It has taken two full seasons, but The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power has finally revealed who the Stranger is (Daniel Weyman). After he fights the Dark Wizard (Ciarán Hinds), the Stoors must leave their village in Rhûn. They move west with Nori (Markella Kavenagh) and Poppy (Megan Richards).
As they say goodbye, they call him “Grand-Elf,” which helps the Stranger realize, with Tom Bombadil (Rory Kinnear), that his true name is Gandalf. This secret was well-known, but people kept guessing until the end.
Gandalf Learning His Name Is Part of His Journey in ‘The Rings of Power’
Gandalf learning his name is an important part of his journey in The Rings of Power. Fans online argued that revealing the Stranger as Gandalf would be too obvious. However, the show did something similar in Season 1. Many people guessed that Halbrand was Sauron (Charlie Vickers).
What matters most is not how many viewers guessed it right, but the character’s journey before revealing his identity. There were many hints about the Stranger being Gandalf. The series encourages us to enjoy the story instead of trying to solve a mystery.
In Season 1, Gandalf’s story was about him finding himself and discovering his power. In Season 2, it focuses on understanding his role in Middle-earth. Learning his name is part of this process, as Tom Bombadil explains. Gandalf has a clear mission: to help defeat Sauron.
However, his character is more than just that. He is a unique wizard who knows his power and purpose, but he enjoys being in Middle-earth and values life.
He could only earn his name after understanding and being tested first. This is why Tom makes him choose between helping Nori and Poppy or searching for a staff among dead trees.
This story aligns well with who Gandalf is as one of the Istari. As the Grey Wizard, his job is to travel Middle-earth, meet people, and inspire them to resist darkness. He cannot understand this without being tested first, like he was by Tom.
He is the Gandalf we have always known, who believes small acts of kindness and love are what truly keep darkness away. This is why he chooses to help his friends over seeking more power, which serves him well in the end and earns him his name.
In the Books, Gandalf Arrives in Middle-earth Much Later
In the books, Gandalf comes to Middle-earth much later. One reason many thought the Stranger could not be Gandalf is that The Rings of Power is set in the Second Age. According to J.R.R. Tolkien’s legendarium, Gandalf only arrives in Middle-earth later in the Third Age.
He is one of the Maiar sent by the Valar to help the Free Peoples of Middle-earth in their struggle against Sauron, who is beginning to stir again after losing his body in the War of the Last Alliance. He arrives with Saruman and Radagast and is welcomed by Círdan the Shipwright (Ben Daniels).
Círdan gives Gandalf Narya, his Ring of Power, thinking it will help the wizard more than it helped him. By then, Gandalf is already the Grey Wizard. Radagast is the Brown Wizard, who protects nature from Sauron’s evil, and Saruman is the White Wizard, who leads the fight against the enemy.
The two Blue Wizards, Allatar and Palando, come to Middle-earth earlier. Their mission is to travel to the eastern lands of Rhûn to weaken Sauron’s power because those people once sided with Morgoth and now support Sauron.
As different as it is from the original Tolkien lore, the Stranger not being Gandalf could not work for a very simple reason: there have been too many hints about it. In Season 1, for example, he tells Nori to “always follow your nose.”
In Season 2, the Harfoots say he needs a “gand” to harness his power, the Stoors call him “Grand-Elf,” and Tom Bombadil tells him the line about “some who die deserve to live” and mentions serving the Secret Fire. If all this had been for nothing, it would simply have been bad writing.
Despite its many deviations from the original Tolkien writings, that’s something that the series isn’t known for, since, within its own context, The Rings of Power tells a very consistent story.
Gandalf’s Role in Future Seasons Could Break New Ground in the Lore
With Gandalf being in Middle-earth around a whole age before he is supposed to, according to the books, the big question for The Rings of Power Season 3 is: what will he do?
Having finally understood who he is and what his mission is, there is still a lot of growing for him to do. He is still much younger than when he appears in The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, so will he get directly involved in the fight against Sauron in the Second Age?
As always, Tolkien’s writings may provide a hint. In the Third Age, Gandalf starts as the Grey Wizard, taking over the role of White Wizard in The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers after Saruman’s (Christopher Lee) fall.
In Unfinished Tales, though, Tolkien tells that when the Valar send the Istari to Middle-earth, they offer him the role of White Wizard, but he refuses, feeling he is not strong enough for the task and doesn’t desire power or authority. Saruman then jumps at the opportunity.
It could be that Gandalf’s arc in Season 3 is about him refusing this position entirely, tricked by the Dark Wizard, or about his growing into his role and becoming more experienced as the Grey One straight away. Whatever it is, we can’t wait to see our beloved wizard again.
Season 2 of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power is available to stream on Prime Video.
