First off, a very happy Rings of Power Season 3 week to all who celebrate and I offer commiserations to all who now mourn with me. Beware. Beyond this point are spoilers so save this for when you’ve finished watching the first four episodes.
I completely lost it at several points during the watching but managed to have sufficient willpower to divide my watching of all four episodes over two evenings, complete with popcorn and sour lollies (the best sort).
I was so happy over key moments in the first 3 episodes (although that one sad Númenórean scene wrecked me) but annoyed at some other stuff and then we reached episode 4 and I was totally wrecked albeit unsurprised. I don’t know why, perhaps it was the foreshadowing in the first episode or perhaps it’s the fact that Arondir nearly missed death in season 2 and so I felt he was not long for the world of Middle Earth. But even so I had hopes that he would still come back to life until I read Ismael’s interview which seemed to cement the fact that he wasn’t coming back. The delulu part of me still wishes it was a red herring but I don’t think so! There’s no way they could bring him back to life twice, right?
I also didn’t love the whole storyline of Disa having Thrain on the side back in the day. Even if it technically wasn’t cheating because they were all broken up. Still! I felt it was a cheap thing to throw into the mix. There could be other reasons why Durin would have lost his head re Thrain. So many other reasons after a lifetime of sibling rivalry.
Things I did love: Anarion! As a lifelong tolkien nerd, the squeal I squealed! And seeing the western part of Númenór. Basically EVERYTHING Númenór. Also Elendil (forever our beloved), Isildur with facial hair (!!!) and Eärien coming to her senses, albeit that made me sadder. I wish she didn’t have to die although I must admit the way it was done while the awful men were just smirking was quite something to behold.
Gil-galad was still as glorious as ever although much sadder and Sauron is even prettier this season (okay, he is objectively a smokeshow). I loved Sauron’s exchange with Celebrimbor’s ghost so much. I hope we’ll see more of spectral Brimby in the second half. Gandalf and Tom Bombadil remain my favourite fellows in this show so I was happy to be reacquainted with them again albeit really sad there were no Harfoots this time around — also see my rant below, this is connected to that.
I’ve been excited about Jamie Campbell Bower being revealed as Celeborn for months now. I’ve been waiting for Celeborn to make his entrance since 2022 and I’ve been a Celeborn fangirl since teenhood. Galadriel’s and Celeborn’s marriage seemed to be the only happy Elvish love story in the LOTR canon (I can’t count Aragorn and Arwen’s love story as fully happy or even elvish because Aragorn is only part Elven — and Arwen had to give up so much to be with him) so I really wanted him to be exceptional in TROP. And they delivered. JCB was both ethereally gorgeous, and funny, and supportive with a dark edge (we know it’s the Vecna voice) which was perfect. Because Celeborn remains THEE beta elf who shows you can be both beta and badass at the same time.
In short, despite my little quibbles I was having a really good time (apart from being annoyed about what they did to Disa) up till the point when they killed our Arondir. It felt like such a waste because the momentum was building up to that point and the way in which Theo did it felt messy and very unearned. But mostly it hurt my heart to see him die. He was such a glorious Elf. Objectively, he was bound to die at some point but I really would have preferred if it was a heroic death in battle — not in this way that broke his heart because he’s already so broken. It would have been (in my mind, I’m just grumbling here) better if they’d not had this death now but later. Or not at all but like I said, that’s the delulu Arondir fangirl in me.
I’m so pissed off because more and more original characters (OC) of more diverse backgrounds are either getting killed off or reduced in some way (see Miriel and Disa). Which, as much as I adore the Galadriel and Celeborn love story (and incredibly messed up love/hate triangle in the making that is bound to excite various haladriels), really disappoints me. I am sure I am not the only one wondering what the showrunners were thinking or if there were other influences behind these creative decisions. If you know you know.
I have other shows (and movies) I want to talk (and rant about) but that will have to be the subject of another post because right now I still need to recover from TROP s3 week. I know I’m not the only one emotionally ravaged by Arondir’s death.