It's fair to say that Sauron's 'fair form' Annatar has continued to stir up mischief in The Rings of Power season 2.
As of The Rings of Power season 2, episode 6, Annatar's manipulation of Celebrimbor has yielded several of the titular Rings of Power, while work continues at pace for even more nefarious creations.
But, with the walls closing in on Sauron in Eregion, you may have some burning questions: namely, who is Annatar? And what does Sauron intend to do as the 'Lord of Gifts'? Let's dive into The Rings of Power's most deliciously evil character – and what it could mean for the rest of the second season.
Warning: This article contains spoilers for the first six episodes of The Rings of Power season 2.
Who is Annatar?
In the Rings of Power season 2, Sauron reinvents himself as an Elven "messenger" who has been sent by the Valar, the god-like figures that oversee Middle Earth.
Annatar, simply put, is another disguise by Sauron – a new face to help gain the favor of Celebrimbor in the Elven realm of Eregion. You can see this 'power' during the opening episode's prologue, where he emerges from his assassination at the hands of Adar as a formless black creature, before turning himself into Halbrand.
Annatar first appears in the second episode of the new season, telling Celebrimbor that they have "work to do".
To convince Celebrimbor, Halbrand steps into the fires in Eregion's main tower and emerges as Annatar, his 'fair form.'
"I have walked through the dusts and deserts of faraway lands, in search of an artist who possesses a craft to save all of Middle-earth," Annatar says. "A storm is coming, Celebrimbor."
Annatar – who calls himself the 'Lord of Gifts' – also promises that he can unlock Celebrimbor's "grandest abilities."
We can safely assume – given what we know of Sauron's history in Tolkien's works and that the three elven rings have already been forged in this series and what we've seen so far – that the Dark Lord requires Celebrimbor's skills to help forge the titular Rings of Power.
In the third episode, Annatar is shown working with Celebrimbor. The latter invites Prince Durin and Disa to Eregion to pitch their idea: seven Rings of Power, one for each of the dwarven lords.
Durin, though, is wary of Annatar, who introduces himself merely as a "friend" to the Elves and the Dwarves.
Annatar later sows seeds of doubt with Celebrimbor by speaking on 'behalf' of High King Gil-galad. He says that Dwarves are "unworthy" of the power and has forbidden the creation of any more rings, a lie that causes Celebrimbor to dictate a letter to his king that pronounces he is shutting down the forge. In Celebrimbor's mind, it is something that will give him more space to create the dwarven rings, but it's clear that is all part of Annatar's grand plans. By the episode's end, the creation of the Dwarven rings has begun.
As of the fifth episode, work has started on nine rings for Men. Annatar, once again, corrupts Celebrimbor's way of thinking, with the Elven smith's 'work' on the new jewelry manifesting as something more unexpected and dark as Mirdania tries on a ring and is haunted by visions of the 'unseen' world.
Annatar uses this as an opportunity to sow further seeds of doubt in Celebrimbor's mind, by suggesting that his letter to Gil-galad (and deception within) has tarnished the forging of the rings. Annatar's solution? To start over and help make them himself.
The sixth episode sees Annatar dipping into Middle-earth's politics. To calm a frazzled Celebrimbor (who is blissfully unaware of Sauron's poisonous effect on the rings) focus on his work, he takes over as the de-facto lord of Eregion. One of his first acts is to witness a message carved on a citizen: "Where is he?" it asks.
Before the siege of Eregion, Annatar also finds time to head over to Khazad-Dum. There, he offers King Durin timber or "something more precious" in exchange for the mithril needed to craft more rings. After being rejected, Annatar spots a familiar (possibly Balrog-shaped) vision in the flames.
The sixth episode ends with an emotionally charged conversation between Annatar and Celebrimbor. After the Elven smith thinks he can hear the siege alarm, the pair argue and Celebrimbor pushes Annatar to go and assess the situation.
But, of course, he's met by another one of Annatar's tricks: the ability to conceal the truth of what someone is seeing. In this case, Celebrimbor walks through a dreamy, idyllic visage of Eregion and is completely unaware of the chaos unfolding around him.
What next? We can look towards Tolkien's works – but are wary of the Prime Video series veering off from being a one-to-one adaptation. In short, things are heading in much the same way as The Unfinished Tales: Sauron is taking on the guise of Annatar to create the rings. How he reaches that destination may be different, but it looks like the fate of Middle-earth is heading down the exact same path.
For more, check out The Rings of Power season 2 release schedule and The Rings of Power season 2 review. Then dive into our guides on The Stranger and the Lord of the Rings timeline.
