Includes SPOILERS for The Wheel of Time season 3 finale and spoilers from the book series.
The Wheel of Time’sseason 3finale has just killed off a Forsaken much earlier than the books, stripping away a novel’s worth of potential plot. Amazon Prime Video’s adaptation ofRobert Jordan’sWheel of Timenovelshas always been expected to be a distilled version of the enormous novel series, as it’d be impossible to fit all of its material on television. The TV series has already skipped over book three,The Dragon Reborn, and though they’ll return to its most important material later on, it’s still an entire novel of absent development.
Jordan’s novels are often criticized for being meandering and slow-paced, so it’s not entirely unreasonable to cut and paste the most critical chunks. At a certain point, however, it seems like the TV show is just going to have rearranged the entire order of events, and we’ll hardly be able to discern which season corresponds to which book later on. WithThe Wheel of Timeseason 3 ending, capping off the bulk ofThe Shadow Rising,the natural progression is to move forward to books five and six, though the contents of book seven have already been dealt with.
The Wheel Of Time Confirms The Death Of The Seventh Book’s Main Villain
Sammael Is One Of Several Premature Character Deaths
InThe Wheel of Timeseason 3, episode 6, Lanfear sent a powerful obstacle for Rand to confront, testing him asthe Dragon Reborn. Moiraine agreed not to interfere, and Rand barely survived the fight against the Forsaken, Sammael. If not for Egwene and Aviendha interfering, Rand would have been killed, but the two women gave him an opportunity to strike back, using the One Power against the villain. Itseemed like Sammael had died in episode 6, but he returned for one more scene in the season 3 finale.
InThe Wheel of Timeseason 3’s finale,we see Sammael return, where he’s quickly killed by Moghedien, one of his own. This eliminates the character, who would otherwise have been a major villain down the line in the Illian plotline. Following his release from imprisonment in the novels, Sammel establishes a facade as Lord Brend and takes over the Council of Nine, making him an immensely powerful figure in one of the largest cities and countries inThe Wheel of Time’sworld. Of course, this puts him on Rand’s map as a rival.
Books 7-10 are often critiqued for their slower pace and redundancy, so it’s possible they’ll be significantly condensed for the TV series.
Rand goes to confront Sammael inA Crown of Swords, and it will be challenging to make this plotline happen now, unless Sammael is replaced by another Forsaken. Given that there are only eight Forsaken in Amazon Prime’s adaptation, narratives like this might be thinned out from the overarching story. Books 7-10 are often critiqued for their slower pace and redundancy, so it’s possible they’ll be significantly condensed for the TV series. It’s hard to say whether this will be beneficial or ultimately detract from the story’s main themes.
How Skipping A Crown Of Swords Will Impact Rand’s Future
Will This Take Too Much From The Wheel Of Time’s World-Building?
InA Crown of Swords, Rand pursues Sammael to Illian, though the two end up facing off in Shadar Logoth. After Sammael is killed by the darkness of Shadar Logoth,Rand obtains the Crown of Illian, hence the book’s title. Rand might still obtain Illian’s forces in the TV show through other means, but the primary components of what makesThe Wheel of Timewhat it is are the differences in cultures and the vast assortment of factions and forces that ultimately fight in the Last Battle.
Jordan’s goal with the Last Battle was for it to be a world-spanning conflict.
The TV show can make up any number of troops to fight for Rand’s side. The details don’t matter as much for what exactly occurs in the Last Battle, and overcomplicating things too much might be an overwhelming challenge to depict on television, regardless. The books are repetitive and often redundant, but that’s part of what makes them so worthwhile. It’s a slow burn, andthe exploration of Jordan’s world-building is often equally, if not more integral than the story itself. Jordan’s goal with the Last Battle was for it to be a world-spanning conflict.
The more narratives like this the TV show skips, the less the Last Battle will ultimately feel like the one Robert Jordan planned and Brandon Sanderson penned. Thinning out unnecessary details is one thing, butremoving a villain and creating a ripple effect that could eventually strip down an entire plot point could dissipate the end result. A good portion ofThe Wheel of Timeis just Rand hustling around the world, dealing with one enemy or another, so it’s possible that several of these stories will just be consolidated into one season.
Egwene’s Storyline Could Still Happen In The Show
Image via Prime Video
A Crown of Swordsis still a hefty book, and, of course, the TV series won’t just ignore it entirely. I believe Illian will find its way into the show,perhaps with Rand dealing with the human council instead of a Forsaken threat. Otherwise, Egwene’s narrative is still very important. Beginning withLord of Chaos, Egwene becomes the Amyrlin Seat of the rebel Aes Sedai forces and is put into direct opposition with Elaida and the White Tower. We saw Elaida take over the White Tower in season 3’s finale, so we know this story is coming.
InA Crown of Swords,Egwene works under the mentorship of Siuan Sanche. Siuan wasn’t killed in the books like in the show, but is instead stilled and later escapes the tower without her powers. Though she eventually gains a fraction of her access to the One Power back, she mainly serves as a political player among the Aes Sedai, teaching Egwene how to manipulate her situation as the Amyrlin Seat. Because ofSiuan Sanche’s death in the show, I believe this narrative will go to Moiraine, giving her something to do during her absence from the novels.
There’s a third plotline inA Crown of Swordsthat occurs in Ebou Dar, following Elayne, Nynaeve, Mat, and Aviendha. Thiseventually connects to the return of the Seanchan, setting up a significant portion ofThe Path of Daggers. This narrative will likely be skimmed through and merged with material from book eight.The Wheel of Time’slater seasons will probably be pushing through these books at a much faster rate than Jordan did, and only time will tell if it benefits or detracts from the epic.
