In the third episode of Amazon’s Lord Of The Rings: The Rings Of Power, Galadriel finally smiles.
It’s a radically expressive change for a character who, unfortunately, has virtually no emotional range. Galadriel wears—almost exclusively—various shades of scowl; perhaps the occasional glower or puzzlement—but mostly she just frowns and glares at people, either in gritty determination or impatience and frustration.
I think many of the criticisms leveled at this version of Galadriel have missed the mark. She is not a ‘Mary Sue’ as some have claimed. She’s far too unlikable to be a Mary Sue, for one thing. And her character is much too old and experienced to qualify. Mary Sues, by definition, are characters who are good at everything despite not having the training or experience required for such mastery.
I also don’t care that she’s portrayed as a warrior and has skill with a sword. Sure, we don’t see that in The Lord Of The Rings, but by then she’s close to 10,000 years old give or take. She’s fought against Morgoth and Sauron. It stands to reason she’s picked up some skills with a blade and probably a bunch of other weapons. She’s a Level 200 High Elf. She’s multi-classed to the gills.
