In “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power” it becomes increasingly clear what the sinister Adar (Joseph Mawle) wants to achieve with his orcs. Of great importance in this is the mysterious sword of Theo. But what role do Mordor and Sauron play?
Who knows the limits of his power… TheRingsOfPower pic.twitter.com/WHTG7g26Xg
– The Lord of the Rings on Prime (@LOTRonPrime) September 26, 2022
Already in the fourth episode of “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power” it became clear what exactly Adar (Joseph Mawle) and his orcs are looking for: They want the mysterious sword that Theo (Tyroe Muhafidin) found and which seems to be closely connected to Sauron. In episode 5, however, we now learn even more about Adar’s plans – and about the role the sword plays in them.
The sword is a key, Arondir (Ismael Cruz Cordova) suspects, after Theo has shown him the mysterious weapon. A key that was once used to subjugate the ancestors of the people from the Southlands. This is shown by the statues Arondir discovers in the watchtower of Ostirith, which according to Amazon was not built by the Elves, but by the followers of Morgoth. There we see a figure lying on the ground being pierced by the blade of the sword:
The statues show Theo’s sword.
And probably also a key used to unleash the power of evil. Arondir himself brings up two reasons why the fallen elf is after the weapon: Adar has spoken of wanting to become a god. And he wanted to give the orcs a home. This is also taken up in a previous scene in episode 5, in which Adar speaks of wanting to darken the sun.
But how does Adar want to achieve this? To see through the whole plan, you have to pay very close attention whenever maps are shown in the series. For the area referred to as the Southlands in “The Rings of Power” is in fact the later Mordor, which is just not called that at the time.
THE SOUTHLANDS BECOME MORDOR!
This can be seen very well in the following map extract from episode 3. Here we see the big tree where Arondir and the other captured Elves have to dig and near which the Orcs and Adar have their camp. And north of the tree are Ostirith and the surrounding villages, and Mount Doom (here named with the Elvish name Orodruin), into which Frodo and Sam throw the One Ring many thousands of years later:
The Southlands of Middle-earth are in truth Mordor.
So Adar’s plan is to turn the Southlands (or at least part of them) into Mordor and darken the skies so that the sun-sensitive Orcs will feel more comfortable there. And at least this part of the plan must come true, after all, the devastated and darkened Mordor still plays an important role in Middle-earth later on, as seen, for example, in Peter Jackson’s “The Lord of the Rings” films.
One way in which the landscape in the Southlands could be permanently changed and the sky darkened: Orodruin erupts – the lava flows would destroy the land, the ash clouds would keep out the sunlight. And at some point the volcano, which currently seems to be inactive and simply a mountain, must erupt. Eventually Sauron will forge the One Ring in it… So maybe the key and the volcano have something to do with each other.
But the question remains whether Adar wants to do all this for Sauron – or for himself. And along with that, whether he plans to become a god alongside Sauron or whether he wants to replace him.
ADAR: SAURON’S SERVANT OR SAURON’S COMPETITOR?
In episode 5, Adar reacts rather displeased when Waldreg (Geoff Morrell) mistakes him for Sauron. Is this because he doesn’t want to be compared to Sauron because he despises him? Or is it because he finds it sacrilegious when someone mistakes him for his master, to whom he is loyal?
The answer to this question has not yet been given in “The Rings of Power”, but based on the hints we have received so far, we rather suspect that Adar and Sauron are not necessarily well-disposed towards each other, but could rather become competitors for the title of the new Dark Lord. On the one side there would be a fallen Elf who sees the Orcs as his children, on the other side Sauron, for whom the Orcs have never been or will never be more than interchangeable foot soldiers.
To show that not everyone on the side of evil is pulling in the same direction would be an interesting development. We may find out if this happens as early as 30 September 2022 in “The Rings of Power” Episode 6, in which many plotlines apparently converge…
