Part one of The Lord of the Rings: the Rings of Power season one finale is here! There are spoilers for at least two major reveals! Adar has caused the eruption of Mount Doom, the blinded Míriel returns on ships to get reinforcemets from Númenor, and Galadriel rides with Halbrand to get him help from the Elves. In the moring, The Stranger is in “Eryn Galen, The Greenwood”, it is place of mossy trees and rocks. He holds the apple given to him by Nori and hears her words. The Stranger sees a robed person pass by and starts after the unknown person. He falls and Nori’s apple tumbles away. The apple is taken away. A trap by the three? It looks like Nori, but is revealed as The Dweller who had burned the Harfoot village. She holds out the apple and the others, The Ascetic and The Nomad appear at her side. The Ascetic says to the Stranger that they came to serve him, “Lord Sauron!” Then, they kneel before him. Sauron identified? Did the Mystics just arrive in Middle-Earth?
We pick up with Galadriel and Halbrand racing to Eregion. At the Elven city, Elrond is worried about the results of obtaining the mithril to Gil-galad with Celebrimbor. The Elvish lord ponders if they can somehow maximize the use of the mithril. He wonders if the sun started out small how they can do the same with mithril. Elrond says they must report about the failure and get the Elves ready to leave Middle Earth. Then, they hear a horse neigh, Galadriel rides in, and they are stunned to see each other. She tells Celebrimbor that Halbrand was wounded by a lance, I didn’t see the Orcs use them, I saw spears and pikes. Galadriel says six days ago. They had not seen each other since “A Shadow of the Past”, the pilot! As Halbrand is tended to by healers, Elrond is full of questions, one of which is Halbrand as King of the Southlands. Elrond says he made a mistake sending her on the ship to Valinor and vows not to do so again. Galadriel confesses that she wasn’t worthy of Valinor until her defeat of Sauron was complete. A mistake is going through battles, getting blasted by volcanic ash, and a six day ride in armor without a bath, pee-yew!
I really, really, really like that this show is in part about friendship; friendship between Galadriel and Elrond, Durin IV and Elrond, with of course Elrond as the connection. Celebrimbor rolls up a scroll when he hears a sound. He walks into his workshop and sees Halbrand. Celebrimbor is not recognized by Halbrand until he activates a lever that retracts the panels from his ceiling. Halbrand says he was an apprentice to a master who knew of Celebrimbor, so is he the Witch-King? Is the name of his master Morgoth? Where are the healers? They don't care that a patient has just taken a stroll? No guards for the workshop that has valuable gems? He sees gems that Celebrimbor says are to replicate the Silmarils for Middle-Earth. Halbrand just picks up the mithril, Celebrimbor says they are not enough, and Halbrand suggests an alloy to amplify the mithril. I somehow think that Celebrimbor would have reached this conclusion on his own. Halbrand says his idea is a “‘gift”, remember that Sauron’s “fair form” was Annatar, Lord of Gifts! Plus, I don’t trust Halbrand, never have, too Mordor-ish.
At a tower in Númenor, (no map transition), Pharazôn says that the king, Tar-Palantir is almost at death’s door, while is sleeping. He tells others about making a statue of the king when he dies to the Guild. This includes Eärien and behind her is sabateur Kemen. Pharazôn says the apprentices get one hour to spend with the king. Very unusual that people are just standing around a king watching him until he dies, no guards, just capture his likeness! Eärien is sketching him, he moans, and when she gets a cloth, the king grabs her arm! He says cryptically that he knows what she is doing in the dark? The king mistakes her for Míriel, it seems like this is similar to Viserys in House of the Dragon! He looks at Eärien saying without the “old ways”, Númenor becomes Atlantis. She runs away calling for help. No answers. Eärien returns to find the king revealed the passage way to the Palantir! She walks up and pulls the cloth from the Palantir. What has she seen in the Palantir? The show runners have said that it is like what Míriel had seen. I suspect it may be Isildur so that Elendil will have a strong reason to go back to Middle-Earth.
Gil-galad is twirling the piece of mithril wondering about one object of mithril. We haven’t seen him since “Partings.” This ideas is being proposed by Celebrimbor, Galadriel, and Elrond. Celebimbor suggests a crown because a circular object would reflect the light. Elrond adds that the crown would go on the high king. Celebrimbor just wants time to test his theory. Gil-galad tells them that since the eruption of Mount Doom, still unnamed here, the Great Tree is losing leaves. Celebrimbor says he got the idea from the Southlander, Gil-galad calls him “Low man” just like the Númenoreans, seriously? Celebrimbor says it will be a new power, “Not of flesh, but over flesh”, Galadriel turns, hearing Adar’s words. Gil-galad orders everyone to leave Eregion and return to Lindon. Gil-galad and Elrond leave so Galadriel asks Celebrimbor about his words. She asks him if Halbrand was with him at the time. Oh, she knows he is Sauron-y. Elrond rushes up to Gil-galad with his retinue and pleads to him for three months. He reminds him of his own words about hope.
Halbrand starts the Dwarven machinery, a piece of the mithril is chipped off, Galadriel watches Halbrand talk with Celebrimbor. Later, she asks an Elven Loremaster (Josh Metcalfe) about royal families form the Southlands. Galadriel takes him aside as Celebrimbor and Elrond walk and talk past them. Halbrand is stunned at being in Eregion, and apparently not wounded anymore?, I don’t see any wrappings. Also, he seems absolutely not worried about his Southlands people. Warning alarms! She says they are even in life saving, but Halbrand says that he will never forget that Galadriel believed in him. He adds, sinisterly, that he will make it so no one else will forget. Raise the Sauron level to Dangerous! She swore to stop Sauron so start with this guy! At a forest, the Nomad says to the Stranger that the more powerful he becomes, the Veil will weaken. The Ascetic says it was put on him when he was “cast down”, the Valar? The Nomad says she is taking him to their lands.
The Stranger shows them the picture of the stars. The Ascetic says that the stars are called the “Hermit’s Hat” which she shows on her shield. She is it is seen in the far east, it is called Rhûn where the Easterlings, they are the army that was marching into the Black Gate in Return of the King (2003). He unleashes his power, wind howls, but The Dweller blows dust that knocks him down. They tie him up while the Dweller notices something. Under cover of leaves, Sadoc looks out, then Nori, Poppy, and Marigold. They see one is missing, but Nori has them try to rescue The Stranger. Marigold acts as decoy to The Ascetic and The Nomad while Nori and Sadoc try to free Sauron. She finds a sleeping form of The Stranger! Sauron’s eyes open and Nori starts to run as Sadoc tries to restrain him. The Ascetic throws a blade and this kills Sadoc! Nori is thrown down as the robed Stranger shifts into The Dweller, oh, The Old Switcheroo! The Ascetic draws a blade, but they are all confused by the winds.
It is the Stranger, Nori is taken away by her mother and Poppy, and he forms a circle in the air. He slams down, Finishing Move, which knocks back The Ascetic and The Nomad. Only The Dweller stands. She charges forwards with her staff and spins his body around. Then, he is knocked back. Marigold, Nori, and Poppy are running, several blades pin Poppy to a tree. It is The Ascetic!, but Sadoc is there and slams a blade into her foot, she screams out and her face distorts! The silent Dweller lifts The Stranger, The Nomad says to her, “Make him see”, and he is thrown into another rock formation. The Dweller closes in on The Stranger when she is pelted by rocks thrown by Poppy! Her staff falls. She goes to the fire and has it in both of her hands. She sends the flames at Poppy hiding in the rocks above and then Marigold. The Stranger’s vision is blurry, but then sees Nori giving him The Dweller’s staff. Poppy is heard screaming as the Harfoots are backed up by The Dweller with flames in both hands. Suddenly, her flames are snuffed out!
Then, all of the flames are extinguished, the Mystics are faced with The Stranger with the staff, he says they came from the shadow and will return them there! The Ascetic realizes that the Stranger is not Sauron, he is The Istar. Istari are the wizards so he may be more Saruman. The Stranger says, “I’m good”, Nori’s words, and his staff sends out a light that briefly turns them skeletal before they dissolve into white moths! The staff dissolves. Nori goes to hug her mother and Poppy. Sadoc sits down, Marigold checks his wound, and he says he is going off trail. He adds that he can’t wait to see the missus and wants to see the sun rise. The Harfoots sit next to him, as the morning sun touches his face, Sadoc’s eyes close. We get a beautiful shot of them looking at the rocks above the charred landscape. The Stranger, Istar, stands with them, not bent over, but at his full height. The Númenorean ship sails the morning sea, Valadil walks the deck, below Elendil hears Queen Regent Míriel count the steps. He tries to encourage her and she says he can take a leave with the loss of his son. Elendil says he is going to see this through to the end and they both say, “Come what may”, dramatic, not like Moulin Rouge! (2001). Then, Valadil informs Elendil that they can see Númenor. "Alloyed" (a play on "Allied"?) part one, has some identities revealed, not a total surprise, but a showcase for Daniel Weyman!
Four Rings of Power out of Five!
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