Meredith Annette Harper

It’s so much better than I expected it would be! Insanely beautiful, mystical, intelligent and immersive, it’s very Tolkienish in the mythic feel but could risk just a touch more humor to help flesh out characters other than Harfoots and Dwarves. Tolkien himself wrote LOTR/Hobbit with easy touches of dry wit he suppressed in his backstories, going for a more more biblical tone in them, but maybe that presents a problem for Rings of Power’s creators. They’re doing their best to represent him but don’t always seem sure which Tolkien to represent. Their dialogue at times comes off stiff, other times as if trying too hard for cheap laughs. Still, it’s a newborn show with its heart in the right place, and that’s saying a lot. It HAS a heart and it beats with genuine love for J. R. R. Tolkien. What a pleasure it’s going to be to watch it grow. Against all odds, I’m in!

Two big thumbs waaaaay up! No idea I'd been needing this show this bad, but apparently I was because I haven't stopped smiling since last night's closing credits. This IS Star Trek, back from the Great Beyond! And thank God/Goddess/Whomever/Spirit of Gene Roddenberry it is. Maybe you can't go home again, but Home can come to you. Mine just did.

I'm so glad I watched this wonderful movie twice. During my first viewing, my area was under a tornado watch. I was scared bleepless and wanted only distraction--swords and battles promised me that, and delivered. But I just now saw the whole thing again and was rewarded by so much more grace and nuance than I'd noticed the first time around. It's a much, much smarter film than I'd initially given it credit for and the excellent performances way more subtle. So if what you're looking for is blood and guts while you check local weather radar and hyperventilate, that's pretty much all you're going to get. But if you give it your whole attention, you'll discover heart, humor, and intelligence as well. I loved it. Bravo to all involved. Five stars.