Lord of the Rings series official synopsis revealed and what it means

Good evening geeks!

We’ve got some interesting updates on the much anticipated Lord of the Rings series from Amazon Prime. We’ve been keeping tabs on the team and as they are currently in production in Middle-
Earth a.k.a. New Zealand we are super stoked to hear the following:

We waited patiently for 3 years to get an idea of what a new Middle-earth show will be about. We finally have the answer, thanks to an incredible spy report. TheOneRing.net has verified the authenticity & accuracy of this show description.

Amazon Studios’ forthcoming series brings to screens for the very first time the heroic legends of the fabled Second Age of Middle-earth’s history. This epic drama is set thousands of years before the events of J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, and will take viewers back to an era in which great powers were forged, kingdoms rose to glory and fell to ruin, unlikely heroes were tested, hope hung by the finest of threads, and the greatest villain that ever flowed from Tolkien’s pen threatened to cover all the world in darkness. Beginning in a time of relative peace, the series follows an ensemble cast of characters, both familiar and new, as they confront the long-feared re-emergence of evil to Middle-earth. From the darkest depths of the Misty Mountains, to the majestic forests of the elf-capital of Lindon, to the breathtaking island kingdom of Númenor, to the furthest reaches of the map, these kingdoms and characters will carve out legacies that live on long after they are gone.

We have a detailed breakdown of what we believe this may mean, and what we can expect to see:

After the Wrath during a time of peace

We know we can expect the show to begin during a time of peace. When was there a time of peace? This was after the 1st age after the war of wrath. Melkor was expelled from Arda pretty much removing him from the equation. Sauron initially sued for forgiveness but ultimately ran away and hid from the justice of the Valar.

Here’s a quick overview of what everyone was up to at this time:

Elves: Many elves who survived The War of Wrath returned to Valinor. Others, under the high kingship of Gil-galad, became part of a powerful kingdom in Lindon. Much later, some Noldor moved east and established a small but very influential realm in the region of Eregion/Hollin, near the dwarf-realm of Khazad-dum (which you may know as Moria).

Men: The Edain (the houses of men), on the other hand, were gifted by the Valar a large, star-shaped island out in the western ocean called Numenor. They moved there and lived in a kind of Edenic paradise largely untroubled by the shenanigans of Middle-earth.

Sauron: Sauron begins to stir from hiding around SA500. But it’s not until SA1000 that he feels compelled to occupy Mordor and begin building his fortress, Barad-dur.

So a starting point for the series could be during the lifetime of Tar-Aldarion:

1. Numenor’s rise as a power in Middle-earth (SA725 and on)
2. The establishment of the Noldorin realm of Eregion (SA750 and on)
3. Sauron’s gradual emergence and recognition as the new Dark Lord (SA500 to SA1500)
4. Sauron’s concurrent seduction of Celebrimbor and the other elvish smiths of Eregion, and the forging of the Rings of Power (SA1200 to SA1600)
5. The invasion and destruction of Eregion (SA1695 to SA1697)
6. The arrival of Numenor’s fleet, which destroys Sauron’s forces and expels him from Eriador (SA1700 to SA1701)

New and old characters

Some of the characters we can expect to see are:

• Chief antagonist: Sauron in his “fair hue”, the very charismatic Annatar (aka The Lord of Gifts).
• Elves: Gil-galad the high-king, Galadriel, Celeborn, Elrond Half-elven, Cirdan the Mariner, Celebrimbor the Smith. Add Glorfindel and Celebrian if you’re into long bets.
• Edain: Aldarion, Erendis, Almarian, Meneldur, Ancalime.
• Dwarves: Narvi the smith, and Durin III, the dwarven king of the folk of Durin.
• Wizards: None. Canonically, Istari do not arrive in Middle-earth until TA1000.
• Hobbits: Again, none. Hobbits do not pop up in the Tale of Years until the Third Age.
• Gil-galad, and Elrond and perhaps Galadriel (and Celeborn). They’re the ones who bluntly reject the overtures of Annatar/Sauron as he repeatedly endeavours to make BFFs of the elves of Eriador.

The big rejection

This is very possibly the most prominent event to take place. Seeing the rejection and acceptance of the Rings of power  as offered by Annatar / Sauron. This happens in SA1200 after Sauron begins his Annatar scam and goes around trying to befriend all the elves. Gil-galad and Elrond won’t even let him into Lindon while it is said that, in Eregion, Galadriel scorned his approach.

Aldarion and Erendis offers one possible answer. In SA883, Aldarion returns to Numenor from a long, five-year journey to Middle-earth. He is three-years overdue — which has disastrous consequences on his relationship with Erendis, as well as with his then-young daughter. He also bears to his father, Meneldur, a letter from Gil-galad with a warning that a “new shadow arises in the East.”

What happens next?

Well, eventually, Galadriel and Celeborn are ousted from Eregion. Galadriel eventually finds refuge in Lorien. Celeborn remains, but loses all political influence. Freed of constraint, and with Annatar’s guidance, Celebrimbor discovers how to make Rings that can preserve against the hurts of time.

Annatar then returns to Mordor and forges the One as a way to control the wearers of these new Rings. But the elves are aware of the deceit and immediately remove their rings. Annatar, finally revealed to the elves as Sauron and Morgoth’s one-time lieutenant, demands the rings from the elves. They refuse and war ensues.  Meanwhile, in Numenor, Aldarion has died.

Will men come to the aid of Gil-galad?

I’m not sure that would extend to refusing to aid Gil-galad in a crisis. I doubt it. I don’t think that any ruler during the early period of Numenor’s history would have. So this feels like a substantial imposition on Ancalime’s character. It’s never put to the test: Ancalime’s reign passes more or less peacefully. Instead it is Tar-Minastir who has to deal with the problem nearly 500 years later.

But the elves had other allies.  Uniquely, they have a strong friendship with the Folk of Durin. No partnership of elves was ever so close as the one between Celebrimbor and Narvi. And some traditions say that Celebrimbor personally gave Durin III the Ring of Power that was passed down through his descendants.

Yet, in the end, Sauron is too strong: the dwarves are pushed back into Khazad-dum as Eregion is beseiged. Even Gil-galad, whose kingdom is probably the strongest power in the west of Middle-earth in the early Second Age, cannot save Eregion. His force, under the command of Elrond, is able to rescue a smattering of elves (including Celeborn) from the ruin, and they retreat to found Imladris in the north. Celebrimbor assumes a new (posthumous) occupation as Sauron’s personal battle banner.

This brings us back to Numenor coming to the rescue. The great fleet of Tar Minastir (or the insert ruler of your choice!) lands in those Numenorean havens that were previously established not far from Eregion, and Sauron is routed from Eriador, as he’s caught between the Tar-Minastir hammer and the Elrond/Gil-galad hammer.

Super exciting!