Sauron (Charlie Vickers) may be the villain in The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, but he isn’t the worst character in the series. That distinction goes to Kemen (Leon Wadham), the son of Pharazôn (Trystan Gravelle), who has become central to the Númenor storyline. This bratty, privileged boy has let power go to his head as he tries to impress his father by terrorizing anyone who disagrees with him. Kemen may not be the biggest obstacle the people of Middle-earth must face, but he fills the role of the egotistical and annoying antagonist who comes to power easily and undeservedly. Kemen has no real authority; he has not distinguished himself as a warrior or shown a talent for the subtleties of politics. However, he is furthering the unrest in Numinor with his violence.
Kemen plays a small role in Season 1, but as Númenor’s situation becomes more unstable, Kemen’s role grows. Season 2, Episode 5, “Halls of Stone,” shows off just how terrible he can be as he takes drastic measures, escalating the situation into a fight that didn’t need to happen. But even before that, Kemen’s entitlement made him easy to hate. The Rings of Power tries to earn him a sliver of sympathy as Pharazôn essentially threatens to let his son die, but it isn’t enough to look past his personality. Pharazôn’s ambition may be the cause of Númenor’s division, but Kemen continuously makes it worse, and not by proving himself a calculated and intimidating opponent, but by essentially throwing a tantrum for his father’s attention.
‘The Rings of Power’ Set Kemen Up To Be Unlikeable
Since his introduction, it’s been clear that Kemen wouldn’t be someone to root for. He has fed his father’s ambition and spread lies about Miriel (Cynthia Addai-robinson) to get Pharazôn the power he wants. Bullying Isildur’s (Maxim Baldry) friends and going so far as to try to burn down Númenorean ships to prevent them from sailing to Middle-earth, Kemen is quickly shown to be an issue. He deeply believes in Númenor’s prejudice against Elves, exemplifying the problems that Miriel and Elendil (Lloyd Owen) face. But on a smaller scale, he has used Elendil’s daughter, Eärien (Ema Horvath), against him, manipulating her grief into oppression. Though Pharazôn is leading the charge in Númenor, Kemen is right behind him, never questioning orders and encouraging his father’s ego.
As the entitled character that he is, Kemen represents all the arguments against giving Men their own rings of power. Celebrimbor (Charles Edwards) opposes the idea, citing how easily corrupted Men are, and in the same episode, Kemen’s proximity to power goes to his head. This shows that Celebrimbor’s concerns are valid, though Sauron’s dismissal of them should have been enough. Kemen’s actions earned him a comparison to Game of Thrones‘s Joffrey (Jack Gleeson), which makes sense. Both are privileged and cruel and get lost in their own power, though, fortunately for Middle-earth, Kemen has less power than Joffrey. Yet, any connection between the two paints Kemen in a negative light.
Kemen’s Selfishness Makes Him ‘The Rings of Power’s Most Annoying Villain
The thing that is so irritating about Kemen is that he revels in making things worse. In Season 2, Episode 5, Pharazôn tasks him with emptying a temple to the Valar to make way for a new aqueduct, but Kemen doesn’t just complete the job. He interrupts a ceremony mourning the lives lost in battle, beginning with force before anyone fought back. It’s a hypocritical move for the son of a man who displaced the queen by accusing her of needlessly letting Númenoreans die, and, worse, everything Kemen does exacerbates the already volatile situation. When the High Priest (William Chubb) hesitates to leave, Kemen sicks his guards on the old man, who is willing to leave but first wants to store the sacred relic to complete the ceremony. Instead of letting that happen smoothly, Kemen goes on a power trip, smashing the statue and insulting Elendil, who tries to keep the peace. None of this is strictly necessary to his job, nor is it based on anything but prejudice and hatred, but Kemen does it simply because he wants to.
The same conflict proves another side of Kemen’s nature, his self-centered nature. During the scene, Valandil (Alex Tarrant) fights back. However, Kemen takes the fight from shoving and punching to trying to drown Valandil and eventually killing him from behind after Valandil surrenders. It’s important to note that Kemen already dislikes Valandil for his lack of status and connection to Eärien. Earlier in the episode, Kemen sees Eärien speak to Valandil, offering to try to spare her oldest friend the humiliation of being stripped of his rank. The friendly conversation makes Kemen jealous, fueling his later actions. Though their opposing politics play into the fight, Kemen doesn’t even draw a sword when Elendil punches him in the face, proving that Kemen is willing to kill for his own selfish impulses.
‘The Rings of Power’ Tries to Gain Kemen Sympathy
The Rings of Power does try to make Kemen more than the douchebag that no one can resist hating. Just before his attack on the temple, Kemen shares a conversation with his father where Pharazôn callously mentions a prophecy from Kemen’s mother that hints at the boy’s death but refuses to explain. On top of that, Pharazôn ominously threatens to “find other places to make use” of Kemen should he fail in the task. The reaction of Kemen gives at the mention of his mother suggests a dramatic story behind her absence, but even that trauma and the cruel treatment from his father are not enough to inspire sympathy for Kemen and his annoying personality, even before he commits his worst deeds.
Kemen may not be the agent of chaos that Sauron is, nor even the formidable political opponent that Pharazôn has become, but his selfish nature makes him insufferable. The fact is that Kemen is full of himself despite accomplishing little, and while he makes a dangerous enemy as he seems never to face consequences for his actions, that quality makes him easy to hate, no matter what he does.
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power is available to stream on Prime Video in the U.S., with new episodes on Thursdays.
