The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Powerhas many storylines on the go, but the attempt to continue a Tolkien tradition may actually be the show’s biggest weakness.The Rings of Powerseason 1confirmed that the original character Halbrand was Sauron, and season 2 developed Sauron into his Annatar persona. Meanwhile, Galadriel went her own way in season 2, leaving Sauron with the unfortunate Celebrimbor. The show’s stories have ranged from the outlandish to the Tolkienian, but the most obviously Tolkienian subplot may not be as Tolkienian as it seems.
British high fantasy originator J.R.R. Tolkien published his masterwork,The Lord of the Rings, in three parts between 1954 and 1955. It could be that a modern audience simply doesn’t lap up Tolkienian subplots as well as others, or that spiritually faithful subplots don’t gel with the rest of the show so well. However,The Rings of Powerseason 2 endingproved that the show did have Tolkien’sSilmarillionstory at its heart, tying off Annatar’s arc nicely. It is the Stranger’s arc that is oddly weak, considering its roots in Tolkien.
Nori & The Stranger’s Story Is Original To The Rings Of Power But Continues A Tolkien Tradition
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Across the many storylines ofThe Rings of Power, that of the Stranger and Nori may be the weakest, despite continuing an old Tolkien tradition. 88 years before 2025, Tolkien publishedThe Hobbit. This 1935 children’s book led with a Hobbit (Bilbo Baggins) and a Wizard backing him (Gandalf). This tradition was continued inThe Lord of the Ringsnovel, whilePeter Jackson’sHobbitandLord of the Ringsmoviesadapted both with varying degrees of faithfulness.Hobbits were somehow even more human than humansin the books, with contemporary values and lifestyles contrasting Men’s medieval systems.
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This dynamic worked well with Hobbits fronting the stories - readers connected to them. Just as Gandalf, in many ways, led the story alongside Bilbo inThe Hobbit, he led the story alongside his nephew, Frodo, inLord of the Rings.One would have thought that Gandalf leading an arc with Nori inThe Rings of Powermay have workedas well, but it might actually be the show’s least engaging part. Perhaps this is because Nori is an original character, but there may be some other issues with this subplot at play.
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Markella Kavenagh as Elanor ‘Nori’ Brandyfoot in The Rings of Power
Although Nori andthe Stranger inThe Rings of Powerseason 2is an arc with strong roots in Tolkien’s work, it can sometimes come off as the weakest arc of the show. In season 1, at least, this arc was probably more faithful than the Galadriel arc, which centered bizarrely but entertainingly on a romance tease with her mortal enemy. The Númenor arc was tracking along quite faithfully, perhaps, despite being set at the same time as the forging of the rings. But despite any faithfulness, some fans felt thatthe Stranger’s storyline was the fillerof the bunch.
Despite following the tried and tested formula of Hobbit (or pre-Hobbit, in Nori’s case) and Wizard on an adventure, the Nori-Stranger plot may have been inhabited by all the original material thrown in. Of course, Gandalf’s journey with a pre-Hobbit is a wholly made-up narrative, and throwingLord of the Rings’Tom Bombadilin there only made things more complicated and different from the source material.Perhaps some preferred Galadriel, Celebrimbor, Isildur, Arondir, Theo, or Elendil’s arcsto Nori’s as they contained more action.
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As one of theHarfoots inThe Rings of Power, Nori is a nomadic soul, and this will likely propel her to heights that could greatly improve her arc. As a standout nomad among a nomadic tribe, Nori may be on the right track to be more than what she seems.If Nori turned out to be related somehow to Frodo, that would make her far more relevant, as an original character, toLord of the Rings’overarching story. And it is looking increasingly like she may be. This would improve a storyline many see as lackluster inRings of Power.
Nori may be on the right track to be more than what she seems.
If Nori was Frodo’s great ancestor, this would add faithfulness, drama, and a surprising twist. This could come to be the case through the westward journey that Nori will have to undertake inThe Rings of Powerseason 3. In traveling east from Rhûn, Nori will be bringing the Stoors with her, already having united them with Harfoots. She will be leading them westward and through escaping Sauron’s wrath, may end up journeying all the way to where the Shire will be in the future.Nori could be one of the founding originators of the Hobbitsand the Shire.
Tolkien wrote about the history of Hobbits in the prologue to part one ofThe Lord of the Rings,The Fellowship of the Ring.
The Rings of Powercould conspire to grow Nori’s story along these lines in the coming seasons to improve the relevance of her storyline. Markella Kavenagh is amazing in the role, and her chemistry with Poppy has been consistently entertaining, heartwarming, and fun. If Nori separates from Gandalf in season 3, now she has led him to Tom already,The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Powerwill have to work even harder to prove her relevance, so bringing in a wider significance could be wise. However, keeping her earnest and humorous alongside Poppy will also ground the show.
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power
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Set in the Second Age of Middle-earth, The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power explores the forging of the iconic rings, the rise of the Dark Lord Sauron, and the epic events leading up to the stories in J.R.R. Tolkien’s classic novels. The series chronicles the creation of legendary characters and the historic alliances and rivalries that shape the fate of Middle-earth.
