The worst change I found was the incessant focus on Alana's sex life. You only have 8 episodes!

@brett88knight

10 ай бұрын

I was scratching my head at that too until I found out that her blonde warder is Rafe Judkins real life boyfriend. That’s when it clicked. The show runner gave so much screen time to her warders because he was dating one of them. Total nepotism

@nishadchitnis4219

10 ай бұрын

😮

@aaronc4899

10 ай бұрын

@@brett88knight You've gotta be kidding me! That does explain a lot. My God - the blond dude is an Adonis and Rafe is a potato. Rafe must be loaded with some serious trust fund money (which I guess we already knew since the only people who get these jobs are trust fund babies, see: Rings of Power showrunners)

My Wife is a non book reader. And according to her it's fun (better than season 1), but with out having me there (a book reader) to explain some things that are left unexplained in the show then she'd be lost and confused to the point of disinterest. Examples of bits that she needed more info on are: The horn and how people are tied to it; it's links to the DreamWorld; wolf speak; where the heron brand came from, what linking is, why Egwane didn't choke out be the suldam did? And that's just from the last episode. Which leads me to my biggest criticism of this show, Who is this for? If it's for the book fans, why make so many unnecessary changes? If it's for the non book fans, why keep doing things without explaining why certain things happen as if they have prior knowledge? Pick a lane. Either make it more book accurate, or stop relying on book knowledge to see the viewer through.

@Linnir

10 ай бұрын

Your summary and end sentence are very perceptive. I agree!

@tingtaiji

10 ай бұрын

Very much agree! I doubt there will be a 4th season, unless they dramatically iron out the inconsistencies and bring some great wow moments. The biggest issue Wheel of Time now faces is that, no one will to watch 2 seasons, 16 hours of something to get a decent show. Getting their act together in season 3 is much too late. I had to force my family to finish season 1. They refused to watch season 2. And my wife dislikes fantasy but LOVED Game of Thrones, to the point she secretly watched ahead of me when I couldn’t watch it. The writing is too inconsistent and they’ve done a disservice to the lore, which is compounding the lack of clarity.

@estebanelguapo

10 ай бұрын

There was some answer in an interview where he said it was less for people who read it multiple times and less for people who have no knowledge of it and more for people that read it once long ago and maybe dont remember much. I'll look for the quote cause my paraphrase is probably a bit off.

@1519Spring

10 ай бұрын

​@tingtaiji My wife and I are both WOT full series readers. We watched S1 together, but she really hated it and wouldn't watch S2 even after I said it was better. Agree with you that very few will want to watch 16 hours to catch up if they are not already onboard and fans, and that getting their act together in S3 will be too late. Unless Bezos commands it, I don't think this series goes to conclusion.

@1519Spring

10 ай бұрын

​@@estebanelguapo I am that person who read the WOT series once and long ago, and I don't feel like the narrative choices made here are "for me" (or those like me). As another commenter said, you need to be a book reader to know what's going on, and you need to be a non-book reader to be really OK with a lot of the seemingly unnecessary changes. S2 was overall better than S1, but still uneven in quality.

They’ve done a really great job of authentically preserving the disappointment with Padan Fain’s plot line felt by most book readers. They just brought that in too early!

@nishadchitnis4219

10 ай бұрын

😁

We can see some forgotten parts of plots. Like the myrdraal that was nailed to a door in episode 2. In the books it's a sign that Padan Fain is an independent actor, he's no longer a Darkfriend. That myrdraal was nailed because it wanted to bring the Horn of Valere to Shayol Ghul. Padan Fain, as he became Mordeth / the evil of Shadar Logoth, wanted something else. So the Darkfriends were zig-zaging while fleeing the Shienarans because of that indecision, between North and South, until Padan Fain just killed the Fade with his powers and nailed it to the door to scare the other Darkfriends into submission. In the show it's just a cool scene that makes no sense. Who did that, and why? It was not the people defending the village, as they lost the battle and wouldn't have time to nail a myrdraal to a door elaborately like that. Was it a burial ritual of the Shadow for myrdraal fallen in battle? Who knows?

@SpiritStoneWarrior94-yx3gs

10 ай бұрын

I mean seeing as they were chasing Padan Fain in that particular arc, it was quite clearly indicated to have been him that did it.

@musicIistener

10 ай бұрын

@@SpiritStoneWarrior94-yx3gsI agree that it’s clear it’s him but I also agree that they don’t spend enough time asking or showing why he did it

@carolbriscoe9337

10 ай бұрын

I'm hoping Rafe finds a way to answer that question in S3. But then I was hoping for an explanation of how Loial & the others survived bring stabbed with that lethal (?) cursed dagger. Rafe just ignored it. ( sigh )

Donal Finn absolutely sounds like the name of someone that would live in the Two Rivers lol This season was vastly improved, I agree they need more episodes to help with pacing

@jeffmarchand6168

10 ай бұрын

My first reaction to white board was "Hey that's not fair to actor" then oh yeah he really did blow it.😂

Another example of cut scenes is the escape form the Seanchan by Nynaeve and Elayne. We just cut to them walking out of the thicket. The same one the Whitecloaks hide in later. Which means we likely lose the setup for that as well.

It was definitely better than season 1, that's for sure! I'm actually excited for the next season, which is more than I can say after finishing season 1 way back when. So that's good!

@guybkt

10 ай бұрын

Honestly, same. It grew teeth this season

@paulm.8660

10 ай бұрын

Calling it "better than season 1" is damning with faint praise. Season 2 was good. It wasn't great, but it was watchable and enjoyable, two adjectives I couldn't honestly apply to season 1.

@soakedbearrd

9 ай бұрын

I feel exactly the same thing. I didn’t hate season one, but I was mixed. But season 2 upped their game and I’m definitely invested.

@Stormmover

9 ай бұрын

It was piece of 💩

@Truewooper

8 ай бұрын

Season 1 was okay with a terrible ending. I honestly did not even watch the season until it all came out so I could check reviews to see if I would even bother.

I don't agree that the villains felt like their book counterparts. For _most_ of them the show has managed to give them a depth that I could never find in the books. As a result, they feel like completely different, luch more 3 dimensional characters. As for the season, I found it too hard to get past the technical and continuity or even logic blunders that mired the show. It felt like watching a long chain of unrelated scenes. I don't care that much for the adaptation part, as I didn't like the books to begin with so I was fine with them doing their own thing, but the show _constantly_ failed at internal consistency. Ultimately, what I want from a show is not a string of "cool moments" but a good cohesive and engaging story. I got lots of the former (Lanfear rocked!) But i didn't get much of the latter. Last season got a 4. This season gets a 5.

I’m a non book reader and of course very interested show watcher and I’ve enjoyed it so much so far. Season 2 was tremendously better than season 1. I’ve been reading many comments and of course watching many videos reviewing the show, the seasons and the episodes. I’ve heard enough thoughts from those who are so familiar with the source material. All in all it really does seem that this is a story that just has too many characters, too many side stories and just overall deep routed lore to adapt into a free flowing series for television. I guess those of you who are so familiar with the stories and the lore could become the final editors of the show and possibly they could fix many of the plot holes and mistake they seem to keep leaving out & making but they really do need to increase this show to at least 10 if not 12 episodes. To possibly fix this problem I truly hope they follow up season 2 with season 3 within one year. Filming of Season 3 could finish soon and go into post production. Bring the next season by next October please

@Gee-Sus-Official

10 ай бұрын

For your idea at the end, the production team have a fan hired for that exact purpose

@DmGray

10 ай бұрын

But "it's just another turning of the wheel" and so... I'm not sure how much impact she ACTUALLY has (or wants to have)@@Gee-Sus-Official

@waylander9265

9 ай бұрын

Completely agree with you that the series has too many characters and plot to adapt to live action and stuff needs to be cut. But as a book reader it’s annoying because the show is adding in characters (Stepin and Moiraine’s sister) or spending large amounts of time on minor side characters(Liandrin, Alanna, Ihvon). A lot of these characters and plots are killing the pace of the show and causing character development of major figures like Rand to be neglected and undeveloped. It makes the show feel like it lacks direction, that nobody is pulling in writers who are straying from the goal

I think having read the books and being a movie critic, you are much harsher in your judgment of the show then I am. I started season one with never having read the stories at all, and I loved the series. I coerced a friend into buying me the first WOT three books for Christmas. And I have been reading and listening to the books ever since. Now I can recognize where many parts of the storyline are different than they were originally written , and I can see why that would be frustrating to people who loved the books as they were. But I loved these stories as I saw them. Season two was much better than season one to me because they had built up the characters and I knew these characters and liked them; felt like they’re old friends. I definitely agree that only eight episodes is a disservice to everyone (writers, producers actors, and fans). I think it’s sad and unfair to this particular show that other situations are affecting its future more than the quality of stories / their production (situation = Amazon already producing LOTR, Covid challenges, writer and acting strikes affecting the marketing, etc.) But whatever challenges they faced , I could not wait for the series to start, and I could not wait each week for each episode. I haven’t appreciated a TV show this much in a very long time. So I probably rate it at nine for the whole series .

The dark friend social though it could have linked to ingtar. I believe they can use it in later seasons to reveal other darkfriends as part of flashbacks.

@devlin76

10 ай бұрын

I was actually thinking about how Masema looked at Ingtar's body after his sacrifice with an odd expression. Maybe we will get a reveal that both of them were darkfriends, and Ingtar's sacrifice plus the reveal of The Dragon pushed Masema back to the light and being a rabid Rand supporter.

non-reader here.. i watched the first season when it came out and just thought it was whatever. i was willing to watch another but i wasn't looking for it. so.. i got sick this weekend and sat down and binged everything yesterday. it was SO good! what an upgrade from the previous one, i'm so happy i stuck with it. now i can't wait to see more. that said, even as a non-reader, i agree with almost all of your takes. the last episode felt so rushed that i felt some parts that should've probably felt pivotal to me (ex the horn, perrin's friend sacrificing himself) just felt silly and rushed. it didn't take away from the shine from the rest of the season, but it was the finale, so yeah, it was disappointing. i hope that rand will get some attention as a character. i don't dislike him but i feel he's really missing something still. the major highlights for me were the naneyve in the arches (although, i have to say, i feel she totally fell off after they made it to falme for me), egweyne suffering in the kennels - wow, what a character transformation!! up until this story, i had no interest in her. i adore her now and can't wait to see where she goes.. and lastly, lanfear. what a cool fucking villain lol i loved her authenticity, her devotion to rand, and just her attitude. she's really out here destroying lives and villages just so she can flirt with rand! lmao can't wait for the next season, i hope it keeps getting better.

@matthewevans5486

10 ай бұрын

The only major gripe I have with season 2 is that Perrin killed the White Cloak general. I've just got back to the point in the books where this becomes relevant again (because everything even mildly important and pretty much every named character becomes relevant again at some point) and part of what helps Perrin is that book Perrin didn't kill the General, the Seanchan did. This one change significantly alters the context in some major plot points in later books and, therefore, later seasons.

I am overall a happy viewer, and the amazing adaptation and performances of the villains was an unexpected treat each week. It's been a long time since we had surprises with this story and that was a lot of fun! Hopefully they will keep refining their process each season, and I look forward to all the leaks and speculation for Season 3 while we wait!

Been subscribed since the beginning for the book content. I'm still watching your show reviews but stopped watching season 2 at episode 4 and just caught up with your videos. I may finish watching after listening to this video. Great stuff dude. Go Bucks.

Looking forward to this. Thank you.

That blue sister who was originally made Damane really impressed me. Her straight backed presence in the background served a great purpose. Only a minimal role, but added so much. She looked completely broken and selfless.

Fully agree with your review NaeBlis, so much looking forward to S3!

I'd give an 8.5 personally, but I also think I'm less critical of book changes. Either way I think the general consensus seems to be S2 improved over 1. Can't wait until S3.

Thanks for your stuff here. It is fun to see how people react to this adaptation. I’m a book reader and I have the same moments where I have hopes and expectations, but they were rewritten or omitted or … it’s fun to see regardless. Loial was one of my favs throughout the series but he is treated as window dressing. I think they will continue to severely downplay Padan Fain because his contribution to the series in total wasn’t all that impressive. He was more of a nuisance character, the mustache-twisting type, that left me wanting to skip his scenes in the book. I am so so glad Nyaneive isn’t portrayed as her immature self in the books! Actually, all the women are seemingly more mature and that is a relief! I agree with you about Rand. He isn’t what we think he should be. Matt will be more important in season 3, hopefully.

I noticed that there were more elements of the plot from the books this season, a good example being Perrin and Avihenda; it melded a scene from book 1 with a scene from book 3. The characters continue to be a strong point, reflecting their book versions well or better. The biggest problem is definitely the 8 episode limit; the richest man in the world wanted his "Game of Thrones," but refused to give the showrunner the budget for it.

@samuelbankston5258

10 ай бұрын

Prolly cos he thought it was gonna be Rings of Power....wrong!

@jonahdav9589

10 ай бұрын

Rafe did not stay with the source material from s1 e1 on. No prologue to open the story and an aged up cast. The Two Rivers was not a broken place and Mat did not have a broken family or steal from his friends. Thinking the biggest problem is lack of ep length when Rafe wasted dozens of minutes on Lan/Alanna plot which did not happen in the books. No, Rafe would only use the extra time to place his Stephan like characters.

@samuelbankston5258

10 ай бұрын

@@jonahdav9589 Yessir. If I read you correctly, he had the time and funds, just used them incorrectly, ie Warder scenes that should have been for Rand or Perrin (I leave out Mat cos of that mess with the actor was unavoidable).

+1 For more episodes per season. Everybody has their own list of things they like and dislike about the series, but I think we can all agree it needs more time.

@zyonhenderson67

10 ай бұрын

Thats been a general consensus. It really does feel like they need to shorten the episodes. You could tell they were pushing it since every episode was roughly 52-60 minutes long

I think you’re right about Ingtar. It felt like too many cuts happened, so they left it as kind of an Easter egg. My non-reader wife had guessed he was the dark friend at the social, so when he died, she was like, “???” So that was disappointing, but yeah. 10 episodes. I’m totally fine with Padan Fain being mysterious, though. I wouldn’t mind more, but he has a strong impact even with little time. Only Uno and Loial survived the attack for the horn. That wasn’t Ingtar there. Loial isn’t human is enough of an excuse for me to say, eh, whatever.

@smaug1234

10 ай бұрын

I don't get the Fain thing either, why do the fade nailed to the door thing if you are going to use him the way they ended up using him, not to mention all the issues Mat carrying around that dagger on a stick brings.

@anydaynow01

10 ай бұрын

I can see where you're going with the Fain thing, and him being a bigger factor later in the show. Hopefully he gets the dagger back and Mat and Moiraine go to a certain strange land!

@thinggood1435

10 ай бұрын

@@smaug1234 I think the Fade on the door confirms he will be following his book path, likely next season. He also gave a significant look at Ishy after getting orders in episode 8. In the books, he went back and forth for a while on that hunt before going fully against the DO. I think the same thing is happening here, it just is taking a bit longer.

S2 is good, here’s to s4. Amazon should cancel rings of power and give more funding and episodes to WOT.

My man. Im in Spain and I'm 6hrs ahead EST but when this pinged around 0530 I got up! Well done on the season recap. I agree with all BUT I still need them to pan out during fight scenes and add either 2 episodes or 15min of content per episode.

Flippin loved this season, am hype for 3, I pray they can actually do the whole story!

11:57 I keep hearing this argument, "if only they had more time!" But those same people *always* mention how there were boring plot lines (not just scenes) that added little to the story. If they can't be trusted to do well with little, what's the justification for giving them more? If they wasted effectively one full episode in season 1, and two full episodes in season 2... Why in the world would giving them 4 extra episodes make them stay more focused on what matters and give the right moments to the right characters? Would it have really taken any more time at all to give Rand the moment on the tower instead of making it an ensemble moment? I feel like it would have taken less time - and been more meaningful. Egwene getting absolutely rocked just moments before would have justified her not getting back up right away. Mat "stabbing" (if you can call a throw "stabbing") Rand wasn't how we saw in Min's vision. Perrin had no reason to get Uno's shield (nor was there any reason the Heros didn't make it there before Perrin). And you mean to tell me the Heroes couldn't even make it up the stairs as quickly as a lame princess who was being carried? And I guess Moiraine (from the ground, over a mile away) had no problem breaking an Oath to destroy a fleet of channelers at just the right time - knowing precisely what was going on at the top of a super tall tower. The ensemble moment looked cool, sure - but it made absolutely zero sense under even the weakest critical eye. And what's worse is it made the entire moment feel cheap because we had to keep getting in extremely dire situations just to introduce another character - instead of an organic build up where we actually got a face-off with our hero and our primary villain.

My husband and I are completely in love with lanfears portrayal! The outfit, the attitude, the drama! She’s iconic already and hope they do her justice in season three and don’t just discard her

@jonahdav9589

10 ай бұрын

except in books Lanfear is more a behind the scenes person who does not sleep with Rand, not even once.

@Fanafranky

10 ай бұрын

Agreed! Not necessarily my favorite in the books but her portrayal was beyond anything I had expected! Also even just the little snippet of Moghedien we got was more fun than I had pictured her. Makes me wonder if that trend will still be true we we meet my actual favorite Forsaken (Graendal)

@ArchlordZer0

10 ай бұрын

Except the fact that in the show she kowtoes to whatever Rand wants.

@jeffmarchand6168

10 ай бұрын

In books she is epitome of a crazy ex girlfriend who really can haunt your dreams.

Given all your criticism, I though it was going to be a lower score. I would rate it an 8/10. I am a casual reader of the series, so I think that I am not as critical about some of the changes portions. I enjoyed this turning of the wheel and I was entertained. I am excited to see what is in store for season three.

As I think everyone agrees it was a much better season than number 1. I dont mind changes because of limited time etc, but some were not good. Loial etc alive after being stabbed/killed in season 1, the lightsaber that the dagger has now become, Moiraine making the dragon (thus turning prophecies being able to be full-filled by anyone), not giving Ingtar his reveal. There are many more. but overall it was enjoyable. Bezos, if you read this, give them more episodes please

@matthewevans5486

10 ай бұрын

I disagree with you on Moiraine's Dragon, I can't remember the specific phrasing, but it was something like "the Dragon will burn across the sky." While I was looking forward to the Rand vs. Ishamael fight, and the sky image related to that, neither image would have happened without a victorious Rand present. A large part of the sub-story in the books is Prophecy being tricky, the most glaring example of this being Elaida misinterpreting her foretelling as showing her victory, when it actually foretells her defeat and the unification of the White Tower under Egwene. It's not so much "anyone can fulfill a prophecy" as "the prophecy didn't mean what they thought it did".

I Think Season 3 Will Mostly Revolve Around Rand Since It Will Adapt Book 4. So Rand Will Get Nice Characterization And He Will Gain Experience Of His Channeling Abilities & Fighting Abilities With The Heron Marked Sword. Rand And Elayne's Relationship Will Also Get Built Because Elayne Is Rand's First Wife So There Will Be A Lot Of Scenes Of Both Of Them Together At Season 3. Plus We Might Also See Elayne's Story And Her Character Getting Built, Perrin's Conflict With Whitecloaks Might Catch The Top Gear & Finally End With A Climactic Battle And Nynaeve Might Find Her Lost Confidence And Hope. I Don't Think There Will Be Much Development Of Mat And Egwene As Their Characters Are Mostly But Not Fully Developed At Season 2. These Are My Thoughts For Season 3...

@ryanoconnor7508

9 ай бұрын

I don't think I'm buying it anymore, I'm calling it now that the finally will be Egwene fightung Asmodean for the control of Choedan Kal because she decided Rand needs a teacher if hes ever going to be a help to her at shayol ghul. I said the same thing at the beginning of the season for battle in the sky and people called me crazy

9:46 I don't quite see how they're not major problems. They're questions that are set up in the penultimate moments of the season for these characters and are 100% ignored in season 2. There's time after time where they change show-world lore *to solve a mystery* because... That's kind of the corner they wrote themselves into. They retcon between seasons (as you mention), within a few episodes (see Rand getting manhandled by Siuan, but it's a struggle for 8 of the strongest Damane to do the same), or in the same episode (see Mat having to *blow the Horn of Valere* to get past the army Rand *just* walked past). And that last one happened in season 1 too - Rand, Moiraine, AND Lan walked right past an army of 20k trollocs without either group noticing one another - so I'm surprised they made the same mistake twice. That's not even mentioning Moiraine easily breaking one of the Three Oaths in the finale (nor the 20+ times she lied in season 1). I will admit, there's individual moments that are really cool to see on screen. They're visually interesting, they're well acted, the score builds the emotional impact... But they mean absolutely nothing in context because the writing is so nonsensical. This is a problem that started in season 1 and doesn't seem to have improved much (with some exceptions - like Egwene and Renna - despite the ending being off).

@andrewfrank7222

10 ай бұрын

Exactly. 100% It is shocking to me that so many people are willing to look past the terrible writing and incoherent storytelling just because they get to see the "thing" from the books that they really like. i.e. It is okay that Rand doesn't know how to do anything, because he got the heron burned into his hand. It is okay that Egwene is girl boss powerful at everything because Elayne said hi to Rand as she was healing him. It is okay that the Aiel make absolutely NO SENSE to this part of the story because "hand talk". It is an abomination of storytelling. And it is not even trying to be the WoT story.

For context, could you tell us what shows you give a 10,9,8,7,6,5 ?

The blue sister using the power as a weapon was inexcusable

@smaug1234

10 ай бұрын

the devil is in the details and thats just one example

Love your videos Nae'blis and always appreciate your content. Not sure I get your rating though. You've said that season 2 is a vast improvement over season 1, but gave it a 7.5, but gave season 1 a 6.5? I feel they lifted their game monumentally over season 1. Thanks for your channel mate.

I totally agree with your entire assessment! Especially about Fleetwood! She was amazing!!!

@Lexi_Eve_16

10 ай бұрын

For me, I have four gripes: 1). I wish Rand had sword training and earned his Heron Mark Blade. 2). I wish that Flicker, flicker gave mat his memories, and when he blew the horn, like three hundred heros of the horn were summoned. 3). That min was with Nynaeve, and together, they rescued Egwene and sailed off with Domon. 4). I wish no one knew Ishamael wasn't the Dark One and that he and Rand actually fought in the Sky!

@MrKlarc19

10 ай бұрын

​@@Lexi_Eve_16 the girls never sailed away with Bayle he ended up leaving without them. I do agree with all you're other points though. Show was garbage.

@Lexi_Eve_16

10 ай бұрын

@@MrKlarc19 ah, you're probably right. But He talked with them a lot. I was hoping for more from his character

@MrKlarc19

10 ай бұрын

@@Lexi_Eve_16 yeah nynaeve planned on rescuing Egwene then shipping away but they never made it and ended up riding back to the white tower with mat.

I was super disappointed with Donal Finn until the end. Now i love him as Mat, maybe i was just attached to "let Barney blow." Great review as always Nae'blis.

@jonahdav9589

10 ай бұрын

but book Mat was lucky while this version gets tricked and spears Jake Al'Thor. No, even if Rafe was forced to stay to a plot point it was a pathetic payoff. Mat blows the horn when two armies are about to smash the party while here he blows the horn only to save himself from like 20 soldiers. It was a let down with Rafe stripping from the viewer also the book 4 Finn giving Mat the memories.

@Adam_okaay

10 ай бұрын

@@jonahdav9589 okay you're entitled to your opinion. Sorry you weren't able to enjoy like I did.

Great review. I agree with most points made and am especially glad you spoke about the lack of Rands Super Hero moments. I felt like Rand was the weakest character in this season just like last season. I honestly don’t understand as a book reader why and as a person who watches plenty of science-fiction and fantasy TV shows other than maybe this is their super strange way of giving him the glory in season three I don’t know. I think from the feedback I’ve heard people think that Rand is just a side character and it’s really not that important of a role ; and that the focus to them as a TV show viewer is on Moraine Nynaeve and Egwene.

This series is not good. Season 1 was bad, Season 2 was still bad. Sure, not as bad as Season 1... but it was still bad. Rafe and the writers tried to recreate the Wheel of Time in their own way. And it is awful. It really is frustrating to see all these online talking heads who claim to be fans of the series, but yet still rate ANY episode over 5/10. There is literally no redeeming qualities. I will say this. There was one time where I actually got goosebumps and that was when Mat was about to blow the horn. Then the CGI showed up with Uno... and that quickly went away. Oh, and the fire under water, breaking the 3 oaths... lets not even rattle that cage. To conclude this... @Nae'Blis keeps saying EMMY nominations.... are you kidding me? Then having the gall to mention 3 actors/actresses who could be nominated. This is a joke. Liandrin didnt feel believable. Quit it. Everything she did, was forced and speed up.

@andrewpearson2666

10 ай бұрын

Emmy nominations is definitely a stretch, some of the performances were good but nothing I really obsess about which is partly due to the writing. One of favorite show of all time, The Leftovers got snubbed and only had 1 Emmy nominations for Ann Dowd, although they had an incredibly talented ensemble and crushed the acting in each season.

Great video Nae'Blis! I agree with pretty much everything. There are undoubtedly a lot of deleted scenes that would have pulled some of the weaker arcs together. I think we got some good development with Perrin, but a little more time with him and the Shienarans on the hunt would have benefited him as wells as Ingtar, Masema, and Uno. Padan Fain is the one that confuses me. He seemed to be on Team Ishamael. When he gets the dagger back, is he going to go independent. I think we lost a lot of good Mat and Fain stuff by not being able to have Mat in Fal Dara.

Given the show's lack of time, I b3lieve we will see the Rhuiden plotline in the next season. I'm not even sure we will visit Tear until way later, in the 6th season, perhaps. I think the doorframe will be on Turok's haul of antiquities, and maybe the dream t'er'angreal too. I'm not sure about the black ajah plotline, but I bet Siuan will fall in the next season.

@devlin76

10 ай бұрын

Definitely the Waste and Two Rivers next season. It will be interesting how they approach the Stone of Tear. Maybe they will have the Aiel with Rand go to Tear in season 5 or so.

@FractalParadox

10 ай бұрын

@devlin76 the only thing that would confirm it would be the cut horn heist sequence on episode 8. They should have entered Turok's treasure room, then Loial (or preferably Perrin or mat if they could have them meet sooner) should look to the side with a dolly zoom to the doorframe, a close-up with some ominous whispers or something, then ingtar calls them and they break out of it, going to get the horn. A 5-second throwaway scene, so easy to do.

I think the show intended Rand's big moment to be when he pulled the Indiana Jones but with Saidin move and killed Turak and his minions. That did not land because the scope was small (his power potential was established in last few episodes) and the moment super short, unlike the afore mentioned Indiana Jones scene. I really hate the 8 episode restriction Prime has on this and other shows but WWWW. It would give some room to breathe nuance into this because the potential is so high with this cast. Love the show's turn around and love hearing your take on it.

@devlin76

10 ай бұрын

I agree that the show probably expected the Turak showdown to have a bigger impact then it did. I thought it was cool, and an appropriate choice for Rand to make in that moment.

@LeeTurnock-zy2dg

10 ай бұрын

All it needed was for Rand to knock Ishy back with the one power in an effortless surge of power that dwarfed Egwene's effort, and then do the magic with his sword. The pay off would have been huge and no greater a timescale to present to the audience. An opportunity missed in favour of Egwene.

@mikesionu

10 ай бұрын

@@LeeTurnock-zy2dg 💯

@devlin76

10 ай бұрын

@@LeeTurnock-zy2dg Smart observation. This makes total sense to me. It looked like Rand took over the shield when he stood up and starting advancing toward Ishamael. Egwene was kneeling exhausted a little to the side, and shield seemed to be centered on Rand. Ishamael's last little burst hit and was blocked effortlessly as Rand stepped forward. It would have been clearer and more impactful if they had shown a bigger shield expand out from Rand covering all of his friends and Ishamael stepping backward before launching a last burst at the advancing Rand.

Thanks as always. Regards Moiraine and Lan story line. I get what you say but personally i woildnt be able to watch any WOT if they wer not gvn a storyline. I feel like they bring something in the show that i cnt explain. Maybe maturity or something. But i understand what u say . I thnk what will solve everything or satisfy everyone is more episode and pure direction. And also a must is detailes that are missed on some sceneries

Rand's moment was completely stolen from him at the end. Infuriating. Bad. Bad. Bad. Bad.

what they did to the characters, to the storyline, to the world as a whole, is unforgivable.

I think as whole the season worked. Yes, Lan finding his purpose was not a very interesting plot line, but it expanded the lore and planted some seeds for future divisions so I guess we will see if they pay off. One thing I hope I’m wrong, but is heavily hinted is that Rand won’t be a blademaster in the show which makes me wonder about some future book stuff, but I’m here for the journey to find out. Also… more Perrin please!

Rewatch the scene where Ishy tells Fain to give Mat the dagger. "He gave it up so easily." No. No he didn't. He expressed reluctance and hesitation in his actions prior to.

This season certainly wasn't flawless but I really enjoyed it. I thought every episode was, at the very least, very good. My non-book reader wife really enjoyed the entire season, and has been bringing up Wheel of Time regularly to talk about the show. Her favorite storyline this season: Lan and Moriane.

Season 2 is a solid 6/10 for me. Definitely an improvement over season 1, with strong acting, better visuals, and a more coherent plot. The development of the Forsaken and Liandrin was interesting and made for some compelling villains. If the first half of the season 2 was as engaging as the second half, I would have given it a 7. The first 4 episodes were just dull - the main characters were stuck in place, very little development, and almost all set up for later. Way too much mopey Lan, mopey Perrin, mopey Matt, and little to no Rand. Things kicked into gear once Moiraine met up with Rand, but it took so long to get there. For a third season, I really hope they figure out the plot pacing/editing issues and give all the main characters more time and better development. Season 1 was not good, season 2 was better, and season 3 can be really good if the show runners keep fixing the problems. The actors are getting more comfortable with their characters and are doing great work - just need the direction and plot decisions to catch up with them :)

Is the Shadar Logoth blade tied to a stick the shows replacement of the Ashandari blade? Combined with Ishameals tea and Matt remembering past lives means that he wont be going through the portal in Rhudean. Too bad.

One interesting note - I learnt from another KZread channel that going in, Amazon's target audience for the show were fantasy genre fans with zero to moderate familiarity with the source material. Hard core book fans were excluded, I assume because of the expectation of source material detail which the show either can't or won't replicate. For what it's worth, I thought Season 2 was a significant improvement over Season 1 as a TV product, but I still think there is a notable deviation from the overall direction of the books.

@justinvamp15

10 ай бұрын

If that's true, that makes no sense to me as a plan. Why adapt an IP if not to bring in the existing fan base? And if the show pleases the huge existing fan base, then they will sing the praises to everyone they know for free advertising! Doesn't make sense to me

@j2a45

10 ай бұрын

@@justinvamp15 I have exactly the same question on IP adaptation, and word of mouth marketing through the fan base also makes the most sense to me. I'm waiting to see if their strategy pans out from an engagement & revenue perspective.

@jonahdav9589

10 ай бұрын

@@justinvamp15 Rafe hates the source material is the only thing that makes sense. He said recently that he did not want to give Rand the hero moment in the sky as people were tired of super hero fights. The guy could care less about the books and only wants to do his own thing. This is the darkfiend turning of the wheel.

@justinvamp15

10 ай бұрын

@jonahdav9589 True, makes you wonder why bother doing it then

@aaronc4899

10 ай бұрын

I also guess that they were especially aiming for the female non-reader demographic, 18-49. I don't think men care about how warders would feel about their bond. Had to fast forward through all that boring stuff and the cringe Aes Sedai sex situations.

Thanks for the review! I come to the show not having read the books and had virtually zero foreknowledge of the story. I largely enjoyed the first season but it sounds like we have a major difference of opinion on some of the acting. My first season observations were that the overall story was intriguing and there was some strong acting in the show, Rosemund Pike was (as usual) excellent and Kate Fleetwood as Liandrin were exceptional. My big issue with the show was the portrayal of the Naeve character. My assumption is she's supposed to be one of the main protagonists and strong willed but man was she caustic and unpleasant, it seemed like 90% of the time Zoe Robbins was on-screen she was scowling and it just made me really, really dislike that character. I was also a little underwhelmed by the finale, the set they made for the Blight & Eye of the World just seemed kinda small & cheap compared to what we'd gotten previously, it did feel like they'd run outta money.

I've come away from this season with optimism and a desire to see where it goes from here. I certainly couldn't say that after season 1. I revisited the show accepting that there were changes outside my control and whilst it is a departure from the books in places and lore, I'm not letting this cloud my overall opinion of the show. If I could, of course I'd go back to a more canonical version, but there's enough there to keep me hooked as I head into my third re-read. Things I liked better this year: 1) the white cloaks actually looked like their uniform was fit for purpose 2) the portrayal of Eqwene's captivity was on point 3) more cultures explored 4) Ishy and Lanfear were spot on 5) Elayne's actress is exactly as I thought she would be. 6) Donal Finn was excellent and i loved his quirky one liners. More please! I could list the things i'd have done differently, but in the main I want to stay positive and give props to some better writing and storytelling than the last outing.

What you say about things being cut rings so true. There's setups with no payoffs, payoffs that aren't earned, and I'm general a lack of focus across the season. I'm sitting with all this footage and thinking how the hell am I gonna fan edit this into a story...unlike S1 I think this season is all over the place. I'm more or less with you on the 7.5 (I think I'd be a point lower), but I definitely think it's LESS than the sum of its parts. There's just a lot of stuff that went nowhere. BTW you didn't mention anything about the show following (or not) its own lore and narrative consistency - there were times when the show straight up ignored or contradicted something set up earlier. It's maddeningly frustrating for a production with a professional writing team and a full-time lore expert in the room.

It's very clear they cannot tell the story in 8 episodes. While this season was a lot better than the first, it still wasn't great. And that's coming from someone who is cool with (most of) the story changes. I was watching Jack Ryan (s3) and Gen V at the same time. Although I don't know the "book stories" of those 2 series, I felt like they were really able to dive into the lore, and develop all the characters necessary. Yeah they take place on modern earth, and they don't have _as much_ lore to convey, but even the hasty-pacing of Jack Ryan seemed better constructed than all the "clearly missing" parts of WoT. I don't think the series is going to be able to get better until someone in Amazon loosens their buttwad and gives the greenlight to tell the damn story. Until then, as much as I liked the Steppin parts from s1 and the Moiraine/Lan parts from s2, Rafe's gotta cleave closer to the book.

It is all about the eight show limitation. Some of the best episodes have come from tiny pieces of the book - Nynaeve in the arches, the warder funeral. We could have had so much more.

It was "better" than season 1, which was just terrible. At least they just concentrated on telling the story, even if it was kind of all over the place. The magic is still kind of is as strong as the plot demands episode to episode. Egwaine breaking free was kind of a cheat. (why could she grab the a'dam and use it against her captor when they made it clear she could not use anything against them earlier?) A lot of things worked in the moment but kind of fall apart if you think about them too much. But it was an improvement. I do not know if this will get any further seasons after season 3. Streamers kind of only give three seasons to everything unless they are huge Stranger Thing type hits. I think we have to wait and see if this rises to that level. (They automatically give multiple seasons to expensive shows because the sets are built and the actors are still on first contracts and cheap, so you get your money back by just having several seasons rather than cancelling it and taking a big loss). If they renew it next year, that will be proof to me they really do believe in this show and it is doing well. But I would say do not get your hopes up. Most reviews are like mine so far for season 2. It is "better", not the train wreck of season 1, but I do not see a ton of GOT's level love.

Nae'Blis, According to reports from Showrunner Rafe Judkins, the author of each season finale episode we've so far enjoyed (?!), season 3 will be based upon volume IV (The Shadow Rising) as season 2 was devoted to Volumes II & III. So, I ask myself, "Self, when did we even see the Stone of Tear in season 2? When did Rand learn to become a blademaster? When did Mat use fireworks to widen a stone arrow-slit in the aforementioned Stone of Tear and rescue the three Wonder Girls from the clutches of the Black Ajah? When did Liandrin and her twelve fellow Black Ajah members steal their ter'angreals and abscond from the Tower? When did a circle of Aes Sedai finally rid Mat of the influence of the Shador Logoth dagger? When did Egwene become an Accepted? When did Rand learn to lead even a small unit of soldiers, as he did in The Great Hunt? When did Rand take 'The Sword that is not a Sword,' Callandor? When did Rand see the excavation of the huge statue holding an appropriately huge crystal sphere? When did Perrin meet Faile and, subsequently, rescue her? When did Ingtar reveal himself as a darkfriend who betrayed Fal Dara? When did Padan Fain come so much under the influence of Shador Logoth that he almost becomes Mordeth and breaks from his Dark Lord? When did the Stone of Tear fall to the 'People of the Dragon' and result in Rand having to deal with being a Ruler in Tear and both force him to bear responsibility for the populace and provide him with a base of conventional power to leverage upon the rest of Randland?" So, where was all this in season two of Amazon's WoT? Instead, the Showrunner gave us various scenes with Moiraine and Lan, having no basis in the books. Instead, Liandrin was promoted to a higher level of existence than was presented in the books. Instead, we were given some made-up balderdash about Liandrin's son and Moiraine's brother. I could go on, but why bother. I keep hearing apologists, like you, for the WoT streaming series say that more episodes per season are needed, but I don't really think that is a solution. The fact is that Peter Jackson was able to make a very coherent, entertaining, and fairly faithful adaptation of the entire three volume Lord of the Rings in just a bit over nine hours of run-time. Rafe Judkins had nearly eight hours to adapt just one volume in season 1, and he mucked it up. He added extraneous material that was never in any of the Rigney or Rigney/Sanderson books and failed to develop the themes and the lore that were in the first volume. This indicates a lack of focus by the producers, writers, and directors. All of whom seem more interested in telling their stories than the bestselling story Amazon licensed. Adding more episodes per season is not going to solve the underlying problem, it will merely grant the culprits more room to invent things since they aren't interested in actually adapting the canon books. - sj

I would give it a 7/10. It was good and I enjoyed watching it, which I can't say about season 1. There were some excellent scenes and performances. However there were a number of plotlines (Mat, Moiraine/Lan, house Damodred drama, Logain, etc.) that didn't pay off or seemed like filler at the expense of the main plotline of the season. I'm also not sure the writers know what they want to do with the power. Does strength matter? Who can see who's weaves? Right now it comes across as a plot device where people can channel as much as is needed to keep the plot moving (unless your Rand).

1:05 there was no VFX worker shortage. I'm in the VFX industry, have been for over a decade, and was working during covid. VFX workers were *dying* for more work at the time! The claim Rafe had was that their VFX pipeline struggled because it was so difficult to do WFH. It's a completely nonsensical claim - I've been working exclusively remotely since 2017 (minus a few times I got hired to supervise on set, and was one of only two post production staff on set). I've also worked in bigger studios. Most of the bigger studios were also set up with secure remote software (and have been since the early 2010s to loophole into tax subsidies), even if they didn't use it regularly. These security protocols would meet the requirements for any studio but maybe Disney (and it's subsidiaries).

I have similar priorities. I don't mind the subplot changes at all. So long as we get to the same point. I view characters as far more important. I knew legend of the seeker was going to suck when zedd through a fireball to scare the angry mob instead of scaring the shit out of them with a speech. Later in the show he had his powers cut off and said "without my powers I am just an old man." Those two instances showed me the writers didn't know why zedd was such a cool character...that they ruined. The showrunners are doing a good job with characters. I feel like they could have done a better job with Perrin and Mat. I don't view either character as being totally betrayed, but I think their characters have wandered a bit from their core. More so Mat than Perrin. The pacing for Perrin's story is...just sort of weird. I do get the impression Perrin is going to the same place storywise. Mat, I am not so sure about. I likes both actors that have played Mat. The newer one a little more so. Mat feels slightly skewed. Like he is going to a similar place story wise. I hope they align him a little more closely to book Mat in the next season.

@andrewdemarco3512

10 ай бұрын

Omg legend of the seeker was so bad. Sword of truth was the second epic fantasy I read after LOTR. It is what got me into WoT as people told me it was a rip off of WoT and yeah, WoT is much better, but even considering inferior source material, legend of the seeker was so bad. I knew it was going to be bad when first episode kahlan said "I'm the mother confesor" when she spent most of the first book scared to tell Richard that

With the death of Ishmael. Do you think that they will have the cahones to get rid of Moraine next season after she battles Lanfear into the portal? I didnt think they would kill Faris Faris off but they did and now they do know what is about to happen to Moraine.

Thanks for this overall breakdown. You're right about the length of the season. I feel 10 episodes would've filled out the storyline much better. Just extending the episodes to 65 minutes made a big difference. Unfortunately Bezos is more interested in his Rings of Power than in Wheel of Time. What he doesn't want is WOT to overshadow RIngs. If he would just committ to an additional 4 seasons I'd feel better.

@trashak3

10 ай бұрын

It is hard to accept that the project he paid more than a billion is weaker than a 100mil/season show

@jdiggitty

10 ай бұрын

"What he doesn't want is WOT to overshadow RIngs". Too late, I think. That show was not good. Reports are that only 1/3 of viewers finished the season. It's going to very difficult to overcome something like that. You're probably not getting those people back.

@carolbriscoe9337

10 ай бұрын

@jdiggitty I was part of that 1/3. I tried, I really did. I love all things Tolkien and was excited to see this new show.

@jdiggitty

10 ай бұрын

@@carolbriscoe9337 I actually did get all the way through it. But, only out of a morbid curiosity to see how bad it got. I have no desire to watch S2. I don't blame anyone for quitting midway.

@carolbriscoe9337

10 ай бұрын

@@jdiggitty you're a good man!

I'll be honest I spent most of your video wondering what you had against Donal Finn's acting, since I thought he put in a good shift. Only around the 13 minute mark did the pun hit me.

@jasonb6860

10 ай бұрын

You could say I blew it.

Fair review .

I'd love to see a book adaptation sometime in the future ;)

@Brian_L_A

10 ай бұрын

Almost spit up my drink! LOL

I really hope they make a series of shorts that get polished and released between now and season 3 release that show us a lot of the scenes that hit the cutting room floor and will expand the show story a bit. This will help fill in the season 2 and 1 gaps as well as give fans something to snack on in the interim, hell I would watch and entire series of shorts watching Johan doing Fain things!

I think you're on point. I'm happy for the direction the show is going in but they neeeeed more episodes so badly. I hate that so much about this show is dependent on financial decisions. It's heartbreaking to think about what it COULD be.

I can accept all plot changes if I just imagine that we are viewing the world from one of the alternate universe worlds from those portal stones, and that things are absolutely different there. It allows me to get rid of all expectations of plot, and just view the show more as a non-book viewer would, even though I'm reading through the book series a second time.

Dónal is Irish and his name is also Irish, his name is spelt with a 'fada' on the o which changes the pronunciation

My Ratings Season 1: (6.5) Season 2: (7.5) I like your worse/better than the sum of its parts take. Rand surely has been disappointing to me and for basically the same reasons as you cite. I also believe that will be remedied in S3, probably in the 1st EP is my guess. Moiraine was my favorite book character, but not my fav tv show character. This shouldnt be so, but the changes they have made to her just havent worked for me, overall. While I have confidence that the show writers will get Rand back on track, I am much less so in regards to Moraine. I hope I am wrong. Keep beating that MORE EPISODES drum. Maybe Amazon will hear you eventually.

The last battle should be a season on its own :D But your numbers add up, and put some numbers and logic behind adaptation and that noone can compare them in depth

Loved season 2 👍👍✌️✌️

Hey not bad! I'm still working on my video but I gave the season a 7.8/10.

I've been hearing rumors that season 3 is supposed to be only 5 episodes. Have you heard anything about this yet?

In terms of complaints I'm hearing this, 'Why in 8 episodes didn't you do what could be done in a 12-15 episode season'?' it was good for what they could do. I'm just thankful for the fact it left out stupid shit like the love triangle. Learn how to pick your fights bro.

For me the issue was hearing Rafe say. We don’t have time to put everything from the books into the show. That’s understandable, but when most of the time is spent with stuff not from the books. It makes me feel like I’m watching fan fiction. If you like it. Cool. There’s nothing wrong with that, but I do not (which there is nothing wrong with that either) . I hope the show succeeds so we can get more WOT Adaptations.

I’ve followed your channel from before the show started - i don’t understand what you’re up to any more

I agree that Ingtar's motivation and sacrifice, and Perrin's growth and acceptance of his Wolfbrother talents were not fleshed out enough. I also agree that they spent too much time with Lan for the lack of pay off. Although the main characters are in a position to be in place to go where they need to go for an adaptation of TSR (book 4) and TFoH (book 5), the show did not set up their motivations to go on their respective paths. For example, Rand will need a reason to head to the Aiel Waste. Perhaps in Episode 1, season 3, he will receive a letter from the Wise Ones and he will interpret an applicable prophecy as applying. The statement by Aviendha should not be enough in of itself. They did not introduce Egwene's dreaming talents. As such, she has no reason to go to the Waste. There is also no reason for Nyaneve and Elayne to go on their Book 4/5 adventure. I will be curious as to how Season 3 justifies each of the characters going where we expect them to go. That said, I was happy overall with how Season 2 turned out

I have not yet watched the final 3 episodes of the season and I am not sure I will be able to bring myself to watch those. I had just finished my umpteenth reread of the WOT series before season 2 started and I have trouble with seeing how the many plot changes can be integrated in the rest of the series. It feels like many of the plot changes were made to enhance the value of the writers and boy have they missed their mark. I find people who are not as familiar with the book series enjoy the series more, but I have serious trouble getting in the flow of the story because of all the changes. I do agree that the second season is a big improvement over season 1. With far better effects and an excellent cast it is a big improvement over season 1. I come to a 6.5 out of 10 rating. This can be partially explained by the fact that I have not been able to enjoy any series or movie as much if I have read the books first.

@j2a45

10 ай бұрын

“… I have not been able to enjoy any series or movie as much if I have read the book first” Interesting! I find that I’ve enjoyed the adaptations I consider were done well (in my case, LOTR, Dune).

Thank you for saying it. I thought that Rand need an arc for himself too. Feels a bit loss and insignificant when he was claimed dragon reborn.

Yes. Much better. Although I still think the focus of the series should revolve around Rand and the side characters seem to get the focus. I loved all the side characters Egwene Nynaeve Matt Perrin Moraine Lan Loyal and all the secondary characters drawn into the weave of the wheel

I’d love to see an animated adaptation sometime in the future.

@warpswede

10 ай бұрын

I'd love to see a book adaptation sometime in the future ;)

i like that the show was made not for the people who read the book but for the rest of us who had not. fans of books will always have something to complain about when it comes to adaptations. always. it can't be helped. books are more detailed and readers get to create in their minds what things should be like. it almost always never matches up to adaptations. i thoroughly enjoyed it and hope the continue their great work. everyone did so well in that last episode. everyone contributed to their win except nynaeve.

@nishadchitnis4219

10 ай бұрын

You mean you could understand the plotline? That's great! I am clueless! Please explain!

A solid 7. But I could be bought if Amazon wanted to do more episodes or longer episodes.

agree with the assessment of Donal Flinn

I just don't understand how people who haven't read the books watch it. I'd be so lost.

I really enjoyed moat of season 2. And the biggest difference for me AND my husband who was being a bit of a "book cloak "after episode 5 in season 1 is this. After episode 8 of season 1, I stopped caring about the show. Didn't watch any content and didn't care about season 2. Once they released a few scenes from season 2, i got cautiously optimistic. I talked my husband into checking out the first 3 episodes of season 2 and said we could shut it off if it was terrible. But after episode 3, we were both upset that we had to wait a whole week for the next one. We both were super hooked and into it the whole time. And now, I'm soaking up all the content i can find and am feeling the sane feelings i had waiting for the next book to come out. So regardless of any problems it had, they did their job well with ne snd changing my stubborn husband's mind.

Pretty much sums up my feelings, ill go as high as 8 or 8.5 as the highs for the season were pretty well done and the lows for the season from a writing standpoint, although just as low as season one, were polished a bit more so the bite is not as harsh. Lan could have taken the season off imo, but hey he won a fight :) Moriaine being shielded added nothing to the story. The biggest mistake to me is having eggy free herself and then go up against "the" forsaken and hold her own while they are afraid to let Rand be what he needs to be. There is a recurring theme there with this writing team and it hurts the characterization of all the main characters, let Rand shine so you can do justice to his later storyline. There are lots of little logic gaps that jumped out at me in the season, but perhaps they will make more sense with a second viewing. Its a good season but it should have been great.

As other show critics have noted, simply adding more episodes per season will not remedy the writing, especially considering the lack of a coherent direction for the tv series. You've pointed out how a lot of the plotlines for the characters (Moiraine, Mat, Rand, Perrin) were middling at best if not outright bad. This is a case of the writers not knowing where to focus their episode minutes and how to better integrate character points of view. Hopefully the showrunners will take note of what their streaming competitor Netflix has done with their recent book-to-tv adaptation hit One Piece. In that series they stayed true to the spirit of the source material, honed in on the character arcs that mattered, and managed to condense 100 manga chapters into 8 episodes. That series had its share of problems as well, but unlike the WOT TV show, they listened to the author's advice and took their constructive criticism seriously. While they didn't adapt the story 1-to-1 to the manga, they didn't go out of their way to diverge from the series' themes, only making modifications to the story that condensed and made sense.

Having never read the books, I do feel a bit lost and annoyed some things aren't really explained.

S2 was really enjoyable, but if anything, it made me wish even more that the plotline was closer to the books. Not that the show is bad by any means, but the source material is so legendary, I just can't see why the show needs to stray so far from it 😭 Channeling looks sick, the waygates looked epic, but tbh the horn of valere scene was kinda underwhelming even though the heroes of the horn looked sick, ingtars sacrifice and ishys defeat were anticlimactic, and lan and moirianes relationship was 😬 also why is mat swinging the dagger so CLOSE to perrins face?? Im holding out hope that we'll see some stuff later on, but imagine seeing flicker flicker flicker, "come, it is time to die" x2, a finale where rand actually does something , tc Plus, I enjoy the callbacks, but some of the lines that are lifted from the books feel more shoehorned than anything else. Lan's "face whatever happens on your feet" and Birgitte's/Hawkwing's "i have battled alongside you countless..." stand out in particular

Hopefully, season 3 didn't need to be completely rewritten, and will be more solid. I can't imagine writing an entire series of TV, only to have an actor leave and for it to be changed. And they didn't only change Mat's storyline, they changed all of them. Originally, Rand wasn't going to leave at the end of season 1, and they were going to have the 3 boys on the hunt for the horn.

@jonahdav9589

10 ай бұрын

You honestly believe Rafe was going to stay closer to the story when he opened the show with Mat having a broken family and stealing from friends and Rand and Egwene shacking up? Snort

@LloydBaron

10 ай бұрын

@jonahdav9589 that's what Rafe has said in interviews. The original plan was to have season two be closer to what happens in TGH. It still would be massively different, obviously, but not as different to what we had.

@devlin76

10 ай бұрын

So many things about the the end of Season 1 and Season 2 would have been different if Harris had not left the show so abruptly. I think Season 2 came together pretty well. Here is hoping Season 3 is even stronger..... and pretty close to TSR.

@LloydBaron

10 ай бұрын

@@devlin76 Rafe has said it's yet another step up. They pretty much scrambled to rewrite S2 in time. But haters will act like Rafe and his team are somehow ruining the show on purpose.

I think I agree with your overall rating but have a more positive reaction to the show. Recognising that they can never afford to tell us the full story of the books, they've been reasonably faithful to the main plot lines. I like the sets, the landscapes and the casting (mainly). It's good television. There's a lot to like. My major criticism would be the lack of context. You can have a slow reveal but too often we have had a late reveal with no build up. I love the books, so I know I'm never going to be satisfied but I think they're getting there. More episodes would help a lot.

Yeah about my rating too. Went into it with low expectations. Madeleine Madden was a stand out for me from ep 6 and Lanfear was amazing throughout. Rand definitely needs some love in season 3 before we forget it's a story about the dragon reborn.

@andrewfrank7222

10 ай бұрын

He will not get it. Look which Forsaken was on screen at the end. Next season will be Elayne, Nynaeve and Egween girl bossing against Mogheidien.

😂❤❤Rand has the least control, the least help, no woman can teach him how to handle, Rand can destroy something cut something, he might have been able to kill Suin if he grabbed as much power as when he was in front of Logain, that would create more problems, and Rand does not want to destroy with the power. Rand is a Semi with no steering system. ❤❤❤❤

If S3 is as good as Episode 8, we're in for a real treat! Just stop dragging out a storyline for a payoffs sake. Lan and Moiraine's re-bonding was good, but it didn't need the whole season or that moment to flesh it out.

@macpharlan6738

10 ай бұрын

There’s funny, episode 8 was one of my least favorite. I thought for sure they were building up for the grand ending like the book but fell in their face.

@bigreaderpike

10 ай бұрын

Plus it doesn't make sense if she was never stilled than the bond was never broken it was just muffled and stuck in that state until she could touch the power again

@SpiritStoneWarrior94-yx3gs

10 ай бұрын

​@bigreaderpike if you're shielded it's basically the same as being stilled in that sense. You can't touch the one power, hence you can't have the bond be available. It's not bad like you think it is

@nashinplain

10 ай бұрын

@@SpiritStoneWarrior94-yx3gs what are you talking about? When shielded the bond is still there, it doesn't get removed. Rafe who wrote episode 8 totally forgot about how shielding works. Lan should have been dead if the bond had broken instantly. I don't know why they added the scene for Moiriane and Lan rebonding besides adding another stupid scene for Moiriane. The show is okay not, even close to the first few seasons of GOT.

Honestly this season to felt like the Egwayne and Moraine show and screw all the other characters development.

Actors for Wheel of Time *were not on stike* . They're part of the *european* actors not US guild. US is on strike, it's not world wide😮😊 Heck season 3 is almost finished filming. Personally I think their largest problem is 8 episodes. They need more, say 10-12 to not have those unfinished plotlines. I hate when a series rushes to fit the episode cap. Instead make each season whatever is required. 8, 10, 14, 9 just don't rush it.

Much better than season 1 but Rand's power level is a huge disappointment Egweine yet again steals his moments

@LeeTurnock-zy2dg

10 ай бұрын

Agreed. "Girl power" movement? She and Nynaeve are excellent characters and don't need the 'lift'.

Liandrin wearing black when with her son was definitely a good touch, and her reaction being caught, both caring for a man and in black at that was just good story telling for a show. I thought this was a huge step up from season 1, just nailing home what I thought in that covid had a big effect on filming it. Eventually as the seasons go on hopefully it just keeps getting better and better as Amazon learns how to do a show. I just wish they learned on another story then came to WoT, but all things being said it's only later on that things get really interesting the story, and yes they need longer episodes or ten of them in a season, and the last battle better take at least half a season considering all that goes on, they better not pull a GoT and rush it!