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Ok, lets just get it over with...not my favorite. Oh, and SPOILERS. Listen, I am a tremendous fan of The Lord of the Rings (and people who know me, know thats a bit of an understatement). Just for those of you who don't know, Rings of Power is a series on Amazon based in the Tolkien universe that is supposed to take place before the Lord of the Rings. Effectively the Second Age, when Numenor was in its prime and hobbits didn't even have circle doors yet. They've taken a lot of liberties with the rights and gone way off into the weeds about Galadriel.
Don't get me wrong, she's a great character and honestly in the books and appendices there seems to be a lot of mystery around her background. Heck with immortality and all its easy to fill in a lot of gaps that are years...and years...and years. So, it makes since to take some creative freedom there. However...I just feel like Peter Jackson got it right with the first trilogy. The Hobbit was kind of meh, and compared to all the practical effects in LotR, it was just CGI insanity. The sheer number of people that just wore masks and makeup in LotR just showed, and it felt more real. The CGI in Rings of Power is incredibly good, but honestly it's just a bit too much for me.
I will say though I did not figure Halbrand for being Sauron (yes...I'm not sure how I didn't put that together sooner 😆). I also didn't figure the stranger to be Istari, cause I mean...they came on boats. Truthfully though I'm not one of those people who really hates when they bend the books. I don't freak out about coming in the comet (meteor? whatevs.). The whole thing bends the lore so just let that ship sail away and try to enjoy it.
It does feel like the pursuit of drawing larger audiences just means some pretty gratuitous violence. Splinter to the eye...goodness people. I think its hilarious that all the orcs some how end up with cockney accents, like if Dick Van Dyke was just pure evil...this is what he'd turn out as. I think the dwarves are done incredibly well, and Durin is definitely my favorite in the show. The hobbits are cool, and definitely Saddock (sp?) is incredibly good (which is why he must die). For the most part, the series also just feels like it moves so slow. I mean, I guess this is a common tale for series that have a lot of parallel story lines, and works better because when they ultimately link together. But boy...it takes. its. blessed. time.
I mean easily my favorite part is just when the Stranger finally "wakes up" and sends those wights back from whence they came! Of course, by the end, you realize...oh right of course he's Sauron, and all the creepy "getting in her head", like when he is her brother is very disturbing (like when you go, "this guy is just smiling a biiiiittt too much..."). Anyway, maybe I'll add more to this, or go for season 2, cause meh.
Also by the way, season 3 should be out in the next millenia! Bye!
