So, is Amazon’s The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power series worth watching?
An astounding yes!
The visuals, music, and acting alone pull you into the story. But, like Tolkien, The Rings of Power takes its time to develop the story, set the stage, and draw the characters across an expansive Middle-earth. If you’re looking to compare The Rings of Power to Game of Throne or the new House of Dragons series, I would caution against such a comparison.
The writers behind each of those source materials have a different style. Where George R. R. Martin has a more visceral and gritty edge to his works, Tolkien is, in my opinion, more cerebral yet reminiscent of a fairy tale.
Amazon had a difficult line to walk: If they made their series too much like Tolkien’s original source material, the show could come off too stilted and distant. If too much like Jackson’s movies, the series would be branded a copycat of the original movies and pale in comparison.
I’m happy to say that The Rings of Power takes a different approach. They’ve taken the best of Tolkien’s and Jackson’s works and created something entirely new.
If you’re not familiar with Tolkien’s source material, let me set the story straight: The Rings of Power is taken from the appendices of The Return of the King (book 3 in The Lord of the Rings series) and not from The Silmarillion.
Amazon spent $250 million for the rights to The Lord of the Rings, but that did not include The Silmarillion.
If you’re new to Tolkien’s work or not that much into the lore, then you might not get the distinction: The Silmarillion is a collection of mythic stories that Tolkien wrote throughout his life, but wasn’t published until after his death by his son Christopher Tolkien. The Silmarillion is basically the story of the creation of Tolkien’s amazing world and the battle with the first great evil: Melkor (later known as Morgoth). One of the most popular sections is the theft of the Silmarils (three jewels with such beauty as they held the magical light from the two trees of Valinor within them).
Amazon’s The Rings of Power can’t tell the story of the creation of Tolkien’s world or of Melkor and how Sauron (his chief lieutenant) fought against the elves. There’s mention of these events in The Rings of Power during the show’s prelude (and a quick mention of the Silmarils in episode 2), but we won’t be seeing those stories.
A quick view of the war the elves fought with Sauron (Amazon Studios).
But the good news is that The Rings of Power will tell the story of the forging of the rings and the downfall that comes to the various races, as Tolkien writes in this famous quote from The Fellowship of the Ring:
"Three Rings for the Elven-kings under the sky,
Seven for the Dwarf-lords in their halls of stone,
Nine for Mortal Men doomed to die,
One for the Dark Lord on his dark throne
In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie.
One Ring to rule them all, One Ring to find them,
One Ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them
In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie."
—J.R.R. Tolkien's epigraph to The Lord of the Rings
But let me stop here: Before I go on, I have to geek out about the beauty of Amazon’s series. I had read that they had spent $465 million just for season 1 of the series and that they plan to have 5 seasons.
Did they spend their money wisely?
Only time will tell, but as a Tolkien fan, I’m extremely happy: The CGI is top-notch, but there are also some amazing practical effects (the harfoots, precursors to hobbits are a hoot to watch!).
But what I like most: the cast is astounding.
Morfydd Clark plays Galadriel with a fierceness and yet steeped in haughty elvish pride that it’s a joy to see a more inclusive cast of characters on the screen.
You do not want to mess with Galadriel. (Amazon Studios)
There’s a hot debate on the internet about how people of color can’t play elves, but I would ask that you set aside such discussion. In the end, Tolkien’s world is fictional. Rather than disagree with a diversified cast, I believe that it’s essential that a fictional world reflect back to us the beauty and multifaceted world that we live. If you are willing to have an open mind and see a fictional world unveil before your eyes, you’ll be brought on a journey that will kindle hope and light in your heart.
Sounds like a tall order, but the bones of this series are strong and so good.
For more than forty years, I’ve read Tolkien’s books, seen the movies, role-played (anyone out there remember the Moria: The Dwarven City book?) in his world, and delved deeper into his writings by reading the Tolkien: The Illustrated Encyclopaedia and Tolkien: Maker of Middle-Earth.
I even tried (but was denied by my advisors) to write my Master’s thesis on Tolkien in comparing his experiences in the first World War with The Lord of the Rings. (If you are interested in this topic, I highly recommending picking up Tolkien and the Great War.)
Several Tolkien books well worth picking up.
For me, Tolkien’s work is intricately woven into the belief that together we can work together and defeat any great evil. Even the smallest, and seemingly weakest of us, can change the world.
With the backlash from some that people of color can’t play elves or that the show is “boring,” or that no one wants to see “woke” culture play out on the small screen, I have to strongly disagree with these opinions.
Having read as many of Tolkien’s books as I could get my hands on and read about his life, the creators of The Rings of Power have near-perfectly captured the essence of Tolkien’s work and philosophy in their series.
If you’re looking to watch a fantasy series that will tell a world-altering tale of love, sacrifice, and wonderment, then I highly recommend you watch The Rings of Power.
I like Tolkien, George R. R. Martin, Lewis, Eddings, Yolen, McCaffrey, Bradley and a whole-host of other fantasy authors. It’s not every day that I can say that a new series comes along that not only captures my imagination but takes an author’s work and evolves it in a way that’s organic and intriguing.
Want to see a dwarven princess and the power dynamic in her marriage? Or see how Galadriel’s desire for revenge nearly breaks her? Or see new characters invented for the show blend in with established characters contained within Tolkien’s works?
The Rings of Power has all of that and more. I never thought that I would get to see the beauty of the two trees of Valinor on screen, or the dwarven mines of Khazad-dûm at the height of their beauty.
The technical work that went into costumes, props, the score, locations, and the digital effects is jaw-dropping. But I invite you to see the show for yourself. If it’s not your thing, then skip it. But I would recommend watching through the first two episodes. I’ve seen many of the critiques say that the show was boring and I expect that people gave up on the first episode because there’s not a lot of fighting in it.
The creators of The Rings of Power are bringing us on a five season journey and the first two episodes set up the basics of the story: Who is who, where they are in the great world of Middle-earth, and sows the seeds of the conflict that will play out over the series: evil appears to have vanished from the land, but Galadriel believes differently. She wants to find Sauron and have her revenge on him.
Each character that we are introduced embarks on this journey with us and I’m all in on the ride.
Nori, a harfoot, looks to be the heart of the series. (Amazon Studios)
I’m hoping that more people watch the series because it’s not only a technical marvel, but captures the essence of Tolkien’s work beautifully.
If you do watch the series, you can take in just what you’re seeing on the screen, or you can delve more into Tolkien’s works. That’s what I love about the series. As a die-hard fan, I can see how the show takes liberties with Tolkien’s world, but there’s a real-world reason for that: Tolkien’s stories take place over thousands of years, and Amazon only purchased the rights to certain books.
Given that Tolkien’s story-telling is a different style than more modern authors, The Rings of Power pulls together a more compressed time period so that we can enjoy it in episodic snippets. Tolkien wrote The Lord of the Rings nearly 100 nears ago (1937-1949) and modern audiences are more used to lots of action with quick cuts and lots of CGI.
There are battles in The Rings of Power, but what I found so engaging is that the creators are laying out a puzzle for us: what happened to Sauron? Where is he and his army of orcs? How will the creation of the rings of power affect the world of Middle-earth and who is the mysterious stranger who falls from the sky?
I especially like the tension that builds in episode two. I don’t want to spoil anything, but there are a few jump scares that had me on the edge of my seat.
My final verdict on whether you should watch Amazon’s The Rings of Power: Yes, watch this series. Give the first two episodes a try, but I’d recommend going in with no expectations. Just be patient and let the show play out and see what threads are being woven together on the immense tapestry of Tolkien’s works. Take in the show’s beauty and artistry rather than trying to nail down a one-for-one comparison to Tolkien’s words (or Jackson’s movies) and what you see on the screen. They’re different and I think that’s a good thing.
I truly believe that the bones of this show are strong and the creators infused their love of Tolkien’s work in every frame. As an author myself, I believe that stories can help change the world and give us hope in the darkest of times.
Do yourself a favor and give The Rings of Power a view. I’m sure glad I did. I worried that what makes Tolkien’s works so great might be tarnished in this series, but that’s not what happened. Instead, the creators gave breath and life to a set of appendices at the end of The Return of the King in a way that’s expansive and just as imaginative as the rest of Tolkien’s work. And if you want to really dive into the series, be sure to check out Vanity Fair’s first look article that came out in February 2022. There are lots of great pictures and an expansive detail into the makings of the show.
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