Opinion: Six Reasons Why The Stranger In 'Rings Of Power' Is A Wizard
Image Source: ScreenRant
Spoilers for Episode 1 and 2 of The Rings of Power
While the world spends the weekend watching the first two episodes of The Rings of Power, I wanted to take some time to explore one of the more potentially interesting characters introduced so far.
By now, the character known as The Stranger, who was introduced at the end of a meteor (the internet jokingly refers to him as Meteor Man), has intrigued all those who have watched so far. But who, or what, is The Stranger? Well, I have a theory.
This is Tolkien’s world that we’re talking about, so it’s clear that there are Elves, Dwarves, Men, Harfoots (precursors to Hobbits), Dark Lords, Orcs, and Wizards. Fans all know about Gandalf, Saruman, and Radagast, but some may not know that there were at least two other wizards that had come to Middle-earth as well, and that’s where my theory falls. I am absolutely convinced that The Stranger is in fact one of the other two wizards that were sent to Middle-earth. Here’s why.
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He Clearly Has Magic Powers
Image Source: The Nerdist
The clearest and most obvious tell that The Stranger is a wizard is that he has magic.
Magic in Tolkien’s world is subtle for the standard races. Elves, Men, Dwarves, and even Hobbits have subtle uses of magic. But when it comes to wizards, their use of magic is far more expressive. Actually, Gandalf’s actions in The Lord of the Rings suggest The Stranger is a wizard. When Gandalf and Bilbo are discussing Bilbo leaving after his birthday party, Bilbo gets possessive of the One Ring. He yells at Gandalf, thinking he means to steal the ring. Gandalf gets big and loud and darkens the room to knock Bilbo from his stupor.
When Nori, the Harfoot, goes back in the morning to check on The Stranger, he’s startled and turns on her. He roars, and the wind whips up. The trees overhead twist and bend, and as The Stranger looms over Nori the world around them darkens.
Just like Gandalf.
He Comes To Middle-earth As A Meteor
Image Source: ScreenRant
This one takes some nuance.
First, wizards are not technically Men. They aren’t Elves either. They are actually a form of demigod. In Tolkien’s lore, the world Arda was created by Eru Ilúvatar. Eru Ilúvatar created the first race of beings called the Valar who were meant to shape his new world. Think of them like gods, like Thor or Anubis. They are not as all-powerful as Eru Ilúvatar, but they are incredibly powerful and capable of shaping Arda themselves.
From the Valar, a lesser form of being is created, and they are called the Maiar. The Maiar are servants of the Valar, and they have helped the Valar watch over Middle-earth. The Maiar interacted more directly with the Free Peoples of Middle-earth, and some Maia have even taken lovers and partners with Elves and Men, producing children that go on to be some of the most famous characters in Middle-earth. The wizards are of the Maiar.
Secondly, the wizards are sent to Middle-earth from somewhere else. That somewhere else is likely Valinor, the home of the Valar and Elves. Valinor is located in Aman, the landmass furthest to the west on Arda. It is sort of like heaven, except you can physically go there (well, before the Third Age that is). We see the borders of Valinor at the end of the first episode, and it’s bright, and glorious, and comes off as otherworldly. It’s entirely within reason that The Stranger was “launched” from Valinor and would appear to those in Middle-earth as a shooting star. Or, and this will be clear with another point below, he could have literally fallen from the stars.
He Is There For A Specific Reason
This point comes from the actor playing The Stranger. In interviews, he states that The Stranger has a deep, innate purpose that he needs to fulfill. While this may not be much of a clue, if we go back to the words of Tolkien himself, this clue takes on more meaning.
Tolkien himself talked about the two other wizards, referred to in one of his letters as “Blue Wizards.” Colors among the wizards seem to denote ranks. Saruman was known as the White and was the strongest of the three we know. Gandalf was known as the Gray, and his friend, Radagast, was known as the Brown. Tolkien talked about the Blue Wizards in two instances. In the first instance, he said they were sent to Middle-earth to aid the people in the South and the East against Sauron’s corruption. In this instance, Tolkien was not sure whether they were successful or not, and they may have even started a magic cult or something. The second instance was more clear with Tolkien saying that they were sent to the South or East of Middle-Earth and were tasked with helping the people there fight against Sauron’s corruption in the Second and Third Age.
The use of the word task resonates with the statement by the actor playing The Stranger—a purpose that he’s there to fulfill.
It Is The Second Age
Image Source: GameSpot
Going back to Tolkien’s discussion of the Blue Wizards, we find another clue that involves the show’s timeline.
The show takes place during the Second Age. Gandalf, Saruman, and Radagast do not go to Middle-earth until the Third Age. But in both instances that Tolkien discussed the “other two wizards,” they were sent to Middle-earth in the Second Age. Given that the show’s big bad is Sauron himself, Nori’s mention of trouble in the Southlands, and Arondir’s plot revolving around the Southlands, it is clear that the South is going to be a focus of the show and Sauron’s machinations. So the evidence points heavily in the direction that The Stranger is one of the Blue Wizards (or both merged into one for the sake of story).
Pay Attention To What He Said
This one requires a bit of nerd knowledge.
The only words that The Stranger says in the first two episodes are “mana úrë.” I discovered this by watching the show with closed captions on. Looking up the words, as Tolkien invented the languages of Middle-Earth (you can actually learn and speak them), I came to see that úrë meant “blessed” or “sacred” or “holy.” Mana has a couple of meanings, like “what” or “fire,” depending on the accent. Context helps here. Nori asks him where he’s from, or where his people are. It wouldn’t make sense linguistically for him to say “what” and “fire.” However, we do see him drawing stars on a rock before she asks him this, and we know wizards are Maia, sent from the blessed realm. Stars “burn,” like fire. Putting that all together, it’s likely he’s not using the “what” definition of mana, but rather the “fire” definition. That means he was likely saying “blessed fire” or “holy fire.”This could easily be a reference to Valinor, or even the heavens, where Eru Iluvatar resides.
He Just Looks Like A Wizard
Image Source: CinemaBlend
Let’s just be honest. He’s a tall, old-looking dude with long gray hair and a bushy beard. While the beard isn’t as long as Gandalf’s or Saruman’s, he just looks like a wizard.
The evidence is all there for The Stranger to be one of the Blue Wizards Tolkien talks about arriving in Middle-earth in the Second Age. The first two episodes are full of people talking about how something isn’t right. Galadriel is convinced that Sauron is still out there. Orcs are appearing in the Southlands, and the Harfoots see bad omens everywhere. The recipe is just right for the Valar to send a Maia to contend with Sauron, and help the people of Middle-earth.
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Source(s): Tolkien Gateway, Elfdict.com, ScreenRant