‘The Rings of Power’ Season 2 Will Be Better Than Season 1 and Here’s Why
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power got off to a divisive start, with some fans offering high praise for the Amazon series and others harshly criticizing its first season. If nothing else, The Rings of Power Season 1 proves the series has the potential to become a huge fantasy hit. However, its first outing does lull at times. Now that the stage has been set, The Rings of Power Season 2 promises to be even better. There are multiple reasons for that.
‘The Rings of Power’ Season 1 gets off to a good start, but there’s a lot of setup
The Rings of Power Season 1 does a solid job of throwing fans into the Second Age of Middle-earth, introducing a large cast of characters they’ll continue to follow and setting up Sauron’s rise to power. The Lord of the Rings show establishes its settings, plot, and characters in a straightforward manner. As such, it won’t confuse viewers, even those new to fantasy and J.R.R. Tolkien’s works.
But because The Rings of Power Season 1 consists of so much setup, it does lull at times. While some installments feature decent pacing and plenty of action, others drag on longer than they need to. In some ways, that’s true of Tolkien’s storytelling style. However, it doesn’t make for the most engaging season of television, especially compared with a show like House of the Dragon.
Fortunately, The Rings of Power Season 2 is likely to be better than season 1 in that regard. Now that the series has laid its plot and character arcs on the table, it can dive more fully into them without pausing for exposition.
‘The Rings of Power’ Season 2 will be better for multiple reasons
The Rings of Power Season 2 likely won’t debut until 2024. However, we’re willing to bet the show will have fewer pacing problems when it returns. For one, the story and characters have already been established. Now that viewers have the full picture of what’s happening, the writers can focus on the plot without worrying about exposition.
A lack of secrets may also keep season 2 moving more steadily, as fans won’ be guessing where Sauron is or trying to determine the identity of The Stranger (Daniel Weyman). While those mysteries make for fun debates post-episode, they do distract from the main storyline. They also prevent us from truly knowing several of the series’ major players.
Speaking of which, we’ll get a clearer picture of Sauron’s motivations when The Rings of Power returns. Showrunners J.D. Payne and Patrick McKay admitted as much during an interview with The Hollywood Reporter.
“Season 1 opens with: Who is Galadriel? Where did she come from? What did she suffer? Why is she driven?” Payne said. “We’re doing the same thing with Sauron in season 2. We’ll fill in all the missing pieces.”
A greater focus on the show’s villain will no doubt make the stakes feel higher, and it could bring fans closer to J.R.R. Tolkien’s source material. While the Amazon show has taken liberties with Tolkien’s texts, the introduction of the Rings of Power, Sauron, and political tensions in Númenor will all expand upon his canon. That means season 2 may prove more satisfying for Tolkien purists.
The creators are taking their time with season 2
There are numerous story reasons to believe The Rings of Power Season 2 will be better than season 1, but it’s also worth noting that the creators are taking their time with the new episodes. Production has already begun on season 2, but Patrick McKay told The Hollywood Reporter that it could take “another couple years” to film.
The creators’ refusal to rush through the project inspires confidence in what’s to come — and they also have another advantage over season 1. This time, there aren’t COVID-19 restrictions to slow things down or create further obstacles. That could feed into a higher-quality outing, though we’ll have to wait for the finished product to know for sure.
The Rings of Power Season 1 is streaming on Prime Video.
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