Unanswered Questions In The Rings Of Power That Season 2 Desperately Needs To Answer

Season 1 of "The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power" premiered on September 1, 2022. The first major serialized adaptation of Tolkien's Second Age mythology wrapped up less than two months later, starting the clock on a nearly two-year hiatus between seasons. That break ends on August 29, 2024, when Season 2 will kick off with a triple-header episode drop (which amounts to nearly half of the eight-episode season all at once).

As Middle-earth fans everywhere prepare for the next stage of this sweeping saga from showrunners J.D. Payne and Patrick McKay, it's easy to forget where Season 1 left off. That season had nearly two dozen primary characters following multiple storylines, some of which occurred half a world away from one another. Season 2 promises to up the ante (and make it even harder for anyone but diehard fans to follow everything) with a fresh batch of new faces thrown into the mix. From the Dwarvish doings in Khazad-dûm to the human hubbub on Númenor, from harrowing halfling adventures in the east to Elvish drama in Lindon and Eregion, here are some of the biggest unanswered questions from Season 1 that Season 2 desperately needs to answer.

By the time of "The Lord of the Rings," Isildur is an ancient and iconic name. He is Aragorn's forefather and famous for cutting the One Ring from Sauron's hand. In "The Rings of Power" Season 1, however, Isildur is a young member of a minor noble's household. He's immature, unstable, and grieving the loss of his mother.

In Episode 6, "Udûn," Isildur arrives on the mainland of Middle-earth with the Númenórean expedition and helps defeat Adar's Orcs. Before he can catch his breath, though, he's caught in the eruption of Mount Doom. The last we see of him in Episode 7, "The Eye," Isildur finds his dead friend, Ontamo, before a burning building collapses on him in the ruin of the volcanic landscape. Much hullabaloo is made about his loss, and we see his father release his stubbornly loyal horse, Berek, to run free (presumably right back to his master in Season 2).

Despite the drama, we all know that Isildur is going to come back. He's too important to the story. The question is: how? We've gotten hints about Isildur's Season 2 story, including reveals that he will face a young Shelob, be aided by Arondir (Ismael Cruz Córdova), and meet the new character Estrid (played by Nia Towle, and who fans theorize could be Isildur's future wife, who is unnamed in Tolkien's writings). Whatever happens, this guy's story needs to get back on track.

Tolkien didn't write mysteries. When he tried writing "The New Shadow," the "thriller" sequel to "The Lord of the Rings" that he quickly abandoned, he referred to it as "not worth doing." So why is "The Rings of Power" dragging out this whole "who is the Stranger" question? Daniel Weyman's character is already fascinating just by being one of the Istari, Tolkien's upper-case "W" Wizards who are utterly unique in fantasy literature. Regardless whether the Stranger is Gandalf, Saruman, a Blue Wizard, or even Radagast, he's going to have a mesmerizing story in the hitherto unexplored regions of Rhûn in eastern Middle-earth.

So can we please let the cat out of the bag here? We know that Weyman's Wizard is going to meet Tom Bombadil in Season 2. We also know that he's going to encounter a mysterious, unnamed Wizarding adversary played by Ciarán Hinds. Who, then, is he? The one crumb of comfort here is that showrunner J.D. Payne told IGN, "We can say that yes, the name will be revealed by the end of Season 2." We may have to wait an entire season, but at least we know the big reveal will be over, one way or another, before Season 3 airs.

When Sauron officially shows up in Tolkien's writings to start forging the Rings of Power with Celebrimbor and the Elves of Eregion, he comes as the immortal being Annatar, Lord of Gifts. In Season 1 of the adaptation, Sauron is disguised as the human Halbrand. He's also revealed to Galadriel by the end of the season, at which point he and Celebrimbor had worked together to forge the Three Elven Rings (an out-of-order event that changed the Tolkien timeline, in which those bands are made near the end of the ring-making process).

Heading into Season 2, Halbrand is still on the scene and the wrong three rings (canonically speaking — more on that later) are the only ones made. We also know from the promotional material that he will spend at least part of the season in his secret Annatar guise after all. The open-ended question that needs answering is: how will Sauron re-establish his place and maintain the trust of Celebrimbor in order to forge the other 16 Rings of Power, before sneaking off to forge the One Ring to rule them all?

In the Season 1 finale, the Númenórean expedition limps back to its home island, only to find the harbor filled with ships bearing black sails. This is due to the death of King Tar-Palantir, an event that occurred while they were away fighting a losing war. We also see a shot of Pharazôn (Trystan Gravelle) staring at the deceased king.

In the source material, as the Second Age progresses, Númenor becomes wracked with political unrest and two groups take center stage. The King's Men are led by Pharazôn and reject their alliances with Elves and the Valar. The other group, called The Faithful, is in the minority and maintains said loyalties. Eventually, these become the lines that Sauron uses to push Númenórean society to the breaking point. That's the version we get in the books.

Coming out of the jump between seasons, it's about time we start to see these factions develop. We know that there were varying opinions in the Human kingdom in Season 1, and Season 2 needs to establish these as clearly at odds. Critically, we also need to know what happens in the power vacuum after Tar-Palantir's death. Queen Regent Míriel (Cynthia Addai-Robinson) is the successor to the throne, but she is blind now, has few friends, and critically, is a supporter of the Faithful. Will Pharazôn take advantage of the frailty of the exchange of power to seize his cousin's throne?

Villains rarely get along. Case in point: when Galadriel (Morfydd Clark) interrogated the Orc leader Adar (played by Joseph Mawle at the time) in Season 1, she discovered that he had originally followed Sauron before stabbing him in the back. According to Adar, he literally split Sauron in two before heading for the hills with his Orc bands and eventually meandering down to the Southlands, where he intended to spring the Mount Doom trap. By the end of the season, the stitched-up Sauron is on the doorstep of the newly minted volcanic kingdom and clearly on a collision course with his old friend Adar.

Season 2 needs to clear up the relationship between these two power players. We already know that we're going to get their backstory. Co-showrunner Patrick McKay told Total Film how Season 2 starts, saying, "We open in the darkness, an orc walks in, and we see there are thousands of orcs gathered. He's about to be crowned, pitching his vision of Middle-earth, and right before they lay the crown on his head, his right-hand man, Adar, turns it upside down, and stabs him in the back. It's the assassination of Sauron." The San Diego Comic-Con trailer for "Rings of Power" even shows a glimpse of the killing. What remains to be seen is how these two move forward and orchestrate the armies of evil side by side.

Theo (Tyroe Muhafidin) has one of the more meandering storylines of Season 1. We learn a lot about his situation as an only child with a single mother navigating a tough life in the Southlands. Theo finds the sword hilt that unleashes Mount Doom, but he doesn't clearly break one way or the other as far as his allegiances are concerned.

Heading into Season 2, we need some clarity on where his story is going. Why is this non-canon character soaking up so much screen time? Is he actually a canon character after all, like a future Nazgûl or the King of the Dead? We know that his mom won't be in Season 2, as actress Nazanin Boniadi won't be returning despite a strong Season 1 performance. On the flip side, showrunner Patrick McKay said at San Diego Comic-Con that Theo's dad will be revealed at some point in the show. 

Unless that revelation is just another tepid factoid in an otherwise minor character's role, chances are that the parental information will give us a much clearer idea of who we're dealing with here. Whether all of this Theo-related character development takes place in Season 2, though, is an open question.

In the book "The Fellowship of the Ring," Galadriel describes her husband, Celeborn, by saying, "The Lord of the Galadhrim is accounted the wisest among the Elves of Middle-earth, and a giver of gifts beyond the power of kings." She adds that Celeborn has lived in the West since the dawn of time, adding, "I have dwelt with him years uncounted [...] and together through ages of the world we have fought the long defeat." It's a charming sentiment — but only possible if the two Elven leaders are, you know, together.

Celeborn never made an appearance in Season 1. Instead, Galadriel mentioned that she had lost him in a war, and that was it. In between seasons, rumors circulated that series newcomer Calam Lynch would play Celeborn, but Looper's own exclusive character reveal proved that wrong. Where is this guy? Fortunately, Patrick McKay revealed at San Diego Comic-Con that Celeborn will, indeed, appear on the show in the future. (This came in a dual reveal where he also confirmed that the forgotten Elf-lord and warrior Glorfindel could show up.)

However, he didn't clarify when either of these events would happen. Whether Celeborn appears in Season 2 or not, it's important for the story to clarify where he is, that he's alive, and how they're going to work him into the plot. He may not be a front-and-center character like Galadriel, but he's too important to put on the back burner for more than a season.

Season 1 of "The Rings of Power" gave us a new and intimate look into stable, comfortable Dwarven communities. Tolkien writes about these early in the First and Second Ages of Middle-earth, while later Dwarven history features displaced, destitute, semi-nomadic groups. Season 1's depiction of a thriving Khazad-dûm free from the fears and cares of tragedy was new to a visual medium, and key to this was the healthy, entertaining interactions between the royal family of King Durin III (Peter Mullan), Durin IV (Owain Arthur), and Princess Disa (Sophia Nomvete).

By the end of the season, though, the royal family has begun to fracture. Spurred on by the Elvish need for mithril, Durin IV and Elrond quarry for the precious metal against King Durin's orders. When caught, Prince Durin comes under the furious displeasure of his father, who goes so far as to disown him. This sets up some tense moments in Season 2.

The second season will complicate things even further with the introduction of Dwarven Rings of Power. Showrunner Patrick McKay told EW that the Dwarven Rings stoke the Dwarves' greed, saying, "That sent us down this rabbit hole of 'What about Peter Mullan going mad as a villain in Khazad-dum in Season 2? ... How might that play on a father-son relationship?'" The royal family is split by the Season 1 finale. Season 2 needs to take that situation in a clear direction.

As if royal turmoil wasn't enough, the Dwarves of Khazad-dûm also have an awakened and angry Balrog to deal with. Season 1 showed the demon bellowing before cutting away. We've already seen more footage than that just in the trailers for Season 2: The Balrog is shown leaping down fissures, wielding fiery swords, and emerging in holographic form in a fire next to Sauron. On top of that, we see Khazad-dûm getting rattled (presumably from the creature's distant mountain-shaking fury).

The thing is, none of this is even canonically correct. The Balrog can't be in "Rings of Power" because he doesn't wake up in Tolkien's writings until 2,000 years after the Second Age ends. At that point, he terrorizes the Dwarves and even kills Durin VI, but he doesn't interfere with the reigns of Durin III or Durin IV.

"The Rings of Power" is taking a creative liberty by moving the villain so far up in the timeline — which means we need some serious explanations about what is going on here. Season 2 offers the perfect opportunity to clear the smoke-filled air and show everyone why it was a good idea to stir up the Balrog early, especially in the midst of so much other chaos across the Middle-earth landscape.

Tom Bombadil was infamously left out of Peter Jackson's "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy. Even so, the reasoning made sense. He's a character whose role in that story is easy to cut out. (At least Jackson included an homage to the enigma in a deleted scene from "The Two Towers.") All the same, Tom Bombadil is a fantastic creation who deserves more attention — and "The Rings of Power" is going to give it to him. Bombadil will be played by Rory Kinnear and will arrive in Season 2.

The question is, if the creative team is going to bring him into the story, can they actually pull it off? Bombadil is a goofball of a character. He's largely unexplained, he sings all the time, and he inhabits a unique place as a slightly invested but mostly uninvolved participant in the larger Middle-earth narrative. Including him without overplaying the role is going to be challenging. It also looks like both Tom's wife Goldberry and the Barrow-wights that he famously defeats in a singing duel in the book "The Fellowship of the Ring" will be present, raising the stakes even higher. Can Payne, McKay, and company stick the landing with this motley, previously unadaptable crew?

The Rings of Power are an important part of the later ages of Middle-earth history. They're also a critical part of Amazon Studios' adaptation (they're in the name, after all). But the showrunners and writers have shown that they aren't afraid of changing the narrative to fit their storytelling purposes. Gennifer Hutchison, who wrote the Season 1 finale and spoke with Looper shortly after it premiered, pointed out that the Three Elven Rings are made first in the show — even though they come after the rings for Dwarves and Men in the source text — because the first season was all about the Elves.

"This season was about tracking the Elves and their story of dealing with the fading and Galadriel's journey with Halbrand," she said. "Coming to that ending for this season was always, at least very early on, the plan because [we're] focusing on that story and making sure we're servicing that one for this season."

Okay, the explanation makes sense. But it still leaves the glaring issue of how the 16 other rings will come into being — especially with Sauron now stripped of his Halbrand disguise. Season 2 has to execute some major narrative footwork to get all of the Rings into the picture — all of the Rings except one, of course.

"The Lord of the Rings" is all about its titular jewelry, but those wouldn't be as big of a deal if it weren't for the One Ring designed to rule them all. Sauron's Second Age aggression is driven by the forging of magic Rings and then the creation of One Ring to dominate their wearers and subdue them to his will. This is what leads to the knockdown, drag-out conflicts that define the second half of that era. It also sets up Sauron's loss of the One Ring at the end of that period, an event that sets the stage for the harrowing Third Age that follows.

So when are we getting the One Ring, then? It's super important. But it also can't come until after the other ones are made. Once those are on the scene, will Season 2 end with the forging of a final Ring of Power, or will we have to wait until Season 3 for that defining Middle-earth event to pop up on our streaming screens?