Fridge examples for The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power.
Fridge Brilliance
- Tolkien referred to Middle Earth and the other continents of Arda as the Earth of old, i.e. a fantasy equivalent to Real Life prehistory. It shouldn't come as a surprise that some creatures in the series have an uncanny resemblance to some prehistoric animals, the most striking example being the pig-like wargs which were preying upon Proto-Hobbits and were driven off by the Stranger. Those "wargs" are actually a take on entelodonts, a group of extinct pig-like relatives of hippos and whales. The same rules applies to the hyena-like wargs (i.e. Hyenadonts) and the Mumakil (four-tusked proboscideans) from the Peter Jackson trilogy.
- One of Halbrand's advice to Galadriel is to cease galloping and take a minute to breathe. So of course it's when she's stuck on the sidelines watching smiths work that she finally has the time to start piecing together that Halbrand is Sauron. The comparison is also apt since Galadriel complains of the comparison to a horse, showing how Sauron viewed her as a useful servant and not an equal.
- Halbrand is actually rather honest with Galadriel. He never claims to be King of the Southlands, only says he wants to stay in Numenor. She's the one who constantly encourages him to take his "rightful" place and he obviously does see Adar as an enemy. He also gives her highly Sauron-like advice more than once. He may be a manipulator, but he doesn't really lie.
Fridge Horror
- A creepy version: Waldreg’s surprise role as Adar’s last successful tool in causing Mount Orodruin to erupt makes a cruel kind of sense because Waldreg had proved his loyalty to Adar by killing his fellow villager Rowan, and thus was the only one of the Men Adar actually regarded as more loyal than mere Canon Fodder.
- Remember Halbrand's previous rage against Adar for supposedly casting him out of his rightful position as King of the Southlands? Of course he would feel like that, as Adar already admitted that he was the one who split Sauron open. As in, Halbrand himself.
- Also, remember why Adar decided to conquer the Southlands? He felt he needed to rehome all the Uruk because Sauron was a Bad Boss prone to experiment in cruel and unusual ways on the Uruk to gain more power for himself.. And now Sauron has a new Forge to experiment and Adar and his Uruk are already there, ready for the slaughter.
- Let's assume Sauron wasn't exactly lying when he claimed he wanted Galadriel herself as his queen, "beautiful and terrible as the dawn." Let's assume Sauron wasn't just trying to talk Galadriel out of his case: he wanted her at his side. He even was going to have Celebrimbor fashion two Rings of Power to be used as wedding bands. Galadriel is now stuck with a nigh Omnipotent Stalker with a Crush who killed her brother, took her husband from her, hurt her people and now he's going to hold her responsible for every atrocity he will ever commit unless she joins him.
- This may even be a Call-Forward. Judging by this quote from Galadriel when she spoke with Frodo in Lorien, three thousand years later he's still trying to get to her.Galadriel: I say to you, Frodo, that even as I speak to you, I perceive the Dark Lord and know his mind, or all of his mind that concerns the Elves. And he gropes ever to see me and my thought. But still the door is closed!
- This may even be a Call-Forward. Judging by this quote from Galadriel when she spoke with Frodo in Lorien, three thousand years later he's still trying to get to her.
