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Is the big giant in rings of power Gandalf
The Stranger, Meteor Man, Sauron. who is he, really? Credit: Ben Rothstein / Prime Video Since the start of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, one of the show’s biggest mysteries has been: Who is the Stranger (Daniel Weyman)? Now, after the finale, we know.
Kind of. The Stranger crash-landed in Middle-earth in episode 1 and has been tagging along with Harfoot Nori Brandyfoot (Markella Kavenagh) ever since. Due to his memory loss, the only clues we really have about who he is are his appearance and his magical abilities — which have attracted the attention of a group of white-cloaked women known as the Mystics (Bridie Sisson, Kali Kopae, and Edith Poor).
Early in the Season 1 finale of The Rings of Power, the Mystics finally catch up to the Stranger and hail him as Lord Sauron. As we quickly learn throughout the rest of the episode, that isn’t true. Sauron is someone else entirely. The Mystics realize their mistake and a fight ensues, but the Stranger takes up one of their staffs, proclaims that he’s a force of good, and magics them away.
Who is the big bad in Rings of Power?
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The first season of Amazon Studios’ The Rings of Power is now fully out for everyone to enjoy, and the final episode quickly revealed one of the biggest secrets to date. Sauron, the big bad of just about every age of Middle-earth, has been hiding in plain site since the second episode.
What is Morgoth in Rings of Power?
Who is Morgoth? – Morgoth, also known as Melkor, is an ancient being from the beginning of creation that became primary source of evil on Middle-earth. As the main antagonist of several of Tolkien’s books, including The Silmarillion and The Children of Húrin, Morgoth is the precursor to Sauron.
Who does Nori find in Rings of Power
‘The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power’: Who is the Stranger? Our 4 best guesses for his secret identity Prime’s “Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power” is keeping viewers on their toes each week by dropping clues to several ongoing mysteries. None are more intriguing than the secret identity of the man known only as “The Stranger.” The Stranger ( ) blasts through the skies of Middle Earth on a meteor before crash landing and being discovered by a Harfoot named Nori ( Markella Kavenagh ).
- Little is known about this man.
- He can barely speak, appears disoriented, and demonstrates a clear connection with magic.
- The show has dropped several breadcrumbs as to the man’s true identity.
- Using information from “The Lord of the Rings” author J.R.R.
- Tolkien’s descriptions of Middle Earth lore, we can piece those clues together to form a small list of suspects.
The Stranger is most likely one of these four characters: Sauron The series certainly wants us to believe that The Stranger is the Dark Lord himself. During the Second Age, Tolkien describes Sauron as a shapeshifter who often takes a “fair” form. It stands to reason that Sauron is hiding in plain sight in “The Rings of Power,” and The Stranger raises a bunch of red flags in this regard.
- He utters the Black Speech (the tongue eventually spoken in Mordor), and when he does so the skies grow dark and menacing.
- It would result in a tragic twist of fate if the kind Nori was helping the ultimate evildoer of Middle Earth regain his strength.
- Plus, after he crash lands in that meteor the resulting flames form a similar shape to “The Eye of Sauron” which will one day loom over the tower of Barad-dur.
Gandalf The Stranger also shares similarities with everyone’s favorite wizard Gandalf, and not just because the character wears a grey cloak. He falls from the sky and awakens confused, seemingly unable to speak or comprehend his own powers. This is how Tolkien describes wizards as they first set foot on Middle Earth.
- Wizards are actually Maiar, heavenly spirits sent to Middle Earth in humanoid form by the Valar to aid men and elves in the struggle against Sauron.
- Like Gandalf, The Stranger has power over fire, as seen in the moment where he absorbs the flames from his crash site.
- Gandalf possesses the ability to speak with creatures and The Stranger is able to communicate with fireflies to create a constellation.
It would also make sense for Gandalf to develop a fondness for Hobbits if he was first aided by their predecessors the Harfoots. There is however, one major stumbling block to the Gandalf theory: Gandalf did not arrive in Middle Earth until the Third Age, and “The Rings of Power” is set firmly in the Second Age.
- The series has already stretched the canonicity of certain elements of Tolkien lore, so it’s possible they have found some loophole to work Gandalf into their show.
- Perhaps they will introduce him by the name Olórin, his Maiar title, and never utter the name Gandalf in the series.
- The Blue Wizards Many signs suggest that The Stranger is a wizard, but there is an even more exciting possibility here than Gandalf.
Tolkien stated that five wizards were sent to Middle Earth. Gandalf, Saruman, and Radagast make appearances in the core story, but two other wizards are only briefly mentioned: The Blue Wizards. This pair, named Alatar and Pallando, provide a perfect canvas for “The Rings of Power” series.
- So little is known about the Blue Wizards, that the show’s writers have plenty of wiggle room to forge their own tale while not contradicting Tolkien’s canon.
- And unlike the three wizards that audiences know from the novels and films, Alatar and Palladino first set foot in Middle Earth during the Second Age.
Their mission was to weaken Sauron’s hold on the eastern and southern regions of the continent. If you’re reading this and thinking “but The Stranger is only one man,” I urge you to consider the constellation which he is intent to follow. When he commands the fireflies into a formation in the sky, the shape they create has two parallel arcing lines.
It’s possible these lines represent the path in which two wizards fell from the sky. If this Stranger is one of the Blue Wizards, he may be looking for his friend by using this constellation as a map. A Balrog Fans were quite surprised when the unmistakable visage of a balrog appeared in the trailer for “The Rings of Power.” You may remember that one such creature had an infamous standoff with Gandalf in “The Fellowship of the Ring.” That specific monster has been teased by the deep mining of the dwarves, but he won’t come into play yet unless the series shakes up the timeline in a major way.
Instead, the balrog glimpsed in the trailer could be The Stranger in a different form. While Tolkien provides no example of a balrog shapeshifting from human to demon forms, the series may simply be expanding a bit of his mythos. Like wizards, balrogs are also Maiar, only they were corrupted by Morgoth.
- As such, they take on the form of a demon made of flame and shadow, and served the dark master in the First Age.
- Since balrogs are Maiar, it is possible that Sauron sent one down to earth as a human so that the balrog can work in secrecy before morphing into a demon.
- This would serve as a neat excuse as to why there is zero mention of active balrogs in The Second Age in Tolkien’s writings and explain the appearance of this fiery species in the trailer.
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Is the giant actually Sauron
That Sauron Reveal on ‘The Rings of Power’ Finale Explained by, Plus a Preview of Season 2 SPOILER ALERT: Do not read if you haven’t watched the Season 1 finale of “The : The,” now streaming on Prime Video, After much speculation and enough fan theories to fill a dwarven mine, “Rings of Power” fans finally got their answer on Sauron’s true identity in the prequel series — and it’s Halbrand (Charlie Vickers).
The episode starts, however, with a fake-out from the three mysterious, white-cloaked witches claiming that the Stranger (Daniel Weyman) is actually Sauron. Later in the episode, it’s revealed that he’s not Sauron, but actually a powerful wizard known as an Istari, like Gandalf and Saruman from “The Lord of the Rings.” Vickers and Weyman both spoke with Variety about the major reveals with Halbrand and the Stranger, now that they can finally spill on their true identities.
But first, a recap of the seismic events in the finale: Galadriel (Morfydd Clark) first becomes suspicious of Halbrand’s true identity after he becomes very interested in Celebrimbor’s (Charles Edwards) smithing project. Halbrand offers suggestions on combining the precious mithral with other metals to stabilize it into some kind of small, wearable shape — perhaps, a ring of power? With Halbrand quickly becoming thick as thieves with Celebrimbor upon his first day in Eregion, Galadriel does some research into his lineage.
- She discovers he’s lied, and he’s not the heir to the Southlands as he’d claimed.
- When she confronts him, Halbrand’s true Sauron identity is revealed, and he forces his way into Galadriel’s mind, giving her visions of her dead brother and their first meeting on the raft.
- He proposes that Galadriel join him to rule and “heal” Middle-earth, but she refuses.
There’s a brief reflection of Halbrand in his Sauron armor, and when Galadriel awakens, he’s disappeared. We later see Halbrand/Sauron walking into Mordor in the final shot of the season. Elsewhere in Middle-earth, the Stranger is off on his own, and stumbles upon the three witches who have been following him, thinking he’s their lord Sauron.
- They take him captive, and attempt to restore his mind and powers, but Nori (Markella Kavanagh) and her crew of harfoots help free him.
- The witches realize the Stranger is not who they want, and he defeats them with his elemental powers, which he has slightly more control over.
- The heroes lose Sadoc (Lenny Henry) in the fight, and they all return to the harfoot community so Nori can say goodbye to Poppy (Megan Richards) and her family before setting out on a journey with the Stranger to learn more about his wizard kind.
In the interview with Variety, Vickers and Weyman also reveal a few hints at where we’ll find the characters in Season 2. Did you know that Halbrand was actually Sauron from the very beginning? Charlie Vickers : It was revealed later. The show went on a hiatus after the second episode because of COVID. With a couple months to go, the showrunners told me. Prior to that I had some suspicions.
I auditioned with a couple of monologues, one as Richard III and the other as Satan in “Paradise Lost,” so I had I had a feeling that there was going to be a dark twist to the character, and I was suspicious of it being Sauron. There’s a shot where Halbrand’s reflection in the water is briefly shown as Sauron in his armor.
Were you fitted for his costume? No, I wish. That is amazing CGI work. In the first episode’s prologue, when Sauron walks down the stairs, that’s not me either. Hopefully, one day I get to be fit. What’s the first step of his plan as he walks into Mordor? I think that’s the important thing: He has a plan.
- Going back into Mordor is the first stage of that plan.
- I’m not going to spoil it, but it doesn’t take long to find out in the second season.
- We find out pretty quickly.
- He definitely has a plan, and that’s where it begins, with those first few steps back down.
- I’ve started filming; we’re well underway in the second season.
I’ve read a few scripts and am very much immersed in that world now. What’s the biggest difference in playing Halbrand from Season 1 and Sauron in Season 2? We’re at a different stage of Sauron’s journey. Halbrand represents his repentant phase. But the question lingers whether that repentance was genuine.
I have an answer, but I leave that open so people can interpret the first season how they will. That’s what Halbrand’s journey is; it’s him in that stage when he’s being brought low and very slowly rebuilds himself. By the start of the second season, he is rebuilt. He still has a way to go, in terms of reaching the power that he gets to in the end.
We’re seeing him getting back to being really powerful. You really get to see that progression and I’ll get to play that this season. Which cast member do you most want to have a scene with in Season 2? I would love to share some scenes with the dwarves, because it’s such a rich and beautifully written world.
- There’s so much there, and it’s so far removed from my storyline so far.
- I would love to share scenes with that, so we’ll see — maybe, maybe not.
- When Halbrand was trying to convince Galadriel to join him, were those mind games or did he think he could actually convince her? He believes he can.
- He has a huge amount of belief in his own power by this stage.
When he says, “Join me as a queen,” it’s not to be misinterpreted as romantic. Morfydd taught me the word “shipping” the other day, which I had no idea about. I think it’s awesome that people have been reading into it, but my view on this scene is that it’s for his own gain.
- He’s thinking in this moment, “If she joins me, it’ll help me to enact my plan and it’ll happen faster.” When she resists him, it angers him, but it’s not the end of the world.
- I don’t think of theirs as a romantic connection, but as a cosmic connection.
- There must be something thrilling for him in meeting someone that’s close to his level in terms of power and age and aura that must get his blood pumping.
Inevitably, it brings him back toward his darkness and Galadriel doesn’t realize it at the time, but she draws the lust for power out of him again. Who poses the greatest threat to Sauron? The Stranger probably, because the Stranger is also Maiar. Sauron is probably the strongest of the Maiar, in the same way that Morgoth is the strongest of the Valar. Did you know from the beginning that the Stranger was actually a wizard? Daniel Weyman : I wouldn’t say that I always knew that. In any scene that I was playing, I felt I had all the information I needed to play that scene truthfully. When you start with a blank canvas, you cannot worry too much about what is going to come in the future.
- The showrunners know their arc, but I’m not necessarily privy to that yet.
- How much longer will we call him the Stranger instead of his real name? I am as up-to-date as the audience now.
- I haven’t started filming Season 2 yet.
- Those conversations and learning about character arcs haven’t come to me yet.
The short answer is, I don’t know. How much more power is waiting to be unleashed from within him? We started off with very broad strokes of him not understanding how to use this power or even knowing that it was him doing this creating. He’s become aware that he has a relationship with nature and the elements.
- He definitely has a longing to understand his part in how that power courses through him.
- In the first season, it’s less about him trying to ignite this power, and it’s more about him channeling energies that are present, whether it be in the wind or in fire or somewhere more ethereal above the stars.
That’s a journey he is nowhere near working out. In that moment with Nori at the end when he’s holding the staff, he’s working hard to use the energy in the way that he wants it to be used and for it not to come out of his control as it has before. Which cast member would you want to share a scene with? There are so many characters who are so exciting, I can’t pick anyone in particular.
Why are the orcs so big in Rings of Power?
The revealed images of the Second Age orcs in Amazon’s The Rings of Power are a refreshingly new take from their Lord of the Rings counterparts. The orcs revealed in the images released for Amazon’s upcoming Lord of the Rings prequel show Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power look a little different to other franchise installments – but the designs themselves are notably great. The Rings of Power is set during Middle-earth’s Second Age, thousands of years before the events of The Hobbit and LOTR.
- The show will focus on the rise of Sauron, the forging of the famous rings, the fall of Númenor a.k.a.
- Westernesse, and the last allegiance between Elves and Men.
- Orcs are former Elves who were corrupted by dark magic and torture, who during the time of the Peter Jackson trilogy were primed by Sauron for battle.
Therefore, they were built to be stronger than orcs of the previous Ages. Images of The Rings of Powers’ orcs show them to be equally as fierce, but looking more nimble and wild based on their body frame and dress. Because of their fast reproduction rate and loyalty to Sauron, orcs can be used en masse as dependable soldiers and workers,
However, being that The Rings of Power will focus on Sauron before he officially becomes the Dark Lord that he is in The Lord of the Rings, orcs will not yet be utilized in the same capacity. With that said, The Rings of Power has the unique opportunity to develop orc lore and make them more interesting.
Seeing the orcs during a different Middle-earth Age fleshes out their history. Plus, with them being at a different point in their evolution, orcs can villainize characters in a new way in The Rings of Power. Executive producer Lindsey Weber explained why The Rings of Powers’ orcs look different, stating that the orcs are ” part of a wilder, more raw, Second Age, Middle-earth” who are ” not yet organized into armies.” Looking at the prequel show’s orcs, their tattered, jagged armor achieves this more wild and raw orc persona for this time period, creating some designs that stand out as a result.
Furthermore, while Weber claims that the orcs aren’t yet in armies, The Rings of Power images still show them banded together in well-sized groups. Considering that Sauron won’t have as big of an influence over orcs as he does in The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, they’ll be more likely to act on their own volition against characters.
Therefore, they could potentially be more cunning and threatening – which would make these designs even more interesting, as they may reflect individual characteristics in the orcs themselves more. Along with other LOTR changes in The Rings of Power, a newer vision for the orcs would be good for the franchise. Tolkien expressed plenty about orc history in his numerous Middle-earth works, but there’s no telling how faithful The Rings of Power will be to original sources when revitalizing them.
- Of course, this isn’t to say that The Rings of Power won’t respect Tolkien’s work.
- However, orcs definitely carry unseen potential in the franchise.
- For example, while the orcs in Peter Jackson’s The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings trilogies were undoubtedly menacing villains, they were still pawns of Sauron who were at their most dangerous and threatening when they acted together in massive, ravaging armies.
Seeing how effectively terrorizing the orcs can be in smaller numbers pre-Sauron carries new possibilities for The Rings of Power. So long as Rings of Power avoids Game of Thrones’ mistake and maintains its character development, there should be plenty of promise for the show.
Seeing the kind of direction that the orcs are already going down, The Rings of Power is wisely recognizing the strengths it has as a prequel show. The Lord of the Rings is a beloved franchise with its material being produced for over half a century, so any new works being made need to be approached with a sense of reverence.
With that said, Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power can still honor the franchise while breathing new life into it – as evidence by the great orc designs shown so far. Next: LOTR: All 7 Tribes Of Dwarves (& Which Can Appear In Rings Of Power)
Is Morgoth still alive
Legacy – Morgoth remains in the Void, watched by Eärendil and unable to return to Arda as long as the Valar maintain their power over it. However, the lies he put in the hearts of the Children of Ilúvatar still remain and will create their evil results till the end of days.
- Morgoth’s will was suffused into the matter of Arda, so in a sense he is never truly gone.
- Arda was marred by him so deeply that only Eru could fully repair the damage.
- Those who wished to follow in Morgoth’s footsteps, such as Sauron, found that by using his residual influence, they could easily corrupt races they wished to dominate.
About his servant and heir Sauron it is said that ” in after years he rose like a shadow of Morgoth and a ghost of his malice, and walked behind him on the same ruinous path down into the Void “. Also, during the last days of Númenor in the Second Age, Sauron corrupted the King Ar-Pharazôn and the King’s Men to the worship of Melkor, describing his old master as a god of deliverance while denying the existence of the One,
Thus he began a cult in the Temple in which the Númenóreans made sacrifices to Melkor. By the Third Age, Sauron’s pride overreached itself yet again and ” he claimed to be Morgoth returned “. Nevertheless, according to the Second Prophecy of Mandos, Morgoth will come back and attack Arda. He will fight in the Last Battle against the Valar and their allies, but will ultimately be slain by Túrin Turambar, the Man he cursed.
By finally defeating Morgoth, Túrin will avenge not only himself, but all members of the race of Men.
Why was Rings of Power so bad
The Many Problems Of The Rings Of Power – So much of the dialogue felt like something a machine would write; not quite how actual people talk. The bit about why stones sink and ships don’t is one of those ‘fake wise’ bits that I can imagine an AI writing.
- Same with Bronwyn’s speech about fighting the orcs, or the thing she used to say to her son before bed: “In the end, this shadow is but a small and passing thing.
- There is light and high beauty forever beyond its reach.
- Find the light and the shadow will not find you.” Whether or not this is AI, it’s the kind of writing that mimics Tolkien but is transparently not something he would write.
It is not what a character in Middle-earth would say to their small child, in any case, and certainly not some peasant woman in the middle of nowhere. Unlikable Characters When it came to the show’s sprawling list of characters, most were unlikable and almost all were involved in some sort of manufactured conflict with one another.
- Whereas The Lord Of The Rings focused on friendship and camaraderie, Rings Of Power set up ridiculous, endless squabbling between most of its key characters.
- Galadriel was always in some kind of tussle with everybody she encountered, but so were just about all the characters.
- Isildur and Elendil spent most of their time arguing.
Same with Durin Jr. and Durin Sr. None of these conflicts made much sense. Why was Isildur such a disappointment to his father? Because he didn’t believe that “the sea is always right”? Why did Durin the Elder fear mining for mithril, even if it meant the end of elvenkind? It’s never explained! The story needed conflict and so everyone was given someone to argue and bicker with.
Wild Coincidences The Rings Of Power also relied heavily on wild coincidences to drive the story forward. Plot devices, like Galadriel jumping into the middle of the ocean and then just happening to come across a raft with Halbrand (aka Sauron) on it is such a wildly stupid plot device it beggars belief.
But this is the kind of stuff that propelled the narrative in The Rings Of Power. Not providence, either, or the invisible hand Eru Ilúvatar shaping fate, but just pure coincidence. The fact that the Numenorean army would be able to travel several thousand miles over sea and land and find the exact location of Bronwyn’s village at the exact time that Adar’s army attacked is like something plucked from the worst seasons of Game Of Thrones.
- Utterly implausible when held to any scrutiny whatsoever.
- Goofy Plot Devices On top of the heaping mound of wild coincidences we must pile vast absurdities.
- Take, for instance, the volcano going off to form Mordor.
- This should have been a really cool moment, but it relied on a stupid Rube Goldberg machine to work.
A magic key emptied a dam miles away which then flooded a bunch of recently dug trenches and tunnels which funneled the water into the belly of the mountain to set off the eruption. Recall: This is a fantasy where a magic key could simply set off the volcano with magic but instead we’re supposed to believe that some ancient, hidden key just turns on a machine that breaks a dam that could have broken at any time over the last few centuries and the whole thing relies on trenches being dug to even work in the first place? WHAT IS GOING ON!? The slightest bit of critical analysis (or common sense) reveals that each and every storyline, from the mangled mithril conflict between the elves and dwarves to the entire “King of the Southlands” charade, is completely nonsensical and riddled with plot holes.
$450 million and not a shred of quality control on the script. Lack Of Fidelity To The Source Material I’ve written a great deal already and still haven’t mentioned fidelity to the source material. Perhaps because the show had none. There wasn’t even a hint of Tolkien in this mess, neither in spirit or in a basic adherence to the details of Tolkien’s writing and established lore.
The Rings Of Power’s showrunners decided that they knew better than Tolkien when it came to the Second Age’s timeline, and so they condensed thousands of years into a few months. Perhaps with better writing elsewhere this could have been overlooked, but instead we were left with a rushed story that felt too slow all at the same time, replete with egregious fast-travel and the glossing-over of important events.
What makes this sting most is the promises made by the showrunners themselves in the lead-up to Season 1. They reassured Tolkien fans over and over that they were huge Tolkien nerds devoted to treating his stories with respect and reverence. It simply wasn’t true. The Halfwits At last we must put in a footnote about the Harfoots and their amnesiac wizard.
This subplot contributed effectively nothing more than an elaborate head-fake to the story and some galling fan-service to keep audiences guessing: “Is he Gandalf or is he Sauron?” “I’m good!” he proclaims in his moment of triumph. Brilliant stuff.
Is the eye Morgoth or Sauron
Isildur Destroyed Sauron’s Physical Form – Sauron’s forging of the Rings was featured at the beginning of 2001’s The Fellowship of the Ring, His physical form was shown as a figure in black armor that stood nine-foot tall. This description was also used for various flashbacks of Sauron’s previous life throughout the trilogy.
- After losing the One Ring, Sauron’s physical body was destroyed as his power stemmed from the ring.
- He was thought to have vanished from Middle-earth, but his essence still existed.
- During the Third Age, Sauron returned as a giant flaming eye that sat on top of Barad-dûr, Mordor’s stronghold,
- The all-seeing Eye still had control of Middle-earth as he oversaw all the goings-on within the realm.
He then spawned an army of Orcs and enslaved men to carry out his war to win back the One Ring. The Eye of Sauron, which is what he was commonly referred to, became a symbol of fear and power for those involved in the War of the Ring. When Sauron caught wind of Frodo Baggins and the One Ring’s journey, he set a target on the hobbits from the Shire.
- Without a physical form, he had to use the Nazgûl to do his bidding, sending the Ringwraiths to the Shire in his stead.
- Sauron made an ally in Saruman the White, in an effort to bring his wrath upon Middle-earth.
- Despite his mission, Sauron still had his sights set on reacquiring the Ring.
- By Return of the King, Gandalf and Aragorn had one more chance at defeating Sauron.
They successfully drew out Sauron’s army to empty out the forces in Mordor. This allowed Frodo and Sam to travel to Mount Doom. After a scuffle with Gollum, Frodo managed to throw the One Ring into the volcano, destroying Sauron’s life force and putting an end to the major mission in Lord of the Rings,
Is Morgoth also Sauron?
This article is about the fictional character. For the band, see Morgoth (band),
Morgoth | |
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Tolkien character | |
In-universe information | |
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Race | Valar |
Book(s) | The Lord of the Rings The Silmarillion The Children of Húrin Beren and Lúthien The Fall of Gondolin Morgoth’s Ring |
Morgoth Bauglir ( ; originally Melkor ) is a character, one of the godlike Valar, from Tolkien’s legendarium, He is the main antagonist of The Silmarillion, The Children of Húrin, Beren and Lúthien, and The Fall of Gondolin, Melkor is the most powerful of the Valar but he turns to darkness and is renamed Morgoth, the primary antagonist of Arda,
All evil in the world of Middle-earth ultimately stems from him. One of the Maiar of Aulë betrays his kind and becomes Morgoth’s principal lieutenant and successor, Sauron, Melkor has been interpreted as analogous to Satan, once the greatest of all God’s angels, Lucifer, but fallen through pride ; he rebels against his creator.
Morgoth has been likened, too, to John Milton ‘s fallen angel in Paradise Lost, again a Satan-figure. Tom Shippey has written that The Silmarillion maps the Book of Genesis with its creation and its fall, even Melkor having begun with good intentions.
Is Sauron more evil than Morgoth
When Fans of Lord of the Rings think of Sauron they don’t question whether he’s good or evil, but was that always the case for him? There’s no question that Sauron was as close as possible to being completely evil in the Lord of the Rings trilogy, but his beginning illustrates why he isn’t completely. Originally, Sauron started as the opposite of evil- a being of light that gave in to temptation. In The Silmarillion, which was an extension of the Lord of the Rings universe that was published after Tolkien’s death, Sauron was noted as being chief lieutenant for the original dark lord, Morgoth. Both Morgoth and Sauron were once members of the Ainur.
Morgoth outranked Sauron in terms of the Ainur heirarchy, and so Morgoth had influence over Sauron, and Sauron certainly made no attempts to resist this. The Ainur, or the “Holy Ones”, similar to angels in Christianity, were the original beings of light and good, preceding even the beginning of the world.
While these beings were capable of making errors, like humans, Morgoth rebelled by completely evil means, dragging Sauron down also through his temptations. While Tolkien didn’t believe in a being wholly embodying evil, Sauron ultimately came as close as possible.
The event that began Sauron down his path from light to darkness was Morgoth (accompanied by Sauron) destroying the cosmic music used by the creator of the world, Eru, who is resemblant of the Christian God. From this point on, Sauron developed a taste for evil acts and the power they granted him, thus beginning his timeline of darkness.
This is the moment he is first truly tempted by evil. After this, Morgoth arrived in Middle-earth before Sauron. Sauron, serving as a spy, had to deceive several members of the Blessed Realm, stirring trouble in his time there. Once Morgoth established a stronghold in Middle-earth, Sauron left the blessed realm to join him, thus openly expressing his betrayal and commitment to evil.
This is the moment he actually commits to an evil lifestyle. Once the Valar are present in Middle-earth, they attack Morgoth’s fortress, capturing him in the process but Sauron is able to escape, Sauron remains in Morgoth’s fortress, rebuilding it, along with an Orc army to do his bidding. This is the moment where Sauron not only does evil but creates it- he begins producing it in large quantities.
By doing this, he extends his reach over Middle-earth and his power grows, and as a result, his darkness grows too. Morgoth returns to the re-erected fortress and remains there with Sauron until the Valor attack again. This time, their attack results in Morgoth’s death, and once again, Sauron escapes. What ended up making Sauron a more successful villain than Morgoth was not a matter of strength but a matter of motivation. While Morgoth had a higher ranking and stronger powers than Sauron, he was not motivated by as specific or as corrupt of a driving force as Sauron was.
Morgoth sought only to disrupt Middle-earth- to create chaos. Sauron, on the other hand, desires to have complete control over Middle-earth and those that exist there. Sauron’s ability to deceive even his own master shows just how keen in the ways of betrayal and self-serving he is, which explains how he is later able to easily pick up on Saruman’s betrayal.
The remainder of Sauron’s storyline is centered around him seeking more and more power and feeding his darkness by doing so, which leads to the storyline that most fans are familiar with. He often takes many forms throughout his timeline, illustrating the many forms that evil can take.
Sauron symbolizes two things in the LOTR storyline. One, that a hunger for power that is fed will grow and grow until it consumes you. Second, that evil comes with many faces and many smooth words to deceive, encouraging audiences not to let their guard down, even in our own world that lacks Orcs and the Nazgul.
Given that the overall theme of the Lord of the Rings is the human habit to seek power as a means of escaping death or being immortalized, it’s safe to say that Sauron embodies this message. While Sauron did not start out as evil and he had all of the means of living a content existence, he desired more and ultimately decided he’d do whatever he had to in order to obtain it.
Who are the mysterious 3 in Rings of Power?
Warning: This post contains spoilers for the season finale of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power. Mysterious figures litter the lands of Middle-earth. There are wizards without memories, sketchy kings with hidden backstories, and elves twisted by evil magic hiding in every corner.
- But the most puzzling characters on Prime Video’s The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power —at least to date—may be the three witches in white who are played by Edith Poor, Bridie Sisson, and Kali Kopae.
- Perhaps it’s more accurate to call them cultists or evil-doers.
- But from the minute they appeared, it was clear these creepy characters were up to no good.
They’ve been lurking around. Setting fire to stuff. Being witchy. And in the final episode of the first season, they had a showdown with a magical stranger who is definitely a random person and not Gandalf. (Just kidding. That guy with the beard who fell from the sky and loves hanging out with jolly, tiny people is almost certainly the wizard Gandalf.)
Why can’t Orcs go in the sun in Rings of Power?
The Rings of Power’s third episode provides further explanation for the tunnels beneath the Southlands, referencing the Orcs’ hatred of sunlight. Warning! SPOILERS for The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power episode 3. The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power ‘s third episode showcases the Orcs’ hatred of the sun. Throughout the entirety of Tolkien’s Legendarium, the Orcs have been the foot soldiers of evil, starting with Morgoth and ending with Sauron,
Violent and sadistic by nature, Orcs abhor all that is good in the world, taking pleasure in torturing and killing their enemies and even each other. The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power provides another adaptation of Tolkien’s most detested monsters, as they tunnel their way through the Southlands, pillaging and burning peaceful settlements as they go.
Tolkien’s writings are unclear about the exact origin of the Orcs, as he revised his vision several times. Generally, there are at least two schools of thought: they may have been born from rocks and slime (as is depicted in Peter Jackson’s film adaptation of The Lord of the Rings when Saruman creates the Uruk-hai), or they were either corrupted Elves or corrupted Men.
In every case, Morgoth, Middle-earth’s first and worst true evil, was involved in their creation, imbuing them with his wickedness and pain. The reason the Orcs detest the sunlight so much is down to the time and place of their creation. Morgoth bred the Orcs at a time when Middle-earth was still shrouded in darkness, the light of the Two Trees of Valinor unable to reach the furthest corners of the world.
As such, the Orcs were literally born in the dark, fighting and thriving in the black of night. When the sun rose over Middle-earth for the first time years after their initial creation, the light traumatized the Orcs, burning and blinding them after so many years shrouded in darkness.
Why are there no female Orcs in lotr?
Why Are There No Female Orcs In Sauron’s Army? – Tolkien’s comment about female Orcs existing, just not in Sauron’s armies, implies that there are Orcs that live outside the service of Evil, Unfortunately, it was never made clear exactly what he meant by this, as it’s one of the questions he never really answered.
However, his initial answer does confirm that female Orcs exist, so they have to be somewhere, right? If they’re not in Sauron’s army, where are they? Well, the answer may be that they are in Sauron’s army after all, it’s just that no one ever noticed. Unlike humans, the differences between the sexes might be barely noticeable, and it’s entirely possible that there were female Orcs in Sauron’s army the whole time.
In general, women aren’t mentioned much over the course of the series, but they are there. This means that it’s plausible that there were always female Orcs that just simply weren’t noticed by the other characters. A lot of the characters aren’t always the most observant, and they wouldn’t know the subtle differences in the Orcs to be able to differentiate them.
- Since Tolkien said that Orcs were generally just seen as soldiers, then any female Orcs could have been soldiers as well.
- Much in the same way that female Dwarves aren’t seen in The Lord of the Rings, but it is known that they still exist, the same could be true for Orc women.
- It’s unfortunate that so little is known about female Orcs, as it’s clearly a topic of interest for a lot of Tolkien fans, but it’s one of the aspects of Tolkien’s work that was never set in stone and is much more open for interpretation.
NEXT: LOTR: How Are The Uruk-Hai Different From Regular Orcs?
How did elves become Orcs?
How did the orcs come to be, and how do their numbers keep multiplying? Is it magic, or something else more natural? Orcs may not be the strongest creatures in Middle Earth, as even the hobbits were able to take out several of them, but they do have the numbers. In The Lord of the Rings, there is a scene where viewers see what is apparently some type of birth, where full-sized and viscous Orcs are born from a muddy, sludge-filled membrane ready to fight.
This scene leaves a lot of questions like how does this happen, are they all born this way, and where did the first Orcs come from. There is some confusion about the different types of Orcs there are, as well. Tolkien used different terms to describe these creatures, but no matter what they are called, they are still all classified as Orc-type.
The different divisions of Orcs include Uruk-hai (which are the Orcs bred in Isengard, sometimes called Isengarders), Hobgoblins (a breed that is stronger and larger than a normal Orc), and Goblins (who live underground in places like the Misty Mountains ).
There are also lesser-known divisions like Half-Orcs and Mordor Orcs. There was a Dark Lord before Sauron was in the picture. Morgoth (also known as Melkor) was the first Dark Lord, and he is the one who first bred the Orcs. Mordor Orcs refer to the Orcs that Sauron bred for his own army. The first Dark Lord Melkor took hostage some Elves from Cuiviénen.
He tortured them, beat them, and broke their bodies into the first deformed and twisted beings known as Orcs. Tolkien confirmed that female Orcs did exist. The fallen Maiar (spiritual beings that have existed since the beginning of time) and Orcs led by Melkor lived underground in the dark depths of the world, where the Orcs began breeding and multiplying. When viewers find themselves asking where did the Orcs come from after watching The Lord of the Rings, they are most likely asking about the Uruk-hai and the birthing scene. Although this division refers to Orcs bred in Isengard, there were also Uruks from Mordor who worked in Sauron’s Dark Tower called Barad-dûr, and they used the symbol of the Great Eye to bestow fear in Middle Earth, just like the Uruk-hai from Isengard used a white handprint or white Elven rune to symbolize that they were from Isengard and served the White Wizard.
- Unlike the first Orcs who were created from the tortured and mangled bodies of Elves, the Uruk-hai were bred by Saruman the White using the dark arts.
- Magic in The Lord of the Rings is more of the mind than the physical,
- Saruman conjured up the Uruk-hai not so much by waving a wand and the Uruk-hai were there, but more so from a formula and spell—like a curse.
Saruman also enchanted the minds of Men or were enemies of Rohan into joining forces with the Orc army. It’s not said in any book or even by Peter Jackson (director of the trilogy), but it is suggested that the Uruk-hai were the result of crossbreeding Man and Orc. Saruman briefly explains how the first Orcs came to be, asking one of the Uruk-hai, “Do you know how the Orcs first came to being? They were Elves once, taken by the dark powers, tortured, and mutilated. A ruined and terrible form of life. And now, perfected.
My fighting Uruk-hai.” In the films, Saruman’s Uruks rip their way out of a membrane of some kind that is deep under the Earth, and other Orcs help dig them out of the mud. Like the Eye of Sauron, this was another interpretation of the book that Peter Jackson, Fran Walsh, and Philippa Boyens made based on what Tolkien once said about how Orcs “worm their way out of the ground like maggots.” Saruman bred the Uruk-hai to be stronger, bigger, and with better armor than Sauron’s first Orcs were.
And although there was a bit of magic involved, the Orcs were made from hate, evil, and pain. The scene in Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings was just a metaphor for how nasty and mean the Orcs were and how they seemed to come out of the ground (since that is where they first lived) from nowhere, and it might have been a little strange to see thousands of Orc or human women giving birth to baby Orcs.
Have we met Gandalf in Rings of Power?
What is an Istar in Lord of the Rings? – Two of the Istari in Lord of the Rings. New Line Cinema Istar is not a person, it’s a race. Like Elf, Dwarf, or Hobbit. Sort of. The Istari were the five wizards sent to Middle-earth. They are Maiar (primordial spirits) given the form of old men and tasked with aiding in the fight against Sauron with mixed results.
- So it makes sense that the witches are upset when it turns out the Stranger is one of the Istari.
- However, this doesn’t mean he’s Gandalf specifically.
- After all, there are five to choose from: Gandalf, Saruman, Radagast, and the two Blue Wizards.
- According to Tolkien canon, Gandalf and Saruman didn’t even arrive in Middle-earth until the Third Age ( Rings of Power is set in the Second Age).
The same goes for Saruman. The Blue Wizards arrive in the Second Age, but we know very little about their story. Of course, it’s possible Rings of Power could be messing with the timeline to tell an interesting story, but there’s one more reason to believe the Istar we met in Season 1 isn’t Gandalf.
Is the giant Saruman rings of power?
The Stranger’s identity in The Rings of Power has been revealed – thanks to one key line (Image credit: Amazon Studios) Warning: Spoilers follow for episodes 1-8! Turn back now if you’re not caught up on Amazon Prime Video! Just who is the Stranger in The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power? It’s a question we’ve been asking ourselves since the mysterious giant crash-landed on Middle-earth in the first episode. (Image credit: Amazon Prime) No, The Stranger (Daniel Weyman) is not Sauron, Saruman, or even Radagast the Brown. While it is revealed in the season finale that The Stranger is an Istar/Istari (otherwise known as a wizard in Middle-earth parlance), one line clues us in even further to The Stranger’s identity. (Image credit: New Line) Read up on more of The Rings of Power’s big mysteries with our complete explainer to the and all the clues that you may have missed. Plus, there’s our guide to as well as to help you make sense of Middle-earth’s centuries of conflict and chaos.
Did they use a giant ring in Lord of the Rings?
The Lord of the Rings trilogy recently arrived on Amazon Prime Video, giving fans another chance to rewatch the classic trilogy. All kinds of movie magic were used to bring the world of Middle-earth to life in the days when CGI could not be stretched quite so far.
For example, you’ve probably heard of the camera trick that was used to make human-sized actors appear vastly different heights, by placing one actor further from the camera than another. Related: Lord of the Rings almost had a much darker ending It’s how Ian McKellen seems to tower over Elijah Wood when their real height difference is only a few inches.
But did you know that size-disguising techniques were also performed on a very important object: the all-powerful ring itself? New Line Cinema Watch The Fellowship of the Ring on Amazon Prime Video Although the ring appears unchanging in the films until its fiery fate at Mount Doom, often what you’re really viewing onscreen is not a finger-sized piece of jewellery at all, but an oversized duplicate you could fit your arm through.
Indeed, while it’s known as the One Ring, there were actually more than 40 different versions of various sizes created for the trilogy. These scaled-up rings were used for many different purposes, such as close-up shots, to show the ring in detail while keeping other objects or actors in frame. The forger of the ‘real’ One Ring was not the Dark Lord of Mordor, but a New Zealand goldsmith named Jens Hansen.
To design it, he produced 15 different prototypes before landing on the iconic final version he would then go on to duplicate many, many times. According to Hansen’s website, the largest of his rings was a whopping eight inches in diameter. This giga-ring was used in the opening scenes of The Fellowship of the Ring, where you see it spinning through the air as Cate Blanchett outlines its sinister history.
- You can see the oversized ring in the post below with Jens’ son Halfdan Hansen: Watch The Two Towers on Amazon Prime Video Having many copies allowed the ring to perfectly fit its various owners, from the thick gauntleted fingers of Sauron to tiny hobbit hands.
- It’s a fun coincidence that this actually reflects the artifact’s magical abilities.
In the books, Gandalf tells Frodo that, “It did not seem always of the same size or weight; it shrank or expanded in an odd way, and might suddenly slip off a finger where it had been tight”. On other occasions a larger prop was used to emphasise the ring’s supernatural properties.
- In the classic Fellowship scene where Bilbo reluctantly relinquishes the ring, dropping it to the floor, it falls with unnatural weight, landing with a boom and not bouncing at all.
- As revealed by VFX artist Brian Van’t Hul in one of the film’s many audio commentaries, it was simply a matter of switching the prop out for “an oversized lead ring” in between shots to create both the visual effect and the sound.
Watch The Return of the King on Amazon Prime Video If no-one tipped you off, you’d never pick up on it, but once in the know, you can’t help hunting for further examples. Next time you revisit The Lord of the Rings, see if you can spot the scenes where a larger-than-life ring is masquerading as the One.