In a year of excellent TV, one show stands above the rest. I'm talking about The Rings of Power, Prime Video's sweeping Tolkien adaptation. Here at GamesRadar+, we loved it so much we crowned it our best show of 2024. The latest season had it all – Sauron unleashed, the Stranger discovering his wizard identity at last, and the forging of those infamous rings.
And while the finale brought all these plot threads together into a seismic showdown between different sets of heroes and villains, one episode in particular stands out as not just the best installment of the season, but the best episode of anything released all year.
And while all this is going on, Adar ratchets up the tension even further by setting the stage for his own demise in the finale. He's so hellbent on defeating Sauron, ostensibly to save his orc "children," that he's willing to throw those very same orcs into battle and watch them die. It's obvious to everyone but Adar that he's moving the pieces into the exact configuration of a mutiny – which makes for a dark undercurrent to the hopelessness of the battle. It really seems everyone is indeed doomed to die.
Then there's the tragedy of Celebrimbor, who, throughout the season, has been relentlessly manipulated by Sauron in his sinister Annatar guise. It comes to a head here, when Celebrimbor finally realises the truth and breaks free of the deception. It's heart-rending to see the others not believe the Elven smith, especially when Sauron lifts a hand to reveal he's bleeding red, apparently disproving Celebrimbor's accusation. All this tragedy is what makes it so rousing when Celebrimbor is able to smuggle the rings to Galadriel – one final act of heroism before his horrifying end in the finale.
Only a passing thing
Speaking of heroism, Galadriel herself notes that there has been "a dearth of Elven heroes" in the episode that night – but that couldn't be further from the truth. Not only does Arondir help her escape, while she herself smuggles the rings away later, but Elrond also does everything he can to free Galadriel and save Eregion. We get to see a touching scene between him and his best friend Durin again, too, where Durin pledges his aid. Only, the long-simmering issues in Khazad-dûm prevent Durin from coming to Elrond's help, leading to a truly heart-wrenching moment near the end of the episode. Far from the soaring cheer of Gandalf's arrival at Helm Deep, this is the opposite – Durin doesn't arrive, and Elrond is left hopelessly repeating, "Durin will come," to himself, even as it's obvious that he won't.
Of course, we can't forget that kiss, either, when Elrond ingenuously helps Galadriel break free of Adar by slipping her his cloak pin… and kissing her as a distraction. It caused plenty of discussion and controversy when the episode was released, and, personally, I definitely gasped.
And finally, there's that truly gutting ending. It really feels as if all has been lost, as Adar stabs Arondir – and we don't find out if Arondir lives or dies until the next episode – and takes Nenya from Elrond, who slumps back to the ground in defeat. It truly seems as if darkness has captured Middle-earth for good. But, as anyone who has heeded Samwise Gamgee's wisdom in the past will tell you, it's always darkest just before dawn. "But in the end, it's only a passing thing, this shadow," he says in The Two Towers movie. "Even darkness must pass. A new day will come. And when the sun shines it will shine out the clearer."
In many ways, 'Doomed to Die' is The Rings of Power's Two Towers – that dark, shadowed moment before the sun shines out the clearer. And just like The Two Towers is the very best of the movies, I'd argue 'Doomed to Die' is the very best of The Rings of Power. And that's why you won't watch a better hour of TV this year.
For more, check out our guide to The Rings of Power season 3 or the best shows on Amazon Prime Video. You can also see our The Rings of Power season 2 review for our verdict on the whole season.
