Yeah but if you look at the numbers and how many people are actually watching the show, it's a similar lcd casual audience who may have watched the LOTR movies but never read the books or know anything about the 2nd Age.
And it worked for Amazon. Even if the show is getting panned by critics and enthusiasts, the casuals are eating it up.
It might not be House of the Dragon success, but few shows are so it'd not be worth comparing. Like, Andor is a way better show than Rings of Power, but it's got shit viewership sadly. Better shows don't always equal success.