Darkness, Delve-craft and Deception

my review of episodes 4 & 5 of the rings of power

Breanne Rodgers

Sep 13, 2024

I’m Breanne, a new-ish substacker, but a lifelong Tolkien fan. This space is one I’ve created to welcome others into these beautiful stories, sometimes on walks with my dog and sometimes in a quiet corner of your inbox.

This substack is also where I host annual read-throughs of The Lord of the Rings (our next one starts September 22nd!), written deep-dives from Tolkien’s legendarium and doing everything I can to make The Professor’s work welcoming and accessible.

In today’s post I’m reviewing Episodes 4 & 5 of The Rings of Power. Enjoy!

🚨heavy spoilers for Season Two of The Rings of Power ahead 🚨

You can read my reviews of episodes 1-3 here.

Episode four of ROP was focused on Arondir finding Theo, The Stranger ~~finding a goat~~ finally getting a bath and the Harfoots finding out they’re not the only Halflings in the world.

Of all the episodes we’ve had so far this season, this was probably my least favorite but that’s not to say I didn’t enjoy a lot of it. Parts of it I really loved and parts of it didn’t work for me, let’s get into it.

“What do your Elf eyes see?”

Nothing because they filmed these scenes too dimly lit and it rips me right out of the story because I can’t see a thing. Petition to bring back the universal blue “it's nighttime now” filter, please.

I don’t like how stubborn and bitter Elrond was in this episode. I think they’re setting him up to have an impactful change of heart the next time he sees Galadriel but, right now, I’m just annoyed at him.

I enjoyed the Barrow-wights immensely but they were defeated all too quickly. Maybe we’ll get more of them in future seasons?

The Stoors didn’t excite me like I hoped they would. They’re presence in the story felt a bit forced and I hope they and other “Hobbit cultures” (i.e., Fallohides) get more fleshed out in future seasons. I did enjoy Gundabale taking Nori aside to show the Harfoots history and Nori realizing why her people are “wanderers”. It was a touching moment.

A Language I Could Understand

I loved finally seeing an Entwife. Her anger and grief was poignantly portrayed on screen. I loved Arondir seeking forgiveness from the Ents. I loved getting a Nameless Thing (it was satisfyingly horrifying?). I loved Theo reuniting (and reconciling) with Arondir. I’m loving the elements of mystery and romantic tension Estrid is bringing to the story. I don’t know which side of the fence she’s going to land on and find that intriguing.

Finally, I very much enjoyed this interpretation of Tom Bombadil’s character. No, he’s not as flamboyant as he is in The Fellowship of the Ring, but I’m glad for that. The repurposing of his direct lines, his soft optimism, the constant humming and singing. It all worked very well for me personally within the story Rings of Power is telling.

I’ve always been perplexed by Tom Bomabil in Tolkien’s books. I hold no animosity towards him but have always found the shift in tone during his chapters to be jarring. After seeing him in episode four I feel like I get him now. I realize this is personal preference, but Rings of Power’s Tom Bombadil has helped me understand the themes of Tom Bomabadil’s character I believe Tolkien intended all along. This adaptation of him was felt like the character was portraying those themes in a language I could finally understand.1

Our next annual read-through of The Lord of the Rings is almost here! If you’ve ever wanted a welcoming space to explore this story with a community of like-minded people, come join us on September 22nd where I’ll be acting as your guide2 through Middle-earth.
Subscribe below to claim your seat before sign-ups close!

*This event is for paid subscribers only.

“For Me the Grief is Still too Near”

Episode 5 was one that I’ve enjoyed the most so far as a whole. I wanted more Khazad-dûm. We got more Khazad-dûm. I wanted more Númenor. We got more Númenor. I’ve been begging for any sign that Celebrían (Galadriel’s daughter) will be in the show and we–maybe?!--got a possible hint of that.

The episode brought the dangers of the Dwarven rings, the turmoil of Númenor and the deceits of Annatar into sharp focus. I don’t believe the word ‘enjoyed’ is the right word for this episode because the scenes that made the most impact were also the most devastating.

Let’s talk about it.

Seeing *how* the Dwarven rings affected King Durin by simultaneously helping and harming him was executed perfectly. That’s the thing about Sauron’s “gifts”: they do work, but they come with a price. Seeing the juxtaposition of Disa’s Stone-singing alongside the powers of Durin’s ring was a tense contrast I appreciated; “the gift of Aulë versus the sorcery of Sauron’s craft”.

I loved that the episode took time to showcase the friendship between the Dwarves of Khazad-dûm and the Elves of Eregion. Notably, Narvi and Celebrimbor. I know many would have liked to see more of them together but the friendly banter between them alluded to their relationship in a satisfying way for me personally.

I loathe Kemen. Eärien is someone I can reserve the tiniest teaspoon of empathy for but Kemen has been sneaking around and slithering his way to power from day one. Yes, his father is horrible to him, but after this episode, I can barely tolerate seeing the man on screen. Be gone, foul betrayer!

Watching Elendil take on a more prominent role this season was both exciting and heart-wrenching. The grief he has with having lost Isildur (from his current perspective) and now losing Eärien to the blindness of her own pain is devastating. And through it all he seeks to remain “the calm in the storm’s eye” for his queen and country.

The death of Valandil broke me. I had feared this character would not survive the show. And having him die at the cowardly hand of Kemen was almost more than I could take. Valandil died thinking Isildur was gone forever. I had hoped for a reunion at some point but, alas! We must all be distraught together. Knowing that, in the books, Isildur goes on to name one of his son’s Valandil kind of helps. Not really.

Finally, seeing Charles Edwards (Celebrimbor) brilliantly portraying the strain of his character’s ego, compassion, ambition, naivety, and confusion at trying to do the right thing but it all going wrong is being handled brilliantly. And Charlie Vickers’ Annatar playing on everyone’s strengths and weaknesses at the same time is thrilling.

Overall, watching Episode 5 put me on the edge of my seat for how this season is going to end. I’m thrilled with how they handled it.

Random things to note that I loved:

The relic of Nienna. In Tolkien’s legendarium, Nienna is one of the Valar and akin to the patron saint of grief and sorrow. I couldn’t believe we got a “nod” to her and, being my favorite of the Valar, I was so happy with it!
Annatar remarking how Mirdania looked like Galadriel immediately had my ears pricked. Why would he say that? Is an adult Celebrían going to happen in this show?!
All of the “deep-lore Easter eggs” in this particular episode. They didn’t feel forced or just pure fan service. They made sense for the story and I was gasping left and right at everything they got to weave in.

That’s all my thoughts for now, but now you tell me: what’s one thing you’ve enjoyed about episodes 4 & 5? I feel like things have really ramped up just in time for the final three episodes!

Generally PSAs about Tommy B:

Tom is not Eru Ilúvatar (see: Tolkien’s Letter 153)
Tom is not a Tolkien self-insert (see Tolkien’s note about self-inserts in Letter 181)
Tom is not “the most powerful being in the legendarium” (see chapter: The Council of Elrond)

Tom is just Tom. Hey dol! Merry dol!

How do the LOTR read-throughs work? Find out more by clicking here!