approach him, only to have him forget her name. I would never have known her name without some digging, so he may be forgiven for this.
Annatar promptly arrives. It is heavily implied that he is using his power of illusion to deceive Celebrimbor into believing he is losing his mind. For example, he forgets where he placed his hammer, only to have it appear next to him. The latter naively turns from the plight of his people, prioritising the nine rings above all else.
TRoP: Tragedy looms!
As an ill omen, we learn that the road to Eregion has been compromised, as the body of a messenger is found bearing gruesome carvings upon his body. Sauron manipulates Mirdania, convincing her that Celebrimbor’s strain is real. He confounds her with his translation of the grotesque carvings: “Where is he?” but knows full well what this means. Adar isn’t far away.
Once again, we find Galadriel in conference with Adar, as the two discuss Sauron and his fatal ability to deceive, tempt, and enrapture those he uses. Clinging vehemently to his identity as an ‘Uruk’, one of the first elves to be corrupted by Morgoth, Adar presents Morgoth’s crown to her, suggesting they combine its dark power with that of the three elven rings to destroy Sauron. Galadriel resists his offer of an alliance. Continuing guilt, regret, and fear hold her back, not to mention her prejudice against Adar as an impure elf.
TRoP: Chaos Reigns!
Meanwhile, Elendil is unjustly imprisoned for treason, given his blatant heroism and staunch loyalty to Miriel. It is these admirable characteristics that make him so compelling as a character. Principled to the last, he renounces his crimes but refuses to swear his allegiance to Pharazôn, openly defying and insulting him before everyone present.
Next, we meet The Stranger as he struggles to focus on anything but saving Nori, much to Tom Bombadil’s frustration, given the weight of the task before him. Just as before, the stark contrast between the jolly, carefree Tom we know from the books and the dour one presented here robs his scenes of any emotional weight or investment. His mysterious origins in the book are endearing, left as they are to the reader’s imagination. Here, they are used to awkwardly wedge him into a story where he feels singularly out of place. Of all the plotlines of this episode, this one falls the flattest.
Nori and Poppy continue to ingratiate themselves with the Stoors. The former feels responsible for their recent struggles, and the latter shares a romantic kiss with Nobody. As rushed as this romance may be, it lends a lighter tone to what is otherwise a bleak story.
Tom informs the strange man that he must find a wizard’s staff in a grove of trees stretching endlessly into the barren wasteland. Eager to save his friends, he hesitates and is (somewhat unoriginally) confronted by the same conundrum as Luke Skywalker in The Empire Strikes Back: he must choose his destiny or his friends.
The Rings of Power S2 E6
In Khazad-dûm, the dwarves mine ever deeper, driven to their labours by an increasingly tyrannical Durin III, who sits distantly upon a throne dwarfed by piles of gold which grow by the minute. This king has become a puppet to his ring.
Annatar arrives to hasten the delivery of more mithril; alas, he is disappointed. He masterfully plays to Durin’s greed, but even the mastermind of the Rings’ creation has underestimated the extent of their corruption. Durin IV is initially relieved by his father’s about-face in refusing to provide mithril, but he is sorely mistaken. His father plans to drive the prices of mithril up as Middle-earth descends into war; “The whole world’s gone mad, my son. But it is up to us to grab it by the throat.” Tellingly, he refuses to remove his ring of power. In the words of his son, “You belong to it.”
Disa militantly believes that the only path left is active resistance. The only way to end this madness. Yet she seems to have forgotten that this situation is primarily her own doing. Was she not the one who pushed her husband and father-in-law into accepting the offer of a ring of power from the elves and their mysterious benefactor, Annatar?
The Rings of Power s2 e6
Elendil is sentenced to a “trial by abyss”, an ordeal involving a “sea worm” who represents the justice of the Valar. Eärien begs him to relent, accusing him of being prideful, but this only wounds him further. She fails to appreciate what matters most to him. Out of options, she reveals she has brought Miriel with her to persuade him. Still, he is deaf even to her arguments.
This scene made me realise just how tragic it is that we haven’t seen more of Eärien. She is one of the most intriguing and complex characters we have encountered this season, yet she is given the least screen time and development. Should we expect more from her in the episodes to come?
The Lines Are Drawn
Disa takes a stand; she uses her stone-singing to summon bats, frustrating Narvi and the miners’ efforts to dig ever deeper into the mountain. As Durin IV stands beside her, axe in hand, we see two of the more compelling characters of the series so far taking a side. They will oppose the regime of his father or, rather, his ring.
As Elendil prepares to face the sea worm, Miriel appears, dramatically dressed in white, and exercises her right to face this judgment on his behalf. Thus, we gain some much-needed insight and depth into her character as she works to bolster her position and steps up to lead Elendil and the faithful. As the beast ensnares her and she bravely faces its judgment, the Valar deem her innocent. In what can only be described as a PR disaster for Pharazôn, the crowds cheer as Elendil proclaims her, “Tar-Miriel, Queen of the Sea!”
Pharazôn attempts to use the Palantir, perhaps seeking vengeance or a sign of his divine favour, but is met only with visions of disaster and Sauron.
TRoP: All Comes to Ruin
Galadriel and Adar continue their awkward audience. She reveals to him that Sauron is indeed in Eregion. As she informs him that Elrond is on his way with an elven army, we unceremoniously learn of the name of her ring from her mouth: Nenya. Adar smugly forewarns her of the fall of the elves, predicting their preoccupation with virtue will bring them down.
He plans to raze Eregion, causing Galadriel to realise that this was Sauron’s design all along. Lacking an army of his own, he is luring Adar and his orcs. They are playing right into his hands. She desperately pleads with him to turn back, “This is what Sauron wants!” Alas, her protestations fall on deaf ears. One can’t help but wonder why it took her so long to realise Adar means to destroy Eregion; why else lead his legion of orcs there?
The Orcs waste no time laying siege to Eregion, and an alarmed Celebrimbor is only placated by the illusions planted in his mind by Sauron, who hides the city’s ruin from him. Against a utopian backdrop of an idyllic day in the Elven city, Sauron lies to Celebrimbor about acquiring more mithril. It appeals to his vanity: “When the history of this age is written, the Silmarils, well… They will meet with little more than a whisper.” “Best Fëanor, best yourself.”
The Rings of Power S2 E6
Overall, this was a decidedly mixed episode. The stronger plotlines, namely the fall of Eregion, the court politics of Númenor, and the divisions within Khazad-dûm, continue to enthral and engage me. I look forward to The Rings of Power S2 E6.
The seventh episode of The Rings of Power aired on Thursday, 26th September, on Amazon Prime.
Feature image credit: Courtesy of Prime Video. Other image credits: Ross Ferguson, Ben Rothstein, Prime Video.
