With the new Rings of Power trailer dropping recently, there are a plethora of exciting scenes that give more context and insights into this new take on the beloved world of Tolkien. The latest teaser gave plenty of hidden details around characters, locations, and plot devices, and expanded upon some things avidly awaiting fans have theorized for a while now. However, it also provoked a new wave of questions.
One of these questions arises from the very start of the trailer, showing the solemn Galadriel (played by Morfydd Clark from the tantalizing horror film Saint Maud) place an elven helmet atop an enormous pile other fallen Elves' helmets. She does so while speaking of war — but what war was this exactly, and how does it relate to the story?
While examining the timeline Tolkien laid out over his Middle Earth writings, it’s fairly easy to deduce that this battle was most likely one of, if not the concluding battle, of the War of Wrath. This war, also known as the Great Battle, was a war fought between the Elves, Valar, and men against the almighty forces of Morgoth, depicted in Tolkien's work, The Silmarillion.
Being the original Dark Lord during the First Age, Morgoth (or Melkor, as he is sometimes known) essentially created most of the evil in Tolkien's later works, including the dragons, the Balrogs, and in teaching him everything he knows, Sauron himself. In a tale of almost biblical parallels, Melkor was the most powerful Ainu created by Eru at the dawn of Middle Earth, but rebelled in true Lucifer fashion and began his journey to corrupt and conquer. Sauron was under his command during these times, his power being almost insignificant compared to his master's. Together, these two characters became metaphors for truest and darkest evil. Despite this power, the War of Wrath ended, after over 40 years, with Morgoth's defeat. This signified the end of the First Age and the dawn of the Second, which is when the events of the Rings of Power are thought to take place.
While it’s still unclear exactly when the show will be set, it’s suggested through visuals of a blossoming utopia that it is likely to be quite a few years after the war, which would have decimated much of Middle Earth. It is said that the geographical carnage was unimaginable, with nearly everything west of the Blue Mountains having been obliterated or sunk. The inhabitants have returned to a sense of lulled peace, and while there is still turmoil in the world, with Orcs created by Morgoth still wandering the land without a master (the surviving Sauron yet to claim the Dark Lord’s crown), a resounding calm seems to have settled over the land. The scene at the start of the trailer is most likely a flashback, showing the fairly immediate aftermath of the war, with Galadriel returning to the battlefield to pay her respects to the dead. It’s likely this is after the war has been won, as she is not in her war garments, but rather in a white gown, a fairly suggestive signifier for peace.
Things are not well, however, as the casualties of war are shown in this clip to have been massive. While some have mocked the trailer for showing an almost comically large pile of helmets, it’s a great way to instantly show the gravitas of what has happened. This pile is most likely just one of thousands. The symbolism behind Galadriel placing the helmet on the pile is not only her paying her respects for her fallen comrades, but might also signify a deeper meaning with her connection to her fallen brother Finrod. Finrod was King of Nargothrond during the end of the First Age, and was regarded as one of the most loved and respected Elves in Middle Earth’s history. He was one of the few who managed to not only command Elves, but also Men and the notoriously stubborn Dwarves. He was one of the many Elven nobility to lead the charge against Morgoth, and in the books lead a covert mission to take back the powerful Silmaril from the enemy forces. He was captured by Sauron, tortured, and then sacrificed himself to save two of his comrades from the claws of one of the Werewolves of Gaurhoth.
It is thought that getting vengeance for the fall of her brother, as well as dealing with the grief and survivors guilt of the War of Wrath, will be a major part of Galadriel's character arc for the show. However, during the new trailer, there are other scenes of war. One such notable moment shows Galadriel waking up, covered in soot and dust, while a settlement burns around her. Seemingly the only survivor, this could be the moment she referred to during other trailers, when she repeats to Elrond “you have not seen what I have seen.”
Many fans are interested to learn what the village is, how these other battles feed into the War of Wrath, and how Galadriel becomes entangled in the sequence of events that transpire. This could be the epicenter for a big tragedy during the war, and it is possible that it’s the moment that Finrod is killed. Watching her brother die at the hands of Sauron, only to survive herself when everyone else ends in ruin and despair, would make an emotional and poignant moment (amped up of course with a score written by the one and only Howard Shore) for Galadriel to start the revenge quest, and set into motion one of the driving narratives of The Rings of Power into motion.