"Rings of Power" Has Deviated From The Books

The Amazon TV show "The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power" featured a lot of Second Age events, but a lot of changes from the original mentioned in the books. For this list, we'll be looking at the major omissions, additions, and departures from J. R. R. Tolkien's works.

It is important to note that Amazon only has rights to the appendices of "The Lord of the Rings" and "The Hobbit". They can’t use the material from "The Silmarillion" or the rest. The show’s writers have filled the gaps with a new story and new characters, such as Nori, Arondir, Bronwyn, Theo, Disa, the Dweller, and 'Halbrand'. Adar is also new, although the existence of an earlier Orc with Elven features makes some sense given their origin.

One thing is certain about the arangements made by Amazon, they are not allowed to contradict the material in these books. Kind of a true test of tiptoeing around things. Tolkien’s writings on this period are collections of stories with an almost biblical feel rather than the conventional narrative of a novel.

Did Amazon violated the conditions of their contract with the family of J. R. R. Tolkien? We cannot answer that at this time, but we can identify the contentious changes that were made starting with the forging of the rings, the harfoots and the stranger, Elrond, Durin IV and Mithril, and more!

1. Appearances
   There’s a lot of argument over what Tolkien’s Elves looked like. Fun fact: some older Elves had beards. Tolkien doesn’t describe Elvish ears as pointed anywhere in the books, although remarks in his letters and notes might support the idea. There’s also debate over whether his Elves were explicitly all white. "The Lord of the Rings" appendices explictly describe Elves as "fair of skin", so that should end the debate there.
2. The Elves’ Departure from Valinor
   In a brief sequence, the show touches on events in the First Age. We glimpse Valinor, and the Two Trees that Morgoth destroyed with Ungoliant before his theft of Fëanor’s Silmarils. We also see the Elves depart for Middle-earth and a battle that seems to combine elements of the Dagor Bragollach and the War of Wrath. However, the Elves’ departure wasn not so simple in the books. In leaving, the Elves were defying the Valar, the holy spirits who shaped the world. And in an event known as the First Kinslaying, Fëanor’s Noldorin Elves killed Teleri Elves to steal their ships for the journey.
3. The Creation of Mordor
   In the First Age, Morgoth corrupted Men in the East, whose descendants "The Rings of Power" has dwelling in the 'Southlands'. Although Morgoth created Mount Doom, his seat of power Utumno, and later Angband, lay far in the north. Only in around the year 1,000 of the Second Age did Sauron settle in Mordor, building his tower Barad-dûr. However, the means by which the Dark Lord’s minions transform Mordor into a bleak wasteland in the show are new. The key that opens the dam and triggers Mount Doom’s eruption recalls the sword Gurthang and the Witch-King’s Morgul-blade, but could also be an original artifact. On a side note, the name of the Southlanders’ village Tirharad comprises the Sindarin words "watch" and "south".
4. The Harfoots and The Stranger
   So far, the show focuses on Harfoots, who were the most numerous among the three breeds of Hobbits. Their adventures here are new, but fit within Second Age history. As for the Stranger they rescue, well, in his later writings, Tolkien did have two Istari, the Blue Wizards, arriving in the Second Age. One traveled East, like the Stranger. However, the Stranger’s line about "[following] your nose" echoes Gandalf in Peter Jackson’s films. Gandalf didn’t arrive until the Third Age, so we’ll have to see what "The Rings of Power" is up to.
5. Elrond, Durin IV and Mithril
   "The Rings of Power" has Elrond and Durin IV build a 'fellowship' bridge. However, although a friendship did arise between the Elves of Eregion and the Dwarves of Khazad-dûm in the books, Elrond’s role in it was created for the show. So was the myth about the origin of mithril, which connects it to the Silmarils. Elves do fade outside of Valinor, as their immortal spirits overwhelm their bodies, but only in the show is mithril proposed as a solution.
6. Halbrand
   In the Second Age, Sauron was "not yet evil to behold", and while Gil-galad and Elrond rejected his overtures, he deceived Celebrimbor and his smiths into forging the Rings of Power. "The Silmarillion" elaborates that Sauron presented himself as Annatar, the Lord of Gifts, and told the Elves that the rings would make Middle-earth as blissful as Valinor. The reveal of 'Halbrand' as Sauron in "The Rings of Power" season one finale puts a different spin on this tale. It’s a notable departure from lore.
7. The Forging of the Rings
   In both the books and show, Celebrimbor crafts the Three Rings of Power using Sauron’s teachings, after the Dark Lord’s departure from Eregion. However, in the books, these Three are the last to be made, after a series of lesser rings and 16 Great Rings. Seven of the latter are given to Dwarf-lords and nine to mortal Men. It took centuries of learning and crafting before the rings were finally completed. Nor did Galadriel have a key role in creating the Three. Only one of these, Galadriel’s ring Nenya, was made of mithril.
8. Galadriel
   Details on Galadriel’s life are somewhat sparse and inconsistent in Tolkien’s writings, with centuries between major events. In her youth, she was "of Amazon disposition", strong and athletic. Her nickname was Nerwen, meaning "Man-maiden", and she "fought heroically" in at least one battle. This was before she obtained her Ring of Power, Nenya. However, her adventures in Numenor and the Southlands in "The Rings of Power" are new. So is her belief that her husband Celeborn is dead. In the source material, she and Celeborn settled in Eregion with their daughter Celebrían, before she and Celebrían moved to Lórien. As a main character, she’s also been given a clearer arc, starting out as more vengeful and single-minded than the serene Lady of Lothlórien we encounter thousands of years later in the Third Age.

Also noteworthy to mention is the difference in the timeline. Since Tolkien gives us the events of the Second Age like a chronicle in a history book, and since the events largely center around immortal Elves and long-lived Numenoreans, they take place over centuries.

On the whole, we can divide the major events of the Second Age to those of the Mid-Second Age, when the Rings are forged; and the events of the Late Second Age, where Numenore falls and the Last Alliance fights Sauron.

The showrunners have collapsed them together, not just so that they can take place within a single life of a Middle Earth mortal, but probably so that they all take place within the span of a single few years, so that you don't need to recast all the teenage characters they have in the story like Theo or Nori.