The Lord the Rings: The Rings of Power Season 2 is rooted in J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle Earth. The events in the series take place thousands of years before the events in the books. The series is set in the second age of the Middle Earth.
The two-season long series recently wrapped up its second season. Season 2 is about the uprising of the Dark Lord Sauron and how the rings of power came to be. The second season also goes deeper into Númenor, which was known to be one of the most prominent civilizations in Middle Earth's history.
The Middle Earth's first humans called the Edain, established Númenor and joined forces with Valar to fight against the first dark lord, Morgoth. To show gratitude for Edain's loyalty, Valar, as a reward, uplifted the island. Initially, Númenor was ruled by Elros, Elrond's brother.
What happens to Númenor in The Lord the Rings: The Rings of Power Season 2 and 1?
While The Lord the Rings: The Rings of Power will gradually lead to the downfall of the civilization of Númenor, the series has taken the liberty to change Tolkien's writings.
The series can also be expected to have its own take on the fall of Númenor since Tolkien did not pen down specifics. To recap, season 1 sees Númenor start to take a turn for the worse, which continues in The Lord the Rings: The Rings of Power Season 2.
While many are waiting to see what happens next in the series, let's revisit the fate of Númenor, which J. R. R. Tolkien wrote. Sometime after Númenor was rewarded to Men, the faithful began to be prosecuted, especially after the rise of Sauron.
Eventually, Sauron brings about a battle between Númenor and Valar. This leads to the destruction of Númenor and Sauron losing his powers at the hands of Eru Iluvatar. It is to be noted that in the writings, Elendil and his son flee Númenor.
They reach the Middle Earth, where they eventually help the Elves fight against the Dark Lord. So far, The Lord the Rings: The Rings of Power presents to viewers a Númenor that is not influenced by Sauron even though it has begun to deteriorate from within.
The Rings of Power depicts the aftermath and the consequences of the events that took place in The Silmarillion, a few thousand years apart. Directly affected by that was the fall of Númenor, which added a particular element of mystery that led to curiosity about how the event would be depicted.
Fate of Númenor in the books
As penned by Tolkien, almost 1600 years into the Second Age, Sauron had forged the One Ring and declared war with the Elves to gain all three of their Rings of Power.
Sauron was defeated, and he fell back to Mordor to rebuild. One thousand six hundred years after these events, the Númenorean King Ar-Pharazôn declared war against Sauron's forces, defeating him and thus bringing him back to Númenor as a hostage.
Sauron slowly poisoned the King's mind, convincing him to invade the Undying Lands, where humans could become immortal, but the consequences of such warmongering were disastrous.
The invaders, who were Númenorean, were buried alive under rocks as punishment for their actions, and the earth was changed from being flat to becoming round. This sank the island beneath the sea, and the survivors, who Elendil led, fled to Middle-Earth.
There, they founded the kingdoms of Arnor and Gondor. Elendil and his army fought the battle for Dagorlad 100 years later. Elendil's son Isildur cut the Ring from Sauron's hand in the battle.
The Rings of Power series shows Ar-Pharazôn in a significantly different light than the original. Here, Ar-Pharazôn is shown to be an advisor to Queen Regent Miriel, a middle-aged woman who is also a skilled politician. On the other hand, Tolkien showed Ar-Pharazôn to be a hardened warrior.
The island also shifts its gaze from the Undying Lands towards the Elves, as they seem condescending and paternal. The original books by Tolkien also showed how the populace of Númenor was growing suspicious of Elves. The difference between the books and the show is the creation of the Rings.
In the books, the creation of the Rings directly influences the tragic fall of Númenor and seemingly is the spark that brought about the 1600 years of Middle-Earth history.
How will The Lord the Rings: The Rings of Power show the fall of Númenor?
The question of how The Lord the Rings: The Rings of Power will show the fall of Númenor will only be answered as the new seasons come. In season 2, the audience begins to see the decline of Númenor.
The audience sees season 1 end with King Tar-Palantir's death, which leaves the throne to Miriel. In the fifth episode of season 2, Ar-Pharazôn takes the throne for himself.
Tolkien's writings suggest that Miriel is forced into marrying Ar-Pharazôn and is left to rule in his place when he ventures to take over the Undying Lands. Miriel ultimately dies upon Númenor's sinking. Sauron also begins to corrupt the people of Númenor.
When does the downfall of Númenor happen?
The destruction of Númenor in Middle Earth's history happens at the end of the Second Age. Due to the series' timeline being faster than that of the books, the time of Númenor's downfall cannot be marked in the series.
In response to the fast-tracked timeline of the series, showrunner Patrick McKay assured audiences that the series' flow would remain the same. He stated that,
"The rings are made here, there's a war between Sauron and the elves after that, later Sauron is taken to Númenor, Númenor falls, Gondor is established...Does it matter if a hundred or 500 years passed between those events? No."
Trending
Fans can stream The Lord the Rings: The Rings of Power Season 2 and Season 1 on Amazon Prime Video.
To read more about the latest stories and updates of shows, soaps, and movies, stay tuned to Soap Central.
Reply
