Rings of Power’s biggest ending and season 2 questions, answered

The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of PowerThe first season concluded with significant shifts in the show’s direction and plenty of room to expand. This billion-dollar series, already greenlit for five more seasons, has plenty of room for dramatic moments, almost-shocking revelations and even a revised map of Middle-earth. But it was still table-setting — the Lord of the RingsWe know that the timeline is not yet complete.

We have the premiere season finale, and we are now asking the big questions: What will happen next? Thanks to The Rings of PowerGennifer Hutchison wrote that we know something about the future of Sauron, Galadriel and the Stranger.

Does the Stranger truly belong to Gandalf

Cast and crew encouraged the stranger (Daniel Weyman), to reveal his identity. Rings of Power making reference to him as a “familiar” character to fans.

After eight episodes the answer seems to be… maybe. Though the finale gives some compelling evidence: The White Robes decide he’s not Sauron, and instead call him “Istar,” which Tolkien fans will recognize as a singular form of Istari, the elven word for the wizards of Middle-earth. He turns them into swarms of moths — a move certainly associated with the Gandalf of the Peter Jackson movies. He picks up a staff to do this magic (or whatever we’re calling it), which seems to evoke a certain type of gray and later white wizard. And now that he can speak in full sentences he’s certainly sounding more like Gandalf, even cribbing from a lot of stuff Gandalf said in the Jackson movies.

Are the Strangers and Nori heading somewhere?

Photo: Ben Rothstein/Prime Video

After confronting White Robes with the Stranger, he decided that he was absolutely It is not Sauron, he decides it’s time to go east to Rhûn to discover more about himself. Ever eager to break the harfoot track, Nori decides to accompany him, while Poppy remains behind.

In Rhûn they’ll be able to see the constellation the Stranger has been chasing all season, which is called “The Hermit’s Hat,” and hopefully get the answers the Stranger’s been seeking all season about his identity, powers, and what he should actually do in this world.

What happens in Númenor now that the king is dead?

Without getting into spoilers about what happens to the Númenóreans canonically, suffice it to say the island nation is in a tricky place. Queen Míriel and Elendil have returned home to enlist the country in a fight against the orcs residing in the newly created Mordor (not that anyone can call it that), to find that the king has died. Pharazôn is continuing to rally the residents on a more conservative future of Númenor and fear of outsiders/elves.

What will Eärien do with the palantir?

Before Númenor’s king dies, he lets Eärien into the secret passage with the palantír. While we don’t see what happens after — whether she makes it to the room or touches the crystal ball — but considering what Míriel has seen with the palantír, it seems like whatever happens to Eärien in that room could have consequences for Númenor. We spoke with Rings of PowerGennifer Hutchison was a writer who agreed with her wholeheartedly

While Eärien’s father, Elendil, is aligned with those faithful to the elves, Hutchison said via Zoom, she’s the member of the family who represents the more isolationist Númenórean point of view. “She’s been left behind,” said Hutchison, “and introducing her into that very intimate space with the king allowed for us to hint at how there might be some conflict, which we’ve been building so much in Númenor — and to make it more intimate, with characters that are directly part of the story.”

Is Isildur dead?

Photo: Prime Video

Listen: No. It is very likely that he will appear in the canon in an important way later. He is the only one who knows, for now. Godspeed, horse!

Galadriel’s knowledge of Halbrand being Sauron is a clue as to what she does.

Halbrand received his final manipulation in the eighth episode. The Rings of PowerGaladriel persuaded Celebrimbor to create some rings (maybe of power), and Galadriel was about to realize what so many people have known and theorized for weeks. Sauron.

Though she rejects him and his offer of power, Galadriel does not reveal to anyone what she knows, essentially following the guidance laid out by the Finrod in her vision (slash the Finrod that Sauron put in her vision) to do nothing to stop Sauron’s plan. So with Halbrand/Sauron’s ring plan moving forward (with the crucial — maybe? — addition of a third ring) and Galadriel looking like a goober at having palled around with her sworn enemy for all this time, it’s not a great look. It does create tension, especially considering that…

How does Elrond deal with the fact that Sauron has been revealed to be Halbrand?

Photo: Ben Rothstein/Prime Video

Though Galadriel doesn’t share her news, Elrond is suspicious and wanders out to find the genealogy scroll that leads him to figure out that Halbrand is Sauron. He discovers this information too late and returns to the workshop as the power rings, the elven rings, are about to be completed.

Elrond spent the majority of the season trying to help Celebrimbor or Gil-galad find ways to rescue the elves and harness the power that mithril to do good throughout the world. It remains to be seen if Elrond will keep his promise not to reveal anything and trust Galadriel.

Hutchison said that the challenge of Galadriel and Elrond’s friendship was framing a strong connection, even when the characters shared so little screen time.

“When they come back together [in this episode] it is such a such a big moment for them —he sent her away, and now she’s back. He’s between his guilt, ‘I should have trusted you,’ and he’s also just so happy to see her. It’s been a hard time, now your friend’s back. We tried to really invest that in that scene with the two of them, talking together about what’s happened. Luckily, those actors are so wonderful and incredible that I feel like they can really play those subtleties.”

The episode’s most significant pillar was this dilemma. “I think it’s pretty clear at the end that there’s a bit of conflict in that moment,” Hutchison said. “She’s made a big ask of him. That was what we wanted. ‘This is the true test; you said you’ll trust me.’ We really wanted to make sure that came through.”

What happens to Durin IV, his dwarven succession and Durin III?

We all know that the dwarves are the rulers of the land and should have more. Durin’s plot to (maybe) overthrow his dad, King Durin III, so he could keep mining for mithril. Sure, there’s a balrog in the mix there too, but I care more about watching dwarves rip and generally bring the party.