TL;DR – It does still feel like we are spinning our wheels a little bit, but this episode did work a bit better, if for no other reason than the return of old friends.

Disclosure – I paid for the Amazon Prime service that viewed this episode.

The Rings of Power Review –

For most of the start of the second season of The Rings of Power, I was riding on a high. It was just such a joy to be back in this world and exploring Middle Earth again. However, last week’s The Eagle and the Sceptre put a slight pause on the festivities as it bogged down in storylines that didn’t help push it forward. The question we look at this week is: Was that just a blip in the road, or was it the start of a trend?

So, to set the scene, after hearing worrying silence from Celebrimbor (Charles Edwards), a party of elves has been sent south from Lindon to see what might have happened and to make sure Sauron (Charlie Vickers) has not established influence there. Spoiler alert: he already has. However, it is not Galadriel (Morfydd Clark) who leads this expedition; it is Elrond (Robert Aramayo) who is profoundly suspicious of the ring that now lives on Galadriel’s finger. He fears that it will be a source of evil, but it might just be saving their lives. Now, from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead.

If there were one uniting theme to bind this episode together, it would be that of returning friends. Including one we have not seen before. The first hint of this is when they approach Barrow-downs, a place for those who are attentive, which was part of Tom Bombadil’s (Rory Kinnear) story that was cut from the films. However, here, it is a place used to show that cinema continues to kill off African characters first, which was a bit awkward. However, we also get what was hinted about last week with the Ent and Entwives, who are looking for revenge for the horrific path the Orcs cut through the forest. The design of the Ents were very much in keeping with what had come before, with a bit more variety in design.

Okay, we can’t forget Tom, who plays a very similar role to The Stranger (Daniel Weyman) as what he does to Frodo in the original book, down to having to rescue someone from an annoyed tree. I did like all the banter between the two and his general “Before the Trees I was” vibe, which I am sure is not referencing anything at all … He didn’t have much to do other than confirm that the Dark Wizard (Ciarán Hinds) is also an Istari, which opens up a lot of questions. I did like our little sojourn into the lives of the Stoors, which does not quite line up with what we know about Hobbit history, but then they were awful at keeping their history, so who knows. The canyon town was a nice set, and I assume we will get to see more of it going on.

Finally, we have the problem with this episode: the elves. At this point, I am kind of getting a bit worn out with what feels like a forced antagonism between Galadriel and Elrond that just seems like it is there to make everyone grumpy. There is a lot of antagonism already baked into the season. You don’t need to add to it. Also, the episode opened on a very odd transition around the Grey Havens that clearly needed a bit more work. Thankfully, it was not all frustrating when it came to the elves because we got more of Arondir (Ismael Cruz Córdova) this week. I loved every part of that section, especially the back-and-forth with the Ents.        

In the end, do we recommend The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power: Eldest? While I still had some frustrations, I do feel that it was an improvement last week, and hopefully, it is showing that the season is heading in the right direction.

By Brian MacNamara: You can follow Brian on Twitter Here, when he’s not chatting about Movies and TV, he’ll be talking about International Relations, or the Solar System.

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Credits – All images were created by the cast, crew, and production companies of The Rings of Power
Directed by – Louise Hooper & Sanaa Hamri
Written by – Glenise Mullins
Created by – J. D. Payne & Patrick McKay
Based On – The Lord of the Rings and appendices by J. R. R. Tolkien
Production/Distribution Companies – Amazon Studios, Tolkien Estate, Tolkien Trust, HarperCollins, New Line Cinema & Amazon Prime
Starring – Robert Aramayo, Morfydd Clark, Daniel Weyman, Markella Kavenagh, Megan Richards, Ciarán Hinds, Maxim Baldry, Ismael Cruz Córdova, Tyroe Muhafidin, Benjamin Walker, Charles Edwards & Charlie Vickers with Rory Kinnear, Sam Hazeldine, Jim Broadbent, Olivia Williams, Calam Lynch, Gavi Singh Chera, Tanya Moodie & Nia Towle and Charlie Rix, Selina Lo, Oliver Alvin-Wilson, Zates Atour, Peter Landi, Bridie Sisson, Raya Yarbrough, Robert Strange, Thomas Gilbey, Gabriel Akuwudike, Murray McArthur, Kai Martin & Zubin Varla