Furious “Lord of the Rings” fans are shouting “What the Elrond?!” today.
Prime Video’s new “Lord of the Rings” prequel TV series “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power” debuted its first two episodes Thursday night — and hardcore Tolkien buffs aren’t doing a happy jig down at the Prancing Pony.
“The Rings of Power,” a $715 million gamble (some reports say it cost $1 billion) for Amazon’s Prime Video streaming service, has scored a measly 37% audience rating on Rotten Tomatoes with more than 2,800 user reviews so far. (On the flip side, HBO’s “House of the Dragon” has an 85% fan score.)
“Nothing short of cringeworthy,” wrote Eric. S. of the show that stars Morfydd Clark as Galadriel and Robert Aramayo as Elrond. “The writing is worse than what you could expect to see on CW. It truly seems to have been written by a Barely graduated High Schooler that managed a C- average in creative writing. It’s a smoldering dumpster fire.”
“Lord of the Rings” die-hards are seeing red after watching the new “The Rings of Power” series on Prime Video.©Amazon/Courtesy Everett Collection
Many fans have taken issue with the writing of the fantasy drama, which is based on J.R.R. Tolkien’s “Appendices.” “Visually it was good, but man was the story slow paced and dull,” added Matt L.
Sadie S. was as unimpressed as Gollum being gifted a ring from Kay Jewelers. “This was completely awful, very artificial looking with no heart. What a disgrace,” she said.
Critics have been warmer to the big-budget fantasy series, and it boasts an 83% critic approval rating on RottenTomatoes.com.
The Post’s Lauren Sarner raved, calling “Rings” a “dazzling, gorgeous, thrilling trip to Middle-earth.”
But when it comes to fan reviews, it’s all Shire and brimstone.
