Yes it is out folks ... for those of us addicted to Tolkien, it's our next 'fix'.
Will Amazon also be able to pull off a Disney style never ending Star Wars type, set of pre-quels, sequels, spin-offs and side stories etc. etc.

I must say that so far (2 episodes in) I am rather enjoying it. But then I have been a Tolkien addict from a very early age (my dad read us all the Hobbit as a bedtime story).
No major blunders or goofs. I am liking the anti-Elf animosity from Dwarves & Men ... and the arrival of the Maiar/Istari  is handled very well. I also particularly like the 'sea worm' - I had to freezeframe the image to get a good look at its head - which looks a lot like old medieval sea-monster illustrations.

My only slight issue is 'Why do the Hobbits have a mix of Irish & Westcountry accents and the Dwarves Scottish?' It seems a bit stereotypical and more than a bit ethnic-typecasting!

Anyway - looking forward to a bit more 'darkness' to come - the new Sauron symbol will make its way into my growing Dark Forces table-top armies.

We're enjoying to too Mark, much more so than the new Game of Thrones prequel. It is visually superb and really crisp, compared to GoT which one review said looked like it hade been made with Minecraft. A bit uncharitable, but when you compare the two you can see why.

I've been trying to keep the family up to speed with what's going on, but I read the Silmarillion in the 70's and found it hard going. Luckily I bought the Tolkein bestriary book many years ago which makes for a handy reference for what's going on.

Will GW or other produces new figures ranges to go with this? I imagine we'll see new armies made etc from existing ranges to play this setting, which could be fun.

I like the fact that Galadriel is basically insane

QuoteWhy do the Hobbits have a mix of Irish & Westcountry accents and the Dwarves Scottish?

Aye, and the country-living humans we've seen so far all have northern (English) accents, and the elves all use received pronunciation.

You could close your eyes and instantly know the race of the character speaking.

I suspect that any more sophisticated, urban-dwelling humans we come across in future will speak 'posh' English, but not as posh as the elves.

Every "Universe", whether Tolkien, Star Wars, Marvel or CS Lewis seems doomed to a lingering fate.

The rich seam of the "main books" provides good stuff.
Successive *quels continue as the seam grows thinner and thinner.

Each fan will decide where to draw the line.
I guess I'm not a stayer, and don't get excited by the idea of franchise owners cranking a handle.

Tolkien: The Silmarillion: The unpronounceable names, the repetition, the recycled old testament imagery.
Star Wars: Probably hung on too long - the fight while surfing the volcano was the final straw.
Marvel: Never got into that one.
CS Lewis: Dropped off before the end of the author's own work.

QuoteAye, and the country-living humans we've seen so far all have northern (English) accents, and the elves all use received pronunciation.

You could close your eyes and instantly know the race of the character speaking.

I suspect that any more sophisticated, urban-dwelling humans we come across in future will speak 'posh' English, but not as posh as the elves.

I think we have various radio, screen and live broadcast RPG adaptations to thank for those tropes.

QuoteEvery "Universe", whether Tolkien, Star Wars, Marvel or CS Lewis seems doomed to a lingering fate.

The rich seam of the "main books" provides good stuff.
Successive *quels continue as the seam grows thinner and thinner.

Each fan will decide where to draw the line.
I guess I'm not a stayer, and don't get excited by the idea of franchise owners cranking a handle.

Tolkien: The Silmarillion: The unpronounceable names, the repetition, the recycled old testament imagery.
Star Wars: Probably hung on too long - the fight while surfing the volcano was the final straw.
Marvel: Never got into that one.
CS Lewis: Dropped off before the end of the author's own work.

Tolkein: Stopped after seeing the first 'Hobbit' film - dreadful, and full of stuff I do not remember from the book.
Star Wars: I've heard that more films were made after 'Return of the Jedi'. I've never seen any of them. This image explains the problem with 'modern' Star Wars:


Marvel: Started off as fun, rapidly became a grind. Only interested because I did read these comics as a child.
Narnia: Nope, not interested.

Others - 'The Golden Compass' - so good it instantly killed that franchise. Ditto, the Tom Cruise 'Mummy' film, meant to be the start of a new 'dark universe' franchise.

DC Comics: Never read these, no vested interest. Seen a couple, found them dull, esp. compared to the Marvel films.

More with Raider4 than Big Insect.

The "Rings" is set in the 2nd age before Hobbits appeared. Galadriel is a female of great power and authority; compassion and poise. Put her in armour and she's not Galadriel any more. 

"The doom of the Elves is to be immortal, to love the beauty of the world, to bring it to full flower with their gifts of delicacy and perfection, to last while it lasts, never leaving it even when 'slain', but returning – and yet, when the Followers come, to teach them, and make way for them, to 'fade' as the Followers grow and absorb the life from which both proceed. The Doom (or the Gift) of Men is mortality, freedom from the circles of the world."  ― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Silmarillion

So how did this elf get to be so old?


Dwarf princesses without beards; weren't elves meant to have been born before the sun and the moon - so how did they develop darkened skin?

It may be fantasy, it may be pretty, but it ain't Tolkein.

Quote from: aider4 on 04 September 2022, 10:33:08 AMMarvel: Started off as fun, rapidly became a grind. Only interested because I did read these comics as a child.

DC Comics: Never read these, no vested interest. Seen a couple, found them dull, esp. compared to the Marvel films.

I was the opposite. Read DC mostly. I hated the MCU finding it incredibly boring and a CGI-fest. DC films are a mix. The best is the first Wonder Woman film and the first half of the Aquaman series. I found the first series of Daredevil on TV better, but they should have got him into costume quicker. Similarly, the first series of Arrow was watchable. However both companies seem to flog all their characters to death.     

I just think they look a bit similar

Started first episode lasted until Twiddle-dee-dee Lord Lenny of Henry turned up, not for me. I'm interested in Tolkien Middle Earth not a Disney Hollywood fantasy.

I like the one where Elrond sends in his quick bowlers against the Mordor XI.

QuoteMy only slight issue is 'Why do the Hobbits have a mix of Irish & Westcountry accents and the Dwarves Scottish?' It seems a bit stereotypical and more than a bit ethnic-typecasting!

You can't have the production of any major franchise media without a row involving ethnicity and gender.


Just imagine how angry people will be at the High Elf Steel Band that appears at the end of episode 5

The irritating thing about the precious "we're all inclusive and huggy now" lot strikes me as being the absence of Asiatics. There are quite a lot of them in reality.

QuoteI think we have various radio, screen and live broadcast RPG adaptations to thank for those tropes.

The fact that we've all noticed these accents, suggests to me we're not actually being engaged by the program.


Similar to when you're watching 'something', and you're sat there thinking 'Gosh, the CGI/animation of this character is really good'.

If I'm thinking about the quality of CGI or animation, or the distribution of accents by race then there's something wrong somewhere else.