Developed by J. D. Payne & Patrick McKay
1.05 “Partings”
Written by Justin Doble
Directed by Wayne Che Yip
Starring Daniel Weyman, Morfydd Clark, Charlie Vickers, Ismael Cruz Córdova
New episodes streaming Fridays on Amazon Prime

by Megan Bailey, Staff Writer

This episode opens with Nori (Markella Kavenagh) explaining the Harfoots’ migration to the stranger (Daniel Weyman). He thinks he’s a peril, but Nori convinces him that he’s good. As they struggle along the way, Poppy (Megan Richards) sings a walking song. This sequence is pure Tolkien to me. Tolkien included so many songs in The Lord of the Rings, and the path shown through the maps is such a lovely touch. I’ll be rewatching this sequence a lot, I’m sure.

With Nori’s group a little bit behind, Sadoc (Lenny Henry) and Malva (Thusitha Jayasundera) discuss how the stranger might be the reason why the migration is so hard this year. Malva suggests taking their wheels and leaving Nori and her family behind. However, as she collects food in the woods, Nori, Poppy, and the stranger save her from a pack of wolves. The stranger uses some kind of magic, slamming down on the ground and pushing the pack away. Now that the stranger, especially, has shown his ability to help, he won’t be seen as such a threat. But his magic has a cost, bruising all down his arm.

In the process of magically healing himself, he scares Nori. Now she’s unsure if he is as good as she’d told him earlier. Of course, this happens now that the Harfoots have seen that he’s helpful. As we see the stranger in his gray robes, in the forest, maybe we’re seeing a glimpse of who he will become: Gandalf!

Of note, some mysterious folks are looking around the spot where the stranger landed. And if you’ve seen the online discourse about the show, the person in the hood is the character everyone threw a fit about possibly being Sauron, but I think they probably aren’t. Since we haven’t seen them before, though, they’re a complete mystery.

Bronwyn (Nazanin Boniadi) and Arondir (Ismael Cruz Córdova) tell the refugees in the tower about Adar’s (Joseph Mawle) offer. While they initially seem to be willing to fight, Waldreg (Geoff Morrell) convinces a good number of them to go and swear fealty to Adar. But when they get there, Waldreg says that he pledges his allegiance to Sauron, and Adar doesn’t react well. Waldreg says he’ll serve whoever Adar is, so we’re left to wonder about his identity. One thing’s for sure, he’s headed to the tower next.

Back in the tower, Theo (Tyroe Muhafidin) tells Arondir about the hilt, which leads them to discover that there’s something there that goes with it. The hilt’s a key to something in the tower that will help Adar and the orcs. Arondir is hopeful, trying to convince Bronwyn that they can still fight, but she’s starting to understand why the elves had watched her people for so long—they are susceptible to evil.

In Númenor, Isildur (Maxim Baldry) wants his dad to give him a spot on one of the ships to Middle-Earth, essentially a Númenorean nepotism baby, but Elendil (Lloyd Owen) refuses. 

As Númenorean soldiers train, Galadriel (Morfydd Clark) gives them a fighting lesson. I love this sequence for two reasons: Galadriel seems to find joy in helping them learn, which is very cool. And I just know there are seething crybabies who are mad about how strong she is. She’s been fighting for hundreds of years; of course she can beat these trainees! Elendil tells the fighters that if any of them can draw blood from Galadriel, they’ll be promoted to lieutenant. Only one–Valandil (Alex Tarrant), one of Isildur’s friends who was kicked out of the Sea Guard–does.

There’s a subplot here with Elendil’s daughter and Pharazôn’s son not wanting the trip to Middle-earth to happen, but I don’t really understand why. Is it just the anti-elf slant the Númenoreans have, or is there something more? I wish there’d been more explanation of why Eärien (Ema Horvath) is so against it. Spurred on by her, Pharazôn’s son, Kemen (Leon Wadham), runs off to blow up one of the ships. But as he’s about to set the ship ablaze, he hears Isildur, who’s stowed away on the ship in hopes to go to Middle-earth.

Isildur helps Kemen escape the burning ship and lies to his father about what he’d seen. By saving Kemen, Isil has proven his worth to Elendil. With the attack on the ship, Galadriel must convince Halbrand (Charlie Vickers) to help her get everything back on track. Halbrand talks about having to do horrible things to survive in the Southlands, and this is intercut with Waldreg’s group meeting up with Adar. Clearly leading us to believe that Halbrand had a similar experience. But in this same conversation, he apologizes to Galadriel about her brother’s death, which definitely fuels the Halbrand Is Sauron Theory. But I’m still holding out hope for a different turn.  

Halbrand agrees to go to Middle-earth, purposefully leaving behind his token—which someone grabs. Then we’re treated to a lovely scene of the Númenoreans preparing for the trip to Middle-earth. Everyone’s in armor, and the city is resplendent. Galadriel boards the ship, in her armor, looking absolutely incredible.

In Lindon, the elves host a meal with Durin (Owain Arthur) in a show of friendship. But Gil-Galad (Benjamin Walker) stirs up some trouble by asking why Khazad-dûm has been so busy. Durin and Elrond know why: mithril. And it’s clear that Gil-Galad has some inkling. But Durin holds back with Elrond’s help and, instead, scams his way into getting a new table for Disa. What a guy!

After the dinner, we find out why the Gil-Galad is so interested in what the dwarves are doing. They’re interested in mithril because of an apocryphal story about a battle between an unnamed elf and a Balrog, where the last of the lost Silmarils may have been hidden. This story led Gil-Galad to believe that mithril is part of that lost Silmaril, something they desperately need now. The tree leaves in Lindon are decaying as an outer manifestation of the elves’ fading. Elrond realizes that Gil-Galad and Celebrimbor have been playing him, sending him to the dwarves as if it was his idea to help with the forge, but they had ulterior motives.

Elrond comes clean to Durin, who is kind of delighted to have the fate of the elves in his hands. Knowing what’s coming in Moria, this adds another layer of tragedy, given what they’ll awaken when they mine for more mithril. But Durin and Elrond still need to convince the King to mine for more mithril.

This Silmaril bit is a break from canon, and I’m interested to see where it’s coming from. I think it’s a sign that there’s some kind of influence over the elves. Not all is well in Lindon if the elves are so willing to take advantage of the dwarves to save their own kind. Plus, there’s no way to be sure that it would actually work. Knowing that Sauron can take many forms and that Celebrimbor is destined for baddy behavior, we’re probably in for a twist at some point.

There’s a lot of set-up in this week’s episode, so I’m excited to see it all pay off next week. I’m hopeful that we’re going to stick with showing every storyline in each episode. There are only three episodes left, and since the Númenor and Southlands characters will be meeting up, it makes sense that we can spend time with each group. I’m not totally sure how things are going to go, and that leaves me looking forward to the last three episodes!