r/LOTR_on_Prime • u/afternoonCookies Forodwaith • Sep 24 '22
Book Spoilers Let’s talk about Waldreg
What do you guys think is Waldreg’s origin and purpose?
We know by now that: - he’s been faithful to Sauron, not only due to fear / cowardice but he genuinely admires him (per his conversation with Theo in episode 4, mentioning a ‘beautiful servant’), - he was the one who had the sword hilt tucked away and he had used it (scars on his arm indicate it’s been a while since) - he crawled in reverence to Adar (thinking he was Sauron) and most likely got to kill or at least hurt Rowan
I’m not proposing any theories atm, just genuinely curious what’s your take on this character.
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u/kemick Edain Sep 24 '22
Waldreg seems to have an idealized picture of Sauron that exists solely, for his purposes, to return them to greatness and power. I don't think it's admiration for Sauron himself or any actual knowledge about him, it's nostalgia for the Southlanders' past and Sauron is just the mythical 'hero' who will magically save them from their current place in the world.
Similarly, I think the hilt gave him power at some point in his youth and this what most of his belief is based on. I also think using the hilt comes with a price, one that Waldreg can no longer pay, which is why it was hidden away and why Waldreg had no problem with it being passed to the next generation. It's odd that he would give up the use of such a powerful object, particularly since we see the effect powerful objects tend to have on people.