The Rings of Power Teaser Thoughts | Lord of the Rings Amazon Series 

They bought for the name recognition and that's it, it would seem.

They don’t even have the rights for most of his works from this age

well said!

@@chaz9808 they will buy that next. After the massive devaluation by the release of this trash

The timeline compressing is the worst crime I think, it completely kills the point of the difference between elves and men: mortality. They said the reason they do that is so that they don't have to keep replacing the human characters. This shows how little they understand of Tolien's world. THAT'S THE POINT! Men die and elves live on, that's what drives the wedge between them, why men eventually attack Valinor and why elves are often hesitant to make friends with men. But no, "that would be bed because we'd have to cast a lot of new actors".

Also, don't forget that Galadriel's hair is really special and that dude just simply touches it like it's nothing.

@@szabok1999 omg so true haha

@@szabok1999 I agree, it seems like too much of 21st century American behaviour. And even today, touching someone's hair is mostly regarded as quite intimate.

There are two references by Tolkien (discussed in the link below) that suggest elven ears are pointed, though not so much. He speaks of hobbits and says they have pointed ears, though not as pointed as elven ears. I do not believe that their ears are that pointed though, nothing like say World of Warcraft elves. I agree with you though, the ears are not the first thing that suggests someone is an elf. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-aframLq7Q5w.html&ab_channel=InDeepGeek

@@nozhki-busha Thank you! I knew the video before but forgot the content. The origin of pointy ears in myth predating Tolkien makes for an interesting scholarly question that I cannot hope to answer. I have seen actual humans with something like a pointy ear, so it is kind of hard to tell how pointy it has to be to become a conspicuous feature. And an even more ridiculous option is possible: that Men have on average ears as pointy as Elves, pointier than in real life, but less pointy than in the Jackson films. Tolkien's physical descriptions range from flowery to very blurry. The only physical feature that he dedicates a little detail to is facial hair and beards.

They simply had to make up some action scenes including characters that we are familiar with and care for - visually exciting adventures that Tolkien did not write about - as to make the show interesting to watch. Whether it is Galadriel or say Elrond who is inserted into made-up adventures I don't care, it will be equally out of character for either of them, so I don't see what this has to do with their sex.

@@GuildedTraveller Sorry but no. You do make some valid points, but not EVERYTHING is sexism and so on. Did Peter Jackson take some liberties, yes, but he did it to stream line the movie, i don't know of an adaption that hasn't. Even Stephen King did so in "Maximum Overdrive", a short story that he wrote and wrote the screenplay/directed. PJ did add some girl power parts, like Arwen rescuing and saving Frodo, from the Ringwraiths, in the fellowship, but tried to stay true overall. To put it in simple terms, they are turning Wonder Woman (EVERYONE loved) into Wonder Woman 1984 ("There's so much wrong with the film that it's genuinely hard to quantify", Cate Young, Thirty, Flirty + Film) I'm not saying "go woke, go broke", but like a different YT channel stated, who is of color, who said that his mom (supposedly a big LOTR's fan, grew up with books) why is that female dwarf black? They live underground with no Sun. Why doesn't she have a beard? ALL DRAWVES have beards! Geekzone isn't going to say that, he'll get canceled.

​@@Adones09 I agree with most of what you said that I could understand. I didn't see Wonder Woman so I can't comment there. Personally, what turned me off the most from this series is how all the criticism was dismissed as "far-right" or whatever by the creators. Since when has it been a far-right position to defend the presence of bearded ladies. Amazon's gall in taking something with a built-in fanbase, distorting it, and then saying the fans are in the wrong is astoundingly disrespectful.

@@herrdave920 I know WHY they do it ($$$$$$$$$), because it has a built in fan base... I once heard, when talking about Marvel (MCU movies), is that THEY KNOW that the fan base (comic book geeks) will spend $$$ to watch, but they"re trying to catch that casual fan $$$. But as a old school geek in allot of fan bases, I wish that they would take the risk and start something new vs. twisting my childhood. TV, Music and entertainment in general, there is a "Formula" that most Producers stick to it, because they want to call themselves "Artists" but they don't want to risk losing money by deviating from the formula (American Idol, perfect example). That is why when something "New" comes out, its always a hit and people flock to it. Wonder Woman, I went in hesitant, once again I'm a comic book geek, so I know the history, stories and ya they changed her background a bit, but the story was well done, I also like the Director Patty Jenkins, she has done great previous work (not just b/c she's a woman). Highly recommended to watch. WW'84? I'm sorry to say that there was ALLOT of inconsistencies, especially in the story telling part. HUGE plot holes, pacing was a bit janky. Same director, but different writer and producers.

@@GuildedTraveller you made nothing but a fat strawman argument of sexism and racism. Nobody is advocating for a weak Galadrial. In fact, the opposite. A wise sorceress queen is far more powerful than a warrior. Nobody is advocating for no people of color. In fact, fans are eager to explore Haradrim and their subjugation by Numenor. People like you, make the strawman, because you lose any argument based on merit and fact. Sure, women can swing a sword. Just not as good as men. Not remotely so. That is because masculinity has strength, and it is different than femininity. Femininity has strength. Tolkien knew, that to highlight women is to highlight femininity's strength, NOT to turn them masculine. There is a reason 14 year old boys mop the floor with professional female athletes. Learn basic biology and what sexual dimorphism means. The reality is, Tolkien's work is being disrespected, by narcissistic racist no talents. There are no black elves. The mythology is for an ancient Europe. Learn to accept and appreciate Tolkien's work. Learn that shoe horning in modern themes is lazy writing and people pushing against it is valid criticism, especially when the Haradrim exist, and Tolkien himself made powerful women in Luthian, Melian, Galadrial, Idril, Yavanna, etc, and did so, by making them super feminine. Learn to appreciate REAL feminine traits. What fans are balking at, is no different than being irritated at an all asian Wakanda, or a 5'4" 360lb Steve Rogers, or a black SS Nat-zee in a period piece, or a Cinderella that makes fart jokes in cargo shorts while guzzling beer watching football. Jesus you're brainwashed, if you think otherwise.

It’s just bad!

Oh GOD, you just reminded me about the series! I had almost forgotten it; I was almost free, man. As a WoT fan, I was crushed by the nonsensical changes they made there. The only thing I think they did good on was the environment of Shadar Logoth. Send in the Warders, Questioners, Aiel, Hell even the Seachan; there's some Darkfriends over at Amazon :( Walk in the Light, dude

They fired the lore guy.

I don't care. Amazon did a very good job bringing WOT story to life on the big screen.

@@oliveremmettknox7776 what? WOT was a complete disaster. The main theme was absolutely desecrated.

Here's a pro tip: pirate it. If it's bad, it didn't cost you a penny. I'm not sure I could even watch it legally in my country even if I wanted to.

@@szabok1999 not watching it out of principle.

@@szabok1999 it’s not worth the effort for me, but thanks for the tip!

Facts, my man! And it WILL very likely flop.

Have YOU even read „the actual books“? Do you understand they are no novels with an actual plot but rather chronicles and tales by people about certain events/the ages?!?

They're not using the actual books because they do not own them. So they don't even try. They just use the name to coin their own story. This is so disgusting.

I was planning to break down the lore in a different episode, this was meant to simply be my initial feelings on the teaser trailer as a fan :)

@@GeekZoneMT I of course appreciate you taking the time to respond, tyvm. :) I have no allusions as to why they are doing what they are doing to our beloved stories, they have an agenda and if Tolkien's works must be sacrificed on the altar of that agenda, they are more than happy to do so. I'm very frustrated by what I've been reading. Not from the negative nellies but from the actual show developers, their media shills and so-called "experts". Before the show has even aired, the "leaks" they've been providing, are horror filled distortions of the timeline, the character portrayals and the inclusions that have no place in the "Age" of which this show is centred upon. "For a new generation of fans" I believe you stated more than once. Well, if so, then those newly acquired fans will have very little inkling of what JRR wrote and Christopher spent the majority of his life collating, editing and providing, to the entire world. But hey, as long as Twitter and Tik-Tok denizens are happy, that's the greatest comfort we could possibly wish for? No, didn't think so. Cheers my friend, I wish your expectations to come true but I have no faith they will.

They're after Berserk now. The Hawks will join as well. This battle will decide the War of the Fandoms.

@@nosotrosloslobosestamosreg4115 it wont be our end, but it will be theirs!

Get a grip

@@KuLaydMahn face it, the series is going to be shit. Its to late to reshoot it, we need to cancel it!

@Faylum1 wow, I thought he was a little more on our side. Maybe he was never a Star Wars, Star Trek or Doctor Who fan, so he doesnt know any better, but I am extremely disappointed in him anyway.

Some guy yesterday tried to say wheel of time was good and this looked good . Nonsense . He tried the predictable ( backlash is bigotry ) it didn't go well for him

I like LOTR lore but not so much the books. I'm a big WOT fan and I'm sorry they are going to ruin your movie too

@@queenofcats1 thanks my queen, i fear your right.

Nay. Amazon did a good job bringing WOT world to life on the big screen.

I never read the books. Reading books for pleasure is not for me. Watching movies and TV shows entertain me.

I won't be watching either.

Nothing can kill Tolkiens legacy. His works will live on forever and any adaptation will eventually be forgotten.

It's not destroying the lore, it just has people that look different

Exactly

Well said, Gokke I hope when all of this woke stuff has passed, we can all heed the words of Tolkien/Gandalf and just be fans again, regardless of our differences. - "Such things he loves, friend at war with friend; loyalty divided and confusion of hearts." - "Ill deeds have been done here. Let now all enmity that lies between you be put away; for it was contrived by the Enemy and works his will."

That is just because Karl is not narrating a script here

I agree with you. This is a good mindset, take it as fan-fiction

Nice lol

Its somehow a relief, right? Theres no need to be nervous. This is already a mess.

@@zorroya4856 I suppose you are right, but still it saddens me to think of the possibilities missed.

@@zorroya4856 true

Unless we start producing things ourselves nothing in this decade will be safe from politics!

No one cares. Bunch of woke garbage.

If that's what's bothering you, you don't understand what makes Tolkien's work good any more than the writers. Except we don't actually know yet if they don't get it, but it's pretty clear with you

It's just not worth it by this point

I keep mentioning this to my mom. I’m cautiously optimistic but not hopeful that it’ll be worth it’s salt.

Yeah that was way overdone

I should have a video up next week 😁

I think we all know why. And this is where these people loose credibility.

@@unitron2005 I mean... Obviously I assume why, but I guess I was maybe hoping for some other explanation... Which is stupid of me lol.

I've been following him for quite some time now and he always tends to be more positive and optimistic on things, we shouldn't rush to make bad faith judgments of him. I think the simplest answer is that he just doesn't want to engage in the political/culture war stuff and I really don't blame him.

I addressed it in one the top comments :)

Very simple: many people are tired arguing over this, accepted it whether they like it or not, and move on. I personally objected this... interesting approach to skin colour, but accepted it. Despite the legitimacy of criticising contradictions to the lore, the intense and spiteful negativity in most internet discussions regarding these casting choices left me with a sour taste. I hope that the actors will be good. At least the Dwarven princess Disa is played by a British actress. I am more the kind of guy who would criticise American accents in what is essentially a British-Nordic mythology and be less interested in skin colour, but we all have our preferences for how we imagine a character's physique and voice, and never are all of them met in an adaptation : ) Btw what would be more unsettling for you guys. A bearded, hairy, and stouted white guy playing an elf (not as old as Círdan) or a slender, handsome black guy? Just curious

I see only heavy political agenda being forced, and poor character choices out of place, sure there will be some good moments it's a big production after all, but these poor paths been taken will ruin the whole experience.

@@HALFMOONmjh I'm with you on this. I saw another user comment on this video, that I think NAILED the characterization of the political agenda being forced(quoted, but paraphrased a bit): Those people claiming Tolkien fans are racists and sexists are performing nothing but a fat strawman argument. For instance, nobody is advocating for a weak Galadrial just because we don't want to see her as a knight. In fact, the opposite. A wise sorceress queen is far more powerful than a warrior. Nobody is advocating for no people of color. In fact, fans are eager to explore the Haradrim and Easterlings and their subjugation by Numenor. Heck, I'm irritated that we don't get to see a supportive loving Celeborn, as opposed to some made up man character that never remotely existed. People make the strawman, because they lose any argument based on merit and fact. Sure, women can swing a sword. Just not as good as men. Not remotely so. That is because masculinity has strength, and it is different than femininity. Femininity has strength. Tolkien knew, that to highlight women is to highlight femininity's strength, NOT to turn them masculine. There is a reason 14 year old boys mop the floor with professional female athletes. These people need to learn basic biology and what sexual dimorphism means. Ignoring this, takes people out of the universe, breaking immersion into this Tolkien universe, which, he tried to make as realistic as possible. There is a reason his world is so detailed. If you ask a question about it, there IS an answer. The reality is, Tolkien's work is being disrespected, by narcissistic racist no talents. Narcissists because they cannot find the value in something unless they see a carbon copy of themselves in it. Racist, because they WILL NOT allow a mythology based on Europe, drawing on Norse, Celtic, Saxon, etc. myths, to have only white people. There simply are no black elves. The mythology is for an ancient Europe scene per Tolkien's own words. So that means no black dwarves either. Plus, dwarves live underground, so it makes no sense for them to have dark pigmentation. The writers at amazon, need to learn to accept and appreciate Tolkien's work. Learn that shoe horning in modern themes is lazy writing and people pushing against it is valid criticism, **especially when the Haradrim & Easterlings exist** , and **Tolkien himself made powerful women already** in Luthian, Melian, Galadrial, Idril, Yavanna, etc, and did so, by making them super feminine. Learn to appreciate REAL feminine traits and their inherent strength. What fans are balking at, is no different than being irritated at an all asian Wakanda, or a 5'4" 360lb Steve Rogers, or a black SS Nat-zee in a period piece, or a Cinderella that makes fart jokes in cargo shorts while guzzling beer watching football. We are balking at no talent know nothing racist narcissists, thinking they can "update" or "improve" the best fiction writer of the 20th century.

@@geelee1977 totally agree

@@HALFMOONmjh In my crude way of putting it, as opposed to the user I quoted, "Tolkien's universe is being reduced, shrunk, by Amazon"

Well the reason is that these companies no longer care for your preference. I hope though that this will not ruin much if the actors are good. Tolkien's elves are supposed to be white but I can understand that they include black elves in the show for marketing reasons. I am white and want to be careful with this topic, because I don$t know how it feels like to have very few tv and cinema stars who don't look like me at all. Really hard for me to tell then

They are plain lazy, disrespectful, hypocrites. They ethnic-bend elves and dwarves to pat themselves on the back. "See! We aren't racist!" They easily could've made a show with nothing but ALL Black, Asian , and multicultural people. They're in the lore like in Harad, Umbar, and Rhun. But no, they take the utterly stupid route by tokenizing the lore. Fak em

@@Crafty_Spirit then how many black people are fan of lotr? Probably 90% are white, as for marketing reason it wasn't even a good idea. no im not fine with black elves either, it will just ruin the lore. probably the closest thing for black person to be in tolkien universe is as haradrim or corsairs of umbar ( though they're more looks like middle eastern people )

@@regiluthfi Many white people at least where I live don't care so much that they would not watch the show because of that. Amazon probably calculated that they won't lose many viewers because of black elves. I can't tell if they are right. Personally, I tend to care more for accents than looks, I think British and European accents make more sense than American ones

@@LandStrider23 there should no asian either. But i always imagine elves as eurasian.

This is my biggest issue with it. I can get past the artistic licence of the writers condensing the time period, making new plot lines etc. but like you say it looks like a video game. Hopefully there will be more real life sets and landscapes used in the final version

Pretty much most of the LOTR lore channels I've seen react the same way. They are either too afraid to speak out their true opinions (especially about the black elf and dwarf) or they support Amazon's decisions. Notice that none of them critisize the black elf and dwarf? It is clear that GeekZone is very skeptical with this show but he still willingly did not want to point out this obvious lore pandering regarding the elf, dwarf and 'warrior' Galadriel. This is most likely because they are afraid of being 'cancelled' for it.

@@aimansuriaprakash2380 I've read every tolkien's books, I don't recall anything saying there isn't black elves and dwarves

@@tiago.brettas 1. "'Behold I love the Earth, which shall be a mansion for the Quendi and the Atani! But the Quendi shall be the fairest of all earthly creatures...'", The Silmarillion, Of The Beginning Of Days. 2. "Glorfindel was tall and straight; his hair was of shining gold, his face fair and young and fearless and full of joy...", The LOTR: FOTR, Many Meetings. 3. Description of Arwen: "The braids of her dark hair were touched by no frost; her white arms and clear face were flawless and smooth...", The LOTR: FOTR, Many Meetings. 4. Description of Feanor: "He was tall, and fair of face, and masterful,...", The Silmarillion, Of Feanor and The Unchaining of Melkor. There are plenty more examples than these. The first quote itself should already be enough evidence regarding the skin tone of the elves and it would only make sense to generalize the appearance of all the other elves based on that defining description. If you really want to get to the roots of elven mythology that Tolkien resembled, you would find that they share resemblance with the 'Àlfr' in Norse mythology and 'Albaz' in Germanic mythology. Elfs, fairies, leprechauns are European mythologies which would make sense as to why most are described to share similar characteristics to Europeans who are mostly (especially decades ago) fair skinned. It's the same if you grab a mythological story from China or Japan or South-East Asia and see that most characters resemble Chinese, Japanese and South-East Asians respectively. It wouldn't make sense if you suddenly decide to replace Japanese characters with Caucasians or black Africans just to appeal to 'diversity' in a Japanese mythology. There is already a great diversity of stories from every part of the world. Also, with your logic, if spaceships and lightsabers are not mentioned in the books, does that mean there might be spaceships and lightsabers in Arda?

Tolkien's does not describe Galadriel as a "roaming warrior" for the First Age. He says she had an 'Amazon disposition' (in her youth in Valinor) and relates that to her take part in athletic events. Noting as well that there were no wars in Valinor in her youth for her to be a warrior in, until the only time Galadriel is noted to have engaged in physical combat. That would be when defending her mother's kin, the Teleri, from the Feanoreans at the First Kinslaying, in late writings. In other writings, Tolkien stated that Galadriel took no part in the wars in Beleriand (which she deemed fruitless), and (in keeping with LotR) left Beleriand for Eriador, during the wars.

@@Tar-Elenion Okay, roaming warrior was an overstatement. She was described as amazonian dispotion as you pointed out and as such, given the lack of concrete information of what most named characters were up to in detail in the 2nd age, it's not a huge stretch to make her a warrior-like protagonist in the show. Obviously, the second age doesnt have any detailed narratives like LotR itself was: protagonist, archs, story structure etc. All we know is several versions of what amounts to short stories, tales, history or mythology style stuff. Which is fine, and I hope amazon work with it. But in the gaps that exist, I wouldnt hate Galadriel in this role IF well done (big if). My point was that there are many more pressing issues in the trailer.

For real. There are much more substantial ways to fuck up an IP than including a few brown people. If this is actually bad,it won't be because theres a black elf. It'll be because the writers don't understand what made LotR good. Although the beardless dwarf does rub me the wrong way, I there's a LOT of fans that don't really understand it either.

They are plain lazy, disrespectful, hypocrites. They ethnic-bend elves and dwarves to pat themselves on the back. "See! We aren't racist!" They easily could've made a show with nothing but ALL Black, Asian , and multicultural people. They're in the lore like in Harad, Umbar, and Rhun. But no, they take the utterly stupid route by tokenizing the lore. Fak em

Because you’ve seen TWO non-white characters? Grow up

I completely agree. Most people preemptively hating on the show are being naive about why these shows get made in the first place. Hating on the show for childish things will get future projects terminated and in the end the franchise will die out because people have their standards set too high.

@@jonaseriksson3782 good. Let them die