They may both be epic fantasies playing out on a grand scale but The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power and Game of Thrones/House of the Dragon are two different beasts. One of the things fans are loving about The Rings of Power is something that it actually lacks in comparison to its more contemporary “cousin” – gratuitous sex scenes.
Though the show still has violence, it is much more family-friendly. It is something you can sit down with your parents and not have to worry about a rather rambunctious orgy scene popping up, and having to pretend that you’re totally okay seeing people going at it with your parents right next to you.
There were quite a few complaints lobbied against Game of Thrones for its use of sex in almost every episode, stating that it was trying to capitalize on female suffering and sexual assault for the sake of sensationalism. This was such an issue that the spinoff vowed to do better, working with an intimacy coordinator and reducing the amount of sex onscreen. Compared to The Rings of Power, though, the difference is still extreme – with House of the Dragon frequently depicting incest. Of course, in Middle-earth there is still romance, but it is much more sweet and sentimental, with Durin and Disa’s relationship feeling a lot of love from fans.
Not only that, but seeing as Amazon has been working closely with the Tolkien Estate to bring the authors work to life, it’s fair to say that it is unlikely we will have anything close to what Game of Thrones gave us, because Tolkien never wrote anything remotely salacious into his works. Now, The Rings of Power supporters are expressing their relief that the show didn’t take a leaf out of HBO’s book.
This user appreciates that the showrunners have explicitly stated they never intended to make it anything like Game of Thrones.
Many approve that we won’t be rudely interrupted with a lot of (cough) naked action scenes (cough).
It is true that the Tolkien estate would have never let it happen.
This fan is happy they can sit down and watch it with all the members of their family.
Many viewers of Game of Thrones eventually got emotionally exhausted with the constant sexual violence aimed at women on the show.
Not only the audience, but the actors themselves were left a little emotionally strained from their roles, even requiring therapy.
Of course, there is violence in The Rings of Power, but because it has been used sparingly, it makes the impact of when it does happen all the stronger.
Now many could argue that there are two different audiences for the show; The Rings of Power being more family-oriented, and the Westeros saga aimed more at just adults, but there is certainly something to be said about the over use of sexual violence in the media just to shock, with fans glad that Tolkien’s beloved works are not getting that kind of adaptation.
