amazon The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power

[Khamon]

This series probably covers "Of the Rings of Power" and "The Akallabeth" chapters of The Silmarillion, with perhaps flashbacks to the First Age since One of the Two Trees of Valinor was shown. It was the golden one so it was Laurelin, and yes, I knew that without looking it up.

Telperion is there only waning so not glowing with silvery light. Didn't look that up either because I planted two little dogwood trees as a kid and named them Laurelin and Telperion. They're quite large now but not THAT large.

 

[CronoCloud Creeggan]

Nerd.

 

[Veritable Quandry]

They do not have rights to The Silamarillian, Unfinished Tales, or the other later books. The rights Amazon licensed are the same ones on the market since the 1970s that include The Hobbit and The Lord Of the Rings.

According to interviews, they combed through LOtR in particular and any lore mentioned in the text is fair game. Several chapters include some deep exposition (think about the Council of Elrod where they talk about Sauron and Isuldor, or discussing the history of Moria as they walked through the mines).

The books also include a number of songs that refer to the history of Middle Earth, as well as a huge exposition dump in the appendices to LOtR. Which is why we see ancestral Hobbits in the trailer, as there is an entire chapter of their history in addition to the background on Smegol in the text.

So if it was mentioned in passing in The Hobbit or the trilogy, it is fair game even if it is discussed in more detail somewhere else. But things like the Silamarills that are not in the books they have rights to are off limits.

The showrunners have said that within the limits that they have, anything that they fill in will not contradict anything else Tolkien has written.

 

[Free]

So, professionally-produced fan fiction. That could be fun?

 

[Free]

Still not even a little bit sure from the trailers how this will turn out, but at least we're starting to see where the money went.

 

[Aribeth Zelin]

Honestly, I like the Silmarillion about the best - but then, I love history texts too, and mythic poetry and....

 

[Isabeau]

I hope there'll be a bit of humour sprinkled here and there.

And memorable intro music.

 

[Govi]

Sauron was still "fair of form" during the time of the Rings of Power series, iirc. Is he in any of the trailers?

 

[Veritable Quandry]

Sauron was still "fair of form" during the time of the Rings of Power series, iirc. Is he in any of the trailers?

Could be. We don't get names for everybody. The studio has not said who they cast.

eta: They just released a set of character posters. No listing of Sauron or any of the names I immediately recognized for him, but there is "the Stranger." That should fool everyone.

 

[Govi]

Could be. We don't get names for everybody. The studio has not said who they cast.

eta: They just released a set of character posters. No listing of Sauron or any of the names I immediately recognized for him, but there is "the Stranger." That should fool everyone.

So silly of them! Anyone who has read the appendices to the trilogy (and that's nearly everyone who wants to see this series) will know. Oh, well. Maybe they're encouraging an extremely willing suspension of disbelief so we'll all pretend we don't remember.

 

[Free]

Another trailer. Lots of pretty scenery etc. but not much in telling what the story full holds.

 

[Free]

Early Rings Of Power reactions laud production value and vast world

So far, reviews both from critics and fans alike have been generally, breathlessly glowing. This isn’t the Fyre Festival of television—that $1 billion clearly went somewhere, and multiple individuals have lauded the “phenomenal” series.

No spoilers in the article, but then it's mostly reaction tweets. But... I'm starting to feel excited. DO NOT TRICK ME AND RIP MY HEART OUT, AMAZON!

 

[Free]

I'm holding off on watching the first 2-episode bash until probably Saturday morning, when I can give it my undivided, and unexhausted, attention. If anyone watches it before then, please tell me it's worth the wait.

 

[Free]

I'm NOT* going to ruin anything, but I will say the cinematography in these first two episodes is gorgeous. I got a bit lost in the plot during the second episode and had to rewind to figure out what I missed, and just rewatching for the scenery and sets alone was worth it.


*edit...

 

[Innula Zenovka]

 

[Free]

I "loved" the argument one nerd forum jibjab put forward...

There are black people in Middle Earth: The Orcs! He (He? Well, maybe she...) even tried to make the point that because orcs are elves corrupted by Morgoth (and Sauron, I guess), black people are represented as higher beings. It's not their fault they've been turned into monsters.

 

[Free]

So I've watched the two episodes through twice, and so far

Spoiler

I really liked the prologue, which discusses the return of the "Valinor elves" to Middle Earth to fight Morgoth, and once he's dead, the efforts of Galadriel and her band of not so merry soldiers to track down Sauron. I'm aware of the timeframe we're talking about here and how they've squeezed in several thousand years and swiped over tons of mythic history, but I enjoyed the intermix of the maps and voice over with the "live action" elements. They do a good job of driving the episode forward almost entirely through Galadriel's conviction. I never doubted Galadriel's desire to finish off Sauron, no matter if she has to travel to the ends of the Earth (and back again) to accomplish it.

Much of episode two was...fine. With Galadriel sitting things out on the raft, we have to rely on the rest of the cast to step up. The sequences with the Harfoots (Harfeet?) were entertaining and I think the actress playing Nori (Brandyfoot!)) is a delight. They do a good job of working the mystery of the naked dude. The journey into Khazad-dum and meeting Durin and Disa was great. I never thought I'd be emotionally invested in a dwarve, but I really felt connected to Durin over his sense of abandonment by Elrond. The familial bits were adorable. Also, King Durin: DON'T DO IT.

The rest of story felt a bit mish-mash at this point. Some ups, but as many downs. Arondir's brooding over having to leave his human love interest felt flat. If he lives through the tunnel torture chamber, he'll need to get a few more looks. And Theo? Turn that piece of slag over to yer mom!

 

[Veritable Quandry]

I have been rereading the Earthsea books, and in the introduction to the first volume LeGuin talked about how it took 30 years to get a non-white cover illustration of Sparrowhawk, who she explicitly describes as having dark skin and black hair.

 

[Innula Zenovka]

 

[GoblinCampFollower]

I "loved" the argument one nerd forum jibjab put forward...

There are black people in Middle Earth: The Orcs! He (He? Well, maybe she...) even tried to make the point that because orcs are elves corrupted by Morgoth (and Sauron, I guess), black people are represented as higher beings. It's not their fault they've been turned into monsters.

no self awareness... These people making these arguments really have no idea why "woke" people think they are giant racists. It was fun watching a few nerds squirm to explain why this is a problem other than just not liking black people. I also found it interesting how even my super conservative parents were oblivious this was a controversy since they aren't in many internet cultures, so they didn't seem to mind!