Prime Video viewers last visited the Second Age of Middle-earth in October 2024. It hasn’t been that long, but The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power is a show dense with characters, settings and traditions. You’d be forgiven for feeling a wave of panic heading into season three, wondering if you’ll be able to get back to it without watching again.
io9 has watched most of season three (Prime Video provided the first seven episodes for spoiler-free reviews) and can report that this is the most accessible season yet. There’s a quick “previously enabled” to remind you where Rings of Power left all the major cast members at the end of the second season. Then it’s five years later, with narration from Galadriel (Morfydd Clark) updating us on the current situation in Middle-earth, accompanied by an animated map to reorient us to the geography.
It’s a succinct summary, and with the added help of a few dialogue cues and a few flashbacks once the various stories get going, you’re ready to dive right back into it.
And overall, things haven’t really changed in five years, even though the war between the Elves and Sauron (Charlie Vickers) has absolutely intensified. Sauron’s orc army has strode across the continent while the Dark Lord himself spends his days hiding in Mordor within Barad-dûr, repeatedly trying and failing to create the One Ring.
One of the main reasons for his failure is that Celebrimbor, who made the three elven rings that Sauron would very much like to get his claws on, was a casualty in season two, as was all the blacksmithing knowledge and records he possessed. Killing him wasn’t Sauron’s best decision, and while his ability to feel regret is surely limited, we know that he feels something because he keeps Celebrimbor’s corpse hanging on his wall. He also has visions of the master blacksmith taunting him about his failures in rare and private displays of self-doubt.
In case this worries you Rings of Power allowed Sauron to soften, fear not; some of his most diabolical cruelties come in the third season. But he begins to expand his thinking, giving the green light to Marnûkh (Adam Young), an Orc who claims to know how to find the secrets needed to complete the One Ring. We’ve never encountered an Orc like this before, which becomes even more obvious once we realize that Marnûkh’s motivation isn’t what Sauron thinks.
Young is a fantastic addition to the cast, bringing not only a fresh perspective on the Orcs, but also a healthy dose of grimy humor. His interaction with the skeptical Arondir (Ismael Cruz Córdova), who reluctantly agrees to help Galadriel and Marnûkh track down an elven blacksmith who may have escaped Sauron’s purge, adds a welcome levity to the proceedings.
Another important new character, not invented for the series however; he’s someone Tolkien fans will recognize: it’s Celeborn (Stranger Things‘ Jamie Campbell Bower, as intense as ever), Galadriel’s long-absent husband. We get to see their meet cute, which involves a flirty clash of swords. The brief glimpse of their golden romance makes their millennia-old separation and the events surrounding their surprise reunion even more heartbreaking.
We also meet Sauron’s new best friends: the Nazgnagôl, his “servants of the Ring”. They’re still men beneath those menacing black masks and robes, and we understand how some of them thought their only choice was to align themselves with the Dark Lord. But since they have been under the influence of Sauron, their humanity has diminished. They are on their way to becoming the Howling Nazgûl, or Ringwraiths, who will make such a frightening impression later. Lord of the Rings stories.
Other returning faces in season three include the dwarves of Khazad-dûm, led by King Durin IV (Owain Arthur) – crowned after his father’s death by Balrog in season two – and his formidable wife, Disa (Sophia Nomvete). Although the Dwarves were given seven rings, Durin wisely kept them hidden, having seen their devastating effects. This judgment becomes an important plot point in season three when his former older brother, Thráin (an explosive Eddie Marsan), makes a sudden return.
Another population facing political unrest are the men and women of Númenor, where the slippery Ar-Pharazôn (Trystan Gravelle) still rules. The former queen, Miriel (Cynthia Addai-Robinson), lives in exile but has the full support of the Faithful, led by Elendil (Lloyd Owen) and his sons, Isildur (Maxim Baldry) and Anárion (Andrew Richardson), who are increasingly impatient with the state of their kingdom.
Although Númenor has plenty of internal drama to keep its people busy, the war in Middle-earth arrives when the High Elf King Gil-Galad (Benjamin Walker) and Elrond (Robert Aramayo) arrive to seek help in the fight against Sauron. For the half-elf Elrond, this is a particularly poignant journey. His much-missed twin brother, Elros – who decided to become mortal, while Elrond chose to embrace their elven side – was the founder of Númenor, and his legacy lives on there.
And no, that’s not the case for everyone. There’s also our pal Gandalf (Daniel Weyman), who unfortunately doesn’t get much to do in the first seven episodes, although of course we already know he plays a big role in the future of Middle-earth. He gets his signature hat in a moment of well-deserved fan service, and his interactions with the Dark Wizard (Ciarán Hinds), who controls the Rhûn Desert, bring important story and context to season three.
If this seems like a lot to follow, remember Rings of Power The episodes are an hour long – the pacing has become much faster, thankfully – and feature incredibly lavish production values. Each setting is visually distinct and the show makes sure you know exactly where you are and who you are with. (And at this point, performance is overall excellent.)
In some shows it would feel like holding hands, but Rings of Power uses this framing in a way that doesn’t feel intrusive. If anything, it makes the viewing experience more entertaining, as there’s no need to remember what’s happening every time a new character or subplot appears on screen.
That said, there is one very crucial throughline that trumps all others: Sauron is going to create the One Ring, no matter what it takes. We know his success is assured, but the path he takes achieves it, and the people and creatures who become involved in his journey (voluntarily or not) always manage to have many surprises in store for him.
With plenty of dazzling spectacle packed into each episode, season three’s staggered release strategy (episodes will arrive in blocks rather than once a week) seems like a smart choice for Prime Video. The propulsive pace will make each new drop an irresistible but also manageable investment of time. And hey, if you prefer to enjoy eight hours of Rings of Power suddenly, you just have to wait three weeks for your chance.
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power returns to Prime Video from November 11 with the first four episodes. Episodes five and six arrive on November 18, and episodes seven and eight on November 25.
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