Television The Wheel of Time - BOOKS and TV show thread - SPOILERS ALLOWED

[Revan]

With the other thread being only about the TV show, I thought to make a thread where we can discuss the TV show in the context of the books. Probably better than using the Fantasy Reads thread, because there are people there who haven't read the books.

Very happy with the show and how is going so far. I like much more the first season following Moiraine, rather than Rand, she is infinitely more interesting, and at least until Rand and the supergirls start channeling, this is the way.

I also liked the changes in the latest episode. Nynaeve shows her potential (we know that later she becomes the strongest Aes Sedai since the breaking of the world) and saves the day when Logain overpowers everyone. Possibly a bit cliche, but for the show is better than just hearing that some false prophet killed 2 random Aes Sedai before he got gendled.

The leader of the Aes Sedai in the camp actually in the books dies much earlier, she is seen only in the A New Spring prequel. I think they went with her to make Logain look even stronger, being able to kill the Captain-General of the battle (green) Ajah. I really was scared that they might just use Moiraine to overpower Logain, which should not have happened (Moiraine is a top 5 Aes Sedai of her era, but in a head to head with Logain she wouldn't stand a chance, though of course, she is incredibly crafty and with the right positioning, she can even take a Forsaken like Be'lal who is probably in the same level as Logain).

The thing that I don't like so far is that a woman can apparently be the dragon. That does not make sense. The entire idea is that the Dragon is dangerous cause he will go mad because as we know, males go mad when they start channeling. If he is a woman, then she can control the power and there is nothing problematic about being a Dragon then. I think that the show creator has a plan for this though, considering that he knows the books in-depth and Brandon Sanderson is advising him. Other than that, I think Perry having a wife and killing her accidentally was a bit pointless but can deal with that.

Finally, she show is already foreshadowing some relations to come. Nynaeve and al'Lan (was Nynaeve called by mistake al'Nynaeve, considering that the uses al only after she marries Lan and thus becomes a queen, delirious Moiraine saying Siuan (this won't be caught from the non-book readers), Rand and Egwene already starting to get cold on each other, etc etc.

All in all, I am really liking it. The last episode is better than any of the Witcher's episodes, and the rumors are that it gets better from here now. Also, the story is going with a faster pace, and from the trailers, we will see the Amerlyn Seat, so the first episode is gonna touch aspects of the second book.

Anyone knows if Elayne and Min are gonna get casted or they are just gonna get removed from the show (in case of Elayne that would be bad cause she is ultra-important for the story, right there with Mat, Perryn and Nynaeve, and just after Rand and Egwene). if not, I guess if Rand is gonna have only Aviendha (confirmed to have been cast) or his love story is gonna be totally different and go with Egwene. Honestly, if they had to cut two of Rand's wives, I would have preferred keeping Elayne who is by far the most important one for the story (though Min is the nicest one).

 

[Fully Fledged]

Anyone knows if Elayne and Min are gonna get casted or they are just gonna get removed from the show (in case of Elayne that would be bad cause she is ultra-important for the story, right there with Mat, Perryn and Nynaeve, and just after Rand and Egwene). if not, I guess if Rand is gonna have only Aviendha (confirmed to have been cast) or his love story is gonna be totally different and go with Egwene. Honestly, if they had to cut two of Rand's wives, I would have preferred keeping Elayne who is by far the most important one for the story (though Min is the nicest one).

Spoiler

 

[Revan]

Awesome. Elayne looks like…Elayne.

Now, how on Earth they deal with Rand having 3 wives (and then being happy with that) in the current climate?

 

[Fully Fledged]

Awesome. Elayne looks like…Elayne.

Now, how on Earth they deal with Rand having 3 wives (and then being happy with that) in the current climate?

Yeah I know right I looked at her and thought that's Elayne.

They already broached polygamous relationships with the green and her two warders in this episode.

 

[harshad]

@Revan You just wanted to start a thread about Wheel of Time

 

[Revan]

@Revan You just wanted to start a thread about Wheel of Time

Well yeah, that was one of the reasons, I admit.

But I also would like to discuss the TV show spoiler-free, and in the other thread it is very hard to do so considering the context.

 

[nimic]

There already is a book thread, to be fair.

 

[nimic]

Awesome. Elayne looks like…Elayne.

Now, how on Earth they deal with Rand having 3 wives (and then being happy with that) in the current climate?

I suspect only Min will be his girlfriend. That only causes the most minor of issues, there's nothing about Aviendha and Elayne that can't be done without them being in love with Rand. The only thing is really their children, but that's mostly beyond the scope of the books anyway.

was Nynaeve called by mistake al'Nynaeve.

I don't think so. When was that?

 

[Revan]

I suspect only Min will be his girlfriend. That only causes the most minor of issues, there's nothing about Aviendha and Elayne that can't be done without them being in love with Rand. The only thing is really their children, but that's mostly beyond the scope of the books anyway.

Yup, Elayne and Aviendha serve other purposes in addition to being Rand's wives. While Min, definitely not. She is there just to calm down Dark Rand.

I would honestly prefer to keep it as in the books. Maybe by showing polygamy relationships already, that won't be accepted badly, although there are gonna be some people who would complain.

There already is a book thread, to be fair.

Oh, I did not know. But they are old and not very used*. And this is more to discuss the show in the context of the books.

* There are significantly more posts in the Fantasy Reads about WoT than in those two threads.

 

[harshad]

Awesome. Elayne looks like…Elayne.

Now, how on Earth they deal with Rand having 3 wives (and then being happy with that) in the current climate?

Well Rand didn't ever marry any of them, did he?

Also, they hinted at Alana having relations with both her Warders in Episode 4. This along with Aiel having polygamous relationships, should set the tone for the series and showing Rand having relations with all 3 of them and them knowing about it would not be completely out of the blue for the audience as something that does not happen in the world that the series is showing

 

[Revan]

Well Rand didn't ever marry any of them, did he?

Also, they hinted at Alana having relations with both her Warders in Episode 4. This along with Aiel having polygamous relationships, should set the tone for the series and showing Rand having relations with all 3 of them and them knowing about it would not be completely out of the blue for the audience as something that does not happen in the world that the series is showing

He 'bounded' all three of them and had sex with them.

To be fair, Alnanna bounded Rand too, though it was against his will.

 

[harshad]

Curious to see how they show the madness afflicting Rand in contrast with how they have shown it afflicting Logain.

Also, I hope Moraine cancels out Egwene from her list of potential DR since quite clearly Nyn is more powerful. The DR being a female just makes no sense and hope they nip it in the bud at least insofar as Moraine is concerned.

 

[padr81]

Awesome. Elayne looks like…Elayne.

Now, how on Earth they deal with Rand having 3 wives (and then being happy with that) in the current climate?

I think they'll play it as a 4 way relationship as opposed to Rand and his 3 wives. So I'd expect Elayne, Min and Aviendha to all be bi. Can't remember exactly in the books but I always got sexual tension vibes from Elayne and Aviendha anyway. Its the right change too imho.

 

[padr81]

Curious to see how they show the madness afflicting Rand in contrast with how they have shown it afflicting Logain.

Also, I hope Moraine cancels out Egwene from her list of potential DR since quite clearly Nyn is more powerful. The DR being a female just makes no sense and hope they nip it in the bud at least insofar as Moraine is concerned.

The AMA with the showrunner has already said there is no way the Dragon can be a woman. That line is more Moirane not trusting/believing prophecies that are so old. Its mainly Moirane by her nature not ruling anything out. For the showrunners it allows them to constantly offer up different potential dragons to keep non book readers guessing. There have been huges hints its Egwene, then Mat now with Logain gentled Nyneave.

Rand snuffing out the candle and then 2 minutes later Moirane saying to Logain "You are nothing but a flicker of a candle to the sun that is the real dragon" or whatever her exact words were was great. Logain then says something about radiance of the sun when Nyneave performs her level 58 heal all skill at the end. Its purely the writers using Moiraines skeptisism to keep the mystery going. The weirdest pit for me was Logain seeing her weave.

Most non-book readers at the end of ep3 were thinking Egwene was dragon and Rand her warder. Of course the 2 biggest hints are Rand breaking down the door (though it never shows the weaves) and the hair reference with the Aiel in Ep 3 but they are very easily missed.

 

[MadMike]

Nyneave performs her level 58 heal all skill at the end.

Well that was funny.

That line is more Moirane not trusting/believing prophecies that are so old.

It's doesn't really have anything to do with the old prophecies of the Karaethon Cycle themselves. The turning of the wheel brings reincarnation. The nickname of the "Dragon" was given to Lews Therin Telamon. The "Dragon Reborn" is the reincarnation of Lews Therin. And the belief was that people reincarnated in the same sex. So he would be male and all that is supposed to be widely known.

Which incidentally, is the reason why Aes Sedai are so worried about the potential return of the Dragon. Because Saidin is still tainted since the War of Power and driving men that can channel mad. So a Dragon that is consumed by madness could break the world again like Lews Therin. Hence why they've been searching and gentling men for centuries.

Finally, the reason why Moiraine is on a 2 decade-long mission to find the dragon reborn, is not because of some old centuries old prophecies. She and Siuan Sanche were the only Aes Sedai present when the seer Aes Sedai Gitara Moroso had a vision of Rand's birth.

"He is born again! I feel him! The Dragon takes his first breath on the slopes of Dragonmount! He is coming! He is coming! Light help us! Light help the world! He lies in the snow and cries like the thunder! He burns like the sun!"

That's what formed their pact, to try and find the dragon and protect him from the other Aes Sedai. A female dragon just doesn't make sense in any way. Not only is it not keeping with Robert Jordan's lore, but it renders a lot of the actions of the Aes Sedai nonsensical. I'm not sure why they're entertaining it. Just nip it ffs.

 

[padr81]

Well that was funny.



It's doesn't really have anything to do with the old prophecies of the Karaethon Cycle themselves. The turning of the wheel brings reincarnation. The nickname of the "Dragon" was given to Lews Therin Telamon. The "Dragon Reborn" is the reincarnation of Lews Therin. And the belief was that people reincarnated in the same sex. So he would be male and all that is supposed to be widely known.

Which incidentally, is the reason why Aes Sedai are so worried about the potential return of the Dragon. Because Saidin is still tainted since the War of Power and driving men that can channel mad. So a Dragon that is consumed by madness could break the world again like Lews Therin. Hence why they've been searching and gentling men for centuries.

Finally, the reason why Moiraine is on a 2 decade-long mission to find the dragon reborn, is not because of some old centuries old prophecies. She and Siuan Sanche were the only Aes Sedai present when the seer Aes Sedai Gitara Moroso had a vision of Rand's birth.


That's what formed their pact, to try and find the dragon and protect him from the other Aes Sedai. A female dragon just doesn't make sense in any way. Not only is it not keeping with Robert Jordan's lore, but it renders a lot of the actions of the Aes Sedai nonsensical. I'm not sure why they're entertaining it. Just nip it ffs.

I should add that was Rafe's take on why she said it not mine. It kinda implies Moiraine doesn't believe ltt prophecy to be true or is at least skeptical which is kinda weird.

I have a feeling she's going to have a different reason for hunting the dragon in the show because it's straight from the show runners mouth. That said he might just have panicked when asked at the ama.

 

[Dargonk]

Must say the change to them talking about a possible female dragon is what has irked me the most. I'm not sure they have fully thought it through either, as I can see down the line them shooting themselves in the foot with some logic failure.

Really didn't see the point of Perrin's change to having a wife either, to then only kill her off straight away. but I guess it gives them some back story/emotion to play off. Though the character so far has been a bit boring to watch regardless.

I've enjoyed it, but do feel like the story line is rushing forward very quickly, and while it won't be to bad for book readers, I'm not sure it will help those that are coming in totally blind.

 

[WI_Red]

It has gotten better, but like others have said I am having a real hard time getting past the complete deletion of saidin/saidar from the show. That duality is the core on which all of the worldbuilding is, well, built. A short intro in episode 1, similar to how it was done in the first lord of the rings, to introduce saidin/saidar and the dragon would have solved the problem and got us up and running. I will try and be patient but that single plot decision has tainted the show for me.

 

[Schmiznurf]

Them talking abut a woman possibly being the dragon annoyed me too, until Thom specifically mentioned the magic being tainted to corrupt men. Now it's clear that it was done purely for the mystery to keep non-book readers guessing.

 

[nimic]

It has gotten better, but like others have said I am having a real hard time getting past the complete deletion of saidin/saidar from the show. That duality is the core on which all of the worldbuilding is, well, built. A short intro in episode 1, similar to how it was done in the first lord of the rings, to introduce saidin/saidar and the dragon would have solved the problem and got us up and running. I will try and be patient but that single plot decision has tainted the show for me.

I repeat: Saidin and Saidar have not been deleted from the show, they just haven't been brought up yet. Viewers already thought episode 1 had too high a pace, so I don't think throwing even more lore at them would be a good idea. Simply put, so far there's been no reason for anyone to discuss it. Egwene has had like one short scene of introduction into channelling, and no one has really talked much about male channelling except in the context of a) it makes them go mad and b) Logain.

Rafe Judkins has already confirmed that they will be brought up in season 1. There's every reason to suspect the split will feature more heavily once we get into Rand channelling more obviously and frequently.

Honestly, if this is making you not like the show then you weren't going to like it anyway.

 

[WI_Red]

I repeat: Saidin and Saidar have not been deleted from the show, they just haven't been brought up yet. Viewers already thought episode 1 had too high a pace, so I don't think throwing even more lore at them would be a good idea. Simply put, so far there's been no reason for anyone to discuss it. Egwene has had like one short scene of introduction into channelling, and no one has really talked much about male channelling except in the context of a) it makes them go mad and b) Logain.

Rafe Judkins has already confirmed that they will be brought up in season 1. There's every reason to suspect the split will feature more heavily once we get into Rand channelling more obviously and frequently.

Honestly, if this is making you not like the show then you weren't going to like it anyway.

I never said I do not like it, only that what appears to be (I'll take your word this will be fixed later) the removal of a core pillar of the story is making it hard to immerse myself. Thom's speech about his nephew in the last episode gave me some hope as well.

I'm not usually a "it must follow the book" person and am fine with letting the two medias own their own stories, but the "The Dragon could be male or female" thing confused me and was completely unnecessary.

 

[nimic]

It's a different time, that's all. A little bit of inclusion never hurt anyone, and in the long run it doesn't really matter since Rand is the Dragon anyway. Admittedly a soul was locked to a gender in RJs vision, so the Dragon was always male, but in Q&A's it's been revealed that the hero of the light wasn't always the Dragon, so could be female in other ages.

The only real issue with the change is that it very slightly impacts the fear people have over the Dragon, since now it's not a given that the Dragon is male and will go mad. But then the fear of the Dragon was always rooted in more than just "he's a man so he'll go mad". Many think he worked (and will work) for the shadow, for example, so the effect is still there.

Edit: It also lets them play a bit with the viewer in season 1, since it could be one of four people. Hell, a lot of people probably now think it's Nynaeve, despite Moiraine explicitly making it clear she's too old. Otherwise it would be a bit too easy. Perrin has the wolf thing, Mat has the dagger thing, Rand's just along for the ride so he must be the one who can channel.

 

[Bobski]

It is improving, episode 4 was the best so far, even with the changes which for me at least were respectful to the spirit of the original. It was never feasible for WOT to be a fully loyal adaptation, too big, too sprawling, too many characters, works in written format but would be a mess on TV.

Rand was obviously the Dragon Reborn within a few paragraphs of the opening chapters of EOTW, it was never a mystery to the reader, more about experiencing the slow realization for the character. Can't be that hyper focused on 1 character on a TV show.

Making Nynaeve and Egwene Ta'veren takes away some of their agency, Nynaeve was driven by a fierce loyalty and protective nature, while Egwene had the ambition to excel, it is a small change and one that will probably not be very relevant but it slightly diminishes the characters for me.

 

[nimic]

They didn't make Nynaeve ta'veren, just Egwene ("rumours of four ta'veren"). It makes sense since they're going with the "she could also be the Dragon Reborn" angle. Honestly the ta'veren stuff never really meant much, it's just "this is the hero of the story"-stuff. Rand is the one where it really impacts the story, with his "chance" starting to weigh negative during his heart of stone phase. I guess you could say Mat too with his luck, but luck is always his thing apparently (Hawkwing called him the Gambler).

 

[Desert Eagle]

Episode 3 and 4 are much better than 1 and 2 at least for books readers I feel. Ramping up nicely. They've managed to kinda pull off the the weaving and the faceless ones/dream sequences quite well so far which is pretty challenging.

 

[fishfingers15]

They didn't make Nynaeve ta'veren, just Egwene ("rumours of four ta'veren"). It makes sense since they're going with the "she could also be the Dragon Reborn" angle. Honestly the ta'veren stuff never really meant much, it's just "this is the hero of the story"-stuff. Rand is the one where it really impacts the story, with his "chance" starting to weigh negative during his heart of stone phase. I guess you could say Mat too with his luck, but luck is always his thing apparently (Hawkwing called him the Gambler).

He's called that by the snakes and the foxes as well

 

[Fully Fledged]

It has gotten better, but like others have said I am having a real hard time getting past the complete deletion of saidin/saidar from the show. That duality is the core on which all of the worldbuilding is, well, built. A short intro in episode 1, similar to how it was done in the first lord of the rings, to introduce saidin/saidar and the dragon would have solved the problem and got us up and running. I will try and be patient but that single plot decision has tainted the show for me.

Watch the bonus material from inside the episode by pausing the feed and clicking on the bonus material. It specifically talks about saidar/saidin and the difference between the 2. From what I recall it seems to be an extract straight from the books.

 

[Spoony]

I watched Wheel of Fortune just to join in.

Well annoyed.

 

[nimic]

Oh no, the destroyer has found us.

 

[Spoony]

 

[nimic]

Great episode. Apparently the next one is Brandon Sanderson's favourite, so pretty excited about that.

 

[padr81]

Really enjoyed it though I am starting to worry about the butterfly effect long term.

The camera focusing on mat while ligain was staring at rand was cheesy.

Golden Eyes was cool. All in all a good episode and nice set up for later.

I'm really worrying about elaida and liandrin being merged given liandrin is black and elaida wasn't.

 

[Revan]

A bit of a filler episode, but needed after the last one.

Liked:

- Logain laughing like lunatic when he sees the Dragon Reborn. I think the show is trying too hard to misdirect the people on who is the Dragon though.
- Showing what happens to the Warden when his Aes Sedai dies.
- Lan (and consequently) Moiraine's suffering. It is done perfectly well, Lan's actor is being a very good Lan, and Rosamund Pike is killing it as Moiraine.

Didn't like:

- The Whitecloacks being very near Tar Valon. I mean, what the feck. They already went a bit too far with them openly killing Aes Sedai in the show, but being so near them. 10 Aes Sedai would obliterate the shit out of them. Heck, a powerful one like Moiraine would be enough to destroy that little camp.
- It was mentioned already in the last epiosde, but are they really going to make some conflict between Moiraine and Siuan? I really hope not, but instead, they will play this as they are misdirecting the others Aes Sedai to look like enemies, when in fact they are best friends and with the exact same goal.

 

[Revan]

I'm really worrying about elaida and liandrin being merged given liandrin is black and elaida wasn't.

Yep, it seems possible that this will happen. But then, wouldn't the character be called Elaida, considering that she is far more important for the story?

Saying that, Liandrin was kinda the secondary antagonist for the first three-four books or so, with Elaida starting having a massive role only after she stills Siuan and becomes Amerlyn (I think fourth or fifth book). We still haven't seen Andor and Elayne, so in the books, Elaida is still there. So it could be that they will stay true to the books, and bring Elaida when she is needed (likely next season cause we already know that Elayne will be in the next episode).

 

[nimic]

A bit of a filler episode, but needed after the last one.

Liked:

- Logain laughing like lunatic when he sees the Dragon Reborn. I think the show is trying too hard to misdirect the people on who is the Dragon though.
- Showing what happens to the Warden when his Aes Sedai dies.
- Lan (and consequently) Moiraine's suffering. It is done perfectly well, Lan's actor is being a very good Lan, and Rosamund Pike is killing it as Moiraine.

Didn't like:

- The Whitecloacks being very near Tar Valon. I mean, what the feck. They already went a bit too far with them openly killing Aes Sedai in the show, but being so near them. 10 Aes Sedai would obliterate the shit out of them. Heck, a powerful one like Moiraine would be enough to destroy that little camp.
- It was mentioned already in the last epiosde, but are they really going to make some conflict between Moiraine and Siuan? I really hope not, but instead, they will play this as they are misdirecting the others Aes Sedai to look like enemies, when in fact they are best friends and with the exact same goal.

They did seem a bit close to Tar Valon, but it's not entirely unprecedented. In the books a group of them stop and threaten Verin and the girls, and Verin makes some comment about how dare they do it within sight of... either the tower or Dragonmount, I cant remember. It's also a massive tower, so it could be further than it seems.

The Siuan-Moiraine thing is straight out of the books. They have deliberately put themselves in opposition to each other, to mask their joint mission to find the Dragon Reborn. I wouldn't worry at all about that.

 

[Revan]

They did seem a bit close to Tar Valon, but it's not entirely unprecedented. In the books a group of them stop and threaten Verin and the girls, and Verin makes some comment about how dare they do it within sight of... either the tower or Dragonmount, I cant remember. It's also a massive tower, so it could be further than it seems.

I don't exactly remember it, but I think that the Whitecloacks were not openly opposing Aes Sedai. Of course, they hated them, and you get the implication that they might have killed some vulnerable Aes Sedai, but this thing of them openly burning Aes Sedai and keeping their rings, makes no sense. We saw how shit they are, a bunch of wolves annihilated their camp. Now imagine a few circles of Aes Sedai!

The Siuan-Moiraine thing is straight out of the books. They have deliberately put themselves in opposition to each other, to mask their joint mission to find the Dragon Reborn. I wouldn't worry at all about that.

I am hoping for this too.

 

[padr81]

Yep, it seems possible that this will happen. But then, wouldn't the character be called Elaida, considering that she is far more important for the story?

Saying that, Liandrin was kinda the secondary antagonist for the first three-four books or so, with Elaida starting having a massive role only after she stills Siuan and becomes Amerlyn (I think fourth or fifth book). We still haven't seen Andor and Elayne, so in the books, Elaida is still there. So it could be that they will stay true to the books, and bring Elaida when she is needed (likely next season cause we already know that Elayne will be in the next episode).

Maybe its a casting thing and not wanting to cast her too soon. but all the Liandrin is winning people over and her being more politicy (is that even a word, spellcheck says no) it just seems like a logical thing they might do to cut costs and keep the cast down. Hope you are right though, Will likely be season 3 maybe 4 before Elaida has any importance so heres hoping they don't. The show is just giving off them vibes. If it does having a black as both Amyrilin and Keeper of the Chronicles in Alvirian then it'll be kinda weird. Hope I'm wrong but ever since I read the theory I can't shake it.

 

[padr81]

A bit of a filler episode, but needed after the last one.

Liked:

- Logain laughing like lunatic when he sees the Dragon Reborn. I think the show is trying too hard to misdirect the people on who is the Dragon though.
- Showing what happens to the Warden when his Aes Sedai dies.
- Lan (and consequently) Moiraine's suffering. It is done perfectly well, Lan's actor is being a very good Lan, and Rosamund Pike is killing it as Moiraine.

Didn't like:

- The Whitecloacks being very near Tar Valon. I mean, what the feck. They already went a bit too far with them openly killing Aes Sedai in the show, but being so near them. 10 Aes Sedai would obliterate the shit out of them. Heck, a powerful one like Moiraine would be enough to destroy that little camp.
- It was mentioned already in the last epiosde, but are they really going to make some conflict between Moiraine and Siuan? I really hope not, but instead, they will play this as they are misdirecting the others Aes Sedai to look like enemies, when in fact they are best friends and with the exact same goal.

I agree on the open killing especially the flaunting of it. I got the feeling in the books it was more cloak and dagger with the Aes Sedai murders and they wouldn't flaunt the rings. I do believe they are allowed in Tar Valon though... isn't that how they recruit Galad in the books? The inn where Galad and Valda are drinking is in or at least close to Tar Valon. I think the Aes Sedai deal is they won't do anything to the white cloaks unless its actively defending themselves or someone vulnerable. So while they are treated like shit by the people of Tar Valon they do have freedom to move about the city. I could be way off as its awhile since I read.

The Moirane Siuan thing is probably going to be an overplayed version of the books where instead of open hated its was a fake frostiness in their relationship to cover up the hunt for the dragon.

Forgot to comment on the Moiraine/Lan scene, that was brilliantly done and good set up for later after her comments on learning how to release warders. I think Moiraine is gonna release Lan from the bond before she gets doorwayed so he can pass to Nyneave. Rosamund was absolutely brilliant in that scene even if the scene felt a little weird in general.

 

[Revan]

Maybe its a casting thing and not wanting to cast her too soon. but all the Liandrin is winning people over and her being more politicy (is that even a word, spellcheck says no) it just seems like a logical thing they might do to cut costs and keep the cast down. Hope you are right though, Will likely be season 3 maybe 4 before Elaida has any importance so heres hoping they don't. The show is just giving off them vibes. If it does having a black as both Amyrilin and Keeper of the Chronicles in Alvirian then it'll be kinda weird. Hope I'm wrong but ever since I read the theory I can't shake it.

Yep, it is possible that they will merge them. I wouldn't like it to happen, but I think it is alright, it will work for the story and make the antagonist look even more threatening (evil + powerful, instead of stupid + powerful)

I agree on the open killing especially the flaunting of it. I got the feeling in the books it was more cloak and dagger with the Aes Sedai murders and they wouldn't flaunt the rings. I do believe they are allowed in Tar Valon though... isn't that how they recruit Galad in the books? The inn where Galad and Valda are drinking is in or at least close to Tar Valon. I think the Aes Sedai deal is they won't do anything to the white cloaks unless its actively defending themselves or someone vulnerable. So while they are treated like shit by the people of Tar Valon they do have freedom to move about the city. I could be way off as its awhile since I read.

Yep, the problem is that they are so open about it. Valda burning Aes Sedai and keeping openly their rings, that would have never been allowed from Aes Sedai.

Forgot to comment on the Moiraine/Lan scene, that was brilliantly done and good set up for later after her comments on learning how to release warders. I think Moiraine is gonna release Lan from the bond before she gets doorwayed so he can pass to Nyneave. Rosamund was absolutely brilliant in that scene even if the scene felt a little weird in general.

Rosamund has been a perfect Moiraine so far. Really awesome performance by her. The show will suffer a lot when she is off, and considering that it might be a few seasons before she returns (and she is by far the most famous actress in the show), I am not even sure that she will return. Which would suck cause she plays a major role in the endgame, facilitating the grand coalition between Rand and Egwene, and assisting Rand in the final battle.

 

[nimic]

I wouldn't say Moiraine plays that big a role after her return. I was honestly a little bit disappointed.