The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power is back for its second season, picking up after the groundbreaking events of last season’s finale, wherein Halbrand revealed himself to secretly be the dark lord Sauron and, in response, the Elves crafted the first three great Rings of Power. The series has been controversial among fans of the Lord of the Rings franchise for numerous reasons but has received mostly positive reviews from critics, leaving the series to be a particularly hot topic. Fans who enjoy Peter Jackson’s take on J.R.R. Tolkien’s world have especially disliked The Rings of Power, though the series’ second season has seen a notable improvement in fan reception so far.
Regardless of the mixed reception to The Rings of Power, it appears the series will continue for many more years to come. The series reportedly has a five-year plan, which will lead up to the final battle between the forces of Sauron and the Last Alliance of Elves and Men, wherein the dark lord is defeated and Isildur claims the One Ring of Power. While this seems to be the perfect finale for The Rings of Power, the series may be looking at continuing long past the events of the Second Age. While many Peter Jackson fans may not like it, Prime Video could be looking to reboot The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings after finishing its current storyline.
The Rings of Power Could Evolve Into a Reboot of Lord of the Rings
Prime Video’s The Rings of Power could evolve into a television reboot of J.R.R. Tolkien’s original books. Even as early as Season 2, the streaming series is already setting up multiple Lord of the Rings characters and storylines, including Gandalf and the other wizards, Galadriel, Elrond, and even Tom Bombadil. By the time the series has completed its survey of the Second Age, many of the plot points would be in place for the events of the Third Age. It wouldn’t take much for The Rings of Power to simply carry on its story, beginning with a new depiction of The Hobbit and, eventually The Lord of the Rings.
This would give Prime Video a chance to present its new take on Middle-earth in the Third Age, taking characters that audiences already care about and thrusting them into their positions in a much larger story to come. With an in-depth background on the Rings of Power by the time the latter portion of the series begins, The Rings of Power could even focus more heavily on the lore behind The Lord of the Rings, depicting some of the events that occurred behind the scenes of the main story. While Amazon may struggle to obtain the rights to the events of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, doing so might be worth it in the long run.
A Lord of the Rings Series Could Adapt All of Tolkien’s Story
Although Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings is incredibly popular and rightfully considered one of the best book adaptations of all time, the trilogy simply couldn’t include every detail from Tolkien’s original works. Characters like Tom Bombadil were infamously excluded from Lord of the Rings, which had to focus more heavily on the main storyline. The Extended Editions do a terrific job of weaving certain exclusions back into the movies, but even these couldn’t include everything. The unfortunate truth of the matter is that movies can never fully depict every piece of Tolkien’s world–nor are they designed to. Television series, on the other hand, are perfectly built to delve more deeply into lore, to include episodic encounters, and to flesh out a world in greater detail.
The Rings of Power is already giving viewers a more complete timeline of the One Ring and the events that transpired as a result of its creation than the movies ever did. Adapting the events of The Lord of the Rings would offer a similar opportunity. The series could include everything that was left out of the movies, from the Hobbits’ encounter with Tom Bombadil to the Scouring of the Shire. Even more exciting, the series’ expanded format would offer the opportunity to include major events from Tolkien’s appendices, including the many battles that raged simultaneously with the events of Return of the King. Conflicts like the Battle Under the Trees and the Battle of Dale are incredibly cool concepts that would make for thrilling live-action sequences in a season of television. The series could depict a more complete view of the War of the Ring, including the deeds of the Dwarves and Elves that exist only in the background of the Fellowship’s quest.
Should Rings of Power Reboot The Lord of the Rings?
Naturally, the idea of Amazon rebooting the Lord of the Rings movies would upset some fans. However, Hollywood appears to be shifting in this direction, as other major franchises based on popular books are receiving television reboots that aim to tell the full extent of the stories at hand. The Percy Jackson reboot on Disney+ has already attained a better reception than the film adaptations. Likewise, Harry Potter and Twilight will both receive television reboots in the coming years. While reception to some of these projects has been mixed, fans of the books have to admit that the idea of seeing every aspect of their favorite story brought to light is tantalizing.
The Rings of Power presenting its own depiction of the Lord of the Rings books wouldn’t necessarily take away from Peter Jackson’s movies, which remain some of the most iconic fantasy films of all time. Rather, a television reboot would be an extraordinary chance to bring Tolkien’s world to the screen in a new and more comprehensive way. Moreover, with Warner Bros. Studios currently working on multiple new Lord of the Rings projects set in Jackson’s world, both franchises can easily exist side-by-side, allowing fans to choose which they wish to follow.
The Rings of Power may be a controversial series, but it has incredible potential to reinvent modern adaptations of J.R.R. Tolkien’s iconic fantasy world. By rebooting The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, the Prime Video series could deliver one of the most faithful book adaptations of all time.
