We’re over halfway through the first season of The Rings of Power now, and fans are getting worried. No I’m not talking about the fate of the Elves being tied to Mithril that for some reason contains the light of the Silmarils and therefore can give them the lifeblood of Valinor (although maybe I should be), I’m talking about names.
It struck me as odd that Galadriel’s early character motivation was entirely propelled by her unnamed brother – so much so that I mentioned it in my review. I like that she has strong motivations of revenge, and that her character arc is already allowing Morfydd Clark to mellow out a little so she can ultimately become the wisened Cate Blanchett-esque Elf we all expected. But if her brother is her main motivation for tracking down Sauron and defeating evil once and for all, why does she never mention his name?
The answer is that it’s likely a rights issue. Amazon Studios has the rights to The Lord of the Rings and its Appendices, which give a very vague outline of the events of the Second Age. Finrod, Galadriel’s brother, is not mentioned. According to the showrunners, they can also ask to use specific other elements from Tolkien’s work, at the Estate’s discretion. Clearly, Finrod’s name was not deemed necessary.
Adar is suffering from a similar fate. Anyone who has read The Silmarillion will know precisely which Elf would have one armoured hand and have frequented the same bays as Arondir once did. I’m being deliberately vague to avoid spoilers, but Adar’s black armour may suggest his true identity is a different Silmarillion Elf, too. But will his true identity ever be revealed? Or is that another step too far for the Tolkien Estate, who would prefer if his true nature was just an Easter Egg for hardcore fans?
It doesn’t matter too much when it comes to fringe characters like Finrod and Adar. But what about Sauron? Yes, I know he’s named quite a few times in The Lord of the Rings and has already been name-dropped in The Rings of Power, but his sexy alter-ego has not. During the Second Age, Sauron appears as Annatar. It’s a cunning, conniving – and sexy – version of himself who spins tales in the ears of Elves and Númenorians alike to regain power through manipulation rather than war.
Fans have been guessing Annatar’s identity since the first episode. Since Sauron is a shapeshifter, people have wondered if Halbrand, The Stranger, or indeed Adar are Sauron in his Annatar guise. But the trend of missing names suggests The Rings of Power might not even have the rights to Annatar – and what then? The show can’t remove him completely, what’s the Second Age without Annatar? So what’s the alternative?
The Rings of Power may look to The Lord of the Rings video games for help – Charlie Vickers, who plays Halbrand, certainly did. While the closest relation in terms of story would be Warner Bros.' Shadow of Mordor games, their lore bastardisations are well documented and should be steered well clear of. Sure, Celebrimbor is involved, but they also made Isildur and Helm Hammerhand into Nazgûl. Isildur. Instead, The Rings of Power should look to The Lord of the Rings Online.
When I jumped into the Lord of the Rings MMO, I was surprised by how accurate it was to Tolkien’s lore. Sure, there are some spiders where they shouldn’t be, but that’s hardly the same as tying the fate of the Eldar to Dwarven ore just to ramp up the tension.
The game has more similarities to The Rings of Power than you might think. First and foremost, LOTRO doesn’t have the rights to all of Tolkien’s work, despite covering vast swathes of his Legendarium. As such, the developer had to get creative when it came to including shifty, sexy Sauron. Instead of naming him Annatar, they opt for Antheron, keeping all other aspects of his character intact.
While The Rings of Power should rely on Annatar’s story more than The Lord of the Rings Online – he appears in the latter for backstory and worldbuilding – fans are currently worried that he won’t appear at all. That would be the biggest downfall for the fantasy series – Celebrimbor crafting the titular rings solely for his own purposes or personal, ulterior motives – and renaming Sauron’s alter ego would be a preferable solution to excluding the character completely. The showrunners have already done that with Adar, so they can’t be completely opposed to the idea.
The other possibility is that The Rings of Power did secure the rights to Annatar’s name, and the mithril story is a ploy to give the Elves of Lindon and Eregion something to do before he appears in a later season. Before episode five, I thought Celebrimbor was rushing to build his forge because of an off-screen Annatar whispering in his ear, but it turns out all the Elves are dying because they don’t get enough light instead. If that’s the only motivation to craft the rings before Sauron steals them, then it’s not only a big departure from Tolkien’s writing, but also a frankly stupid plot unworthy of the Tolkien name. It takes more from the Jackson, Walsh, and Boyens films than Tolkien’s writing, which is okay on a small scale, but basing an entire season-long plotline on a Peter Jackson idea doesn’t sit right.
Something tells me the show might go down the Finrod route with Annatar, and leave the malevolent trickster unnamed. But that will only create more questions than it will answer, especially for casual fans. If it’s true that The Rings of Power doesn’t have the rights to Annatar’s name, then it should take inspiration from The Lord of the Rings Online, otherwise it’s doomed to fail.
.jpg?q=50&fit=crop&w=320&h=160&dpr=1.5)
