#sometimes i do wonder if it would've been better to just focus on the elves and men

[thenotoriousscuttlecliff]

One hope I have for S3 of Rings of Power is the writers really start to streamline all the major plot threads. Although it has its charms, I do think the Stranger/Nori plot is something that should be incorporated into one of the other plots next season or just cut altogether. It feels like something that is there more out of obligation than anything else, that this is Tolkien so there needs to be hobbits and wizards somewhere, and while I don't really have an issue with that on principle, the fact is they haven't really found a way to work it into the show well and now it just seem to take screentime away from more important plot threads, namely Númenor. That one has really suffered this season, not getting the focus it really needs despite being far more important to the overall story being told. I also feel like the Southlands plot has run its course, but I think they've stranded Isildur there to set the stage for the founding of Gondor.