‘The Lord Of The Rings: The Rings Of Power’ Season 2 Episode 5 Review – Good Enough… For Now

As every piece in the great Lord of the Rings puzzle falls into place throughout The Rings of Power’s second season, the series has firmly settled into a place of reverent uniqueness, if you will. All else aside, Prime Video has landed itself one of the most impressive cosmetic spectacles to ever grace television. This is a gorgeous, visually stratified series, and that aspect alone may be enough for some to tune in.

But if you’re still watching this far in, you’ve likely found fondness in the story, too. There’s an air of mutual trust about the show and the way that it relays the events at hand. It doesn’t feed information or try and shove in every little bit of context ham-fistedly; there are names you’re expected to know, places they assume you’ve seen, and hints you’re counted upon to pick up.

That’s a nice change of pace. Oftentimes now in entertainment as it broadly stands, audiences are assumed to know nothing and be capable of little. It feels like studio-mandated hand-holding, and what a drag that is. At the risk of allowing you to get lost at your own behest, Rings of Power trucks along assuredly, not once looking back to see if you’re still holding on. In the face of much controversy, it’s sure of itself. Many kudos there.

This fifth episode opens with a focus on the titular rings. As Sauron continues to rise above the mortals around him, men flounder. “Men are capable of great frailty,” stabs Sauron early on in the entry. He shortly concedes that the opposite is true in the hearts of others, leaving Celebrimbor, a reliable series mainstay, unenthused.

The show ensuring that everything goes back to the rings is one of those details that just feels right. The story gets a bit tangled in this one as plotlines blanket over one another and begin to suffocate, but with the legend of the twenty rings as a fallback, the whole thing manages to stay on its feet.

Even where the show parts from what many expected it to be, it’s hard not to be wooed by the magic of Tolkien’s original vision. This is where the visual prowess of it all becomes relevant once more. Episode five is perhaps the most reliant on human drama (a hit/miss element) of the bunch so far, but when it cuts away to a faint orange sunset seen through a dour teal forest, you suddenly forget you were remotely bored at all.

How much of that credit can be given to the show is arguable, but the effect isn’t. This is Lord of the Rings. You’ll feel that.

Though with just three episodes left in the season, you won’t be blamed for wondering if there’s enough time for a fulfilling finale here. Having just doubled down on their five-season plan for the series, Prime Video and all involved are clearly okay with taking their time with the show. This is a franchise known for breathy stories, to say the least, but can the series really hold on that long without a spike in intrigue?

We’ll see. That isn’t to say that season two has no excitement, but it’s very much more of the first season’s same. If episode five is any indication, those expecting any sort of jumpstart may remain in wait for another couple of years as the show’s massive budget is turned over once more to produce another eight episodes.

It truly isn’t a bad episode. With forlorn looks from Celebrimbor at the core and plenty of engagement from Disa and Durin to go around, those already entranced should remain safely under the show’s spell… for now. But it does feel a bit drab, even given how easy it is on the eyes. The pressure is on these last three episodes to deliver the necessary heat that’ll stoke the fire for a third season.

The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power is currently available to stream on Prime Video with new episodes debuting every Thursday.