Rings of Poweris in an unenviable position. Of all the massive nerd franchises,Lord of the Ringsis one of the hardest to deal with. The lovable animated movies and excellent live-action adaptations created almost impossibly high expectations.The Hobbittrilogy did little to lower the bar, though all three films resolutely slid underneath it.Rings of Powerisn’t as bloated asThe Hobbitmovies or as magical asThe Lord of the Rings. It is, however, a serviceable fantasy series with a seemingly impossible mountain to climb.
There is apercentage of theLord of the Ringsfanbasethat will never enjoyRings of Power. Some die-hard fans see the original text as a set of laws and commandments that can never be altered. Others believe that any change made to a notable character must come with some sinister, hidden intention. While there are certainly several problems worth pointing out inRings of Power, a substantial contingent of devotees counted the show out before its first episode wrapped.
J. D. Payne and Patrick McKay
8
Rotten Tomatoes Score
83%
The answer to this question is frustratingly unclear. Afeature film has a box-office totalwith a carefully-calculated amount of sales to judge on. Traditional TV shows are a little easier to quantify. Amazon doesn’t typically report viewership metrics for its in-house streaming offerings. However, they did announce the success of the premiere.The Rings of Powerhad the most-watched premiere on Amazon at the time. 25 million viewers tuned in globally. That number rocketed to 100 million over the course of the first season.Amazon claims that the showwas their most-watched original series of all time.
If the show really did beatThe BoysandReacher, then it was an absolute smash hit. There’s no way to confirm or deny that, but Amazon certainly seemed delighted with its investment. Many tried to argue that the show’s viewership numbers weren’t as impressive as they seemed. Amazon supposedly didn’t disclose exactly how many minutes would constitute one view. This could suggest that a lot of people tuned in briefly.Kim Masters of The Hollywood Reporterclaimed that some completely anonymous sources stated that few viewers finished the series. Neither metric has any publicly available data to back it up. This leaves the question open.
A glance atRings of Power’s Rotten Tomatoes score tells a familiar story.Critics liked it, but audiences hated it. This is becoming more and more common in the modern era of fandom. The numbers are rather amusingly matched. It has an 83% positive score from critics and a 38% positive score from audiences. It’s hard to take those numbers at face value. Any examination of the show’s reception would be incomplete without mentioning the unfortunate fact that many viewers hated it for its cast instead of its content. The show included a more diverse group than previous Tolkien adaptations. This earned the ire of a selection of the worst people on the internet, who review-bombed the show before they’d seen a second of it. That’s not to say that every critique is a bigoted attempt to force non-white non-men out of the franchise. There’s a strong contingent of viewers who are strictly devoted to the lore and easily infuriated whenever it changes. That’s a more legitimate complaint. There are plenty of reasons to dislike the writing, pacing, and character development in the series. The comments delving into those mechanical issues are far less frequent than the ones arguing about canon or casting. It’s those problems thatleaveRings of Powerseason 2in a strange place.
What canRings of Powerdo to regain respect?
The second season ofRings of Powerwas a foregone conclusion.Amazon didn’t spend that much moneyto get eight episodes out of the deal. If their numbers are accurate, they got a decent return on that investment. However, the show’s reputation is still a bit of a mess. Ignoring the complaints without merit, the only obvious concern is the fundamental nuts and bolts of the series. Many fans are excited to see many of the big Second Age events with the budget they deserve. WhileRings of Powerhad a lot of storytelling problems, a new season can right a lot of its wrongs. The sad fact of the matter is that the show wouldn’t get a second season if it didn’t have the brand name attached. Tons of expensive shows get canceled after a rough first season. Take a look back at some of the best shows ever made. Many of them didn’t find their rhythm until they got into the story. That shouldinspire some hope inRings of Power.
Rings of Powerhas a lot of enemies. Many fans have lost hope in the show. Others hated it before its first episode hit Amazon Prime Video. The second season has a ton on its shoulders.With decent writing, some solid character work, and a commitment to a more focused story, the show could become a more notable success.
