Rings of Power Episode Three

Legendary Leaders Review

Episode three of Amazon’s series The Rings of Power premiered on Friday, September 9, 2022. The episode’s title is Legendary Leaders, and it lives up to its’ name with Galadriel still in the main spotlight and introducing Isildur and Elendil. Elendil is Isildur’s father, and both will take prominent roles in upcoming events. For you, Lord of the Rings fans the huge carvings that the fellowship sails through after they leave Lothlorien are statues of these two men forever guarding the lands of the west.

This episode added at least two more-story lines. The elf Arondir is taken prisoner and is now in an Orc slave labor camp. And though Elendil is now part of Galadriel’s storyline there is no doubt he will take on a life of his own. A character appears in the orc camp, very threatening and human looking, but he is not identified.

I have the same complaints with this episode as I have had with the first two. Too many characters and too many storylines to keep track of. I like the series, but it will take multiple viewings before I can keep all of this straight in my head. The writing and editing still seem choppy as we jump from story to story. This is not a show you can relax and watch it’s one you need to pay attention to, or you will miss something of vital importance.

The first two episodes for more than one reason, I had to go back and watch twice. One reason is due to a blood sugar issue I fell asleep on and off during those first two shows. This has nothing to do with the shows. I chose to watch after breakfast and for some reason, whatever I eat first thing in the morning makes me a little dopey. The second reason was I had no comprehension of what was going on and I found the characters hard to remember, the was especially true in the Harfoot story.

The Harfoot story or The Man Who Fell from the Sky is essentially the story of Nori and Poppy both young female ancestors of the hobbit race. Nori is a bit headstrong and curious about everything. Poppy is less so but a devoted friend to Nori and so follows her lead. Think a much more serious version of Lucy and Ethel, Laverne and Shirley, or even Merry and Pippin.

This might be the first theme that runs true to Tolkien’s own writing the idea of the importance of friendship in hobbit culture. In The Lord of the Rings, friendship ultimately decides the fate of the four hobbits and the world. It is Sam’s devotion to Frodo and the relationship between Merry and Pippin that sustained them through their perils and ultimately through their trials. We will see in weeks to come if the same holds true for Nori and Poppy.

The show is still stunningly beautiful to watch. In the first two episodes, we see the Elf and Dwarf kingdoms. In the third, we see the kingdom of men. Numenor! Numenor is an Island kingdom that Galadriel and Halbrand are ultimately brought to after their trials at sea. The port city is just delightful to look at, and we see how the race of man has succeeded in this kingdom. The race of man in the Middle-Earth is downtrodden. The race of man in Numenor is at the height of its glory. It leaves one to wonder why the race was drawn apart though it has been hinted that Middle-Earth men sided with the great enemy Morgoth in the last war. The Middle-Earth men almost live in poverty because of this, even being watched over by the elves as long as the threat of the enemy’s return was viable. When that threat is considered to no longer be the elves cease their watch over the men and new horrors start.

I’m still not sure where this show is going. I hope we have come to the end of new characters and that events will begin to draw the main characters together, but that is only hope. For now, we wait patiently and in expectation of what new wonders will be revealed in The Rings of Power.