“A Bit Too Gory”: Rings Of Power Season 2 Episode 7 Death Was Almost Way More Gruesome
The second unit director for The Rings of Power season 2 episode 7 reveals that a major Elf death in the episode was almost way more gory. After premiering at the end of August, Prime Video’s hit Lord of the Rings series – created by Patrick McKay and J.D. Payne – just depicted the bloody Battle of Eregion. One shocking death in the episode arrives fairly early when Sauron ( Charlie Vickers) uses his powers to knock Celebrimbor’s ( Charles Edwards) assistant, Mirdania ( Amelia Kenworthy), down to attacking Orcs - who promptly kill her.
What Mirdania’s Death Means For The Rings of Power
Just as Celebrimbor is seeing the light and attempting to take back control of his city from Sauron / Annatar, the Dark Lord uses Mirdania’s death to make sure that Celebrimbor’s fellow Elves still see the legendary smith as unstable and unreliable. Mirdania ’s demise helps to further cement just how ruthless and truly evil and irredeemable Sauron is, and the lengths he will go to pursue his rings - but it also helps to spur Celebrimbor to action. Celebrimbor cuts off his own thumb to escape and make sure that the nine Rings of Power for Men don’t fall into Sauron ’s hands.
Celebrimbor is an important character in the lore of The Lord of the Rings, with a history central to the creation of the Rings of Power.
Celebrimbor Will Likely Carry The Weight of Mirdania’s Death In The Rings of Power
With Eregion now in ruins and the Rings of Power season 2 episode 7 death toll being quite high, Mirdania’s death is clearly part of a much larger tragedy, and it will likely be treated as such in the show. Celebrimbor is sure to carry the death with him, but the surviving characters clearly still have much bigger problems. The episode essentially ends, after all, with Adar ( Sam Hazeldine) claiming victory, meaning the remaining Elves of Eregion may not have time to mourn in The Rings of Power’s season 2 finale.
Our Take On Mirdania’s Death In The Rings of Power Season 2
The world of Middle-earth is beautiful and fantastical, and many parts of it are full of joy, but Mirdania’s death helps to reinforce the true darkness that threatens to pollute the land. It also helps to cement the show’s stakes. Mirdania was never a major character in the show, but her death was shocking, and it speaks to just how dangerous the forces of evil can be and how many in the world of Middle-earth don’t get happy endings.
That being said, as a Lord of the Rings show, there are certain tonal expectations from audiences, and including the gory version of Mirdania ’s death probably would have felt like a step too far. As the death is depicted in the episode, the moment manages to still be shocking and gruesome without feeling gratuitous or jarring in a bad way.
Will There Be More Rings Of Power?
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power season 2 finale releases on Thursday, October 3, on Prime Video.
