One cast’s death in The Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring has already been made more sorrowful by The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power. Episode 3 of The Lord of the Rings series introduced viewers to the island realm of Numenor and its various inhabitants. Isildur, the child of Elendil, is one of the main characters introduced in the prequel to The Lord of the Rings.
Isildur, Elendil’s son, is getting ready to take the Sea Trial so that he, too, can join the Nmenórean Sea Guard. In the most recent series, however, it has become evident that the Sea Guard is not where Isildur’s heart truly belongs, and he’s been purposefully demoted. In episode 6 of The Rings of Power, Isildur travels to Middle-earth with a group of Nmenóreans to end Adar & his orcs’ siege of the Southlands.
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Considering his murder in the prologue of Fellowship of the Ring, Isildur has been made into a much more sad character during episode 6 and the first five episodes. Jackson’s first movie opens with a brief portrayal of Isildur as a champion before he is used to set up the central theme of Aragorn’s tale throughout the trilogy: that men are quickly corrupted by power. However, the program is giving Isildur the required context via The Rings of Power, which will make his demise in Fellowship more emotionally impactful than if he had merely been the power-hungry guy who fell to the One Ring.
Implications of the Rings of Power on Isildur’s Character Development
Isildur, his ancestors, plus his people are able to achieve this primarily through their affinity for water. Being a member of the Sea Guard is the highest distinction for a man in Nmenórean society, and this is reflected in The Rings of Power. A common phrase heard among Nmenóreans throughout the first five seasons of The Rings of Power is “The sea has always been correct.” Thinking about Isildur, who was shot while trying to escape from orcs & drowned in a river, makes the reliance on the sea all the more terrible in Fellowship.
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Isildur’s mother drowned, as episode 6 of The Rings of Power reveals. His terrible end in Fellowship is compounded by the fact that he was fired from the Sea Guard and the Nmenóreans’ devotion to maritime traditions. Prior to The Lord of the Rings, Isildur’s death didn’t have much of an impact because all anyone knew about him was how he cut the Ring out of Sauron’s hand and then died from its effects. The knowledge that the entity the Nmenóreans revere murdered Isildur’s mother and will finally kill him, as presented in The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, renders The Fellowship of the Ring all the more distressing.
