The Rings of Power is already managing a massive ensemble cast. The list of characters in Prime Video’s Middle-earth show is getting longer heading into Season 3, too, including the addition of Anárion. The young Númenórean nobleman is Elendil’s youngest son and the brother of Isildur and Eärien.
Anárion will be played by Andrew Richardson in The Rings of Power. The character isn’t mentioned as often as his elder brother and father, but he plays a critical role in the Second Age story of Númenor moving forward. He also helps found Gondor and has a huge impact on the future events of The Lord of the Rings. With Anárion bringing the swagger to the Rings of Power series for Season 3, we thought we’d do a deep dive on Isildur’s little bro to see what Tolkien said about him and how he could impact showrunners J.D. Payne and Patrick McKay’s unfolding Second Age story.
How Is Anárion Related to Isildur and Elendil in The Lord of the Rings?
Let’s start with the family stuff. Tolkien loved a good ancestral connection, and many of his main characters have family trees that’ll make your head hurt. In the case of Anárion, we’re talking about a guy whose dad is Elendil, one of the most revered and honored kings in Tolkien’s legendarium. He’s related to Elros, the founding king of Númenor, and is the same guy whose name Aragorn is shouting as a battle cry thousands of years after his death. At this point in The Rings of Power, Elendil (Lloyd Owen) is just getting going on his legendary career, but make no mistake, Anárion has a superstar dad to look up to.
Anárion is also the younger brother of Isildur (Maxim Baldry in the show), and the two brothers will go on to do a ton of impressive stuff together. And don’t forget Eärien (Ema Horvath). Anárion’s younger sibling isn’t in Tolkien’s writings and was made up for the show. On top of that, Eärien’s death in The Rings of Power season three, episode two means it’s just dad and his two sons left at this point. (Mom drowned before the show started — and in the source material, she’s never mentioned.)
Anárion will also have a wife and family, though if he has them already in The Rings of Power, we don’t officially know, but it doesn’t seem like it. Again, these are largely unnamed in Tolkien’s writings (which are stuffed enough with characters as it is without going into that level of family detail). What we do know is that one of Anárion’s sons is the future King of Gondor, Meneldil. Tolkien’s book Unfinished Tales adds that, in unpublished writing, Tolkien clarified that Anárion’s son was “the last man to be born in Númenor.” A foreboding line hinting at the island’s future… But a hint about what might be to come in Anárion’s story on The Rings of Power.
Where Was Anárion During Seasons 1 and 2 of The Rings of Power and How Does He Appear in Season 3?
As for Anárion’s whereabouts so far in the show, that one’s easy. Númenor is a big island, and most of what we’ve seen in the first two seasons takes place on its eastern, Middle-earth-facing shores.
In contrast, Anárion has spent two seasons out of sight on the western side of the island. But make no mistake, this is an important area because its shores look out to the distant region of Valinor and the immortal Blessed Realm away over the seas. That direction will be critical later in the Númenor’s story— just ask the new king, Pharazôn (Trystan Gravelle).
This makes Anárion’s entrance in The Rings of Power season three simple. He’s been on the edge of the story for years, and when he finally arrives, he’s busy training the soldiery of the Faithful (Númenor’s pro-Elvish, more traditional faction) for an anticipated civil war with Pharazôn’s army alongside his father, Elendil. The new season jumps forward five years in time, too, making it easy to slot him right into the action without much of an introduction.
What Happens to Anárion in Tolkien’s Books?
Númenor has a spectacularly dark ending. (Let’s just say it’s Tolkien’s Atlantis story… hence Anárion’s son being the last man born on the island itself.) When the island perishes, Elendil and his sons lead a group of survivors by ship over the sea to Middle-earth. Anárion is personally in charge of two ships during this flight, and he literally rides a wave to the mainland.
The Silmarillion describes Anárion’s harrowing trip thusly: “The tempests overtook them, and they were borne aloft on hills of water even to the clouds, and they descended upon Middle-earth like birds of the storm.”
The epic trip splits up the family. Elendil lands with his ships in the north, where he links up with Gil-galad and founds the kingdom of Arnor. But his sons’ ships land further south, where Isildur and Anárion found Gondor. This area is ideal partly because there are Númenórean settlements already there (a process we saw starting in season two of The Rings of Power). Once their new kingdom is set up, the brothers rule together.
Anárion and Isildur’s Future as the Founders of Gondor in The Rings of Power
Anárion’s greatest legacy is through the kings of Gondor. When he and his brother build Osgiliath, they rule on thrones set side by side. Their father is still the high king, but since he’s away in the north ruling Arnor, they share the responsibilities in their new kingdom of Gondor in the south. It’s this future as King of Gondor that awaits Anárion in The Rings of Power‘s Second Age.
Together, the brothers build the capital city of Osgiliath. Remember in The Lord of the Rings the ruined city built across a river that we see when Orcs cross it to attack Minas Tirith in The Return of the King? This is that same city. As for Minas Tirith? That fortress is originally Anárion’s personal pet project, and it’s called Minas Anor (the Tower of the Sun). Isildur builds a complementary tower called Minas Ithil (Tower of the Moon). That one is eventually captured by Sauron and becomes Minas Morgul (the evil, glowing green tower in The Two Towers).
How Does Anárion Die?
Everything is hunky-dory in Gondor for Isildur and Anárion for a while. But the kingdom is right next to Sauron’s old stomping grounds in Mordor, and eventually, the villain attacks his new neighbors. Isildur heads north to get some help from dad, while Anárion stays behind to defend their new kingdom against the Dark Lord.
This leads to the events of the Last Alliance of Elves and Men, a hallmark event in Middle-earth history where a huge force of Men, Elves, Dwarves, and others come together to invade Mordor and stop Sauron. The Silmarillion says, “all living things were divided in that day, and some of every kind, even of beasts and birds, were found in either host, save the Elves only.”
This is the scene we get in the introduction to Peter Jackson’s The Fellowship of the Ring movie, where huge hosts are duking it out on the ash-swept plains of Mount Doom, and Elendil cuts the One Ring from Sauron’s hand in single combat. You know what we don’t see, though? It’s during this war, before those final moments of Sauron’s defeat, that Anárion meets his fate.
In the source material, Anárion is part of the army that invades Mordor and lays siege to Sauron’s fortress of Barad-dûr (which we also see in construction in The Rings of Power season three). And it’s here, friends, before the mighty walls of Sauron’s fortress, that our Númenórean hero is slain in battle. The Silmarillion simply summarizes Anárion’s final moments thusly: “There in the valley of Gorgoroth Anárion son of Elendil was slain, and many others.”
Anárion’s Legacy Lives Into The Lord of the Rings and The Third Age of Middle-Earth
Though Anárion will die in The Second Age of Middle-earth, his legacy lives long after his passing and remains in The Third Age of Middle-earth, when The Lord of the Rings takes place. We also get one unexpected glimpse of Anárion in The Lord of the Rings in the form of the Argonath. Those are the two giant statues the Fellowship sails past at the end of The Fellowship of the Ring. Those statues? They’re depictions of Isildur and Anárion.
Finally, there’s Anárion’s familial legacy, which survives through the ages down to Aragorn and is part of why he can lay claim to the throne of Gondor in The Lord of the Rings. Again, the family tree is super complicated here, but the generational math does work out, and Anárion’s family continues ruling Gondor for a long time. This is because, after Sauron loses his Ring and Elendil and Anárion perish, Isildur becomes the high king and heads north to Arnor. Back in Gondor, Anárion’s heirs continue to rule for another two thousand years. They hold power until they’re replaced by the Stewards and the kingdom begins the millennium-long process of awaiting the return of the king.
Learn More About The Rings of Power
If you’d like to learn more about this Middle-earth adventure, you can pick up The Fall of Númenor: And Other Tales from the Second Age of Middle-earth and read more about Tolkien’s vision of the time when the show takes place.
The Rings of Power season three is now releasing on Prime Video.
This post has affiliate links, which means we may earn advertising money if you buy something. This doesn’t cost you anything extra, we just have to give you the heads up for legal reasons. Click away!
The post Who Is Anárion in The Rings of Power? Isildur’s Brother, Explained appeared first on Nerdist.
This articles is written by : Nermeen Nabil Khear Abdelmalak
All rights reserved to : USAGOLDMIES . www.usagoldmines.com
You can Enjoy surfing our website categories and read more content in many fields you may like .
Why USAGoldMines ?
USAGoldMines is a comprehensive website offering the latest in financial, crypto, and technical news. With specialized sections for each category, it provides readers with up-to-date market insights, investment trends, and technological advancements, making it a valuable resource for investors and enthusiasts in the fast-paced financial world.