But the most puzzling characters on Prime Video's
Earlier versions of the legendarium
Later Tolkien divided the Elves who stayed in Middle-earth into three groups: the Ilkorins (an early concept of the Sindar), Danians (the Green Elves), and Lembi (who later become the Avari).
They are: Narya, the ruby-encrusted Ring of Fire; Nenya, the adamant Ring of Water; and Nilya, the sapphire-emblazoned Ring of Air.
The Mystics were members of a magic cult that existed deep within Rhûn far in the east of Arda. The Mystics were invented by Amazon Studios for The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, where they were portrayed by Bridie Sisson, Edith Poor, and Kali Kopae.
The wizards in Middle-earth are technically Maiar or primordial spirits who are sent to Middle-earth by the Valar and tasked with aiding the fight against Sauron. They're largely instructed to help guide the people of Middle-earth toward victory in the fight against the Dark Lord, rather than taking him on directly.
The Blue Wizards Arrived First
The first Istari sent to Middle-earth to fight against Sauron are the two blue wizards named Alatar and Pallando. Alatar had been chosen by the Valar Orome, the hunter. Alatar didn't want to go alone, though, so he asked his friend Pallando to join him.
As soon as the Mystics realize the Stranger isn't Sauron, they label him an "Istar." With this label, and several other hints throughout the episode and the season, The Rings of Power has all but confirmed that the Stranger is everyone's favorite wizard: Gandalf the Grey.
The Rings of Power were Rings created by the Elves of Eregion, nineteen Great Rings with knowledge obtained from Sauron, and several of them with Sauron aiding the creation. Sauron forged the twentieth Great Ring, called The One Ring or the Ruling Ring, secretly in the fires of Mount Doom.
Balrog is a fiery demonic creature that briefly appears a the end of The Rings of Power Episode 7. After Durin III throws an Elven leaf into the mine of mithril, the leaf finds its way to the mountains' roots and the Balrog's hideout.
Tolkien stated that "Maia is the name of the Kin of the Valar, but especially of those of lesser power than the 9 great rulers". In the Valaquenta, Tolkien wrote that the Maiar are "spirits whose being also began before the world, of the same order as the Valar but of less degree".
Galadriel has very strong magical powers, and she is said to be the greatest of the Ñoldor after Fëanor. The majority of her powers come from her Ring of Power, Nenya, the Ring of Water.
I think most of the objections have been against Arondir (Ismael Cruz Córdova), who is the Black elf. He's one of the immortal elves of Tolkien's legendarium. The legendarium is, broadly speaking, the lore behind the universe explored in Tolkien's books.
The three Elven Rings were conceived as a means of keeping magic (formally known in J.R.R. Tolkien's Legendarium as the Light of the Eldar) from fading in Middle-earth.
In The Lord of the Rings, it is said that had Galadriel chosen to use her powers for evil instead of good, she would have been even more destructive and terrifying than Sauron himself. Galadriel was the greatest and most powerful of all Elves in Middle Earth in the Third Age.
Especially in Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings, orcs appear as a brutish, aggressive, ugly, and malevolent race of monsters, contrasting with the benevolent Elves. They are a corrupted race of elves, either bred that way by Morgoth, or turned savage in that manner, according to the Silmarillion.
Legolas, on the other hand, is an elf from Middle-earth who was part of The Fellowship in Lord of the Rings. He is not as powerful or wise as a High Elf but he still has some impressive skills such as archery and swordsmanship which make him an invaluable member of The Fellowship.
So far I have learned that Galadriel is powerful enough to have a good chance. It is not clear whether she really would have to die or not. I personally think now that beating a Balrog could even be done without much physical power, e.g. by building a trap that will lead the Balrog to drown or fall very deep.
No, Balrogs do not serve Sauron. Similar to Sauron, Balrogs are Maiar, powerful spiritual beings second only to the Valar themselves. They were corrupted by Melkor's evil before the first age and were made into Valaraukar (Demons of Power). They very strength and wills were bound to Melkor.
Both Morgoth and Sauron managed to inflict significant damage upon the world and their enemies before their downfall, but Morgoth was undoubtedly the more powerful of the two.
Given the continual changes made to the legendarium, it is difficult to know definitively whether or not the Arkenstone was one of the Silmarils; but Tolkien's own manuscripts suggest he was trying to forge a link between the two.
Nineteen were made: three rings for the Elves, seven rings for the Dwarves, and nine rings for Men. An additional ring, the One Ring, was forged by Sauron himself at Mount Doom. The nineteen lesser Rings were linked to the power of the One, and were dependent on it.
It was light from this star that was gathered in Frodo's phial, his gift from Galadriel, which helped him survive his journey into Mordor. Even today the star still shines — the story of Eärendil and his Silmaril was the Elvish account of the "star" we know today as the planet Venus.
Having Legolas appear in The Rings of Power is no more a canon distortion than having Gandalf there. The Wizards, Istari, weren't sent to Middle Earth until roughly a thousand years into the Third Age, and there is no evidence, in the books and the Lord of the Rings movies, that Legolas was born before the Third Age.
As it turns out, the Mystery Meteor Man is indeed one of the Istari. With strange hooded figures following the tracks of his falling from the sky in the first episode, they finally catch up with the Stranger right at the beginning of the finale, and immediately call him... Lord Sauron.
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power episode 8 confirms that The Stranger is one of the Istari. The character is identified as such by the sorceress The Dweller who comes from the eastern land of Rhûn. Later, the word Istari is explained to mean "wise one" or "wizard".