Funnily enough, one simple fix would be to change the lesson her brother gives her to one fitting Tolkien’s idea of virtue. He tells her that evil corrupts and she, perhaps as a cop out, could argue that you need to touch the darkness to see the light. Then every time she fails at redemption, you can literally play that scene again and show her going against her brother’s lesson, because she’s not there yet. The audience understands she’s still in her downwards spiral. The problem I think is the writers aren’t really sure when to challenge Galadriel on her darkness and when to just glorify it as some element that makes her "badass" and "cool" or deep or some silly notion like that.

Galadriel is literally older than the sun. It makes zero sense for her to act like a child who hates everyone because she can't get her way.

Every time someone disagrees with Galadriel she pulls a knife and threatens to kill them. What a piece of work.

In Tolkien's actual work, Finrod (Galadriel's brother) was also a virtuous character. He died, not hunting Sauron as the show claims, but saving a human warrior named Beren who was was bound to by an oath. His virtue allowed him to be resurrected and given a new body in Valinor shortly after his death, instead of of his soul spending centuries in the Halls of Mandos, which was basically Tolkien's version of purgatory.

This show actually has me rooting for Sauron. The freaking DARK LORD SAURON!!

Why would Galadriel seek vengeance for her brother if elves don't die but go to the halls of Mandos? So she would've met her brother if she kept on sailing.

Galadriel was already ancient during the Second Age: She was taught by the Valar themselves, she was already wise and highly intelligent before Sauron began to make his move.

I haven't watched this and don't plan to, but what I absolutely CANNOT tolerate is Galadriel and everyone else surviving a pyroclastic flow without even asspulling magic. They are ALL DEAD.

The fact that as we’re moving forward, the heroes are becoming more villainous while the villains are becoming increasingly heroic and sympathetic, is rather telling about the mindset of those who are writing these things. It’s not just here, I’m seeing it with other stories as well.

Adar's interrogation was the only scene that made me feel sympathetic with a character, and that character was definitely not Galadriel (it also helps that Joseph Mawle is the only cast member in this show who CAN act).

what's strange to me is they bet her entire character on aggression, yet she's only in one real fight in the entire series, and it happens in episode 1. and her not telling anyone about Sauron was the dumbest moment in the whole show. and this show had a lot of dumb moments

One of the many sins of RoP: being brutally unfair to the character of Finrod.

I love how you focused on how the dagger actually runs counter to what the showrunners said about it recently; they claimed that her relinquishing the dagger showed her losing her childhood innocence (!), of all things.

I think Disparu summerised her arch the best when he said she started as a cow and at the end she's still a cow.

These were some GREAT insights. I've seen some moral and philosophical analyses of RoP, but this one made those arguments in terms of the show's writing, which really laid bare the antithetical virtues they're pushing. Excellent work!

0:30 that sort of gratuitous blade spinning always reminds me of the bit in Galaxy Quest: "Does the rolling help?" "Yes. Yes, it does."

It's amazing that while this show failed to make a likable flaw character, an other show about dragons had a lot of captivating, flawed characters. It's all about talent in writing.

This show fails on so many levels, but Gladriel's treatment might be the worst.

The truth is that we, as a contemporary culture, do not know how to create a good hero. We’ve diluted the heroic archetype with so much gray. For us, creating a hero that we can be collectively inspired by is an awkward and arduous process that results in emo, confused, and almost depressed character; a representation of our collective modern psyche.

Guy.ladriel is a projection of the showrunners, manipulative, power hungry, deceptive, insatiable.

'I offer no rage but insight.' Subscribed.

Excellent breakdown, essentially the show took the principles that make up Tolkienian ethics and corrupted them. If you remove Tolkien from lotr you are only left with a parody, a shadow, of the grandeur that we all love.

When evil people try to make a story of good and evil, you get this.

Imagine that Sauron is your moral compas...

First off... great vid. Subbed. Secondly I'd like to point out that while you're correct in saying that I traditional story telling, galadriel giving up the symbol of her vengeance quest would be representative of her letting go of her hatred and rejecting the darkness, the show writers are on record in an interview saying that letting go of the dagger in order to make the rings is symbolic of her letting go of her innocence and her last link to the goodness of her brother and valinor. So I'm hope you're ready for an even more evil and bloodthirsty guyladriel next season. Apparently the one we saw in S1 was her being good and virtuous. Lol

My favorite part was when Galadrial said "It's Tolkien time!" and then Linkin Park started playing as she defeated the erupting volcano.

AmazonGaladriel isn't Tolkien's Galadriel. Tolkien's characters is completely different from Amazon's caricature. Amazon just gave their version the kind of traits THEY admire, which probably says something about them. They just straight up shredded the Middle-Earth lore and Tolkien's original story to make room for some weird 'AmazonGaladriel x Sauron romance' that they were dead set on making, despite not being canon or making any real sense.

Adar's character is more interesting and well-written than Galadrial's but that's maybe intentional (hopefully). Let's see what happens the next season. Remember the high elves, the Noldor in particular, were not wholly pure and good. They were violent, arrogant and vengeful in the first age, quite unlike the 3rd age elves who had probably wised up by then

"The problem with ..." implies a _single_ problem.

Extremely well thought out and articulated interpretation, well done.

Just want to say that I appreciate how you break down the problems of RoP without the rage and hate. I’ve watched a lot of videos about this topic, but I really like yours because you present it plain and simple without any strong outburst of emotion. I don’t blame anyone for hating on this show because there really is a lot to be angry about and all of the outrage is understandable. But I prefer arguments to be presented in a more calm logical manner instead of a fiery emotional one. Nicely done. 👍🏽

Even the older Elves and her only friend knew how pathetic Galadriel and her company of weak surrendor monkeys were and packed all of them off to an early death in that reality to get rid of them on a boat to Elvin heaven

The most glaring problem with Galadriel, is of course the fact that she isn't Galadriel. The original Galadriel is hardly an action figure, but rather a reference. What the show runners wanted is Glorfindel - but the poor character has already been cut off from at least two Tolkien adaptations. I wonder what was so wrong with him. My mind just refuses to register RoP, no matter how many times I watched it, as a Tolkien-inspired work. More like a nightmare from Galadriel's head.

Galadriel was completely out of character when considering Tolkien's lore and her virtue and wisdom in the books. I don't why they chose to change her so much. It's clear they wanted a "strong female character" but forgot that they can create that without making a flawed stereotype "strong" female character. You can create "strength" without a character being brutish and constantly rude. She was the weakest link in the series, because yep... she learns nothing, there is no evolution at all; only flashes of a possible arc, but it fails.

this was absolutely masterful. awesome work! loving how you contrast the antagonists to the so-called hero.

An excellent dissection of themes. Great work!

Excellent video and analysis on how a mega corporation will inevitably dilute the messaging to fulfill a self-serving agenda.

she also teaches Isildur a thing about humility.. 🤣🤣🤣🤣 and I was like " are you fking kidding me?"

Great video man, totally agree with your breakdown, I'd recommend it to anyone like me who really sensed everything you're describing in Amazon's Galadriel depiction, but couldn't put it into words quite like you so eloquently did. Glad i found this 👍

Great analysis and video! Keep it up!

I like to imagine the episode where galadriel dies to the pyroclastic flow is the final episode in the entire series.

This was the most spectacular and succinct breakdown over why GUYladriel was so off-putting, very very well done bravo 🔥

Thank you for this eloquent presentation of my exact feelings for this character. Even though I'm months late, I would like to add one thing in the criticism of this character arc: They have yet to show us the clear Sauron motives. He has claimed that, so far he wants none of the things Galadriel is pushing him to do. It may very well be all lies of course, cause... Sauron. However, given the current villain trends, he could have been in a redemption path, which Galadriel obstinately denied him. So how exactly are we going to redeem and sympathise with Galadriel, who's solely responsible for Sauron's turn to evil and everything he's going to do from here on out?

Very well done. Very insightful.

Excellent and one of the more insightful videos I've seen on this subject. I

Rules of nature at the end was unexpected, but throughly appreciated. Excellent video, presentation, and overall quality. My critique would only be the scenes of dialog you were highlighting, were extremely quiet compared to the narration. Up that a bit and you're gold! Or, uh.. mithril.

Whenever I critique this show I find myself not at a lack of words, but that "there's a tempest in me", which would spew forth a verbal diarrhea of great proportion. It's just how bad it is. Rings of Power checked all the wokist perspectives, cast was full of diversity hires, feminism is ultra strong in this show and there's American political talking points in the show too (they took ur JOBS!) .. When people are going to watch this 20 years from now they'll cringe hard, because it's not made in the spirit of Tolkien, but rather the current political 'ZEITGEIST' in America. It's noticeable and that's why it sucks.

Great breakdown. Your voice is so good for story-telling.

As someone that has dabbled in dark and conventional philosophy I can say, with no lack of certainty, that Adar is the most good and virtuous character in the show, as he is the only individual that acts truly selflessly in the name of the greater good for others, as he perceives it. He fights not for personal glory or other symbolic ideas but in the name of the Uruk people and to ensure they have safety and freedom in the face of hostile foreign persecution by, what seems to be genocidal, elves. In this way the orcs now represent real peoples that have had a history of persecution do to military action, such as post WW1 Germany, or any group that has been exterminated due to them being an other, such as WW2 Jews and Gypsy (Roma), or what could be even closer in this case to the mass murder and other crimes done to Native America peoples. This personally makes the depictions of Orcs and Uruk in this show even worse. The only other characters that can be said to be good and virtuous are Gil-galad and Halbrand as both are striving to attain peace after a long and terrible war in which they both took part and are now looking to move past so that they can have "normal" lives as shown through Gil-galad's attempts to demilitarize and Halbrand's attempt to retire and become a normal smith as was what he was before the war. So humbly that he, a Maiar, is willing to make mundane works with mundane tools simple so that he may have a peaceful life. Even sparing the live of several Numanoreans when they get into a street fight, when he could have easily killed them and leave none the wiser. To this end Galadriel is among the most malevolent, with several cruel and half insane actions. Such as abandoning one of her men to die from the cold, resulting in a mutiny, openly denying peace as shown with her jumping the boat. An act that is not only considered evil by all philosophies but also as blasphemes do to it also involving denying heaven. What many philosophies consider her most evil act of forcing war on those that don't want it and have made steps to escape it, in this case by forcing Halbrand to return to a war he wanted no part in, threaten a surrendered captive with torture and genocide. Finally but worst of all, depending on the relevant philosophy, treachery as when she tried to kill Halbrand after he admitted that he was once Sauron. They were both allies and he admitted this unarmed and as an act of good faith. Even after she failed to kill him he spared her life, an act of kindness and virtue, I, myself would not have shown. Perhaps most damning of all was that Halbrand aided in the forging of the rings as a honest and meaningful action to aid an allied faction and fellow smith in the completion of an important and significant work, meaning that this action was good and virtuous making Galadriel's actions against him even worse, as he had through that action, done more for the elven people than Galadrial herself.

Ya know they're shit if they managed to make Finrod Felagund, the most beloved, virtuous and loyal elf to ever exist in all of middle earth a pilar of cynicle evil.....

This is so insightful. I just started reading into Tolkien's work, but I have one question, when does Tolkien details Halbrand's journey in the Silmarillion? He mentions Annatar but I might have missed it while reading. Thank you!

It feels like the writers were gone full "LA LA LA! I CAN'T HEAR YOU! LA LA LA!" to all critisism towards the writing. This is not mediocre writing. It's complete garbage and has nothing to do with Tolkien or Jackson's Lord of the rings. If Amazon will continue this shit show it won't be nothing more than a cheap fan fiction. No amount of money will fix that.

After listening to this, I just want to cry. How they have twisted Galadriel into a witch. Talk about corruption.

Well said; great analysis! 👏

If this show was canon it was Galadriel fault that the rings of power was made.

Let this be a lesson. Strong woman ≠ violent/angry woman.

7:50 "She has no redemption, no transformation, and nothing learned". Of course not! She is not human, she is an ancient, and by now unchanging elf from olden times. It is never desirable for a mature elf to change, undergo catharses, or to respond to situations emotionally. She would not be a good elf if she did that. Neither would Arondir. Thankfully he is as stoic, immutable, and noble as a stout brick wall. This is good: that neither Arondir nor Galadriel run around acting almost human. Jackson never had Legolas do that. Neither did Tolkien. Tolkien: when Elves start using their emotions to make decisions, then they were usually making a big mistake. And if an Elf starts to love a human, then they cannot really stay an elf any longer.

Your breakdown has been one of the best I've heard of so far, which means it's the fifth or sixth. The writers themselves definitely didn't know what they were doing; not only in that they were poor at their jobs as writers for a streaming television show, but that they had no idea what sort of characters they were creating. If nothing else, they absolutely didn't fully account for or consciously measure how the characters would 'animate' and manifest their personas on screen, based on how they were written. Not being able to understand Tolkien's ethics and moral underpinnings, and not being able to understand the meta-ethics of virtue as a greater 'spiritual' force, stringing cause and effect together, through all characters in a story, lead to sympathizing with compelling three-dimensional villains, and discarding the main hero protagonist. This show has presented another great example of modern corporate writers blatantly and without reservation, attempting to spell out who you should root for and empathize with; though, again, because they didn't know what they were doing, the ethical core of the heroes and the villains were reversed.

i will admit, there is a certain amount of cutting edge irony in this story. they were able to make Sauron, the supposed antagonist, much more likeable with a more interesting story arc than Galadriel, the supposed protagonist. this type of writing can be classified as revolutionary, even if it is unintentional...

What's the name of the metal song on the end??? Its great! 😁

This is thoughtful and interesting. What I found challenging when interpreting the this show is the creator’s intentions versus what they showed. Galadriel comes across a righteous moral grandstander, telling Halbrand he abandoned his crew to death but dis he? He told them to be quiet and they ignored and chose to save himself. What could he against a giant sea monster any ways? Galadriel can single-handedly kill a snow-troll and even she fled the scene. As far as we know, Halbrand is a refuge from a derelict former kingdom whose loved ones were recently killed. Through this lens, his questionable behavior might be seen as desperate and trauma-induced rather than lack of virtue. We’re just not given enough reason for Galadriel to be the way she is. Sure, her brother died but so did the loved ones of many other Elves and plenty who had it worse than a princess. Her evenge is just about feeling good which is such a tragic but kinda repulsive motivation. Why did the writers have to start Galadriel’s arc at the bottom of the Mariana Trench?

the result of guyladriel's psycopathing (the act of turning someone a psycopath, ask FBI) changes have been catastrophic for tolkienkind

Came for the explanation, stayed for the analysis, liked for Rules of Nature blasting at the end

Holy shit. This was so well done. Take my sub

She is super despicable 90% of the time.

All the leaders are women, all the men are subservient or powerless over Galadriel. 8 episodes of misandry

How contrary her character and the show is to one of the central themes in the LoTR trilogy - that of being merciful, and being merciful is rewarded in the end (for example Bilbo allowing Gollum to survive instead of killing him)

This is probably the most succinct but still thorough analysis of why Galadriel and RoP as a whole doesn't work. Well done!

Boy. That was an awesome ending. I mean the last line primarily though. However the music was fine too.

See guys? Even the themes can’t protect this one.

Vengeance is not a virtue. It is a plot point among those with ambiguous morality. Those on a path of vengeance may do horrible things. In this case her dialogue is horrible and her actions deus ex machina. Clark should have had the wisdom to turn down this role. She didn’t.

Thank you for a fantastic, level-headed, thoughtful video essay. One of my greatest dissatisfactions with the series is the portrayal of Galadriel in the late Second Age. This is not even remotely an on-point portrayal. Galadriel is fundamentally an intellectual, she's determined and athletic, but also wise, not much of a warrior even in the First Age, but certainly someone with a great knowledge of magic, taught to her by the Maiar. Galadriel, as written by Tolkien, is a fallible character, tempted several times in her life, but also a fundamentally ethical and decent character. Even in her wilder younger years, she was not walking around and making arrogant threats to friends and allies among Elves or Men. Finrod was also, though many things, certainly not a shady and ambiguous bully of his own sister.

No, no the show runners say her dagger is a symbol of “primordial innocence” and when she melts it, she’s letting go of her childhood. It’s so bizarre

I hear you

The more I see about this bonfire of a series, the more I indeed identify with Halbrand and resent GuyLadRiel.

I have not watched RoP. Ever since the first "superfans" trailer, it seemed like it was going to be a nightmare. But I have watched many of these reviews, and the only thing that I find even slightly compelling is Adar. A show that humanizes the orcs and makes them somewhat sympathetic could have been awesome. It's unfortunate the protagonist is nowhere near as compelling.

that ending has me dying xDDDDDDD

And, why does she have flashbacks and swears to avenge her dead brother, and not her dead husband even though she is offered to us a a somewhat romantic lead character?

This character is both reflective of, and role model to, how women are expected to behave in society now. Full of narcissism and cruel disregard of others. This is because living “in one’s truth“ is vastly different than living in THE truth.

Wow, when viewed from this perspective, this sounds like a compelling drama that explores how some elves were corrupted by the darkness. The main problem is that Amazon chose to deconstruct an already established character. It would be nearly impossible now to give her a strong enough redemption arc.

Great video! This summarizes a lot of the things that irritated me about the show but I couldn't really put into words.

I don't know if it's trying to deconstruct the values from Tolkien. It didn't resolve any of these moral questions. So either it intends to resolve them eventually or it is simply incoherent. Galadriel's "arc" is incoherent and because it is, the overall values in the show are incoherent. There are characters steadfast that they are on the side of righteousness but they don't have the proof to back that up. I would assume for instance that Durin and Desa are making a mistake about mining for the mithril and dwarf king is right. but Durin and Desa think they are right, that they have found a win-win in which pursuing their ambitions also happens to be the humanitarian path that will save the elves. I would think that Galadriel is going to discover eventually that she has been conned by her own darkness, that righteousness isn't raging at Sauron and thrusting her dagger at him to show she's on the opposite side of him and it's therefore the good side; that she will realize she gave him what he wanted by forging those rings and trapped the world in a lasting darkness because of it. But again, it ends with her seeming to believe she's still fighting the good fight. The queen of numenor doesn't know if helping galadriel is right or if not helping her is right. She cares more seemingly about saving numenor than coming to her own moral conclusions, relying on a tree to tell her right from wrong. Later she seems to rediscover her faith, but her faith may well be as blind as she has become. If the show isn't incoherent it could be saying something deep about self-righteousness and only the villains can see it (re: galadriel) bc they don't delude themselves that they are righteous people even if they see righteousness in their causes. There could be something deep in all this moral ambiguity, reflecting the moral uncertainty of the 2nd age, an age in which Sauron succeeds in deceiving so many that they are on the right path. Or ... It could just be incoherent with no through line (and I fear that's what it is) The other matter that makes this annoying is how stupid the characters are. Galadriel assumes Halbrand is king of the Southlands because he has a pouch with a sigil. She doesn't bother challenging Adar with questions such as if the orcs are just like everyone else why are they engaging in horrible evil to get what they want? She doesn't ask, why was Sauron so enthusiastic about forging these rings, and leading all the ideas, what's in it for him? She doesn't ask what do you mean when you say you want to heal middle earth? Elf king doesn't ask why black sickness is spreading through the elven world, if it's because of the elves mb being corrupted themselves, and he doesn't ask why this mithril is the apparent magical cure or what that means. No one gets to the bottom of anything. They all make stupid assumptions and then later fall prey to their own stupidity.

The audience stand-in is literally Sauron. Let that sink in.

I'm glad someone pointed this out, I didn't like how they portray Galadriel. The fact that she noticed on the raft that Halbrand lacks empathy and didn't care about his mates in the slightest, she still takes him under her wing regardless and expresses no empathy for them either. This is out of her character, completely. On a positive note, I hope the writers of season 2, will take all constructive criticism under consideration.

2:45 "This isn't to say that the audience is simply rooting against Galadriel but is instead hoping for a catalyst event that will change her into a wiser and virtuous protagonist" So this is what's wrong here. This is why me and my friends got to enjoy the show while most of the internet didn't. We never watched any publicity on the show and never ever ever thought of Galadriel as the protagonist or the hero while watching it. I never for a second hoped she would become better or virtuous. In fact, the whole time I watched I was glad because I liked that they basically acknowledge that Galadriel is kind of a sketchy leader and in her origins she was worse. I mean, her virtue in LotR is that she doesn't kill them all and take The Ring of power for herself. She is not redeemable because she ain't really very virtuous in her real book version, only less active. Of course everyone who was hoping for a hero got disappointed... But if you, like me, realized she is meant to be the tragic arrogant walking disaster she is then you do get to enjoy the show

funny on how they trying to deny Tolkien , they just proved him right...

It is like they made this show based on Galadriel actually taking the one ring from Frodo. If this was what they were going for it might have been somthing.

Liked and subscribed!

Are there people who actually didn't know Halbrand was Sauron ?

Good job!

Kratos has a better revenge story then this Amazon May sue- 😭

Pride comes before a fall. It is self-indulgent we see so much money wasted so uselessly.

Thanks for adressing the issues with the show in a reasonable and in-depth manner. Two things I'd like to point out. In truth, we could say that all the characters are the voice of a corporation, since Amazon holds the money and has the last word regarding the show. But almost every non-indedepndant piece of entertainment can be described this way. There are always investors, editors and executives that are involved with the product. I don't think Rings of Power are that much different from most corporate sponsored media in that regard. Two, what Galadriel's brother said indeed doesn't fit Tolkien's ideas. However, Tolkien saw the world through Christian lens, believing that there was both absolute good and absolute evil. For instance, in Silmarillion, Eru is definitely and undisputably good. So are the Valar, since they listen to him and acknowledge his leadership. Melkor is considered to be wrong and evil, since he does not agree - even before he actually deserved it. I doubt that the majority of viewers would agree with this worldview, myself included. But it really wasn't that visible in Lord of the Rings, and it did not cause any issues. In Rings of Power, the best bet would be probably to not adress it.

Great work! Virtuously (and admirably) self-restrained but quite insightful and concise!

It is also important to mention something else. This show is so badly written that Sauron never deceives Galadriel. He tells the truth (not all of it though), and Galadriel draws all the wrong conclusions by herself. She brings him along for no reason and sometimes despite all reason, and makes him a part of the forging of the rings. Not-Sauron never had to do anything for the "deception" to progress, powered by Galadriel's misplaced self-confidence in her deductive skills. And "Master Craftsman" Celebrimbor's ignorance of alloys. And her not killing, or even denouncing, the one individual she vowed to kill above all other considerations. And other contrivances starting with her and Sauron meeting at random in the middle of an ocean. This whole show depicts a Sauron that has no plan and just went along with Galadriel self-deception after a chance meeting. It's hilarious in a way. As for Galadriel's dagger being sacrificed for the making of the Three, I'm not sure if that's the intention but I see it as the symbol of her bringing her whole race into her personal genocidal revenge plans. Am I too cynical here?

How is it the most BASIC of narrative structures, a character arc for the protagonist, was completely lost on these writers???

Well said. To me it's almost like the writers/showrunners don't understand what makes the Silmarillion, LOTR and the Hobbit so much fun: an adventure between some veteran warriors and an unlikely hero or four who will rise to the occasion leaving behind peaceful lives to take their places in the larger story of Middle Earth. The party explores language, lore, cultures and otherworldly places along the way, all while learning to overcome their differences and work together for the greater good. Rings of Power does not do any of that. I was bored after 1 episode and could not find a reason to keep watching.

Funny what you said about showing how the main character has flaws. That's the problem, the writers were so inconceivably shite that they didn't even realise they were writing in character traits that would be perceived as flaws. They wanted to write this bad bitch who don't take no shit and won't let anything stop her, and for some reason were confused when the audience didn't warm to her. Yeah people who say stuff like "my girl Galadriel, slay!" and "Yass Queen!" are going to like her, but I don't think it's a shock to anyone that those sorts of people are seldom Tolkien fans. Her character could have started out like that, then as the show developed she could have learnt some humility and become more rational and that would have been fine. But no, we just got a rude, petulant and emotionless bint in the guise of a 'strong independent woman'.

Would be quite a twist if the brother never died and was manipulating her from the beginning

Abbie Emmons made this great video about how writers go too far in trying to make strong female characters empowering and end up making belligerent assholes instead. To me Galadriel is someone who doesn’t need to cut up orcs to be cool , she’s so far above that. She’s powerful enough to be gentle like Superman or Yoda. This show just made her elven Jack Bauer with her torturing Adar and people going on about how dark she is. It’s not interesting, it’s cringey. A real shame because there was stuff I actually liked in the show.