My biggest problem with the first two episodes was the pacing. It feels like we are being tossed around to the different groups too fast, making things feel rushed and a bit shallow.
I don't really mind the race swapping or the in your face woke dialogs that appear here and there. I have seen enough bad fantasy movies and series, so it does not bother me much anymore. There are some strange story decisions that seem like it was just thrown in for no reason, like the Galadriel swim, but again I can overlook that as flaws to an otherwise pretty impressive CGI driven visual scenery with some people thrown in for good measure.
I don't really find the un-hobbits storyline very good because it feels like a bunch of human rabbits playing hippies. I do however like the Dwarfs bits quite a lot, and I had no problem overlooking the beardless black dwarf princess. In fact, I thought the character was pretty great.
The elves do not feel like elves as they are portrayed to... human I suppose. Galdriel is the narcissistic, angry and impulsive girl that for some reason seem to look down on everyone, especially if they are men. It is quite a long way from the Galadriel that Tolkien described, but we'll see if they can explain how her entire character changes from this angry person to the Stoic and majestic one we meet in Lord of the Rings and the Hobbit.
The black elf Arondir storyline seems more like a homage to movies like in the name of the king, or The wheel of time, as it does not feel very Tolkien at all. I also would like a little backstory as to how an elf in middle earth can be black, but that is perhaps just me.
Overall, the first two episodes display stunning visuals, but with a much too rapid pace in jumping between storylines. I am also a bit worried as to how they will make anything meaningful of the first season with only 8 episodes as in the two that as been released not much has actually happened. That leaves 6 episodes to build up to something that will make it worth watching a second season.
So far, after 2 episodes I give this a weak 6, mostly because of the visuals and the dwarf parts.
Review by Jimi WikmanVIP 7BlockedParent2022-09-02T21:51:14Z
My biggest problem with the first two episodes was the pacing. It feels like we are being tossed around to the different groups too fast, making things feel rushed and a bit shallow.
I don't really mind the race swapping or the in your face woke dialogs that appear here and there. I have seen enough bad fantasy movies and series, so it does not bother me much anymore. There are some strange story decisions that seem like it was just thrown in for no reason, like the Galadriel swim, but again I can overlook that as flaws to an otherwise pretty impressive CGI driven visual scenery with some people thrown in for good measure.
I don't really find the un-hobbits storyline very good because it feels like a bunch of human rabbits playing hippies. I do however like the Dwarfs bits quite a lot, and I had no problem overlooking the beardless black dwarf princess. In fact, I thought the character was pretty great.
The elves do not feel like elves as they are portrayed to... human I suppose. Galdriel is the narcissistic, angry and impulsive girl that for some reason seem to look down on everyone, especially if they are men. It is quite a long way from the Galadriel that Tolkien described, but we'll see if they can explain how her entire character changes from this angry person to the Stoic and majestic one we meet in Lord of the Rings and the Hobbit.
The black elf Arondir storyline seems more like a homage to movies like in the name of the king, or The wheel of time, as it does not feel very Tolkien at all. I also would like a little backstory as to how an elf in middle earth can be black, but that is perhaps just me.
Overall, the first two episodes display stunning visuals, but with a much too rapid pace in jumping between storylines. I am also a bit worried as to how they will make anything meaningful of the first season with only 8 episodes as in the two that as been released not much has actually happened. That leaves 6 episodes to build up to something that will make it worth watching a second season.
So far, after 2 episodes I give this a weak 6, mostly because of the visuals and the dwarf parts.