The finale episode of Rings of Power hopes to resolve many of the current plot threads. This episode is suitably titled, “Alloyed.” The story turns once again to Nori and her Harfoot friends as they track the Stranger, while he is hunted by mysterious mages. Meanwhile, Galadriel and Halbrand arrive at the Elvish city of Eregion in time to aid Celebrimbor and Elrond on their quest to preserve the light of the Eldar race.

This episode is full of pointless misdirection in order to set up big reveals that you can see coming from a mile away. Sauron’s true Identity is finally revealed as well as the Stranger, and the resulting drama feels not only forced but relentlessly cliché. I struggle to see the reasoning behind hiding these characters’ identities, as to the audience it only serves to destroy major themes of the source material.

The biggest themes surrounding the second age concern power, pride, and the failure of humanity, which is exemplified by the destruction of Numenor. These ideas are only partially explored during this show because of the choice to hide Sauron not only from the other characters but the audience as well. Sauron’s manipulation and trickery are certainly evident in this final episode, but I wished there was more overt representation throughout the show as it would have led to a more satisfying character arc. Instead, the character of Sauron is contrived from cheap attempts to evoke drama rather than nuanced interpersonal conflicts.

The best thing about this episode is the small magic battle. The effects are top-notch here, and I like how the battle references the iconic fight between Gandalf and Saruman with some of the choreography. Still, it has barely half of the emotional weight of the original scene and has some of the hands-down most unoriginal dialogue I’ve seen. It’s as though the writers plugged a description of the scene into an AI program that then generated generic adventure show dialogue.

This episode also introduces the first of the titular Rings of Power and like everything else in the show, it feels needlessly convoluted and wholly unsatisfying. It only serves to further my opinion of this show as an utter failure of an adaptation. Sauron doesn’t seem to have a concrete reason for making the rings other than simply advancing the plot, which only serves to further enhance the cartoonish nature of these characters.

This entire series gives me a similar feeling to the latest Star Wars sequels. Though providing a promising start, there appears to be a distinct lack of creative vision. The only true vision is to cash in on nostalgia and reiterate popular ideas touched on by the original series. Unique concepts and world-building specifics are watered down to increase broad appeal, rather than enhancing narrative cohesion.

Just like The Hobbit films before it, The Rings of Power is yet another wholly disappointing attempt to adapt this world. It’s quite strange as it’s certainly evident the series can deliver a truly satisfying tale across many forms of media.

There are dozens of video games set in Tolkien’s universe that offer more than this show, especially in the realm of prequel material. The Shadow of Mordor series is one of my personal favorites. Although not recognized as official canon, its story offers a decidedly more satisfying origin to the Rings of Power, as well as the construction of Mordor. Additionally, LOTR: War in the North provides an interesting parallel narrative to the original trilogy, this time focusing on completely original characters. I’d recommend both games to anyone looking for a more satisfying expansion on this legendary world.

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Rings of Power

1.5

Score

1.5/10

Pros

• Magic Effects

Cons

• It was me, Sauron!
• You're a Wizard Nori
• Rings of Cliché
• Insert Story Here