Reviews, Streaming, Television
Sep 6, 2022

‘Lord of The Rings: The Rings of Power’ Review

First off, why are so many middle aged white men so pressed about poc representation and female representation in a universe about ELVES? ELVES! Immortality! Dwarves! Har-Foots and Hobbits! We can all collectively agree those races are completely fictional, so why is the internet falling in on itself in the realm of white men (old) about color and women not in need of saving, gracing the storylines of The Lord of The Rings: The Rings of Power?

Image Still: Courtesy of Amazon Studios

Amazon gifted Lord of The Rings fans not one singular pilot but two episodes back to back an entire day ahead of the shows original release date. It was a gift. We will admit dearest reader, we were hesitant when the Hobbit Lord known as Peter Jackson revealed the writing teams had not contacted him, not a bit about the new show. It is inarguable that Peter Jackson directed not one but six incredible films that brought forth a LOTR fandom that hadn’t been known until Orlando Bloom graced our screens with his formidable blond locks (sighs in elvish). We’re still dreaming of Viggo Mortensen all these years later and the army of Gandalf memes that have arisen over the years. But what does all that mean for this newest chapter of stories coming from our beloved Middle Earth? It means, get over it.

The Lord of The Rings: The Rings of Power are based on literally two pages of Tolkien’s APPENDICES! Not even an entire book exists to detail the wonders of Middle Earth’s second age which has given the writing team both a challenge and a fresh take. We advise you to let go just like you had to let go of Tom Bombadill not making the original trilogy, just enjoy the storytelling. What is the internet so incredibly pressed about? This is Evangeline Lily’s character upheaveal 2.0. J.R.R. Tolkien lived during a time where stories did not feature women in promiment roles and despite that he wrote Lady Galadriel of the Elves to be this warrior Queen. Not to mention the human Princess, known as The Lady of Rohan who he cross dressed into battle. She faced down monstrosities of Sauron, and went on to slay one of the Nine Kings while screaming “I Am No Man.” (Hell Yeah). You think in a society that repressed women, a man who wrote about powerful women (though not principle characters) would bat an eyelash at expanding the roles women played in his universe? We thinks not. Amazon has the support of Tolkien’s family and the estate which keeps his stories alive today.

Are the writers changing things? It’s two pages they don’t exactly have alot to change. They have creative liscense here. The story has introduced to us Har Foots, migrating ancestors of Hobbits and that story line has yet to evolve. Galadriel has forsaken going back to the Elvish homeland, instead daring to face whatever horrors her gut has told her still exists. It is refreshing to see Elves told from the point of view of Elves. So often in storytelling Elves are shot and shared from a human point of view. The Rings of Power are interesting as they show off a new pov. Enjoy it. There are sure to be humans enough as the series unfurls. As far as women playing leading roles….get over it. Get over black Elves and Black Dwarves too. It is a sad reflection of racism and sexism when your biggest bone to pick in a show is the number of women or people of color working within its story.

A new episode of The Lord of The Rings: The Rings of Power premieres every Friday.

P.S. – Show of hands who thinks the stranger is Saruman? Or could it be Sauron as a shape-shifter? Let us know. Gandalf doesn’t turn up in the books until the third age, but we suppose he is beloved enough to be brought in early for the sake of storytelling.