It's not unusual for a hit TV show to be built around a will they/won't they factor, but Amazon Prime Video's The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power forms that uncertainty around a unique relationship. The question of Season 2 is about the rings forged for the races of Middle-earth. With Season 2 of this series based on the worlds and works of J.R.R. Tolkien having just ended, let's recap where we stand and what we know about the rest of the story.
"For the Dark Lord on his dark throne."
Here is a review and I will warn of spoilers for both seasons ahead.
At the close of Season 1, the "three rings for the elven kings under the sky" had been forged in Eregion. Sauron the Deceiver had been unmasked by his most relentless hunter and the "land of Mordor where the shadows lie" had been established as the Dark Lord's seat of power. There was great despair for the characters, ranging from the Southlanders who had just lost their homes in the eruption of Mount Doom as well as the Numenoreans whose kingdom faced the loss of its king. The nomadic Harfoots sent one of their own to help a Stranger find his people and the prince of Khazad-Dum found himself exiled by his king.
Season 2 explored these perils further, but also focused on the wonders accomplished with the power of the rings. Galadriel marveled at the restoration of Lindon when she used the Ring of Adamant to heal one of its greatest trees. King Durin III used one of the seven dwarven rings to save his kingdom and increase its wealth. There was a constant pressure from a mysterious figure to complete the nine rings to bestow upon the race of men. Meanwhile, there were people who knew exactly who was behind these urgent requests. The elven smiths of Eregion were told he was Annatar, Lord of Gifts, and he claimed to be a messenger of the Valar. As the Valar are the angelic powers who serve the creator in Tolkien's works, it was no wonder that he was taken seriously. Outside of Eregion, those who had known Annatar beyond the workshops called him Sauron and tried desperately to warn their fellows against working with the man.
The season saw not only the creation and distribution of many rings of power, but the danger to the city where they are being forged. Adar, one of the original orcs, leads an army to lay siege to Eregion in hopes of capturing the dark lord. The elves who live and work there are understandably terrified when the assault begins, but there was never such a story of "Nero fiddled while Rome burned" as the tragedy of Celebrimbor. Convinced that he was working for a great purpose with Annatar, he was ensorcelled to see the world in a state of equilibrium and productivity. When he recognized the deception and forced the illusion to break, he wept for his blindness and his ravaged city and attempted to put things right. Unfortunately, the greatest victory of the season was when he died in defiance of his tormentor, having ensured that the nine rings created for "mortal men doomed to die" were far from the reaches of Sauron.
I think it's time to stop the summary and turn to some thoughts on how well all of this played out. There is a great deal of hopelessness in this second season, though Galadriel in her later years describes it best as a "long defeat." Eregion is laid to waste. The throne of Numenor is usurped at the moment of coronation. A central character in Season 1 dies of her wounds before the story resumes and that devastates those who loved her. Fierce foes decide to become allies, only for one of the leaders to be slaughtered by his own army. This is truly a time like that described in Tolkien's The Fellowship of the Ring, where "there is still much that is fair, and though in all lands love is now mingled with grief, it grows perhaps the greater." The Harfoots making contact with their long-lost kindred and adopting them when this tribe lose their homes is one shining storyline. So is The Stranger's evolution into the Grand-Elf and Gandalf who takes counsel with a merry fellow named Tom Bombadil. Celebrimbor wept in grief at the fall of Eregion, but I couldn't stop crying when Elrond stopped being suspicious of Galadriel's motives and returned her ring to her. King Durin worried me until the moment that he passed his own ring to the son he had previously cast away and the battle version of the Khazad-Dum music is as stirring as any other in film or television.
"This quest stands upon the edge of a knife."
With all of this in recent memory, we have to wonder if the series will go forth with the planned Seasons 3-5. According to Variety, "While showrunners JED Payne and Patrick McKay have been prepping the next season's story for months, the lack of official greenlight has been a source of speculation and concern among some fans - especially since the second season was ordered years before the first season debuted." On the other hand, there was a presentation to advertisers in London as part of Prime Video UK Upront presentations. It is said that "studios typically only present shows to buyers if they firmly plan to continue them." The show is a "top 5 series for the streamer," so the interest in the continued stories is definitely there for the fans of the show. In addition, the writers for Season 3 have been brought on board.
We still have a great deal to cover in terms of the over-arching storylines. While we know the nine rings have been created for men, none of the kings who will become the Ringwraiths under their influence have been identified. The Harfoots and Stoors have united and may eventually found The Shire. Pharazon has gained a following and taken the throne, but he has not yet sent ships to invade sacred shores, leading to the downfall of his kingdom. Elendil and Isildur have not yet reunited and there is a great deal of character development that needs to happen before Isildur takes up the shards of his father's sword and uses them to defeat Sauron. And we certainly haven't seen the Last Alliance between elves and men. Most importantly, the Dark Lord has yet to forge One Ring in the fires of Mount Doom.
The Rings of Power can be streamed on Prime Video now.