The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power season 2, episode 4 is now streaming on Prime Video, and among the Ents (and Ent-wives), eerie Barrow-Wights and the debut of Tom Bombadil, the most significant talking point might be our biggest hint yet as to the true identity of The Stranger (Daniel Weyman).
Spoilers follow.
When Nori (Markella Kavanaugh) and Poppy (Megan Richards) get separated from their "Istar" friend after being whisked away by a sandstorm he caused (he still doesn't quite have a grasp of his powers), they encounter a group of larger Halflings who call themselves Stoors (Smeagol/Gollum is believed to have been a Stoorish Hobbit). After some initial hostilities, the Harfoots attempt to better explain who they were travelling with.
After describing the Stranger as "a giant" and "bigger than an Elf," Harfoot leader Gundabel sarcastically interrupts with, "oh, so he's a great big grand-elf?"
Say grand-elf quickly a few times and you'll see where we're going with this.
We already had a pretty good idea that the Stranger would turn out to be Gandalf, but there's been some speculation that he could also be one of the Blue Wizards, Alatar and Pallando, of which we know very little. All of our hints up to this point could be misdirection, of course, but we'd bet our last bag of long-bottom leaf that this "Meteor Man" is indeed the one and only Mithrandir.
As for the Stranger, he runs into some tree trouble before being saved by a jovial fellow named Tom, who puts him up for the night and shares some sage advice. Goldberry does not show up, but we do hear her singing. It's not clear whey the "River Daughter" doesn't appear or why Bombadil denies knowledge of her existence to the Stranger, but perhaps she will make her presence felt in a later episode.
What did you make of this episode of Rings of Power? Let us know in the comments section down below.
"Sauron has returned. Cast out by Galadriel, without army or ally, the rising Dark Lord must now rely on his own cunning to rebuild his strength and oversee the creation of the Rings of Power, which will allow him to bind all the peoples of Middle-earth to his sinister will."
"Building on Season 1’s epic scope and ambition, Season 2 of Amazon’s The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power plunges even its most beloved and vulnerable characters into a rising tide of darkness, challenging each to find their place in a world that is increasingly on the brink of calamity."
"Elves and dwarves, orcs and men, wizards and Harfoots... as friendships are strained and kingdoms begin to fracture, the forces of good will struggle ever more valiantly to hold on to what matters to them most of all.. each other."
Returning cast members include Morfydd Clark, Benjamin Walker, Charles Edwards, Charlie Vickers, Markella Kavenagh, Nazanin Boniadi, Ismael Cruz Cordova, Tyroe Muhafidin, Maxim Baldry, Cynthia Addai-Robinson, Owain Arthur, Trystan Gravelle, Ema Horvath, Sophia Nomvete, Megan Richards, Dylan Smith, Leon Wadham, Daniel Weyman, and Sara Zwangobani.
Sam Hazeldine (Peaky Blinders) replaces Joseph Mawle as Adar, with Ciarán Hinds (Game of Thrones), Rory Kinnear (Penny Dreadful), and Tanya Moodie (The Man Who Fell to Earth) joining the ensemble in key roles.