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Showing posts from May, 2022
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  Amazon Prime Video LotR Rings of Power -   LeakyRumour The Rumour/leak – Celebrimbor, Ring forging & Dwarves ·          Celebrimbor’s story arc and involvement won’t begin properly until around episode 4 and onwards – halfway through the season. ·          Celebrimbor and the Dwarves will forge rings together at some point near the end of season 1. ·          In one of the sound stages there is a “forging room” set which is part of the Dwarven mines and the rings will be forged there. Separate source described it as a “rocky chamber”. Discussion It may be that Celebrimbor is a background character initially, before taking more of a prominent role in later episodes of season one. Not much backstory give to him in LotR Second Age book references. Celebrimbor is a relatively new character for casual fans so will need some introductory sequenc...
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  Rings of Power - Galadriel in the Second Age  Galadriel in the Second Age ·          After the War of Wrath and the overthrow of Morgoth, she remained in Middle-earth with her husband Celeborn. A ban remained on her return to Valinor due to her participation in the rebellion of the Noldor in the First Age. She was eager to explore Middle-earth. ·          Celeborn ruled over the fiefdom of Harlindon, mostly of Sindar Elves under the High King of the Noldor Gil-galad. ·          Eventually, the couple crossed into Eriador with many Noldor in their following. Together with Sindar and Green-elves, they dwelt in the country about Lake Nenuial ruling the Eldar in Eriador. ·          In Second Age 300, a daughter was born to Galadriel and Celeborn, named Celebrían. ·        ...
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  100 Days until Rings of Power premiere It really doesn’t matter how good or bad The Rings of Power is. It isn’t a big enough deal to have a real impact on how wonderful Tolkien’s writings are. If the show isn’t a success, nothing changes and Tolkien’s works remain. But if it’s good, then the show will usher in a whole new appreciation for Middle-earth. It could be a gateway for more people to discover Tolkien in a much richer and deeper way and engage further in his mythology via his books. The World Of Lord Of The Rings: The Rings Of Power ‘Isn’t The Middle-Earth You Remember’ According to Rings Of Power concept artist John Howe: “This isn’t the Middle-earth you remember,” Howe tells Empire in the Summer Preview issue. “This is a world that’s very vibrant. The elves are not hidden away in Mirkwood or lingering in Rivendell. They’re busy constructing kingdoms. The dwarven kingdom of Moria is not an abandoned mine and the Grey Havens is not yet an abandoned city. I loved h...
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  Tolkien comments about Second Age Prime Video Rings of Power “The next cycle deals (or would deal) with the Second Age. But it is on Earth a dark age, and not very much of its history is (or need be) told.” “The three main themes are thus The Delaying Elves that lingered in Middle-earth; Sauron's growth to a new Dark Lord, master and god of Men; and Numenor-Atlantis. They are dealt with annalistically, and in two Tales or Accounts, The Rings of Power and the Downfall of Númenor. Both are the essential background to The Hobbit and its sequel.”   From the Letter of J.R.R.Tolkien #131. “next cycle” – The previous cycle was the First Age covering Awakening of Men, Quest of the Silmaril, War of Wrath “dark age” – hints at the middle ages of Western Europe history where not much detail is recorded “Delaying Elves that lingered in Middle-earth” – The Elves of Lindon, Eregion, Laurelindórenan (Lothlórien) & Rivendell who remained in Middle-earth and founded kingdom...
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  A new edition of ‘The Lord of the Rings’ is soon to be re-released with ‘The Rings of Power’ cover art. Harper Collins are publishing a Rings of Power series tie-in edition of LotR. The new covers for Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers and The Return of the King will show images from the promotional poster series released in February. “the images don’t really accord with the thematic thrust of each individual title and it’s a bit of a stretch to make an association between image and content.” TORn 21/4/22 There has been a largely negative response online about this latest marketing tactic with many people posting the words from The Two Towers: ‘“There is no curse in Elvish, Entish, or the tongues of Men for this treachery.” ― J.R.R. Tolkien’ Also “Books covers from TV series that aren't even based on those books.” “Boromir says, ‘LOTR has no new covers. LOTR needs no new covers.’” “Eowyn says, ‘I am no new cover!’” “The Return of the Witch-King, I guess.” ...
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  Amazon Prime Video LotR Rings of Power -   LeakyRumour The Rumour/leak – Númenórean temple set & village incident On one of the sound stages, there is a Númenórean temple set, one of the biggest set structures. Discussion ·          Could this be a places of Morgoth worship established after Sauron has deluded Pharazôn, the Kingsmen and many people of Númenor into abandoning the worship of Eru Ilúvatar and following him into darkness. Season One is probably too early for the corruption of the Kingdom of Númenor to be portrayed. Maybe the set architecture has a temple-like façade as found in many European medieval and gothic buildings. From Tolkien’s Lore ·          In Tolkien’s letter No. 153 to Peter Hastings, the Professor states that there was no temples in Númenor. On the flattened summit of Meneltarma, a sacred mountain in the center of Númenor, religious ceremonies occurred ...
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  Prime Video Amazon Studio’s LotR, The Rings of Power How do they “come up with the novel Tolkien never wrote”? “Can we come up with the novel Tolkien never wrote and do it as the mega-event series that could only happen now?” Vanity Fair article Feb 10th 2022 “We took all these little clues and thought of them as stars in the sky that we then connected to write the novel that Tolkien never wrote about the Second Age,” Vanity Fair article Feb 14 th 2022 “How can new material not be invented to fill in the gaps?” TORn Feb 12 th 2022 If Prime Video are going to create Middle-earth characters and narratives, then what elements should be evident to make them synonymous with Tolkien’s legendarium. “The Message” was subtle There is a subtlety regarding the messaging in Middle-earth. There is wisdom and proverbs throughout Tolkien’s writing, and yet they are camouflaged within his epic tale of adventure and are there only to enhance the story. There is deep insight ...
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  Sentiments from the London Rings of Power preview event From ‘Tolkien Collector's Guide’ By Urulókë 10 May 2022 On Friday May 6th, Amazon Prime invited some Middle-earth content creators, Tolkien scholars and influencers to an event in London, where they were shown approximately 20 minutes of finished footage of RoP. There was also a Q&A session with showrunners J.D. Payne and Patrick McKay. The terms of the event precluded the attendees from saying anything details about the footage or specifics of what was discussed, but they were able to share their general feelings about the day. Here are the public posts Urulókë gathered from the various attendees, along with brief extracts of how they felt about the footage and the showrunners. Shaun Gunner, Tolkien Society Chair ·          Showrunners: "I am convinced that they are the right people to adapt Tolkien’s works" and "I loved what I heard from them, and I am bought into the...
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  Tolkien Society Chair, exclusive viewing Rings of Power Shaun Gunner, the Chair of The Tolkien Society, was invited to an exclusive preview of Prime Video Amazon Studio’s ‘The Lord of the Rings, The Rings of Power’, including a short viewing of content (20 minutes of footage) and meeting with the showrunners J.D. Payne and Patrick McKay. Shaun’s discerning and insightful feedback may give many who have concerns about the upcoming TV series pause to remain positive and hopeful. ·          It is clear that the storylines are not exclusively Tolkien, filling in the gaps in the histories of Arda ·          Acknowledges not all Tolkien readers will agree with the creative decisions the team will make ·          The show has been created with a level of craftsmanship and attention-to-detail which is unparalleled ·        ...
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  Prime Video Amazon Studio’s LotR, The Rings of Power - Time compression Posted Melbourne Tolkien Fellowship FB May 2022 ‘In the novels, the aforementioned things take place over thousands of years, but Payne and McKay (RoP showrunners) have compressed events into a single point in time. “…. “If you are true to the exact letter of the law, you are going to be telling a story in which your human characters are dying off every season because you’re jumping 200 years in time, and then you’re not meeting really big, important canon characters until season four.”’ Vanity Fair Article 10th Feb 2022 There is some irony in telling a story in which the prevention of the decline of time is a major theme of the Second Age, the showrunners are using time compression in the storyline. Prime Video want a coherent story with mass appeal that will entertain audiences at a scale befitting its budget, whilst capturing the grandness, sense of ancientry and tragedy of the Second Age. Compress...
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  Amazon LotR: The Rings of Power Marketing Strategy to date:  Posted MTF FB May 2022 Map of Númenor – March2019 Official TV Series Synopsis - Jan2021 Valinor image showing Tirion, the Two Trees & a figure standing - Aug2021 Series premiere date 2 nd Sept 2022 announced - Aug202  Rings of Power series title released – Jan2022  Posters – Feb 2022  Vanity Fair First Look article & images – Feb2022  Teaser Trailer at US Super Bowl – Feb2022 Influencers Superfans videos – Feb2022 Images of Bronwyn and Theo released – April2022 Ad during their Brazilian Big Brother - May2022 The Brazilian ad featured a number of celebrities and local soap opera stars in a theatrical prelude to a cut down version of the teaser trailer released in Portuguese. Is this Amazon’s ongoing publicity strategy? To employ local celebrities from different countries to promote the RoP TV series. Amazon Rings of Power Teaser Trailer Likes/Dislike/Comments ...