User reviews

Summary: Only saving grace is good visuals. Loose script (could have been better), bad direction and poor acting from many characters. Also casting is not very impressive either.

Hopefully they remedy these issues in season 2.

This is very surprising given how much time Amazon took to pull off this venture. They need to really rethink and go back to the drawing board on this if they want in chance of coming back after this poor start.

Also given how these 3 short comings (poor script, direction and acting) were actually the strong points of lord of the ring movies, makes this whole thing very unfortunate.

This is the perfect example where money cannot buy everything. I wish this was done by HBO/House of Dragon team or if Amazon already spent so much money, why not paying Peter Jackson a truck load of $$$ and have him in front of the universe He already masters with full creativity control. Costumes/armors look cheap and dialog and history is being told like a Brazilian soup opera! Just plain sad as this had such potential. As a Tokien lore fan, some characters are being treated so badly, and others created that have zero importance are over "powered". The elf and lady being in charge of the "man" resistance was laughable!

I never read any of the books for The Lord of the Rings or The Hobbit so I didn't know what to expect but I did enjoy TLOTR trilogy and the trailers for this looked pretty good so I gave it a chance. Also, they've been hyping this show ever since it was announced years ago that this is going to be the next big show everyone falls in love with so I was expecting the next Game of Thrones. It's not, I was hoping it would be a lot better than what it is. I should have known since the reviews are so mixed but people were hyping it up forever and again the trailers were pretty good. I'm currently watching season 2 and it's just more of the same. I'll probably continue watching it but it's going to be a struggle to finish it.

Visually beautiful but unfortunately the dialogues are poorly written and superficial, Galedriel who has a lot of screen time and massive importance unfortunately is portrayed very badly makes me question how could they allow such performance, not to insult the actress at all but the performance was horrible almost everyone in the show was better performing than her. Overall fun to watch but very superficial and Shallow. The plot is yet to reveal itself but so far nothing interesting. Good to mention the good portrayal of elrond.elendil. Music is also good and appropriate. The dark theme is a bit overlooked.

Visually it's a worthy successor of Peter Jackson's films but the storytelling is slow, unnecessarily complicated and mundane.

Some characters are well developed but the majority lack consistency and are easily forgettable. Probably a willingness to create a very surprising season finale is pushing the series in a very slow pace. The finale is crammed with events and leaves the viewer a bit confused.

The quality of the dialogue is far from the strong dialogue with memorable quotes of the LOTR series.

Tolkien stories are classical tales and are not about plot twists and surprise finales. The series miss solid memorable characters and positive storytelling about virtues and life.

Visually pleasing but overall a weak member of the family.

I feel like it has become a trend to hate on new series that are set in a world we grew up in. It's never good enough for many.

In my opinion this show improved so much in season 2. Firstly It's visually stunning. It's so great to see the world before the lord of the rings. They perfectly portray the downfall of middle-earth where the depict the (self)destruction of every realm. The cunningness of Sauron and the power of the Rings are also impressively shown.

Also a lot of key moments are portrayed in the serie that every fan would love.

No reason for all the hate. Of course it isn't The Lord of the Rings, but none will ever be.

Quite boring and not entertaining. At least the scenery is nice and the feeling of nostalgia for LotR. Which is pretty much all you get from the series.

There is little but none action, scenes and conversations are too long and make you sleepy. By 5th episode you would have expected something intriguing to happen yet they keep on talking and talking using terms (probably known only to Tolkien fans) no common viewer could understand.

I tell no difference between the episodes. I also keep expecting something mind-blowing that makes me hyped for the next episode and I get nothing.

Elfs are not "elfy".

Durin is the only highlight and dwarves in general. In the whole series, producers have managed to only keep dwarfs similar to us known dwarves from LotR and Hobbit.

You know how boring the series has become when it's Friday and you're not in a rush to see the new episode. Even as a fan of LotR, it's so not entertaining that I will switch to House of Dragons. There - I said it.

I am an avid LOTR fan, and like many of you, I disliked season 1 of The Rings of Power pretty thoroughly. As a true fan I supported the content the best I could, and I can say that I'm really happy I stuck around. Season 2 is so much better and entertaining than season 1. Is the writing sometimes shallow? Yes. Are the actors sometimes in over their heads as far as meeting our "unattainable" expectations, as actors? Yes. But the storyline of this show has taken an abrupt and intelligent turn in the proper direction, now focusing on not the "good", but the "bad" characters of Middle Earth. Charlie Vickers as Sauron is perfection, and he deserves most of the credit for my newly generated interest in this season. He's just incredible as Sauron and Annatar. Adar and the orcs work for me, and this story arc is probably the closest thing we get to the WB version of LOTR. The build ups to the battle scenes truly feel like Middle Earth to me this season, and the orcs and Adar are the reason for that. I also think Elrond, both the character and actor playing him, have taken gigantic leaps forward this season. All in all, I think that this show has finally found its footing, and I'm extremely excited to see what happens over the next few seasons as Sauron undoubtedly releases his full plan onto Middle Earth and we get to see it all from every point of view. Sorry haters, this show is officially legit, and sorry again, it isn't going anywhere.

Let me start by saying that the best thing you can do is to just ignore this show. Despite nice visuals its mediocre at best and watching the first few episodes was nothing but a painful waste of time. (Tbf: I started cleaning the flat and did some laundry 30 minutes in so its not a total loss...)

The most striking thing about the show is how incredibly dumb it is. Dialog and narration are so weird, pretentious and non-sensical that it literally made me curse a few times. Sometimes it feels like the creators fail to compound simple sentences! Its the kind of language used in poor book reports and really stings at times. Apart from that its just cliche after cliche and characters dumping exposition on each other.

Honestly, I dont even want to go on because writing this makes me angry. This show is everything thats wrong with cinema and television these days - combined in one giant multi million dollar dumpster fire. Its an uninspired,, cynical attempt to squeeze money out of an excisting IP while piggybacking off current social trends. The latter is done in such a blatant way that its bordering the immoral.

To cut it short I believe this is the one thing the show really drives home and we as an audience should remember: The people behind shows like this dont care about social issues. They also dont care about existing stories and characters we love. They just want you to watch their formulaic garbage and are willing to pull every string and push every button to make you. Do yourself a favor and dont.

Two episodes in, and I find it utterly uncompelling. No character has been developed enough to give a dang about. Please tell me they aren't going to hang this series on the uninteresting, stone faced Galadriel. You can't tell us who we're supposed to like. They've spent absolutely no time making us care about these stories or their characters. It's like saying, "this person wears a white hat...so they're good and you must like them. This person wears a black hat, so you have to hate them." No mythology has developed (beyond the basic LOR) The story and dialogue are subpar, stilted and uninteresting. As far as the acting, it is wooden. Durin isn't terrible. At this point in LOR, Gandalf, Frodo, Aragon, Samwise, etc. Were far more interesting, believable, and human than this lot. At this point I'm FAR more interested in the GOT sequel than this mess.

Unlikable characters. Storyline with giant logic flaws. Twists that were so obvious, that we saw them coming the moment the twist characters were introduced. The only thing making the twists a surprise was that writers threw out what was already established in the books to make it happen.

To me, this ended up being another reboot, that not only was terrible, but spat on its predecessors.

The only upside I'll give it, is at least the visuals looked deserving of this shows' giant budget. If only they put some of this budget towards a strong writing team. It's hard to imagine how this show could be turned around.

I'm a Lord of the Rings 'nerd' and absolutely love this show. The dialogue could be better, sure, but visually its beautiful and the story is fantastic. Theirs a few discrepancies compared to the lore, but honestly who cares - its Middle Earth in all its glory, and if someone wants to drop a billion smackeroonies creating a thoroughly entertaining adaptation, then I'll be the first one rolling out the red carpet for them. Don't let the gatekeepers put you off this really great show, which i pray see's the full 5 seasons. It feels very much like the Twitter/X sounding chamber has reached peak capacity and my fellow sweaty nerds have made it cool to hate on what is in fact, excellent entertainment.

The story was there already you guys had to present it to us in a thrilling way but no it was a very slow moving series with very little CGI/VFX.

The scenes are amazing but they are lacking the action. No powers/mythical creatures/magic etc. Were there which was expected from Lord of the rings.

Each episode gradually became less exciting as there were no action sequences/effect which would keep the viewer watch the full episode.

The costumes, music background scenery was good but it was not exciting as the original Lord of the Rings Movies.

I was excited that a tv series is coming but it was not worth the hype.

After watching 6 Episodes: Visually beautiful but most of the choices in pacing and scene progression is extremely generic. Like a cut scene of any other fantasy video game that is designed to get you to the gameplay which the player care about.

In this video product imagine all what you have is collation of these filler cut scenes with script that is average at engaging one's attention.

I find 20% of the script superb and honest that does bring you fully into the world.

Similar ratio with the scene choices where you see some interesting shots that are aligned with the emotions and direction of the story and then again for most of the scene it shift back to a generic safe shots that appear less related to the progression of the story.

I find Arondir, Nori Brandyfoot, Halbrand characters hitting the perfect beat in how they are interacting in that story.

Unfortunately, other actors are either casted slightly off or the directions they have received is not allowing them to move away from a set range of frequency.

E.g. One of the main characters always acts in high stake and high range brackets even the situation is about sad acknowledgement. Most of the audience I talk to perceive this as a glass wall performance where some actors are not able to break through it and starts to give this jarring feeling.

I will watch the season one only so I can see if anything changes. I see myself not remembering this show until the season 2 comes out and still wanting to continue watching it.

Don't give up on this... It's a slow starter. Season 2 is extremely good.

I know people have unfavourably compared this to original Tolkien. It's not like it at all... this is miles better.

The storyline is extremely clever. Makes complete sense with what came later in Hobbit and LOTR... and even better, we get the proper baddie in the flesh.

Even the Orcs have depth. It seems rather than mindless killers they actually just want to live in Mordor and be left alone free from persecution. I was actually rooting for them at one point.

Don't dismiss this. It's properly good, you just need to see out season 2 and you'll see what I mean.

Dialogs, places, music, visual effects are good actually but I didn't like the script at all.

The series is progressing so illogically. Galadriel is swimming in the great sea as if someone is going to come out. Fortunately, there are more people in the sea than in the land. At least you would have made sea smaller on the map. Maybe then it was a little bit logical. Everyone just wants to be hero illogically. Galadriel goes after Sauron and the Orcs with 8 people. The black elf says I will go alone and say her to go back. Then why are you going with him saying I won't leave you alone?

Especially the Harfoots . A "meteor" falls close to a 50-person village. And they see it, but only one girl goes and looks and hides the guy in a little village. Elrond and the other elf are walking to the dwarves like they are neighbours. At least show the horses. Dwarf is tripping to Elrond.

The series is progressing so illogically that right now. Okay, visual effects us good but people are also looking for some logic. The series is not good just because the visual effects are good. Visual effects is not a only criteria to evaluate. Then marvel movies are also 10/10. Some people just see CGI and visual effects and say it's the best series. The most important thing in a movie and TV show is the script. Secondly the actors come. By the way, the actors aren't that great either. I think the budget of the series is just VFX effects and locations.

This show feels nothing like LotR, neither the book trilogy, nor Jackson's adaptation. If anything, this show more closely resembles all those epic fantasy copycats that started coming out in the 80s which were LotR fanfic in all but name with only a few elements changed around and renamed. Had you told me that what I was watching was Amazon's Wheel of Time rather than Lord of the Rings, I wouldn't have been surprised - the tone of this show is much closer to that and other poor, uninteresting boomer series like it.

Anyway, this isn't very good, however, the blame is not evenly distributed. The writing is, BY FAR, the worst part about it. Not only is the script weak in how little it accomplishes given the runtime and how long it takes to set stuff up, but the scene-to-scene dialogue is excruciating. The lines meaningless drivel most of the time - they're stupid, borderline incoherent. Not to mention that this sounds like it was written by a person that has no idea what the kind of old-sounding English language should be like, so it comes across as unnatural, similar to when you watch a movie about the military written by someone that has no idea how soldiers talk to one another either in private or formal settings.

Many of the things the characters said made me have to pause and go back to make sure I hadn't misheard. There's also some incredibly awkward use of language, like an en elvish king at one point saying: "... washing away the last remnants of our enemy like a spring rain over the.bones of a spoiled carcass." I don't know what it is about this line that crystallizes to me just how little these writers understand either elves or just writing in general. In what formal setting would a leader start talking about carcasses? And this is not just any king, but an elven king of old, a race that's known for their songs, their poetry, their love of beauty - do you seriously he'd use such a crude example filled with grim imagery to illustrate his point? That would be a fine line for a dwarf, maybe, but not for an elf. But the writers lack the sensibility to see how this would be a problem. This isn't even about being a fan of LotR, it's about having a certain level of artistry and common sense. If you can't imagine a president or a minister saying something, there's a very strong chance a king would never say that either, especially not an elf.

I will concede that the show looks beautiful at times, but in a fake, plastic sort of way. You can tell it's the product of CGI artists and not a talented photographer finding the right place for a breathtaking shot, and in that sense it feels incredibly soulless. Another problem is that a lot of these beautiful shots feel unearned. If a character braves a dank mine and emerges on the other end to glimpse a heavenly valley, that makes for a satisfying scene. But here the grandiose scenery seems to be used without any rhyme or reason and isn't meant to further the storytelling, I think the point is to wow the viewer. But ultimately all you're being offered is a glorified desktop background with a couple of actors in greenscreen talking in front of it. Hardly the type of stuff to get your heart pumping.

Most disappointing of all might be the score, for which I have no explanation. Bear McReary is a very talented artist. Whether it's Battlestar Galactica, God of War, Black Sails, or even smaller series like Da Vinci's Demons, he always delivers. Here, the music is just... so bad. If you told me it came out of some early 2000s RPG and was made by a teenager without real musical training I would've believed you. I cannot fathom what happened between him and the showrunners. Granted, I wouldn't have thought of Bear McReary's style as a great fit for LotR, but still... How can it be this generic and off? Just how much time did Amazon give the man to work on it? Because given their history, if I have to lay blame on either party, there's no way I'm going to assume it's Bear that screwed up rather than Amazon. Disastrous outcome.

Ultimately, this show is a huge wasted opportunity. I think everyone that loved the movies and books was dreaming of the day the Silmarillion would get an adaptation. And nobody could've even hoped it would come from the most powerful company and wealthiest man in the world. And what did we end up with? Some subpar show that barely even feels related to the source material, based on the appendices, written by a group of people that quite frankly shouldn't even qualify as professionals in their field. I'd be amazed if these guys can write good YA novels, let alone fantasy epics. Given the results, it feels like a lot of the people that worked on this were: a) totally unqualified b) a very bad fit for this IP, or C) soured on the project long before it aired. You can't be handed over what's almost infinite money and come up with something this insultingly mediocre and inauthentic. It just shouldn't be possible. Some of the outfits these characters wear look more like they were ordered off of Amazon for a cosplay. That they don't fit Jackson's LotR is acceptable; but that they feel like they're made of plastic and wouldn't be worn by any normal human being in real life is not. These showrunners seem to think that grittiness doesn't in any way connect to authenticity, and that the way you make some gripping and realistic is by slapping lairs of makeup made to look like grime and dirt on actors' faces. That's simply not the case, and any look at the behind the scenes of LotR or any quality, longlasting movie would've taught you this simple lesson.

Do I recommend this? No, I don't. It's just not worth your time, and if it ever does become good, social media will let you know. I think it might appeal to younger teenagers that have no vested interest in the LotR movies, but that's about it. No adult would find these characters believable or engaging, and there's nowhere near enough action where you can just watch this for the spectacle and turn your brain off. So far, it doesn't even feel like the show has a plot, it's just a series of barely connected vignettes.

A billion dollars on this. Wow.

Six episodes in, and the action we've all been waiting for finally arrives! And even that manages to disappoint! Not only are the battle sequences are disjointed and fail believability, but they can't seem to manage to fit more than one Orc in a fight sequence - how they managed to spend so much, and end up with such a lame outcome is seriously beyond me.

Similarly, the acting continues to underwhelm, with almost all of the performances unnecessarily cliched and contrived.

Honestly, I wanted to like this, but it seems the writers and showrunners simply aren't up to the task - whether narratively, casting, or the graphics and effects.

NOTE - after finishing the series I downgraded my rating to a 3.

Ok So where to begin. I gave it a 2.5 stars or a 5 out of 10 because I don't want to seem like I am review bombing. I notice the positive reviews seem very general whilst the mediocre and bad reviews seem much more specific, which I find telling. Yes the Cinematography is great and most of the production values are also very good, though some are off key as well. After two episodes I have little idea where the plot is going and the scene writing seems very weak. The dwarves are pretty well represented but all the humans except the one lead female seem like idiots. The Harfoots/halflings are kinda cool. The elves seem very poorly represented and very off key on so many levels. So yes, I have read just about everything JRR wrote himself, but I don't mind some adaptation for TV/Film either, but this really seems to miss Tolkien's tone. Most of the Elves just don't look or act like.. well...Elves...Period. That's a big problem. Sorry but it is. Many are miscast. Elrond? Come on. No dis to the actor, just wildly miscast and badly written. Most of the Elves are poorly written and directed, and they are the backbone of the story here. I like the actress playing Galadriel, but the way her character is written is ridiculous and not very engaging or likable. It seems everyone making entertainment content from classics wants it to be something it isn't. They would have been better off making a different show that was original or based on something they actually wanted to be somewhat faithful to in their representation. Instead it feels like a rip off.

Most of the dynamic and action based scenes have way too close in camera work and are jolting and unclear. And they jump back and forth too quickly between story lines so it is hard to get invested. Written for people with really short attention spans perhaps? The CGI is ok but I honestly don't see where they spent all the $ unless it was in a critic payoff slush fund. Or perhaps most of the critics are not really familiar with the source work at all and don't know the stories and tone that this is supposed to be based off of.

I had trouble getting through both episodes. Honestly, most of the adult characters seem whiney, immature and kind of stupid. Many of these folks are already classic adult developed characters at this point in the timeline, not the whelps they seem to be here. Again, very poor writing and character development. I am struggling to like or care about anyone in the show, though I do like Arondir & Nori.

I will probably keep watching the show for the visuals and the pastime but it seems like it should be so much more than it is. I really don't mind creative license to fill in the plot development if it's well done. It just seems like it is not well done here. They could make things up that match the gist and tone of Tolkien's second age, but instead it almost seems like a completely different world/story which is not how they presented the show in the lead up marketing campaign. I mean they have been hawking this thing mercilessly for months and months like the second coming of Tolkien. And really building on that point, It seems like they used the name to capture an easy audience when they did not have enough of the rights, or the desire to do a solid adaptation. Seems like a marketing gimmick. Meanwhile Amazon has bought and tied up the rights to many fine 20th Century SciFi and Fantasy works by the top talent of the time and then failed to bring them to market. The works of Roger Zelazny and Marion Zimmer Bradley are two great examples of fantastic properties that they have bought and then let languish, where they could be first to the table in high value adaptations of the Chronicles of Amber, or the Darkover stories just to name a few. Instead they went for the easy name recognition and then made a visual spectacle with little real substance. What a shame, and a squandering of both opportunity and a ridiculous amount of $.

I could say more but I don't want to just rag on the show. I know many fine people put their talent and hard work into it, and taken as a stand alone perhaps it is not so bad. Unfortunately for everyone except people who just take whatever they are given, it was not presented as a stand alone, but rather and important adaptation of Tolkien's work, which it clearly is not.

If you don't care about Tolkien much or any continuity of the world building or tone, then one can watch it as reasonably entertaining eye candy I suppose, in an entertainment world that is long on content but short on quality.

I wrote this to inform not to simply be critical.

Cheers.

Terrible. Complete disregard of already written and established Tolkien lore, poor building of character and storyline.

I rarely write bad reviews for shows but as a die-hard, lifelong LOTR fan, you've let me down. Imagine spending £1bn on this pile of excrement. 1 dimensional characters despite unlimited pre-written potential.

My girlfriend gave up after episode 2 but I tried to persevere. Alas no.

Sauron the deceiver portrayed as a bumbling, well-meaning, drifter esc character?!? He's an archangel devoted to Morgoth and one of the most inherently evil beings ever in the LOTR universe. Capable of unimaginable acts. Here portrayed as a vulnerable, hobbit-protecting vagabond.

Terribly sorry to use such vulgar language but your show is: a) s***, b) flipping the bird to every Tolkien fan who watched and c) a frankly unethical use of £1bn given that amount of money could end world hunger.

Booo.

I have just finished watching season 2 with my wife, and honestly, we had so much fun! This show is an absolute triumph, from its breathtaking visuals to its incredibly immersive world-building. The level of detail and investment that has gone into every aspect of the production is astounding. The locations are simply mesmerizing, capturing the beauty and grandeur of Middle-earth with stunning cinematography.

The storyline is captivating, with an engaging and well-paced plot that keeps you hooked from episode to episode. As a fan of the Lord of the Rings universe, I find the series a refreshing and thrilling expansion of Tolkien's world. I must say that Galadriel actor and role is not my cup of tea but there are so many side stories going on that she cant get me too upset.

I genuinely believe this series is a must-watch for any true Lord of the Rings fan or anyone who loves fantasy in general.

I, for one, am eagerly awaiting Season 3. I cannot wait to see where the journey will take us next, and I hope viewers give this series the recognition it deserves. Highly recommended!

Don't expect to be blown away, but it's a creative and fun watch about a very beloved universe.

SUMMARY The story takes place in so called "Second Age" of Middle Earth after the defeat of the evil Morgoth who for the first time in history brought darkness, death and decay. The Elves defeated Morgoth and his armies of Orcs. But the lands were left in sorrow and his evil orc followers had spread around every corner of Middle Earth and were now under the command of Morgoth's dark commander Sauron, who never got beaten

It centres around Galadriel who had been traveling from centuries to the farest corners of Middle Earth to hunt down Sauron without a clear trail.

ANALYSIS All of this has been made without having the rights to adopting the first two ages of Middle Earth, but merely the appendixes of the third generation about what had happened before. The history and stories of 3500 years runs in non chronological order and, liberties had to be taken on the story. This sounds concerning to me and most likely to other fans of the books. But it actually works, mostly at least some elements like the dialogue can come across a bit clunky in comparison to conversations coming from Tolkien's hand.

Also instead of going on a route of many different characters in the beginning Galadriel gets a lot of focus, whilst as a viewer there is no instant connection with her persona.

DIALOGUE 6/10 Good at best, boring and odd at other times. The forced emphasis on getting the pronunciation of Galadriel right is a bit ridiculous especially since her name comes up quite a bit. And sometimes the daunting task of creating dialogue that fits in Middle Earth fails. But in general the dialogue is ok to watch.

ACTING 6,5/10 There is room for improvement as some of the halflings and elves needs to grow in their role. The acting is a bit theatrical at times (due to the script). It seems to be expected, that this will looses up as the series progresses. Most of the actors are lesser know, so the actual focus can be on the story instead. Some stand outs, Robert Aramayo as Elrond can be rough at times, but Owain Arthur as Durin is very convincing.

VISUALS & DECOR 10/10 No complaints, it's looks great and it is a feast for the eyes. It is here where the series shines

COSTUMES & MAKE UP 7,5/10 Very well, but not as good as Game of Thrones, sometimes the characters look like actor from Earth today in a costume. Instead of being an integral part of the Middle Earth universe

MUSIC 7,5/10 Good and fitting during the show on the background. Although the intro and outdo songs are traditionally cinematic and could have been more epic.

CREATIVE LIBERTIES 7/10 While the pace and cinematics are fantastic. The original dialogue is both good and bad variably. The halflings inclusion and some other liberties can take you a bit out of the original lore. But as much concern I had prior to release it is at no means inherently bad.

OVERALL JUDGEMENT 7/10 So how good is it, and why? It is an ambitious project that comes with its flaws, but that is not what matter at the end of the day.

The question is: is it watchable and fun, and that is surely is. It looks good and the rough edges on the points discusses earlier, may clear up as the series progresses.

It is fun and interesting watch and whilst the first episodes don't totally suck you in, they will please people and will leave the majority of people wonder for more.