Let’s break down The Rings of Power teaser shot by shot

Galadriel and Halbrand adrift

Next we’re back to Galadriel. This time she’s on the raft with Halbrand, who pulls back her hair to discover that she’s an Elf. Vanity Fair talked a little bit about the journey these two take together at the beginning of the show, hinting that “Galadriel is fighting for the future; Halbrand is running from the past.” They’re stranded together in the Sundering Seas by Episode 2.

A harfoot and a harbinger

We then get a brief glimpse of a bearded and seemingly naked man being helped out of a flaming crater by a small person. From Vanity Fair, we can say with certainty that the man is actor Daniel Weyman, and that the girl is the harfoot Nori. Remember that fiery comet we saw a few shots back? Apparently, that was Weyman’s character crashing down to Middle-earth. We don’t know anything about this character, aside from that it seems he’ll be forming a friendship with the young harfoot. Leave it to hobbitses to bring out the friendship feels in any Lord of the Rings property.

Although this does raise questions. What character could possibly crash down to Middle-earth inside a comet? Are we bringing extraterrestrials into this?

Maybe, although there is some precedent for characters occupying the heavens of Middle-earth. After Eärendil the mariner successfully sailed to Aman towards the end of the First Age, his fate was to eternally sail the sky with the Silmaril that Beren and Lúthien had taken from Morgoth. And beyond the skies of Middle-earth there live Ainur — basically gods — who never descended to this plane. Perhaps one makes a crash landing?

Durin, king of rock chopping

The next quick shot is of Durin IV chopping a big ol’ rock into bits with a single swing of his hammer. What’s with that rock? Why’s he chopping it? Just one of the many mysteries this trailer leaves us with.

Arondir takes flight

The fall of Durin’s hammer leads straight into a leaping strike from Arondir’s axe. Though this is a quick shot, we we can tell it’s Arondir because the wristbands he’s sporting here match those he’s wearing earlier in the teaser.

The bigger question is: what’s he doing? Take note of the fact that he has a chain trailing from one of his ankles as he leaps, swinging this axe not at a foe, but seemingly at a log. Has he been captured and is trying to escape?

The War of Wrath?

The last action shot is of a battle scene, with elves in golden armor facing off against orcs in black. Some eagle-eyed Reddit user has pointed out that this appears very similar stylistically to artist Alan Lee’s depiction of the Battle of Unnumbered Tears. This was a major defeat for the elves and their allies which then led into the final battle that ended the War of Wrath, the great conflict between the dark lord Morgoth (who was Sauron’s mentor and boss) and the forces of goodness that marked the end of the the First Age.

The Redditor’s theory is that The Rings of Power may begin with a depiction of the War of Wrath much in the way that The Fellowship of the Ring began with a montage of the battle that defeated Sauron, and we’re inclined to agree. We note the very teary look in the main elf’s eyes in this shot. When you have a major conflict that’s specifically named after the tears shed over it, that has to be intentional, right?

More hands

And of course, the final image of the trailer is…hands! If there is one major marketing tool this show is using, it’s the many elaborate ways to convey emotion with hands. This shot is confirmed by Vanity Fair to be Daniel Weyman’s character and Nori the harfoot.

And there you have it! What do you think? Do you have any theories about what we’re seeing in any of these images, or about how the show might interpret the events of the Second Age? Let us know in the comments.

The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power premieres September 2 on Prime Video.

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