The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power drops on Prime Video today

Fans everywhere will be rejoicing as the highly awaited series, The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power will finally be released today on Prime Video.

The eight-part prequel series is set to take place in the Second Age of Middle-earth, thousands of years before J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings.

The series will follow the catastrophic battle between the elves and Morgoth, the original, big-bad villain of the Tolkien universe, whose lieutenant, Sauron, begins to rise to power.

While the showrunners have remained extremely tight-lipped about the highly-anticipated show, they have revealed that Rings of Power will not follow modern-day politics.

Instead, in true Tolkien fashion, they’ve strived for something more universal.

Patrick McKay told Total Film magazine: “It was very important that what he was creating was not an allegory. He was not commenting on historical events of his time or another time.”

He added: “We don’t want to adapt the material in a way that might feel dated. We aspire to being timeless. That’s why these books still speak to people so much, because so much of what’s in them has not aged a day. And we aspire to do the same thing.”

And if that didn’t sound intriguing enough, director J.A. Bayon also teased that while developing the project, he aimed to create a ‘new form’ of television.

While that’s undoubtedly a bold statement, he may have just achieved that, as critics privy to early screenings of the prequel series have provided glowing reviews.

It all begins today. #TheRingsOfPower pic.twitter.com/JqDRK5oQbR

— The Lord of the Rings on Prime (@LOTRonPrime) September 1, 2022

One fan shared via Twitter: "I just watched the first 2 episodes of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power & this show is JAW-DROPPING. It's absolutely gorgeous! The story is dense, with a lot packed in, but I'm here for it. LOTR fans, get excited for this one! It delivers."

Another said: “Last week, I was invited by the @LOTRonPrime folks, along with a bunch of other internet Tolkien folks, to attend an advanced screening of some footage from the #RingsofPower show and to meet the showrunners. I must say: after meeting them, I feel the show is in VERY good hands."

While Collider journalist Perri Nemiroff praised the show’s visual effects, writing: “Two episodes of #TheRingsOfPower in and ... so far, so good! The production value is pretty remarkable. 

“One breathtaking visual after the next, and the level of detail in the costume and production design is something else. As for the story/characters.”

The first two episodes of Rings of Power drop at 11am today so you better jump on it the second you’re free.