Amazon’s upcoming The Rings of Power needs to pay attention to Game of Thrones’ failure if it’s to strike a chord with fans. The earlier seasons of Game of Thrones are some of the most beloved in fantasy television, but there’s a stark lesson in its decline. While Game of Thrones, season 8 is a clear guide of what not to do with a fantasy adaptation, T he Rings of Power can also learn from what other shows are doing right.
Set in the Second Age of Middle Earth, The Rings of Power will focus on the forging of the Rings and Sauron’s rise to power. Taking inspiration from Tolkien’s The Silmarillion, the events of the Amazon show will occur an estimated 5000 years before Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings trilogy. Little has been revealed about the plot, but provided it effectively navigates the triumphs and pitfalls of its fantasy contemporaries, The Rings of Power has every opportunity to excel.
The success or failure of recent fantasy cannot be fully attributed to how faithfully the source material is adapted for the small screen. For The Rings of Power to work, it has to get the characters right. Game of Thrones is not the only fantasy adaptation to have deviated from the novels which inspired it. However, while Game of Thrones shoehorned its characters into situations that didn’t make sense, fantasy shows like The Witcher have utilized this change to successfully develop characters and their relationships. This further highlights how the characters will be central to whether or not The Rings of Power is considered a success or failure.
The biggest failure of Game of Thrones was not the expiration of the source material; after all, the writers should have been preparing for this inevitability from season 1. The central issue was the betrayal of character arcs. By Game of Thrones season 8, viewers no longer recognized their favourite characters. Jaime Lannister, who previously sacrificed his honor to save the people in King’s Landing, declared: “I would have murdered every man, woman and child in Riverrun.” Daenerys Targaryen, who had no intention of becoming “Queen of the ashes,” burned the city she planned to rule. And Jon Snow, who was expected to play a central role in defeating the Night King, became a parody of himself, reduced to repeating the same meme-able lines. The first four seasons may have closely followed George R R Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire saga, but the plot deviations that culminated in season 8 were not responsible for its failure.
A fantasy show can be successful without simply retelling the source material. Despite only being in its second season and a complete series being available, The Witcher has already strayed from the books. Crucially, however, the characters are well-executed. The Wheel of Time, on the other hand, is largely faithful to its source material, but nowhere near enough screen-time is devoted to interactions between characters. As a result, they seem flat and boring, resulting in the audience losing interest. Compelling and realistic characters are now central to the fantasy genre, something which Game of Thrones forgot – with disastrous consequences.
The Rings of Power is in a unique position. There has already been a hugely successful novel-to-screen adaptation set in the same universe, but The Rings of Power doesn’t have a novel to imitate. The Silmarillion is more of a history of Middle Earth than it is a narrative. Aside from having to adhere to loose plot-points, this gives the showrunners a certain creative freedom. However, the success or failure of The Rings of Power hinges on the execution of its characters. They must feel coherent with Tolkien’s world, and not deviate unreasonably from fan preconceptions. Concerns have been raised that the Galadriel depicted in the trailer is inconsistent with Cate Blanchett’s version. However, if she’s fits the story The Rings of Power is trying to tell, this shouldn’t be a problem. With a budget of over $1 billion, Amazon has certainly spared no expense on the upcoming fantasy epic. Wouldbe viewers can only hope that the same devotion has been extended to the characters they’ve waited years to meet.
