A continuing look at episode one of The Rings of Power . . .
ONE
Credits and a map. We’ve shifted to a new storyline.
Two hunters, laden with carcasses, walk through a field. Hearing something, one warns the other of a Harfoot. They continue on, and a small smiling person with a hay-covered hat rises from the grass and watches them leave. An entire community of Harfoots (Harfeet?) comes out of hiding. They have bare, hairy feet; these, presumably are our proto-Hobbits.
TWO
They unveil their encampment, bringing out baskets of food and uncovering their wagons. The leader consults a tome and determines these hunters are a bad omen. A mother and father worry about their wandering daughter, Nori.
THREE
Cut to Nori and Poppy (an instant reminder of Frodo and Sam). They lead the younger children on an adventure.
(The character design is charming, with sprite-like costumes and hair. The sizing, as always with the hobbits, is confusing. We must remember the opening shot of the little man in the field, which was brilliant, and carry that impression forward. Otherwise we’ll just see regular-sized people in a regular world.)
They’ve found an abundant blackberry patch.
One of the children discovers a large canine print in the mud. Nori, putting on a reassuring face, gathers the children to leave. A wolf-creature sniffs at the ground, our Harfoots safely in the distance.
FOUR
Elvish in voiceover. Elrond, a young man sitting in a tree, records his thoughts. (He crosses out words, rewriting. Our first impression of him is likable.) News of “his friend’s” arrival has him jump up and rush to her. As he greets Galadriel, we see a beautiful Elven high city.
She shows him a drawing of the mysterious mark, proof that Sauron has escaped. She must meet the King immediately and request a new army. When Elrond protests that they haven’t chatted, she calls him a politician, an insult.
Elrond speaks with tact and firmness: Your army didn’t leave you, you abandoned the military parameters established by the king. As an answer, she insists on an audience anyway.
(Here is Galadriel in civilization, and she’s just as rude as she was in the wilderness. She feels driven to find Sauron. It’s a very strong motivation — I want to find Sauron — but we don’t know why she holds it. Is it just the death of her brother? Is it Sauron as an avatar of pure evil? Is it the forced parting from her eternal elven home? These are all possibilities. Another is her stubbornness. She can’t accept defeat or authority. The prologue, the Leftover Nine, was the place to inform us about her character. Why is she such a jerk? I don’t have an answer.)
Back to the Harfoots. The children return to the encampment. Nori’s father gossips about the hunters, but Nori’s mother knows she left the safe boundaries. We see Nori’s cheerful, adventurous spirit. The mother’s response: “Nobody goes off trail and nobody walks alone.” Among her people, Nori is unique. (Very Frodo. Very hero.)
Choir music, golden leaves, and cascading waterfalls. We’re back with the elves. Galadriel and other armored elves are being honored for their tireless search for the evil that may have sprung up after Morgoth’s death. But they return in triumph, having proven war is no more. Galadriel side-eyes as the king approaches to place the laurel wreath on her head. Tension — will she say something? No, she bows her head.
As a reward for their service, these elves (who are Galadriel’s former company) shall go to the Grey Havens, the Undying Lands of Valinor. Everyone applauds. Galadriel gives Elrond the stink eye.
Magnificent fireworks.
(I sense a Switch coming, lol. We are at the halfway point of the first episode.
I’ve put a guess for the Three here. It’s usually impossible to be sure until the Six reveals itself. The introduction of Nori and Poppy, or the threat of the wolf, should hit some kind of mirror later if the story structure is sound. We’ll see.
Notice that Galadriel is not pleased to be shipped home to the eternal land. One of my guesses as to her motivation, that her home was disrupted, appears wrong. If Valinor meant that much to her, she would be happier to return. Her self-directed mission to find Sauron is independent of a homesickness.)
To be continued . . .