The Rings Of Power Just Paid Homage To One Of The Scariest Scenes In The Lord Of The Rings
Meat's back on the menu, but so are spoilers for the latest episode of "The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power."
For most, the prospect of creating a show like "The Rings of Power" and having to live up to the expectations of every fan under the sun would make for a daunting challenge. Never mind that this series is the first major live-action adaptation of author J.R.R. Tolkien's work since Peter Jackson sailed into the sunset with both "The Lord of the Rings" and "The Hobbit" trilogies under his belt. But even without the pressures of having to follow up on one of the most beloved and critically acclaimed blockbuster trilogies of all time, just the brand name alone comes with the kind of scrutiny that most other franchises simply never have to contend with.
In that light, nobody could blame the creative team if they'd chosen to intentionally stay away from as many callbacks or references to the previous movies as possible. Instead, "The Rings of Power" seems to embrace the chance to pay homage to its big-screen predecessors at every opportunity. As of its latest episode, the writers took that to even greater heights with one specific moment shared between the elf warrior Galadriel (Morfyyd Clark) and young Southlander Theo (Tyroe Muhafidin) while both survivors are reeling from the tumultuous events of last week.
While holed up in an alcove, the unlikely pair hide out from a group of marauding orcs. Viewers didn't need to be as keen-eyed as an elf to notice how strikingly similar this sequence was staged to another scene in "The Fellowship of the Ring" — one that stands out as a tense and terrifying highlight in the entire trilogy.
It's like poetry, it rhymes
Imitation is the best form of flattery, as the saying goes, and "The Rings of Power" hasn't hesitated to heap its admiration upon wildly influential "The Lord of the Rings" movies that came before it. Although rights issues prevent the Prime Video series from drawing explicit and direct connections with the Peter Jackson movies, that doesn't mean the creators can't show their appreciation in other imaginative ways.
Clearly those behind "The Rings of Power" found themselves drawn to a particularly memorable scene from "The Fellowship of the Ring," when Frodo, Sam, and the other hobbits are attempting to escape from the Shire. Instead, they inadvertently run right into the path of a Ringwraith — a servant of Sauron corrupted over the long years and intent on only its search for the One Ring. In a sequence that was itself inspired directly by the animated "The Lord of the Rings" movie, director Peter Jackson reached back to his horror roots to depict our heroes hiding for their lives under a natural overhang. To the delight of observant fans, "The Rings of Power" put Galadriel and Theo in remarkably similar circumstances. Check out this telling comparison below:
#TheFellowShipOfTheRing x #TheRingsOfPower pic.twitter.com/EChfuIjT5k
— best of tolkien (@bestoftolkien) October 7, 2022
Though the duo in the series are waylaid by a different villain entirely, even the idea of having the orc attempt to smell them out draws even deeper parallels to the creepy Ringwraith in "The Fellowship of the Ring." Admittedly, it doesn't take much talent to borrow from the best. But "The Rings of Power" puts its own impressive stamp on the moment, allowing this brief and subtle similarity to provide similar tension without taking us out of the moment.
"The Rings of Power" will air its season finale on Prime Video October 14, 2022.