Looks like I'll finally get that Silmarillion TV series

After weeks of rumors, it was confirmed that Amazon is going to create a series that will cover "previously unexplored" stories from the Tolkien legendarium. To me, that means the Silmarillion. A lot of Tolkien fans have been hoping, ever since the success of Game of Thrones, that HBO would take on the series, but this is probably nearly as good. At least Peter Jackson won't be directing it, most likely. I don't hate what Jackson did, really. But part of Tolkien culture had always been the existence of many visions and many interpretations of Middle Earth. That seems to be what Tolkien himself wanted when he said that he originally envisioned that "the cycles should be linked to a majestic whole, and yet leave scope for other minds and hands, wielding paint and music and drama." I'd have liked it if a different director had done each LOTR film (and then only one film had been made for The Hobbit).

I'm very interested in how Amazon will end up plotting out the seasons. If I had to do a quick guess, I'd say:

One season: The creation of the world to the rebellion of Feanor
Second Season: Feanor and his brothers in Middle Earth up to the fall of Melkor (this could maybe be two seasons, depending on how much major story lines get spun off themselves).
Third Season: There was a mention in the article of a spin-off. There are a couple of stories that could be a complete separate season, the most obvious being the love story of Beren and Luthien.
Fourth Season: Sauron among the Numenor. There's actually a lot of room to come up with original, non-canonical work here. There's a really long period after the fall of Melkor where Sauron rules a good chunk of Middle Earth.
Fifth Season: Up to the last alliance and the fall of Sauron.

Much like with the movies, I'm just really looking forward to seeing scenes I've loved for a long time as someone else imagined them. Fingolfin battling Morgoth has the potential to bring me to tears. I'd lament that soon, I won't be the only person in the office who knows all the children of Finwe, but where I work, there are so many nerds that I'm already far from the only person who knows this stuff.

Very exciting news.