#rop s2e1

[valardynasty]

Adar kill Sauron. #1 #3

THE RINGS OF POWER S2E1 • DURNOST

[valar-did-me-wrong]

S1E1 of ROP sets up the theme of "Nothing is evil in the beginning"

This is a true to life imo & nuanced take on evil.

The show expands on it by showing us Sauron in his repentance phase where he is trying to return to his beginnings when he was still good.

S2E1 gives us the theme of the season "To be forgiven one needs to choose good everyday"

Again a very nuanced take on goodness, individual responsibility & willpower.

The show expands on it by simultaneously showing us Adar & Sauron starting on the same side & choosing different paths in the end.

This season shows us Sauron not choosing good, actively harming others and letting his decisions be based on greed & selfishness.

While Adar who's character's evil side was already established in Season 2 with the abuse of Southlanders gets his origins & motives fleshed out and then gets presented with the choice where he chooses good.

This show puts a lot of effort into nuances, complex topics like the cycle of abuse and dark characters that are very human & grounded in reality.

To imply that Magic Ring = Evil Eraser in a show like this imo diminishes the hardwork put into it & all its characters who have their own minds, motivations & challenges. (the very things we praise ROP Galadriel for having)

[flameunquenched]

there's something there about how all three times someone tries to get sauron to, you know, acknowledge the fact that he is sauron, his answer is "i have many names."

one to galadriel in s1e8. one to celebrimbor in s2e7. one to glug in s2e8.

in fact, thinking VERY carefully, i am pretty sure he only ever says the name sauron (in present day, not counting s2e1 flashback) twice in the entire 16 episode series so far.

once in s1e8: "sauron lives because of you."

once in s2e1: "sauron has returned in a new form."

it is an interesting divorce to his identity and i think a really interesting bit of character development with regards to sauron as rop is portraying him. there's been talk of how there wasn't a true 'repentance' arc but what if his refusal to self-identify himself definitively as sauron is part of it?

it's interesting how he seems to be actively attempting to utterly disassociate himself from the name sauron. it is my headcanon that neither melkor nor mairon can use their original names anymore, hence the usage of morgoth and sauron, but i wonder if even after centuries, there is a small part of sauron who is trying to pretend that he is not abhorred.

maybe i'm reaching but i wonder if we may finally see him claim his name in s3.

edit: yes, i know what 'sauron' means. yes, sauron is evil and bad. keep adding stupid comments and i'll keep deleting them and move to blocking next.

[edennill]

RoP S2E1 reactions:

Why is Sauron already pretty? What does he even need that for with orcs? I doubt he's that interested in good looks when he's not trying to trick elves or men.

Okay... that speech is ridiculous; what is he even trying to convince the orcs of? Although I guess they did serve morgoth under duress so maybe he does need to gain either their confidence or fear.

The speech makes a poor impression overall. Neither intimidating nor frightening, makes a B-movie impression.

"Many of you will die" xd

Sauron combing his hair back though lollll

Why, oh why is Sauron kneeling!!!?? This is not an European monarchy. That orc is no one to him.

I will admit that the setting of this conversation in the Forodwaith is logical. Figures the remnants of Morgoth's armies might be lying low in the North.

Ides of March!

Oopsie. Now he desintegrated.

What would Sauron even need to have blood for?

"What's that" "Probably the Watcher in the Water (wrong but nvm)" "Phew I thought it was a spider" "I'd prefer a spider" "Maybe you're right"

"I've done evil." Oh wow. Genius, are you.

You wouldn't be that understanding if you knew it was Sauron lol.

Chosing good /s

Lil bro: Did they just gallop all the way from Eregion??

Not-gil-galad my beloathed

"archhhh" lol :/

"Last leaf will fall" bullshit

Poor attempt of paralleling Elwing imo, but kudos for trying .

Sauron caught by orcs? Ridiculous, but good riddance at least.

Are you Moses or something

"There is some evil upon this land that fools our path." Or you're just bad at finding one. "Panic is the fools meal..." (Who just brought up some mysterious evil? The full quote is ridiculous btw.)

You don't have to eat — ah, okay. The wolf trick is smart enough.

Cirdan isn't half-bad. For once.

"You do your father proud" 🥲

Eeesh the wandering song was integrated into the plot so clumsily...

Nori has a good actress but I hate the Harfoot plotline.

Don't bastardise the words of Galadriel's song :(((

The elves have neat clothes though. Except the strange veiled women.

WHY is the tree glowing??? I don't think I have to explain why this is so weird in this context.

Phew, it stopped.

Is Mirdania even a plausible female elvish name? Seems like Mirdan with a weird ending.

[permanentlyexhaustedpigeon88]

Not me, watching RoP S2E1 (again), and drooling over Adar (again)...

And also tearing up when Gil-galad sings because evidently I am all sorts of emotional tonight.

I can do both at the same time, right??? It's totally fine 😅

[elrondriel-events]

Sauron had returned, Elrond’s mission to Ost-in-Edhil had failed, Galadriel could not forgive him, and they were all leaving Middle Earth forever. But at least Galadriel was not gone to Valinor, to dwell apart from him for centuries, perhaps millennia. --- As the elves prepare to leave Middle Earth, Elrond is grateful that at least he has not lost Galadriel, as he would have if she had remained on the ship to Valinor. And then Cirdan arrives with the rings...

Set during ROP s2e1

Elrondriel Week Day 6: Farewells

[permanentlyexhaustedpigeon88]

Thank you so much for the tag, @baddybaddyadardaddy!!! I love these!

How many works do you have on AO3? Currently 5. Though with all of the AUs I keep concocting, if my self-restraint fails, that number may grow.

What's your total AO3 word count? 49,240 at the moment. Nothing too notable yet, but the goal is to keep it growing!

Your top 5 stories by kudos/likes: (based on AO3 stats)

The Wanderer-> Written for Rings of Power, Halbrand|Sauron/OC. I'm giddy about all of my stories, but this one has to be the one I'm the most feral for at the moment, so it seems appropriate it's at the top. It's my first exploration of a villain/OC story where the villain does not come anywhere even remotely close to receiving redemption, and the OC's ending is far from happy, as well. Lots of angst and pain and actions that have consequences in this one, folks!

The Abhorred->Another one written for RoP, Adar/OC. This one came to me after seeing the flashback in S2E1, so I really hope I can follow it through and do it justice! For right now, I've got a happy(ish) ending planned, but that might...change.

The Unraveling->So this is my new baby, again for RoP (I don't have a problem. Nope. I'm so, so normal about this show). Adar/OC. It's an Outlander-inspired AU, a different take on the "girl falls into Middle Earth" stories, in that the girl was already in Middle Earth, just many many years after the events of RoP and LOTR. And I really can't wait to get it rolling!

Old Town Road->I bet I don't even have to disclose which fandom this one's for, at this point. Y'all can already guess. But it's a Yellowstone-inspired AU, Halbrand (no Sauron)/OC pairing. It features the same OC as The Wanderer, just in a different world, and with a definitively happier ending (though there's still more than enough angst and pain to get through, first).

The Scars On Our Hearts->Venturing back to Adar/OC here (okay, okay, so maybe I have an obsession problem). This one's an AU inspired by Marvel, specifically The Winter Soldier. Long story short, more pain and torment for Adar (oopsies?), but again. Eventual happy ending.

Do you respond to comments? Why or why not? I try to acknowledge comments in either a direct reply, or the author's note in the next chapter (I struggled with my own...neuroses???...a bit on AO3, because I worried for the longest time that replying directly artificially inflated my 'comment' count, and that that was somehow not the right thing to do, but I'm relaxing on that now, because I realize not everyone reads the AN's). For my fics, at least, comments are such a rare thing, so when I do get one, I definitely want the reader to know it was appreciated (though I fear that sometimes I may come across as...unbelievably unhinged in my replies 😅).

What's the fic you've written with the angstiest ending? If we're going for current fics, technically none of them have ended yet. But projecting out to when they do, that'll have to be The Wanderer. If we're going for fics that are no longer posted, though, I did finish one a few years back for Stranger Things, and it was...it was painful, but in the very best way.

What's the fic you've written with the happiest ending? Happy? A...happy ending. Don't know that I know how to write one of those, without throwing the characters into a world of pain, first. Projecting outward again, though, I think the happiest would have to go to my currently planned ending for Old Town Road.

Do you write crossovers? Not yet, but I do write a ton of AUs.

Have you ever received hate on a fic? Not hate on the fic, per se, but I was once called a c-u-next-tuesday for taking down old stories that were no longer being updated in a review on a new WIP a few years back. Otherwise, though, everyone's been remarkably gracious (outside of the one troll that had commented that "dragons are overrated" on a fic for...House of the Dragon. That one made me laugh 😂).

Do you write smut? If so, what kind? I used to, when I first started out, but it was the clunkiest, cringiest, most awkward experience (both writing it, and trying to proofread it after) ever. Anymore, I just kind of hint at it having happened, and at the lead-up to it, and I allow the readers to infer what they will from there.

Have you ever had a fic stolen? Not that I know of!

Have you ever had a fic translated? Also not that I know of!

Have you ever co-written a fic before? Back in the day, yes! We never actually posted any of them, but it was quite fun while it lasted! Now, though, I think I'm too obsessive/stressed about getting my own fics to have semi-regular updates, what with real life, etc, in the mix, so I'm not sure I'd have the time for it anymore.

What's your all time favorite ship? So I really struggle to answer this, as not only an OC/canon writer, but a reader of the very same, at least as far as it pertains to existing ships, with canon characters only. (For example, I am particularly rabid about Tilda and Halbrand for The Wanderer and Old Town Road, every single OC/canon pairing created by @ruralnorth, Adar/Palariel by @niennawept, and of course Adar/Erenyë created by @baddybaddyadardaddy). But if I had to give an example of already existing characters, beyond just those living inside my mind, I'd have to say...Durin/Disa in RoP? Lucas Sinclair/Max Mayfield in Stranger Things? And my personal favorite, Adar/actually-being-alive in...oh, wait, that's another one that just lives in my head, isn't it?

What's a WIP you want to finish, but don't think you ever will? Well currently, I'd love to say I'm going to finish all 5 of them. And if I can pump the brakes on immediate gratification pushing me to post the umpteen other AUs I've got in mind, I just might be able to make it work. (But it may take me a while).

What are your writing strengths? Erm...I'm rubbish at coming up with my own strengths. Angst, maybe? Throwing the blorbos into a world of pain without their consent? Is that a strength?

What are your writing weaknesses? Being totally transparent, here, probably pushing through the inevitability of writer's block, and not getting discouraged by it enough to take down the story in its entirety. I've got an unfortunate habit of rapid-posting intro chapters for every single idea swimming around in my head, and then letting the aforementioned blocks, and lack of feedback coalesce into a discouraging spiral that eventually leads to me just giving up and taking the story down. I'm really trying to work on this one, but decades-long habits are...hella hard to break.

What are your thoughts on writing dialogue in other languages in a fic? I am extraordinarily nervous to do it myself, for fear of getting it wrong, but I love the idea, and feel it adds a little extra flair/immersion for the reader when done well!

What's a fandom/ship you haven't written for yet, but want to? I'm honestly hesitant to put too much thought into this, because of the weaknesses mentioned above. But, I'd love to get back into an HOTD fic and actually finish it this time.

What's your favorite fic you've written? Hmm...probably The Wanderer at this point. I've been itching to get Galadriel, Halbrand and Tilda to Numenor, and we're finally there, so that's a really exciting thing to look forward to, for me!

No pressure tags: @oh-great-authoress, @themareverine, @ruralnorth, @roosterforme, and anyone else who wants to join!

Fanfic writer interview

Thanks for the tag, @niennawept!! (& answering under this blog since the VAST majority of my fic is Adar-related)

How many works do you have on AO3? 14, which feels insane to me.

What’s your total AO3 word count? 202,906, which again... feels insane. I'm pretty sure Adar is to blame for like, 195,000 of those words.

Your top 5 stories by kudos/likes:

Awake, Arise or Be For Ever Fall'n: My longest work, Adar's life story from his awakening at Cuivienen to the Battle of the Last Alliance. (Written and completed pre-S2, so his story after Orodruin erupts is, um, different than in the show canon. So technically it's a fix-it fic.)

sister golden hair: The Adar x Mirdania fic that I NEVER expected to write. This started as a ONE-SHOT and then exploded into an angst-riddled tale of accidental necromancy and Tolkienian zombies. Deus ex Mirdania!!!!

Son of the Darkness: The one-shot that started it all. The moment that my brain became fully unhinged. The original one-shot sketch of Adar's life story.

memories of dancing: A fic I wrote when I lost my mind temporarily pre-siege of Eregion episode premiere and decided to entertain the crack idea that Adar = Celeborn. No regrets.

Blood on My Name: Awwww... a throwback to the days when Kastle (Karen Page x Frank Castle from The Punisher) had taken over my brain. A little AU where a badly wounded Frank shows up at Karen's door in the middle of the night. Midnight MacGyver surgery FTW!

Do you respond to comments? Why or why not? I try! I have not been historically the best at this, partly because for awhile I didn't realize that that was what you were supposed to do. >.< Also sometimes I type responses out and my brain tricks me into thinking that I sound way too dumb so I abort mission. But I've been trying to be much better about it because yes, fandom should be a conversation and I'm so grateful for every comment I get!

What’s the fic you’ve written with the angstiest ending? LMAO TAKE YOUR PICK, I AM THE CAPTAIN OF THE PAIN TRAIN. Honestly, though, I guess it depends on your definition of pain. I think Awake, Arise ended on a hopeful/Tolkienian note, so I actually wouldn't say that one. I think it might be "what law can lovers move," which was a little lyrical Turgon x Elenwe oneshot that I did, inspired by Orpheus and Euryidice. Those two hurt me so good.

What’s the fic you’ve written with the happiest ending? Mmmmm... I think "in the halls of awaiting," a companion ficlet to Awake, Arise from the POV of Erenyë, Adar's spouse in my canon, as she waits for him in the halls of Mandos. It was SUCH an angsty fic to write, but their reunion made it all better. That said, I DON'T REALLY DO OVERTLY HAPPY ENDINGS, SORRY.

Do you write crossovers? Nope.

Have you ever received hate on a fic? I don't think so.

Do you write smut? If so, what kind? I DIDN'T, AND THEN ADAR X ERENYE TOOK OVER MY BRAIN. "A Knife in the Dark" is the AU smutfest of Awake, Arise and I like to say that it's what happens when you don't let your characters fuck each other enough in the longfic.

Have you ever had a fic stolen? Let's hope not.

Have you ever had a fic translated? Not yet!

Have you ever co-written a fic before? No... writing is kind of a solitary endeavor for me. I'd entertain editing, but probably not co-writing.

What’s your all-time favorite ship? I'm staring at this question going "why can I not think of an answer for this"? I mean this feels so self-promotional/self-indulgent to say, but I'm high-key obsessed with my OC Erenyë and I've definitely dedicated the most brain space to shipping her and Adar over the past two years. Turgon and Elenwe also have OTP status in my brain, as well as Kastle and SANSAN.

What’s a WIP that you want to finish but don’t think you ever will? Mmmmm... I think maybe "Tides of Fate Onward Run"? I started this something like TEN YEARS AGO, and the basic idea was to tell the story of Gollum and his corruption by the ring through the POV of Nienna. It was a neat little exploration and I had intended it to be a way to explore a lot of the Valar headcanons I have. Maybe one day I'll get back to it...

What are your writing strengths? Mmm... I think maybe my canon adherence? For the most part that is my sweet spot with fic-- I like to craft stories that can fit very snugly into exisiting canon with few deviations. Especially with Awake, Arise, I wanted Adar's story to feel like it could have slipped right out of Tolkiens Silmarillion canon.

What are your writing weaknesses? Ugh I think sometimes I can slip into passive voice and I hate that. Also sometimes I feel like my descriptions are just way too flat and I can fall into "telling instead of showing."

What are your thoughts on writing dialogue in other languages in a fic? The only other languages I really use are Tolkien's... and I'm for it!

What’s a fandom/ship you haven’t written for yet but want to? Mmmm... well technically I have written for this ship, but I've never published publicly... and may never. It's Lalwen x Fingolfin. It's wrong. It's scandalous. It's a mess of feelings. There's extensive Helcaraxë angst/trauma involved. Don't @ me, they are so compelling to me. I'M UNREPENTANT, LOOK AWAY.

What’s your favorite fic you’ve written? Awake, Arise! I'm so goddamned proud of that fic. I'd never actually completed anything novel length (fic-wise or original) before I wrote that fic. So that was a big deal for me to do as a writer. And I really felt like I told a damn story.

ANYWAY tagging @brynnmclean, @permanentlyexhaustedpigeon88 @mylovelylittleobsessions @clumsycopy and anyone else who wants to play!!!

[thegaylinguist]

elven kings under the sky

venomgoop!sauron ??!!

[valardynasty]

Adar kill Sauron. #2 #3

THE RINGS OF POWER S2E1 • DURNOST

[valardynasty]

Adar kill Sauron. #1 #2

THE RINGS OF POWER S2E1 • DURNOST

[valar-did-me-wrong]

ROP S2E1 single handedly made me a fan of Jack Lowden!

He is SO GOOD at Mairon/red head Sauron!! His expressions his mannerisms!! I want him in EVERY SEASON!!! The fact that it can go hand in hand with getting to see Sam as Adar in first age flashbacks & potentially Morgoth too!! 👩🏽‍🍳💋

We need to start demanding ROP prequel shows from Amazon & the Estate rn!! (I've got a presentation already made Jeff just give me 1 sec please!)

I'm actually obsessed with Charlie Vickers as Sauron, in a way I haven't been obsessed with an adapted character in a long time. And I love Charlie's portrayal of Sauron in his various forms, Halbrand, Annatar.

But Jack Lowden of Sauron was something I didn't know I needed and now I can't help but need it more and more. Jack's appearance in the prologue of season two only deepened my obsession with Sauron in the days of Angband.

And I keep thinking about how many stories Prime Video could give us. I like the representation of the characters in the series so much, that I could watch exclusive movies and series of each character and never get tired.

After watching the first episode of the second season, I spent every day that followed thinking about scenes that could be presented from Sauron's past in Angband. Prime Video, I am at your gates begging for new scenes of my red-haired Sauron!

[valardynasty]

S02E01 | The Rings of Power

[valar-did-me-wrong]

So I know Adar was HOT 24/7, but why was he so damn HOT in 2.01? Like every single frame he was in? Breathtaking hot. How, just how?

You are SO correct! S2E1 Adar with a cape, slicked back hair & clean tunic with delicate intact embroidery during the coronation scene is hotness personified!

If I remember correctly from some interview, that was his first day of shooting too so I think he worked extra hard to (in the words of the wise @thequeensjester ) bring frontman energy to his Adar in basically his ROP introduction scenes!

Though in this household we love both Adars & I absolutely cannot imagine anyone else do S1 Adar justice like Joseph! His was a desperate, cornered, almost mythical being of an Uruk that demanded attention in his own right.

Where as Sam's take on Adar is just as you said, breathtakingly hot & confident in every clip❤️‍🔥 though there is still a deep sadness beneath it imo, as a homage to Joseph's Adar 🫶🏽

[flameunquenched]

i saw a giftset last night right before i was heading to bed of sauron seeing the warg for the first time and the caption was something like 'he looks so scared' and with all due respect to the original poster...what?

do...do you know who sauron is?

if this were still season 1 where we were by and large viewing sauron - or halbrand, pick your preference - through the lenses of a) galadriel and b) an audience who was still unaware of who he truly is, then i might be willing to grant it as a ploy to veil his true self. but...that's categorically NOT what that scene is.

i have seen and watched that particular moment many, many times since s2e1 came out. for that scene, we as the audience are aware that he is sauron. there is no reason for there to be any pretense or feigning as to who he is. in fact, i just went and rewatched it so that i was sure that i was remembering correctly.

that's not fear on his face. it's recognition. in fact, i'd go so far as to call it something like excitement. he leans forward. he leans forward towards the warg. when you are scared of something, you recoil, you try to retreat, you look away, you make yourself small. you don't lean forwards towards the thing that you're afraid of! in that moment, sauron is seeing what essentially amounts to one of his great-great-great-great...great grandchildren, in a way.

sauron was known as the lord of werewolves. whether you ascribe to the fanon that he literally created them (i do, personally) or not, there is no way on this earth or middle-earth that he would be afraid of a warg. it would not happen. saying that he is 'afraid of' a warg does a disservice to his character in a grossly incredible manner. it strips him further of the terrifying sorcerer he was when morgoth still walked beleriand.

i get that rop as a whole has not really leant in more to the fact that sauron can be very goddamn scary but let's not strip that away any more from him by saying he's afraid of a warg. a warg that, in a continuation of that very same scene he commands in black speech and gains total control over.

[flameunquenched]

my dad is the one who really got me into lotr when i was younger. i have tons of memories watching the extended editions with him and asking every question you can think of.

tonight after dinner we watched s2e1 of rop together and it was so nice. we don't get to spend much time together anymore so just being able to put aside an hour to watch it was really, really special to me.

he thinks halbrand looks like aragorn and it makes me smile bc i completely agree lol.

anyway, i'm gonna try and write some. my bestie is asleep cause she has an 8hr drive tomorrow so i expect tonight to be pretty lonely so if anyone wants to keep me company, i'd appreciate it.

[flameunquenched]

6, 14, 20 for rop ask game! -- @ann-atar

rop ask game!

6. Where would you most like to live in RoP and why?

in eregion! i'm not an artist but i am a writer and i think i'd be so happy there!

14 has been answered here.

20. Name three of your favourite scenes (or lines, or scenes and lines).

ooooh. s2e1 after waldreg has done another torture scene (let's call it what is it) and sauron is reaching for the bone and the warg appears and he has that untranslated "conversation" in black speech to the warg. absolutely incredible. i want to tear that scene apart and dissect it with my TEETH. s1e8 the confrontation scene but SPECIFICALLY the moment where galadriel is treating slowly and sauron is equally slowly advancing. another moment i want to rip apart and study under a microscope. and s2e................7 i think i'm 98% sure the "true creation requires sacrifice" scene between sauron/annatar and celebrimbor. i have that bit of dialogue memorized.

thank you!