The series was ordered in November 2017. Payne and 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 fourth. Production wrapped for the season in August 2021. The episode uses a palantír (crystal ball) to show the future destruction of the island kingdom Númenor. It also introduces Adar (Joseph Mawle), an Elf who was transformed into one of the first Orcs. Sophia Nomvete provided the vocals for her character, Disa, who sings "A Plea to the Rocks" in the episode.
"The Great Wave" premiered on the streaming service Amazon Prime Video on September 16, 2022. It was estimated to have high viewership and received generally positive reviews.
Plot
Queen Regent Míriel has a vision of Númenor being destroyed by a giant tsunami. Galadriel and Elendil present Míriel with proof that the forces of Sauron are attacking the Southlands in Middle-earth and Galadriel asks her to intervene. Míriel refuses and Galadriel asks to speak with her father, King Tar-Palantir, who hasn't been seen in years. Míriel has Galadriel imprisoned. Isildur and his friends Valandil and Ontamo are dismissed from their cadet training after Isildur makes a mistake while distracted.
Arondir meets Adar, the Elven leader of the Orcs, who lets Arondir leave with a message for the Southlanders: forsake their claim to the Southlands and swear fealty to Adar or be destroyed. Theo returns to Tirharad to recover food from the tavern and is attacked by Orcs. Arondir rescues Theo and they return to Ostirith. Tavern owner Waldreg reveals to Theo that he is a follower of Sauron and explains that the broken sword is a gift from the Dark Lord. The Orcs now know that Theo has the sword.
In Eregion, the realm of the Elven-smiths, the Elves and Dwarves begin building Celebrimbor's new forge. Celebrimbor believes Prince Durin IV is hiding something and Elrond investigates. He learns that Durin IV has been mining a new ore that is very light and strong. Elrond promises to keep this secret and gives it the name "mithril". When the mine collapses, King Durin III shuts down further mithril mining. Durin IV is initially furious, but reconciles with his father and agrees to investigate the Elves' true intentions.
On Halbrand's suggestion, Galadriel escapes and sneaks into Tar-Palantir's tower. She finds the king in ill health, protected by Míriel. The latter explains that there was a rebellion because the king wanted to renew relations with the Elves, and Míriel was placed on the throne in his stead. This gave her access to a palantír (crystal ball) which first showed her the vision of Númenor's downfall. She shows this vision to Galadriel and explains her belief that helping Galadriel will bring upon this cataclysmic future.
As Galadriel is being escorted back to Middle-earth, the petals of Númenor's White Tree begin to fall. Míriel says this signifies the tears of the Valar and changes her mind. She announces that she will take an expeditionary force with Galadriel to assist the Men of the Southlands. Isildur, Valandil, and Ontamo volunteer to join the force.
The series is set in the Second Age of Middle-earth, thousands of years before Tolkien's The Hobbit (1937) and The Lord of the Rings.[9] Because Amazon did not acquire the rights to Tolkien's other works where the First and Second Ages are primarily explored, the writers had to identify references to the Second Age in The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, and its appendices, and create a story that bridged those passages.[7] The first season focuses on introducing the setting and major heroic characters to the audience.[7][10] Written by Folsom, Payne, and McKay, and directed by Yip, the fourth episode is titled "The Great Wave".[11]
The writers wanted to establish a working relationship between Queen Regent Míriel and her cousin, Chancellor Pharazôn, in the episode. This was in anticipation of Pharazôn turning on Míriel in future seasons.[12]: 11:00–17:30 The episode also shows that Míriel has been having visions of Númenor's destruction in a great tsunami after looking into a crystal ball-like palantír. The showrunners said there was ambiguity about the abilities of the palantíri in Tolkien's works. They are primarily used to communicate across great distances, but there are also indications that they can be used to communicate across time. The palantíri can also be misused and mislead the user. The showrunners wanted to explore all of that and knew that there are seven palantíri present in Númenor during the series' events. Using the palantír to show a vision of Numenor's destruction allowed them to lean into the fact that Númenor is Tolkien's version of Atlantis and is doomed. By letting the audience know that, they could tell that story in a similar way to the film Titanic (1997) in which the viewer is aware of the tragic end that is coming and they can watch as the characters' choices move them away or towards that tragedy. This is especially seen in Míriel, who takes steps to try prevent the destruction of Númenor but potentially helps bring about that fate through her actions. They compared elements of Míriel to Cassandra from Greek mythology.[13]: 33:15–38:43 Míriel star Cynthia Addai-Robinson said there was an earlier version of the script where a set of stones falling over was a key sign for Míriel at the end of the episode, before the final version of the script which uses the leaves of the White Tree of Númenor as a sign for her instead.[12]: 11:00–17:30
The character Adar was inspired by one of Tolkien's explanations for where Orcs come from, in which Elves were corrupted by dark forces into the first Orcs. The showrunners felt that was a compelling idea that could be revealed as part of Adar's backstory during the season. Further exploring Orc culture was one of the reasons that the showrunners wanted to make the series, and they wanted to explore the fact that the Orcs are not inherently evil considering Tolkien's view that nothing in his world was evil in the beginning. However, they did not want to introduce "good" Orcs and felt they should continue to be portrayed as "pretty horrible". The idea that the Orcs are fighting for what they think is right was inspired by Claude Rains's antagonist Alexander Sebastian from Alfred Hitchcock's film Notorious (1946). The showrunners felt Adar's care for the Orcs as his "children" would be relatable to the audience.[14]: 26:35–32:07 "Adar" is the Elvish word for "father".[15]
Sophia Nomvete, who portrays the Dwarf princess Disa, felt there was a pain at the center of her character's husband, Prince Durin IV, that was created by the absence of his friend Elrond in the years before the start of the series. Nomvete said Disa was aware of this and wanted to help her husband overcome it. In researching Dwarven culture for the series, Nomvete read about Aulë, the creator of the Dwarves, and felt the dynamic between him and his wife Yavanna was reflected in the relationship between Disa and Durin. Durin actor Owain Arthur saw the scene between Prince Durin and King Durin III as a coming-of-age moment for the prince where he has to decide between his personal wishes and the expectations of his father. For the preceding scene, where Durin and Elrond discuss their respective fathers, Arthur and Elrond star Robert Aramayo discussed their own relationships with their fathers as preparation.[14]: 5:43–26:33 This storyline introduces the powerful ore mithril to the series. Yip felt this introduction would register for audiences who were not familiar with Tolkien's lore because of the time that had been invested in the relationship between Durin and Elrond so far in the series: "You don't need to necessarily understand exactly what Durin is talking about regarding the mithril, but you can see how much it means to him".[16]
Discussing Isildur's story in the episode, star Maxim Baldry explained that he has grown up in Númenor not fitting in, unlike his friends Valandil and Ontamo, and Isildur is looking for "something more to life". He added that the character is conflicted by these feelings because he also wants to remain with his family.[17] After the season finished, the showrunners gave Isildur's story about being a cadet as an example of elements of the first season that were "small" and did not meet audience expectations for a The Lord of the Rings story. For future seasons they wanted to ensure that all the story beats were tied to more "existential" ideas.[18]
It was important to the showrunners that practical effects and prosthetics be used to create the Orcs where possible.[23] Prosthetics head Jamie Wilson, who returned from Jackson's films, said their biggest challenge was designing Adar.[24] The character's design went through many iterations to determine where he should fall between an Elf and an Orc. Versions were considered where he looked much more like an Orc or like a normal Elf with minor scarring. The final design is closer to an Elf than an Orc, with Elven pointed ears and a "noble" face, but with "one degree" of darkness added.[14]: 26:35–32:07 The prosthetics include fake ears and cheekbones, along with scars and a "septic, slightly eerie" skin tone created with makeup.[24] Mawle had strong opinions on how Adar should look, focusing on the character's long life and many experiences of pain and sorrow.[14]: 26:35–32:07
The design for mithril also went through many iterations as the production tested different shapes and materials to achieve the desired look. They tried using different types of iridescent paint and adding glass beads or glitter to the material. The final design uses a translucent material with a shape that mixes organic and faceted surfaces. This was gilded with gun bluing and augmented by the visual effects team for close-up shots.[25]
Filming
Production on episodes beyond the first two began in January 2021,[26][27] under the working titleUntitled Amazon Project or simply UAP,[28] following an extended filming break that began due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[29] Yip confirmed that he had begun filming his episodes by March.[5] Aaron Morton was the director of photography for Yip's episodes.[30] Yip felt the audience would be expecting Adar to be a monstrous figure and so played into that with the character's introduction by focusing on his spiky glove and scars, before subverting those expectations by revealing that he is Elf-like.[12]: 2:58–3:46 For the scene where Pharazôn addresses a crowd of Númenóreans, Yip said there were 200 to 250 extras on set. Gravelle said Yip "whipped them up into a frenzy" over a microphone, preparing the crowd for Gravelle's performance.[31] Filming for the season wrapped on August 2.[32]
Visual effects
Visual effects for the episode were created by Industrial Light & Magic (ILM), Wētā FX, Method Studios, Rodeo FX, DNEG, Cause and FX, Atomic Arts, and Cantina Creative.[22][33] The different vendors were overseen by visual effects supervisor Jason Smith.[34] The palantír effect was created by Rodeo,[35] based on a design suggestion by Smith. He believed that the visions shown by the palantír create "a little bit of strife, a little bit of division" which led to the idea that the crystal and its surrounding environment would fracture to reveal a vision. He explained that, from the perspective of the unseen world, the area around the crystal is also made of crystal and so the cracking indicates that something from the unseen world is being revealed.[34] Rodeo described this as linking two scenes with a broken glass effect.[35] Yip acknowledged that this is different from the way that the palantíri work in Jackson's films and explained that "this was a completely different palantír that did different things". He compared the fracturing effect to rocks and gemstones and felt it was organic in addition to magical.[16]
Sophia Nomvete provided the vocals for her character Disa in the episode.
This is the first episode of the series that composer Bear McCreary did not introduce any new themes for, instead using the themes established in the previous episodes to follow the stories of the different cultures and characters. For example, his themes for Númenor and the "Faithful" Númenóreans like Elendil are heard throughout the episode. The final scenes feature McCreary's wife and frequent collaborator Raya Yarbrough, in her first contribution to the series, singing Galadriel's theme as that character prepares to leave Númenor. This transitions to McCreary's theme for the Faithful Númenóreans as the leaves of the White Tree fall, before ending on a "triumphant and rousing" version of the Númenor theme as the Númenóreans agree to accompany Galadriel to Middle-earth.[36] The scenes featuring mithril use a chord progression from "Where the Shadows Lie", the theme that represents the Rings of Power and related elements in the series.[36][37]
The showrunners wanted to give Disa an element that set her apart from the male Dwarves that had been seen in previous Tolkien adaptations, which is her magical ability to resonate stone with her voice. They saw this as combining elements of an artist and a priestess. They thought it was a believable extension of the echolocation that real-life cave-dwelling creatures have developed, and aligned with the established culture and society of the Dwarves.[38]: 24:42–29:25 This ability is showcased in the episode when Disa sings to the mountain. Nomvete worked to find a tone of voice that felt like it could resonate stone,[39] and described her performance as coming "from an intimate power that I had to find internally. And we had to channel that outward". She had been taught to "clean up the natural rasp in her voice" during musical theater training and always felt that held her back, "because I always thought that my voice somehow wasn't perfect. And so this moment felt like an expression of what I had as a vocalist. It just felt like a freedom cry for my voice."[36] Nomvete saw a metaphor in the song of using your own voice and power. She described it as Disa "baring her soul in order to literally move mountains". Nomvete felt the song was one of the highlights of her career due to being able to collaborate on composing it in addition to performing it. She said they did not want anyone to hear the music until it was sung on set so the other actors could be filmed hearing it for the first time.[14]: 5:43–26:33 The scene was one of McCreary's favorites from the episode, along with the preceding slow motion action sequence featuring Arondir and Theo. McCreary composed a choral piece in the Elvish language Quenya that is heard during the Arondir and Theo scene, which then transitions to Nomvete's on-set vocals for the Disa scene. McCreary added deep vocals singing in the Dwarvish language Khuzdul to accompany Nomvete's performance, and he had her re-record the song in a studio so he could adjust the ending. Sound designer Robby Stambler added a resonating effect to Nomvete's vocals for the climax of the song.[36]
A soundtrack album featuring McCreary's score for the episode was released digitally on the streaming service Amazon Music on September 15, 2022.[40] 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.[41] 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, Amazon Music, and McCreary's label Sparks and Shadows. The box set was released on April 26, 2024, and includes a journal written by McCreary which details the creation of the episode's score.[42]
All music is composed by Bear McCreary:
Season One, Episode Four: The Great Wave – Amazon Original Series Soundtrack
No.
Title
Length
1.
"Civil Unrest in the Island Kingdom"
9:35
2.
"Adar Lord-father"
4:26
3.
"A New Ore"
8:41
4.
"The King in the Tower"
7:50
5.
"Theo in the Shadows"
6:43
6.
"A Plea to the Rocks" (featuring Sophia Nomvete)
3:47
7.
"Father Figures"
8:36
8.
"White Leaves"
5:15
Total length:
54:53
Release
"The Great Wave" premiered on Prime Video in the United States on September 16, 2022. It was released at the same time around the world,[43] in more than 240 countries and territories.[44] For two weeks leading up to the premiere of the second season on August 29, 2024, the episode was made available for free on the streaming service Samsung TV Plus in the US, Canada, Brazil, the United Kingdom, and Germany.[45]
Reception
Viewership
Whip Media, which tracks viewership data for the 21 million worldwide users of its TV Time app, calculated that for the week ending September 18, two days after the episode's debut, The Rings of Power was the third-highest original streaming series for US viewership behind Netflix's Cobra Kai and Disney+'s She-Hulk: Attorney at Law.[46] JustWatch, a guide to streaming content with access to data from more than 20 million users around the world, placed the series sixth on its list of top 10 streaming series in the US for the week ending September 18.[47]Nielsen Media Research, which records streaming viewership on US television screens, estimated that the series was watched for 988 million minutes during the week ending September 18. This was a drop from the previous two weeks, but the series moved up to second-place on the company's list of top streaming series and films, behind only Cobra Kai.[48] 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 23, the company calculated that The Rings of Power was 27.2 times more in demand than the average US streaming series, placing it tenth on the company's top 10 list for the week.[49]
Critical response
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The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes calculated that 84% of 32 critics reviews were positive and the average rating for the episode was 6.8 out of 10. The website's critics consensus reads, "'The Great Wave' is an awkwardly sluggish mid-point for a season still searching for momentum, but the slow pacing doesn't wash away glittering virtues like awe-inspiring visuals and impressively detailed world-building."[50]
Companion media
An episode of the official aftershowDeadline's Inside the Ring: LOTR: The Rings of Power for "The Great Wave" was released on September 17, 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 Córdova, Boniadi, Addai-Robinson, Gravelle, Muhafidin, and Baldry, as well as Yip, Doble, and dialect coach Leith McPherson.[12][51] 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 fourth episode is dedicated to "The Great Wave" and features Arthur, Nomvete, Payne, and McKay.[14][52] 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".[31][53]
^Day, Felicia (October 14, 2022). "Ep. 2: "Adrift"". The Official The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Podcast (Podcast). Amazon Music. Retrieved February 25, 2023.
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