Hi
Gil Galad,
Rune, and
Esty. Nice to read your posts here.
I watched Episode 5 last Friday, but haven't been feeling well this week and memory of it is quite foggy. I'll probably rewatch the Episode tomorrow, before the new one to share more opinions.
I've read from quite a few people about being put off by the Elves needing mithril to survive, as if their immortality depended upon mithril. Like I said, my memory is a bit foggy, but that's not the impression I had. I thought Gil Galad and Celebrimbor were talking about how Middle-earth was decaying and the Elves would "fade" like Middle-earth was fading without the mithril. I didn't take it as the Elves would die without mithril. It seems to definitely be going a "mithril is used in the forging of the Rings of Power" theory. It has been one of the head-scratching "I'm not sure this is going to work for me" moments in the series. But I'm trying to stick to a belief that any change to the lore can work, if the adaptors make it work, by being consistent within their own story.
Thankfully, it appears my fears about Elrond were unfounded. I really liked him in this episode and his portrayal. It was nice to get his forceful opinion about making and breaking oaths. It reminded me of the part in the book in Rivendell when Gimli says an oath can "strengthen" a wary heart (paraphrasing here) and Elrond says "or break it." Elrond knows full well the consequences of oath-breaking and that I think came across in the TV series. I also chuckled with Durin's table stealing ploy.
The Numenorean song and the Harfoot walking song were unquestionably the highlights of the episode. The music and songs feel like they fit in Middle-earth. I just wish the same could be said about the dialogue.
My thoughts are a bit jumbled, because I'm still under the weather and taking cold medicine. I have a feeling when I read this later, it's going to be difficult to follow whatever points I've tried to make.
