This article contains spoilers for The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power.The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power is doing a great job of portraying pre-Hobbit races, which may have more significance than it first seemed, according to one brilliant Hobbit theory. High fantasy creator J.R.R. Tolkien laid out the history of Hobbits in the prologue to The Lord of the Rings, outlining three pre-Hobbit races. The Rings of Power’s Harfoots and Stoors are two of these races, and Fallohides are the other. However, Tolkien didn’t detail any particular pre-Hobbit characters, making the show’s pre-Hobbits original. One Hobbit theory explains their existence in the show.

Many who formerly lamented the lack of a Silmarillion adaptation now deride the show’s original material, which includes Harfoots like Nori and Poppy. It’s fair to critique the show’s writing, but any adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien’s Second Age material would necessitate a ton of original material because the texts lack detailed dialogue, psychological profiling, and any concept whatsoever of the cinematic standards of pacing, suspense, and drama. I’m just happy to watch a high-budget Tolkien adaptation, but it’s now clear that the show’s Harfoots do link to the source material, as per the theory, and I love to see it.

The Stoors’ Ending In The Rings Of Power Season 2 Sets Up The Shire & Hobbits

The Stoors Are Seeking Another Home In The Rings Of Power

The Rings of Power season 2 started to make the show’s overarching plan for its pre-Hobbits clear, nudging them into position to set up the Shire and the Hobbit race itself. Tolkien described how Stoors, Fallohides, and Harfoots were originally separate breeds but gradually combined and interbred over the years to form the eventual Hobbit race. Enjoying Hobbit-related fun in Rings of Power season 1 was a good time, but it wasn’t clear how it told Tolkien’s Second Age story. Now it’s comprehensible – Nori will unite pre-Hobbit tribes and found the Shire, setting up Frodo’s famous home.

This brilliant theory justifies both the Harfoots and the Stoors in the show and makes me excited to see the Fallohides, who surely must now be an inevitable inclusion. The Rings of Power’s Shire origin theory posits the meeting of the Harfoots and the Stoors as no mere coincidence but the start of a beautiful thing. Canonically, pre-Hobbits did migrate from east to west. Showing the Hobbit race forming required showing disparate pre-Hobbit tribes uniting, while showing the Shire forming required showing the east-west migration. As such, the theory also explains Rhûn’s presence in the show.

The Rings Of Power Season 2 Already Teased How The Shire Will Be Founded

The Shire’s Smials In The Lord Of The Rings May Come From Stoors

Rings of Power teased this theory throughout season 2, but the final episode of season 2 confirmed its veracity. Nori and Poppy met the Stoors in Rings of Power season 2, episode 4, and they were brilliantly represented by Tanya Moodie’s Gundabel. Gundabel introduced Nori to Smials, otherwise known as Hobbit-holes. I knew that Nori would have to travel back west after she was finished doing whatever she was doing with the Stranger – sorry, Gandalf, I’ll have to get used to saying that now. Therefore, Nori will bring knowledge of Smials back west toward Eriador, where the Shire will be.

Nori’s Harfoot tribe lives in Rhovanion in the show, as per Tolkien’s estimations. The Stoors, however, were living in Rhûn in the show, which is a fabrication of J.D. Payne and Patrick McKay’s. To get the Stoors closer to their canonical dwellings beside the Anduin river, The Rings of Power season 2 finale had its Dark Wizard destroy their homes. This necessitated the adventurous Nori – a nomad among nomads – to lead them off into the sunset in the hope of finding another home. I have no doubt that this is the start of Hobbits as we know them.

The Rings Of Power Looks Like It’ll Make Nori The Shire’s First Hobbit Leader

Nori Will Probably Found The Shire In The Rings Of Power

I am sure that Nori is leading the Stoors down the westward path all the way to Eriador, no matter what obstacles and diversions may present themselves on the way. The Rings of Power’s Harfoots and Stoors already show signs of combining, if you know what I mean. Megan Richards’ bubbly Harfoot, Poppy Proudfellow, and Gavi Singh Chera’s gormless Stoor, Merrimac, are inching ever closer to creating the first Stoor-Harfoot hybrid. Poppy and Merrimac’s adorable romance is further proof that we are witnessing the genesis of Hobbits, and Nori is leading them.

Nori found and saved the show’s Gandalf, creating a non-canonical but beautiful backstory for Gandalf’s love of Hobbits.

Now that Gandalf – there, I said it – is training for his monumental role in The Lord of the Rings, his friendship with the Harfoots makes even more sense. The Rings of Power is a bit silly sometimes, but I confess to shivers down my spine when the Stranger said “Grand-Elf,” confirming beyond any doubt that he was the world’s best Wizard. I’m nostalgic, allow me my simple pleasures. Nori found and saved the show’s Gandalf, creating a non-canonical but beautiful backstory for Gandalf’s love of Hobbits.

If Sauron forged his bid to rule Middle-earth in Mount Doom, Gandalf forged his resistance in the Hobbits’ purity of heart. This is the story that Nori tells in The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power.

The cathartic “Grand-Elf” moment whereby the two-year-long mystery box of the Stranger’s identity finally ruptured irreparably told me everything about Nori. Nori is Frodo’s avatar, possibly his ancestor, and the reason why Sauron will fail. In his wildest imagination, Sauron couldn’t conceive of the purity of heart required to destroy the One Ring, which is why he didn’t guard the Cracks of Doom. If Sauron forged his bid to rule Middle-earth in Mount Doom, Gandalf forged his resistance in the Hobbits’ purity of heart. This is the story that Nori tells in The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power.