Many say that UDÛN is the best episode of THE RINGS OF POWER yet, but I don’t think I agree. Sure, it’s the most action-packed, but I was absolutely drawn in by the world-building and even more so by the relationship-building. Elrond with Durin, Disa, and the dwarves. Galadriel with Hallbrand, Míriel, Elendil, and the people of Númenor, and the tall stranger that dropped in on Nori, Poppy, and the rest of the Harfoots. That brings us to Arondir, Bronwyn, Theo, and the rest of the group in Ostirith facing off against Adar and his army of orcs.
What’s been so magical to this point in THE RINGS OF POWER is the incredible alliances we’ve experienced forged between the many characters of various races. No, of course, we don’t have the literal “rings of power” because we need to go on the journey with these characters to raise the stakes. When the rings are formed, and Sauron emerges from where he’s hiding, I want to care about the people that he’ll betray, hurt, and try to lead into darkness.
UDÛN brings some of our character groups of Middle Earth together in a thrilling battle piece, but we’re not (yet) to the scale of The Battle of Helms Deep from THE TWO TOWERS. One of my critiques of THE RINGS OF POWER so far is that some of the action feels too rehearsed and stiff instead of being rehearsed and looking natural. UDÛN’s battle flows smoother than, say, Galadrial’s small fight on Numenor, but it still feels like the actors and stunt doubles are counting out their paces – making sure they don’t actually hit their counterparts.
My favorite relationship in the series so far, that between Elrond and Durin & Disa gets a break in this episode to allow UDÛN to be the most focused chapter so far. I like this style of episode better – focusing on one group while leaving out others instead of hopping around from group to group with every scene change. But, at the same time, I missed my favorites and hope we get back to their story soon.
THE RINGS OF POWER is an absolutely gripping fantasy tale. I don’t need to get caught up in the changes from the stories of J. R. R. Tolkien. The books, the short stories, the movies, and this show are all worthy of our attention.