How many episodes are there in season one of Rings of Power and when will they be released?
The first episodes of the new prequel to Lord of the Rings were made available to stream earlier this month.
The huge popularity of blockbuster television shows has continued this year with each of the main streaming platforms releasing flagship offerings based on some of the most iconic movies of all time.
Earlier this week Disney+ made the first episodes of Star Wars: Andor available to stream; a spin-off series from the legendary sci-fi franchise. The first season of House of the Dragon, the long-awaited Game of Thrones prequel, is currently running on HBO Max.
But not to be outgunned, Amazon’s Prime Video will be the exclusive home of the new Lord of the Rings-inspired show; Rings of Power. The first two episodes were made available on Amazon’s streaming platform on Thursday, 1 September, but fans will have to be patient for the rest.
As is the case with so many other big-name television shows at the moment, the season will be made available to view gradually with a new episode appearing on a weekly basis. After the first two episodes dropped, Prime is releasing another episode every Thursday at 9pm PT/12am ET.
It has been confirmed that there are eight episodes in season one, meaning that the final episode will be available to stream on 13 October. For any LOTR fans waiting to binge the whole lot at once, you have three more weeks until it’s all available.
What happens in Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power?
As is the case with the other two flagship TV offerings – Star Wars: Andor and House of the Dragon – the new show is a prequel to its much-loved predecessor. The story takes place thousands of years before the events depicted in The Lord of the Rings, but remains rooted in writings from J. R. R. Tolkien.
The show takes place during a period known as the Second Age of Middle Earth and follows an ensemble cast as they contend with the rumoured resurgence of evil to their lands.
The Second Age begins as a time of relative peace in the aftermath of Morgoth’s reign, the original Dark Lord. The kingdoms were able to flourish and there was prosperity in the land, but there is an ominous presence lurking in the background.
It will please fans of the book to learn that director J. A. Bayona wanted his portrayal of the story to remain true to Tolkien’s vision and he told Collider that he had revisited the original text for direction.
“You know what, when I think about the Peter Jackson movies, the thing I love and the thing that I admire the most is how great he was in capturing Tolkien’s spirit,” Bayona said. “So at the end, it’s all about going to the source material and go to the books. So this is what I did.”