Yesterday, Amazon finally unveiled the title of its hotly-anticipated show based on J. R. R. Tolkien’s Middle-earth. One of the most interesting pieces of news was its official moniker: The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, with the series apparently intended to be referred to simply as The Rings of Power.
We also got a synopsis explaining the title, which promises that the show will “unite all the major stories of Middle-earth’s Second Age: the forging of the rings, the rise of the Dark Lord Sauron, the epic tale of Númenor, and the Last Alliance of Elves and Men.” More specifically, it points out that “audiences have only seen onscreen the story of the One Ring — but before there was one, there were many… and we’re excited to share the epic story of them all.”
Leaving aside the fact that literally the first few minutes of Peter Jackson’s The Fellowship of the Ring showed the other rings of power, the title hasn’t made diehard Tolkien fans happy. Here’s how it’s going down on social media:
Whatever else is going on with the project, the title sounds fine to me, and I’m betting it’ll be about five minutes into the first episode before it becomes a non-issue.
But it’ll be fascinating to see Amazon’s take on Middle-earth. The first season alone is rumored to have cost in the region of half a billion dollars, and there are plans to tell this as a true epic across multiple seasons. The teaser trailer indicates that they’re taking cues from Jackson’s movies, but I’m hoping for more substantial footage soon that shows us some of the characters.
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power premieres on Amazon on September 2.
