Enevhar Aldarion
Hero
I don't think it can be cancelled, not without some massive financial penalty, as the the deal to get the rights included a guaranteed 5 seasons.
House of Dragons vs. Rings of Power (and a touch of Wheel of Time)
- Thread starter Mercurius
- Start date
I don't think it can be cancelled, not without some massive financial penalty, as the the deal to get the rights included a guaranteed 5 seasons.
wicked cool
Adventurer
I could see a new producer /director etc.
At a quarter billion dollars a season, it would have to be one hell of a penalty to equal the cost of finishing the show.
Mercurius
Legend
I know very little about such things, so take my speculations with a grain of salt, but I'm guessing that the "massive financial penalty" would just be sunk costs, like when a sports team releases a player who sucks but still has a year or more on his contract. And of course there's Batgirl - the studio spent $90M on it. Meaning, massive businesses do that all the time. When something fails to perform, sometimes it is better to just accept your losses and move on, rather than spend even more in trying to resuscitate it.
This is not to say that Rings of Power will get to that point. But it is unclear just how popular it is, and whether or not it will be able to sustain or grow that popularity. At the least we can say that it is not--yet--the smashing success that Amazon hoped it would be.
RuinousPowers
Hero
HoD is fine, if a bit boring. I'm kinda tired of the whole incest thing. No one really stands out like The Hound did in GoT.
WoT is fine. I personally found the earliest books a bit boring, so my expectations weren't really high going in. The acting was fine, but I don't feel like they have had a seminole episode yet, or a big hook to sell the show.
RoP is fine. I'm enjoying it more than the other two. I'm interested in seeing where it goes.
WoT is fine. I personally found the earliest books a bit boring, so my expectations weren't really high going in. The acting was fine, but I don't feel like they have had a seminole episode yet, or a big hook to sell the show.
RoP is fine. I'm enjoying it more than the other two. I'm interested in seeing where it goes.
OB1
Jedi Master
RoP has been getting better and better for me, while HotD I may give one more episode before I give up on it. What RoP does well, IMO, is to give me a character with a clear motivation, and then put an obstacle in their way to see how they react. Yes there is a larger overarching storyline (that I am only barely familiar with due to the LotR movies) but that doesn't get in the way of enjoying the smaller conflicts that arise every scene or episode. It's basic set-up and pay-off storytelling that is keeping me interested from moment to moment. I can easily think of a dozen unique smaller scenes in the first four episodes that had small conflicts built and resolved. In rooting for the characters to overcome their momentary hardship, it becomes easier to care about the bigger goals.
HotD on the other hand has lots of things happening with the big plot, but it feels almost like I'm watching a historical re-enactment. Things happen, but I don't understand why characters came to the decisions they did or feel any emotional impact from it, it's just what happened. And that is the biggest thing that HotD is missing compared to the early seasons of GoT. And I didn't have a big issue with those things dropping out in later seasons because I was already so invested in the individual characters that the shorthand they were playing with still worked for me. In HotD, none of that groundwork has been put on screen.
HotD on the other hand has lots of things happening with the big plot, but it feels almost like I'm watching a historical re-enactment. Things happen, but I don't understand why characters came to the decisions they did or feel any emotional impact from it, it's just what happened. And that is the biggest thing that HotD is missing compared to the early seasons of GoT. And I didn't have a big issue with those things dropping out in later seasons because I was already so invested in the individual characters that the shorthand they were playing with still worked for me. In HotD, none of that groundwork has been put on screen.
I've been on a wait and see with HotD, tbh, I felt so burnt out from GoT that I had little interest in even trying the show. WoT I was warned off of from friends.
RoP, otoh, I'm starting to get into. I still find it a little underwhelming, but it's pretty to look at and I'm not a deep Tolkien lore head so I'm just along for the ride. But I'm getting more invested now.
RoP, otoh, I'm starting to get into. I still find it a little underwhelming, but it's pretty to look at and I'm not a deep Tolkien lore head so I'm just along for the ride. But I'm getting more invested now.
I was fine with WoT until I hears about the budget. I was like “ok a fun generic little fantasy show, cool”.
But for the cost of that show…I mean where does the money go? The effects look cheap, the costumes cheap. Almost all of the actors are no names, they can’t cost that much. For a low budget show, I was like this is great. But for the millions of dollars spent…no it looks cheap and bland
But for the cost of that show…I mean where does the money go? The effects look cheap, the costumes cheap. Almost all of the actors are no names, they can’t cost that much. For a low budget show, I was like this is great. But for the millions of dollars spent…no it looks cheap and bland
Mercurius
Legend
The rumor is that there were production issues due to Covid - they had to rush things more than they normally would have. This seems backed up by the uneven CGI (and the now infamous Trollocs in the last episode, which look like a video game from 20 years ago).
I don't know if I agree that the costumes look cheap as much as they look too...costumey, meaning not like real clothes people would wear, but clothes clearly made to look fantasy-ish. RoP has this issue as well.
Anyhow, as I said in the OP, I'm giving WoT the benefit of the doubt. I don't think it will ever be a great show, but there's enough potential there that it can become pretty good...if they address the issues revealed by the 1st season.
Ralif Redhammer
Legend
That is a salient point - the budgets for these shows are massive:
Rings of Power: $750 million - $1 billion
House of the Dragon: $200 million
Wheel of Time: $80 million
For comparison, Game of Thrones had a budget for season 1of $6 million, with the final season rising to a budget of $15 million. $50-60 million.
Rings of Power: $750 million - $1 billion
House of the Dragon: $200 million
Wheel of Time: $80 million
For comparison, Game of Thrones had a budget for season 1
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Sepulchrave II
Legend
Per episode. GoT cost around 100m per season, on average. Given that Amazon had to pay - what, 250m? - just for the rights, the shows are in the same ballpark.
Ralif Redhammer
Legend
You are absolutely right - I was too quick in my Googling. I have corrected my post with a more accurate number.
payn
He'll flip ya...Flip ya for real...
Mercurius
Legend
From another thread....
I do agree with you - that it is lacking the "spirit of Tolkien" to a degree that I personally find prohibitive to my enjoyment - and this seems to be a common sentiment among Tolkien diehards.
Meaning, I think there is a strong correlation between serious Tolkien fans (of the books, especially the "legendarium") and dislike of the show.
That said, another sentiment that I've heard others voice, and that I've voiced before: If it was well-made fan fiction and a strong divergence from Tolkien, I'd have less of an issue with it if it was a good show - that is, if it had strong characterization, dialogue, and plotting. But it doesn't (imo) - in fact, it is markedly poor.
There's no accounting for taste and all that, but I have a hard time understanding why some seem to think that the acting is anything more than mediocre, or the plotting and dialogue is at all good. But for me the biggest problems are the mockery they're making out of some key Tolkien ideas (namely elves), and the very shallow, one-dimensional characterization (e.g. Galadriel).
I do agree with you - that it is lacking the "spirit of Tolkien" to a degree that I personally find prohibitive to my enjoyment - and this seems to be a common sentiment among Tolkien diehards.
Meaning, I think there is a strong correlation between serious Tolkien fans (of the books, especially the "legendarium") and dislike of the show.
That said, another sentiment that I've heard others voice, and that I've voiced before: If it was well-made fan fiction and a strong divergence from Tolkien, I'd have less of an issue with it if it was a good show - that is, if it had strong characterization, dialogue, and plotting. But it doesn't (imo) - in fact, it is markedly poor.
There's no accounting for taste and all that, but I have a hard time understanding why some seem to think that the acting is anything more than mediocre, or the plotting and dialogue is at all good. But for me the biggest problems are the mockery they're making out of some key Tolkien ideas (namely elves), and the very shallow, one-dimensional characterization (e.g. Galadriel).
This, exactly.
I can tell you almost scene by scene where the Peter Jackson movies diverged from the books -- and there were a lot of divergences. But I love the movies on their own merits. In fact, there are things I think the movie did better than the books (especially Boromir, who is much more sympathetic in the movies, and his death hits a lot harder as a result).
I was ready for the show to take plenty of liberties. I expected that. But I didn't expect it to be so... amateurish. How the hell do you spend half a billion dollars on a show and end up with something that feels so thrown-together and sloppy?
Mercurius
Legend
This, but with a slight alteration
Zardnaar
Legend
1. Look how pretty it is. Look at the pretty lights.
2. Eat jellybeans.
They're gonna have to come up with a good explaination how Galadriel survives.
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