RINGS OF POWER WRESTLES WITH HOW TO (AND NOT TO) DROP WISDOM

 

If you asked 100 LORD OF THE RINGS fans what their favorite thing about those films was, a very high percentage would probably quote some bit of wisdom that one of the characters drops during the series. 

It's just in the DNA of the series and really everything Tolkien wrote, too. The man likes an insight. 

But when it comes to storytelling, wisdom functions like exposition. If you're not careful it's going to kill the forward momentum of your story, and maybe even break the audience's suspension of disbelief. 

Think of Episode 7 of RINGS OF POWER. It's definitely a "Everything is bad now, we need to step back and reconsider our reality" moment, which is fine. But it is chock full of "People have Insights Now" moments. And even though I like a lot of those moments—Galadriel's conversation with Theo is particularly great—as a whole it doesn't really work. There's just so much it draws attention to itself.  It almost feels the writers saw their chance to finally "do a Tolkien" and so now here it is all at once. 

It also draws attention to itself precisely because there is pretty much nothing else going on. That's almost always the wrong time to do any kind of exposition. Exposition needs the audience to be distracted in some way; it's the kind of thing we try to slip in as writers, not something that we step up and deliver. 

Conflict, action, sex—these are the kinds of moments where you lay exposition. And if you're really good, you let the challenges of those events seem to force the exposition. "I'm only saying this because you're forcing me to, or because I am absolutely terrified, or because I just want you to stop talking and get into my bed." Exposition works best when it feels earned. 

When it comes to Wisdom Bombs, Tolkien does often drop them in quieter moments. But it's always sparing—you get one moment like that in each film, or maybe two. And it's still always a response to struggle. Frodo is losing it, so Sam says something that helps him through. Or Frodo is afraid, and Gandalf, Aragorn or one of the Elves tell him stuff to help him. They haven't fixed his problem, but their wisdom serves as a kind of encouragement. Don't give up, kiddo.

In episode 8 we get a great example of this: The Stranger is freaking about who he might be, and Nori drops this: "Only you can show what you are. You choose by what you do." BOOM. For me, maybe the most memorable line in the first season. (The writers really try to sell that whole light and darkness thing that Galadriel's brother tells her in the pilot, but it's just a little too dense an idea. A Wisdom Bomb is sort of like a great episode or season ending—it should come as a complete surprise and yet make you go oh of course!)  

And I think a big part of why it works is because it is offered precisely as the Stranger is Going Through Stuff.  This is not a break in the action, it IS the action. 

There's also the fact that it comes from such an unexpected source. Nori is a sweetheart, but she's a kid. We expect her to be kind and idealistic, but not wise. 

So, Some Ideas on How to Do A Wisdom Bomb Well: 1) Put it in the middle of some kind of conflict or struggle, where it seems like a natural, earned response of the characters rather than an insight of our own as writer; 2) Have it stand on its own—do not give us six bits of wisdom in 60 minutes, one is enough; 3) Try to have it come from somewhere that we're not expecting—Nori teaching Gandalf (Oh it's definitely Gandalf); or Galadriel chilling out from being Action Hero to actually help a child; 4) Make it both surprising and accessible.

I've got a little more to say about RINGS OF POWER but I'm going to be away for the next week, so probably it'll have to wait. 

In general, I think it's definitely an episode to consider rewatching. There is a lot of good writing going on there. Go RINGS OF POWER writing staff!

RINGS OF POWER GIVES A GREAT FALSE POSITIVE

The big question of the entire season of RINGS OF POWER, the shell game of it all, has been who is Sauron? Thankfully the entire season has not been sent with this as the driving question, it's just been bouncing along in the background.  

But in episode eight, the writers waste no more time teasing us. First scene, Boom, we're told the Stranger is Sauron. A little unexpected, but it's just nice to have it settled. I love it as a writing move, too. No dragging it out until the end of the episode. We've teased it long enough. Now we just lay it out. 

Annnnd thennnn we get the next scene, in which it's revealed very clearly that Halbrand is Sauron. And somehow that's even more satisfying, I think because it's very much a show don't tell. After seven episodes of half-hearted reluctant hero Halbrand, who is really pretty annoying, now suddenly we get full on deceptive buddy, whispering "wise" words into Celebrimbor's ear. It's such totally different behavior and style than we've seen from Halbrand in the past, very much Evil Dude Hijinx. It very much comes off as progress; we're done with that old phase of things, and now we're moving on. 

The real trouble with making the Stranger Sauron is that that information doesn't really change anything. He still doesn't know who he is, he's still tortured. There's so much more we need to be given. Halbrand as Sauron instead is like an opened Christmas present. No more questions. The battle joined. 

(Plus, how satisfying is it to see Galadriel discover that the person she has spent hundreds of years hunting is actually right in front of her, and has been for months, and in fact she just saved his life.)

One could ask, why bother with the initial head fake of the Stranger? Why not start with Halbrand? It's not a bad idea. But fundamentally the issue is driving story. The Stranger's finale story is dealing with the Weird Witch People. If he starts from a position of antagonism, where does the story really have to go? Far better to lead off with the idea that they're here to worship him and then flip it.  When we cut back from the Halbrand story, suddenly we're in on a secret the witches don't know, which puts us in that very fun position of watching the puzzle pieces drop for them (and for the Stranger). It gives his story in the finale great dramatic tension.

TOMORROW (I HOPE*): HOW TO (AND NOT TO) SHARE WISDOM

 *I'm going on vacation for a week starting tonight and getting things together has been a little bit crazy, i.e. I actually thought I posted this article on Tuesday. So we'll see if I can get tomorrow's posted before I leave. Fingers crossed!

RINGS OF POWER SHOWS WHAT A SATISFYING CHARACTER PAYOFF LOOKS LIKE

RINGS OF POWER had its season finale on Friday, and after a lot of episodes with not a lot going on, I thought the writers did a ton of different things right. I'm going to spend the week digging into some of the lessons we might take from a really solid first season finale, starting with What a Satisfying Character Payoff Looks Like.

One of RINGS' big first season problems is that pretty much none of the characters that it wants you to pay attention actually have an emotional arc to follow. Galadriel is like an arrow show from a bow. She just keeps going. Arondir and Bronwyn are good and brave. That's pretty much their thing. Nori and Poppy, too. 

Halbrand and the Stranger are both stuck being mysterious because that's what the writers need. Elrond is just around, mostly, sort of giving off a wise Obi-Wan vibe but not really having to do anything hard yet. (Sigh.)

Durin has a real arc, but it's a little bit of a head fake. You never quite believe he's not going to be there for Elrond. But his choices do have real consequences, which is satisfying. First Point of a Satisfying Character Payoff: The character's choices must have hard consequences for them. (Or, in the case of Satisfying Character Arc, their journey must involve costs and bring about change in them.)

But the two biggest characters arcs in the first season go to relatively minor characters. First there's Sadoc Burrows, whose name I didn't even know until I sat down to write this because he's mostly been in the background being gruff and complainy about Nori and the Stranger. He gives his life in the finale to help save the Stranger. So, hard consequences for their choices? CHECK.

But he also has these subtle changes as the season goes on. He goes from fearing and distrusting the Stranger to being kind to him after his initial attempt to heal their stopping place fails. He also insists on going with Dori, Dori's mom and Poppy to try and help protect the Stranger from the spooky witch people. All of which is to say, he has a legit arc. Second Point of a Satisfying Character Payoff: The character makes a series of choices that are risky or challenging for him and in the end involve both costs and growth. 

Sadoc's story also involves The Third Point for a Satisfying Character Payoff: A Grace Note. Rather than simply dying, Sadoc gets to sit with his friends and watch the sun rise. It's not necessary, but it underlines the sense of completion that his arc has come to, and it gives us in the audience a chance to actually just sit and feel things. That's what a grace note should do—underline the import of what's happened and give us a moment to take it in.

So many shows just rush on to the next thing and forget the grace note.  Don't forget the grace note. 

The other character who gets a huge arc in this season is Miriel, the queen regent of Numenor. Much like Sadoc, Miriel starts in a kind of one note of resistance of place. But then she agrees to go to the Southlands, which is a big leap for her and one that has costs for her politically (which is underlined by both the debate in the town square and the burnt ships). And that risk pays off with her actually helping save the Southlanders, and then also costs as Mount Doom blows and she ends up losing her sight. But, in a classic storytelling move, her blindness also brings with it a much greater wisdom about what is important, and in the finale she sails back to Numenor with a great clarity of purpose. 

So, Consequeneces: CHECK. A series of risky choices and costs: CHECK. And the one other thing that Miriel gets, basically her version of a grace note but what I'll call The Fourth Point for a Satisfying Character Payoff: An Iconic Look. Her with that wrap around her eyes is obviously classic but it also just really pops. In fact, if you think of character designs in the show, at the end of the season suddenly she has one of the most iconic looks of all. I'd say it's the Stranger, then Galadriel, then Miriel. 

And that is no small thing. It might sound crazy, but it's true: Fans root for characters with iconic looks. Their looks signal their importance. Giving Miriel that new look, combined with everything else, and I am all in on her. 

Tomorrow: THE FALSE POSITIVE.