Partings

"Partings" is the fifth episode of the first season of the American fantasy television series The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power. Based on J. R. R. Tolkien's history of Middle-earth, primarily material from the appendices of the novel The Lord of the Rings, it is set thousands of years before the novel in the Second Age of Middle-earth and shows several groups preparing for conflict with emerging evil forces. The episode was written by Justin Doble and directed by Wayne Che Yip.

"Partings"
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power episode
Cover art for the episode's soundtrack album
Episode no.	Season 1 Episode 5
Directed by	Wayne Che Yip
Written by	Justin Doble
Produced by	J. D. Payne Patrick McKay
Cinematography by	Aaron Morton
Editing by	Stefan Grube Cheryl Potter
Original release date	September 23, 2022 (2022-09-23)
Running time	72 minutes
Cast
Markella Kavenagh as Nori Brandyfoot Daniel Weyman as the Stranger Sara Zwangobani as Marigold Brandyfoot Dylan Smith as Largo Brandyfoot Megan Richards as Poppy Proudfellow Beau Cassidy as Dilly Brandyfoot Joseph Mawle as Adar Nazanin Boniadi as Bronwyn Ismael Cruz Córdova as Arondir Ian Blackburn as Rowan Geoff Morrell as Waldreg Peter Tait as Tredwill Tyroe Muhafidin as Theo Lloyd Owen as Elendil Maxim Baldry as Isildur Trystan Gravelle as Pharazôn Ema Horvath as Eärien Leon Wadham as Kemen Charlie Vickers as Halbrand Morfydd Clark as Galadriel Cynthia Addai-Robinson as Míriel Lenny Henry as Sadoc Burrows Thusitha Jayasundera as Malva Maxine Cuncliffe as Vilma Anthony Crum as Ontamo Alex Tarrant as Valandil Ken Blackburn as Tar-Palantir Robert Aramayo as Elrond Owain Arthur as Durin IV Charles Edwards as Celebrimbor Benjamin Walker as Gil-galad Edith Poor as the Nomad Kali Kopae as the Ascetic Bridie Sisson as the Dweller Edward Clendon as Grugzûk Ella Hope-Higginson as Mairen
Episode chronology
← Previous "The Great Wave" Next → "Udûn"
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power season 1
List of episodes

Amazon made a multi-season commitment for a new The Lord of the Rings series in November 2017. J. D. Payne and Patrick McKay were set to develop it in July 2018. Filming for the first season took place in New Zealand, and work on episodes beyond the first two began in January 2021. Yip was revealed to be directing four episodes of the season that March, including the fifth episode. Production wrapped for the season in August 2021.

"Partings" premiered on the streaming service Amazon Prime Video on September 23, 2022. It was estimated to have high viewership and received generally positive reviews.

Plot

The Harfoots continue their migration to the Grove for the winter. While looking for food in a forest, Nori Brandyfoot, Poppy Proudfellow, and Malva Meadowgrass are attacked by a pack of wolves. The Stranger accompanying them intervenes and uses magic to scare off the wolves, but his use of magic injures his own arm. He uses more magic to heal himself and nearly hurts Nori, frightening her. Meanwhile, a trio of mysterious women find the location where the Stranger fell from the sky.

At the tower of Ostirith in the Southlands, Bronwyn attempts to prepare the other human refugees to defend themselves from the army of Orcs that are coming to claim their lands. Tavern owner Waldreg thinks they will be better off joining the Orcs and convinces around half of the refugees to leave with him. Waldreg is disappointed to learn that the leader of the Orcs, Adar, is not Sauron, but still chooses to serve him. To confirm his loyalty, Adar orders Waldreg to kill one of the other humans, Rowan. At the tower, Theo shows Arondir the broken sword the Orcs are hunting for and Arondir realizes that it is some sort of key designed to enslave the Southlanders.

Elendil denies his son Isildur's request to join Númenor's expedition to the Southlands, saying Isildur lost his chance to serve previously. Discussing the expedition with Queen Regent Míriel, Galadriel says the human Halbrand will be accompanying them to claim the throne of Southlands. He accuses Galadriel of using him and says he wants to remain in Númenor instead. Meanwhile, Chancellor Pharazôn's son Kemen attempts to convince his father to cancel the expedition to Middle-earth, but Pharazôn sees potential in turning the Southlands into a tributary state after its liberation. Míriel's father, King Tar-Palantir, warns her not to go to Middle-earth.

High-King Gil-galad reveals to Elrond that he knows of the existence of mithril, an ore that contains the light from a lost Silmaril that he believes can counteract the fading power of the Elves in Middle-earth. Elrond refuses to confirm that the Dwarves have discovered the ore, out of loyalty to Prince Durin IV, and Gil-galad accuses him of putting the Dwarves before his own race. Elrond later discusses the issue with Durin IV and the latter agrees to help. The pair return to Khazad-dûm to try convince King Durin III.

Kemen attempts to destroy the expedition ships and discovers Isildur stowing away. Isildur prevents the destruction of three of the five ships and saves Kemen's life. When questioned by Elendil, Isildur lies about Kemen's sabotage. He subsequently receives a spot on the expedition crew, as a stable sweep. Galadriel apologizes for using Halbrand and opens up to him. He eventually decides to go with the expeditionary force, and the remaining ships depart for Middle-earth.

Production

Development

Amazon acquired the global television rights for J. R. R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings in November 2017. The company's streaming service, Amazon Prime Video, gave a multi-season commitment to a series based on the novel and its appendices, to be produced by Amazon Studios.^[1] It was later titled The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power.^[2] Amazon hired J. D. Payne and Patrick McKay to develop the series and serve as showrunners in July 2018.^[3][4] Justin Doble had joined the series as a writer by July 2019,^[4] and Wayne Che Yip was revealed to be directing four episodes of the first season in March 2021.^[5] The series is set in the Second Age of Middle-earth, thousands of years before Tolkien's The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings,^[6] and the first season focuses on introducing the setting and major heroic characters to the audience.^[7][8] Written by Doble and directed by Yip, the fifth episode is titled "Partings".^{[citation needed]}

Casting

Further information: List of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power characters

The series' large cast includes Cynthia Addai-Robinson as Míriel,^[9] Robert Aramayo as Elrond, Owain Arthur as Durin IV, Maxim Baldry as Isildur, Nazanin Boniadi as Bronwyn, Morfydd Clark as Galadriel, Ismael Cruz Córdova as Arondir, Charles Edwards as Celebrimbor,^[10] Trystan Gravelle as Pharazôn,^[9] Lenny Henry as Sadoc Burrows,^[11] Ema Horvath as Eärien,^[9] Markella Kavenagh as Elanor "Nori" Brandyfoot,^[12] Tyroe Muhafidin as Theo,^[13] Lloyd Owen as Elendil,^[9] Megan Richards as Poppy Proudfellow,^[11] Dylan Smith as Largo Brandyfoot,^[14] Charlie Vickers as Halbrand,^[10] Leon Wadham as Kemen,^[9] Benjamin Walker as Gil-galad,^[15] Daniel Weyman as the Stranger,^[12] and Sara Zwangobani as Marigold Brandyfoot.^[14] Also starring are Beau Cassidy as Dilly Brandyfoot, Joseph Mawle as Adar, Ian Blackburn as Rowan, Geoff Morrell as Waldreg, Peter Tait as Tredwill, Thusitha Jayasundera as Malva, Maxine Cuncliffe as Vilma, Anthony Crum as Ontamo, Alex Tarrant as Valandil, Ken Blackburn as Tar-Palantir, Edith Poor as the Nomad, Kali Kopae as the Ascetic, Bridie Sisson as the Dweller, Edward Clendon as Grugzûk, and Ella Hope-Higginson as Mairen.^{[16]: 1:07:20–1:07:31}

Filming

Amazon confirmed in September 2019 that filming for the first season would take place in New Zealand, where the Lord of the Rings and Hobbit film trilogies were made.^[17] Filming primarily took place at Kumeu Film Studios and Auckland Film Studios in Auckland,^[18] under the working title Untitled Amazon Project or simply UAP.^[19] Production on episodes beyond the first two began in January 2021,^[20][21] and Yip confirmed that he had begun filming his episodes by March.^[5] Filming for the season wrapped on August 2.^[22]

Visual effects

Visual effects for the episode were created by Industrial Light & Magic (ILM), Wētā FX, Method Studios, Rodeo FX, Cause and FX, Atomic Arts, and Cantina Creative.^{[23][16]: 1:08:57–1:09:02}

Music

Main article: Music of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power

A soundtrack album featuring composer Bear McCreary's score for the episode was released digitally on Amazon Music on September 22, 2022.^[24] McCreary said the album contained "virtually every second of score" from the episode. It was added to other music streaming services after the full first season was released.^[25] A CD featuring the music from the episode is included in a limited edition box set collection of the first season's music from Mondo and Amazon Music. The box set is scheduled for release on April 26, 2024, and includes a journal written by McCreary which details the creation of the episode's score.^[26] All music composed by Bear McCreary:^[24]

Season One, Episode Five: Partings – Amazon Original Series Soundtrack

No.	Title	Length
1.	"This Wandering Day" (featuring Megan Richards)	2:09
2.	"The Perils of Migration"	6:19
3.	"Númenor Prepares"	7:18
4.	"Wolves"	5:29
5.	"The Fading Light"	8:13
6.	"The Saboteur"	7:22
7.	"Only Blood Can Bind"	4:03
8.	"Destined for the Darkness"	4:42
9.	"The Confession and Sailing Into the Dawn"	7:14
10.	"This Wandering Day" (featuring Janet Roddick)	2:19
Total length:		55:08

Release

"Partings" premiered on Prime Video in the United States on September 23, 2022. It was released at the same time around the world,^[27] in more than 240 countries and territories.^[28]

Reception

Viewership

Software company Whip Media, who track viewership data for the 21 million worldwide users of their TV Time app, calculated that for the week ending September 25, two days after the episode's debut, The Rings of Power was the fifth-highest original streaming series for U.S. viewership.^[29] Nielsen Media Research, who record streaming viewership on U.S. television screens, estimated that the series was watched for 977 million minutes during the week ending September 25. This placed it fourth on the company's list of top streaming series and films. Fellow fantasy series House of the Dragon was third for the week, the first time it was ahead of The Rings of Power on the chart.^[30] Parrot Analytics determines audience "demand expressions" based on various data sources, including social media activity and comments on rating platforms. During the week ending September 30, the company calculated that The Rings of Power was 29.3 times more in demand than the average U.S. streaming series, placing it ninth on the company's top 10 list for the week.^[31]

Critical response

The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported a 76% approval rating with an average score of 7.1/10 based on 29 reviews. The website's critics consensus reads: "The scenery is gorgeous as ever and the nods to Tolkien lore still dense, but The Rings of Power's momentum feels stuck as a Harfoot's caravan in the mud."^[32]

Companion media

An episode of the official aftershow Deadline's Inside the Ring: LOTR: The Rings of Power for "Partings" was released on September 24, 2022. Hosted by Deadline Hollywood's Dominic Patten and Anthony D'Alessandro, it features exclusive "footage and insights" for the episode, plus interviews with cast members Clark, Vickers, Addai-Robinson, Gravelle, Horvath, and Wadham, as well as Yip, Doble, and McCreary.^[33] On October 14, The Official The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Podcast was released on Amazon Music. Hosted by actress Felicia Day, the fifth episode is dedicated to "Partings" and features McCreary, Payne, and McKay.^[34][35] On November 21, a bonus segment featuring behind-the-scenes footage from the episode was added to Prime Video's X-Ray feature as part of a series titled "The Making of The Rings of Power".^[36]

References

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2. Otterson, Joe (January 19, 2022). "'Lord of the Rings' Amazon Series Reveals Full Title in New Video". Variety. from the original on January 19, 2022. Retrieved January 20, 2022.
3. Goldberg, Lesley; Kit, Borys (July 28, 2018). "'Lord of the Rings': Amazon Taps 'Star Trek 4' Duo to Develop TV Series". The Hollywood Reporter. from the original on July 28, 2018. Retrieved April 25, 2020.
4. White, Peter (July 27, 2019). "Amazon Sets Creative Team For 'Lord Of The Rings' TV Series Including 'GoT' & 'Breaking Bad' Producers – TCA". Deadline Hollywood. from the original on July 27, 2019. Retrieved April 26, 2020.
5. Littleton, Cynthia (March 24, 2021). "'Lord of the Rings' Series Adds Director Wayne Che Yip as Co-Executive Producer". Variety. from the original on March 24, 2021. Retrieved March 28, 2021.
6. Oller, Jacob (March 7, 2019). "Amazon Confirms Lord of the Rings Show is Second Age Prequel to Films". Syfy Wire. from the original on March 7, 2019. Retrieved April 26, 2020.
7. Lussier, Germain (July 23, 2022). "Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Is a 'Mega Epic'". Gizmodo. from the original on July 23, 2022. Retrieved August 8, 2022.
8. Robinson, Joanna (February 14, 2022). "10 Burning Questions About Amazon's 'The Rings of Power'". Vanity Fair. Archived from the original on February 14, 2022. Retrieved February 16, 2022.
9. Coggan, Devan (July 13, 2022). "Get an exclusive look at 'The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power'". Entertainment Weekly. from the original on July 14, 2022. Retrieved July 31, 2022.
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15. Breznican, Anthony (February 13, 2022). "Secrets of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Teaser Trailer". Vanity Fair. Archived from the original on February 14, 2022. Retrieved February 14, 2022.
16. Doble, Justin (September 23, 2022). "Partings". The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power. Season 1. Episode 5. Amazon Prime Video. End credits begin at 1:07:10.
17. "Amazon Studios Announces New Zealand as Location for Its Upcoming Series Based on The Lord of the Rings" (Press release). Culver City, California: Amazon Studios. September 17, 2019. from the original on December 5, 2019. Retrieved May 7, 2020.
18. "New $1.5b LOTR TV series set to film in Auckland". Newstalk ZB. June 30, 2019. from the original on June 30, 2019. Retrieved April 26, 2020.
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25. Twitter thread by composer Bear McCreary explaining the episodic soundtrack albums for the series:
    • McCreary, Bear [@bearmccreary] (September 2, 2022). "We just dropped TWO new #TheLordOfTheRings #TheRingsOfPower albums, for Episode One and Two. Listen now on [Amazon Music]! These weekly episodic [The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power] albums will contain almost entirely new music and suites, different from the Season One soundtrack album" (Tweet). from the original on September 3, 2022. Retrieved September 3, 2022 – via Twitter.
    • McCreary, Bear [@bearmccreary] (September 2, 2022). "For the main "Season One" album, I recut, and even rewrote & re-recorded, much of the music to create an emotional listening experience that captures the season's narrative arc in a symphonic format" (Tweet). from the original on September 3, 2022. Retrieved September 3, 2022 – via Twitter.
    • McCreary, Bear [@bearmccreary] (September 2, 2022). "For the episodic albums, you get a playlist much closer to the narrative arc of each episode. Virtually every second of score is here. Some cues have been combined into suites to create continuous musical tracks (keeping Harfoot cues together, Elven cues together, and so on)" (Tweet). from the original on September 3, 2022. Retrieved September 3, 2022 – via Twitter.
    • McCreary, Bear [@bearmccreary] (September 2, 2022). "Episodic albums for #TheLordOfTheRings #TheRingsOfPower will be available exclusively on [Amazon Music] as each episode streams on [Prime Video]. Once all episodes stream, these albums will be available on ALL DIGITAL PLATFORMS" (Tweet). from the original on September 3, 2022. Retrieved September 3, 2022 – via Twitter.
26. Rusak, Rotem (March 25, 2024). "The Rings of Power Soundtrack Box Set Offers 10 CDs of Limited-Edition Orchestral Magic". Nerdist. from the original on March 25, 2024. Retrieved March 25, 2024.
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28. Bradley, Bill (September 2, 2022). "How The Rings of Power Showrunners Handled a Massive Global Debut". Adweek. from the original on September 4, 2022. Retrieved September 4, 2022.
29. Prange, Stephanie (September 27, 2022). "'She-Hulk: Attorney at Law' Tops Weekly Whip U.S. Streaming Originals Chart". Media Play News. from the original on September 28, 2022. Retrieved January 17, 2023.
30. Hailu, Selome (October 20, 2022). "Jeffrey Dahmer Series 'Monster' Debuts on Nielsen Top 10 With 10th Biggest Streaming Week Ever". Variety. from the original on December 10, 2022. Retrieved January 18, 2023.
31. Latchem, John (October 3, 2022). "'Stranger Things' Tops 'Cobra Kai' on Parrot's Digital Originals Demand Chart Through Sept. 30". Media Play News. from the original on October 3, 2022. Retrieved January 17, 2023.
32. "Partings". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved January 28, 2023.
33. Patten, Dominic; D'Alessandro, Anthony (September 24, 2022). "'LOTR: The Rings Of Power' After Show 'Inside The Ring': Episode 5 – A King Emerges, Númenór Prepares For War, & Divisions Prove Fiery". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on January 26, 2023. Retrieved January 26, 2023.
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35. Day, Felicia (October 14, 2022). The Official The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Podcast | Ep. 5: "Partings". Amazon Music. Retrieved February 25, 2023.
36. Reul, Katie; Zee, Michaela (November 22, 2022). "'The Making of The Rings of Power' Debuts on Prime Video, Offering Behind-the-Scenes Looks (TV News Roundup)". Variety. from the original on November 22, 2022. Retrieved February 25, 2023.

External links

• "Partings" at IMDb