Includes spoilers for the Rings of Power season 2 finale.
After laying down some notable clues, Amazon Prime’s The rings of power had finally confirmed the stranger to be Gandalf. In the TV prequel to the lord of the rings The rings of power The cast features Daniel Weyman as the stranger, although the actor will finally be able to use his character’s real name. at the end of Season 1, it actually seemed quite clear that the stranger is Gandalf, but the series continued to dodge concrete answer, finally delivering confirmation in the season 2 finale.
The misdirection continued to encourage theories of other options, suggesting the stranger was a Blue Wizard, Saruman, or someone else entirely. Now that he is finally confirmed as Gandalf in the Rings of power Season 2 ending, it seems fairly obvious in retrospect. It was crucial for his character to fulfill a small arc in season 2 before fully revealing his name. Season 1 revealed that he was a “good” wizard, but Season 2 importantly demonstrated the qualities that make him soShowing Gandalf’s values ​​of friendship that would one day be instrumental in the War of the Ring.
The stranger used a classic Gandalf quote from The Fellowship of the Ring
In the climax of The rings of power Season 1, The Stranger fights the Dwellers and Believers, and the primary purpose of this scene is to confirm that he is not Sauron. The stranger confirms that he is not an evil Maiar and that he is one of the good guys. But that still didn’t confirm that he was Gandalf. It was his Final quote of the season that really led fans to confirm their belief in the stranger being Gandalf, which was him advising Norrie to “Always follow your nose.”
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This is a quote from The Fellowship of the Ring. As the Fellowship travels through the Mines of Moria, Gandalf loses his way, eventually deciding on a path by following his nose.Where he shares this quote for the first time. The rings of power Made it pretty clear who the stranger was in the season 1 finale, because that’s the quintessential Gandalf philosophy.
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The Stranger meets Tom Bombadil before The Lord of the Rings
Gandalf and Tom Bombadil met, but the books don’t say why or when
The stranger meeting Tom Bombadil in The rings of power May have been a surprise, as neither one is known for making an impact on the Second Age of Middle-earth. With that being said, Gandalf agreed Knows about Tom Bombadil in The Lord of the RingsAnd he mentions that he had previous ranks with him. They don’t actually see each other in the books, but Gandalf talks about the mysterious character in a way that implies knowledge of him.
Tom Bombadil and Gandalf’s meeting in Rhûn is an invention of the show, but the books never say that it did not happen. If the purpose of The rings of power is to condense the events of the second age into a five-part drama, and it is required to take some creative liberties with interpretation. But Tom Bombadil’s appearance could have been another hint about the stranger being Gandalf.
Loving Hobbits is crucial to Gandalf’s role in The Lord of the Rings The stranger arrives in Middle-earth, and the first to look after him is Nori Brandyfoot.
All Harfoots and Stores in The rings of power are original characters in the TV series, and they served a crucial purpose in establishing Gandalf in the series. Anyone who loves The Hobbit And The Lord of the Rings Understand why Gandalf likes witchcraftBut the prequel essentially shows a beginning to that love. The stranger arrives in Middle-earth, and the first to look after him is Nori Brandyfoot.
In Peter Jackson’s adaptation of The HobbitGandalf explains to Galadriel that the reason he needs Bilbo Baggins is because he gives him hope. In Amazon Prime’s interpretation of The Second Age, audiences see a version of Gandalf who arrived in Middle-earth confused and alone, and Nori is the first person to give him hope. She’s crucial to laying the foundation for his character, and even though they go their separate ways in season 3, she’ll always be with him.
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The stars call the foreigners “Grand-Eleven”
The Rings of Power makes a reference to Gandalf’s etymology
When the protagonists first arrive and meet the stores, where the leader Gundabel is a problem with the stranger. She describes him as a “great great grand elf,“Makes his kind for being an elf due to his height. Besides being A combination of words that sounds like “Gandalf,” triggering the stranger’s realization of his proper name, The rings of power Plays with the original etymology of Gandalf’s name.
In the language of the people of Middle-earth, Gandalf means “stick-elf” or “elf-of-the-stick.” And further The Lord of the Rings“Gander” is an Old Norse word meaning “stick” or “staff,” which is how Tolkien came up with the name. Part of what makes the world of Middle-earth so fascinating is that every name and term is designed with a little attention to language, so the reference in the TV series pays homage to that.
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Tom Bombadil uses a Gandalf quote from The Fellowship of the Ring
Rings of Power provides the origin for a classic Gandalf quote
in The rings of power Season 2, Episode 6, Tom Bombadil uses an altered quote from The Fellowship of the Ring Quote when talking to the stranger. He says, “Many who die deserve life, some who live deserve death. Who are you to give it to them?“ In the first movie, Gandalf talks to Frodo on their journey through Moria. Frodo suggests that Bilbo should have killed Gollum, to which Gandalf responds with a valuable philosophy about mercy.
This means that Gandalf is the head of Tom Bombadil The rings of power. At least, kind of. Tom initially uses the quote when positing that the stranger chooses training in magic over returning to help his friends. Once the stranger realizes that saving Nori, Poppy and the stores is the right thing to do, He probably realizes the phrase is better suited in reverse, instead saying, “Many who live deserve death. And some that die deserve life.“
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Tom Bombadil mentions the secret fire
The secret fire is described as a source of magic in Rings of Power
When talking with Tom Bombadil about magic in The rings of power In season 2, Tom mentions the “Secret Fire” several times, hinting that the stranger could learn to wield this mysterious power. This suggests that the source of the Istar’s magic would be the Secret Fire, which is an original idea for the show. in the books, The Secret Fire is a term used to describe Ilúvatar’s (the creator of Arda) ability to create life. Much of the conflict of The Silmarillion Is that Morgoth is jealous that he can’t make life like Ilúvatar does.
As for how this connects to Gandalf, the Secret Fire is primarily tied to him in the original Lord of the Rings Text. In the famous scene where Gandalf faces off with the Balrog on the bridge of Morry in The Fellowship of the RingHe says this:
“You cannot pass,” he said, the orcs stood still, and a dead silence fell. “I am a servant of the secret fire, again of the flame of honor. You cannot pass. The dark fire will not help you, flame of Odeon. Go back to the shadows! You cannot pass.”
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The dark wizard refers to the stranger as “Istar”
The stranger is confirmed to be an Istar
A great revelation The rings of power Season 2 is the Dark Wizard character, played by the always outstanding Ciarán Hinds. This introduces a new mystery box, as his character’s identity is now the biggest question mark in the show. As for the stranger’s identity, the Dark Wizard gives a pretty clear clue by referring to him as “Istar.” Of course, the dark wizard could be wrong, but his own mystique implies that he has a better idea of ​​what’s going on, and his words carry some weight.
Confirming that the stranger was an Istar basically limits his character’s possibilities to five different options in middle-earth. Radagast and Saruman never fit the bill, and while the Blue Wizards are more of a mystery because not much is known about them, it doesn’t seem like the show would have made such a big deal out of keeping a big secret revealed for most audiences. would not recognize.
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The stranger’s physical appearance resembles Gandalf
Gray beards and gray robes should have been a dead giveaway Now that he has his staff all Gandalf needs in The rings of power Is a pointed hat to match his set.
The most obvious clue that the stranger is Gandalf has always been the simple fact that he Only Looks like him. Granted, Daniel Weyman and Ian McKellen aren’t very similar-looking actors, but Weyman’s iteration of the stranger has almost all the essential qualities of what one would think of Gandalf. A tall man with a massive gray beard, long gray hair, and gray clothes Are tell-tale signs of the beloved wizard.
Of course, looks can be deceiving. This was a character who landed in Middle-earth with no memories, so he probably wasn’t spending much time considering fashion. But with everything else in mind, it would be such a huge misdirection to dress him as Gandalf, only to ditch the shaggy gray look for pristine white wizard robes or something else later. Now that he has his staff all Gandalf needs in The rings of power Is a pointed hat to match his set.
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The magical abilities of the stranger resemble Gandalf
The Rings of Power draw from Peter Jackson’s movies for Magic Visual
The magical abilities of the stranger are rather vague The rings of power By design, because Tolkien never went into too much detail about what the Istari could actually do. It is more important in The Lord of the Rings That a wizard is present to provide advice and counsel to the leadership of Middle-earth on how to be a powerful magic wielder. however, Peter Jackson’s movies provided some visual motifs for what magic looks like in the world.
The rings of power Emulates many magical tropes from Gandalf in the movies, including him slamming his staff down on the ground to create a magical vortex of some sort. in the movies, Gandalf notably slams his staff during the famous “Do not pass!“Scene. Moreover, the foreigner in The rings of power Is shown wielding a staff in the season 1 finale, allowing him to send the witches to the Unseen Realm. Early in season 1, the stranger whispers to fireflies, similar to how Gandalf whispers at one point on Isengard’s summit in the movies.