#that sauron theory again

[rey-jake-therapist]

A quick follow-up to the post I made about the music analysis of the Elrond/Adar scenes, scenes where Elrond's theme can't be heard at all even though with Adar, he's the main character of these scenes...

There's something else that I'd like to point out as interesting.

When Elrond takes the pin he will give to Galadriel off his cloak, he does it ostensibly. It was already commented that it was very strange that no one reacted, not even Adar, who even though he didn't see him take it off, couldn't have *not* noticed that his pin was missing when Elrond and he came face to face again.

Glug, especially, definitely saw Elrond take the pin off his cloak. Elrond even looked at him when he did that. It's assumed that Glug chose not to say anything because he disagreed with Adar's choice to attack Sauron and maybe hoped that Galadriel would go kill Sauron herself. Delusional thinking if you ask me (from Glug I mean), but, okay.

Previously, Elrond had already looked at Glug once when he asked Adar if his Uruks were okay to be slaughtered on the battle field, provoking a clear reaction from Glug:

I don't need to remind you that it's Glug who found Sauron after he killed Celebrimbor, who betrayed Adar, then killed him without an once of hesitation.

Of course, it may be only a coincidence. But for the sake of the discussion, I'd like to remind you what Gil-Galad said about Sauron:

And we actually saw it happening with Celebrimbor, but also with the Elvish guards, who Sauron made kill each other with just a flick of the hand: he had gained their trust, so he was able to enter their mind and control them entirely.

He even told Celebrimbor: "You think it was only you, that put yourself in my power?"

Let's say the "Elrond in the tent = Sauron" theory is correct, it would be another clue: Sauron, disguised as Elrond, gained Glug's trust when he evoked the Uruks' reluctance to fight with Adar. There were already some dissenssions in Adar's camp, that he could feel, but it's really him who planted the seeds of a rebellion in the Uruks' minds. At this moment, Sauron was able to enter in Glug's mind and to control him, maybe even lead him to Celebrimbor's workship, so he could find him.

Of course, the most simple explanation for Glug's change of allegiance is that Sauron started manipulating him when he met him in Celebrimbor's workshop. But I find very interesting that it would then be Elrond who would have planted the idea of betraying Adar and siding with Sauron instead in Glug's mind...

I mean, there's something that I don't quite understand in all this: let's say it was Elrond in that tent, and he had this very Sauronesque idea to incite rebellion amongst the Uruks' ranks. I mean, why not? All is fair in love and war after all. But why then, didn't the Uruks side with the Elves? It was an Elf who displayed a sort of interest for their lives, not Sauron, so why didn't Glug and his followers go to Elrond with a white flag, asking to join them? Elrond wouldn't have rejected them, he was the one whispering the idea of letting their boss down...

Why did Glug and his pals go straight to the other guy instead, the Maiar they never met, who Adar always described as a monster who hated them? From where did Glug get the confidence that Sauron wouldn't just kill him on the spot?

And I'll leave it there ;)

P.S: no actually, I'd also like to point out that it's very funny that Elrond kissed Galadriel as a distraction to hide the fact that he would slid a pin in her hand, but took off the pin in question off his cloak, slowly, very chill and for everyone to see... Idk, this is bad writing or mind fuckery. Pick your fighter :)

[cilil]

You can tell it’s been YEARS since I read the silmarillion and did in fact NOT look up descriptions before I started drawing the characters bc now I kinda regret giving melkor red eyes instead of icy blue and mairon smooth blond hair instead of wavy ginger hair…

Let me tell you, I could talk for hours about colors alone, but first things first: Don't worry about it. Ainur are shape shifters, so even if descriptions exist they could look completely different just 5 minutes later; and even if they weren't it's totally fine to experiment with different designs😌

For Melkor's eye color I've personally stuck with icy blue because I felt it's a nice touch due to Manwë (canonically) having blue eyes as well (brothers and parallels and all that). Also I like that blue eyes may make him appear more "innocent" and less dangerous since it's a natural color for incarnates. Recently I've grown very fond of black sclera too because it makes the icy blue really pop and enhances the sort of creepy, void vibes.

I'm very fond of red as well and have it as a sort of secondary color for other shapes or when he's angry. Red eyes are just... neat. I do love the intense, unnatural, inhuman vibe, which is something really cool you can with Ainur designs.

Other colors I've seen people draw/describe in their fics include golden (dragon vibes I suppose), pitch black (more void) and purple and I love all of them.

As for Mairon's hair I'm admittedly very fond of the ginger curls, but I always picture him using straight blonde (and anything in between, like a spectrum) as an alternative. Basically I like to imagine that the ginger curls (mostly worn open) are his fiery nature coming through and it's him being free and all that while the straight blonde (sometimes open, sometimes braided) is what he uses for his "Annatar forms", trying to appear all proper and orderly and restrained.

Yes, I read way too much into hair designs.

Anyway don't feel bad about it, keep the designs if you like them or switch them up and experiment if you'd prefer something else and if you're ever wondering if canon has something for a particular Ainu feel free to hit me up; I'm not the greatest expert alive or whatever but I read a lot about them and usually at least know if something exists somewhere😅 (also always down to research it)❤️

[sesamenom]

Gil-galad Variations III, Notes pt II

Tag snippets from: @trecciolinoooooo, @aniseandspearmint, @who-needs-words, @general-illyrin, @light-of-the-two-trees, @spirit-b0x, @justablix

Gil-galad Variations, featuring all the gil galad theories i've encountered.

[galstelperion]

Galadriel has the light of the two trees ensnared in her hair:

“...and her hair was held a marvel unmatched. It was golden like the hair of her father and of her foremother Indis, but richer and more radiant, for its gold was touched by some memory of the starlike silver of her mother, and the Eldar said that the light of the Two Trees had been snared in her tresses.”

— Unfinished Tales, "The History of Galadriel and Celeborn"

And her eyes bore a sheen of starlight of which the Calaquendi who beheld the light of Valinor for many years held:

I find the prevailing theory that Sauron covets her light in the same way Morgoth coveted the Silmarils very interesting. That he would see in her a faded memory he had not even thought to reach for, the memory of being Aule’s disciple, the memory of being Mairon the admirable, not Sauron the abhorred.

But the light he desires most, that he would burn the entire world for, rejects him, burns him, just as the Silmarils burned Morgoth…

But Morgoth persisted in capturing the silmarils light and for a time wore the three glittering stones on his crown:

“For they were set in the Iron Crown, and treasured in Angband above all wealth; and Balrogs were about them, and countless swords, and strong bars, and unassailable walls, and the dark majesty of Morgoth.”

— The Silmarillion, Chapter 19: Of Beren And Luthien

— art by neexsethe

Now I wonder if this connection they are making to her hair and to the light Galadriel holds, how he longs for it so deeply it even brings that smile back to his eyes…

There are many who might say this conversation he had with Mirdania is purely manipulative in nature and I would agree to an extent. He certainly went into to that conversation with the intention of turning her worries about what she’d seen away from suspecting him…

At the same time, I also don’t think this touch was calculated and intentional. This scene felt very well done because it showed us, for the first time in many episodes, perhaps a hint to Sauron’s truest desires again. Galadriel’s light and hope and goodness being at the very of that.

Mirdania will die off in an episode or two. This scene was clearly meant to fully establish and really remind the audience of what Sauron wants most…

I can’t help but think this scene will somehow be reflected in his persistence to capture Galadriel, and if, like Morgoth before him, he will have the chance to keep that light bound with him, even for a small time?

[apoloadonisandnarcissus]

The Physicality of Sauron x Galadriel: Cosmic Connection and Physical Attraction

We already heard the expression “cosmical connection” a million times, and even I already discussed that in this post. Expressions like “higher beings” and such have been used by the actors and show producers to describe Sauron and Galadriel’s connection.

And, then, we have this iconic moment:

What does this “cosmic connection” means? Both Galadriel and Sauron/Mairon are immortal spirits. Mairon, as a Maia, is one of the Ainur, and one of the forces who first shaped the world, alongside the Valar (Ainulindalë or “Music of the Ainur”). He’s ancient, being around since the Days before Days (before the world was created).

Galadriel was born during the Years of the Trees, thousands of years later. And she’s of one the Children of Ilúvatar, an Elf. Her grandparents were among the first Elves created by Eru to live in Valinor.

What’s the difference?

Mairon belongs to the Unseen world, because he is, up and foremost, a spiritual being. And like all Maiar and Valar, he can choose his physical form (Halbrand, Annatar, etc.) in the Seen world. And he’s not bound to it, but these forms are all the same spirit. Hence the big focus on “Halbrand is Sauron” in Season 2, and even Charlie Vickers said many times in recent interviews how he wanted to show that continuity between both characters in his interpretation of Sauron in Season 2.

Galadriel belongs to the Seen world, and cannot chose her physical form. She’s bound to the one she was born with (in this sense, Elves are pretty much like Men, who are also Children of Ilúvatar). In the Third age, Galadriel can move between the Seen and Unseen world, but that’s not the case when she and Mairon first meet.

Let’s see what happens when Maiar and Elves fall in love:

Melian and Thingol

In the Valaquenta, we were introduced to some Maiar of interest. Melian was one of these. She’s a Maia to Vána (Vala of preserving youth and of fauna and flora on Middle-earth, also known as “Queen of Flowers”) and Estë (Vala of healing and purveyor or restful sleep). Melian dwells on the gardens of Lórien, and has a magical voice, great wisdom and was beloved by all. Birds, especially nightingales (her signature friends) surround her at all times. Around the time the Elves are created by Eru, she ventures across the Sundering Seas and arrives on Middle-earth.

Centuries later, the Teleri are the third or the Elf clans (alongside the Noldor and the Vanyar) to take the Great Journey, from Valinor to Middle-earth. Their leader, Elwë (Thingol) has the habit of wandering the woods by himself. One day, he ventures a forest called Nan Elmoth, in Beleriand. And there she meets Melian, and he was absolutely smitten.

“Enchantment” falls on him, and when he actually hears Melian’s voice, it’s all over. Her song fills “all his heart with wonder and desire.” And this is before he actually sees her: when he finally does set eyes on her, he’s at awe, because the “light of Aman” is reflected in her face.

Love overtakes Thingol, completely. He takes Melina’s hand, and “straightway a spell is laid on him.” Suddenly his plans (to reunite with his friend Finwë, to lead his people to Valinor, to dwell again in the light of the Two Trees) just disappear. He forgets everyone and everything. Thingol and Melian just stand there, looking at each others’ eyes, hands clasped, and perfectly still, for (according to some sources) 200 years. The trees grown tall around them. And no one knows Thingol is there, so his people search for him in Beleriand, in vain.

Since this event seem so over the top, many speculate that an actual spell, indeed, fall upon Thingol, even thought Tolkien gives no indication of him being “enslaved” or joining with Melian against his will. Anyway, one theory is that this meeting was orchestrated by Eru himself, because many key events happened because of it. Meaning, they were “doomed” to meet and fall in love:

Thingol and Melian will go on to establish the first of the organized Elven kingdoms of Middle-earth, in Beleriand, and rule it as Queen and King: Doriath (and their people are known as the “Sindar”);

They will have a child, described as “fairest of all the Children of Ilúvatar that ever was or shall ever be”: Lúthien, who would help in defeating both Morgoth and Sauron in the future.

In order to be with Thingol (= have sex with him), Melian retained her physical form, and became bound to it after conceiving a child with him. Meaning she couldn’t access the Unseen world, anymore (= return to her true spiritual form).

“Rings of Power” created a parallel of Thingol and Melian’s first meeting with Galadriel and Mairon, throughout Season 1:

Then an enchantment fell on him, and he stood still; and afar off beyond the voices of the lómelindi he heard the voice of Melian, and it filled all his heart with wonder and desire.

He forgot then utterly all his people and all the purposes of his mind, and following [the sound] and was lost

But he came at last to a glade open to the stars, and there Melian stood; and out of the darkness he looked at her, and the light of Aman was in her face. She spoke no word;

[…] but being filled with love Elwë came to her and took her hand,

[…] and straightway a spell was laid on him so that they stood.

[…] thus while long years were measured by the wheeling stars above them; [not only are they outside, but Galadriel armor has a star sigil – and, no, this is not Fëanor’s sigil, it’s a different design] 

[...]; and the trees of Nan Elmoth grew tall and dark before they spoke any word

Like Thingol and Melian, there is no need for words between them. They look into each others’ eyes and feel it (“I’ve felt it too”). This makes it hard for the audience to understand what is happening between them, but it is what it is.

However, I think this was *the moment* when they truly saw the extent of their mutual feelings for each other; when their souls are merging due to being bound together (via Morgoth’s crown). Which explains their reactions here: Galadriel is shocked, and Mairon is in happy disbelief. “Wait- you’re actually in love with me?”

Galadriel thinks Sauron is evil incarnate, she’s not shocked because he stabbed her, come on.

Which, again, explains this expression over here. This is pure joy, and he has tears on his eyes: Mairon believes that Galadriel is about to join him, and they are going to run into Mordor the sunset together.

Cosmic connection and Physical attraction

Galadriel belongs to the Seen world, the same as Thingol. But their Maiar pair, Melian and Mairon, are from the Unseen world. Meaning: are these connections only spiritual (“cosmically”) or they have a physical component (“lust”), too?

We know that Thingol and Melian went physical with theirs, because they had a child together. Since Thingol is from the Seen world (and cannot access the Unseen world) he’s both a physical and spiritual being (Elf) but he’s only spiritual after the death of his physical body. The same with Galadriel.

Both Maiar and Valar are capable of feeling love and lust in Tolkien lore. We see this not only with Melian, but with all Valar couples. We also see Melkor/Morgoth lusting after Lúthien when he saw her dancing for him (this implies a very physical sentiment).

Then Morgoth looking upon her beauty [Lúthien] conceived in his thought an evil lust, and a design more dark than any that had yet come into his heart since he fled from Valinor. Thus he was beguiled by his own malice, for he watched her, leaving her free for a while, and taking secret pleasure in his thought. Lúthien dances for Morgoth on his Dark Throne [before she puts him and all the host of Angband to sleep with her magic singing]

In other works describing this episode, Tolkien goes on using words like “lust”, “hunger”, “blinding thrist”, “pleasure”, and stressing the importance of Morgoth trying to reach out for Lúthien with his hand (= he wants to touch her). Meaning, there is a real physical element at play here (even if it’s evil and diabolical).

Mairon himself got pretty “touchy” with Galadriel back in Season 1. This is not random, and this implies the connection between them was not only “cosmical”; Mairon, a spiritual being, wanted to touch Galadriel, meaning, there was as a physical element/attraction there, too.

We also saw this with Mirdania in Season 2, the she-elf of Eregion who reminded him of Galadriel, and was used as a plot device for the audience to see that Galadriel is always on Mairon’s mind.

Meaning: yes, Mairon wants to “shake the sheets” (or the table forge) with Galadriel. It’s not only “cosmical” or “spiritual”. He desires her, on a physical level, too.

Mairon, the Maia of Aulë

To understand the physical attraction, we need to go back to the beginning of Mairon himself.

Mairon was created by Eru as a Maia of Aulë, the Vala of smithing and handiwork. He was among the most powerful Maiar, and the purest one, too. Eru created him to be good and loyal, but also to love several things: crafting and creation (smithing), beauty, order and perfection, and to dislike wastefulness. These were, most likely, Mairon’s contributions to shape the world in the Ainulindalë.

Melkor/Morgoth used Mairon’s love of order and perfection to corrupt him, and turned it into an obsession with domination and control. Morgoth corrupted his goodness and loyalty into evil and treachery (turning him into “the great deceiver”). His love of beauty corrupted into ugliness, by the breeding of the Orcs. Mairon’s greatest virtues became his downfall.

And who better embodies the qualities of “beauty” and “perfection” than Galadriel herself? Her beauty is the stuff of legends, and everyone is at awe when they first meet her. Her very gold/silver hair inspired the most legendary jewels in existence: the Silmarils. The light of the Two Trees of Valinor shine on her hair and eyes.

We also see Galadriel connected with “smithing”: she’s the object of the love and lust of the two legendary Elven smiths: Fëanor and Celebrimbor (Brimby in Tolkien lore, not in “Rings of Power”). Fëanor was inspired by how the light caught her hair to create the Silmarils; and he asked her for a few strands of hair, three times, and three times she denied him. In the Third age, Galadriel would gift strands of her hair to Gimli, a Dwarf, a Child of Aulë (the Dwarves were created by Aulë himself; another connection to smithing and to Mairon’s original Vala).

Yes, "Rings of Power" really went there. All the paralells.

Galadriel is also connected with power, something Mairon liked from the beginning, too (which caused Melkor to target him and get him to his side). She's not only power-hungry, but she's powerful, herself, and will only grow in power as the years go by. She's a natural leader, proud and rebellious; she was born to rule (literally, because her father was High King of the Noldor in Valinor, she’s an actual princess).

Just like Thingol and Melian!

Galadriel was also a pupil of Aulë and his wife Yavanna, back in Valinor. Which means, that if Mairon wasn’t corrupted by Morgoth/Melkor and he didn’t betray the Valar, they would have met, then. And what would have happened? Galadriel would never marry Celeborn, in the first place, that’s for sure (they met on Middle-earth, not in Valinor). And if sparkles happened in Middle-earth, in the most antagonist of scenarios (with Mairon already corrupted), OG Mairon and Artanis (Galadriel’s original name) meeting would set Aulë’s forge on fire. Artanis would have the most enviable jewelry collection in all of Arda. Because Mairon would gift her and worship her, nonstop: I will place crown(s) upon your head. I will never rest until all Arda had been brought to its knees, to worship the light of its Queen.

The “what ifs” don’t stop here. Because Artanis and Mairon power couple would parallel Yavanna and Aulë, too. Yavanna, Aulë’s wife and queen, “Queen of the Earth”, physical form is described: “in the form of a woman she is tall, and robed in green (…) crowned with the Sun; and from all its branches there spilled a golden dew upon the earth.”

Wild how “Rings of Power” already went there. Several times:

In fact, the first regal outfit we see Galadriel wear in "Rings of Power" is a teal (greenish-blue) cape and a gold dress. And she's wearing a gold flower crown. All hail, Queen Artanis, stronger than the foundations of the earth? Interesting choice of words, because Aulë created the "foundations of the earth" (= mountains).

In 2x02, we see Galadriel planting flowers, while wearing green and with a gold leaf crown on her head (as she was meant to be):

How could Mairon not love her? That’s the real question. Galadriel is the materialization, the physical form, of everything he was designed to love. And she can’t change her physical form, mind you. She belongs to the Seen world.

And this was probably the reason why Eru brought them together, in the first place: for Mairon to recall his original purpose. And probably to rub on his face what he lost for being a evil b*tch and side with Melkor. Galadriel is already bound to another (Celeborn) in the eyes of the Valar and the Eldar. The only way to “undone” that is for the Valar themselves to give permission.

[neyafromfrance95]

galadriel & sauron vs. morgoth theory + trop.

we all love the theory that sauron and galadriel would eventually fight side by side against morgoth.

if u think about it, trop is a perfect groundwork for this theory.

in trop, it is implied that sauron and galadriel meet by eru's design and their connection is destined. but why?

sure, galadriel has a hand in sauron's defeat, but so do many others. why does galadriel and sauron's relationship have to be so special and significant on the cosmic scales, above everything else?

in lotr, galadriel passes the test by the end of the 3rd age. she outgrows her pride and selfish need to rule without sharing her power with anyone and determination to rule the middle-earth even if it means becoming a terrible tyrant.

but it's interesting how later frodo sees galadriel through her phial's light:

“frodo took the phial, and for a moment as it shone between them, he saw her again standing like a queen, great and beautiful, but no longer terrible. he bowed, but found no words to say.”

i wonder if this is a subtle implication that galadriel has finally became worthy of succeeding her father one day. her father is the high king of the elves in valinor, and while he has sons, no one is as great as galadriel. tolkien himself commented on galadriel's commanding stature in valinor - "the equal if not unlike in endowments of fëanor." and "(galadriel) being mighty among the eldar, obtained this grace (entering valinor) for him (gimli)."

it has been generally agreed upon that since tolkien wrote several versions of it, galadriel’s story is convoluted, contradictory and inconsistent. but one thing has always remained at the core of her characterization - she is a politician who desires to be a leader. so ofc she would still be a politician in valinor, but it's interesting to imagine she would become a queen after outgrowing her greed and her time in the middle-earth was a neccessary test to shape her into a perfect leader.

considering trop canon, it can be said that even after everything, if sauron was to repent, galadriel would be the one to vouch for him or bring him up in a conversation regarding the battle against morgoth (and the first of all valinor to march to fight again).

another thing to note is that now, the only connection to the physical world sauron would have after the destruction of the one ring is galadriel's scar that binds them by blood! they have been bound by the sea, their admission of cosmic connection, nenya, and their souls are basically merged.

trop interestingly underlines the undertones of galadriel and sauron's comparability - they are mirrors that represent the light and the dark, but also galadriel is a natural born leader and sauron is a natural born follower. underneath sauron's desire to possess her, is the desire to serve and worship her as his queen!

and more importantly, his repentant phase in the show was when he was following her, when his presence actually was healing for galadriel.

so what does all of this have to do with haladriel vs. morgoth theory and how trop lays a groundwork for it?

galadriel's authority in valinor, sauron being bound to her, and galadriel being the one who makes sauron actually go back to his maiar purpose that valar ordained - the one who provides servitude and healing, all of this would make galadriel the perfect candidate to bring back sauron and make the valar consider his repentance.

as for sauron, by then, he would have enough time to get humbled and face what he knows subconsciously - he was meant to serve the light of his leader, not some silly ass rings. and by then, as we said, galadriel would have became even more perfect of a leader, maybe closer to how sauron saw her - a queen for all, a perfect antidote to morgoth. (and having outgrown her pride, galadriel would be able to admit her love and be by sauron's side as well.)

sauron says that after morgoth was defeated, he could feel the light of the one (eru) again and he knew if he ever was to be forgiven, he needed to heal everything he had helped ruin. he comes to see that light in galadriel. by helping her, he gets to receive "forgiveness" from the one he helped ruin ("i'm sorry for your brother, for everything" -> "whatever you did, be free of it"). he tells her that he never believed he could be free of it (morgoth's darkness) until fighting by her side (following her lead, serving her, healing her) and he wishes to bind that feeling (of being bound to galadriel's light) to his very being. and his subconscious screams at him that nothing he does will ever give him what he wants unless it's galadriel by his side, unless it's her light he worships ("your beauty still overshadows everything i could possibly write" ->"worship the light of its queen").

his repentance is tightly intertwined with his bond with galadriel and him coveting her light. he believes that he can be free of his bond to morgoth's darkness if he binds himself to galadriel's light instead. it's just that he can only truly repent if being bound to her light happens on *her* terms. in that case, they can be the force of the good together, pulling each other back from the darkness.

(it is interesting how in sauron's vision, his crown disappears once it's aligned with the sun, as if galadriel's light destroys it. girlboss taming her malewife but make it epic.)

whatever it is, i need one of u haladriels to adapt this theory on screen one day in the future.

[catghoststories]

Frank, Eddie, and the Tell-Tale Heart

So, I know the main focus of this update was Poppy, which I was happy to see (though I'm not happy to see what happened to her).  I do have a theory cooking about her, Sally, and the Commedia Dell'arte, but Frank n' Eddie are my favorite pair, and I've been stewing over this particular theory since the July '23 update.  This tiny line from the Looky-Loo storybook is what cinched it for me.

Source: Merchandise Page, Looky-Loo Storybook

This line isn't read out loud, but we can see it at around the 9 minute in the video, above Eddie, looking so polite.  It reads,

"Villains!" I shrieked, "I can deny it no longer! I admit the deed!—tear up my flower bed!—here, here!—it is the ticking of my beloved alarm clock!"

This isn't the actual line from The Tell-Tale Heart.  The original line reads "Villains!" I shrieked, "dissemble no more! I admit the deed!—tear up the planks!—here, here!—it is the beating of his hideous heart!"

Source: The Tell-Tale Heart

The Tell-Tale Heart is about someone murdering their roommate, cutting him into pieces, and hiding the evidence under the floorboards of their house. 

And I think this is what Frank is going to do to Eddie, in an attempt to protect him in a perverse, misguided way.

This rewritten lines seems very specific to Frank and Eddie.  We know Frank loves his garden.  And who's the only character in the Neighborhood who owns a clock?  Eddie.

At the end of the Homewarming video, Frank sees how distressed Eddie is.  As many have theorized, Frank seems to be somewhat aware of what's happening, although we don't know to what extent.  But he sees that Eddie is now in the line of fire of The Powers That Be, and he becomes worried for him.  

I think Frank will dismantle Eddie and hide him in his garden until he deems it 'safe' for Eddie to come back, once the 'eyes' are off him.  (Kind of reminds me of the Eye of Sauron from Lord of the Rings).  An unintentional—or perhaps intentional—side effect of being dismantled and put back together, with new parts, is that Eddie doesn't remember things well. 

Including, possibly, his and Frank's relationship.

This goes along with the theme we've seen several times in WH now, including this new Halloween update.  The puppets unintentionally—yet seriously—harm their loved ones in order to protect them from something they deem far worse—whatever that may be.

As these posts by kykudos, oniongrass, and nikkiiiscute discuss, there is an image from one of the hidden bug clips of Frank's garden with 9 clothespins—one buried in the dirt.

Source: Welcome Home Hidden Audio ('til it's back on the official site :3)

And there's the references to burial in Bug-a-Bye and Goodnight, too.  This post by the-nosy-neighbor goes quite a lot into this song very well, especially how it might indicate Frank could put Eddie into a suspended state!

Source: Transcript Page, Bug-a-Bye and Goodnight

Now I have been thinking about this dismantling/reassembling thing for a long time, especially since the last Halloween update.  Eddie is one of the puppets with a new costume, and he is Frank(enstein)'s monster.  And he has a big yellow band-aid on the back—Frank's color.  If Eddie is taken apart, Frank will patch him up again.

Source: Clown's Tumblr

(Also, I'm curious about the blue hand and face in Eddie's costume design. That's Barnaby's color. Does Frank use Barnaby's spare parts to put Eddie back together?! 😳 Especially since I feel like Barnaby's time on Mister Bone's Wild Ride is fast approaching—but that's yet another post 😅)

But based on the Tell-Tale Heart line, Frank may have been the one to do the dismantling in the first place, which is quite dark.  Based on the below picture from the former staff member page—clearer image here from Clown's Tumblr—Frank may be aware they're puppets and made up of various parts.

Source: Welcome Home Wiki until it's back on the official site :3

There is also an intense piece on Clown's Ko-Fi here (please support Clown if you can!) that shows butterflies doing SOMETHING to Eddie. Are they putting him together? Or taking him apart to join them in their hibernation? 🤔

Frank also likes gelatin. As he tells Poppy in their hidden audio, 'it holds perfectly sliced fruit beautifully'.  Perfectly sliced, cut up fruit, eh?  Gelatin is a preservative that we also see in the cookbook recipe, and we all know Eddie has an unholy encounter with his single pea.  So yet another symbol of suspended animation that is related to Frank and Eddie.

Source: Merchandise Page, Cookbook

So it seems like Frank has some experience in preservation, hibernation, etc. and knows how to use it, if it comes to it.

The next big update will likely be spring-themed.  A long time ago, Clown posted that Frank has a holiday in spring. Of course this isn't canon until it's on the website, but either way, I think Frank will have an important role in the spring update, which I believe will also focus on Julie.  We may see him wake up Julie from hibernation...and Eddie from his dirt nap.  

Source: Clown's Tumblr

(I've been so curious about that shadow behind the flower.  At first I thought 'OMG, it's Eddie's hand!', but I don't think so. 😅 I dunno what it is, but it doesn't quite seem flower like to me...🤔)

This Ko-Fi post (again, please support Clown if you have the means!) was posted around Easter this year and had a bunny/Easter theme.  Clown says "What is there to say though... Well! We know what the next holiday is in our Home Sweet Home, I'd say."  A huge theme of Easter/Spring are Rebirth and Resurrection.

As this post by serene-hatterene so beautifully details, Frank may feel pressured to kiss Julie to wake her up to prove his heteronormativity.  Maybe to further protect Eddie, too, to prove they aren't a thing.  Seems like Julie's family may show up this update, too, and we know family can cause a lot of pressure for couples during holidays. 😬

My last item isn't that strong, but I have been thinking of since the July '23 update.  In Eddie's Big Lift, Frank says the following line:

Source: Transcript Page, Eddie's Big Lift

The tense of "You always did work too hard" always bothered me.  Why doesn't Frank just say, "You always work too hard!"  And Eddie doesn't seem to know what he's talking about. Frank sounds almost wistful here.  It's like he's talking about his ex—a former version of Eddie, pre-dismantling, perhaps?

(Also, 'Enjoy the ground, Mr. Dear'? Dude, if this theory is right, that line is even more screwed up than it already was. 😳)

Here is my order of how I feel these events actually happened:

Secret Bug Audios (Eddie and Frank flirting) -> 1st Halloween Audio (Eddie still seems like his chipper, knowledgeable self) -> Homewarming -> Springtime (and Eddie's Resurrection)? -> Eddie's Big Lift

Not quite sure where this last Halloween update lands, but I feel like it's later.  Eddie seems ignorant of the potential adverse effects The Brickening (TM) could have on Poppy.  I feel like he's been more sensitive to Poppy and others in the past (but maybe I'm wrong, I'm biased towards him, heh).  Perhaps after his Reconstruction, his memory has now been reset, and he has "fallen into line" with the other Neighbors and their weird, pile-onto-one-person ways.

Anyway, what do you all think? 😬😬 I do hope I'm wrong, since Frank is my favorite, and this would make me feel very differently about him. 😬😬😬 Please tell me your own WH theories, too! I find them so interesting!

[90shaladriel]

Theory: Sauron Did Not Kill Galadriel's Brother in the Rings of Power

In my quest to exonerate the Dark Lord Sauron of all his accusations of wrong doing I wanted to present a little theory I've been thinking about. (Has anyone shared this before? Please let me know in the replies).

The premise given to us in Rings of Power Season 1 in Galadriel's opening prologue is that after Morgoth was defeated (in the The War of Wrath) that Sauron bade any who would follow to the North.

Finrod, Galadriel's eldest brother and king of Nargothrond who canonically was killed honoring an oath to aid Beren in his quest to recover a Silmaril for Luthien's father before the War of Wrath, went on a mission to seek out Sauron and bring him to justice dead or alive presumably. Finrod was killed and Galadriel found his corpse which was desecrated with the strange markings.

This sent Galadriel on a quest for vengeance for hundreds of years looking for the Orcs who killed her brother and she believed still served Sauron.

She finds the same symbol on the anvil in the dark fortress in the Forodwaith where Sauron had ruled before being assassinated by Adar and the Uruks. Later she learns was a symbolic map of Mordor in the event of Morgoth's defeat.

In Season 1 the Uruks under Adar's leadership invade the Southlands and enact the secret fallback plan to create Mordor which Sauron in disguise even tries to prevent.

So what about the theory?

Galadriel says Finrod was killed by Sauron. She believes it.

Galadriel also believes the symbol is Sauron's symbol.

Galadriel believes that Sauron plans to return to power through the plan she learned about and that his goals are to take over Middle Earth or at least pose a threat to her people's kingdom when he does.

What if she were wrong as so many of her Elven peers believed?

Sauron never used or uses the symbol for himself

We never saw Sauron using the symbol of Mordor for himself. After the defeat of Morgoth he does not encourage the Uruks to go to the Southlands, he literally takes them in the opposite direction, to the North. As the symbol is a creation of RoP and set in the second age, it also tracks that Sauron adopts the "Eye of Sauron" symbol for himself.

Adar on the other hand, does use the symbol that was conveniently carved on Finrod's corpse. He uses it as a flag!

Sauron Didn't Enact The Successor Plan

As far as we know from Season 1 and 2, Sauron went directly North, did not pass Go and did not collect $200. He bade all others follow him there where he seemed to work on his experiments of Power over flesh.

If he had killed Finrod in or around the time of the War of Wrath. Why carve a message into Finrod's body that would tell his enemies where they were going?

Were the Uruks possibly already planning the move to the Southlands per the plan when Sauron forced them to the North instead? Hence why they were so eager to rebel against him for Adar?

When we meet Sauron in season 2 he appears to be attempting to find Adar and the Uruks, perhaps to get his own vengeance, but meeting some men along the road they easily persuade him to try to seek Numenor instead. He could care less it seemed if the Southlands did burn or not at this point.

When he had a chance to stop the eruption of Mt. Doom and to fight the Uruks and Adar. He took it eventually and tried his best to prevent it, seemingly. Talk about the 4th Dimensional Chess all you want but he wasn't acting in collaboration with Adar at this point, nor did it particularly help his cause to let Adar have this "victory".

Sauron doesn't carve messages into people's bodies

At least so far... but Adar does in Season 2 before the siege the Elvish soldiers find one of their men mutilated with a message for Sauron "Where is He". That seems to be Adar and Uruks calling card.

Again there is no reason for Sauron to carve the symbol of Mordor into Finrod. Especially if that was pre-War of Wrath: Beren & Luthien timeframe. If ROP has a different timeframe for Finrod's death which comes after the War of Wrath, it's not clear that Finrod even was killed before or after Sauron was overthrown by his own soldiers.

There's also the bit where Adar and the Orcs are branding the Southlanders with the symbol of Mordor. They don't view it as Sauron's symbol but claim it for themselves.

Sauron never admits he did it

Well why would he? It's a fair question. He did come clean with various other aspects of what he did to Galadriel. In the forge when he says "I'm sorry. For your brother. For all of it." He doesn't say he is sorry for what HE did to her brother, just for his own part in the overall war and the fact that he worked side by side with that enemy in the darkness for so long.

In the canon story, Sauron definitely orders Finrod's death. Again in ROP this might not be how it happened. If the timeline is:

Morgoth defeated

Sauron goes to Forodwaith with the Uruks

Finrod goes to hunt Sauron

Sauron is turned into the goop monster by Adar

Somewhere the Finrod comes upon Adar and the Uruks in the wild lands as they journey to the South and kill him. Carve up his remains as a message to other Orcs making that journey to their new home

Galadriel finds the corpose of her missing brother and takes up his quest for vengence, assuming that it was Sauron's doing not Adar's

In this timeline, Sauron has an alibi!

Sauron knows Adar did it and yet he is taking the blame

This might give further meaning to the exchange between Halbrand and Adar in S1E6 where he pins Adar down.

Adar says "did I cause someone you love pain?"

Sauron winces and barely contains his rage. What if Sauron KNOWS it was Adar who killed Finrod and how much that pain has brought to Galadriel? But he cannot tell Galadriel the real truth without revealing himself at this moment. As we all know now, Sauron loves Galadriel, so Adar's words perfectly reflect what Sauron is feeling.

"You don't know what he did!" Sauron barks at her when she tells him to stop.

It makes so much more sense.

Does it excuse Sauron for pretending to be Finrod when he invades Galadriel's mind in S1E8... eh.. not really, but it does change the context to be slightly less creepy I suppose?

[izalith-witch]

Okay, I don't know what season the Numenor thing will happen--season 4 or 5 but we all know that at the end of the Numenor plot the Valar intervene and sink Numenor and make Sauron lose his ability to use a fair form (he becomes armor zaddy).

BUT--what if in a good call back when the Valar intervene and sink Numenor, Galadriel is once again tossed into the ocean (cause she's gotta be there cmonnnnn) and Sauron once again dives in to save her.

And because Sauron does this one last act of good--the Valar don't cast him into the void (because at that point why wouldn't they if they were already so pissed off about everything? Just remove the problem. Ofc I like the theory they are letting Sauron wreak havoc as some kind of master plan to end up at Dagor Dagorath) they let him live but just punish him heavily. They allow Sauron to live.

"You are alive because you have chosen good."

"But what of tomorrow?"

"You have to choose it again!"

Sauron lives because of you indeed, Galadriel.

[buffyfan145]

So just saw this little interview with Charlie from Total Film over on Twitter/X and freaking out over 2 things!!! 😀 First the hint that he's going to try to win her back, seemingly confirming our theories that he's going to ask her to join him again. Then second Charlie mentions their mental bond they have, which we knew about from the books & movies that they can get into each other's minds & dreams, but this is the first I've seen him talk about it and that we'll be seeing it in the show. If anyone else has read the "Fourth Wing" books it's reminding me a lot of Voilet & Xaden's mental bond too but they also have a twist that if one of them dies so does the other (and that's before they fall in love LOL) so I'm even more curious if the show is going a similar route with a twist that they bonded their souls too which married elves/Maiar/Valar normally are the only ones that do. If that is the case it also could explain why Sauron never let Galadriel die and would mean that Galadriel's soul bonded to two different people which is very rare for elves (her grandfather being the one we know of as he had two wives). Just a theory but it's feeling more it could be right and I'm even more excited for season 2!!!

[rey-jake-therapist]

It's odd that Adar called Sauron beautiful and the other time he calls a man beautiful, there's a theory about the man being Sauron.

I'm still not sure about it but I heard the showrunners used to work for JJ Abrams. On Lost, The Man in Black took John Locke's form to manipulate people on the island and Lost revealed it wasn't the real John Locke a few episodes later. It was a big twist that recontextualized everything "John Locke" was doing. My problem with TROP is that the time to reveal it would be the season where the deception took place. What's the point now?

It's odd that Adar called Sauron beautiful and the other time he calls a man beautiful, there's a theory about the man being Sauron.

Oh, yes, well spotted! Could it be that Adar could smell that Saurussy and was fishing for information? This mention of Melian seemed to make Elrond angry, why that? What's wrong with being compared to with your Maiar grand-grand-mother, Elrond?

Yeah, it should have been revealed in episode 8, that's why I suspect that if the theory is right, they chickened out at the last minute. It seems a bit anticlimatic to wait for season 3 to reveal it, unless they realized it could be interesting to bring this up in a particular conversation...

[baddybaddyadardaddy]

HELLO, IT IS I, BACK WITH ANOTHER UNHINGED POST ABOUT WHY ADAR AND GALADRIEL SHOULD FIGHT SAURON TOGETHER, HOW THE SHOW HAS SET US UP FOR THE "BATTLE OF THE EXES" AND WHY I WILL BE SUPER PISSED IF IT DOESN'T ACTUALLY HAPPEN.

I appended this to another post, but in response to "What was Galadriel thinking watching Adar do his Uruk funeral ritual," I think the answer was clear.

She was thinking of Finrod.

She was thinking of standing over her brother's dead body, mourning for her lost loved one that Sauron stole from her, and she's realizing that Adar feels the exact. same. thing.

Sauron has taken from both of them what they love most.

She's realizing that she and Adar are on the same mission.

They have the same enemy. And the same goal.

S2Ep2 hints that it would be unwise for Galadriel to face Sauron alone. Gil-galad says it's a bad idea, since she's already been susceptible to Sauron once. Galadriel's repsonse:

"Supposing I was not alone?"

In context, she's pitching him to let Elrond accompany her on her journey. But I think that moment is foreshadowing that there will be someone else at her side when she has the actual fight with Sauron, and I contend that person can ONLY be Adar.

Again, identical quests/goals. I laid out in this post how intentional the show has been about making the mirrors to one another/both sides of the same coin/represenations of dark and light.

They are also the ones who have been most victimized by Sauron. They have both been deceived, as discussed on their dinner date.

It's PERSONAL, for both of them.

It's also personal for Sauron.

Worth noting: it also isn't the first time this triad has been in conflict with one another.

In this scene in S1Ep6, both Galadriel and Adar were both under Sauron's deception. Galadriel thought she was aiding the King of the Southlands, and Adar thought he was... well... just some dude, who by his own admission he really didn't recognize.

My hope is that S2 is setting them up to have this ultimate climactic battle with Sauron where they can both go in with eyes open.

SO NOW FOR THE INSANITY.

As I mention in the previously referenced post, I think "The Last Temptation" signals that there is a third player in the fight between Galadriel and Sauron. Based on all the thematic evidence, as well as the objects we know appear in the fight, Adar's sword (by all appearences), Nenya, and Morgoth's crown, I think all evidence points to Adar.

So here's an completely unhinged breakdown of The Last Temptation track, and what I think is playing out. (I'm not an expert in music, I'm just going off of what I hear as a lay person. If I'm wrong, I'm wrong, but for now, I'm just getting this theory out of my brain. Take it for what it is: pure, unleaded speculation.)

The track begins with the Ring theme. Fairly obvious-- we know Galadriel is in possession of the Nine heading away from Eregion.

We then get an urgent build into Sauron's theme and ostinato. Almost as if he's in pursuit.

At 1:07, a new theme begins that we have not yet heard before. It's heavy, urgent and percussive, with a choir. I believe his is a new musical motif for a transformed Adar, because I think Nenya will give him some degree of healing from his corruption-- a key reason why we haven't seen him in ANY promo materials yet for Episode 8. But ALSO. Watch the brutal way Adar fights in S2Ep7 and then imagine that while this bit plays. BAMF.

There is a brief flash of Eregion around 1:23... I'm not entirely certain what to make of that, perhaps Sauron conjures some image of either Celebrimbor's death or the city burning?

Then we're back to the percussive Adar theme, COMBINED with Galadriel's theme. These blend perfectly together. So my guess is they're both locked in combat with Sauron here.

Then things start to get tasty.

Around 1:58, we get another variation of Sauron's theme in a high, solo voice. I think this is where Sauron really starts to manipulate both players. This first bit I think might be a manipulation of Adar (the high solo Sauron theme is reminiscant of S2Ep1 in the North). But then Galadriel's them briefly cuts in-- perhaps she's distracting Sauron? Re-engaging him to stop his manipulation of Adar?

So what does Sauron do? He turns his manipulation on her. At around 2:30, Halbrand's them kicks in, in what we can only assume to be a RUDE AS HELL vision.

What cuts through that illusion at about 2:55? ADAR'S THEME.

So then we have, until about 3:20, Adar's theme, racing strings underneath that I read as being connected with Sauron (not musical enough to tell you for certain, but it feels like it races in a similar way to some of his other themes), and GALADRIEL'S THEME, which kicks in at around 3:09. We're really in it now.

Then there is a 10-second build, which breaks out at 3:30 into the Nolwa Mahtar theme. It sounds triumphant, like maybe Adar and Gal have gotten a handle on things... but THEN. 3:47-- the triumphant theme falls apart, collapsing into the eerie, high solo Sauron theme. This, I believe, is where Sauron bests Adar. If I had to guess, I'd say it's a good bet Sauron fatally stabs him here. The music here is very reminiscant of S2Ep1 when Sauron was lying on the ground being stabbed by the orcs, so there's that mirroring effect there.

This is directly followed by a slower, mournful variation of Galadriel's theme. She's lost her ally in the fight, she is now, in fact, left to face Sauron alone. Which we know, from Gil-galad's comment earlier, is a dangerous place for her to be.

Cue Sauron's theme, full men's choir and sinister, at 4:30. He knows he's winning. At 4:43, we hear something that sounds to me (again, not musically trained, vibes only) like Galadriel's ostinato but warped/distorted somehow. Like Sauron is again fucking with her mind, or possibly physically wounding her. I think she could be fighting another vision, or another attempt for him to steal inside her mind and kick her when she's down.

But then there's another little build, and it sounds like we hear the "tinkling" ring sound-- this, I believe, is when Galadriel will retake Nenya from Adar, because we next get another build, which breaks out into Galadriel's triumphant theme yet again. As far as what's happening here, I can't quite say. Galadriel obviously doesn't win this fight outright, because presumably Sauron is going to abscond with the nine... but it sounds like something makes him retreat or perhaps vanish as his theme diminishes around 5:56.

Then, around 6:00, we get Galadriel's theme, slow and mournful, played on a solo harp. (IF WE'RE GETTING AN ADAR IS CELEBORN REVEAL, I'M CALLING THIS NOW: IT'S GONNA HAPPEN HERE, because there was definitely a solo harp playing when she reminisced to Theo about her husband in S1Ep7.)

Regardless, I think this could definitely be a moment between them where he is fatally wounded and she moves to comfort him. There is a creepy sounding moment around 6:24... but it could also be Nenya at work. Then there's an uplifting bit that begins, and eventually morphs into Elrond's theme.

So I think perhaps EITHER Galadriel heals Adar successfully with Nenya, or his wounds are too fatal and he succumbs, having completed his story arc with the redemptive act of giving her the ring back/fighting at her side against Sauron. Either way, Elrond will find them at the end, and see that Adar played a critical role in helping Galadriel fight Sauron. It will be revealed that Sauron stole away with the nine, but that Nenya is protected and restored to its true bearer, so there is still hope.

The Sun Yet Shines.

anyway, let me know what y'all think!

[myfavouritelunatic]

More Painful Sacrifices

Had a last minute theory... if the above hand turns out to be Halbrand/Sauron's... so I wrote this! We're manifesting, fam.

As soon as Galadriel removes the ring of adamant, she feels a shift deep within her. Like a part of her is missing. Like she left something behind before she faced the orcs and stared Adar down the length of her drawn bow. 

She feels… vulnerable. 

And it’s not because she is prisoner.

Taken into the Moriondor’s camp, a moveable fortress to protect his children from the light of day, Galadriel knows she will not be harmed here. She knows Adar will need her, might use her. Otherwise she would’ve been slain where she lay in the elven earth, now sullied by the trodding of orc feet.

He leaves her alone. Isolates her. Psychological games is it? She thinks, until a random orc wanders in with a bowl of slop, chucking it at her feet, laughing as some of it splashes up onto her face. “Bring me your leader, foul thing.”

“He’s busy.” The creature growls.

“Bring him to me or I will kill you where you stand.”

The orc simply laughs again and leaves her, knowing full well despite her threats, she cannot do much while shackled.

The noble elf stared down at the bowl filled with murky green and brown, chunks here and there, with no way to tell what kind of meat it is until she passes it between her lips.

Suddenly, a voice in her mind.

“It’s not poisoned, if that’s your concern.”

A memory. A sorrow.

“Not for humans anyway.”

But you were not human.

“No. As much as you desired it, that I shall never be.”

A chill passes through her at the sound of his voice next to her. In her mind no longer. Outside of her. 

“But… the other things you desired of me… those can still be.”

She felt him on the edge of her vision. Breathing heavily, she refused to look at him. Refused to acknowledge him. Summoning all the strength within herself, she willed him to be gone.

But all he did was laugh.

“You know that won’t work… not now that the silver band is gone from your flesh. It was a shield, Galadriel. A locked door.” He spoke ominously, terrifying her more with each syllable. She saw his legs come into her vision, the blue of the elven outfit she had gifted him. Only now, it was torn, frayed at the edges. 

Then he knelt down, and Halbrand gazed at her. Weary and scarred, but betraying none of that in his hazel eyes. 

Only darkness.

“And now that door is open. I’m not going anywhere. Not when you need me.”

Tears slipped unbidden from her pained eyes as she gazed on the face of her friend- no, her enemy, and she felt as if he grasped her brother’s now unmade dagger, twisting it to widen the tear in her heart.

“What have you done to Celebrimbor.” She hissed at him with aching words, attempting to ignore her own torment by focusing on that of another. “I know you have ensnared him.”

Halbrand reached over to tuck some errant strands of blonde behind her ear, and she flinched away from him. “Do not touch me, Deceiver!”

“But you have touched the darkness, Galadriel. It is only fair that I touch the light…”

“No!”

She recoiled, but with nowhere to go, the elf had no choice but to receive his hand on her face. And as it held her, she was filled with an ease she had not known for so long. She surrendered to him. Not because she was weak, or not in control, but because she wanted to.

“You see me, Galadriel? See what Adar did to me, after you rejected me… abandoned me… cast me out like I said you would.”

“Halbrand… I…”

Sauron. He is Sauron. Know he is deceiving you.

Another chuckle from the dark lord. “My name does not matter.” He stated, knowing her thought. “Only who I am does. And that is a being who would throw themselves at your mercy. Adar is going to extend a partnership to you. I would ask you to refuse him.”

“Why? You are our enemy.”

“Because he is our enemy, Galadriel, and he will only betray you. He will take the first opportunity to do so.” She watched his eyes wander a moment, as if focusing on a haunted memory. “And if you do refuse him, if you come to me… I will see to Celebrimbor remaining unharmed.”

Galadriel scoffed. “Unharmed? Surely it is too late for that. What you did to me… I can only imagine the corruption you have wrought upon him.”

“I assure you, elf. He will live. If you come to me. Be at my side, like you should have remained, and spare Eregion of its fate.”

“War is certain. The orcs have invaded our lands. No doubt Elrond and Gil-galad are marching east to you right now. If I were you… I would leave now. Please, Halbrand.” She used his false name, appealing to his ruse and to the wound in her heart, the part of her that clung onto something good within him. The part of her that shamefully did not wish for him to suffer.

“Come to me!” She continued. “Rescue me from our enemy, if you wish to be at my side so urgently.”

Halbrand flinched. He hadn’t expected her to say that. 

The game was up.

His tender hold of her face swiftly became a vice-like grip of her chin. “Galadriel!” He bellowed her name, pronouncing it not in his Southlander accent. “Come to me!”

Galadriel spoke softly through his rough grasp. “No… Halbrand… If you mean your words... if… if I ever meant anything to you, you will leave Eregion behind. And maybe together, we can save as many as we can. You want to save Middle-earth, yes? This is how you begin.”

The dark lord’s face was contorted by his unshakeable darkness, veins protruding outward from his snake-like eyes. Just as he had done with her once before. “I will not bend to you, elf! Nor to anyone!” He spat at her, outraged.

“Then I shall see you on the battlefield.”

She smirked, bravely. She knew their reunion was inevitable. The ring had shown her that much. 

And it had also shown her much more… painful sacrifices that she did not ask to see. But, she knew the ring was guiding her. It had lead her to Adar for a reason. 

Soon, it would lead her to Sauron.

The deceiver threw her head away, the force knocking her to the ground. When next she opened her eyes, Galadriel could only see that untouched bowl of gruel, the spoon now lying in the dirt. 

Sauron was gone.

Feeling faint, she reached out one of her shackled hands to grasp the utensil, and mercifully, before she could take the first gulp of putrid food, two orcs entered, pulling her to her feet.

“Lord father will see you now.” 

[multifandumbmeg]

Alright... I listened to the finale soundtrack and have read many of the theories about how this season of The Rings of Power will end. Many are predicting (or hoping) "The Last Temptation" may lead to a 'Dark Galadriel' arc in season three, saying the story will feel repetitive or stagnant if she simply refuses his offer again, seeming to set up the same pattern for all five seasons (I agree, and I'd totally be down for that). However! I have a different prediction.

There were some counter-arguments.

1. The song doesn't end all Sauron-leitmotify. It seems like good conquers and there is a sense of somewhat calm, settling, perhaps a bit of melancholy as always after a battle or war but not a grave sense of doom. Nothing ominous and no inverted Galadriel theme on unsual instruments, minor key, etc to represent her gone amiss. If she went pure evil mode, you'd hear that shit for. Fucking. Sure. So if she goes with Sauron, it's with purpose. Maybe she could still be straddling a morally dubious line in the following season, making some kind of deal, but it definitely doesn't sound like she lost the day or made a questionable choice in the end.

2. People pointed out it's probably too soon for the fall of Numenor in season three, so Sauron probably isn't going to go to Numenor in season three. So we have some time to play with in terms of Galadriel, Sauron, and the rest of the rings.

With all the said, here's my prediction for what will actually occur in the finale of season 2:

I think Galadriel is going to tempt Sauron. Successfully.

I believe he is going to get inside her head and try to win her over again, but this time, she's going to gain control. She's going to do it back. She's going to show him the light, show him a path, and tempt him to do something else. Help them rebuild. Stop the chaos. Team up against someone else (like the Wizard, maybe even Adar and the orcs). I think she's going to tap into their connection, the real raw moments they had and maybe even older memories of his and remind him of his shame and desire to fix things, but show him a better way. A way that she would be willing to be a part of.

And of course there's the rumored kiss. Maybe she kisses him??

And where does that leave us for season three? Oh, endless possibilities. NO ONE is gonna like that. Sauron will inevitably fall back into evil. Re-introducing Celeborn, straining their relationship just when they finally have a chance to main text it, could be the straw that breaks the camel's back (and what delicious angst, too?). Allowing Galadriel to go a little morally gray in season three defending her man, have it all fall apart, introduce the new relationship dynamic if they want to, still gives them enough time to successfully redeem her in the narrative and build relationships without rushing it at the end.

So 👀 we shall see. Do you think Galadriel will also invade his mind palace??

[apoloadonisandnarcissus]

Today I came across the weirdest take that our fandom secretly hates Charlie Vickers because he, quote, “hates our stupid ship”, and we should just “stop pretending we like him”. Also: Charlotte Brändström apparently “doesn’t know what she’s talking about” (nevermind that she’s a executive producer on the show, and everything she says, publicly, has the approval of Tolkien estate).

I absolutely love Charlie’s work and I think he’s doing an outstanding job portraying Sauron, and I hope this show launches his career because he deserves it. Also: I think he’s pretty neutral and he just doesn’t care about “shipping” at all (and good for him). And I don’t know where these people got the idea that our fandom “hates” him because the majority of the shippers have always been very supportive of him (at least in here).

Lastly but not least: I don’t need the actors validating anything. And even if he did hate the ship (I think he doesn’t care, really), he’s entitled to his opinion. Hell, I don’t even need the show validating anything because that’s what fanfiction is for.

The showrunners did say that Galadriel and Sauron’s connection is the core of “Rings of Power” (all 5 seasons of it) but these people choose to ignore that, and think Galadriel and Sauron’s interactions are over after Season 2 finale, and the next big thing related to that is Frodo tempting her with the One Ring. Yeah, you are all in for a big surprise, really.

Tolkien fans have been shipping Galadriel x Sauron since the late 70’s. “Half-Maia Celebrían” theory has been around since “The Silmarillion” was first published (1977). Everyone knows they don’t “end up together”, and that Celeborn exists. But again, that’s what fanfiction is for. This ship isn’t sinking just because “they don’t end up together” in “Rings of Power”.

This new way of looking at “fandoms” is very strange to me (and I’m not that old). Like everything has to be canon or else is doomsday. And if they aren’t is a win? And “antis” are a thing? What are you all on about? A few years ago, fans would ship characters that weren’t even connected in any way, shape or form, and crossovers are still a thing, even today. When I first got into fanfiction, I would read about characters that didn’t even meet in canon. Creating our own headcanons and having fun with it, isn’t the point of fanfiction? I’m kind of confused here by nowadays logic.

[neyafromfrance95]

it's clear that one of the reasons sauron and galadriel connect so deeply is that they are the mirrors of one another.

i think this recognition is especially intense with sauron and this is the point of his repentance (he apologizes for everything after galadriel confesses how sauron's darkness affected her and became hers, in a way).

maybe he sees galadriel as his younger self, before he was corrupted by morgoth. this is why he covets her light so much, bc being bound to her light would break him free of his bond with morgoth's darkness and he would go back to being mairon who could still feel the light of the two trees.

sauron covets galadriel in a much more intense way than morgoth coveted silmarils. it explains his "worship the light" line as galadriel's light is the light of the two trees for him, and he has an (unconscious) urge to replace morgoth with her as his new master.

it's interesting how ethereally perfect galadriel he takes a form of is, indicating that this is how he sees her, almost like she is a god. and we have talked about how it feels like he assumes her likeness with his annatar form + the intertwined snake imagery on his armor is associated with galadriel's family. it's almost like he tries to be as close to her as possible.

we joke that he wants to merge souls with her, but that's literally what he is trying to do over and over again through various ways. he is obsessed with binding their beings to the point they are the one. there is the reason why he looks like he wants to devour, eat her whole during their fight and well, generally...

i think that at some point, just like morgoth was faced with his darkness by the silmarils, sauron will see that he is corrupting galadriel in the same way morgoth corrupted mairon (assuming the mind-bond theory is true, and i think it clearly is) and be faced with the reality that his darkness is no different from morgoth's. unlike morgoth who completely turned on the light though, we know he can not stop groping ever to see her.

he has already bound her by force with the morgoth's crown, but still wants her to give in willingly. later, i think he will simply strive to possess her.