Things Fall Apart in "Doomed to Die"
Catastrophe Strikes as the Centre Cannot Hold in The Rings of Power Season 2, Episode 7
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Things Fall Apart in "Doomed to Die"
Catastrophe Strikes As The Center Does Not Hold in The Rings of Power Season 2, Episode 7
*Spoiler-free Thoughts*
"Doomed To Die" is all about beginnings and endings, Creation and Sacrifice.
Celebrimbor told Elrond in season 1 episode 2, "True creation demands sacrifice." But who decides when the price of creation grows too much? When the sacrifice is no longer worth it? Is it really 'sacrifice' if it is others who pay the cost for you?
The penultimate episode of The Rings of Power Season 2, “Doomed To Die” sees the storm that has grown all season unleashed against Eregion. Blood is spilled, threads unravel, and darkness threatens to overwhelm as Eregion and all of Middle-earth teeter on the edge of catastrophe.
"Doomed To Die" is another strong episode (episodes 5, 6, and now 7 have all been excellent) that sends the story hurtling towards an epic showdown in the final episode but that still has plenty of time for quieter character moments. This is in part because the action in this episode is centered fully on Eregion and Khazad-dûm, leaving the conclusion of the Númenor and Rhûn storylines for next week's finale. The episode is stronger for it's more narrow focus, with more time for the slow moments of sorrow and grief, confession, encouragement, and more that make us actually care about what's happening instead of watching dispassionately.
It's not a perfect hour of television (but really, what is?) but it's an intense and captivating one that forces the characters to make choices that will define them and shape the fortunes of all of Middle-earth.
Catastrophe looms over Eregion. Will the forces of darkness or light prevail?
*Spoilers for The Rings of Power Season 2, Episode 7, “Doomed to Die?”*
Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold;
Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world,
The blood-dimmed tide is loosed, and everywhere
The ceremony of innocence is drowned;
-from “The Second Coming” by William Butler Yeats
"All things must end," Celebrimbor says to Annatar as they discuss the near completion of the Rings of Power.
Endings and beginnings. Creation and sacrifice. Everywhere you look in "Doomed To Die," individuals are facing a reckoning for their past choices and weighing the cost of staying true to them.
As he continues his work on the Nine Rings, Celebrimbor continues to notice a few things that just aren't right—Fëanor's hammer missing a ruby, his reflection suddenly disheveled in a mirror—but for the moment Annatar's illusion holds and Celebrimbor continues his work.
Outside the mirage of peace that is Celebrimbor's false reality, Annatar assumes command of the defense of Eregion. To Mirdania and others Annatar continues to seed doubts about Celebrimbor's state of mind, claiming that "his mind is gone" and promising that he will see that Mirdania is "duly rewarded" for all her hard work and assistance.
Though the river shields Eregion from a full scale ground assault, Adar's forces continue their terraforming brand of warfare. Where the Uruks unleashed a river to create Mount Doom and Mordor, they now dam a river to begin the destruction of Eregion.
Elrond arrives in Khazad-dûm to ask for Prince Durin's aid in fighting against Adar and Sauron. Durin fully intends to come to his friend's aid and gives a rousing speech to rally the Dwarves to fight and show the world "that dwarven loyalty is a force stronger than any sorcery, more powerful than any army, deeper than the bones of the earth." But these words are immediately put to the test. After Elrond leaves, the influence of Sauron's sorcery via King Durin’s Ring of Power reaches a critical point. King Durin has attacks his own people and will continue to dig, potentially unleashing the Balrog. As Narvi, covered in blood from the struggle, puts it to Prince Durin, "You take that army to Eregion now, and Khazad-dûm might not be here when you return." Does Durin risk sacrificing his home and family or choose his loyalty to his friend?
Having created Mordor last season as a home for the Uruks, Adar now aims to sacrifice whatever it takes to create a world without Sauron where his children can live in peace. Even if that means sacrificing many of them in the process. He sends them forward and the first wave of orcs pours towards Eregion.
As the foes without the walls are revealed, the foe within the walls emerges too. Celebrimbor has noticed several details in his workshop—candles that don't burn down, creatures that follow predictable patterns—that confirm for him that not all is as peaceful as it seems. He asks Annatar "What have you done to me?" and "Who are you...truly."
"I am the one keeping the storm at bay. Balancing the very sun above your head. All to give you this one chance to prove your worth!" Never mind that he is the one who has summoned the storm to Eregion. Forgive him for a moment for claiming to stop the sun in the sky, something only a god could do (like Yahweh did for Joshua in Joshua chapter 10). He has done this all for Celebrimbor, who he claims begged for this.
Celbrimbor hurls Fëanor's hammer at Sauron and as it shatters a window the illusion is shattered too. To his shock and horror, the true state of Eregion, his workshop, and Celebrimbor himself is revealed to him.
"I have learned so much from you since I came to you in Eregion," Sauron tells Celebrimbor. "But no lesson more lasting than this. True creation requires sacrifice."
Sauron holds up his hand and reveals a bloody wound. The black blood matches the contents of the jar of mithril, which is not, as Sauron claimed, truly mithril, but instead his own blood. He was pierced not for others' transgressions but to commit his own. His blood was poured out not for forgiveness of sins but for the domination of the wills of all peoples of Middle-earth.
Celebrimbor knows beyond a shadow of a doubt who he is dealing with. This is no emissary of the Valar: he is the servant of their great foe. "You are He. Are You not? You are -
"I have many names," Sauron says, just as he did to Galadriel.1
Sauron now switches from deception to threats and torture to get Celebrimbor to finish the Nine. Celebrimbor's pleas to the other elves of Eregion go unheeded, since they believe he has lost his mind under the strain of his work. Sauron even manages to frame Celebrimbor for the death of Mirdania—who is most certainly not Celebrían in disguise—as he causes her to fall from the walls to a death at the hands of the orcs below.
"Finish the Nine, and I will spare your city," Sauron threatens.
"What will you do with them?" Celebrimbor asks.
"Create a perfect and lasting peace."
The Army of Lindon arrives and begins to charge the orc army in a beautiful sequence that's visually stunning. But the revelation that Galadriel is being held captive brings this stunning charge to a halt. Gil-galad and Elrond must consider the cost to save Eregion and save Galadriel.
Elrond and Adar attempt to negotiate, but Elrond will not give up Nenya in exchange for Galadriel. Adar threatens to defeat Elrond on the field of battle, but Elrond notes the way Adar's obsession with Sauron is beginning to be at odds with his role as a father.
"Are you prepared to spend their lives so freely, Adar?" he asks, emphasizing his name—Sindarin for 'Father'—to drive home his point.
Elrond will not sacrifice the Ring to save Galadriel, so he asks to say farewell to her. As he kisses her, he slips her a piece of his cloak pin to use to escape. His gamble works, as he is able to distract any attention from this exchange with his display of affection for his friend that he thinks he may very well be saying goodbye to forever.
Rattled some by Elrond's words, the orc Glûg asks Adar whether the time has come to sound the retreat.
"No, Sauron must not escape. Bring down that wall. At any cost," he replies.
"Adar! (Father), you told us...you loved us."
"With all that is left of my heart. Too much to let you become Sauron's slaves."
Adar has decided for his children that their death is preferable to living in thralldom to Sauron. Here is a father who so loves the world he envisions that he sends many of his children to their deaths. He genuinely does believe he is doing this for them and we see that he grieves every loss: he weeps over dead orcs, repeating "In flames they return to darkness" over some about to be cremated.
But the cost of his obsession to defeat Sauron once and for all is climbing, and even his children are beginning to wonder whether he is doing this for them or for himself.
In contrast to Adar, Arondir is able to set aside his obsession to end Adar's life, at least temporarily, as he helps Galadriel escape the Orc camp and accompanies her to Eregion.
As he works, Celebrimbor listens to Sauron’s description of how Melkor tortured him and his claims of how what he intends to do is superior to Melkor’s aim. “His end, it was different from mine. For what he wished to destroy, I wished…to perfect.”
Sauron attempts to convince Celebrimbor that he had no choice but to torment the great Elven smith. Celebrimbor sees through this, however: “You truly are the great deceiver. You can even deceive yourself.”
This barb gets to Sauron, who leaves him with a simple, “Finish them.” But Celebrimbor has realized Sauron is not the only one who was self-deceived. After he escapes from his chains (sacrificing his own thumb to do so) he meets Galadriel below and they connect as only two victims of Sauron could:
“From the beginning, a part of me… knew,” Celebrimbor confesses. “A part of me saw. But I…I wanted what he offered. So I…I blinded myself to what he was.”
“So did I,” says Galadriel.
The scales have fallen from their eyes, though perhaps too late.
Before they part, Celebrimbor shares what may turn out to be the key observation for Galadriel to be able to defeat Sauron:
“There might not be anyone in Middle-earth who is [strong enough to resist or defeat Sauron]. But perhaps, the Elves need only remember that it is not strength that overcomes darkness, but light. Armies may rise, hearts may fail, yet still light endures and is mightier than strength. For in its presence, all darkness must flee.”
“Namárië” (farewell), he says to Galadriel.
Celebrimbor is unfortunately correct in one aspect: the strength of the Elves fails to overcome the darkness. Several standout moments of the rest of the action provide moments of hope: Elven archer Rían helps take down the crew of the Ravager who are destroying the wall and Elrond, Arondir, and Gil-galad work together to defeat Damrod the Hill-troll. But ultimately the Elves are on the verge of defeat despite these heroics when dawn begins to break.
"The Dwarves are coming!" Elrond cries as light floods over the hills. Those of us who know our Tolkien are primed for this to be a moment of Eucatastrophe, similar to when Bilbo cries "The Eagles are coming!" Just when all hope is lost, surely good will triumph!
But there is no eucatastrophe to be had here, simply catastrophe. Durin has not come (at least not yet) and things fall apart. The center does not hold. The few remaining Elves of Lindon are overwhelmed. Arondir has his chance to face Adar…and is ruthlessly dispatched by him, left dying on the ground. Orcs breach the walls of the city and pour in. Elrond, repeating “Durin will come, Durin will come…” is captured by Adar, who holds Nenya out in the final shot of the episode. Darkness covers all.
Read my review of Rings of Power Season 2 Episode 8 here:
Read reviews of previous Rings of Power season 2 episodes in Jokien with Tolkien here:
Episodes 1–3:
Episode 4, “Eldest”
Episode 5, “Halls of Stone”
Episode 6, “Where Is He?”
Unfinished Tales
Where I share likes, dislikes, stray observations, quotes, and speculation/theories that didn’t make it into the above
Strong episode once again. Very compelling overall, especially those quieter moments where characters voiced grief or sorrow. Enjoyed it so much overall!
That said, the way they had that beautiful epic cavalry charge…and then brought it to a halt? Did not enjoy that. Felt it was a misstep to build it up like that and then have it go nowhere.
“My heart sings to see you, old friend.”
“You tidal-haired, flowery-tongued flagpole.”
I need an Elrond/Durin spin-off. It could literally be anything with them, I need it.I loved the reveal that it was Sauron’s blood that was mixed into the Nine Rings, especially since Sauron holds a dagger in the prologue of PJ's LOTR because in a planned but cut scene he would have held gold in his hand, stabbed his palm, and formed the Ring out of a mixture of his blood and the gold
I was searching for the opposite of ‘eucatastrophe’ and wrote “anti-eucastastrophe…which is just a straight up catastrophe?” lol
Elrond needs a hug
No way Arondir is dead, though he’s in rough shape. Mirdania though…not holding out hope she survived that. She really shouldn’t have been up there on the wall in the first place. So evil for Sauron to literally cast her aside like that the instant she’s more useful to him dead than alive.
We really get to see a lot more of Sauron here and it’s just great. Charlie Vickers is doing an amazing job.
Speaking of amazing jobs, Charles Edwards is just knocking every scene as Celebrimbor out of the park.
Ok, strength cannot drive darkness out, only light (that speech felt very “Sam’s speech in Two Towers to me). Where will the light come from in Episode 8?
Have another thought? Leave it in the comments!
Is Adar going to die? If so, who will finish him off?
How will one episode wrap up the siege of Eregion AND the Númenor and Rhûn stories? I think it’s telling that two of the strongest episodes of the season (5 and 7) focused almost completely on fewer plotlines…
Ok, so this kiss. It worked for me! I didn’t take it as trying to be romantic, more as an attempt to distract and also say goodbye potentially forever. But what about you all? It’s gonna make future family gatherings a liiiiiiiitle awkward tho. Speaking of…
CELEBORN WATCH:
Was Celeborn mentioned in Season 2, Episode 7? no
Was Celeborn IN ROP Season 2, Episodes 7? Still no
(I did this each week last year on Twitter and had too much fun with it, so I’m continuing the tradition)
Appendices
We’re already at the point where next week will be the last episode of the season and therefore also the final week of this Rings of Power coverage!
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“I have been awake since before the breaking of the first silence. In that time, I've had many names."
"Elrond needs a hug" I will take it!! I will take the hug to Elrond--I mean, the ring to Mordor!!
This episode was devastating, absolutely here for it. I agree that the halt of the charge was very frustrating, and I'm disappointed that we never got to experience that cathartic moment of the armies meeting. I was very glad that this episode didn't waste any time on subplots--the focus on the battle and on the Celebrimbor/Sauron interactions was great. And that kiss, I screamed at my TV!!
Something else that shook me about this episode was the way Sauron's manipulations of Celebrimbor read as textbook narcissistic abuse: blaming it all on him, telling him it was all his fault, etc. I like how you pointed out the almost anti-Christ parallels (i.e. spilling his blood for the sake of domination) and the way Celebrimbor calls him out as ultimate deceiver because those moments felt shockingly similar to the way Satan is described in the Bible. I know elsewhere one of the showrunners mentioned that he draws from sacred texts here and there and I was wondering if that was his goal here.
Love these thoughts!! That whole conversation between Galadriel and Celebrimbor—their admission of wanting what Sauron offered, the insufficiency of just strength alone to drive out the darkness—really cemented for me that the writers do understand and love Tolkien's vision of the world. For all the various pacing and plot flaws in RoP, these last few episodes have turned me into a fan. I can't get over Charlie Vickers' and Charles Edwards' acting either.