Warning: spoilers forward for The Rings of Energy episode 7The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Energy‘s Balrog reveal is a fairly large deal, however may danger a breakaway from established Center-earth canon. The Rings of Energy episode 7 (“The Eye”) sees Owain Arthur’s Durin IV defy his father to mine for mithril alongside Elrond. They strike upon a veritable motherlode of the silver stuff, however Moria’s King Durin III sees match to disregard their discovery, casting Gil-galad’s cured Lindon leaf down by way of the shaft. As The Rings of Energy‘s digital camera follows this leaf on its descent by way of Moria, it lands on the backside to be greeted by a flaming Balrog stirring from slumber.
The impactful picture of a demonic presence within the Mines of Moria confirms two issues. Firstly, the Balrog seen in The Rings of Energy‘s trailer footage is the identical one Gandalf fights in The Lord of the Rings. Second, the Balrog from The Rings of Energy‘s invented mithril origin story continues to be alive, and has been sleeping beneath the mountain following its struggle with an Elf. Because it was the Balrog’s battle that really created mithril in Amazon-canon, Durin IV and Elrond’s hunt for the mythic ore has lastly opened a pathway between the sleeping monster and the Dwarves above. That pathway has now woke up their native Balrog, however therein lies a possible canon problem…
Does The Rings Of Energy’s Balrog Break Canon?
By Gandalf and Gimli’s exposition and The Lord of the Rings‘ appendices regarding Durin’s Folks, J.R.R. Tolkien is pretty clear that Moria’s Balrog wasn’t disturbed till the Eighties (of the Third Age, that’s, not the last decade of spandex and Bon Jovi). That is nonetheless no less than 2000 years away from The Rings of Energy‘s present place, and but Durin’s Bane seems to be fairly awake by the tip of episode 7, teasing some sort of assault from beneath upon the unsuspecting Dwarves of Moria.
Any kind of Balrog exercise in The Rings of Energy‘s Second Age timeline would certainly danger breaking canon in an enormous approach. The aim of Durin’s Bane in The Lord of the Rings is to focus on greed – the Dwarves dug too deep for the ever-dwindling mithril and paid the value. Throughout Durin III’s reign, Moria’s mithril operation has barely begun, so the Balrog attacking right here would not work thematically. Any kind of Balrog assault in the course of the Second Age would certainly additionally deter even probably the most mithril-manic Dwarf from pursuing the uncommon ore any additional.
How The Rings Of Energy’s Balrog Can Keep away from Breaking Canon
A technique The Rings of Energy may avert rupturing established continuity (and the most definitely end result) is by merely not displaying any extra of Durin’s winged Bane. The creature is roused by a falling leaf, has somewhat stretch, then goes again to sleep for an additional 2000 years. Whereas Tolkien’s canon would stay intact, audiences may justifiably really feel duped that episode 7’s Balrog tease (which was given a distinguished spot in trailer footage) would not result in any important payoff – little greater than a CGI Easter egg to foreshadow future occasions made well-known by The Lord of the Rings. It’d additionally really feel a mite unusual for the Balrog to get up resulting from a single leaf, however then by some means sleep soundly when the Dwarves start mining within the shaft instantly above.
The trickier choice can be for Amazon’s The Rings of Energy to by some means combine the woke up Balrog into its narrative, whereas explaining why it goes again to sleep for a number of millennia, and why the Dwarves not solely survive however proceed mining mithril regardless. Possibly the woke up Balrog launches an assault, however only some Dwarves are current within the Outdated Mine on the time. They handle to subdue it (may Disa’s singing work?) and Durin’s Bane goes again to sleep. The witnesses select to maintain their traumatic encounter secret to keep away from their faint hopes of mithril fortune being scrapped fully. No matter comes subsequent, The Rings of Energy walks a tough stability between paying off its Balrog tease, and never altering Moria’s future.
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The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Energy continues Thursday/Friday on Prime Video.
