Continuing on from the final actions of an exciting first episode, The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power opens on Morfyrdd Clark (Saint Maud, Crawl) as Galadriel, treading water in the dark and ominous sea that she has just willingly cast herself into. It is not long before the focus shifts back to Elanor “Nori” Brandyfoot, played by Markella Kavenagh (My First Summer, Picnic at Hanging Rock), who finds herself staring down at a mysterious unclothed ‘giant’  known as ‘The Stranger’, played by Daniel Weyman (Gentle Jack, A Very English Scandal). Her friend Poppy Proudfellow, played by Megan Richards (Wanderlust), urges her away from the scene before accidentally pushing Nori into the fiery pit of his landing. Nori notes that, peculiarly, it is not hot and takes the opportunity to check on the unconscious lander. Upon awakening him, chaos ensues, and his magical panic is only soothed by the calming innocence of her eyes. He passes out again almost immediately. After some debate, Poppy agrees to help Nori hide his body from wolves and the rest of the Harfoots.

Arondir, played by Ismael Cruz Cordova (In the Blood, Mary Queen of Scots), and Bronwyn, played by Nazanin Boniadi (Homeland, How I Met Your Mother), are back with the darkest subplot of the episode. After further investigation of the burning town, they find no bodies – only a suspicious underground tunnel that is not natural or man-made. Bronwyn returns to warn her people while Arondir jumps in to investigate the danger. He once again fails to express his obvious feelings for her verbally or physically, much to her and our frustration. This again was a quick scene that was not dwelt upon longer than it needed to be. Unlike the first episode, “Adrift” quickly demonstrates its freedom to jump in and out of different storylines to build tension effectively through the episode. 

Robert Aramayo (Game of Thrones, Behind Her Eyes) continues with a charismatic performance of Elrond, who reveals some of his skills and flaws as he embarks on the task set to him by Celebrimbor, played by Charles Edwards (The Crown, Batman Begins). Celebrimbor reveals his plans to build a forge and create tools that could change the capabilities of Middle Earth forever – blatantly ignoring how possible it is for tools to be used for a maleficent purpose. Elrond is equally naive but is at least cunning in his attempts to work together with dwarves, who are introduced for the first time in this episode. The scenery inside the dwarves’ caves is remarkable. The beauty and creativity within their walls is some of the finest visual work of the series so far. Elrond invokes ‘the Rite of Sigin-tarâg’, a challenge involving smashing rocks with pickaxes to the point of exhaustion, which he was always going to lose to Durin IV – performed by Owain Arthur (The Palace, The Patrol).

Nori continues to try and help The Stranger who again exhibits magical power and an inability to speak English or effectively communicate with her. Still, they form an understanding of friendship while the rest of the Harfoots struggle to set up camp. Nori is not there to help, and her father sprains his ankle quite horrifically as a result. The Harfoots won’t be able to migrate as easily now. 

Galadriel finds a rogue raft filled with rationing and desperate people. She quickly learns they were attacked by a worm that destroyed their ship. Within a matter of moments the same sea creature shows up to swallow them whole. Galadriel barely escapes, as does Halbrand, played by Charlie Vickers (Medici). As far as monsters go, the worm was revealed carefully and to great effect. There was enough of its humongous body shown to terrify the viewer and enough unshown to avoid it seeming overly animated. 

The loss of his contest with Durin is of no consequence to Elrond, who simply wanted a word with the dwarf prince whom he had previously boasted of his friendship with. He gets his wish, only to find himself guilty of being a bad friend. He missed the last twenty years of Durin’s life including a wedding and the birth of two children. Elrond, blessed with a lack of aging, has failed to consider that twenty years means much more to Durin, and his failure to consider something from another’s perspective hints at a potential flaw for the character. Only after he is forgiven by the compelling Sophia Nomvete (Swashbuckle), aka Princess Disa, is he allowed to reveal his plan.

Bronwyn fails to convince her fellow people to panic while Arondir goes searching for trouble. Theo, played by Tyroe Muhafidin (Dusk, Caravan), her son at home, lashes out at what he thinks are mice under the floorboards. The noise turns out to be the sound of a tunnel being dug under their home by a menacing and visually impressive orc. Arondir avoids trouble before being swallowed whole by pale hands in a moment that is shocking and brilliant. There is a clear lean into the potential for horror in this world and it is not lost in this scene or the next. Bronwyn and Theo hide on opposite sides of the room away from the gruesome-looking orc that eventually discovers them. A graphic battle including multiple stabbings, a temporary hanging, and an ultimate decapitation violently illustrates how the show is designed for a more mature audience. The recognition that even a single encounter with an orc can be so deadly and terrifying is a necessary reminder to an audience that is potentially desensitized to the fear they can invoke. The severed head convinces Bronwyn’s doubters to follow her out of their lands.

Nori returns to The Stranger with Poppy and some firefly lanterns. In a magical, but slightly confusing scene, it is suggested that The Stranger is looking for stars and Nori seems to have a plan. This sequence felt a little vague at first viewing, but not knowing exactly what’s going on with that strange babbling bearded man seems to be half the point. The episode ends with Galadriel finally being found at sea next to Halbrand by a figure whose identity is concealed by their shadow. 

The Arondir and Bronwyn storyline was the highlight of this episode. Their scenes seem much clearer in purpose and tone and make for better viewing. At times with the Harfoots, Dwarves, and Elves, there are attempts to lean into more lighthearted viewing, which provides an enjoyable contrast and entertainment, but can vary in quality depending on the scene. The jokes at the table between Durin IV, Disa, and Elrond are quippy with entertaining reveals and little jabs that help develop and round out their characters, whereas the conversations and jokes with the Harfoots seem rather unnecessary and inorganic. These two episodes have laid a great foundation to build upon. We can only hope that they capitalize on it moving forward.

Rating: 7.5/10