Prime Video’s ‘The Rings of Power’ Finally Reaches Its Peak With a Stunning Season 3 | Review

Published Nov 10, 2026, 3:01 PM EST

Therese Lacson is a Senior TV Editor who has been with Collider since 2021. She got started in this business over ten years ago working primarily as an interviewer and critic. At Collider, she works closely with the features team to support the writers and also ideates and develops content daily. She has covered major industry events including Cannes Film Festival, Sundance Film Festival, SXSW, Toronto International Film Festival, and San Diego Comic-Con. Although she reviews and covers both film and television, her focus is in television and her expertise is in fantasy and sci-fi genre shows. Her favorite shows to cover include House of the Dragon, Bridgerton, Fallout, 9-1-1, and Rivals. 

The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Season 1 took its time to craft and introduce us to the Middle-earth of the Second Age, getting viewers accustomed to following characters like Galadriel (Morfydd Clark) and Elendil (Lloyd Owens). Season 2 officially set the stage by finally bringing in the titular rings of power and showing Sauron's (Charlie Vickers) cunning as he manipulated Celebrimbor (Charles Edwards) into crafting them. Now, Season 3 meshes those two elements together to create a story that's finally worthy of J.R.R. Tolkien's sprawling universe.

After paring down the story a bit with the removal of the Harfoots, The Rings of Power is finally evolving into a thrilling series that turns the sparse source material surrounding the Second Age into a story that now bridges this previous era with the one fans are more familiar with. With tragedy and war looming, Season 3 turns The Rings of Power from a niche franchise for those most dedicated to Tolkien lore into must-watch TV.

'The Rings of Power' Season 3 Finally Feels Like 'Lord of the Rings'

Much of the criticism aimed at The Rings of Power has to do with the fact that while showrunners J.D. Payne and Patrick McKay are self-professed Tolkien superfans, there's very little material to adapt during the Second Age, which forces the show to create its own canon. Combined with the rights issues, the Prime Video series was off to a rocky start. But taking the time to build out the plot has paid off in Season 3, with a narrative that feels cohesive despite the existence of several overlapping storylines. This shouldn't be surprising to anyone who's a fan of Tolkien or even high fantasy. There's always a lot going on when you have an ensemble cast and a lot of story to tell.

What Season 3 does so well is finally braiding these seemingly disparate storylines together into something fully formed — with the key here, of course, Sauron finally coming into his power. He's no longer the mysterious human Halbrand, nor is he Annatar, the lord of gifts, pulling the strings from the shadows. Vickers embraces his full potential as Sauron in Season 3, and it's one of the most delicious parts of The Rings of Power. As much as Sauron has been an antagonistic force in the series thus far, this season pushes him into the spotlight, and it's a treat to watch the Dark Lord rise to power.

Similarly, blending storylines like the Númenorians' internal conflict between the Faithful and those loyal to Pharazôn (Trystan Gravelle) with the Elves' resistance, like Elrond (Robert Aramayo) and Gil-galad (Benjamin Walker), strengthens the narrative. The Rings of Power was already starting to do this by pairing the Elves and the Dwarves together, or finally allowing Arondir (Ismael Cruz Córdova) to team up with his fellow Elves, but Season 3 proves that the slow burn was worth it. Anyone who has read Tolkien knows that he liked to linger in these spaces, focusing on the exposition and rising action to properly set the stage, and with The Rings of Power, fans only had to wait for the story to finally reach this point — something that couldn't have been accomplished within one 8-episode season.

'The Rings of Power' Is Still Being Held Back From Its Full Potential

Image via Prime Video

Speaking of the episode count, Prime Video has continued to make confusing decisions regarding the release of The Rings of Power, which does nothing to help a show that hasn't had the easiest time finding success. Alongside the two-year gaps between seasons — an unfortunate reality in this age of streaming — Season 3's bizarre release schedule seems designed to confuse fans. In Season 1, the series dropped two episodes at premiere before defaulting to a weekly release. In Season 2, they upped the number of premiering episodes to three, then followed a weekly schedule from that point on. Season 3's release strategy, however, feels like an indicator that perhaps the studio doesn't have as much faith in its big-budget series as it did in the past.

Season 3 is set to premiere with a whopping four episodes, and after that? Two episodes drop per week, which means The Rings of Power will be wrapping up its latest chapter before Thanksgiving. It's a decision that makes no sense when screening the first seven episodes provided for review. As previously stated, there is a lot happening. Not only are viewers introduced to more new characters this season, like Eddie Marsan's Thrain and Jamie Campbell Bower's Celeborn (more on him later), but with the story reaching a fever pitch, each episode is jam-packed.

There are betrayals, switching allegiances, and major deaths around every corner. We're jumping from Khazad-dûm to Númenor to Mordor and then out to Rhûn. There's over a dozen characters to keep track of, including major players like Galadriel, Sauron, Durin (Owain Arthur), Elendil and his sons, and Gandalf (Daniel Weyman). Viewers should have a week to not only decompress after the barrage of events in every episode, but also to appreciate the show's artistry and stunning visuals — the shots of Sauron forging the One Ring in Mount Doom are stunning, and fans will barely have enough time to enjoy them.

Dumping eight episodes in November is ultimately disappointing, especially for fans who have waited so long, and it's inevitable that by Christmas, audiences will have moved on to something else. Now that the narrative is fully formed, the series is just being dropped nearly all at once without much fanfare. Just look at another major franchise show from Prime Video like Fallout, which released its first season all at once; when it was met with resounding success, the decision was made to pivot to a weekly release, slowly pacing out the season for all to enjoy over the course of three months. It's a shame that The Rings of Power isn't earning the same room to breathe.

'The Rings of Power' Season 3's Greatest Strength Is Its Characters

What has become clear in Season 3 is that The Rings of Power thrives best through its characters, despite anyone who has read Tolkien or has access to Wikipedia knowing how this particular story will end. We know the threat of the Balrog is waiting beneath Khazad-dûm, we know Númenor's fate is not a pretty one, and we know just what Sauron does after he finally crafts the One Ring. We know that it will take literally over four millennia before Frodo becomes the final ringbearer, destroying said Ring and ushering in a new age. The Rings of Power doesn't need to worry about the endgame because it's been set in stone.

Where the show blossoms is in how it develops its characters to get to that point. Clark's Galadriel has never felt more complex and nuanced than in this season, forced to battle the trauma of Sauron's manipulations while also being reunited with her long-lost husband. Speaking of him, fans of Bower will be happy to hear that he is one of the greatest new additions to the series. For those shipping Galadriel with her bad boy (understatement of the Second Age), she, Sauron, and Celeborn are about to give you a run for your money. Clark and Bower are stunning on screen, and while their meet-cute is a little cheesy — reminiscent of Wenwu and Ying Li's first meeting in Shang-Chi — their characters' complex relationship unfolds in brilliant fashion, thanks in large part to the work that Clark has put in over the last two seasons.

The Rings of Power also continues to flesh out the darker figures like the Orcs, one of whom has the potential to become a fan-favorite character, and the future Ringwraiths. The influence of the titular Rings of Power looms large, especially for those who end up as ringbearers and must futilely fight against Sauron's dominating command. We may have an awareness of where the story ends, but that doesn't mean watching these characters try to fight the inevitable is any less addictive to watch. The very fact that we know this story will end on a bittersweet note, the fact that we know Sauron's army will rise to terrifying heights, the fact that we know the Dwarves' beautiful kingdom will become Moria, the fact that we know Isildur (Maxim Baldry) will ultimately become corrupted by the Ring, colors every win and loss with tragedy. As the stakes rise and the cast slowly gets pared down, no one is safe, and The Rings of Power Season 3 successfully balancing what fans know will happen alongside the journey that will take them there is what makes for good TV.

The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Season 3 premieres November 11 on Prime Video.

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  Galadriel

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  Ismael Cruz Cordova

  Arondir

Pros & Cons

• Charlie Vickers is a standout as Sauron and one of the highlights of Season 3.
• Jamie Campbell Bower is the perfect new addition to the cast, and his chemistry with Morfydd Clark is palpable.
• Combining multiple plotlines together allows for a more cohesive story.

• Prime Video's release schedule is hurting this show.
• Of the characters, the Wizards' storyline might be the weakest of the season.