Warning: may contain spoilers.
Going back to the world of the Lord of the Rings was fun.
I don’t remember connecting with many of the characters during season 1, except for the Stranger and Prince Durin, but in season 2 I felt closer to several of them, including Galadriel.
The Numenor story, including the Queen, Isildur and company continued to be a turn-off, I guess because of the arrogance of most characters, and lack of connection with the cast. That made the otherwise likeable Elendil, feel out of place. I kept telling myself, if I were Elendil I would get out of here. I’m not like any of them.
That said, because of the large number of characters it was hard to get close to any of them because of the little screen time they got.
My favorite character was, again, the Stranger. I’m drawn to the promise of mastering the laws of physics and using magic.
In terms of entertainment, maybe it was because of the build-up from season one, but I found it more engaging. There were several episodes where I lost track of time, something that rarely happened in the first season. But there was also a lot of moments that took me out because of unbelievability, like, just from the last few episodes, Galadriel getting knocked off after falling two meters on bouncy soil, Celebrimbor, a smart elf city ruler, falling prey to Annatar’s crappy arguments, Prince Durin behaving one moment like a mature man and the next like a child, and everybody constantly crying, including Sauron.
On balance, though, the series turned from entertaining to “Looking forward to season 3.” Thanks to everybody who made it possible!
What if…
…I was a smith with immense power and I could create artifacts of perfection alongside a divine entity? I’ve been seen behind that veil, nothing made of matter lasts forever. And my definition of divine is something not of this world. I may still get a dopamine boost out of creating such artifacts, and I’m not a master of this mind, so, I don’t know if I would do it.
…I could use power to save people, but knowing that that power could make me later do evil? Based on what I’m journaling these days, I’m 100% sure that I would use it (fear of death, preservation of others’ life) and 85% sure I would misuse it in one form or another.
…I had been manipulated by someone smarter than me and I had the chance to get revenge? If that person had done to me what Sauron did to Galadriel, I don’t think I would feel the need for revenge, and if I did, I would only bother if I was sure I would win, which means I wouldn’t try to kill him alone.
…I was the only defender of someone important and I had to choose between fleeing and saving my life or staying and very likely getting killed? If that someone were royalty, I would be gone in less time than that sentence takes to get written. If it were certain people in my life, I would stay no matter the circumstances.