‘The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power’ Season 3 Review
After a two-year absence, The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power has returned for its expansive third season. A majority of the cast makes returns for season 3, including Charlie Vickers, who delivers his full might to the role of the Dark Lord Sauron once again.
Our favorite elvish actors, Morfydd Clark and Robert Aramayo, return to their roles as Galadriel and Elrond as well. The largest addition to the cast this season is Stranger Things actor Jamie Campbell Bower as Celeborn. The Dark Lord’s latest rise to power in Middle-Earth brings us back to many other beloved characters and storylines this season as well.
Sauron’s evil has spread across much of Middle-Earth in The Rings of Power season 3
This new season showcases Sauron’s influence spreading across almost all the lands of Middle-Earth, with our remaining heroes fighting to keep the darkness at bay after a five-year time jump. Numerous episodes feature visual motifs to emphasize the spreading darkness across a physical map of Middle-Earth. With the Dark Lord’s rise, Mordor has also expanded exponentially, and the foundations of Barad-Dur have been created.
Fans will also be quite excited to hear that after many years of waiting we finally get to spend time inside of Sauron’s fortress of Barad-Dur. As Charlie Vickers himself pointed out, throughout the course of every The Lord of the Rings film that has been released, we have yet to actually be inside Barad-Dur and witness Sauron’s craft at work.
If it’s not clear, The Rings of Power is indeed Sauron’s show. He is distinctly the main character in the third season. While Galadriel, our main protagonist, may have more screentime once the season ends, her storyline pales in comparison to Sauron’s objectives.
As previously revealed, Sauron is on the brink of crafting the One Ring and is toiling away in his dark tower searching for the means to complete it. There is something holding him back from crafting his one ring to rule them all though. Just as Sauron himself doesn’t know what this block in the road is, we the audience, are also shrouded in mystery. This season spends a significant amount of time following Sauron’s relentless pursuit of answers across Middle-Earth.
Another major development in The Rings of Power season 3: the audience will witness Sauron handing out the nine rings of power to men across Middle-Earth. With rings being given to men comes the Nazgul, or should I say Nazgnagol. That’s right, we finally get to see the origin story of Sauron’s Nazgul in season three of Rings of Power as Sauron works to fortify his armies.
A major distinction to be aware of is that Sauron’s servants are currently known as the Nazgnagol and not yet the Nazgul. Some will wonder why that may be. Nazgnagol translates to “Ring-Servant,” whereas Nazgul translates to “Ringwraith.” There is a major distinction between the two. Some Kings of Men have only recently been given a ring this season and have not yet fully passed into the shadow realm as the Nazgul do.
With the mortal bodies of the Nazgnagol still existing in the physical realm, they cannot yet be referenced as “Nazgul.” For the first time ever, we’ll meet some of these men this season, and whether some of them are people we already know remains to be seen.
Fans of Sauron will likely be more than pleased with his arc throughout this season. Season 2 gave us Annatar, season 3 gives us the tried and true Dark Lord of Mordor. Sauron is a terrifying force this season, and the costume design and camera work do a fantastic job of showcasing just how massive of a figure he is. Early in the season, there is a scene of Sauron slowly entering a room with his crown on his head and his metal armor thumping with each step he takes while towering over a room full of orcs.
The set design for the numerous locations inside of Barad-Dur are brilliant. Giving his dark tower a unique feel is important, and Sauron almost manages to make a “dark” version of Celebrimbor’s forge in some ways. Not to mention, the corpse of Celebrimbor is also pinned on the wall inside his forge and is used as a sort of motivator for Sauron this season. There’s a moment or two where it is acknowledged in a way that Sauron misses Celebrimbor and did view him as a friend in some sort of twisted way.
One final note on Sauron’s season 3 storyline: the crafting of the One Ring is an incredible achievement for the series. The sequence is a sight to behold and a gift to the fans who have long envisioned what it would be like to watch Sauron craft the most important artifact in the history of Middle-Earth. Not only will fans get to witness the forging of the ring, they’ll get to witness it in a fully expanded aspect ratio, mirroring the likes of an IMAX film.
The elves receive a power-up in The Rings of Power’s third season due to the three elvish rings
While Sauron has been expanding his hold over Middle-Earth, the elves have also gone to great lengths to shore up their defenses. The three rings worn by Galadriel, Gil-Galad, and Cirdan are what hold the Dark Lord at bay and keep him outside all Elvendom.
This is one of Sauron’s main reasons for attempting to craft the One Ring. He wishes to penetrate the barriers of Elvendom and gain control over the three elven rings, the seven dwarven rings, and the nine rings for me.
The two main elvish kingdoms throughout the season are Lindon and the newly founded Rivendell, founded by Elrond himself. The set design for Rivendell is quite beautiful but is featured in limited amounts this season.
Galadriel and Elrond have finally made peace in their friendship and are allied in fighting against Sauron’s relentless army. Early on in the season, it’s emphasized how much of a toll these five years of relentless fighting have taken on Galadriel, Elrond, Gil-Galad, Cirdan, and others.
The Rings of Power season 3 really gets going once Marnukh, an orc, shows up and announces Sauron’s plans to the elves. Marnukh is vital to the overall objective of the first half of the season and is featured in fairly prominent amounts.
The trio of Galadriel, Arondir, and Marnukh has its moments of humor and exciting moments but never quite establishes itself as the iconic trio that it could have been. What can be said about this specific storyline is that the conclusion is a major moment in this season and has massive ripple effects for the season as a whole.
The mystery of Celeborn is finally revealed throughout the season as well. We will get a definitive answer of where he’s been and why he’s been away for so long. As seen in the trailers, we do get a Galadriel and Celeborn reunion along with numerous scenes of them together this season.
One little fun detail to note is that season 3 features more than numerous callbacks and references to first-age events, people, and places. The audience will be receiving a ton of nudges and winks to those Silmarillion die-hards.
Numenor’s storyline receives a much needed expansion
Numenor is arguably a larger storyline than the elven storyline this season for a number of reasons. We pick back up on the now-king Ar-Pharazon (Trystan Gravelle) being in full control of Numenor, while the Faithful, led by Elendil and Miriel, work to fight back against Pharazon’s rule of tyranny.
With the time jump of five years, a major moment that is missing from this season is Isildur’s reunion with his family. When we do pick back up with Isildur, he is already back working with his father and brother Anarion, who makes his appearance for the first time this season.
A character that receives a screentime boost for a portion of this season is Ema Horvath’s Earien. She has what can be argued as one of the most compelling storylines this season.
In past seasons, the Numenorian story has been drowned out by the elves, dwarves, and men of the other Middle-Earth storylines. The boost in emphasis on Numenorian characters, such as Earien, has helped to make the Numenor plotline feel more significant in the grand scope of the show.
Andrew Richardson’s Anarion is another welcomed addition to the cast this season. A character that fans have been waiting to see, Anarion has a somewhat substantial amount of screentime as well. Elendil, Anarion, and Isildur mostly make up the main characters in the faithful story, along with Miriel, whose screentime feels a little limited at points of the season.
Another group of characters who surprisingly join the fold in the Numenorian storyline is Elrond and Gil-Galad. The long-awaited meeting between the High King of the Noldor and the King of Numenor finally takes place in season three. With the forces of Lindon and Rivendell dwindling, the elves turn to Numenor in hopes of strengthening their cause against the growing darkness.
The most enjoyable portion of this story is seeing Elrond finally acknowledge his brother Elros and acknowledge his family’s heritage. The scene between Elrond and Elros in season three has a ripple effect throughout a portion of the season when it comes to some decisions Elrond makes.
While the Numenorian storyline is exponentially more compelling than previous seasons, the lack of action thus far from a conflict that seemed destined to end in warfare is a bit of a disappointment. Other than that minor issue, the Numenorian storyline easily enhances characters like Miriel, Isildur, Earien, and even Pharazon in comparison to previous seasons.
Anarion is a much welcomed addition to the Numenorian group as well and brings the same ferocity to the group as Elendil and Isildur do. Characters like Kemen and Belzagar are relatively still the same as previous seasons thus far. On the whole, Numenor becomes one of the more intriguing storylines in season 3.
Gandalf works against the forces of evil in Rhune
After revealing the Stranger’s name is Gandalf in the season two finale, many wondered what would be next for the Grey Pilgrim. Notably, Gandalf is not present at this point in the story in the books.
Would the show break canon and introduce him to some Elves, Dwarves, and Men, or would Gandalf remain hidden from the war for the time being? The Rings of Power season 3 answers that question, and throughout seven episodes thus far, Gandalf’s time is spent fighting against the Dark Wizard and his forces in Rhune.
The beloved Tom Bombadil also returns this season as well to assist Gandalf in his quest to help save Middle-Earth. One of the most endearing aspects of the series is the friendship between Gandalf and Tom Bombadil. The adventures of Gandalf and Tom Bombadil could almost be a show entirely on its own at this point. While Tom doesn’t hang around for long in season three, the time we see the two characters on screen together instantly elevates this storyline.
The clash between Gandalf and the Dark Wizard certainly continues to grow this season. While in past seasons Gandalf was a bit unsure of himself when it comes to his wizardry, the third season gives the audience a fully renewed Gandalf, who is a bit more capable when it comes to his Istari tricks. This comes in handy for Gandalf, as season 3 sees him in more peril than previous seasons.
Gandalf’s storyline at times feels a bit slow, but his expansion as a character feels more earned than ever this season. We see him finally emerge as the Gandalf we know and love in both film trilogies. As we know from Gandalf already, his goal is to guide the people of Middle-Earth to resist the darkness. Rhune notably has what could be Sauron’s largest force in all the lands of Middle-Earth, and Gandalf spends this season doing everything he can to keep those forces from joining with Sauron.
The Dwarven storyline in season 3 takes a step down from previous seasons
Unfortunately, the storyline in Khazad-Dum is by far the weakest storyline in season three. We pick back up with Durin IV, the now king of Khazad-Dum, after the passing of his father at the hands of the Balrog in the season two finale. The big addition to the dwarven storyline this season is Eddie Marsan’s Thrain, the brother of King Durin.
At the beginning of the season, it appeared as though the dwarves were going to get involved in the elven storyline this season, as we see a few scenes of Durin and Elrond working together. Once Thrain shows up this season, the storyline becomes almost entirely detached from the remainder of the series. While it may be early to some, the interweaving of storylines needs to come sooner than later, as only five seasons of this series appear to be planned.
As mentioned, Thrain’s involvement leaves the dwarven storyline feeling almost entirely isolated this season. Much of the season is spent on the broken relationship between Durin and Thrain and the attempt at mending it. The other dwarven lords are also present throughout the season. Much of the debate is between whether to use the seven rings as a defense against the Dark Lord and whether Thrain should contest his claim to the throne against Durin.
The third season’s storyline in Khazad-Dum is essentially cliche palace intrigue. Durin and Disa are always wonderful and heartwarming to see on screen together, but even their charm cannot save parts of this storyline. The aging up of their children and their involvement only makes part of the storyline worse as well.
While a brotherly rivalry could have been a somewhat compelling dwarven story, Thrain’s usage this season at times feels no more than your cliche mustache-twirling villain. The coolest scene in Khazad-Dum this season features a visit from the other villains, the Nazgnagol. Durin distinctly has kept Khazad-Dum neutral in the war against Sauron, while his brother Thrain may have some different ideas for how to go about this war in Middle-Earth.
While the dwarven story may not be the highlight of the third season, Durin and Disa do receive a decent amount of development. The new dynamic of having grown-up children gives the audience the opportunity to see the King and Queen of Khazad-Dum in a new light.
Where the remainder of this series takes the dwarves remains to be seen, but let us hope the third season’s storyline leads us to a better path in the future.
Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power season 3 rating and final thoughts
Overall, the new seven episodes of season three of The Rings of Power continue to elevate the series to new heights. The first season was fairly rough and took a bit of time to find its footing. Season two was a vast improvement and delivered an incredibly satisfying season that culminated in a giant battle at Eregion worthy of a Tolkien story.
While the third season has arguably eclipsed season two in quality and scale, the worry is that the conclusion of the season may lack a substantial battle or action sequence to cap off the season. Even if season 3 does ultimately go light on the action and heavy on development, the consensus will surely be that season 3 of The Rings of Power is the best season yet.
Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power season 3 releases on Prime Video on November 11th.
Also check out: The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim: An Animated Epic Worthy of Middle-earth
