BRONWYN
Bronwyn will not be in season 2, which means she might be dead when it begins. Does that mean Sauron immediately using her name was not significant? Not necessarily.
Sauron most likely did not know that Bronwyn was going to die, but what did he know? What would he be thinking in the moment they were introduced?
I now fully believe Sauron knew she was going to die, and I have reasons.
— Melanie, 2 January 2025
Let’s be completely crazy with theorizing here.
To pose as a mortal King, he would need an heir, and to have an heir, he may need a queen. Who else would be a better prospect than the woman who led the Southlanders? — If she had no children, Sauron being a Maia would not prevent him from having literal heirs (like Melian, who had Lúthien). Such a relationship would need to develop rather quickly, which would be a small problem with Arondir’s presence, but Bronwyn trusted Sauron immediately and we saw how quickly his friendship with Celebrimbor formed. Nevertheless, he would need no literal child to be his successor. Morgoth had a successor, who certainly was not his literal son, and luckily, Bronwyn happened to already have a son. — But Sauron would need to overcome some hurdles. Bronwyn loved Arondir, which Sauron would have perceived after looking into her eyes. Is it not possible that in addition to glancing back at Galadriel, he also eyed Arondir as an obstacle? (To me, he looked slightly angry, or at the very least, annoyed.)
He had no need of gaining her trust simply to climb higher in the ranks; he was already named the King of the Southlands with no resistance. Nevertheless, regardless of whether he wanted her as his queen or he simply wanted to befriend her for credibility, he knew she held the most influence among the small group of Southlanders he saved; she would be a beneficial ally.
Orodruin unexpectedly erupted, and Sauron needed to accelerate the enactment of his plans. So, he temporarily placed the Southlands on the side, and injured himself so he could be taken to Eregion. In the meantime, Bronwyn had a son, who… well… happened to bind himself to Sauron by blood, using an artifact Sauron made in the First Age. If he did not know this in the moment he met Bronwyn, he certainly knew by the end of episode 7.
In conclusion, Sauron used Bronwyn’s name for a reason. Did he want to at least be friends with her to further his designs? —Most likely. In the event of her death, who would he want to befriend? —Her son.
THE END
2 responses to “The Name Depends”
I like the idea of Sauron mentioning specific people’s names with the goal of attaching them to him. I believe he does this on the show.. Tolkien even mentions Sauron attaching Pharazon to him in the source material at one point. But this is a T.V. show with a 5 year outline and a writer’s room. . If Sauron was even thinking of making Browyn his queen when he meets her in episode 6, the show runners will mention this. Otherwise it’s just fan theory. I can’t imagine something of this importance NOT being mentioned. They mentioned that they will fill in all the missing Sauron pieces from season 1 this season . If Sauron was planning on marrying her that would be included. In my opinion, they were planning her death. . I will mention further down what I do actually speculate.. There was foreshadowing in the 1st season of Browyn and Arondir’s relationship being doomed.. Arondir is also a good judge of character. I believe he didn’t trust Sauron. I believe the show is demonstrating this through Arondir’s non verbal body language in episodes 6 and 7. The show reinforces this again in season 2 by demonstrating how Arondir’s experience enables him not to trust Estrid. Isildur is very naive at this point with little experience.
Also, the show has no problems with recasting.. They already did it with Adar and Celebrimbor. They didn’t do it with Browyn. That tells me they had no plans of making her Sauron’s queen. Last season they even showed Theo and Isildur in interviews together. I think the idea of 2 sons who both lost their moms was on the show runner’s mind when they kept placing the 2 actors in interviews together. They also will share future sc reen time.
Sauron did personally mention Browyn by name when he met her. He did plan on tricking her into believing he was their deliverance and getting close to her.. But his plan from the start was to get rid of her. I don’t know how but I speculate that was his plan from the start.. If we think about it, she was a threat. The people followed her. But most importantly, she was the only human who was willing to stand up and fight Adar and his army of orcs. She organized people against evil when no one else took a stand.. She had the will power to resist. Why wouldn’t she do the same to Sauron when, as Sauron himself says in episode 5: ” when these people discover it they will cast me out.. So will you.”
I absolutely agree. It is a bit speculative to say that Sauron wanted Bronwyn to be his queen, and you’re right about the recasting. I’ve been expecting Bronwyn to die very soon, which is why I was a little shaky on the queen thing. She was the one who told Theo to “find the light,” so if we go by the pattern Finrod gave Galadriel in the beginning, Bronwyn’s gaze was and always will be upon the “light.” Even if she lived long enough for Sauron to make a move like marriage, she wouldn’t accept it, and Sauron probably knew that. So, I completely agree with you in saying that his plan from the start was to get rid of her.
Theo, on the other hand, said things that indicated he was going down a dark path—mourning over the loss of the hilt because it made him feel powerful, then saying things like, “What light?” His gaze was always directed downward, and Bronwyn was the only one keeping his head above water. Arondir might try to keep him in check, but I think that ultimately, since Bronwyn whole-heartedly trusted Halbrand for a short time, Theo will take that to mean he can also trust Halbrand. And you’re absolutely right about Arondir’s suspicion. (I want to make a whole post about all of this, so I’m really glad you brought it up.) In episode 7, Arondir most certainly did not trust Halbrand, and Halbrand even glared at him in the tent, after Arondir said, “Southlanders found him on the road like this, yestereve.” It makes me wonder if Arondir saw something he shouldn’t have. So, after Bronwyn’s death, if Theo starts trusting Halbrand, I don’t know if any amount of warning from Arondir will be enough, since Theo loved and followed his mother so much.
If Sauron knew that Bronwyn had a son, maybe his aim in gaining Bronwyn’s trust was to ultimately gain Theo’s. Again, it would seem that Theo is bound to Sauron by blood (having twice activated the hilt that Sauron himself made). I have to think that that wouldn’t go over Sauron’s head.