This article contains spoilers for The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power.The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power has presented audiences with a mysterious character called the Stranger since season 1, and there is a theory that the Stranger is actually a blue wizard. The rings of power The season 1 finale revealed that the original character, Halbrand, was Sauron, which finally put to bed one big mystery box that has been permeating the entire season – Sauron’s identity. Now, the biggest mystery box left in the show is the stranger’s identity. A lot of people claim that the stranger is Gandalf, but there is good reason to believe that he could be another Istar.
With Sauron’s true identity revealed, much discussion around the show revolves around the stranger’s many ties to Gandalf. The stranger advised Norrie to follow her nose when in doubt and slammed his staff into the ground in a powerful evocation of Gandalf’s famous “Don’t pass” moment of The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring. There is clearly mounting evidence that the stranger is Gandalf. However, there is also reason to believe that the stranger could be a different wizard from the same order, which was known as the Istari.
Who are the blue wizards in the rings of power?
The Blue Wizards are Istari
Now that the primary mystery box of The rings of power Season 2 is The Stranger’s True Nature, It’s a good time to dive into the lore of the Blue Wizards. The show is based on JRR Tolkien’s work, with the rights to adapt The Lord of the Rings And The Hobbitfrom which it draws the foundations of its narrative. Despite his rights agreement, the show may be shaping his story with inspiration from​​​​ other Tolkien works and secured one-off rights to use a name of The Silmarillion At least once. The blue wizards are discussed in Unfinished Tales.
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In 1954, Tolkien wrote an essay called “The Istari” for The return of the kingpart three of his masterpiece, The Lord of the Rings. It was cut due to printing costs, but thankfully released posthumously by Tolkien’s son in the fascinating collection of Tolkien stories Unfinished Tales. It tells of the 15 Valar sending five wizards – Gandalf, Saruman, Radagast and the two Blue Wizards – to northern Middle-earth to oppose Sauron’s rise in the Third Age. One tale, which was actually unfinished by Tolkien, lists the Blue Wizards’ names Like Alatar and Pallando.
The stranger’s Rhûn connection means he could be a blue wizard
The blue wizards are east
The end of Rings of power Season 1 saw the stranger leave Rhovanion with Nori to go look for the constellation he remembered from his past, and season 2 sees them end up in the eastern land of Rhûn. Nori felt that her fate was tied to the stranger and was determined to help him find out who he was by following the little clues available about his origins. Placing the stranger in Rhûn connects him to the Blue Wizards Immediately. The Blue Wizards went east, and no record was returned of their activities. “The Istari” confirms that they could have fought Sauron, joined him or died.
Tolkien wrote a letter explaining another fate that could have befallen the Blue Wizards – “I suspect that they are founders or beginners of secret cults and “magical” traditions that outlast the fall of Sauron.“This recalls The rings of power Dark wizard. The Dark Wizard is more likely to be a Blue Wizard than the Stranger, due to the suggestion in the letter, which the showrunners are no doubt aware of. The Dark Wizard leads the Rhûn cult responsible for the show’s three witches. however, There are strong arguments that the stranger is not GandalfWhich could make him the second blue wizard.
The blue wizards come first in Lord of the Rings lore
The blue wizards arrived before Gandalf
The rings of power is set before the magical Istari arrived in Middle-earth in “The Istari”, but the Blue Wizards arrived before Gandalf, so it is, in a way, less of a stretch that the stranger is a Blue Wizard. However, “The Istari” unequivocally states that the istari”First appeared in Middle-earth about the year 1000 of the Third Age,” which applies to all the wizards. So, by that logic, the stranger could really be no Istar. However, one part of The Lord of the Rings indicates that the timing of the Istari actually aligns with the events of The rings of power.
Gandalf contradicts the time frame of “The Istari” in The Lord of the Rings By claiming that he walked the earth for “300 lives of people.“if”People“Live approximately 70 years, Gandalf would be around in Middle-earth for 21,000 yearsAccording to his assessment in Lord of the Rings. This places Gandalf’s arrival in Middle-earth so long before the Second Age (SA) that there is not even a sun in the sky. and indeed, Lord of the Rings should normally be taken as gospel beyond what Tolkien wrote and never published, for whatever reason.
Tolkien’s blue wizard ambiguity makes them easier to include in the rings of power
The blue wizards are fairly mysterious
Tolkien obviously wrote much more about Gandalf – as well as Saruman and Radagast – than about the Blue Wizards. This means that The rings of power Has more source material on Gandalf than source material on the Blue Wizards. On the surface, this makes it seem like it would be easier to adopt Gandalf than to adopt the Blue Wizards. An abundance of content provides ample scope. However, it also reduces Rings of power Creative range. moreover, Gandalf has already been adapted by Peter JacksonCreating an inevitable comparison, which could challenge the show.
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Seasons 1 and 2 are streaming on Amazon, with new episodes every Thursday.
The relative mystery of the Blue Wizards allows the show a clean slate. It can adapt Tolkien characters never-before seen and use details in Unfinished Tales To deliver his idea, without stealing explicit details that might violate his right agreement. besides that, Showrunners probably wouldn’t let the unresolved timing of the Istari stop them of adopting them. The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Season 2 takes the Siege of Eregion from SA 1697, but Elendil wasn’t born until 3119, so clearly, the show isn’t dear to Tolkien’s timeline. This makes any Istar a valid candidate for the role of the stranger.