[+] The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power - SPOILERS ALLOWED

[wicked cool]

In origin, yes, they were Maiar, just like Sauron, who entered into the created world from the timeless halls of Ilúvatar at the beginning of time. In the Third Age, they were sent to Middle-earth from Valinor, which is also an "other world" of sorts, to aid the free peoples against the dark lord.

Ok so maybe these 3 are maiar

 

[Ryujin]

Ok so maybe these 3 are maiar

They're all supposed to appear as older humans, but it's not like they haven't already gone off script for a lot of stuff.

 

[Mallus]

I also concur with those who think the whole light of the elves fading unless they get mithril story is dumb.

This is a universe where a big spider eats the trees that are also the sun…

I like the idea the Elves think the light in mithril will help their fading from the world. It is presented as a desperate hope.

 

[Maxperson]

This is a universe where a big spider eats the trees that are also the sun…

I really dislike the argument that just because this fantasy thing happens, all fantasy things are okay. THIS fantasy thing runs contrary to just about everything Tolkien wrote about the elves. Eru didn't give them limited battery life. They were eternal unless killed or they lost the will to live.

 

[Hriston]

Ok so maybe these 3 are maiar

Maybe. They seemed more like devotees to me. There was something cultish about them.

 

[Hriston]

They're all supposed to appear as older humans, but it's not like they haven't already gone off script for a lot of stuff.

Well, the wizards appeared that way. We’ve seen three of them in the Peter Jackson movies. The Stranger certainly appears to fit the mold. But other maiar might appear in different ways, including Sauron who was a shape shifter. As Annatar, however, he appeared as an emissary of the Valar, which is what the wizards actually were.

 

[TheSword]

They were deceived by Sauron's fair visage and aid, not by some cockamamie story. They made the rings in order to make their lands as beautiful as Valinor. Elves love beauty.

I thought elves diminishing and going into the west was a theme?

 

[Mercurius]

I really dislike the argument that just because this fantasy thing happens, all fantasy things are okay. THIS fantasy thing runs contrary to just about everything Tolkien wrote about the elves. Eru didn't give them limited battery life. They were eternal unless killed or they lost the will to live.

Bezos Elves only bear slightly more resemblance to Tolkien Elves than Gygax Elves do (meaning, very little), that at this point it doesn't really matter. I don't even think they're trying to capture the vision of Tolkien, but rather just using his names and ideas to tell whatever story they are trying to tell.

But yeah, the elves sort of essentialize just how far they're missing the mark - if the mark is to capture a Tolkien vibe - because elves were so central and dear to Tolkien, and these ain't them.

 

[billd91]

I thought elves diminishing and going into the west was a theme?

In the Third Age it is. The Second Age is more about the ones who stayed (after the big return to the West at the end of the First Age) picking up and establishing new lands and living in relative peace without the threat of Morgoth over them - for a while. The Second Age is far more about the deceptions and betrayals of Sauron and the corruption of men - thematically.

 

[wicked cool]

If the stranger is Sauron reborn are they taking a page out of dr who where sometimes the dr forgets who they are