This review contains full spoilers for The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power season 2, episode 4.
Episode 4 of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power season 2 feels a lot like a PG version of The Witcher, focusing mostly on encounters with monsters while very slowly moving the plot forward. There are some really great fights and some touching moments involving the halflings, but the absence of Sauron (Charlie Vickers) and Celebrimbor (Charles Edwards) is keenly felt.
Galadriel (Morfydd Clark) and Elrond (Robert Aramayo) spend a lot of this episode entertainingly sniping at each other – Galadriel is used to being in charge of a military mission, while Elrond isn’t about to let her disrespect his command. Elrond’s also understandably dubious about her claims to know what Sauron is planning based on a ring the villain designed. While he feels bad when Galadriel turns out to be right, he still views her as compromised due to both the faith she puts in the ring and her obsession with stopping Sauron above all else. Galadriel’s latest vision of the fate of the elven city of Eregion is a terrible one, so she’s willing to let Elrond doubt her so long as he sticks to the mission.
The maps that serve as scene transitions are a great way to keep track of how Rings of Power is spread across Middle-earth, while also harkening back to the layout of J.R.R. Tolkien’s books. It works really well to demonstrate how the elves’ progress is stopped at the bridge to Eregion, and it’s even better when accompanied by the ominous sounds of the orcs marching as they wind up intersecting Elrond’s squad. Sauron whipping up some ominous weather outside of Eregion to persuade Celebrimbor to give him shelter was a clever plot, but it turns out his maneuver was even more deft, also isolating the city and buying him more time to get his rings forged.
This episode also features lots of wandering around looking for people, with the Stranger (Daniel Weyman) trying to find his Harfoot companions and a big search party out for Theo (Tyroe Muhafidin) after the horse rescue mission went awry. Poppy (Megan Richards) and Nori (Markella Kavenagh) are sandy but surprisingly unharmed after being blown away by the Stranger’s magic, and their flight from the masked riders leads to them bumping into the charming Merimac (Gavi Singh Chera). Nori’s annoyance with the immediate spark Nori and Merimac clearly feel is adorable, as is Merimac’s bumbling lecture on what not to do when encountering Gundabel (Tanya Moodie) and how little heed the Harfoots pay to it.
The terrain of Rhun is gorgeous in its sparseness, making the bounty Tom Bombadil (Rory Kinnear) and the Stoors have made out of it all the more beautiful. (The oversized vegetables in the garden also show just how small the halflings are.) Moodie immediately makes a big impression as she struts out, expressing her exasperation with Merimac and acting absolutely aghast at the audacity of Poppy’s “backsass.” There’s a deeply sympathetic pragmatism to her: She’s looking for a good reason to shelter the Harfoots, not a synopsis of the show’s plot.
Tom Bombadil is one of Tolkien’s strangest characters, which is why he’s never been shown on screen before. Kinnear embodies the merry fellow well, looking upon the Stranger with obvious recognition and bemusement and not making anything easy for him. The Rings of Power mirrors the character’s first appearance in The Fellowship of the Ring – rescuing Merry and Pippin from a tree named Old Man Willow – by having Tom save the Stranger from Old Man Ironwood after rudely trying to take a branch for his staff without asking.
Rory Kinnear embodies Tom Bombadil well.
Tom sings in harmony with his wife Goldberry, but doesn’t really answer when the Stranger asks about the woman there – and we don’t see her, either, which is an odd choice. But there are already too many characters to keep track of, so I don’t mind the sly reference without an introduction. Instead, Tom repeatedly demonstrates his power by turning the Stranger’s star map into a piece of bread and lighting up the whole house with only one candle. Tom delivers part of his speech from The Fellowship of the Ring to explain that he is the eldest being in Middle-earth – an observer and teacher meant to put others on their destined path.
That pushes the Stranger to really grasp the enormity of his job and the power he might be capable of wielding. The Dark Wizard (Ciarán Hinds) is meant as a cautionary tale for the Stranger, a conjuror who sought power and is only using it for himself, but the character continues to be so lousy that it’s hard to really fear him. He’s like a cartoon villain, constantly deploying doomed-to-fail minions. There’s reason to fear what Sauron could do in Rhun, but it doesn’t seem like he’d need the Dark Wizard’s help at all.
What we said about The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power season 2 premiere
The plot of Amazon’s The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power is pulled in too many directions in the three-episode season 2 premiere, leaving the story and many of the characters feeling thin. While the monsters, sets, and costumes are incredible and there are a few standout performances, the series overall feels scattered and aimless. – Samantha Nelson
Read the complete The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Season 2 Premiere Review.
The Barrow-wights look incredible as they twist and unfurl to show their burial regalia and ominous glowing eyes, rebuilding from injury almost instantly and renewing the fight with hissing chains and grasping hands. The fight is also a great example of the link between knowledge and power found in Tolkien: Elrond saves the day with a bit of lore. Unfortunately, the messengers to Celebrimbor didn’t have someone who was as well versed in history. It’s unclear how Sauron stirred up the long buried dead, but I’ll trust that Galadriel is right that this is his fault given how well their attack fit into his plots to manipulate Celebrimbor.
Isildur (Maxim Baldry) and Estrid (Nia Towle) keep clumsily flirting, and while I’m immediately rooting for Poppy and Merimac, I find these two and all of their plots entirely uninteresting. Luckily Arondir (Ismael Cruz Córdova) is no fool, recognizing that Estrid knows too much about the Wildmen and using those sharp elf eyes to notice the fresh burn on her neck. Time to leave the rest of the group home and send only main characters to search for Theo again.
While the monster that devours Isildur and Arondir looks awesome, the whole thing feels like a random encounter whose entire purpose is giving the opportunity for Estrid to show she’s somewhat trustworthy. You’re going to eat something you pulled out of a nameless horror, Arondir? I think even the crew of Delicious in Dungeon might be dubious of that decision. Estrid’s rescue earns her release from her manacles, though she immediately pulls Isildur’s sword on him when he tries to kiss her. She expects her past will eventually get her cast out, and Isildur promises that won’t happen – but he’s not actually a Southlander so how much authority does he even have?
The scorched path through the forest that enraged the ents is striking, and it’s exciting to see younger, nimbler and angrier versions of the treefolk than the ones in The Two Towers – including an entwife, which have all disappeared by the Third Age. Their gnarled, asymmetric faces help make them imposing, particularly Winterbloom (Olivia Williams), the enraged and grief-stricken tender of the forest who is gently soothed by Arondir making the sort of promise only an elf can keep. Her monologue about forgiveness taking an age is beautiful, making it all the more annoying that Isildur tries to undermine it by questioning if the ents even know what peace is.
It’s very funny that Estrid turns out to have a betrothed and seems really disappointed he’s alive. Good luck with that relationship triangle guys. Theo’s anger seems to have been spent after his brief imprisonment in a tree, and he opts to go home rather than accompanying Arondir in the fight against the orcs and Adar. May you find a better plot on your journeys, Arondir.
The tale of Burrows’ pilgrimage is the episode’s storytelling highlight, the dream of the promised land the halflings will eventually find in the Shire driving the Harfoots to wander endlessly. The precariousness of the Stoors’ home is driven home by the masked rider immediately setting the tone of his negotiation by smacking Gundabel down. Of course she won’t give the Harfoots up after realizing they’re in fact long lost kin.
There are some really great fights and some touching moments involving the halflings, but the absence of Sauron and Celebrimbor is keenly felt.
A lucky shot from an orc and an elf who can’t keep quiet while dying gives Elrond’s party away, while also revealing yet another incredible power to Galadriel’s ring, which she passes to Elrond to protect as he runs off to ensure the high king gets the message about where Adar’s going. Galadriel gets to show just why she’s used to taking charge in military matters, unleashing a flurry of knives and arrows and using fire to devastating effect. She even seems to have found an appreciation for fighting with chains after the Barrow-wights. She’s a true terror to behold until Adar shows up, delighted to finally get the chance to chat with someone who really understands how awful Sauron is.
