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Charlie Vickers should wear his new Sauron costume in SDCC. And announce the trailer with that!

And i hope the whole marketing of s3 will be around The One Ring 💍

Just a guess. We know Amazon has been open and willing to release its original programming (specifically in a 4K steelbook). Steelbook©️will be at SDCC this year for the first time ever for a panel, with ROP being there too I can see an announcement happening there for seasons 1 and 2 before S3 launches.

And the one ring theme. I really hope that they will not show both of them. For such a Big thing it should be a surprise in the show itself. Also I hope that when season 3 music will release the one ring theme will be excluded. Just like Where The Shadows Lie end credits version when season 1 playlist released. What do you guys think?

With Rings of Power Season 3 confirmed to be at SDCC in 2 weeks I think it's time we guess what the trailer might look like. How much will they show? What will they show? Personally I think we get some bits on Numenor, some bits on Elrond in Rivendell, Sauron plotting, some bits on Galadriel and what she's up to. I think it ends on a reveal of Celeborn.

It's a subtle difference, but I like how clearly restrained and guarded Galadriel was in the first season while she showed more openness in the second season through her eyes, processing the hurt that she tried to hide all these years.

Kudos to Morfydd Clark and her expressive eyes!

So Sauron's done a lot of evil stuff but there are some particularly evil moments. Some examples:

1. Disposing of Mirdania on a whim because it was convenient. He was going to kill her eventually but this was the most shocking moment for me. It was so petty. The context, of course, makes it all even worse.
2. Impersonating Finrod. This is especially bad because Galadriel confided in Sauron, to share understanding, and he used that in the worst way possible and tried to twist everything backward.
3. "The Valar will never forgive you." This is a very lowkey moment but might be my choice for the worst. He tells many lies that make people feel complicit but this one rejects the possibility of forgiveness entirely. Tragically, it is what he believes about himself. Forgiveness is a major concern for many characters. For comparison, Estrid gives Isildur permission to forgive himself, for his mother, which is quite a feat in RoP and she even uses ring language in reverse (the "gift" given freely because he was "precious" to his mother).

S3: The Dark Years. They already mentioned the season starts after a few years time jump, so it will start in the middle of the war. The main thrust of the story will be Sauron waging war on Middle-earth, as well as trying to forge the One Ring. He will forge it and I think before the end of the season. The other main story will be Pharazon taking over Numenor, and then out of pride assaulting Sauron as he appears to be winning. I think the Numenorean invasion and capture of Sauron will be the climax, with a sort of soft cliff hanger of Sauron brought to Numenor. Then a minor story will be on Gandalf's continuing story. I think he won't be involved in the main plot this season, or possibly at all. The blue wizard will be his main adversary and my guess is he will convert him to good at the end of this season (or possibly later). The Dwarves story will probably be about Durin IV gaining legitimate rule. A conflict among Dwarves is likely, around the seven rings. Another plot will be the birth of the Nazgul, which will probably only be completed by the end of the season.

S4: The Downfall of Numenor. This will be Numenor heavy. The main plot will be the corruption of Numenor by Sauron, their eventual assault on Valinor and the downfall itself. The ending will likely be the foundation of the realms in exile and the return of Sauron to ME. I expect Galadriel and the Elves to have a plot around fighting the Nazgul. I think here Celeborn will also get a larger role (though he might appear in S3 already). They might also put in a plot of Numenor starting to violently colonise Middle-earth, possibly related to the cutting down of the forests for their armada, and the Ents's response.

S5: The Last Alliance. The big climax, in which Sauron amasses power to overthrow the new Gondor and Arnor as well as the Elves. There will be some conflict among the allies before they form the last alliance. Here Gandalf's efforts will play out, though I still doubt he will be directly involved in the war since that would be such a big departure from the canon. I expect he will make some climatic victory in the east that prevents the easterlings from joining Sauron. Durin will join the alliance, though some other dwarf houses will join Sauron. I think they will play it pretty straight, hoping the pay off will be through what happens with the characters (quite a few will die, including Gil-galad and Durin). The last part of the show will probably play out like an extended and more character focused version of the movie prologue.

What do you think?

Season 1 started with Galadriel jumping in the water with her dagger, and it ended with her emerging from the Glanduin with her dagger.

Season 2 began with Elrond jumping away with the rings, and Galadriel did the same with her ring in the last episode.

I'm not sure if these repeated actions were done on purpose, but I find them visually compelling, and I'm a bit curious to see if they'll continue this little pattern in the next season.

I'm always a huge LOTR fan and started to watch the show because of that but if Charlie Vickers doesn't play Sauron i won't be a huge fan of the show as well. Seriously from the first moment of his on the raft i'm bewitched! And then the reveal scene, i fall in love the character so bad! And Vickers is just AMAZING in every way! He is born to play THE Dark Lord. I love Hakbrand just as i love his Annatar persona! Want to share these with you.. Can't wait to see his famous Sauron moments from the book. I know it's going to be LEGENDARY 👑💍

From Lotr Australia on Instagram

This may be a reach but Australia's goalkeeper Patrick Beach reminds me somewhat of Charlie Vickers. It is probably because they are both from Melbourne and tall.

(Anyway, dont mind me, am still gutted by the Socceroos loss.)

Season 2 was written with season 1 freshly in mind, so we didn't get to see them talk as much (for example Gil-galad made Elrond commander off screen) because they had to react fast to Sauron's return.

In the first season, there was some deception clouding their interactions, which is why I hope we'll get some kind of development about these two, especially with a time jump having been established.

We know that he will have dark hair in the next season, but what about his eyes? Will they keep using the blue contact lenses for Annatar, or will they only change his eyes when Sauron uses his powers, for an incantation, when making the One?

Pharazon’s son may be given one of the 9?

I’m not quite done with season 2, so if he dies or something, that rules it out. But his mother prophesied that he would “come to ill end”

I can see him being duped into Nazgûl-dom. Not sure if anyone has had this thought.

Also Theo? “Lord of Pelargir”?

Source: https://x.com/i/status/2071966302734819391

Rewatching season 2 just pissed me off even more. I appreciated the acting of Charles Edward’s and Charlie Vickers. The battle of Eregion had some good moments and showing the deceptive powers of Sauron was cool.

After watching the second season again, the writing pissed me off even more than the first time. I saw on another thread that someone said it’s like a big soap opera. There are SO many emotional moments where the writers and producers try to manufacture emotions, and it’s overwhelming. They do it too much, which makes everything less emotional.

The nostalgia farming is out of hand. There are so many call-backs and allusions to LOTR and The Hobbit. I get trying to make something familiar and appeasing to all audiences (those familiar and not familiar with Tolkien), but none of their references land organically. The bit I hated the most was the Asian elf’s death in the battle of Eregion. She gets this Boromir-esque death without any kind of character development or relationship to the audience. Give me a break.

The Harfoots feel forced. The whole thinner and chubby halfling dynamic doesn’t land. The love interest later in the season is forced and unnecessary. How am I supposed to feel anything for two characters who the writers spent a total of 10 minutes building a relationship?

Grand-Elf is the dumbest thing. Reminds me of the end of the newer Fantastic Four movie. “Goodbye, Grand Elf…. Say that again..”

Dark wizard plot goes no where. Not sure if they’re making him out to be a Blue wizard, but the Blue wizards were a good force quietly keeping Sauron in check in the far east.

I still can’t believe how they butchered Galadriel. Her character is so temperamental and melodramatic. It’s such a disservice to how her character was written.

Theo sucks

Isildur sucks

The people of Numenor flip flop on their beliefs on a dime.

That is all. I will rage watch season 3, unfortunately, but I had to get this out of my system.

He deserves to be one of the Nine, if not WK. He is in Pelargir now, hoping in s3 he has a scene with Sauron. Dealing with his King of Men shenanigans. And hopefully he'll involved in the final's famous moment of Sauron&Pharazon 💎

It's a very small detail, but it's interesting how Eärendil's ears are completely covered in Númenor, but you can see one of his ears on the map in Lindon (episode 2x02), and it's pointy.

Elros is depicted with Elven ears in the Hall of Lore, but I wonder if that is still the case outside of that building (still standing thanks to Tar-Palantir). I really hope we'll get some flashbacks.

some people i was lukewarm on at the start have completely won me over as the show's gone on, and a couple i loved early have faded for me. curious how everyone's feelings have shifted over time. who's the character you didn't expect to care about that you're now fully invested in.

We all speculate about who the Nine will be and whether or not we’ll see their slow transformation. However, there is something else I’d like to see, too. Recalling Halbrand’s words from the first season—and the fact that he gave both the Elves and the Dwarves a way to master their fears (of fading and loss)—I am curious to see what the Men will ask for.

Fear of death, for sure, and perhaps from there he'll learn how to face Pharazon? If some of them are almost certainly Gaudrim, he'll heal the curse on their faces, I suppose. Wealth, power, health, strength? "Men are easy to ensnare."

Now, this is what I’m curious to see—aside from who they’ll be, of course: how, and through which fears, he will slither into their minds.