# Amazon Lord of the Rings series; The Rings of Power **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** middle-earth, amazon-prime, tv-shows-scripted\ **Created:** [March 3, 2019, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-lord-of-the-rings-series-the-rings-of-power/830497 "2019-03-03T20:01:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 55
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2022, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-lord-of-the-rings-series-the-rings-of-power/830497/1083 "2022-10-10T19:06:50Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > So, any speculation as to what the three nasties are? They’re definitely Easterners. So, Sauron cultists. ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2022, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-lord-of-the-rings-series-the-rings-of-power/830497/1084 "2022-10-10T19:07:53Z")
> [@Maserschmidt](#): > > I’m hoping they’re blade runners. Ooh! The Stranger is a replicant! Maybe he looks so haunted because he dreams of electric sheep. ---
**Author:** ![Mollie\_Magill](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mollie_magill/32/20882_2.png) [@Mollie\_Magill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mollie_Magill)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2022, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-lord-of-the-rings-series-the-rings-of-power/830497/1085 "2022-10-10T19:09:12Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > I don’t believe the blue wizards would have set the harfoots’ settlement on fire just for funnsies. > [@Maserschmidt](#): > > No serious thought, other than agreeing that blue wizards wouldn’t run around setting people’s stuff on fire. I had totally forgotten that part. In my defense, I had just finished working a football game that had gone into overtime. The fact I was awake for the whole show is a minor miracle in itself. ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2022, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-lord-of-the-rings-series-the-rings-of-power/830497/1086 "2022-10-10T19:16:56Z")
> [@Atamasama](#): > > The White Tree in Numenor shed its leaves, which was seen as a warning from the Valar that they needed to heed Galadriel rather than give her a swift boat ride to Middle Earth (and leave her there). They were seen as the “Tears of the Valar” or whatever. So, could the tree dying in the Elf lands be because they did not head Galadriel’s warning, rather than give her a swift boat ride to Valar? They don’t need Mithril, they need to be less aragont. > [@Atamasama](#): > > The show could be done with important stuff happening in the background. Rumors of Sauron returning, a fleet arriving from Numenor, Dwarves discovering Mithril in Moria. I’d enjoy that show a lot more. The show was made for people who were fans of the movies, have maybe read the books, but probably haven’t delved much deeper than that. I’ll agree that it would in many ways make more sense to have the already known characters in the background, and the focus is on new characters that have to react to how those characters are moving the world under them. But that’s gotta be balanced against fan service. “You like Galadriel? Well now you get to see her as a bad-ass warrior!” “You know the guy that lopped of Sauron’s finger and then couldn’t throw the ring in the volcano? Here’s his story.” People want to see characters they know, and if it was all new characters, there’d be less interest. Why do we care about a little band of Harfoots? Because they had an encounter with someone interesting. (And I bet that if you polled people who have only seen the movies and this show, 95% of them will say it’s obviously Gandalf, it’s only those who know more about the lore who question it.) I seem to remember that Tolkien once metadescribed his writings as “Found literature” or somesuch. That he was not the writer, but the translator of ancient histories and accounts. And just like historical accounts in the real world, there are inaccuracies and disagreements. So, even though I know more than the average viewer, but certainly not as much as many of you here, I can enjoy this particular account on its own merits, not on how well it agrees with others. That said, I do have some issues with some of the writing and decisions made in the show, but not enough to keep my from watching the final episode, and depending on how that goes, looking forward to the next season. ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2022, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-lord-of-the-rings-series-the-rings-of-power/830497/1087 "2022-10-10T19:28:47Z")
> [@k9bfriender](#): > > That said, I do have some issues with some of the writing and decisions made in the show, but not enough to keep my from watching the final episode, and depending on how that goes, looking forward to the next season. Me either. I’m still able to enjoy it for what it is, even if I’m disappointed that it isn’t what it could be. ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2022, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-lord-of-the-rings-series-the-rings-of-power/830497/1088 "2022-10-10T19:41:52Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > I don’t believe the blue wizards would have set the harfoots’ settlement on fire just for funnsies. If the Stranger is Sauron, then they set fire to the settlement of a group that has been harboring, and is now protecting, the greatest evil in Middle-Earth. “If your quarry goes to ground, leave no ground to go to.” That said, I don’t see how it’s the Blue Wizards, as there are three, not two. Unless that’s simply another difference in accounts, not that we know much about them at all. ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2022, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-lord-of-the-rings-series-the-rings-of-power/830497/1089 "2022-10-10T19:46:50Z")
> [@k9bfriender](#): > > That said, I don’t see how it’s the Blue Wizards, as there are three, not two. They’re also not blue! You know the Mighty Maiar Power Rangers need to wear the right colors. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2022, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-lord-of-the-rings-series-the-rings-of-power/830497/1090 "2022-10-10T19:52:59Z")
> [@Atamasama](#): > > Moving Greenwood/Mirkwood to the Southlands. Creating a dependence on Mithril for elves is on par with suddenly making the Force be dependent on midichlorians in the Star Wars universe. Showing the Balrog to be awake already in the Second Age. Distances are hard to determine. That has yet to be see what is going on. Again, yet to be seen, that just seems to be foreshadowing. > [@puzzlegal](#): > > I don’t believe the blue wizards would have set the harfoots’ settlement on fire just for funnsies. I concur. ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2022, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-lord-of-the-rings-series-the-rings-of-power/830497/1091 "2022-10-10T21:51:18Z")
> [@Mollie\_Magill](#): > > …I think The Stranger is Sauron. The shock and confusion of being dead and returning has lead to this fugue state. Did Sauron die when Morgoth was captured? I thought he escaped. ---
**Author:** ![squeegee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/squeegee/32/14537_2.png) [@squeegee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/squeegee)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2022, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-lord-of-the-rings-series-the-rings-of-power/830497/1092 "2022-10-10T22:03:57Z")
> [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > Did Sauron die when Morgoth was captured? I thought he escaped He [hid in the East](https://www.glyphweb.com/arda/s/sauron.php) > [@](#): > > After the War of Wrath and the defeat of his master Morgoth, Sauron fled for a time into the [East](https://www.glyphweb.com/arda/e/east.html) of the world.2 A period of one thousand years followed in which Sauron was not seen in the west of [Middle-earth](https://www.glyphweb.com/arda/m/middleearth.html). As the first millennium of the [Second Age](https://www.glyphweb.com/arda/s/secondage.html) turned, Sauron came back. He took the fenced and mountainous land of [Mordor](https://www.glyphweb.com/arda/m/mordor.html), and there began building his mighty [Dark Tower](https://www.glyphweb.com/arda/d/darktower.html) of Barad-dûr. > > The beginning of Sauron’s reign as Dark Lord can be dated from this time: he set himself no less a goal than the conquest of [Middle-earth](https://www.glyphweb.com/arda/m/middleearth.html), and perhaps even of [Númenor](https://www.glyphweb.com/arda/n/numenor.html) itself. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2022, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-lord-of-the-rings-series-the-rings-of-power/830497/1093 "2022-10-11T00:08:51Z")
> [@k9bfriender](#): > > If the Stranger is Sauron, then they set fire to the settlement of a group that has been harboring, and is now protecting, the greatest evil in Middle-Earth. > > “If your quarry goes to ground, leave no ground to go to.” One of the differences between good and evil is that good doesn’t murder innocent bystanders. ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2022, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-lord-of-the-rings-series-the-rings-of-power/830497/1094 "2022-10-11T00:23:39Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > One of the differences between good and evil is that good doesn’t murder innocent bystanders. I don’t know if you [caught the significance of the phrase,](https://www.magicalquote.com/moviequotes/if-your-quarry-goes-to-ground/) but it was uttered by someone who believed they were doing the greater good. I will point out that they did not murder anyone, even if their actions may lead to death. The Harfoots are also not innocent bystanders, they are harboring and protecting the greatest evil in Middle-Earth(under the “Stranger is Sauron” speculation). They didn’t burn the wagons unprovoked, they were lied to by Nori, and threatened by her father. Not cool, certainly, but I don’t know if you can judge angels chasing an escaped devil with mortal ethics. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2022, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-lord-of-the-rings-series-the-rings-of-power/830497/1095 "2022-10-11T00:46:51Z")
> [@k9bfriender](#): > > I don’t know if you [caught the significance of the phrase,](https://www.magicalquote.com/moviequotes/if-your-quarry-goes-to-ground/) I did not. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2022, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-lord-of-the-rings-series-the-rings-of-power/830497/1096 "2022-10-11T01:18:30Z")
Is it Napoleon or something? ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2022, 5:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-lord-of-the-rings-series-the-rings-of-power/830497/1097 "2022-10-11T05:48:19Z")
> [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > Did Sauron die when Morgoth was captured? I thought he escaped. …but then Father killed him, apparently. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2022, 5:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-lord-of-the-rings-series-the-rings-of-power/830497/1098 "2022-10-11T05:48:56Z")
It’s said by The Operative in _Serenity_. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2022, 6:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-lord-of-the-rings-series-the-rings-of-power/830497/1099 "2022-10-11T06:00:41Z")
> [@MrDibble](#): > > …but then Father killed him, apparently. Adar certainly _believes_ he killed Sauron. He might even be right, from a certain point of view. It’s going to make for an awkward reunion when his old boss shows up again. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2022, 6:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-lord-of-the-rings-series-the-rings-of-power/830497/1100 "2022-10-11T06:13:23Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > Adar certainly _believes_ he killed Sauron. Hence the “apparently”. Of course, Maiar can’t _be_ killed. Just disembodied. But I don’t know if _Adar_ knows that (or if anyone in Middle-Earth does, actually). > [@Smapti](#): > > It’s going to make for an awkward reunion when his old boss shows up again. Oh, yes. ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2022, 6:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-lord-of-the-rings-series-the-rings-of-power/830497/1101 "2022-10-11T06:19:40Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > He might even be right, from a certain point of view. [![](https://i.imgflip.com/44w9x9.jpg) ](https://i.imgflip.com/44w9x9.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2022, 12:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-lord-of-the-rings-series-the-rings-of-power/830497/1102 "2022-10-11T12:20:03Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > It’s going to make for an awkward reunion when his old boss shows up again. I can imagine Adar, standing there basking in his accomplishments, when a shadow comes up behind him, says (In dark speech), “Thanks for the digs, kid.” and snaps his neck. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-lord-of-the-rings-series-the-rings-of-power/830497.md?page=54) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-lord-of-the-rings-series-the-rings-of-power/830497.md?page=56)