Season two finds our Middle-earth heroes facing the most formidable threat imaginable. You know his name, but he’s been disguising it for years; first he was Halbrand (Charlie Vickers), now he’s an elf named Annatar, but the name that Lord of the Rings fans know and all Middle-earth fears is Sauron. The new trailer is definitely on the bleaker side for Galadriel (Morfydd Clark), Celebrimbor (Charles Edwards), and the rest of the folks trying to fight against this ancient evil—and it’s especially galling that he’s been hiding amongst them for years.

Like the first trailer, this second look shines a light on just how ambitious Prime Video’s series has aimed to be, setting the bar at no less than the grandeur of Peter Jackson’s films to the small screen. Season two will track Sauron’s attempt to create the Rings of Power, bringing all the dwarves, elves, men, wizards, and Harfoots under his control. Galadriel and her small, mighty band are the thin line that stands between Sauron and his goal.

Season two will also further develop the Stranger (Daniel Weyman), revealed at the end of season 1 as one of Middle-earth’s most powerful future wizards. While it hasn’t been confirmed, the implication is that this is the young Gandalf.

Middle-earth is a bustling realm on screens large and small, with Warner Bros.’ upcoming anime The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim, Peter Jackson’s multiple new Lord of the Rings films he’s planning (also for Warner Bros.—including a film directed by and starring Andy Serkis, who will return to play Gollum in The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum), and this June’s re-release of remastered versions of Jackson’s original trilogy.

Check out the trailer here. The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power season 2 arrives on Prime Video on August 29.

Here’s the official synopsis for season two:

Sauron has returned. Cast out by Galadriel, without army or ally, the rising Dark Lord must now rely on his own cunning to rebuild his strength and oversee the creation of the Rings of Power, which will allow him to bind all the peoples of Middle-earth to his sinister will. Building on Season 1’s epic scope and ambition, Season 2 of Amazon’s The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power plunges even its most beloved and vulnerable characters into a rising tide of darkness, challenging each to find their place in a world that is increasingly on the brink of calamity. Elves and dwarves, orcs and men, wizards and Harfoots… as friendships are strained and kingdoms begin to fracture, the forces of good will struggle ever more valiantly to hold on to what matters to them most of all… each other.

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Featured image: Charlie Vickers is Sauron in “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power.” Courtesy Prime Video