Prime Video has already shown the first footage of the series Rings of Power, the platform’s most ambitious development to date. The show, which premieres on September 2, is one of the most talked about in a long time. And there are not enough reasons. This is a long-awaited return to Middle-earth, at the same time completely different from the already iconic Peter Jackson with Lord of the Rings.
In advance, you could see fragments of the plot and the impressive scope of the production. But something else caught the attention of fans: the fact that the narrative is completely unpublished. A phenomenon that had not previously occurred with material related to the work of J. R. R. Tolkien. The collection of material, both published during the writer’s lifetime and posthumously, was under the strict control of the author’s son, Christopher Tolkien. And until now, every work related to the world invented by his father was under strict control.
Something that has changed, or so suggests promotion Rings of Powerafter his death in 2020. Surprisingly, the series could be the first product based on J. R. R. Tolkien’s work to feature a story set in his universe., but without reference to what was written directly by the author. This puts the Prime Video series in a new place in the vast universe created by the writer. At the same time, it is a visual and story experiment that intrigues, excites and confounds fans in equal measure.
Rings of Power, the work that contains them all
The plot of the series takes place in the Second Age of Middle-earth and long before the events described in the famous film trilogy. So showrunners Patrick McKay and JD Payne came up with an idea that is astonishingly audacious. Imagine all the stories Tolkien didn’t tell about the creation rings of power. This is the hit that this separates the series from what has been said so far in the literary and cinematic fields.. At the same time, it enters the delicate area of the free version, something that has not been the case with Tolkien’s work so far.
In fact, both McKay and Payne used the term “adaptation” very carefully in their work. In a long interview that both offered Vanity Fair in February, both of them clarified several points. Among them is that the action will be set – and not directly based – on Tolkien’s writings.
On the other hand, although this material uses Tolkien’s characters, places and dialects, it was not written by a British author. At various points in the interview, the artists insisted that the entire narrative is directly related to the book that Tolkien “never wrote”. In other words, fill in the forms about the main narratives that are part of the mythology in the books Tolkian.
In fact, the showrunners have clarified that his universe is carefully limited. When asked what rights Prime Video holds, Payne explained that the source material is carefully delineated. “We only have the right The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers, The Return of the King, appendages and the hobbit“, – explained the executive director. “That’s it. We don’t have rights to The Silmarillion, Unfinished Tales, History of Middle-earth or any of those other books.”
The clarification further heightened concerns from fans who wondered what material could be adapted. Much more so when the stories mentioned by the showrunners were told in a movie trilogy. McKay’s response then signaled that the series would open up new horizons for Tolkien’s work.
Even more surprising is that they would write all kinds of new stuff in a set of stories which has remained untouched until now. “In the books we own the rights to, there’s a version of everything we need for the Second Age,” McKay clarified. “As long as we draw within those lines and don’t openly contradict what we don’t have rights to, we have a lot of wiggle room and room to dramatize and tell some of the best stories we’ve ever seen. [Tolkien] invented.”
Uncomfortable background for analysis and understanding in the Prime Video series
A recent example of a rethinking of Tolkien’s work, with less than satisfactory results, is the romance between the elf Tauriel and the dwarf Kili. The story was an unconvincing addition to the trilogy. hobbit. But, according to Peter Jackson himself, it was a tribute to other classic couples in Tolk’s work.
The ill-fated love between an elf and a dwarf can be compared to the love of Beren and Lúthien, Aragorn and Arwen, included in Tolkien’s canon. But even with how carefully Jackson and his team analyzed the narrative line, it ended up irritating the most ardent fans.
The same thing happened with creative freedoms of all kinds that distorted the source material. But in Jackson’s case, the original work has always been the basis for all the storytelling on tape. When Rings of Power, the situation is quite different. So much so that after analyzing the just-released trailer, it becomes obvious that this is a story that has nothing to do with Tolkien’s work. Or, at least, someone who tries to write – from the writers’ room – a work that can complete a fantastic literary classic.
Rings of Power, on sensitive ground
The series goes through several potential issues. Or at least the likelihood that it ends up being derivative material directly contradicting Tolkien’s work. But, according to Payne, despite their limited rights, there are a number of materials that can be versioned. “We take all these little clues and think of them as stars in the sky. Then we put them together to write the Second Age novel that Tolkien never wrote,” Payne said. Vanity Fair.
But in addition to imagining how Tolkien would resolve scenes and conflicts, they should also avoid flashbacks or ideas that run into copyright. Thus, the series will not be able to use time jumps to the First Age and the Silmarillion, which are still owned by Tolkien’s heirs.
But that’s not the only legal hole that creative freedom has. Rings of Power. Another point that was explored in the production and shown in the trailer was the context of the intelligent world.. Or at least the way it’s done in pop culture. Many images are slightly different from the trilogy Lord of the Rings. Although it is obvious that they take place in similar places, Prime Video tried to create their own version.
New Locations of the Ring of Power
Cause? The fact is that many film designs were created specifically for the production of Peter Jackson. Therefore, they are protected by copyright. A topic that is directly mentioned in Vanity Fair and that puts the series in the position of creating an entirely new visual version of Tolkien’s world. As a result, it can seem like a strange mixture of tendencies, references, and, even more difficult, the author’s extensive mythological background.
But, with extraordinary optimism, showrunners are confident that the result will be solid.“We work together with the world-renowned Tolkien scholars and the Tolkien community. All to make sure the way we connected the dots was smart. And also that they are consistent with the understanding of the material by experts and heritage, ”explained Payne.
There are still a few weeks left to analyze the multi-screen result of the Prime Video series. But one thing is clear: the series is at unprecedented risk in Tolkien’s world. One that can be a triumph. Or a resounding failure that forever changed the relationship between the heirs of the writer and his works in the streaming world.
