Before watching the first 3 episodes, I'd seen a lot of the bad reviews and heard about some of the changes that were made, and honestly it was depressing me a little bit. Could they really eff this up? I mean, all you have to do is stick to the story and eliminate the filler, get decent actors, and the show will take care of itself. The series is complete, the writers know how it ends, so they can build up to that from the very beginning. It's a slam dunk, in my opinion.
Thankfully, they haven't effed it up yet.
Before You Continue
- This blog is part of my The Wheel of Time TV show Retrospective
- See this blog post for an overview of the Retrospective
- These blogs are not plot recaps—they are most effective for those who have already read ALL the books
- Warning: CONTAINS SPOILERS FOR THE ENTIRE BOOK SERIES AND ALL TV EPISODES UP TO THOSE LISTED
This post covers the following episodes from Season 1:
- #1 Leavetakings (2021-11-19)
- #2 Shadow's Waiting (2021-11-19)
- #3 A Place of Safety (2021-11-19)
So What Did I Think?
While I didn't think it was "great", I enjoyed it and was not bored at all. A lot of reviews talked about how it went nowhere, but what are you expecting after 3 episodes? I mean, Game of Thrones didn't blow anyone away until Ned Stark got his head cut off in episode 9. People expect way too much these days and have no attention span.
There are a few changes from the books that I didn't think were necessary at all (Perrin with a wife), but despite that, not once did I groan or roll my eyes at some poor line or bad acting. All the actors are good and are playing their parts well. The pacing is just right, though I felt episode 3 was a little slow at times.
What I realized most about the story, though, now that I'm watching a TV version of it, is that it doesn't actually start very well. It doesn't in the books, either. There, many chapters are spent introducing characters and setting things up before our heroes leave the Two Rivers, and by that time the reason for them to leave is believable. It's a cliched beginning that doesn't work so well in a post-Game of Thrones world. Remember, A Song of Ice and Fire doesn't come out for another 6 years. Fantasy was different then.
In the show, obviously they need to get moving and can't introduce all the same characters right away. But getting everyone out of the village is a bit rushed and not as believable. I kinda wonder if they should've changed the beginning a bit more drastically to ease viewers into the story and world. Regardless, the important thing is to get them on the road.
Observations
The trollocs were awesome. Finally we get to see them as they should be.
I'm completely fine with how little Padan Fain appeared and the lack of Mordeth in Shadar Logoth. Those characters and all their combinations and evolutions go nowhere in the books. I'm sure Fain will reappear in the show, but I expect him to not last more than a few seasons, he's not really needed in the grand scheme of things.
The brief appearances of Ishamael (Ba'alzamon) in dreams were freaking cool.
Perrin having a wife and then killing her—which is definitely not in the books—was completely unnecessary, in my opinion. But whatever. Perrin is one of my least favorite characters in the series, so it's not like they could make him any worse.
The appearance of an Aiel early on was nice. I didn't even realize it was an Aiel in the cage at first... then I was reminded of Gaul (Book 3, I think). But it was a great moment to provide a lot of crucial information. Hopefully non-readers caught the hints they were trying hard to show you.
Focusing on Egwene when Moiraine talked about Eldrene of Manetheren destroying herself by pulling in too much of the One Power was a nice bit of foreshadowing, too. In general, there's quite a bit of that going on, and I'm sure there's some others that I missed.
Totally fine with their version of Thom Merrilin. I wasn't attached the white-haired long-mustachioed version. Him and Moiraine being a couple later on seemed odd to me anyway, they were somewhat incongruous. A lot of people seem to be up in arms about this version of Thom, I'm not sure why.
Mat didn't exactly feel like Mat to me since his upbringing in the show is very different from the books, but I can see how this version of him will lead into what he becomes later on. Unfortunately, Mat was recast for the second season, so hopefully the new actor (Dónal Finn) will do just as well, because I like the current actor (Barney Harris).
On to the Next Episode
I will definitely keep watching. I'm completely happy with it so far.
Regarding the complaints on the internet about the changes, people really need to find something else to spend their energy on. Maybe it's that thing I mentioned in the overview, about it not being special anymore for book readers. Instead of enjoying it, they have to tear it down because it's no longer their "thing."
I don't know about you, but I'd rather have more people interested in it, even if it's not exactly the "thing" I grew up consuming. It's lonely reading a series like this, because people don't read books anymore. Being able to share this with people who would never have read the books is a good thing.
The Wheel of Time TV Show
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2021-12-27 The Wheel of Time [Season 1] Episodes 4-5 (2021)
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