Fans are still coming to terms with the rapidly approaching conclusion to season one of Amazon Prime’s The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power.
The first season of the fantasy series had its ups and downs, but largely delighted viewers with a taste for its specific brand of storytelling. Its sky-high budget and complex plot, not to mention the many locations it is filmed at, demand serious time and effort, however, which likely means a lengthy wait between seasons one and two. Most fans of the series aren’t too disappointed by this fact, but they are hoping the showrunners take the time between seasons to assess some of the less popular subplots from Rings of Power‘s debut season.
One plot line, in particular, is proving itself to be broadly unpopular among viewers — particularly those familiar with the many works of Tolkien. They’re hoping it’s quietly abandoned, or at least explained away, early in season two, so the series can instead spend its time — and its massive budget — on far more popular stories.
The Silmaril subplot involving Durin and Elrond immediately rankled fans when it cropped up in the series. Fans are still uncertain if Gil-Galad’s insistence that mithril contains the power of the Two Trees of Valinor is true or false, but the show’s most recent episode seemingly confirmed as such.
This confirmation prompted a response from one disappointed fan, who took to Reddit to proclaim the subplot as the “only major miss of the first season,” and share their hope that it is dropped in later seasons.
Viewers in the comment section largely agreed with the OP, with one even comparing the subplot to that of midi-chlorians in Star Wars. Nemarus agreed with this assessment, noting that the two plot lines share the “same energy.”
It’s still possible that the connection between mithril and the Silmarils is a misdirection, but fans are becoming increasingly certain that this isn’t the case. If it isn’t, those in charge of the show are hopefully paying attention and will pick up on the negative fan reaction to this particular storyline. There’s plenty to enjoy in Rings of Power, but this weird mangling of Tolkien lore is very much not it.