The Rings Of Power's Harfoot Storyline Can Make Up For 1 Event The Lord Of The Rings Movies Cut

Summary The Rings of Power series features an original Harfoot storyline that diverges from Tolkien lore, garnering a divisive response from readers.

Amazon's Rings of Power introduces Gandalf in the Second Age, adding to the division.

"The Scouring of the Shire" is an important chapter of The Return of the King that's left out of the movie.

Amazon Prime Video's The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power series features an original storyline surrounding the Harfoots, which could make up for an event cut from Peter Jackson's movies. The Lord of the Rings trilogy are some of the most coveted book adaptations in cinema, but there are still differences from J.R.R. Tolkien's books, many of which were made necessarily to improve the pacing. The Rings of Power has made many changes to Tolkien's Second-Age lore, many of which have been received with a far more divisive response from readers.

Some of the main Rings of Power characters in season 1 are the Harfoots, a specific breed of hobbits who are the ancestors of well-known Lord of the Rings characters like Frodo Baggins and Samwise Gamgee. The Harfoot narrative was one of the least well-received aspects of the Prime Video show, primarily due to its deviation from Tolkien lore by introducing Gandalf as a character in the Second Age. However, it may have the opportunity to make up for a scene from The Return of the King that never made it into the film adaptation.

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The penultimate chapter in The Return of the King is titled "The Scouring of the Shire," which sees Saruman, the White Wizard, raiding the Shire with his band of ruffians. Frodo, Sam, Merry, and Pippin return from their journey to see this happening and rise up to defeat the ruffians. This is a vital chapter in the books, representing the independence of the hobbits as heroes in their own right and showing that evil can cultivate such a serene location as the Shire if gone unchecked for so long.

While the decision to introduce Gandalf in The Rings of Power is controversial, it has some advantages. Gandalf has a profound love for the hobbits, and his friendship with Nori Brandyfoot establishes an origin story for that appreciation. Nori seems to be one of the show's main protagonists, and it makes sense that she'll become a hero in her own right. One way to do so would be to create a storyline that explores similar themes to "The Scouring of the Shire."

Related The Rings Of Power Has Already Set Up Amazon's Season 3 With One Big Tolkien Reference Amazon Prime Video's The Rings of Power has already set up its later seasons with key foreshadowing, hinting at major events from Tolkien's writing.

Why Peter Jackson Cut The Scouring Of The Shire From The Lord Of The Rings Movies

The Scouring Of The Shire Would've Disrupted The Pacing Of The Lord Of The Rings Movies

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"The Scouring of the Shire" is a strange chapter in Tolkien's work, and it's regarded in literature as an "anticlimax." The chapter happens after Frodo casts the One Ring into the fires of Mount Doom and after the War of the Ring ends, making it a strange, action-packed epilogue. Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings films instead use the post-climax scenes to wind down toward the resolution. There may be several endings to The Return of the King movie, but they all serve a purpose in the trilogy's emotional payoff.

it's regarded in literature as an "anticlimax."

Adapting Tolkien's novels identically would be an immense challenge, as they simply don't pace like a feature film. There are dozens of changes in each movie to allow for more action, humor, and entertainment value. Pacing is incredibly important for high-budget movies, especially when they're upwards of three hours in length. Peter Jackson made Lord of the Rings book changes that didn't work, but for the purpose of the film, changing Saruman's ending to happen at Isengard was an understandable choice. All that means is there's a compelling Tolkien story for Rings of Power to utilize.

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Markella Kavenagh as Elanor ‘Nori’ Brandyfoot in The Rings of Power

Given changes to the timeline made in the Amazon series, it's possible the Rings of Power Harfoots could make their way up to settle the Shire. If so, there's room setting-wise for a narrative that mirrors the Scouring, possibly with raids against the Harfoots and their settlements being burned. This hypothetical narrative could even be the reason for their settling after the nomadic lifestyle they've been shown to have in season 1. There's also potential to explore similar themes with Nori, given that her story mirrors Frodo in her leaving home for adventure.

Nori will be the primary Harfoot character going forward, but she could always return to her people at some point in the series to find corruption having taken root, mirroring Tolkien's themes from the chapter. Alternatively, Rings of Power could explore the other aspect of the chapter, with Nori departing from her adventure with Gandalf and going to accomplish her own feat as a hero, perhaps protecting her Harfoot people and helping them establish the Shire as a permanent foothold. There are plenty of options for The Rings of Power to explore the essence of Tolkien's writing.