House of the Dragon has a battle on its hands now. Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Season 1 Premiere was surprisingly really good as the show not only looked stunning, but also boasted of some great characters and scenes too.
Like I said in my preview article for the show, the Rings of Power was the most maligned TV show ever to be produced WITHOUT its critics having seen it yet. The amount of hate, negativity, vitriol, and downright unfair criticisms the cast, crew, production team, and even Amazon itself received for this project was definitely uncalled for. Especially against the cast and showrunners.
Judging by some of the things said about showrunners, J.D. Payne and Patrick McKay, and the cast, you’d think that McKay and Payne were the literal incarnations of Sauron himself and that the cast were their orcish minions. That’s how much hate was being sent these people’s way.
And most of it (but not everything which I’ll get to later) was unjustified!
Rings of Power’s premiere episodes, Episode 1-The Shadows of the Past and Episode 2-Adrift, were surprisingly really good.
The cinematography, CGI, musical score, and set designs were flawless done (which is what I expected from a show with a $1B budget) and will undoubtably win an Emmy for it. In fact, the Rings of Power may very well be the most stunning/visually beautiful TV show I’ve ever seen.
Moreover, I have to say that the shots of Valinor and the Two Trees in the prologue of Episode 1 were probably my favorite of the bunch, though I also really like the stony grandeur of Khazad-dum and the forestry majesty of Lindon.
Oh, and I also liked the Frozen Wastland/Morgoth Fortress that Galadriel and her commando squad (I don’t know what else to call them) searched right after the prologue in Episode 1.
(Amazon-The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power-SDCC Trailer)
Speaking of Galadriel and the rest of the cast for that matter, they were all great. I never doubted anyone of these people’s acting talents, though I was hesitant if they were capable of capturing the same aura the Lord of the Rings movie actors were able when they played the parts of Galadriel, Elrond, Isildur, etc.
Needless to say, they did.
My favorite actor/character had to be Elrond as Robert Aramayo played a younger, less experience, and more idealist version of the Elven Lord we saw from the LOTR trilogy. This was so different from the depressed, cynical, and hopeless Elrond we saw in the LOTR, which was super refreshing.
Most of the characters in the LOTR movies were hopeful people, but the Elves generally were a lot more cynical about the world. Especially Elrond.
It’s good to see that he was actually a charismatic, idealist, “politician” (not crazy about that description of him from the show) who openly cares for other beings/places when he was younger, rather than the old, tired Elf who was weary of mankind, the Dwarves, and Middle Earth.
In particular, his scenes with Galadriel, where they discussed their friendship, their familial losses to Morgoth and his orcs, and what will become of them now that the war against Morgoth is now over, were the highlights of the first episode for me.
(Amazon-The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power-SDCC Trailer)
These two really felt like normal, invested people/Elves that cared for one another, rather than the hyper-focused Lord and Queen, respectively, on defeating Sauron as we see them in LOTR. Plus, I also really enjoyed Elrond’s interactions with Prince Durin IV in Episode 2. Essentially, these scenes were just as caring and warmhearted as they were with Galadriel, but with some of that classic Dwarven humor.
Anyway, moving onto the much-maligned Galadriel (at least by the critics), I thought Morfydd Clark was great as the “Lady of Light”. Yes, she’s a bit too…intense, for lack of a better word, than I would have had her be if I was writing the show, but the writers and showrunners are obviously giving her a lot of space to grow as a character.
I think she really should have been a little more compassionate and empathetic during these two episodes, especially when she dealt with her commandos in the Frozen Wasteland, but that’s only a minor complaint. Anyhow, I really like her chemistry with Halbrand as the two of them, at least in my opinion, already seem like perfect “traveling companion” as they enter Numenor.
To be honest, I wouldn’t even mind if these two did end up having a brief romance, though it would have to be brief as Galadriel ends up marrying Celeborn (or maybe they’re already married in this show?). Oh, and I have a sneaking suspicion that Halbrand is some dark-worshiping character (of either Sauron or Morgoth), if not the Dark Lord himself.
Wouldn’t that romance be ironic?
Moving on, another element that I really enjoyed was the…Harefoots. Yes, the Harefoots. They really aren’t that bad…though they are kind of gross.
The writers and showrunners were smart to revolve their culture and traditions around hiding from humanity and sticking to the forests/woods as that was the only way their involvement in this story could have been believable (for now). Still, the actress who played Norri, Markella Kavenagh, was really good.
I really sympathized with the sense of wonder, enthusiasm, and adventure that Norri, who has spent her whole life sheltered in the Harefoot camp, portrayed through her rebellious/adventurous nature. That’s the mark of a great actress and I’m looking forward to seeing how the Harefoots play into the main story.
As for the main story, that’s probably the only negative I have with the show so far. It doesn’t have a central focus, thus allowing it to meander.
Apart from Arondir (Ismael Cruz Cordova) and Bronwyn’s (Nazanin Boniadi) story (which was subtly one of the best aspects of the two episodes), everyone else really didn’t do that much or establish a specific goal (well, at least a long term goal).
Elrond went to Khazad-dum to get the Dwarves’ help to build some tower, competed in a hammering contest with Durin, meet Durin’s family, and left without the Dwarves help; Nori discovered the Stranger, cared for the Stranger, and is still caring for the Stranger; Galadriel tried to find Sauron in the Frozen Wastelands but didn’t, she was sent to Valinor for her deeds but jumped overboard before arriving, meet Halbrand on a stranded raft, and is now going to be picked up and brought to Numenor.
(Amazon-The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power-SDCC Trailer)
The title of this show is The Rings of Power. Out of Galadriel, Elrond, and Norri’s storylines I just quickly summarized, did either one of them relate to the Rings of Power?
Arondir and Bronwyn’s story of discovering the Orcs digging tunnels under some Southlands Villages will probably be the point-of-view where we, the audience, discover what Sauron is up to. Yet, what does that leave Elrond, Galadriel, and Norri doing?
Maybe I’m overreacting a little, but since this show only has 8 episodes, I fear the point-of-views are going to be rushed in an attempt to interconnect them before Episode 8 airs. Essentially, what I’m saying is that we’ll have a Game of Thrones Season 8 scenario on our hands.
I pray that doesn’t happen, or the critics are going to have a field day.
Nevertheless, these small negatives are not indicative of how much I enjoyed this show whatsoever. Since this was a two-part season premiere, I’ll give a sperate scores for each episode.
I actually enjoyed Episode 1 more than I did Episode 2 (which I found to be the minority opinion online), so I’m giving Episode 1-The Shadow of the Past and 8.7/10 and Episode 2-Adrift an 8.5/10.
If you haven’t seen these episodes already, well, I probably just spoiled it for you. Still, I highly recommend you watch them as they are FAR BETTER than what some online would have you believe.
Images Source: Featured Image: (Amazon) (The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power – SDCC Trailer – YouTube)
In Text Image 1: (Amazon) (The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power – SDCC Trailer – YouTube)
In Text Image 2: (Amazon) (The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power – SDCC Trailer – YouTube)
In Text Image 3: (Amazon) (The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power – SDCC Trailer – YouTube)
In Text Image 4: (Amazon) (The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power – SDCC Trailer – YouTube)
