The Rings Of Power Finale Trailer: Sauron's Name Is In The Air

"The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power" debuted a trailer for the season finale at New York City Comic Con today, and it teases the moment we've all been waiting for: namely, everyone seems to be saying the S-word. While the two-and-a-half-minute trailer is honestly mostly comprised of footage we've seen before throughout the season — it's more like a sizzle reel than a genuine preview — it does include a few new snippets of footage of what's to come during next week's finale.

What will become of Middle-earth after the creation of Mordor? Are our heroes safe, or will some of them not make it out of this season alive? Most importantly, will the finale make time for scenes of Durin (Owain Arthur) and Elrond (Robert Aramayo) just being bros? Check out the trailer below for some blink-and-you'll-miss-them insights into the season's final episode.

While there seems to be some tricky editing at play here that combines lines we've heard before with moments still to pass, it's clear that the show's eighth episode will bring about some answers on at least one front: the identity of Sauron, the Dark Lord who will eventually go on to pretty much ruin the entire world. The trailer gives us some mixed messages about what exactly that identity is, though, as it includes the line "I am no god — not yet," which we know is spoken by Adar (Joseph Mawle), followed directly by shots of the trio of mysterious mystics who we know are following The Stranger (Daniel Weyman). "You will be known at last for who you truly are," they say in unison, "for you are Lord Sauron."

While it also looks like we'll get some big hero moments for Arondir (Ismael Cruz Córdova) and Galadriel (Morfydd Clark), the trailer ends on a reference to the original trilogy, as we see molten liquid being poured into a mold. "We are on the cusp of crafting a new kind of power," Celebrimbor (Charles Edwards) says, reminding viewers that there are still some very special rings in our future.

Hopefully, the finale will answer some of the questions that have lingered throughout the series' dazzling but wearyingly paced first season. The show has bent and expanded Tolkien lore in interesting ways and presented heroes worth waiting for, but I personally think some plots are growing tedious as they stretch across so many episodes. 

The finale of "Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power" will stream on Prime Video beginning next Friday, October 14, 2022.