Show Review: ‘The Rings of Power’ Season Two, Ep 6: A Rushed Episode with Some Bright Points

Image courtesy of Amazon MGM Studios

***BEWARE THERE ARE FULL SPOILERS BELOW***

READ THE REVIEW FOR EPISODES 1-3 HERE | EPISODE 4 HERE | EPISODE 5 HERE

This episode felt rushed again. Perhaps because they had scenes with almost every main actor, minus Elrond and Isildur (a crime!!!), but I once again didn’t feel like the story was propelled forward all that much. I truly believe this needs a longer season of episodes with the massive cast of characters we have. There are so many interesting storylines going on, but not enough time to explore them fully, so we’re left with a bunch of short vignettes where not a whole lot happens. I was SO pleased to see on social media I was not the only one giving some side eye to Adar at the end of Episode 5, and I couldn’t wait to see what this week’s episode had in store for Galadriel and our morally grey villain. Would they team up or remain enemies? I fully realize they’ve gone completely off canon with this, but I’m still enjoying it. Unfortunately, their alliance seems short lived, as Adar is determined to attack Eregion, and Galadriel is convinced this is exactly what Sauron wants. I mean, he has to get an army somehow…

It has to be said. Some of the wigs are so bad and distracting. Maybe I notice these things because my mom had a hair salon for 30 years, but I can’t be the only one, right? Sauron, my sweet summer child. Why was he sporting a coquette hair bow in this episode?! I feel like with their budget, they could afford a decent wig with no bleach-fried split ends for the Dark Lord. The photo above is worlds better than the GenZ middle part he was sporting last night. And then Nori?! What did they do to her hair?

For one tiny second, I thought Eärien might come to her senses. But no. She’s still terrible, and refuses to admit all of this is her fault. As much as I loathe Kemen, I’m a bit disappointed we had hardly any screen time with him after what he did at the end of the last episode. Elendil’s back with the best quotes of the episode: “It is hardly a mercy to ask a man to set his integrity aflame.” Ar-Pharazôn I’m having a hard time with. Don’t get me wrong, I can’t stand him, but I don’t find him all that terrifying. He comes across as power hungry, but weak. How is he supposed to be this brilliant military strategist intent on invading the Undying Lands? Perhaps this has more to do with the way Numenor has been portrayed. They’re supposed to be at the height of their civilization with armies rivaling Sauron’s. But I’m not getting that from them. I also feel like there’s a sense of grandness missing. This is Tolkien’s Atlantis. Maybe there’s not enough extras and the sets somehow feel small. Why are there hardly any people? And they all look like peasants, rather than elf-blessed.

I did, however, love the sea worm scene! Miriel’s dress was absolutely stunning, and monster itself was appropriately terrifying. It seemed like she had the support of the people after being judged innocent by the Valar, but I’m not sure where this thread is going to go. Because we know Pharazôn stays King and ends up destroying his whole civilization in a bid for immortality.

Manipulate and mansplain, thy name is Sauron. Annatar continues to gaslight literally everyone in Eregion, but the truly beautifully tragic scene is the illusion he shows Celebrimbor, who is slowly losing his mind. The camera work was masterful, as Celebrimbor leaves the tranquil scene of happy elves, to go back into his smithing tower, the camera pans around Sauron, and his surroundings go from a utopian day to terrified night with elves running and screaming in terror as Eregion is attacked. Celebrimbor is none the wiser, and has been consumed with his purpose of creating the Nine. My heart is broken for him. Also, is it just me, or does Annatar seem so much taller than Halbrand?

As much as I love Arondir, his little snippet killing a few Orcs in the forest didn’t really add anything to the story. This is another perfect example of why we need a longer season. Similarly, we get about two seconds with Nori and Poppy, and then Tom and the Stranger. Show Tom is a lot more serious than book Tom, and I’m not sure how I feel about it. On the one hand, I do like that he seems a bit more grounded, and guiding. But is that true to Tolkien? At this point, you can’t convince me the Stranger isn’t Gandalf. They literally give Gandalf’s line to Tom: “Many who die deserve life, some that live deserve death. Who are you to give it to them?” While I love the little nods to the trilogy, they are really dragging this reveal out. Being a wielder of the secret fire is also mentioned—yet another nod to Gandalf who wields the flame of Anor. I’m also not too worried about the dark wizard because we literally haven’t seen him again. No screen time? I’m not thinking about him.

There’s also very little screen time with the Dwarves, but these are a bit more interesting. Durin IV is getting increasingly worried about this father, who is now fully within the power of his ring. I’ve gotta say, both actors are killing it, especially with all those prosthetics to act through. Disa continues to be a favorite, but the whole bat cave scene was a little weird and over the top to me. Durin also continues to be the only one skeptical of Annatar, and his glee when his father denied him the Mithril was great. Annatar sees the Balrog in the flame of a torch, which pretty much confirms they’re going to be waking it centuries earlier than the book timeline, but we pretty much knew that was going to happen.

One little tidbit I absolutely loved was the interview after the episode with Bear McCreary, the insanely talented composer. There’s a pretty epic scene with Annatar/Sauron where we see him overlooking Eregion watching everything he’s orchestrated come to fruition—even manipulating Adar into bringing his Orc army to attack. McCreary said they recorded the orchestra tuning up and used the sound as Sauron raises his hands, like a conductor, and you hear the sound go from discordant to a cohesive sound. Brilliant. He also used a Bulgarian women’s choir for the Rhun scenes. If you haven’t listened to the soundtrack, I highly recommend.

This episode wasn’t as good as the last two, but I’m still really enjoying the season. Can’t believe we’re down to two! So let me know in the comments (and keep it respectful, please), what did you think of this episode?

Reading LOTR for the first time and not sure where to start? Head here for my ultimate guide to reading The Lord of the Rings.

—