The Rings of Power is set in the Second Age of Middle-earth, thousands of years before Tolkien’s The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings.

84%Rotten Tomatoes feels about right. Worth watching.

On the other hand, if this is the most expensive TV series ever made / episode, I question why it isn’t much better. It’s lucky Amazon has ALL the money.

I have more respect for the direct competitor in 2022 ➙ House of the Dragon on HBO. Though it can be hard to watch, I feel Dragons justifies the cost: under US$20 million / episode, far less expensive than Games of Thrones. Far less expensive than Rings of Power.

It begins during a time of relative peace and covers all the major events of Middle-earth’s Second Age: the forging of the Rings of Power, the rise of the Dark Lord Sauron, the fall of the island kingdom of Númenor, and the last alliance between Elves and Men.

These events take place over thousands of years in Tolkien’s original stories but are condensed for the series. …

The final episode was disappointing. Though I did like the resolution of Meteor Man, aka the Stranger. That was original and surprising.

And I do like Morfydd Clark as Galadriel.

And Markella Kavenagh as “Nori”. The Harfoots are likeable forerunners of Hobbits.

Best of all is Ismael Cruz Córdova as Arondir.

I’ll keep watching.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.