The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Finale Recap & Review: Sauron’s Stunning Reveal

The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power drops major reveals in an emotional finale. Questions are answered with a tad of narrative duplicity, butt-kicking magical dueling, and an indecent proposal for a stunned Galadriel (Morfydd Clark). The Dark Lord has been front and center since the beginning. Pulling every string in a friendly guise. His diabolical plans finally set in motion by the actual forging of rings. “Alloyed” heats up the unknown elements and forges them together with renewed purpose.

Spoiler WarningIn the Greenwood, the Stranger (Daniel Weyman) is lured by the sinister trio chasing him. The Nomad (Edith Poor), Ascetic (Kali Kopae), and Dweller (Bridie Sisson) swear loyalty to… Lord Sauron. The stars on his map is the Hermit’s Hat, located in Rhûn. In Eregion, Celebrimbor (Charles Edwards) and Elrond (Robert Aramayo) admit defeat. The elves must leave Middle-earth to survive. Galadriel arrives with the injured Halbrand (Charlie Vickers). He’s treated with elven magic as Galadriel catches up with Elrond.

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A healed Halbrand marvels to be in the presence of the great Celebrimbor. He offers a novel idea to strengthen their limited mithril supply. Combine it with other alloys to unlock more power. In Númenor, Pharazôn (Trystan Gravelle) commissions Eärien (Ema Horvath) to draw a portrait of the fading King Tar-Palantir (Ken Blackburn). He mistakes her for Queen Míriel (Cynthia Addai-Robinson) and shows her the seeing-stone before collapsing.

In Eregion, King Gil-galad (Benjamin Walker) is presented a new idea by Celebrimbor. Forge the alloy into circular objects for “a power that is unbounded.” Gil-galad refuses to put such power in one person’s hands. He orders the city disbanded. Celebrimbor admits the idea belonged to Halbrand. He wants to craft a power “not of the flesh, but over the flash.” Galadriel heard those same words from Adar (Joseph Mawle). Gil-galad agrees to give the plan three months. Galadriel asks an elf to secretly research the King of the Southlands. Halbrand notices her suspicions, which he tries to alleviate.

The harfoots try to free the bound Stranger. It’s the Dweller in disguise. Sadoc (Lenny Henry) is stabbed. Poppy (Megan Richards), Nori (Markella Kavenagh), and Marigold (Sara Zwangobani) are about to be incinerated. The Stranger takes the Dweller’s staff and unleashes a magical fusillade. They were mistaken. He is not the Dark Lord but “the other, the Istar.” The Stranger destroys them. The harfoots watch the sunrise with Sadoc as he dies.

Elendil (Lloyd Owen) takes the blind Míriel on deck as their ship reaches Númenor. He won’t abandon her after losing Isildur (Maxim Baldry). They arrive at a harbor flying black sails and banners. Her father has died.

Halbrand and Celebrimbor Make Another Discovery

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At the forge, Halbrand and Celebrimbor make another discovery after a failed attempt to mold mithril. They realize that pressure isn’t needed. Halbrand informs Galadriel they will forge two rings. She throws an ancient scroll at his feet. There is no King of the Southlands. The line was broken a thousand years ago. Halbrand confesses to taking the crest of a dead man. His countenance changes. He has been known by many names over time. Galadriel tries to stab him with her dagger. Sauron easily blocks her hand.

Galadriel wakes up in a field with Finrod (Will Fletcher). She curses Sauron to get out of her mind. The scene switches to the raft. Sauron shows her a new reflection in the water. He stands in his frightening armor with her as his queen. Galadriel breaks the spell. She will never be the bride of evil.

Elrond pulls a drowning Galadriel out of the river. Sauron has vanished. Galadriel demands to see Celebrimbor in his workshop. Halbrand is gone. They must never “treat with him again.” Galadriel says they must forge three rings for balance. And that power must be for the elves alone. She gives Finrod’s treasured dagger. Celebrimbor needs the finest gold and silver.

The Stranger and Nori sit together in a field. She tells him that “Istar means wizard.” Nori decides to leave her family and help him find his stars. The harfoots and Poppy weep as Nori leaves. She doesn’t look back embarking on a new adventure.

Everyone gathers as the elven-smiths melt the dagger. Galadriel cries softly as Elrond adds the mithril. The couldron spins as burning liguid drips into a cast. Celebrimbor crafts the material into a circular form. Meanwhile, Elrond returns to the river. He finds the scroll proving there was no King of the Southlands. Elrond hurries back to see Celebrimbor adorn the three rings with jewels. The elves bask in the light. Galadriel sees that Elrond has the scroll. They share a knowing look as Celebrimbor smiles. That grin is mirrored by a black-cloaked Sauron…as he walks towards the fiery Mount Doom in Mordor.

Sauron masquerading as Halbrand was a complete surprise. I’ll have to watch the season again to pick up every clue. Sauron is a master deceiver, but I’m not sure how he ended up on that raft. Was it pure fate that he rescued Galadriel? Then took advantage of her to reach Celebrimbror and Eregion. He played a spectacular long game to create the initial rings. I’m not sure why Galadriel didn’t tell everyone that he was Sauron. That’s information you share immediately.

Related: Exclusive: The Rings of Power’s Damian Del Borrello Talks the Sounds of Middle-earth

The Stranger is Gandalf

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The Stranger is Gandalf. That was fairly obvious from mid-season. He develops his fondness for halflings from the harfoots. Nori’s kindness and faith in his character makes a strong foundation. It remains to be seen what happens at the Hemit’s Hat. Do wizards fall from the sky as meteors? Does Saruman the White loom next season?

Isildur isn’t dead. His character is pivotal in events to come. Eärien has seen the destruction of Númenor. I can’t imagine she’ll keep that a secret from Pharazôn; who will challenge Míriel’s authority. Elendil continues to be a critical player and Míriel’s strongest ally. Will Eärien turn against her father to support Pharazôn? Míriel’s promise to return to Middle-earth in force won’t be easy.

“Alloyed” strayed into melodramatic territory but was a satisfying finale. Nori’s harfoot goodbye ran long. They didn’t shed a river of tears when Sadoc died. Charlie Vickers flipped the bad guy switch and instantly became threatening. Sauron’s manipulation of Galadriel was brilliantly done. Everyone who complained about the pacing should take note. He needed time to earn her trust. I did have an issue with her reaction to his whopper reveal. She was too docile after hundreds of years. I was expecting an angry response after finding the dude that killed her brother, husband, and thousands of elves.

The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power gets top marks for production values. Every episode felt epic. The destruction of the Southlands was my visual high point. Adar claimed to have killed Sauron. It’ll be an interesting power play when Sauron saunters back to the orcs. I expect season two to have brisk pacing. The characters have been established with defined objectives. Hopefully Sauron will start wearing that cool helmet like a fantasy Darth Vader.

The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power’s first season is available in its entirety on Prime Video.

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