Eldest

"Old Tom Bombadil is a merry fellow., Bright Blue his jacket Is, and his boots are yellow."

I would never have imagined a more unexpected episode! We have now reached the goal of the series with a gear, perhaps, more than the last season: action, fighters, barrows (and respective ghosts), new creatures and old acquaintances! The only negative note is the absence of Annatar and Celebrimbor, curious given that their "partnership" should be, all things considered, the beating heart of this season... However, it is wonderful to see the effects of the "return of Sauron" on the whole world , prelude to war...

I'm enjoying this season quite a bit despite all the negative reviews.

But one thing bothers me above all else. Too many of the scenes taking place in a dark area are just too dark for me to see anything.

It's really difficult to make out what's happening in too many of the scenes for the whole series.

All you see are darker blobs and hear noises, but you can't make out anything else. No plot, no nothing. It's like watching a show blind.

Some scenes are actually lit properly, despite being at night, but others are just flat and overall disappointing.

I wish they didn't do this. But they're not the only show with this issue. Between the lack of visualization and when the music is so loud but the actors' voices are so quiet, you're constantly turning the volume up and down. It sucks that it's so prevalent in most TV shows nowadays.

I love the show. I love the Sauron storyline. I love the dwarves. I love the special effects and Galadriel. The stranger storyline and the harfoots is great! There is so much to like!

Please stop the Isildur meets girl storyline. It's BAD. It felt like watching Slater and Jesse from saved by the bell. How can a show with such amazing special effects and concepts have such bad writing at times. I don't mind the writing, just certain scenes flat out don't work. It was actually cringy, and I love this show. Just kill the storyline and add more of everything else. Easy to fix.

Ultimately my love for this show allows me to forgive any flaws.

As a huge Tolkien fan who's read all his books, I absolutely loved every minute of this episode. The second season is a massive improvement, and Galadriel's character feels much deeper and more complex. I give this episode a 10/10 because the lore is portrayed far better than in the Hobbit trilogy, and it feels like the closest adaptation to the dark and gritty tone of The Silmarillion. The episode's atmosphere was thrilling, and some scenes were so epic and breathtaking that words can't even begin to capture them. Overall, it's a great homage to The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, tying all the lore together beautifully. I really hope the next episodes maintain this level of quality.

The show has truly fallen to its lowest point. Terrible West Country accents abound with dumpy looking Stoors and Xena-level visuals. More mystery boxes surrounding the Istari and the likelihood of Saruman both existing and becoming evil long before he should (I don't trust the writers at this stage to have the two being Blue Wizards). Calling a staff a "gand" as the origin of Gandalf's name. Barrow wights in the barrow downs before the war with Angmar which takes place in the Third Age, and before they could ever exist through the Witch King. Tom Bombadil referring to willows in the East plus a lazy Old Man reference. Terribly repurposed lines from both Tolkien and the PJ movies without the appropriate context (nameless things). Geographical teleportation and lands existing when and where they shouldn't. All of these lore issues on top of a poorly written, poorly acted show with sometimes-nice, sometimes-awful design and cinematography. All this shows an absolute lack of respect for Tolkien who I suspect the writers have not even read.