Amazon has invested a billion in the series, which it hopes will live up to the huge acclaim of the Lord of the Rings trilogy, but viewers are so critical of it that the producers have decided to block their reviews altogether. The discrepancy between the reviews of critics and subscribers is simply huge.

Galadriel (Morfidd Clarke), the main character of the series “Elves”.Photo: Prime Video capture

On Rotten Tomatoes, it received an 84% from critics, but only 36% from the public. It’s doing better on IMDb (which is owned by Amazon, as Nerd Alert also reported), currently at 6.9/10, but 25% of the reviews only have one star.

Why are viewers so outraged? It’s a mix of racist, misogynistic and misogynistic reactions to Tolkien’s original novels, especially since Peter Jackson’s previous big screen trilogy followed them to the letter.

Some fans are upset that Galadriel is now a warrior, whereas in the LOTR trilogy she was a sorceress without a sword, fighting only with her magical powers.

There is also a bitter controversy over the dark-skinned characters – elves, dwarves, humans – who were all white in the original novels. And the Harfoot tribe, the predecessors of the hobbits, are perceived as a parody of the Irish because of their accent and the fact that they are ragged nomads.

Even the famous Elon Musk estimated that J. R. R. Tolkien was “turning over in his grave” after the premiere of “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power.” “Almost every male character is still a coward, a fool, or both. Only Galadriel is brave, smart and beautiful,” the Tesla founder wrote on Twitter.

Critics, however, have been quick to challenge those who say that black characters do not exist in the original novels. For example, Richard Newby of The Hollywood Reporter opined, “Not only is this untrue, the Harfoot are described as having darker brown skin, and Tolkien didn’t place much importance on skin color either.”

And writer Neil Gaiman said: “Elon Musk doesn’t ask me for advice on how to make fun of himself on Twitter, and I don’t rely on him for film, TV or literary criticism either.”

It’s true that Elon Musk, an avid science fiction reader, is also an ardent critic of rival Jeff Bezos. They are also competitors in space exploration through their companies SpaceX and Blue Origin.

“Rings of Power” is the most expensive television series ever created and attracted 25 million viewers in its premiere on Prime Video, a record for Amazon.

Sources: Business News, Fox News