It’s almost becoming a kind of running gag: Because Sauron has only been seen very briefly in “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power” and is supposed to make a surprising appearance, fans have been puzzling since episode 1 whether one of the already established characters might be Sauron in disguise – notably Halbrand (Charlie Vickers) and the stranger who fell in a meteorite (Daniel Weyman) are candidates. After the meteorite man had almost left the group of suspects, episode 4 should now fuel speculation again.
Then at the end of the fourth episode, Waldreg (Geoff Morell) is revealed to be a follower of Sauron and the previous owner of the mysterious sword, which Theo (Tyroe Muhafidin) now carries around. Both figures also know how to make a blade out of a broken sword: namely by poking your forearm with the pommel and giving the weapon some blood to drink.
Theo already has a few puncture holes on his forearm, and Waldreg’s scars are clearly visible. and If you look at the trailer for “The Rings of Power” Episode 5, you can see a scene in which spots or scars can apparently also be seen on the bare forearm of the meteorite man:
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Does the Stranger (Daniel Weyman) have wounds on his forearm from Theo’s sword?
Waldreg tells the shocked Theo in Episode 4 that the sword is not a sword but a power created by Sauron himself or his master Morgoth for the ancestors of the southerners. At least that’s how we understand the lines of dialogue, which are just vague enough to allow for multiple interpretations.
In any case, it does not seem impossible that Sauron himself used the sword (which is probably not a sword) and possibly also suffered such marks on his forearm – just as they could also be seen on the arm of the stranger.
In addition, Waldreg mentions that the fall of the stars – i.e. the meteorite crash – is a sign of Sauron’s return. This also strongly suggests that the stranger is Sauron returning to his followers in the meteorite to Middle-earth.
Even if the speculation is now getting new fuel: Somehow we still don’t believe that the stranger is really Sauron. His sometimes helpless and sometimes helpful behavior in the presence of the harfeet just seems too harmless and good-natured for that.
That episode 4 and the trailer for episode 5 now suggest that he could be Sauron after all, So it’s either a deliberate misstep (there have been a few of those in the series) or maybe just a coincidence. Or maybe we just read too much into small details…
We will certainly learn more in “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power” Episode 5, which will be released on September 23, 2022 on Amazon Prime Video. You can find out more about Sauron and the sword in the video linked above by our YouTube moderator Sebastian.
