What’s the Deal With the Great Eagle in The Rings of Power Season 2?

Warning: The following article contains spoilers for The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Season 2, Episode 3, “The Eagle and the Sceptre.”

A Great Eagle causes a major fuss in The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Season 2, Episode 3’s coronation scene. It’s a spectacular moment, and we’ve broken down what it all means below.

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The Rings of Power Season 2’s Great Eagle Scene, Explained

The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Season 2, Episode 3 sows the seeds for its Great Eagle scene early on. When Pharazôn meets with Queen Regent Míriel to discuss her upcoming coronation ceremony, the latter reflects on how an Eagle showed up the day her father ascended the throne. “It is rare for an Eagle to grace a coronation,” Pharazôn replies. “Should one make an appearance at yours, it would be seen as an auspicious omen.” So, the stakes are clear: if Míriel wants to win back Númenor’s jaded public, she better hope that a Great Eagle swoops in when takes over the top job. And that’s exactly what happens—although it doesn’t end up benefiting Míriel!

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Things are already going pear-shaped before the overgrown bird arrives. Pharazôn exploits anti-Elf sentiment to incite a riot, painting Míriel as an unfit ruler. The Great Eagle’s entrance puts a stop to all the fighting, but Míriel is too far away to easily approach it (she’s blind, remember). Instead, it’s Pharazôn who strides over to the ceremony’s feathery guest, giving his supporters the ammunition they need to declare him the Eagle’s preferred candidate to rule Númenor. Interestingly, the Eagle—who presumably did turn up to support Míriel—doesn’t really do anything to contradict the chanting mob. This tracks with previous live-action portrayals of the Eagles, which (unlike J.R.R. Tolkien’s original Lord of the Rings canon) have all presented the creatures as incapable of speech.

Does the Great Eagle Scene Happen in the Books?

Nope, although, in fairness, Tolkien’s writings don’t cover Pharazôn’s coronation ceremony in great detail. Maybe an Eagle did show up! But if it did, Tolkien doesn’t mention it or the previous eagle-centric event at the ceremony for Míriel’s father. That said, the scribe’s OG Middle-earth canon is pretty clear that Pharazôn (or Ar-Pharazôn, to use his proper name) nabbed the throne of Númenor by forcing Míriel to marry him, not by faking an Eagle endorsement.

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Still, Eagles are a big deal in Tolkien’s version of Númenor, just like in the show. They had a nest in the island kingdom’s capital and were a key part of the Three Prayers religious rituals. Indeed, the Númenóreans recognized the Eagles as servants of Manwë, the King of Valar (the angels, or even demigods, of Tolkien’s universe). So, it makes sense that Rings of Power would use a Great Eagle as an omen in Season 2—even if most Númenóreans had denounced the Valar by then in the books!

The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Season 2 is currently streaming on Prime Video, with new episodes dropping Thursdays.