The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power
The Rings of Powershowrunners have concretely deny a common hypothesis regarding the Dark Wizard part , which is a total relief after season 2 ’s Gandalf reveal . After two season of establishing his character , theRings of Powerseason 2 endingfinally render the true identity of The Stranger , though fans had already hypothesise that it was him since time of year 1 . The decision to obfuscate The Stranger ’s name for so long was met with a divisive reply from audiences who conceive the answer to be frustratingly obvious , especially after pulling direct Gandalf quotes fromThe Lord of the Rings .
With that in thinker , introducing yet another unnamedIstar ( Wizard)inThe Rings of Powercreated more confusion and some frustration over the redundance . The Istar were acknowledge for arriving in Middle - earth during the Third Age , whileThe Rings of Powertakes berth inthe Second Age , so the characterization of the Dark Wizard is something that ca n’t be confirmed by Tolkien ’s text edition . However , yield the likeness of the character and the fact that he ’s evil , many have theorized that the Dark Wizard is Saruman , which was disproved by showrunners J.D. Payne and Patrick McKayin aReddit Q&A.
Q3 . Now that we know it is Gandalf and a Dark Wizard rather of the two Amytal , does this dominate out the hypothesis of blues being in the show ? Also , can you definitively rule out Saruman being the Dark Wizard ?
Patrick : I think it ’s hard to say anything is 100 % , but we have no plan or intention to have him be Saruman . We are not recall of him as Saruman . We sleep with there are five wizards talked about inThe Lord of the Rings . One of them is Saruman , one of them is Gandalf , one of them is Radagast , and then there are two others . It is our expectation that he will be one of those two others .
JD : What I ’ll say is , I imagine it would be difficult logically to see how he could be Saruman . It would be sort of a “ fool me once , shame on you , befool me doubly , disgrace on me ” for Gandalf . If the Dark Wizard was going to be Saruman , then he would be an evil thaumaturge that Gandalf was interact with and agitate in the Second Age . And then he ’d have to become secure again and regain Gandalf ’s trust , only to later turn evil again and betray him . It would just sort of strain credulity .
Patrick : What I would say to bestow to that is , you jazz , again , we ’re not sort of playing fast and at large or , or try on to be dodgy - characters expose themselves to you as you go forward with their stories and , you know , The Stranger revealed more and more and more of who he was . It ’s just very hard to suppose that the Dark Wizard would be Saruman . I imagine while we require to be open as creator to every corner of the legendarium , I do n’t think that ’s going to happen .
Custom image by Simone Ashmoore
It’s A Huge Relief That The Rings Of Power’s Dark Wizard Isn’t Saruman
There’s No Reason To Have Saruman In The Rings Of Power
AfterThe Rings of Powerseason 1 kept audiences judge with not one but two mystery loge fictitious character in Sauron and Gandalf , piss the Dark Wizard be Saruman would have been in poor tasting . The goggle box series has already received flack catcher from a portion of Tolkien lover for diverting from the source material and stress to appeal to fans ofThe Lord of the Ringsfilms by integrating things like the Harfoots and Gandalf himself . These constituent , which do n’t necessarily relate to the events of the Second Age in the books , can feel rather shoehorned in .
The show ’s bang-up successes have been in the narrative elements that do n’t sense like they could ’ve been in Peter Jackson ’s film trilogy
That ’s not to say the show does n’t have a place for the Harfoots or Gandalf , butto endlessly incorporateLord of the Ringselements to gain fan favor would become increasingly renowned . Bringing in Saruman for no distinct purpose other than to have another character from the trilogy would be a retarding force , and it ’s relieving that they ’re take the case in a different focal point . The show ’s great success have been in the narrative component that do n’t experience like they could ’ve been in Peter Jackson ’s film trilogy , which has establish an original identity forThe Rings of Power .
Custom Image by Yeider Chacon
Excitingly , it looks like Charlie Vickers will be in Sauron ’s opprobrious armor in The Rings of Power , but for it to ferment , one experimental condition must be met .
For example , the struggle between Elves and Orcs in season 2 , along with the dynamic between Celebrimbor and Annatar , feels entirely dissimilar in tone from theLord of the Ringsfilms . These are the vista of the show that feel more gamy - fantasy , bosom the more magical world of the Second Age . The same can be said for the plotline in Númenor , which is headed in an exciting direction . Having the Dark Wizard be an unexplored type can continue to liven the show with exciting new life .
A Saruman Reveal Would Have Felt Repetitive After The Rings Of Power’s Gandalf Story
Mystery Box Characters Are Becoming Redundant
After spending sixteen episode teasing the possibility that The Stranger was Gandalf , only to reveal that he really was Gandalf , it ’s intelligible that viewers are slimly tired of the Mystery Box . It ’s a tale element that can work quite well with comme il faut preparation and a clever plot twist , butthe outcome inThe Rings of Powerwas that both mystery character were on the button who audience require them to be . While some hoped for freaky possibilities with The Stranger , it was always sorely obvious that he was run to be Gandalf .
Rings of Power time of year 2 wrapped up some storylines from the old season , but it also promote several more interrogative sentence .
To then do the accurate same thing with the Dark Wizard would be ridiculous . They ’ve brought on an vastly gifted actor in Ciarán Hinds and suited him up in a costume and appearance that bear an unearthly resemblance to Christopher Lee ’s Saruman . To then in reality make him Saruman after multiple season of obscureness would be extraordinarily excess and suitable of criticism . The decision to clear up this now , rather than rent the possibility linger , was a impertinent choice by the showrunners to debar wondering critique over this whodunit going forward .
The Dark Wizard Being Saruman Wouldn’t Make Sense With His Lord Of The Rings Arc
Saruman Being Evil In The Second Age Just Wouldn’t Make Sense
receive Gandalf appear and make a major wallop in the Second Age is already a bite of a stretch , but also incorporating Saruman just would n’t work . The whole effect of Saruman ’s spark in the plastic film is that he ’s perceived as an ally to Gandalf until the moment of his betrayal inThe Fellowship of the Ring . Not only has he grow overjealous of Gandalf over clock time , but his percept of power is so distorted that he believes there ’s no possible way to defeat Sauron , and decide he must link up him rather .
So , put this into perspective of the Dark Wizard being Saruman : he would have already been malign in the Second Age , then he would ’ve had to convince Gandalf that he was n’t vicious , completely recover his trust , and then betray him again in the Third Age . As J.D. Payne says in the Q&A , " It would just sort of strain credulity . " The showrunners agree that this narrative pick would experience drastically shoehorned , which should hopefully appease some naysayer that care about a potential Saruman twist .
The Rings Of Power Introducing A Blue Wizard Is A Way More Satisfying Turn Of Events
The Blue Wizards Are Some Of The Most Intriguing Characters In LOTR Mythology
Out of the five Istari , three toy prominent roles inThe HobbitandThe Lord of the Rings : Gandalf , Radagast , and Saruman . The two remaining Istar are have intercourse by many as the Blue Wizards , Alatar and Pallando . Payne and McKay suggest that the Dark Wizard will be one of these characters , though there ’s not really much known about either one to define concretely who he ’ll be . That ’s part of what makes it such an exciting twist in the show , as there ’s really not much information regarding these part to go off of .
Istari is the plural terminus , while Istar denote to a singular wizard . The same can be applied to Maiar and Maia .
The design of the Istari was that they were Maiar sent to midway - land to help shoot down Sauron . All that ’s known about the Blue Wizards is that they locomote east to areas like Rhûn and Khand , along with Saruman . While the White Wizard refund from the journeying , the Blue Wizards remained in the E , and their fates were never let out in Tolkien ’s composition . Importantly , they did n’t stay true to their finish of kill Sauron , and there ’s a hypothesis that they went on to form magical cult , which aligns with the Dark Wizard inThe Rings of Power .
fructify in the Second Age of Middle - earth , The Lord of the Rings : The Rings of Power search the forging of the iconic halo , the ascension of the Dark Lord Sauron , and the epic outcome leading up to the stories in J.R.R. Tolkien ’s classical novel . The series chronicles the creation of legendary characters and the historical bond and contention that forge the fate of Middle - earthly concern .
Custom Image by Yeider Chacon
