The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power

The show introduces diverse casting of established Tolkien races (elves, dwarves, harfoots) but these are largely new or loosely defined characters rather than iconic established individuals.

• Black elf Arondir
• Dwarven princess Disa portrayed by a Black actress
• Diverse harfoot community

Galadriel is written as a relentlessly capable, often abrasive warrior whose male counterparts are frequently shown doubting her only to be proven wrong; some framing leans toward an infallible-female lead.

• Galadriel repeatedly overriding and outpacing male commanders
• Elrond and others cast as hesitant foils to her certainty
• Galadriel scaling a sea creature and surviving open ocean

No prominent LGBTQ+, trans, or non-binary characters or storylines in the released seasons.

Noticeably diverse casting across elves, dwarves, harfoots and Númenóreans that departs from prior screen depictions, though within a fantasy world where strict 'lore' is debatable.

• Arondir as a Black Silvan elf
• Princess Disa
• Multiethnic Númenórean and harfoot populations

Themes of perseverance, prejudice between races, and hope are present but mostly folded into the story rather than delivered as overt sermons.

• Harfoots' distrust of outsiders
• Tensions between elves and men/dwarves over old grievances

Some male characters are shown as fearful or flawed against Galadriel's resolve, but there is no sustained framing of masculinity or the West as inherently toxic.

• Male soldiers urging caution dismissed by Galadriel

Significant compressions and invented characters/timelines deviate from Tolkien's appendices, but most changes are creative/business adaptation choices rather than identity-driven rewrites of established figures.

• Compressed Second Age timeline
• Invented characters like Arondir and Bronwyn
• Reimagined younger, abrasive Galadriel