The Rings of Power Season 2 Finale Set Up This Iconic Lord of the Rings Location

The Rings of Power Season 2 Finale had a lot of losses - but also the beginning of one of Lord of the Rings' most iconic locations.

By Kofi Outlaw

The Rings of Power Season 2 Finale saw the final battle fought by the Elves of Middle-earth to save their glorious city Eregion from the onslaught of Adar and his Orcs. The Fall of Eregion is one of the biggest milestones that J.R.R. Tolkien included in the Second Age of Middle-earth, and the changes The Rings of Power has made to Tolkien's lore makes even more pivotal. The story of the second season ties Eregion's fall to the creation of the Rings of Power more directly, and therefore the outcome of the battle has lot more thematic resource, as the Elves must begin a new chapter of their story. 

WARNING: SPOILERS FOLLOW! 

In The Rings of Power Season 2 Finale "Shadow and Flame" Sauron (Charlie Vickers) manages to track down and claim the nine Rings of Power that Elven master smith Celebrimbor crafted for the race of men, nearly killing Lady Galadriel (Morfydd Clark) to do it. Sauron escapes with the rings, kills Adar and recruits the army of orcs into his service, and lets Eregioni burn in his wake. 

Indeed, the Elves are left in one of their lowest states ever: their proud city has fallen; Celebrimbor and his lifetime of brilliant works have been destroyed, and Galadriel eventually wakes from near-death to find the spirit of people is low. High-King Gil-galad (Benjamin Walker) has a pivotal choice to make: "the sword or the shield," i.e., whether Elves should settle somewhere in hiding and fortify their defense against the oncoming darkness – or marshall their spirit and stand against Sauron. Galadriel gives a speech that light is what the Elves need to foster, in order to stand against the dark, and the Gil-galad raises his sword in declaration of that mission. 

The Rings of Power Reveals The Origin of Rivendell

the-rings-of-power-season-2-finale-rivendell-origin-explained.jpg
(Photo: Prime Video)

In Tolkien lore, Rivendell was created by Elrond Half-elven after he failed to stop the siege on Eregion. Elrond and the survivors of Eregion retreated from the fallen city northward, to river valleys, waterfalls, and hills of Rivendell, at a gorge along the river Bruinen, where the Elves established a stronghold. 

Related:

By the time of the Third Age when Lord of the Rings takes place, Rivendale has become a peaceful haven for Elves and other travelers passing through the North. Bilbo Baggins passed through there with the Dwarf Company of Thorin II Oakenshield on their way to the Lonely Mountain; decades later, Frodo Baggins and his Hobbit friends arrived in Rivendell, where The Fellowship of the Ring between Hobbits, Men, Elves, and Dwarves was formed. 

The Rings of Power Season 3 carries the exciting promise of not only seeing Rivendell be created but also the city's first battles against Sauron. Just one of many exciting things the show will offer if it's renewed. 

Trending Now: