Ricky Church reviews the fifth episode of the Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power…
Over the last couple of episodes the stories in The Rings of Power have been coming together and ‘Partings’ took a big leap forward connecting all the characters and pushing them forward. There was a great balance of character development and story progression which helped tie things back to the beginning of the season while teasing where they may go from here. It is arguably the best episode of the season so far.
Morfyyd Clark has been great as Galadriel throughout each episode, but she gave her best performance so far as Galadriel was forced to become vulnerable with Halbrand, revealing the pain she felt at being mutinied against and all but exiled by her own people. Clark was very emotive for much of ‘Partings’. She did an excellent job peeling back the layers of Galadriel’s character as her strong-willed personality was let down. It was also notable how much of Galadriel’s growth was brought back to the beginning of the series with her reciting her brother’s wisdom to Halbrand.
Charlie Vickers likewise delivered a fine performance as Halbrand as he also was forced to let down his guard, revealing his regrets for whatever actions he did while serving Morgoth and why he was trying to escape his past. The parallels between Galadriel and Halbrand’s journeys are intriguing, but what sells it is the chemistry Clark and Vickers share and how they continue to find new ways to connect.
Answers were also a large part of of this episode. From the true purpose behind Elrond’s mission to Khazad-dûm to the mysterious sword of Sauron, plenty of information was revealed that raised the stakes on several fronts for the characters. It spoke volumes how Elrond was caught between keeping his oath to Durin and his responsibility to Gil-Galad as well as the Elven race and Robert Aramayo did a nice job conveying Elrond’s turmoil.
Even the Harfoots seem ready to get involved in the action as they are seemingly getting closer to the Southlands in their migration. Ismael Cruz Cordova got some more to do as Arondir, sharing scenes with both Nazanin Boniadi and Tyroe Muhafidin’s Bronwyn and Theo where he expressed why he has such hope and trust for Man compared to a lot of other Elves. It will be interesting to see how he and Galadriel interact with each other if and when they meet up for the fight against Sauron.
And speaking of the Dark Lord himself, another very interesting reveal was how Joseph Mawle’s Adar might not be Sauron, begging the question of where and who Sauron actually is. Trystan Gravelle’s Pharazôn also showed himself to be even more of a shrewd and calculating politician as his motives for rescuing the Southlands are not nearly as noble as Miriel or Elendil’s, intending to put Halbrand in their complete debt. The new threats and teases for the future are quite compelling, especially since Tolkien fans will know where some of the story goes in his expansive Middle-earth lore.
The visuals on Rings of Power continue to impress, whether its the cinematography or the special effects on the creatures or The Strangers’ powers. Not that this show hasn’t had a Tolkien feel to it before, but it seemed even more evident with the song Nori sung, keeping with Tolkien’s poetic lyrics alongside some gorgeous imagery of the Harfoots’ trek across Middle-earth.
With its performances, character development, visuals and music, ‘Partings’ was a fantastic episode of the series and the season’s best so far.
Rating: 9/10
Ricky Church – Follow me on Twitter for more movie news and nerd talk.
