I so agree with you on this. I will never understand these decisions either. I am really hoping Thranduil will be more prominent in TABA and they will treat his character with the respect that he deserves.That includes giving him his full character arc as occurred in the book. You are so correct, too, about poor Legolas. I am so annoyed about how they have reduced him to a caricature! He is the king's son ! He would be his closest ally and confidant.We should be seeing a deep and meaningful conversation or two between them. Thranduil could use Legolas as a sounding board to help him come to his own conclusions about the decisions he must make. It would make for some powerful scenes especially if Legolas did not always see eye to eye with his father. I want these scenes in somewhere !