The villain in The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power season 2 will call back to a Frodo Baggins line from The Fellowship of the Ring. As one of the many upcoming Lord of the Rings projects, The Rings of Power season 2 is highly anticipated. In comparison to the order of Lord of the Rings movies, The Rings of Power takes place millennia before the events of Frodo Baggins’ journey to destroy the One Ring. Despite the distance between the two, The Rings of Power still has several overt connections to The Lord of the Rings trilogy.

For instance, The Rings of Power‘s cast of characters includes some figures integral to Peter Jackson’s original trilogy, from Galadriel and Elrond to Isildur and Sauron. The latter is the primary villain of The Lord of the Rings and will appear in The Rings of Power season 2 in a new form. While Frodo Baggins is not born until thousands of years after the show, The Rings of Power season 2’s story and its depiction of Sauron will link to a line the hobbit utters in The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring.

Sauron’s Annatar Form Links To Frodo’s Description Of Strider From Fellowship

The Elf Form Of Sauron Connects To Frodo’s Description Of Middle-Earth’s Villainous Characters

In The Rings of Power season 2, Annatar will appear to Celebrimbor and will likely lead to the construction of the Nine Rings of Men, and Seven Rings of the Dwarf Lords. Through Annatar’s appearance, The Rings of Power will link to Frodo’s words about Strider from The Fellowship of the Ring, one of The Lord of the Rings‘ best movies. Before Frodo and the other hobbits realize they can trust Strider, a.k.a. Aragorn, Frodo states “I think a servant of the enemy would look fairer, and feel fouler.”

Audiences will be aware of Annatar’s true nature as Sauron from his introduction, meaning he will feel foul and evil despite his fair appearance, just as Frodo describes servants of the enemy in Fellowship.

This line will perfectly apply to Annatar/Sauron in The Rings of Power season 2. Annatar is known for being a fair-looking elf, using his grace and promise of gifts to befriend the elves in Tolkien’s works. As evidenced in the trailer for The Rings of Power season 2, Annatar will certainly look fairer than Halbrand did in season 1. However, audiences will be aware of Annatar’s true nature as Sauron from his introduction, meaning he will feel foul and evil despite his fair appearance, just as Frodo describes servants of the enemy in Fellowship.

Halbrand’s Season 1 Story Arc Was A Reversal Of Annatar

Halbrand’s Arc Saw Him Depicted As A Hero From The Beginning, The Opposite Of Annatar

In The Rings of Power season 1, Sauron presented himself as Halbrand, a human man. Halbrand was introduced early in the show and accompanied Galadriel in the battle against Adar and the orcs of the Southlands, now known as Mordor. However, it was eventually revealed that Halbrand was Sauron the entire time and had silently been manipulating everyone. Halbrand manipulated Adar into creating the land of Mordor and building an army of orcs, as well as trying to win Galadriel over to his side.

This arc from initial hero to ultimate evil will be the opposite of Annatar’s inclusion in The Rings of Power season 2. While Annatar will present himself as a benevolent being to the elves of Eregion, it will be clear from the beginning that he is secretly Sauron. There will be no transition between good and evil like there was with Halbrand, flipping the story arc of Sauron from season 1 on its head in The Rings of Power season 2.

Sauron’s Annatar Form Fixes A Major Rings Of Power Season 1 Complaint

The Rings Of Power Season 1’s Sauron Complaints Will Be Fixed By Season 2’s Annatar

Image via Prime Video

Undoubtedly the biggest criticism of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power season 1 was that the show strayed fairly heavily from J.R.R. Tolkien’s works. While the overall plot points of the show matched Tolkien’s writing, the showrunners took creative liberties in some places and crafted somewhat original stories, one being the creation and inclusion of Halbrand. This was primarily due to complications with the Tolkien Estate, with Amazon Prime only able to legally adapt elements included in The Lord of the Rings books, their appendices, and The Hobbit.

One of the elements that Amazon therefore did not have the rights to use was Annatar, Sauron’s elvish form, hence the creation of Halbrand. Regardless, The Rings of Power season 2 will include this version of the Dark Lord. This could be because the Tolkien Estate granted Amazon more legal leeway with what could be adapted, or simply that The Rings of Power will include the elvish form of Sauron mentioned in LotR appendices without saying the name Annatar. Either way, the inclusion of the character fixes a major complaint about season 1 where faithfulness to Tolkien’s writing is concerned.