Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Episode 7 – From the Ashes Rises Mordor!

So it begins! If you have seen today’s episode of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, you know what I am talking about. Up until now experience wise this show was too good to be on TV but vision/direction wise, the series seemed to be struggling to find its ground. Now that is in the past because LOTR: The Rings of Power Episode 4 and 5 delivered a massively improved narrative and Episode 6 managed to outdo all our expectations.! So, without further ado, let us get to the our verdict for Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Episode 7! WARNING – MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD

Review Marathon – Episode 1 & 2 / Episode 3 / Episode 4 / Episode 5 / Episode 6

Rating – ★★★★

Lord of the Rings: ROP Episode 7 Review – The Eye

After a glorious and bombastic Episode 6, Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power returns to being what it was. We spend most of the episode watching the survivors making their way out of the ashes towards a safe camp. Fortunately, almost all of our heroes have survived and we all know Isildur wears a very dense plot armor, so he is alive as well. However, that doesn’t mean there were no losses as Miriel lost her vision, Isildur lost a friend, Halbrand is gravely injured, and Elendil has lost faith in Galadriel. Anyways, Miriel, Galadriel, Halbrand, and Elendil decided to leave the Southlands and come back harder and stronger. They have left behind a rescue battalion with the village survivors, Theo, and Arondir whereas Theo’s mother has decided to go her own way.

That was what happened with the folks involved in the Battle for Southlands. Let’s talk about the characters now which include my personal favourite Durin and Elrond. Their bromance reached new heights in this episode and I certainly dog their relationship much more than Legolas and Gimli. Durin clearly stated how Elrond is more of a brother to him than anyone else in the world and it seems like Durin will indeed help Elrond escape his confinements in the next episode, maybe even escape with him. One major sequence we saw in the Elrond-Durin arc when King Durin 3 sealed the hole and we saw the leaf falling to the bottom of the mountain. Not only did that sequence reveal the humungous Mithril deposits in the mountain but at the very bottom of the mountain rests BALROG! That’s right, Balrog has awakened and if you do not remember, its the same creature Gandalf fought in LOTR: Fellowship of the Ring. So, the creature to whom Gandalf delivered the iconic line, “YOU SHALL NOT PASS” is here and has successfully hyped the fans.

Now let’s come to the worst and most annoying arc of this series since the very first episode – The Stranger-Nori arc. The penultimate episode has aired and viewers still have no clue about the 5 W’s and 1 H of the Stranger. We have no idea who are the group of Dark Elves (?) after him since a few episodes and what they want. Add to all that, the painfully annoying Nori and the other Harfoots, and you have yourself the worst arc of LOTR yet. I didn’t feel a thing when those Dark Elves burnt their carts and stuff, and I also felt nothing when the Stranger did absolutely anything throughout this show. I do not know how many of you will agree with this but personally, this arc is definitely a lackluster. Anyways, it is expected that the finale might be able to answer some of our questions regarding this arc and we get a showdown between the stranger and this group of dark elves.

Moving on to the final character, our antagonist Adar who ultimately proved to witty, resilient, and highly successful. His plan succeeded and as a result huge parts of Southlands have been reduced to ashes after the eruption of Mount Doom. And from these ashes has risen what we all know as Mordor. Things will never be the same from now on and all fans are waiting for now, is the return of Sauron. We have all had our doubts about who Sauron actually is (Halbrand still being thr top choice) and we expect the Sauron reveal to take place in the finale. We also expect to see “The Rings of Power” or at least be teased about it. I highly doubt that will happen in the finale but a tease itself would be enough to pull fans in for season 2. Season 2 might also see the creation of The One Ring as Sauron forged it using the fires of Mount Doom. If Amazon is able to fully realize its vision we might get the to witness the biggest and most lethal battle for Middle Earth but that won’t happen till the final season. So, although good things await us in the final season, we do not want the preceding seasons to be a slug fest like the first half of season 1.

Final Verdict – Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power episode 7 is surely not the best but it isn’t bad at all. Packed with exciting teases, brilliant visuals, compelling performances, and masterful set designs and cinematography, Episode 7 manages to impress the audience. However, it does not feel like the penultimate episode and does little to no effort in setting up the finale. That said, we hope the finale pays off this nearly 8 hours journey fans have taken so far in a satisfying conclusion and a hype-worthy buildup for season 2.

If you have any questions regarding LOTR: The Rings of Power, feel free to ask in the comments below. For more content, stay tuned. As usual, like, subscribe and share our articles as we here are trying to build a community of people High on Cinema!