Balrog Tease in Rings of Power Doesn't Make Any Sense
It woke up... only to go back to sleep?
The Rings of Power has actively been using Balrog in its promotion, and it was no deceiving marketing, because the fiery beast did appear in one of the episodes, awaken by the dwarves.
Balrog woke up and roared into the screen in episode 8, just before the finale, leading everyone to think that there was some kind of big action with him in the season 1 ending... but the final result was disappointing.
Balrog never appeared in season 1, and it's unclear whether it will return in the upcoming second season. In that case, fans wonder what was the purpose of even teasing it in the first place.
"Was it simply added so they could include something from Peter Jackson's films?" Redditor YTInigo004 wondered.
Another fan guessed that Durin will become "greedy due to the ring he will be gifted", and this will potentially cause him to go deeper in the mine. Some people even remain hopeful that there is at least some logic behind the Balrog reveal.
"I think it was to show more that the king isn't wrong about the dangers with mining below, even if he may not know exactly how right he is. I imagine we will see the Balrog in more action soon enough," Redditor VisitTheWind said.
Others just joked about how Balrog was awaken by a "nightmare", and he will "calm down again after some warm tea." The absence of the fiery beast in the finale has certainly frustrated many people, but this is not the only disappointment The Rings of Power has brought to fans.
Many have criticized the series for lazy writing, bad character development and too many plot holes. As of now, it's unclear whether the Balrog reveal was just a marketing stunt to trick people into watching the show, or whether there is indeed hope for it to appear later in the story.
All we know is that the second season is already being filmed, with Amazon to clarify the premiere date later. And even if Balrog does not appear in season 2, the studio is planning The Rings of Power to have as many as five seasons. Plenty of time for the monster to get some sleep, right?