- Network: Prime Video
- Series Premiere Date: Sep 2, 2022
Critic Reviews
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If this can feel like a series almost drunk on its budget and running time, there is still the intimate, twisted dance of Sauron and Celebrimbor (Edwards really is superb here). It’s almost as if evil old Sauron is bending not just Celebrimbor to his will but us too, and in doing so, ironically, saving the day.
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It's all still frequently irritating but that could be my personal problem with the priggish, snooty elves – must they or-aaa-te as if every line of dialogue were inscribed on stained glass? That aside, this second outing is a marked improvement.
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The second season does improve as it progresses. .... But old habits die hard, and The Rings of Power can’t shake its addiction to ponderous speechifying and thuddingly self-evident character reveals (one made me put my head in my hands as I watched). The frustration with those, aside from the obvious, is the space they take up in a show that has so much universe to explore.
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Scenes featuring the long lanky “Stranger” (or Istar, played by Daniel Weyman) and the Harfoots are improved now that he is able to speak (though a detour into a second Harfoot village feels a little like homework). The Khazad-dum plot, in which King Durin III is slowly corrupted by his ring, is genuinely affecting thanks to a number of textured, moving and humorous performances, even if it reprises beats we know from earlier installments. .... But the show’s use of the orcs baffles me even more in the second season.
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An indulgent belief that “epic” means every interaction must be portentous – and that humour must be eschewed at all costs. The result is like being on a mirthless rollercoaster ride: thrown around, spun upside down, but always wondering when the fun is supposed to kick in.
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The scenes featuring the machinations of an expert manipulator help The Rings of Power to overcome, at least for some of the time, the basic problem this prequel has, which is that a lot of it is lore, not drama.
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The Rings of Power is left feeling dull despite all that drama.
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Sitting down to write this review of ‘The Rings of Power‘ Season 2, I could think of a few memorable moments. .... What I cannot think of are any characters I particularly care about, or any emotions I felt as they traversed Middle-earth.
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Were it anything other than a Lord of the Rings prequel, The Rings of Power would be passably entertaining and there’s no denying its naff charm. It has the creaky quality of a cheesy Eighties fantasy movie – think The Beastmaster on a blockbuster budget or Krull with better CGI.
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Season 2 of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power does a great job portraying Sauron’s machinations and his impact on those he manipulates, but too much time is spent on disconnected subplots delivering only mediocre intrigue and thin characters.