“The Rings of Power” Season 2 will soon be available on Prime Video, but it has been less than two full years since our last trip to Middle-earth's Second Age, so it is likely that you do not remember the important details of what has gone before

You may recall Galadriel's pursuit of Sauron, or Stranger's wandering the world with the Halfet and their friends, but if you need to refresh your “ring of power,” we're your man

Below is a summary of some of the most significant developments from the first season of one of Prime Video's best fantasy shows Here's what you need to know about The Ring of Power before the show returns for a second season

This article contains major spoilers for “The Lord of the Rings: The Lord of the Rings” Season 1

Sure, if you've seen any of the trailers, you may not need to be reminded who Charlie Vickers' character really is, but he will have an even In light of the fact that he is scheduled to play a larger role, here is a brief summary of who this traitor really is

This face you see is none other than Sauron himself Sauron, the would-be king of the underworld, was posing as Halbrand, king of the southerners Later in the season, Galadriel (Morfid Clarke) learns from some old records that the Southland kingship ended a thousand years ago

Confronting her friend, she discovers that he is actually Sauron in disguise Halbrand tried to convince her that he could rule with her, but she would have none of it, and after failing to drown her, Sauron fled Lindon and returned to Mordor, ominously looking over the land From the trailer, it looks like his next move will be quite explosive

This revelation is bound to have major consequences for Galadriel herself She tried to kill the Dark Lord, whom she feared had returned, but instead succeeded in bringing him to the elf's doorstep To make matters worse, she hid his true identity from Elrond, who also knew the truth about Halbrand

Much of season one was depicted in “The Southlands,” a beautiful region that has since disappeared from the kingdom

After the epic battle at Tirjarad, the people of the Southlands thought they had defeated the orc forces of Adar with the help of the Numenoreans Galadriel and Halbrand interrogated Adar and learned that he believed he had killed Sauron and was trying to create a home for the orcs

To this end, he finally put his plan into action Waldreg, who had sworn his allegiance, fled the scene and unlocked the dam, pushing the water down to the earth and leading it underground at Orodruin (also known as Mount Doom)

This triggered a catastrophic volcanic eruption, transforming the lush landscape into an ash-covered wasteland Isildur was presumed dead, Queen Miriel went blind trying to rescue the survivors, and Galadriel set out to save the life of her then friend with elvish medicine

“The Rings of Power” is a magical artifact forged in Eregion by Celebrimbor and his fellow blacksmiths

After the eruption, Galadriel took Halbrand to Eregion for treatment There, Halbrand became keenly interested in the work of the elven smiths who, with the help of Durin IV, used the mithril secured by Elrond to try to save the elves who were in danger of darkness returning to the realm

At his suggestion, Celebrimbor forged two small objects from the mithril alloy and combined them with precious gems crafted by Fornor However, Galadriel, who had learned of Halbrand's true nature (Halbrand had fled from Eregion), sought out Celebrimbor and urged him to forge three rings

The three elven rings were then forged in a sumptuous montage, and the three decided that only elves should be allowed to wield such power Of course, anyone familiar with the history of Middle-earth knows that many more rings were made, including Sauron's own “one ring We will soon see Sauron continue to tempt the great blacksmith to make more rings

Durin IV found himself in a tight spot in Khazad-dûm, where mining mithril proved to be a dangerous game One of the mines collapsed, and Durin III ordered all mithril mining, no matter how beneficial to the elves, to cease until further notice

When it became clear that Durin III would not move on the subject, Elrond and Durin IV began digging for mithril in secret Eventually King Durin found out, banished Elrond, stripped his son of his royal title, and had the two men seal their illicit mine

For a long time, ever since “The Stranger” fell from the sky, “Who is The Stranger?” has been one of the biggest questions we all wanted answered Who is Daniel Wayman's giant character?

Well, it was implied that he might be feared as the new incarnation of Sauron, but after the journey with Hafut's friends and the fact that Halbrand claimed that title, we know that is not the case

Although not yet clearly confirmed by the program, it seems almost certain that he is Gandalf He is a powerful sorcerer, someone who has a fondness for halflings and plays a role in the ensuing conflict He also told Nori to “always follow his nose,” which is almost exactly what Gandalf later told Merry on his journey with her

Indeed, it is possible that this is another red herring, but it seems to me that the program is only telling us that this is the man who would later have adventures with Bilbo and Frodo Baggins

Now, I mentioned that Stranger and his party ran into a bit of trouble in Greenwood That “trouble” was a cult known as the Mystics These three mysterious women, believing him to be Sauron, sought him out and tried to restore his memory and powers

They also explained that the constellation he kept envisioning was only in the far eastern land of Rune Just before he magically banished them, one of the mystics named him one of the Istari

At the end of the episode, the Stranger decided to go to where the cult came from

Particularly possessed by an adventurous spirit, Halfet's Nori decided to accompany him to the East, a region not often seen in other adaptations of Tolkien's work

Again, if you know the extended lore, you know that Númenor is doomed If not, you know that Queen Miriel saw the island swallowed by a great wave

Unfortunately, that is not the only problem facing the kingdom The loss of so many soldiers (including Isildur as far as his father Elendil is concerned) in the Southland is bound to upset many Numenoreans Especially since she offered to send an expeditionary force to help the elves (who are not exactly beloved by the citizens of the kingdom today)

Miriel promised to return to seek revenge against the orcs, but other problems await her back home Her ailing father, King Tar-Palantir, has passed away, and Chancellor Farazon seems to want the throne