The Rings of Power: who is the mysterious Meteor Man?

The Rings of Power

Meteor Man or the Stranger (Daniel Weyman) is a mysterious character who made his surprise appearance in the first episode of the Rings of Power (here you can find our preview review of the first two episodes of the series ), based on J. R. R. Tolkien's Appendices to The Lord of the Rings (find books, films and merchandise here on Amazon). At the moment, we know very little about Meteor Man, but putting the clues together we could figure out who he might be.

WARNING THIS ARTICLE CONTAINS SPOILERS!

From this point on there will be some spoiler on House of the Dragon, so we invite you to proceed with the reading with caution.

The Rings of Power: who is the mysterious Meteor Man?

The omens of the coming of the Meteor Man Is he bad? Why is he looking for a precise constellation? Does he have any ties to the Shire? Could it be Tilion? Could it be Sauron?

The omens of the coming of Meteor Man

The first episode of the Rings of Power ends with a shooting star making its way through Middle-earth as most of the main characters of the series watch it go through the sky. Eventually the meteorite lands in Rhovanion, the Wilderness known to be the home of Mirkwood and Erebor, the Lonely Mountain where the dragon Smaug dwells in the Hobbit), and is discovered by the Pelopod Nori. But his coming was already foreshadowed.

During the very first sequence in which we see the Pelopods, two hunters discuss how strange it is that there is "nothing to hunt", while the more cautious of the two exclaims: " Something is wrong here ". Sadoc Burrows (Lenny Henry) then notes how bad all this is, before gazing at the evening sky with a furrowed brow, accusing the stars of being visible when they shouldn't, as if they were "looking for something".| ); }
The Rings of Power Meteor Man The Rings of Power therefore seems to suggest that the strange behavior of wolves and stars are portents of the arrival of Meteor Man, almost as if Middle-earth itself could perceive something which the Pelopods and hunters cannot hear. Burrows also carries with him a huge dusty tome that mentions stars, hunters and wolves, representing them with pictograms: perhaps, the book contains an old Pelopod prophecy that foretells the arrival of Meteor Man. His coming, therefore, is not accidental, but rather seems part of a larger project written by destiny.

Is it bad?

Moreover, it is the Stranger himself who asks himself

"What is heat?"

It is the translation of the words "Mana" and "úre" of the Elvish language Quenya, spoken by the Noldor and the Vanyar, two elven races.


The Rings of Power Meteor Man Another clue that The Stranger may be evil is the drawing he draws in the dust, which represents the symbol of Sauron revealed earlier in the episode. But there are other bad omens as well. When Meteor Man angrily breaks the stick he was drawing with in the sand, Nori's father breaks his foot.

We can also say with certainty that Meteor Man can use magic: in fact, he we see manipulating the fire and rocks around him and giving instructions to the fireflies in Poppy and Nori's lanterns. However, the death of the fireflies that follows the fulfillment of their purpose, in the second episode of the series, can be an indication of his lack of empathy with living beings, or, simply, the Stranger cannot control his powers. >
Another interesting detail is that he remembers nothing, neither his name, nor where he came from: perhaps due to the powerful impact with which he crashed to the ground, or, to cross Middle-earth, he had to forget its true nature, a bit like Gandalf and the Sorcerers only vaguely remember Valinor.

Why are you looking for a precise constellation?

Towards the end of Episode 2 of the Rings of Power, when the Stranger manipulates the fireflies, we discover that he does it with a specific purpose: to reproduce a constellation (perhaps, the symbols traced on the ground had the same purpose). Nori understands this, but does not recognize that particular constellation, probably because it is only visible from a specific point on Middle-earth. Or again, it could be a constellation so ancient that it is no longer visible in the sky, and the Pelopod Nori would be too young to have seen it before.



The Rings of Power Meteor Man However, perhaps Sadoc Burrows might know her, and maybe a look at her big old book full of mysteries might unravel the mystery. This, in turn, would mean that Meteor Man is a very ancient being. Then there is a more important question than the name and location of this enigmatic constellation: why is the Stranger looking for it? Most likely, that constellation points to a specific location in Middle-earth, which must be its real target.

Does she have any ties to the Shire?

If Nori Brandyfoot risks her life and a tug of ears from Sadoc Burrows to help Meteor Man, it would be nice for him to return the favor. We already know that Nori is dissatisfied with her nomadic life and always on the run, so perhaps the Stranger could convince her that the Pelopods should head west and settle in Eriador, thus giving birth to a community that will eventually be known. like the Shire of the hobbits, a paradise surrounded by nature where the little hobbits can play freely, without the constant fear of being discovered.



J. R. R. Tolkien writes that the Hobbits did not complete the colonization of the County until the middle of the Third Age, but the author does not even explain why they abandoned their nomadic life in Rhovanion to settle permanently in Eriador. The eventual friendship between Meteor Man and Nori could be the beginning of a long westward migration for all three races of hobbit, with the aim of transforming the fields of Eriador into their idyllic paradise.

Could it be Tilion?

Among the many mysteries that still surround the Stranger, the most important concerns his identity. So who could be Meteor Man? Perhaps an Ainu, a Vala or a Maia originally from Valinor, because he could be very ancient and because his magic seems incomprehensible to the inhabitants of Middle-earth. He has a strong connection with nature, but does not remember his past of him, like the Istari (also called sorcerers or wizards) when they arrived in Middle-earth. His magic, then, is reminiscent of Gandalf's, as the way he bends trees recalls the arrival of Gandalf the White in Fangorn Forest, while his whispering to fireflies brings to mind moments when Gandalf murmurs instructions to a moth.



The Rings of Power also explains why an Ainur would have chosen to crash right next to Nori Brandyfoot. Nori believes she is destined to find Meteor Man. Poppy reveals how Nori once took care of an eagle cub with a broken wing. Eagles are the messengers of the Valar, therefore, having Nori cured one, the Ainur would have known that the young woman was a kind, courageous and reliable person who would help, for example, someone with no memory who had crashed in the middle of a forest. .

If the Stranger were indeed an Ainu, then it could be Tilion. Also known as the "Helmsman of the Moon", Tilion was a Maya who carried the last Silver Flower from Telperion into the sky, thus becoming the guardian of the Moon. Tolkien wrote poems and songs about the Helmsman of the Moon descending into Middle-earth, where Tilion is described as a maverick (not unlike Gandalf), which would explain why he breaks ranks and falls into Middle-earth on his own.

Like all Maiar who take physical form, Tilion would have forgotten who he really is, which would explain his memory loss. Given the return of Sauron, an evil that the Valar sought to defeat by fighting valiantly, Tilion may have come to protect Middle-earth from another, catastrophic threat.

Could it be Sauron?

What if the Meteor Man was Sauron himself? When he arrives on the scene and crashing to the ground, his naked body is found in a crater that seems to resemble the Eye of Sauron. For this, he could also be Annatar, one of the false names used by Sauron. Furthermore, his arrival coincides exactly with Galadriel's choice not to go to Valinor before defeating Sauron, and his magical powers could be those of the Dark Lord, who is a Maya. Killing fireflies and breaking Largo Brandyfoot's foot could also be clues to his inner darkness, and his memoryless arrival in Middle-earth would explain why Galadriel found no trace of his enemy, despite long years of searching. br>


The Rings of Power Another important signal is the Lindon leaf falling in front of Gil-Galad just as Meteor Man arrives: the lower part of the leaf is blackened, as if it were responding somehow to this new presence in Middle-earth. The constellations that the Stranger shows to Nori could then lead to the site where Sauron intends to assemble his armies, and then create Mordor.

The Rings of Power is available for exclusive viewing on Prime Video from 2 September. For more information about the series, where and how to see it, we recommend reading our article. To access the many contents of Prime Video from the comfort of your TV, buy the Fire Stick TV.