If you didn’t cry along with Durin as he says his goodbyes to Elrond, you are heartless. Yes, his decision to defy his father, in the end, will destroy a lot of things, but there is no way he could know that. All he wants to do is the right thing for the man he cares about with all his heart.
This is a person who nurtured a tree as a tribute to a friend that he thought abandoned him. He’s a person who doesn’t want to model bad behavior for his beloved children. He’s also a man who is full of joy when he feels like the people around him care. He can make a good joke at someone else’s expense, but he can also find the humor in being outwitted. If he’d lived at a different time, perhaps he would be called Durin the Joyful, or Good King Durin.
As an audience member, it’s hard to watch him so earnestly doing what he thinks is the right thing for the people he loves, knowing what’s to come. There is still a little part of you that wonders if there’s any way to change the future. I just want to give him a hug and tell him and Elrond to take themselves, Disa, and the children to Valinor and disappear forever. Alas, their love and friendship are too pure for this fictional world.
“The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power” is currently streaming on Prime Video, with one episode left in season 1.
