Elrond’s character development in Rings of Power Season 2 showcases his struggle with trust and betrayal, setting the stage for his future actions.
The series delves into Elrond’s past traumas and the mounting emotional turmoil he faces as those closest to him betray his trust.
Through intricate storytelling, viewers witness Elrond’s inner turmoil as he grapples with the consequences of his allies’ decisions and his own sense of duty.
The following contains spoilers for The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Season 2, Episodes 1-3, now streaming on Prime Video.
When The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power was revealed, fans were intrigued to see how a younger Elrond would be portrayed. They knew him in the future as the Elf who helped engineer Frodo’s fellowship with Gandalf. But this prequel leaned away from his cold side — a father who didn’t want Arwen to marry Aragorn — to a more heartwarming hero.
Unfortunately, Season 1 saw the Elves being duped by Halbrand (Sauron in disguise). Galadriel fell for Halbrand, leaving Elrond scared about how easily his tribe could be infiltrated. As Rings of Power Season 2 begins, Elrond is dealt more emotional blows. In the process, the series makes his most tragic scene from LOTR even more gut-wrenching, affirming he had trust issues even before Peter Jackson’s movies.
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Reception of The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
Rotten Tomatoes Score
Metacritic Score
IMDB Score
Budget
Box Office
92%
92
8.9/10
$93 million
$887.4 million
In the first movie, The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, Elrond (Lord of the Elves at Rivendell) held private counsel with Gandalf. They discussed destroying the One Ring at Mount Doom and why Hobbits like Sam and Frodo might be the best way to do so. Elrond was cynical, however, especially knowing the group would mix in an Elf (Legolas), a Dwarf (Gimli), and, in time, a Man (Aragorn). Granted, he wasn’t sure about Aragorn because of the warrior’s self-imposed exile.
Aragon wasn’t a fan of his ancestors’ past. This was the treachery of the King of Gondor, Isildur. Elrond confirmed he was there 3,000 years ago fighting Sauron near Mordor when Isildur cut the ring off the villain’s hand. But when Elrond took him to the volcano to melt the ring in the lava and end the threat of the dark lord, Isildur became corrupted by power. He took it for himself, promising he’d use it to defend the realm. He ignored Elrond’s pleas, screams and teary-eyes.
As fans know, this resulted in the Orcs attacking and killing Isildur, while the ring fell into the river and was found by Gollum. This would lead to Bilbo Baggins finding it and, after The Hobbit, the relic falling to Frodo. While many saw that Elrond scene as someone just there to advance the plot along and speak to how Aragorn needed to redeem his bloodline, that moment was pivotal. Elrond knew the ring needed to be destroyed, or Sauron’s forces would never die.
When Isildur abandoned him, he lost trust in Men. A lot of this stemmed back to the grief of his youth. A prime example is him working with Durin IV in Season 1, only for Durin’s father, King Durin III, to essentially ban Elrond and excommunicate his son from Khazad-dûm for trying to get mithril. In short, Elrond was betrayed by an old, hasty king he called a friend. In Season 2, things go from bad to worse, illustrating to Elrond that he can’t even trust his own clan.
The Rings of Power Season 2 Has Elrond’s Inner-Circle Betraying Him
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As Rings of Power Season 2 commences, Elrond is upset at finding out that Halbrand is Sauron. He hates that Galadriel hid this, as it endangers Celebrimbor and the Forge in Eregion. Elrond takes the rings and gives them to his king, Gil-galad, at Lindon. He hopes the regent will vouch for the nasty nature of the rings and sanction a plan to destroy them. Elrond is adamant Sauron’s poison is in these rings.
The blight might be invisible, but the way Galadriel hopes to use the rings, it’s clear something is wrong. Sadly, Gil-galad is influenced by the three rings’ calls. He wants to weaponize them against any enemy, outside of Sauron. It leads to Elrond grabbing the pouch and jumping off a waterfall as if he’s Tom Cruise from the Mission: Impossible movies. At all costs, Elrond has to save his people, even if it’s from themselves.
He ends up at the home of Círdan the Shipwright. Elrond trusts him, as he knows Círdan is a sage Elf others will listen to. The king sends forces there, sensing Elrond will want a free spirit and a rebel, like Círdan, on his side. Círdan decides to sneak a boat out and drop the rings into a water hole in the ocean. It’s the aquatic version of Mount Doom, as no one would ever find the rings there. It’d be too dangerous to extract. However, the rings call to Círdan, too.
Círdan eventually shows up at the meeting where Gil-galad is scolding Elrond. The latter is stunned. Círdan backstabs him, gifting a ring to the king and Galadriel each. He’s wearing the third band, making this trifecta the ultimate guardians and enforcers. Círdan believes that all tools depend on their masters. If good Elves wield the rings and are responsible enough, they won’t become instruments of evil. This ends the premiere on a soul-crushing note.
Elrond looks on in fear, pain and disbelief. He can’t understand why the trio would be so blind, coming off like a cult. Seeing Galadriel smiling wrecks him on the inside. His hope has been shattered, leaving him adamant that Sauron is around them spiritually. All of Elrond’s hard work has been undone, as he watches his friends subtly gloating and basking in their egos and god complexes.
The Rings of Power Season 2 Expands on Elrond’s Trauma Before Isildur
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Fans get context prior to the Isildur betrayal, which is now tougher to digest. Elrond always knew, even before Mount Doom, that Sauron was an immortal force and that they needed to maximize any opening. Unfortunately, he faced many lies and other forms of deceit in Rings of Power Season 1, and the first three episodes that premiered in Season 2. Galadriel hid secrets from him, allowing Halbrand to help make the rings at the Forge. Gil-galad now ignores his words and betrays him by wanting to wield the rings.
Círdan then reneges on the deal and brings the rings to the king to light the beacons of war. For Elrond to steel himself up and believe in a race he was never sure of eons later makes the Mount Doom moment feel like the final nail in the coffin. It speaks to how Elrond kept trying to build his faith back up, educate people, and show them that he didn’t just have experience, he had intuition and a gut instinct that was right. Instead, all he has known is abandonment. No one listens to him, and they don’t respect him as a politician, a war strategist or as a friend.
For Elrond to steel himself up and believe in a race he was never sure of eons later makes the Mount Doom moment feel like the final nail in the coffin.
That frustration may also be why he didn’t kill Isildur and destroy the ring himself. It might have cause war, but Elrond may simply have been tired of dealing with insolence. It won’t get better anytime soon. The next two episodes have Elrond trying to abandon the council, only for Gil-galad to broker a truce. Elrond will lead the fellowship to head to Eregion to let Celebrimbor know of Sauron’s deception. It promises conflict and drama in Rings of Power Season 2. None of the emissaries arrived with news that Halbrand had killed them. This new contingent has to relay the news and purify the Forge.
Galadriel will be present as muscle, wielding her ring. But Elrond has to monitor her, knowing Sauron could breach her mind. The villain has done this to the king too, so the Elves are as compromised as ever, and it’s all due to them not listening to Elrond. They might not share Isildur’s DNA, but they are very much as stubborn and vulnerable as Isildur would become down the line. Ultimately, fans see the burdens other problems Elrond faced, informing why he would become so ruthless in the future whenever Sauron was mentioned.
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power debuts new episodes Thursdays on Prime Video.
