What is an Istar in ‘The Rings of Power?’

Amazon Prime’s The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power has kicked off its second season, and fans are buzzing with anticipation to see how the storylines will evolve.

The first season of The Rings of Power had its work cut out for it. There was a whole new era to set up—the Second Age, a period less familiar to those who know Middle-earth mainly through The Hobbit or The Lord of the Rings trilogy written by J.R.R. Tolkien and directed by Peter Jackson. From the geopolitical tensions of the Elven kingdoms to the ominous stirrings of evil in the East, there was a lot to cover. Among the many intriguing elements introduced in the show was the mysterious figure known as “The Stranger,” later revealed to be an Istar.

But what exactly is an Istar?

In Tolkien’s expansive mythology, the Istari, plural for Istar, are a group of powerful beings sent to Middle-earth by the Valar, the god-like entities who shape the world. The Istari are essentially divine emissaries, tasked with guiding and assisting the peoples of Middle-earth in their struggle against the dark forces of evil Tolkien himself described the Istari as “members of their own high order” and “messengers of the Lords of the West” in his essay The Istari, published in Unfinished Tales of Númenor and Middle-earth. The Istar possesses knowledge and abilities far beyond those of the world’s mortal inhabitants, including Longevity, Wisdom, and Magical abilities.

In Tolkien’s timeline, the Istari did not arrive in Middle-earth until much later in the Third Age, well after the events primarily depicted in the series, which focus on the end of the Second Age and the forging of the Rings of Power. In the trilogy, we primarily encounter one Istar: Gandalf the Grey, later known as Gandalf the White. However, Tolkien’s writings reveal that Gandalf was not the only Istar to walk the lands of Middle-earth. In fact, there were five Istari in total, each with their own unique abilities and roles to play. Beside Gandalf, the other four Istari were Saruman the White, Radagast the Brown, and two Blue Wizards, Alatar and Pallando. These lesser-known characters travel far into the far east of Middle-earth, and their fates and deeds are largely unrecorded in the main narratives of Tolkien’s work.

Saruman, of course, is the infamous wizard who succumbs to the temptation of power and aligns himself with Sauron, becoming a formidable antagonist in The Lord of the Rings. Radagast, on the other hand, is a more enigmatic figure, described by Gandalf as “a worthy wizard” who “keeps a watchful eye on the vast forest lands to the East.” As for the Blue Wizards, Tolkien himself admitted that he knew little about their fate, leaving room for speculation and creative interpretation.

In a letter Tolkien penned while working on The Unfinished Tales, he suspected the Blue Wizards “failed, as Saruman did, though doubtless in different ways; and I suspect they were founders or beginners of secret cults and ‘magic’ traditions that outlasted the fall of Sauron.” However, in his later writings in “The Peoples of Middle-earth”, Tolkien revised his view, stating that the Blue Wizards “must have had very great influence on the history of the Second Age and Third Age in weakening and disarraying the forces of East… who would both in the Second Age and Third Age otherwise have … outnumbered the West.” Tolkien also noted that the Blue Wizards arrived much earlier than the other Wizards, around the same time as Glorfindel in the Second Age.

The portrayal of the Istari in The Rings of Power is a departure from Tolkien’s written works, as the show’s creators have taken creative liberties to flesh out these characters and their roles in the Second Age. However, this is not uncommon in adaptations of Tolkien’s work, as even Peter Jackson’s trilogy made significant changes to the source material for the sake of narrative cohesion and cinematic storytelling. Given these precedents in adaptation, it wouldn’t be surprising to see the Blue Wizards playing a more expanded and influential role in Amazon Prime’s The Rings of Power.

In the series, we’re introduced to a mysterious figure known as “The Stranger,” played by Daniel Weyman. While his identity remains a topic of heated debate among fans, many speculate that he could be one of the Istari, possibly even a young Gandalf. The show has dropped hints about his otherworldly nature, from his ability to communicate with fireflies to his rather explosive arrival in Middle-earth via a flaming meteorite. As The Rings of Power continues to unfold, we can expect to learn more about the role of the Istari in the grand scheme of things.