**Spoiler Warning** Rings of Power S1E4 - "The Great Wave"

[Formendacil]

Another week... and am I the first Downer to watch it again? Dear me, how either I or the show have fallen if that's the case.

The stream-of-thought things I noted:

• ...still sounds like "Adan." That orks needs to work on his "r"s!

• Is Míriel having the Faramir dream? ... Seems so...

• Wait, I just heard the name "Míriel!"

• What--Pharazôn has a son? Are there two Pharazôns?

• Well, I like the populism angle of Pharazôn (however many there are) as leader of the King's Men.

• Did he say his name is "Kevin?"

• I'm not sure that it's intended for Míriel have more queenly presence than Galadriel, but she does--which I like on the former, but not so much on the latter.

• Isildur the dreamer doesn't make canonical sense--the one anecdote of we have of him in youth is as a DOER.

• "Dead brother!" Anárion is... dead? AND his older brother? Well, this doesn't bode well for the Line of Anárion, I must say.

• Okay, that time I heard the "r".

• Wait--"adar" = "father" = "do you know how the orks first came into being." It's the missing link! The archaeopteryx of Orks!

• Sirion or Ossir? I suppose both are verboten...

• Not a god yet has to be "this is Sauron"-bait.

• "Here to Orodruin"--I'm gonna say, "yup," this is the making of Mordor we're seeing.

• "Theo" is still a stupid name.

• The Southlands story still belongs to the horror genre, I see.

• If you tell me that Celebrimbor is inventing this recollection of Eärendil, I'd believe it...

• The whole "deception of Durin" story seems... I dunno, either like it made our intro to the Dwarves pointless or redundant or inconsistent or something...

• Okay, I like a secret knock!

• It's a bit a late to be finding mithril... but the whole timeline is pointless to nitpick in this show.

• Betcha that wee bit of mithril becomes an Elven ring or three.

• Why do the bars on Galadriel's prison look like a 21st century wrought-iron fence?

• A mortal Southron princeling should not be teaching the granddaughter of Finwë politics--never mind the granddaughter of Olwë or the student of Melian.

• Okay, Halbrand is a Mary Stu. It's okay. But he is.

• That the King of Númenor has declined is a very... Númenórean motif.

• Wait, is a that a palantír--it is! Why are six missing? I mean, it makes sense that they're in Númenor--and that's kind of under-developed by Tolkien: what were they doing in the 2nd Age? Did the House of Silmarien have them all? Were there others? How did Elendil end up with them all?

• Theo, I think you should really think of going back without that sack.

• Good timing, Arondir. But I still suspect you've saved a Nazgûl.

• This is very Boromir's death. Are we going to that well again?

• Saved by the Sun! Not a bad motif!

• Are we giving Elrond Daddy Issues™? I guess... that's not... terribly... inappropriate. Still.

• Durin and HIS dad have a very... Dwarven? thing going on.

• Well, this is a creepy bartender! An anti-Barliman?

• I like Míriel's look between without the leafy antlers.

• Making a public pronouncement indoors in a city that large seems like it's making an event rather exclusive...

• So, it seems we're going to get some Tar-Minastírian alliance PRE-Sauron... the timeline here is so muddled!

[Tar Elenion]

Kemen rather than Kevin.
Dead mother rather than brother.
===
"Wait, is a that a palantír--it is! Why are six missing? I mean, it makes sense that they're in Númenor--and that's kind of under-developed by Tolkien: what were they doing in the 2nd Age? Did the House of Silmarien have them all? Were there others? How did Elendil end up with them all?"
The Palantiri were given to Amandil the father of Elendil.

[Lalwendë]

Starting to get into a kind of groove watching this now. The main struggle I have is the timelines conflict with what I know from the texts, and that does mess me about a lot, I do like a consistent timeline. There's a pattern emerging, or conceit, that everyone*might* be Sauron, and there's characters constantly looking for him. I hope they don't go too far with this as it could become annoying, and once the bad Maia is found then there wouldn't be a motivation any more.

I was also puzzled by there being just one Palantir.

Amongst things I really liked was knowing that there's a Balrog down in that mine, and seeing how the Dwarves might have been driven to go too far (though surely Mithril was discovered before).

The politics of Numenor look promising. It's one aspect of Middle-earth I feel disappointed is left out of Lord of the Rings, there are so many hints about it but they aren't explored as we're focused on that story. I'd love there to be more stories about this, in Gondor or Numenor, so this might fulfill that want.

Who is 'Adar'?

The thought struck me, it all reminds me of the old RPGs, taking an unexplored story from Middle-earth and creating our own tales from them, but with a vast budget. That's a positive thing, by the way.

[Formendacil]

Originally Posted by Tar Elenion

The Palantiri were given to Amandil the father of Elendil.

Let's say we take that as a given: WHY?

From a Watsonian, in-universe perspective, why would such powerful tools have been given to Silmarien instead of kept with the Crown? Or were they a later gift to the Faithful after the King's Men had fallen from friendship with the Eldar? (Memory says the latter, but memory is frail.) My general, stream of consciousness thought remains: Tolkien didn't elaborate much on the palantiri in the Second Age and it is a reasonable topic to explore.

[Tar Elenion]

Originally Posted by Formendacil

Let's say we take that as a given: WHY?

From a Watsonian, in-universe perspective, why would such powerful tools have been given to Silmarien instead of kept with the Crown? Or were they a later gift to the Faithful after the King's Men had fallen from friendship with the Eldar? (Memory says the latter, but memory is frail.) My general, stream of consciousness thought remains: Tolkien didn't elaborate much on the palantiri in the Second Age and it is a reasonable topic to explore.

Not Silmarien.
They were given to Amandil.
"These stones were gifts of the Eldar to Amandil, father of Elendil, for the comfort of the Faithful of Númenor in their dark days, when the Elves might come no longer to that land under the shadow of Sauron."
The Akallabeth

[Oddwen]

Well the Palantiri erasure has been the first time I've had to pause the show and walk around angrily, so....ok?



Elrond is growing on me a bit, he gives off more "...he is summoned to a secret council and you are not" vibes.


Elrond: My Dad turned into a star.
Durin: That's rough, buddy.



I may have teared up ever so slightly at the scene between DurinII/III. But don't tell anyone. Part of it is because there will be no Narvi, and I am desolate.

Originally Posted by Form

Okay, Halbrand is a Mary Stu. It's okay. But he is.

Ughhhhhhhhhhhhhh he is Sauron isn't he. Ugh. UGH. I don't want to accept it.

Originally Posted by Form

Well, this is a creepy bartender! An anti-Barliman?

Quinoaman Margarinebur?

Originally Posted by Lal

Who is 'Adar'?

Sauron, Mouth of? Eol? Beleg? So help me if he's Earendil who sailed off the edge of the world then came back for revenge I'll be quite put out.


This episode had no Harfeetsies which I am kind of sad about - but lots of Numenor which I'm ok with. This was a very slow episode and wasn't my favorite.

[Boromir88]

Personally, I felt this episode took a step back from the previous two. It does feel like more of a "set up" episode for all the characters and storylines that are about to converge. So, that still has my interests piqued.

But Arondir has so very thick plot armor. I don't know how Halbrand suddenly got released from jail. Was that part of the "judgement" with Galadriel returning to M-E?

I dislike Elrond coming off as a manipulative and slimy politician type. I mean he manipulated Galadriel to take the boat ride, he manipulated Durin and Disa with his "well I think it's time for me to go. I don't want to intrude" act in Episode 2. He sounds sincere in wanting to restore a friendship with Durin, but then previews for Episode 5 show him passing on the mithril to Celebrimbor. I suppose in a twisted lore way he does manipulate Aragorn into claiming the throne of Gondor in order to "win" his daughter. I think I've always been struck by his introduction in The Hobbit, being wise, strong, venerable, but also "kind as summer." A lurking, manipulative politician doesn't fit my own views. I'm not sure if it's just the way Robert Aramayo is delivering the lines, but he sounds creepy and slimy. It's not a kind and friendly demeanor that Hugo Weaving gave us.

Having said this, I'm trying to approach the series with Huey's post in another thread in mind. That any change to a character, or story, can work if it's consistent and makes sense within the context of the adaptation. This isn't the final product, not even close to that point yet, and the series is doing a good job of maintaining my interests. There are still several positives in the episode, as well.

Similar to Lal, I like seeing the political turmoil building within Numenor. I like Pharazon the populist, appealing to the crowd's dislike of the Elves. That was a clever stump speech, appealing to the valor and pride of Numenor. In contrast to Miriel's appeal of the faith of the Valar's blessing. These divisions will go on to rip Numenor apart and that is a fascinating story. (In the Episode 5 preview, I believe that was Pharazon telling Isildur "when this is over, the Elves will work for us.")

The visual of the great wave flooding Numenor was again stunning.

One more quick thing...

Originally Posted by Form

"Dead brother!" Anárion is... dead? AND his older brother? Well, this doesn't bode well for the Line of Anárion, I must say.

I believe the one friend said, "dead mother." I'm assuming Anarion is still alive and is somewhere in the West of Middle-earth. I watched the previous episode again before watching the new one, and the whole deferment for a year went something like this.

Elendil: What does your brother having to do with this?
Isildur: Nothing
Earien: Well, more than nothing
Elendil: I told you nothing awaits us on the western shores (something like that)

Isildur's friends are named Valandil and Imrahil. So, that I find interesting. I wonder if they have some larger part to play in future seasons?

[Thinlómien]

We just watched this yesterday alongside episode 3, and I'm again having trouble separating what was in which episode and wish to discuss the overall development, so you can take this as a mix-and-match episode 3&4 post. Anyway:

Originally Posted by Formendacil

Is Míriel having the Faramir dream? ... Seems so...

It was great... except I was way too distracted by her kidnapping that random baby while the mother presumably ran away without her child.

Originally Posted by Form

Did he say his name is "Kevin?"

And here I heard "Clement".

Originally Posted by Form

Wait, is a that a palantír--it is! Why are six missing? I mean, it makes sense that they're in Númenor--and that's kind of under-developed by Tolkien: what were they doing in the 2nd Age? Did the House of Silmarien have them all? Were there others? How did Elendil end up with them all?

I guess there's not really a particular reason to stick onto canon in this. For the large audience they only need to show two palantíri making it to Middle-Earth. I was more preoccupied with Galadriel's claim of having looked into several palantíri - when and why? But I guess it can make sense as an inspiration for her mirror. And speaking of the palantíri - I liked how they drew a parallel between Míriel and Denethor, both seeing the destruction of their kingdoms in the stones and the despair eating them up from the inside.

Random notes:

- I liked the visuals of Númenór, but the culture/politics felt pretty lazily written. (You could make so much more out of the cultural/ linguistic / dare I say religious conflict. Also "Elves will steal your jobs and Middle-Earthers will steal your women"? Ughhhh tired.) I liked the portrayal of all of Míriel, Elendil and Pharazon.

- Why are there compulsory 2-3 slow motion scenes in every episode? The effect is mostly... comical. Like the whole Aroboromir sequence that set up his death which didn't happen, not to mention the weirdly cringeworthy Galadriel riding scene.

- I continue having mixed feelings about the portrayal of the Dwarves. The secretiveness, family bonds, and Disa's eerie song to the stone were all great. Disa joking about Durin having a girlfriend, plus the absolutely unnecessary thigh high slit in her dress less so. It would be great to see a Middle-Earth story where Dwarves are not the comic relief.

- Out of the mysterious characters, Adar is my favourite. Actually no idea who he is, unless he is Sauron. The only thing we seem to know of him is that he's an Elf. (The name, plus pointy ears.) But why is he so twisted and chilling with Orcs? What happened to his face? Is he some kind of Gwindor Jr who was captured and tortured by Orcs and changed by it, but instead turned it to his advantage?

- I don't know why everyone thinks Halbrand is Sauron, apart from him being somewhere in the jerk/villain territory plus ogling that smithy. Compared to most other characters he actually has a lot of backstory and character motivation already, and that would be wasted on a decoy. I think his character doesn't need the extra layer of being Sauron in disguise, it would actually make it less deep. But future nazgûl? Very likely. (Maybe even the Witch-King, given how big a role he's playing so far?)

- So, the very end heavily implies The Stranger is Sauron. I would take this with a pinch of salt. Or let's say I very much hope it isn't the case. Everything in the portrayal of the Stranger has been screaming Gandalf so far - the actor's looks and mannerisms, the connection with both fire and hobbits, the PJ-y bug obsession - and if he's someone else, that's wilful misdirection of the audience with no other purpose than a cheap "gotcha" and that's just incredibly lame.

- Also our four-'downer home audience was inspired to go on a pretty advanced conspiracy theory of the show actually covering multiple timelines simultaneously à la Westworld, including Halbrand actually being the same character as either Theo or the creepy old man he's speaking with in the end of the episode. This would also allow for Sauron to be multiple people within the series. Personally, I think that would be cool, but I don't really have that much faith in the writers...

All in all, the show continues to be visually stunning, and intriguing to watch from the simple perspective of how they're going to portray various canon plots/ characters / elements. Writing-wise, I'm still very disappointed in it because I think it's simply bad. The plotting, pacing and characterisation are all over the place, and after four episodes they've failed to make me care about what happens to any of these people (with the possible exception of Nori and Poppy). I also don't know who any of them really are like as people. But the worst crime in my mind is still the dialogue which is just atrocious. The tone and vocabulary are a mess, and half of the time the stuff the characters are saying doesn't even mean anything.

[Legate of Amon Lanc]

Let me start differently this time.

Unlike others, I am not at all bothered by the Palantíri (or by their absence, as it were). We'll see if they resurface. My only problem is - if I understood Míriel correctly - that the remaining ones are ALREADY somehow in Middle-Earth? Why??? Isn't that one of the few things established in LotR? "Tall ships and tall kings... what brought they from the foundered land over the flowing sea? Seven stars and seven stones..." They should be somewhere on Númenor, maybe Pharazon should have one and Elendil could have one or whatever, and eventually Isil, that good-for-nothing rascal should steal them and ferry them from the destruction.
Ahem, okay, so much for me not being bothered about the Palantíri. But honestly, overall, they do not interest me that much in terms of plot. (At most, it's again a wasted opportunity. But I hope they resurface later.) Moving on.

Unlike others, I am also not bothered by Elrond being a slimy politician, because he does not seem to me like a slimy politician at all. He seems to me like a nice basic dude who is trying to find out why is friend is lying to him and such.

Now for my more traditional order.

The Good

Dwarven plotline continues to be fairly good. I am happy that there has been no more burping and smashing rocks. If the Harfoot plotline has the best worldbuilding (or culturebuilding), then the Dwarven one has the best characterbuilding, relationships and all. Durin-Disa, Durin-Elrond, Elrond-Disa, Durin-Durin.

I like Disa, even though I don't understand the leg-revealing clothes. The singing was amazing.

And now for something completely different. Adar is cool. Whatever he is supposed to be. A dark Elf? Like a literal Dark Elf? Non-canon, but ok. What was that asking about Beleriand? He was there then? Is he an Eöl-like figure?

Or with his scars, is he some sort of pseudo-mutated Elf halway to becoming an Orc? Is he called "Adar", "father", by the Orcs, because he was the first Elf captured by Morgoth and then kept like a "breeding bull" for all the Orcs ever? Is he currently here to populate Mordor?

Or is he... something more sinister *dun dun dun*? Okay, let's ask it aloud, is he Sauron? It would make a LOT of sense: the Elvish name, the fact that it is not a proper name but just a nickname. But perhaps also the fact that Arondir sees him as an Elf, but maybe it is what it SEEMS like... after all, was it not Sauron's prime "ability", at the beginning of the Second Age, to appear to others like he was one of them?

(But then, if he is Sauron, then what about the mention of the Meteor Man?... more on that in Legate's amazing theory that will turn your head full Legate 180°!)

Whatever Adar is, even if he turned something completely uncanonical (say, really an evil Elf), I do not mind, because it is well delivered. He has a personality, he has charm (well, that probably means he is actually Sauron after all).

I still love all of Míriel's headdresses. Whatever that thing with blue stones (sapphires?) was in the departure-scene, I'd wear that too.

And last but definitely not least, while I am not one for dramatic reveals, the, as someone named him, "evil Barliman Butterbur" in the final scene was just delightful. (Also incidentally suddenly having about 90% more personality than half the main characters.) I dig this (ha! Not anymore, quoth th' Orc!), I want to see what becomes of this.

The Bad

I said Adar is cool, but he should not be Adar. I always understood it the way that Orcs don't like using Elvish. Even if his name were Adar, they should, in my opinion, opt for a Sharku-style nickname.

More slow motion, slow motion everywhere! That is just plain awful. It feels like Bezos just ran out of money and needed to fill five extra minutes, so decided to lenghten every scene by a minute by making it slo-mo. The only thing we're missing are the Naruto-style scenes that recap half of the previous episode in every episode.

And more ripping off PJ imagery during absolutely unrealistic flight through the woods. Also, the boy was in the well during the day. Then the Orcs started searching, so he waited until dusk. Because Orcs move around so much less and see so much worse at night, right? Okay but anyway, so the dusk comes, so the boy climbs out, then sneaks around for a bit, then runs, then it's dawn. Nope, the timing in this scene was just completely all over the place.

Míriel's "Legate 180" on helping Galadriel was super random and swift. A bit more buildup, perhaps? This also seems like it is speeding up too much. What are they going to do for the remaining X seasons? Okay: I presume that this is not (I hope!) yet the thing where they capture Sauron and bring him to Númenor, only a sort of minor incursion, possibly the sort of Tar-Minastir thing that pushes Sauron back somewhere, but leaves him running about?

Or perhaps it will end up being "whoa, we see no Sauron here, but we see plenty of lands ripe for colonising! Hmm, profit!" And the Númenoreans will begin establishing their colonies on the shores.

The... Okay

I originally intended to criticise Bronwyn appearing to save her son. I mean, it was absolutely random and useless - as in, if she at least had appeared with five other armed dudes, you know? But thinking about it... she did not know that there would actually be that many Orcs (if any) or if her son just, say, fell into a ditch. And more importantly, it actually it is nice, as it shows some affection for her son. So that is one piece of what I have been demanding all the time: some sort of showing the personalities of the characters, interaction that establishes relationships. Well, better to remind us that a mother cares for her son in 4th episode than never, I suppose.

Tar-Palantír... okay. That was unexpected (I did not know he was mentioned in the material they had access to, but in fact, he was! Nice). Still, he did not really do much? It was kind of underwhelming.

And so mithril was only discovered now for the first time in history, or what? Elrond, your dad's ship would like a word with you. I mean, again, yes, a narrative shortcut. But let's not make too many of them. There is this little canon info you have rights to, so why not keep faithful to the little you have?

Pharazon's son. He is so far mostly a basic young dude and him hitting on Isil's (sic) sister would put him into the category of character types I couldn't care less about. But there is something about his behaviour that makes it feel like he has much more personality than, say, Halbrand or Bronwyn. Even if one of his major defining characteristics is "the guy who wants to date the girl", there is some believability to it and it makes him more-dimensional than just "Pharazon's son who wants to dabble into guild politics or whatever". I hope he will turn out ot have an interesting character development.

I kind of like the constant feeling of uncertainty and ambiguity of "Sauron can be here, there, everywhere". I just hope the writers will keep it only until as long as to not overstay its welcome.

Overall
I liked the fourth episode possibly on the average a bit more than the previous ones, some of it owing to Mr. Evil Barliman in the last scene. It seems like something is about to start moving, and we might see the stories start to converge... or will we?