Episode Two of The Rings of Power . . .
ONE
Galadriel, abandoned in the sea, still treads water. With nothing in sight on the horizon, she starts to swim.
Nori stands at the edge of the fiery crater. A man with grizzled hair and beard, naked but for a loincloth, lies in the blaze. Poppy, rushing up to chastise Nori, accidentally pushes her over the slope. The flames are not hot, and Nori approaches “the giant”. She boops his cheek. With a horror-startle, he quickly grabs her hand and rises from the ash. Magical winds and a soul-long look between Nori and The Giant stop when he collapses. She insists that Poppy help her carry the stranger somewhere safe.
TWO
Sadoc, holding a lantern, comes to see what fell to earth. He anticipates a bad omen. He misses Nori and Poppy pushing The Giant over the hill behind him in a wheelbarrow. As the girls argue over what this man is — not human, not elf — they let go of the cart and it starts to roll backward. (The image of an oversized man in a rustic wagon rolling down a hill is played for humor.) Cut to him settled, asleep, under a tree. Nori explains that The Giant, who could’ve fallen to earth anywhere, seems like her responsibility. She was meant to find him. Poppy agrees to keep him a secret.
THREE
Dissolve to Bronwyn and Arondir in the burnt village. They find no bodies. Under a ruined house is a dug passage. Arondir will follow it. Bronwyn will go home to warn her people. Before parting, they share a longing glance.
FOUR
Choral music and breathtaking scenery. (Alert: elven city incoming.) Elrond is with Celebrimbor in his glistening workshop. They speak of the legend/history of Morgoth and the Silmarils. Celebrimbor would like to leave his own mark on history. He shows Elrond the plans for a tower that will hold the most powerful forge ever built with a flame like dragon’s fire. (Rut-roh. I’m pretty sure he’s about to create Mount Doom.) And the whole thing should be completed by spring. Up for the challenge, Elrond suggests seeking help from someone outside of the elven race.
Cut to the map as a dotted line draws from Eregion to Khazad-Dum. Elrond and Celebrimbor stroll up to the mystical gate, ready to meet with Prince Durin and have a nice welcoming feast. The dwarf on the door refuses to admit them.
(On the one hand, we have this gorgeous location for a small side door. It looks like, and I believe is meant to be, the swamped gate to Moria that Gandalf tries to open centuries later. A sense of majesty and history — and sorrow — permeates this moment.
On the other hand, the slammed door window and its humor feels like something that happened to Dorothy at the Emerald City. The tones are discordant and undercutting. These two beats belong in two different shows.)
Elrond invokes a dwarven rite. As the door opens he sends Celebrimbor away. A host of mid-sized, armored dwarves escort him in, while the door slams shut in Celebrimbor’s curious face.
Music swells as Elrond (and we) see the full splendor of the dwarven realm. In a gathering room, Durin enters to mock Elrond for invoking the Test of Endurance. Dwarves cheer as Durin announces that if “the elf” stops breaking rocks before him, Elrond will be banished from all dwarven lands. Elrond accepts the terms. Feats of strength follow.
(The dwarves are portrayed as comedic and coarse, much in the spirit of Jackson’s Gimli. The success of this scene rides on whether or not you find their bluster charming and funny. Sadly, I’m not a fan.)
Cut to Nori loping across the countryside to look in on The Giant. He’s not in the shelter, but Nori hears him as he whispers and scrapes at a rock. When she startles him, he turns and screams at her, air magically whooshing about. The world darkens for a second until Nori can convince him to recognize her. (The effect is similar to the moment Gandalf enlarges himself in order to frighten Bilbo into leaving the ring for Frodo.) She introduces herself and asks his name, but he doesn’t seem to remember. He’s like a feral child as she mimes eating and offers him food.
SWITCH?
At the Harfoot encampment . . .
( . . . we’re halfway through the episode. I’m seeing a scene shift, one milieu transitioning to another, but no proper Switch. Let’s leave the viewing here. Perhaps a Switch will present itself in the next section.
As far as the Two and Three, we won’t know for sure until the episode wraps. Nori taking responsibility for The Giant is a very good Trouble Two. Is Arondir’s discovery of a secret tunnel under the village another aspect of that Trouble? Maybe, or something about the dark hole is a Three that will mirror later.
Elrond’s discussion with Celebrimbor about the elven smith tradition and the legend of Morgoth could also be a Three. The visual of the hammer is very distinct. I look forward to finding the Six and seeing which Three — if any — it references.
Stay tuned.)