The Lord of the Rings: Rings of Power - Review

 

I'm not one of those Lord of the Rings super-fans.

They're out there, and honestly I have a lot of respect for them - Tolkien is absolutely fantastic.

I'm just coming into this from a Lutheran Christian worldview, a love of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, and an appreciation for good stories in print or on the screen.

With all that being said, Rings of Power has been an entertaining, fun, and sad disappointment for me.

Let's break that down a little.

I find the show entertaining and fun. The tension of the impending orc invasion, the beautiful lands of Middle Earth, the fantasy setting and epic scale, they all fire me up and draw me into the show. It's hard to go completely wrong with something as beautiful and stunning as Middle Earth. So it has been fun for me so far (2 episodes in), and I look forward to continuing onward in the show. I don't know enough about Lord of the Rings to get worked up about the details that (apparently) don't line up with Tolkien's historical play-by-play.

At the same time, I think the show falls wildly short of its potential, and that it is no different from the general flavor of modern television. You need the obligatory female or black main character. Like Force Awakens before it, Rings of Power is careful to give you both. You need the strong woman surrounded by weak, simpering, pathetic men. Check that box - did you see the scene where all the elf boys sail off to the West while Galadriel stays to do the dirty work? 

    A) What do they think is the gender breakdown in LotR fans?

    B) What are they teaching millions of young men about their role in a household, a church, or a society? It's not just pathetic. It's evil.

So yes, Rings of Power has some entertainment value. But don't be blind to the evil orc of feminism lurking in the tunnels. Even when the show seems on the edge of some high-quality moral moment, like the shipwrecked crewman saving Galadriel from drowning with some heavy (accidental?) Baptismal Christ-and-the-Church imagery, we have to immediately revert to the submissive man and aggressive woman dynamic on the raft. The role reversal is clear and troubling.

So if you plan to watch, watch with a discerning eye, as is needed with anything you may find yourself consuming, especially from a glowing screen that you're addicted to.

Rating: 6.5/10

***UPDATE***

I have now finished Season 1 of Rings of Power. It only got worse. Galadriel is annoying, the Sauron guy is not nearly Sauron-y or mysterious enough, the elves are all awkward and forced, the plot is confusing and lifeless, the "Stranger" is boring and frustrating and just... strange. I could go on. We are downgrading the official rating, and I don't plan to watch Season 2. I gave it a chance!

Rating: 6/10