Yes, it is tempting to make connections, the stranger who fell from the sky could be one of the Istari, a proto-Gandalf, or more darkly a proto-Sauron in his fair aspect? I just realised the mystery man is in episode two, but an impetus to watch those Harfoots despite their wandering accents.
The Harfoot’s migrate, but so do their accents, from Irish to Bristol and some to Jamaica. Perhaps this is intended to show diversity, or simply otherness.
Ed Power in The Irish Times sees them as a crude stereotype. But perhaps this is more about him than invented accents of an imagined people. https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/tv-radio/2022/08/31/rings-of-power-the-new-hobbits-are-filthy-hungry-simpletons-with-stage-irish-accents-thats-1bn-well-spent/
Here’s Ben Crystal with Original Pronunciation Shakespeare - which sounds Bristol / Pirate to RP ears. https://youtu.be/bt7OynPUIY8
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I’m with Ed Power on this one.
Sorry, I really shouldn’t be contributing to this thread. I don’t want to p!ss on anyone’s corn flakes.
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The Harfoot visual appearance adds to his case. I think the fact that so many reviewers and audience have commented on the accents suggests that the dialect coach needed to do more work. Or at least realise that different audiences might understand the Harfoot speech differently. Non-standard English in a novel until very recently is generally presented as comic. Odd no-one picked the stage Irishism up in the studio. And @bhoyo, I don’t see why we shouldn’t kick it about.
The dialect coach Leith McPherson, English born, but Australian, comments on accent here: https://www.inverse.com/entertainment/amazon-lord-of-the-rings-rings-of-power-dialect-coach-leith-mcpherson She worked on Jackson’s films too.
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I’ve watched the first two episodes and I’m afraid I am not impressed. I am a fan of both the books (yes including The Silmarillion!) and Peter Jackson’s films. The trouble, care, respect and love that went into the making of those films is apparent in every frame. The RoP felt to me like a childrens drama that the kids would watch on a weekday afternoon - only with a much bigger budget for sets and special effects. The look of these episodes was the one big plus point, to which I’ll add a word of commendation to the music. But neither the story nor the characters captured my interest. The acting was ok - but no more than that. The biggest failure in this whole project is the script. I just can’t imagine how these scripts ever got passed for production. As a Tolkien fan it was a great disappointment. But, worse than that, I found it boring. I was glad when the two hours was over. I don’t thing I’ll be returning for episode 3.
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I feel left out - no daft Welsh accents yet, maybe some Gavin and Stacey clones will appear soon.
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I thought Ed Power wildly off the mark and lazy in his review in a show that so far has a black dwarf and a strong, swashbuckling woman as a lead character it’s unbelievable that they would be so obviously racist it’s obvious there is a slight touch of the Irish Traveller in the Harfoots but as someone who has strong Irish roots I don’t mind the accents and see the Harfoots as peace loving, mystical nomads who will probably play a huge part in saving the world from evil but famine cosplay? definitely not.
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Be careful what you wish for - it might be for the orcses.
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I’ve watched the 2 episodes this weekend and I kind of enjoyed it. I am not well aware of the histories before Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit - the books I’ve enjoyed reading back in the days. I have read the Silmarillion as well, but all I remember that it was quite fragmented but sometimes the imagery was very good.
I don’t think that Bezos ( who started as a book shop, mind that ) would have payed half a billion to satisfy some Tolkien purists and even if he tried, he would have caused more controverse in that scene.
The graphics alone are great already, we are lucky to have a 4k tv and a 4k fire stick so that’s all good.
I’m not convinced about the soundtrack. LOTR had a great soundtrack, but the RoP one did not catch me.
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That is a great point.
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My main problem with it is that it looks like CGI fantasy world, whereas Jackson’s films looked like real locations just enhanced with CGI, which of course is exactly what they are.
Also, the “inclusive” use of actors from different racial backgrounds inside Tolkien’s racial groups just jars for me, though I recognise it’s progressive intent and having accepted it ethically, I’m trying to accept it visually.
The story is a lot choppier than TLOTR and though the team have done their best to stitch it all together, it still feels like several films fighting for space and attention. All the voice-over explanations in the first programme were really irritating and I kept wishing that they’d just let the film tell the story. For instance, there was a brief mention of “Morgoth” being a sort of super-baddy who was then almost immediately superceded by his student Sauron but there’s no backfill to flesh out either of the characters.
I’ll keep watching, though.
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Nope. Halfway through number 3 and I’ve abandoned ship. I’ve no idea what’s going on, why it’s going on, what anybody is talking about and I’m bored with it.
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We watched the Rings of Power a few nights back and it was fairly entertaining, but certainly not great IMO.
I believe I was looking for more energy and detail in the characters. I also thought the storyline lacked all the richness and thoroughness that JRR got so right in his storytelling. I suppose that this is to be expected, as he is dead and all …
I also found the story to be somewhat lacking. There’s a war coming, apparently, and Galadriel can’t get any of the Brass to listen to her. That’s about all we got out of it.
Watched Episode 3 and thought it was excellent the introduction of Isildur is another direct link to LOTR and I thought the scenery from Numenor was terrific my only gripe is the (again) terrible cockney accents of the Orcs though visually they are much better than Peter Jackson’s.
I suppose you do actually need some deeper knowledge of Tolkien’s writings because then there is so much more going on than what is on the surface.
If you go onto the program page and scroll down there are some extras that do explain things in a little more detail.
Perhaps I’m alone but I am really looking forward to next weeks episode.
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I have also watched Episode 3 and I am enjoying it. It probably helps to have some vague idea of the pre LOTR events but I think it is a lot better than I was expecting. Certainly way better than Wheel Of Time!!!
I think it is potentially set for 5 seasons so unlike the movies there is a lot of screen time available, maybe it has started a little slow but I personally like slow build shows.
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Ooh, thanks for the reminder, we need something new to watch tonight with tea!
I really want them to watch a few hilarious episodes of The Good Life I’ve watched earlier this week, but somehow that probably won’t fly - especially after me mentioning to Mrs AC that I’d seen a little more of Felicity Kendal’s body on the big screen than the BBC would ever have intended for family viewing! I was quite shocked it hadn’t been edited out.
The multi-season plan is something we often forget when watching new shows - reminds me of Babylon 5 in a way as Season 1 was somewhat wooden to begin with until it settled down, but I still love watching it. I gather B5 was heavily influenced by Tolkien.
I’ll be mildly surprised if season 2 is made. Ratings have fallen off a cliff, according to industry insiders in the US – although Amazon, for its part, doesn’t release viewing figures. Filming for the next season was due to begin in October. We shall see.
This TV series was always going to attract lots of negative reviews and not just from people who genuinely don’t like it but also from people who where determined not to like it, Tolkien groupies who will think it’s not true enough to his work, the anti woke brigade who will see the multi racial and largely female cast as proof that ‘the worlds gone mad and has been taken over by liberals’ and numerous other review bombers and trolls.
For a show with a record breaking viewing figures of reportedly 25 million for Episode one and a retention of 87% for episode 2 no figures for 3 yet it seems strange that ratings have said to fallen so dramatically but this is the internet.
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Yes, I’m sticking with it, but my family are lost in the Mountains of Moria! I agree it helps to have some sense of the underlying story as the Amazon version is fragmented. Opera often has a printed explanation and surtitles. This added to my understanding when I first encountered Wagner’s Ring. I had a program with maps of Waterloo when I saw the film years ago. Wikipedia has a short outline. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rings_of_Power I think this is popular entertainment rather than anything deep. And there’s no reason for anyone to like it or watch it. I expect the design will become apparent by the end of the first series.
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