If there’s no one criticizing The Rings of Power, then it’s safe to say that Elrond is no longer with us. This statement largely holds true, but the Season 2 finale of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power showed Elrond (played by Robert Aramayo) making a choice that would have seemed unimaginable earlier in the season.
After Sauron (Charlie Vickers) attacked Galadriel (Morfydd Clark) with the Crown of Morgoth, Elrond decided to wear her ring, Nenya, to help Gil-galad (Benjamin Walker) drive away the dark forces surrounding her and save her life.
This moment is incredibly significant for Elrond. Carly Lane from Collider got the chance to talk with both Aramayo and Walker about what this decision means for Elrond going forward. Aramayo explained that the tough choice to save his friend’s life does not reflect a complete change in Elrond’s mindset, but it’s more complex than that:
“It’s difficult, isn’t it? Because I think when he puts it on, it’s like he doesn’t know what’s going to happen. One of the narratives could be, ‘Okay, now I’m in the game, now I’m in this role, now I’m opening myself up for corruption.’ But he has no choice in that moment.
But we then see the product of it. And so it’s complicated for him, isn’t it? And we know he doesn’t own a ring for a long time.
And so, I think that, more information needs to come my way about these rings, but something happened in the wearing of it, that saved one of the most important people in my life. So, there’s nothing finite there, I would say, in terms of the way he feels about things.”
For Walker, the fact that Elrond felt trapped, whether it was putting on the ring or the surprising kiss in Episode 7, adds depth to the storytelling. He shared with Collider:
“I like that about the show, if I can digress momentarily, that you talk about the kiss, you talk about wearing the ring, that when you seemingly have no option, how do you function? That’s interesting storytelling that. People read Macbeth and think, ‘Well, I’d never do that.’
Yes, you would. In those circumstances, you would do exactly the same. And I think that’s compelling, that in those moments, if they want to preserve the things that they love and care about and or stay alive, they have to make drastic decisions. And those are stories I enjoy.”
The Final Scene of Season 2 is “Very Tolkienian”
Speaking of tough choices, Lane asked Walker about the final scene in the season. In this scene, Elrond, Galadriel, Gil-galad, and Arondir (Ismael Cruz Cordova) come together to decide their next steps as Sauron advances on Middle-earth.
The season wraps up with a silent show of unity among the Elves, a powerful moment that Walker says was always intended. There’s no need for long speeches from Gil-galad:
“I think that’s very astute in that, it is twofold. A) It is a unified decision. It isn’t the king coming out and saying, ‘Now I know you don’t want to do this, but we’re going to buck up, guys.’ That it’s something that, again, like we’re discussing, is difficult but inevitable.
And the way Charlotte has edited it, I also find profound, in that the king has drawn his sword and he hasn’t even fully turned about-face to the assemblage there. But as he’s turning, the crowd erupts, that they’re poised and ready for the task at hand.
We first see them broken and rejected and dirty and wounded, but their spirit is not beaten, and they’re ready to rally.
I think that’s what makes it beautiful, that it’s the juxtaposition of the poise of the king, the solidarity in the decision, and the willingness of the followers to undertake this treacherous journey. And I mean, that’s Tolkienian, and pretty good television, frankly.”
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Season 2 is now available to stream on Prime Video.
