Undying Lands in the First Age, promising a Tolkien history lesson.
Finally, we have a name - The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power. Announced in typically grandiose fashion, this official unveiling means the cumbersome "Amazon's Lord of the Rings TV show" moniker can finally be dropped into the fiery cracks of Mount Doom. More importantly, The Rings of Power's title offers major clues as to which areas of Tolkien mythology the TV show will draw from, and which significant events within Middle-earth's history will be adapted.
The "Second Age, and that Sauron will serve as a central figure, flying in the face of earlier reports that the villain wouldn't feature in season 1. At this point in Tolkien history, Sauron is regrouping following the defeat of his master, Morgoth, at the end of the First Age. Reestablishing control of Mordor, Sauron's first major gambit is infiltrating the elves as "Annatar" and convincing the pointy-eared folk to craft 19 Rings of Power.
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power's title suggests this is where its story will ultimately lead - an undercover Sauron weaving his dark influence among the elves, and working toward his ultimate goal of creating the One Ring. That means audiences can likely expect to see Galadriel, Elrond, Círdan the shipwright, elven ruler Gil-Galad and, of course, the hammer-happy craftsman himself, Celebrimbor. In of locations, the Rings of Power title signals trips to Mordor, Eregion and Lindon, but we know the Amazon TV series won't be limited to Sauron's lair and a few elven strongholds. The Rings of Power will likely explore the wider struggle of Middle-earth as Sauron establishes himself as a successor to Morgoth. The Dark Lord wasn't only deceiving the elves at this time, but extending his reach over other lands also, allowing The Rings of Power to bring in Hobbits and the like.
Though Amazon's Rings of Power title teases an origin story for the titular trinkets, the name also promises a more in-depth examination of the other Rings than Tolkien's main trilogy had time for. When The Lord of the Rings begins, the trio of elven gifts are wielded by Gandalf, Galadriel and Elrond, and the Nine Ringed Kings have all become Nazgûl. The dwarven rings, meanwhile, are mostly lost. Whereas The Lord of the Rings focuses roundly on Sauron's One Ring, The Rings of Power is Amazon-primed to delve deeper into the lore of the other 19. What happened to the kings who ultimately became the Nazgûl? What became of Sauron's seven Rings for the dwarves, who resisted his influence? And what inspired Middle-earth's second enemy to craft the One Ring, which would play such a significant role for thousands of years to come?
The forging of the Rings and the dark chaos that followed is a fascinating period for The Rings of Power to cover. More than just a Sauron or One Ring origin story, the time period juxtaposes The Hobbit - where such weapons are seldom seen and even more seldom held - with an era where Rings were comparatively commonplace among Middle-earth's elite. Even better, the story behind Sauron's manipulation of the elves to create the Rings of Power will highlight precisely why Frodo's mission to destroy the Dark Lord once and for all in The Lord of the Rings simply couldn't fail.