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The weakest part of the episode comes at the very end with a pair of scenes that just seem like unnecessary explainers.

The dwarven king might be making the smart play, but there’s too much momentum against him. Disa’s fiery speech to Durin about their future clearly leaves its mark, setting up an early succession fight. These are some powerful scenes showing the conflict between found and blood family, especially in a society as traditional as the dwarves. Númenór saved the people of the Southlands from being slaughtered by Adar and his orcs, but their mission still feels like a failure since the land was destroyed and so many died in the volcanic eruption. The Rings of Power is doing justice to these themes by showing that while the just will answer the call of those in need, their military and political success isn’t a given. Written in reaction to World War I, The Lord of the Rings is a story about when it’s right to go to war and the devastating price of large-scale conflicts.

But what’s most compelling about his purported death is the impact it has on Isildur’s father, Elendil, pushing him into conflict with queen-regent Tar-Míriel. Obviously he’s going to be OK given he’s got a long future ahead of him, so expect to see how he survives and gets reunited with his horse next week.

The Númenóreans are also devastated, with Isildur losing one of his best friends and then seemingly falling himself. How good an idea it is to give the kid a sword and send him on the warrior’s path remains to be seen, but it’s entirely unsurprising that’s what Galadriel’s solution would be since battle is the only way she’s ever been able to deal with her grief. Theo and Galadriel intertwine together surprisingly well as they grapple with guilt over their failings. It’s a hard ask to let your mom be brutally murdered, especially since it’s almost impossible to imagine the scope of what Adar was planning. It’s easy to have contempt for Theo, who was about to give into the temptation to use the hilt again right before discovering the consequences of surrendering it to Adar in the first place, but I’m prone to give the kid a little credit. Separated from the Númenóreans, she finds a surprising traveling companion in Theo as they try to make their way to the fallback camp.