#i think i ship perrin and rand

[readingwithemi]

Something something Perrin going to Rand - the freshly minted Lord Dragon - thinking he's finally gone insane, ready to confront him about a possible attempt on his life, but instead finding a bloody and exhausted mess of a man and immediately helping him because it's still RAND and he's badly hurt and it - for right now - doesn't matter that there's a prophecy and they've all changed.

IDK man, I got the bit where Perrin is gently holding a wadded bit of cloth to Rand's side and I've been quietly going feral for days at the thought.

Again, I think there are such DEPTHS to this friendship that could be plumbed (tbh I think this is true of all the relationships in WoT) but I suppose that's what fan theories and fan fiction are for!

[markantonys]

i LOVE how often cauthor fics are about or have a backstory of rand and mat practicing kissing As Friends. i've never seen a ship use that trope as much as cauthor does. it really attests to the unparalleled levels of idiots-to-lovers foolishness these two have.

[butterflydm]

Wheel of Time 3x05 - Tel'aran'rhiod

Spoilers through 3x05 of the show and through roughly Winter's Heart in the books.

Holy shit, they straight-up killed Natti Cauthon! And Bode is confirmed to be able to channel. The Perrin stuff was intense this episode! He and Faile went through a massive bonding experience together, saving Mat's sisters. Alanna and Maksim's storyline was also really good.

I am kinda feeling some death knells because of how much Moiraine and Siuan got to reconcile in that scene together, but hopefully they are wrong and Siuan will not die. But that was a lot of closure.

Cockblocked on my Randgwene breakup for yet another week but surely it has to happen next week. Even Egwene can't brush off what she just saw and pretend everything is fine and chill with Rand.

Okay, so going back to the things that I enjoyed (because the continued Randgwene is basically my only frustration with the show because I am so done with them but the show keeps dragging the corpse of their relationship out for yet another week).

I did really enjoy pretty much everything else.

I called it that Rand is convinced He Can Fix Her after seeing Mierin Sedai in the columns, and I also feel like the show made it pretty obvious that this is their first kiss in the dreams.

Ugh, Rand is in a weird place where he obviously should have broken up with Egwene a long time ago but believes he owes it to Egwene to stick with her because of all she's done for him and suffered because of him and... yeah. Ugly situation. But hopefully it resolves next week.

Rand in Cold Rocks Hold was lovely. Rand learns about polyamory! Rand gets to spend time with a kid and smile and be happy among the Aiel! Cute cute cute!

The Sea Folk ship material was amazing. The weaves looked like the Northern Lights! So pretty! And we did get a tiny reminder of Elayne liking Aviendha in her dream (that Egwene popped into -- that is very book-canon behavior from Egwene).

Mat and Elayne had a very amusing dynamic (probably not helped by the close quarters for 14 days on a ship!), and I am definitely intrigued to see where it goes.

Min had pretty much zero reaction to seeing Elayne. She was pretty much 100% focused on Mat. So that was interesting.

Speaking of! Mat mentioned the Rand thing this episode! And, yeah, so it's made him think that Min's viewings are not all they are cracked up to be, because Rand didn't die. So that scene worked really well for me (and the glimpse of his dreams was so sweet and heartbreaking! All the dreams were very sweet. And then there was the Randfear dream that Egwene walked into, oops).

Aviendha double-checking with Rand that wetlanders definitely don't share lovers, yeah there's no ulterior motive there. She's so mad at the fact that she finds him attractive. She is so mad about it.

Bair continuing her "please just break up" campaign with Randgwene by separating them as much as possible which, yeah, my god, I am there with you, Bair.

Yeah, I should get to sleep soon, so those are my thoughts.

I really do hope that Randgwene can break up for good soon so that I can look back at their relationship with a more objective eye, where I'm not just constantly going, "Why are you still together! You broke up in 1x01!" at the screen.

[mariailoveyou-guerin]

Oh Perrin you are lucky and so is she can I be your 3rd! when they are both HOT!! LOOK AT HER OR HIM GOD

their face OMG and their eyes yeah if they ever have baby first those babies are gods favorites and the wheels favorite because look at who their parents are the beauty they’ll have visually and inside a good pure person from what I’ve seen of her she seems great too

the chemistry between her and Perrin the tension why were they so good I can’t stop thinking about them still I liked egwene Perrin because their chemistry was so crazy but they took the cake the way she just naturally was talking to him like they known each other forever and how he was smiling and laughing he ain’t laugh much so it was nice the buzz the serotonin I got from them yeah it’s filling me up inside I need them bad now back on my screen and the height difference the buzz it gave me too like she’s two apples tall and he’s huge

It’s been while since I’ve loved a ship that gave me so much buzz and they are it (nynlan too) but this is new!

so good im hyperventilating! I liked egwene Perrin because their chemistry was so crazy but they took the cake! mat-min/rand(egwene) -avendtha is so good too!

my stomach actually gets🦋or flutters or whatever whenever they are in scene together and why are all their scenes so beautiful magical the setting and how she’s helping him without knowing him and the way she looks at him from side and him her buzz so BUZZY

also why does she look like Harriet a little in the eyes for me! what’s their ship name wolfalcon perrinfaile?

[sixth-light]

WoT 3x06 thoughts

Non-book spoiler thoughts: that was just a fun episode. Objectively things are not going so well for any of our leads but at least they get to smile occasionally while it goes wrong

Book spoilers aplenty below

At least one line of 'The Hills of Tanchico' is taken from the raunchy songs the Black Ajah make Amathera sing when she's their prisoner ('[These hills can] flatten a whole ship's crew') which is a delightful level of deep cut

Relatedly, while having a main character get on a bar and sing a raunchy song that she only realises is about tits halfway through is peak Robert Jordan energy, I really liked how feminist this scene felt. Elayne got to choose to sing that song and be enthusiastic about it once she realised the innuendo, the energy from the men in her party was 'haha whoops but we support you' not 'ha ha you're singing about SEX', and the focus on the dancing was on how the women were having fun with it and not how men were responding to it. 10/10, would Hills of Tanchico again, I desperately hope we get a reprise sometime (circus arc? a little circus arc for a patient fandom?)

On a different Tanchico note, while they don't seem to be working very hard on Min joining the polycule...I kinda hope that's coming up later because the queer energy of this Min in the polycule would be enormous and we deserve that. Yes men dating GNC women is a form of queer representation no I will not be taking correspondence on this.

Perrin and Faile are very cute. No idea what's going on with her backstory - I lean against it being a lie entirely because that would so profoundly undercut the sincerity of the scene, but I guess there's room for Very Big Misunderstanding? Maybe? IDK, I love Deira Bashere, this is slander upon her name! (I also did nb the 'my parents are generals' line, thank you show).

We all knew the Alsera thing was coming but oof. Amazing acting.

If that's how Sammael goes it's entirely appropriate. I think there's still a good chance it isn't because Lanfear described it as sending Rand 'a little gift' and the show!Forsaken are clearly much harder to kill than average, but if that is it: lmao

Staking all my money at this point on Liandrin dying in 3x08 to save Nynaeve or to make Nynaeve mad at Moghedien. This actually makes me less sure we're getting a version of the doorway for Moiraine and Lanfear in that ep because losing all those characters at once would be a big hit.

We're going to get Thom cluing Elayne in to Rahvin at some point, right? Possibly not until early S4 though.

Mat's luck showing up for the first obvious time with that bracelet, I reckon they're going for a slow build here where it will be obvious to show-first viewers in hindsight that this is where it started.

At this point clearly no Seanchan this season unless they arrive as a shock finale as the Tanchico crew scramble to get out of the city. I think technically this happened in the books but they didn't know about it?

If next episode is really all Two Rivers all the time, there's a lot to tie up in 3x08 - but I thought the same about 2x08 and they pulled that off, plus presumably they'll continue to get those extra ten minutes an episode. Only two more weeks!

[hikarielizabethbloom]

Shipper Goggles on.

Did I detect a hint of jealousy and disappointment, Egwene?

Doomed by the og narrative. But I'll never be be over you too.

(Shipping aside) Since the beginning of this journey, Perrin has always been the one to be there for Egwene, unconditionally. And I think that with everything that it is happening right now (with Rand), she misses him. She misses the way he always made her feel seen and safe. And to see someone else in Perrin's dream, someone she doesn't know, is a shock, for a moment. Because a part of Egwene thought she could always come back to Perrin. Perrin is home. And now she realises that home is gone. No turning back.

[thesevenwondersofawitch]

Spoilers for the season 3 premiere of Wot

Holy shit the rain oh my god Siuan is so beautiful

The yearning in Moiraine's eyes🥺😭

Ohhhhhh Liandrin is in trouble 👀👀👀

Oh I'm freaking oyt

You can practically feel the tension oh my God

Holy shit Siuan is being called out holy shit

Oh I'm screaming

SIUAN SHIT YOU'RE IN TROUBLE NOW HOLY HELL

Oooooooooooo Siuan outed Liandrin as a dark friend 👀👀

Oh if it is in the consequences of her own actions

Aw, the way Liandrin can't even look Nyeneve in the eye because she knows what she did

I kind of love how she was just like eh, I tried

Holy shit there are so many dark friends 👀👀

Alanna's boys immediately being like don't worry babe we're coming

Holy shit! Siuan really hit Liandrin hard lol

Siuan has fallen omg!!!

My poor babe oh no, no they're black Ajah

Oh shit things are really going to hell

No the good Ajah have been hit noooooo

Siuan my poor babe🥺

Nooooooooooo Verin's sister doesn't know who she is😭😭😭

Why do the dark friends kind of look like the poster for like a rock/indie/folk band 😂

Ouchie (Liandrin getting stabbed)

NOOOOOO SIUAN!

Oh Alanna I adore you🥰

NOOOOOOOOO IHVON😭😭😭😭

Moiraine's always out here stating the obvious and I love her for it

Oh no Siuan 🥺

Oh my God Siuan's wifey shielded her 😭😭😭

The way Moiraine's face shows so much and then she strides away and Siuan moves to follow her before stopping herself 😭😭😭😭

Oh my God, all the warders are dead🥺

Damn they left my girl Nyeneve to die 😭😂

"Why does she always want to leave at dawn?" Me

Awwwwwww they're going to Tear 🥺 the place of Siuan's birth

The way that Aviendha's fellow warriors are watching her interact with Rand, they can tell there's something there lol

It's the classic enemies to lovers

Aw girl talk with the trauma bonded three🥺

Nooooooooooo 🥺 the way Egwane has PTSD my poor girl🥺🥺

Matt you are really the worst at staying undetected 😂😭

Oh Mat, Rand has done wayyyyyy more then kiss another girl, he did the do with a Forsaken 😂

Oh dear, he isn't lying but he's also not telling the whole truth 👀

Oh who is sheeee? (I thought it was Moiraine, but now I'm thinking it's Lanfear)

Ooof, poor Verin is beating herself up 😭😭😭

Mat it's me coming in to a conversation not realizing the vibe has changed LOL

OH SHIT IT IS LANDFEAR

Oooooooooooo Lanfear and Moiraine may have common ground 👀

Oh damn Moiraine seems a bit surprised that Lanfear thinks she will hurt the others in order to get to

The way Moiraine stopped dead in her tracks at the sight of the two guards outside their place 👀

Siuan is discussing stuff 👀

Oooooooooooooooo👀 the way Egwane just flat out said she won't go back is a vibe and so much growth in her character

The way Moiraine is eavesdropping👀😂 (completely Fair considering everything)

I'm low-key obsessed with Siuan's dress in this next scene👀

Aw, Nyeneve is still haunted by what she saw in the arches, and the way Lan immediately knows that he was part of what she saw 😭😭😭😭

Well now I ship Elayne and Aviendha

Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh👀 so this is the scene we'd gotten stills from👀 with them all decked out in fancy armor

Ha, Rand asking questions like a child is a mood

Damn, Moiraine really just got straight to the point, telling Rand he can never go home

Ha, Egwane flat out telling Siuan that she's unaccepted now so she's going to Just bounce lol

Siuan's bafflement 😂 like Egwane did say she'd go back to the tower today if she was made an accepted, which she did do she didn't say she would stay lol

Awwww the way Moiraine is looking long angry at the tower where her wife is 🥺🥺

"To seeing double and staying single"😂 Mat is a vibe lol

Mat you should listen to Perrin

Oh I ship Aviendha and Elayne so fucking hard

Oh my God I am screaming!!!!!! Get it!!!

Ok I can't be the only one who doesn't ship Rand and Egwane? Like no thank you

Awwwwwwwwwwwww🥺 the way Moiraine is fighting with herself looking at the tower 🥺🥺🥺 she misses her wife 🥺

Aw, Nynaeve trying to help Mat🥺

Wait, Lan glaring back at Moiraine who shakes her head? Moiraine has been messing with them to get them to split up from Rand

Aw, the way Lan immediately ran to Nynaeve when she called for him🥺

OH NO HE STABBED HER

Oh good Moiraine was able to heal them

Nooooooooooo they were working with Lanfear😭😭😭

Yeah, it went very far lol

Aw, Egwane saying she won't go anywhere 😭

But also I still don't ship them lol

Nynaeve apologizing to Lan when he secretly knows the whole attack was partially his fault🥺

Aw they're holding hands

OH MY GOD HE GAVE HER A RING FROM HIS MAMA

He wants Nynaeve as his queen 😭😭😭😭😭

Oooooooooooo the subtle hand holding between Elayne and Aviendha🥺😭🥰

Mat about to say the white tower resembles a dick is fabulous 😂

Oooooooooooo 👀 Mat going against Moiraine to go to the Aiel waste

Who's the dude that's suspended by webs? Who is Jaichim?👀👀

[highladyluck]

Wheel of Time season 3 episode 1 Liveblog

Chesmal uses HEAL. It's SUPER EFFECTIVE

oh no it's giving Anakin Skywalker

Mat honey this is how you develop kinks. Both the ones in your neck and the ones that are going to get you in trouble later

Lan: "She'll be all right" me: "She will not, in fact, be all right"

Classic Verin

Love the Red girl gang Oh, shit got REAL with no other Reds

Leane's bonking staff

I see your true accusation [about letting the Dragon go] and raise you another [darkfriend] Oh DAMN are they gonna Oath Nyneave? "I tried" now it's go time

Wow that is way too many [Darkfriend] Sitters ooof Nyneave :( [Liandrin choking on blood] oh jeez

Verin like 'let's go to the armory' oh no it's FUCKING CHESMAL EMRY Chesmal WTF Oh wow, is that an own goal for the BA? actually maybe it kind of implies that she knows. Very ambiguous.

Joker Liandrin it's so interesting that the Black Ajah in the tower is so public so early ok why are we sending the shortest person to grab all the stuff? rude

hot DAMN Alanna that's a lot of swords. but unfortch Chesmal uses HEAL. It's SUPER EFFECTIVE cool Air sword fist and bye-bye Ihvon, we knew you were doomed

the ringing of the bell compels thee Moiraine with the assist? yep [shot of the destroyed Hall of the Tower] It's called symbolism, sweaty

"These ridiculous Tower rules" -Egg (lmaoooooooooooo)

Egwene did her homework on the Prophecies Lmao was that Mat Old Tongueing? Ok who do we think could actually keep the Aiel in. come on.

Mat like "ugh I hate it when there are reasons I need to obey the rules" …MAT DID YOU LEARN NOTHING

Nyneave's look of sympathy is coming off as weirdly aggressive to me homoerotic trauma :(

Mat honey you are having a manic episode or something Lmao Mat do not go there re: fated lovers

I SUPPORT BAIN AND CHIAD PEGGING MAT …Mat making it weird

Verin is taking the failure of her research project very seriously

Perrin you gotta get over yourself [it will take so long] awwww faith in Mat <3

oooh miniatures mentioned! I love these references to the material culture of the books so much

GASP it's HER …I ship it oh no [Moiraine/Lanfear] "Ishy was a gentle soul with big dreams" I mean… kind of? "coming to him in his dreams" …more than to him. if you know what I mean. where is this 'we' coming from? Man the Tower of Ghenji is gonna be LIT good luck with that [killing her]

LMAO drag Elayne to filth oooooh neat lion windows "I would do anything for love… but I won't do that" we'll see about that [Nyneave not being strong enough against the Forsaken]

Accepted Test!!! Thanks for giving her clothes you know, there's quite a lot of doorways/archways in this series

The reference to Nyneave's regrets about the arches/potential lives is a great setup for the Aiel rings

…Elayne, do you know the price of apples? GAY!!! AVILAYNE REAL

Study session with Loial <3 "Impregnable" my brain: "preg it"

Elayne here with the logic God we stan a bi queen princess

WHAT BANGER OUTFITS oh no it's giving Anakin Skywalker yeah foreshadowing OH MAN what a good smash cut [to bloodied Egwene]

Lan get therapy challenge ok yeah they'll come after you guys too, but not Demandred. Demandred is gonna be homoerotically obsessed with Rand

high alcohol tolerance Elayne- a departure from canon but it works here Elayne's eyeroll is great. Loial taking notes Mat honey this is how you develop kinks. Both the ones in your neck and the ones that are going to get you in trouble later

Damn girl you know how to flirt [at the 'it will be lonely' line] YEAH!!! Elayne tops (for now)

Rand that sounds kind of self-absorbed hmm, the 'did I hurt you' is interesting. more the opposite lmao Everyone needs therapy and all we have is Graendal. And we don't even have her yet

Mat needs to be a better kisser. Either that or he's already into being stabbed, which is good news for him I guess

I love Mat and Nyneave's relationship oh interesting! I like it! The memories come from the Horn yep, lotta memories of people dying. PTSD for everyone. You get PTSD! And YOU get PTSD! EVERYONE GETS PTSD <3 at the Mat and Nyneave interaction again. Unreliable narrators who can be honest with each other

I would give EVERYTHING fora way to pause on that 5-card spread. That one on the bottom right better be the Empress

Bubble of Evil time! I wish it was not so dark :( I can't tell what's going on Mat paralyzed and not paying attention while Nyneave gets stabbed- that'll give him a jolt right to the saving women complex. He's going to feel like he owes her protection now

'no one got permanently hurt' ok but have you considered the psychological damage? grey man! (Moggy?)

Rand buddy you gotta work on your god complex. (make it even bigger!) GUILT [from mat] and a vote of confidence in Nyneave as well, right when she needs it. Mat is really good at supporting his female friends when he isn't being self-absorbed. This makes sense although I'll miss Mat in the Waste.

Engagement <3

AVILAYNE REAL Nyneave with the good therapy to remember who he is despite what he may become

YEAH LET'S GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

…WAIT but how is Mat gonna get his hat? We need Lanfear to sell it to him

Shit is this Elyas? oooooh it's Carridin! Man, Semirhage is gonna be a different kind of freaky

really like the 'to lead is to know where you came from' in the preview- reinforces the ending episode themes step back in time w/ each step forward wooooo Sad Bracelets ooooh Egg vs Lanfear

[star-dust-and-stories]

WOT s3 e5 thoughts

this episode already had an uphill battle coming off of the work of art that was last week's, but it was a very solid one nonetheless! a handful of surprising developments and some strong character moments made for a very moving watch. more specific thoughts below, spoilers under the cut!

moiraine using sakarnen was absolutely ethereal.

the music when rand and co entered cold rocks hold was stunning?

rand with rhuarc's granddaughter, all this man wants is to be a dad!

you know, i haven't had long enough to form an opinion on elaida, so this is certainly an impression!

this sequence in the dream world was lowkey terrifying.

i'm sorry when lanfear said her line all i could think of was "we've been waiting for you all summer and we're so glad you're finally here!"

mat and elayne, i just know they're sick of being on a boat together. unfortunately i am on elayne's side since i am always the trip planner, sorry to my king matrim cauthon.

egwene, elayne, AND nynaeve all pretending to be aes sedai and hoping the tower does not find out LMFAO.

1) mat must be absolutely baffled at how he keeps running into min and 2) him ditching elayne and nynaeve once his bestie shows up is gold.

it is absolutely evil how this show keeps cutting from mat to his family or vice versa!

OH SHIT one of the twins channeled! and natti...

alanna and maskim divorce era, i think i've seen this play before...

the malkieri continue to get to me. a culture, forever exiled from their home, and lan, their last king, not even knowing his own people, OH MY LORD.

i did laugh a little when moiraine confessed what she saw in the rings and lan decided to have them drink themselves into a stupor. but on a serious note, their relationship is really one of the cornerstones of the show, and i continue to love it.

rand and egwene on the other hand, PLEASE BREAK UP.

"and, i'm not gonna kill myself. well, probably not..." realest thing mat cauthon has said /j

seafolk channeling is so beautiful!

min, mat, elayne, and nynaeve forming the liandrin guirale hate club.

elaida just KILLED AMICO?

WHY DOES EVERYONE KEEP GETTING STABBED?

earlier in the season i was wondering where the writers would take natti cauthon's character considering the background they gave her in season 1, but i wasn't expecting her to just DIE.

dain and perrin as a ship is unexpectedly compelling me now.

also, if i had nickel for everytime the two of them went at it while perrin's girl bestie of the week beat the shit out of five whitecloaks, i'd have two nickels!

alanna and maskim having a couple's fight, 10 dead 2 injured.

not rand "i can fix her"-ing lanfear, i fear this may be a lost cause!

the siuanraine reunion was devastating as expected, OH MY GOD.

the dream sequence at the end was so beautiful! nynaeve with elnore, elayne with aviendha(!), mat with his family, perrin in his forge, each moment was so emotional. and then rand...

anyways, the theatre kid in my heart is VERY excited for next week's episode, so tune back in on thursday!

[brotherconstant]

Hellllo, wanted to ask what are your thoughts on Wheel of Time s3 ending?

hello! let's get the bad out of the way (putting everything under a cut bc this is going to end up in the tags since i didn't censor the character names)

siuan's death -> i strongly contest both her death, as in her character being removed from the story and its future developments, which are going to be the poorer for it, and the modality in which she was killed off. i think even tv-fans that haven't read the books - such as myself - could tell that siuan's character potential was barely explored and had yet to take off, even before season 3 and the finale. and i read posts stating that siuan's arc begins in earnest after her stilling, so judkins's decision to kill her off before exhausting her potential - which again was never properly delved into outside of her relationship with moiraine - and to use her death as a catalyst for moiraine's battle against lanfear shows incomptence and - surprise surprise - a tendency to neglect characters of color, especially women, and to deny them a dignified, comprehensive development - unless it serves another (usually white) character, moiraine in this case. it would have been interesting - even as a parallel to moiraine's losing her power in the previous season - to see siuan's role change after being stilled, the new ways she could have contributed to the battle, her coming to terms with it, especially because it would have added to one of the show's main themes, the divide between channelers and non-channelers. other people have spoken about the unnecessary brutality of her death.

as a consequence i couldn't fully enjoy the moiraine/lanfear fight, a shame since i adore their dynamic and chemistry + i love watching moiraine and lan fighting together + i was anticipating this fight after the rhuidean visions, so it was doubly ruined for me. rosamund's and natasha's acting was 💯 as usual, too bad it was in service of the worst scene in the show.

tanchico's arc being hurriedly wrapped up -> i'm going to be very short: what the fuck happened between nynaeve overcoming her block and parting the waters & the gang getting on the ship/liandrin going to moghedien. the pacing was weird. it's was a climactic moment and it was cut off so abruptly, i honestly thought my stream wasn't working properly and that some stuff was missing. idk something went wrong in post-production, at least that's my perception.

no lews. you will hear from my lawyers.

the good

MOIRAINE AND RAND MOIRAINE AND RAND!!! loved the scene where he expressed his gratitude to her, moiraine's being so affected by it. their bond is one of my favorite things in the whole show.

egwene's refusal to kneel to rand WE LOVE TO SEE IT!! ending the season on that note was great i'm sure it's not gonna eat me alive for the next year and a half, whatever. you made the whole world bow and the only one who wouldn't was me!!!! yay.

nynaeve breaking through her block and parting the waters on passover, you can't make this shit up. as i said the pacing needed some work but overall it was a good scene in itself.

elayne is my least favorite character but i enjoyed her in the tanchico eps. i can never really connect to her character or even see her as an integral part of the show (sorry, not hating, don't come at me you'll all be ignored) sometimes, but she gave us the hills of tanchico! including her in the good because i'm trying to be optimistic for what's to come.

i'm considering 3.07 goldeneyes as part of the finale, what a perfect episode. perrin aybara you're literally THEE character. also alanna not-dying one more time (they need to stop doing that oh my god), the twins avenging their mother in the most poetic way possible, and aram finding a new home in the two rivers... wah. daryl mccormack is a phenomenal actor. his screentime is minimal but his impact huge. i wish egwene had been there with them too, though i guess she was through her mom, marin.

mat and min continue to be one of my favorite dynamic. what's the point if you don't pepper in some betrayal and some misleading/averted death visions, what's the point if you're not both cursed. i really wish we'll see more of her, kae alexander is fantastic and she gives an amazing performance, whatever the mood of the scene. also i love a good 'if you wanted to kiss me you could have just asked' moment. gets me every time.

the forsakens keep serving it's what they were born to do.

[jaqobis]

sorting out some finale impressions after sleeping on it

it's like.

moiraine being able to burn the ships despite the oaths; the protracted scene of renna's murder; perrin going into a rage and killing bornhald senior; rand one-shotting turak etc; mat stabbing people left and right with the dagger; nynaeve torturing the sul'dam but that plot coming to nothing (returning to that in a moment). like i read the interview, i know what the rand scene referenced. i can imagine the perrin scene was buildup for fear of the wolf. it's not that i just don't get it.

but like did dain necessarily need Valid Reason to hate perrin lol. again, i can see what they're doing. but What If The Whitecloaks Were Here To Fight The Seanchan -- which, yeah, they do oppose the seanchan in the books. but the specific framing of them to help and whatever, when no one else was willing to. specifically also throwing siuan under the bus bc allegedly the amyrlin also got a letter about this. even if this turns out to be a lie, this is the standing narrative for now, and in combination with everything else they did with siuan this season, yikes.

i read the interview, i know what the rand thing was referencing, but also that's a scene of rand acting in self-defense against darkfriends that were literally about to murder him. if he'd struck a second later, or waited, they might have succeeded. more importantly that's where he's in a situation where people have been trying to murder him literally day and night for, like, months. he hasn't slept in as long. the context is totally different. there is also a rand scene in TFOH where he talks about how it feels unfair to use saidin against non-channelers. you can just as easily argue that he Wouldn't do this.

i actually, personally, think it's very important for the egwene/rand parallels that her friends were there to save her from the seanchan, and that he later has to save himself from the box. i also think it was important for her development that she could know she has friends who would and do come for her. i also personally find that narrative much more satisfying, cool as her Moment was. i'd been spoiled about her killing renna going in, and like we can discuss morality whether rj was Right to ask if revenge is justice or if it's More Right for egwene to kill renna, we'd be here forever. i'm not really looking to comment on that. it is kind of a weird vibe to remove a meditation on violence, however, in a series that is anti-war, in a finale that seemed to make a lot of choices to depict and make this battle Cool, etc. that had us watch renna die for quite a long moment. renna certainly got what was coming to her, but idk.

Violence Is Cool. Traumatic Experiences Lead To Empowering Moments. that's the vibe it's giving.

lan continued to be used just to prop up moiraine and explain how she's feeling and talk about how good she is. at least daniel henney got a pretty cool fight scene!

tbf leaning on the whitecloaks and ishamael as sad and sympathetic has sanderson written all over it

making the sul'dam weak channelers seems to lose some of the hypocrisy central to the seanchan empire; losing some of the hypocrisy and deep societal rot undercuts the commentary on institutional-level change needed to remove the damane system. combined with the deaths of both collared sul'dams, that secret also goes lost.

(they certainly might bring it back and address it later, but arguing that It's 100% Coming, Shut Up & Stop Whining is just as much of a bad faith argument as claiming the show sucks bc hurin isn't in it. i can only comment to what exists now. also, frankly, i've been told things i was criticising previously were OBVIOUSLY going to be addressed in the finale and. weren't? so like.)

nynaeve really was allowed to accomplish nothing useful huh. no speech about justice, no part of the successful figuring out how to uncollar, no healing, no protecting her friends from forsaken, nothing. for all that elayne was immediately walking around everywhere after her dramatic wound, they could've just. let nynaeve do that.

like i obviously understand that they're showing the block is a real problem, which it is, but this is a choice that was made.

also not a single mention of ryma after her big sacrifice huh. it would add approximately 5 seconds to runtime for the wondergirls to talk about saving egwene and ryma at any point.

loial's speech about them all being heroes + mat's hero of the horn thing + crowds cheering (yes i remember the end of tdr) + etc etc really building up this idea of Heroism As Cool. could be something they'll work to subvert later but it's certainly an element that existed in the books at this point. that they've stripped out.

also like why even bother destroying the heron mark sword without the buildup of why it matters to rand or why its destruction was narratively impactful. unearned. rand saying he won't serve ishamael in a thousand lifetimes, unearned. there were plenty of other moments that didn't feel earned to me that escape me now, which. a shame!

i've already rb'd a post that laid out my feelings about rand thus far pretty well so i'll mostly spare y'all but. it's an incredible disservice to his character to take a scene where he tries to sacrifice himself for egwene/his loved ones, knowingly opens himself up to terrible pain, and thereby gets the wound that gives him chronic pain for the rest of his life and kills him, and make it...a mistake of mat's. like. yes, we've seen him try to sacrifice himself at the eye. there's nothing wrong with repeating this beat? it's called a consistent character trait. it was already a subversion of the conceit of a 1v1 op heroic battle. they tried to fix something that didn't need fixing, to make a point it was already making. also rand just immediately up and about after getting this wound, even with healing, where he was out for days in the book. it just doesn't bode super well for depiction of chronic pain sufferer rand al'thor. i don't doubt they intend to show us the wound breaking open etc etc but you're also undercutting significance on multiple levels out the gate. it bothers me! but i'm chronically ill with chronic pain so i'm not going to pretend this is some coldly logical clear-eyed opinion.

also perrin killing bornhald sr the same way he killed laila. except it's not even an immediate heat of the moment in the same way, he had to go out and find bornhald sr and stab him repeatedly and be held back. like i love hopper too (another death that felt really. gratuitous in handling.) but christ's sake. it's sure a Look.

tl;dr the themes??? ? ? the themes ???? ? ? and then i remember the sanderson of it all and i understand lmao.

[apocalypticavolition]

Let's (re)Read The Dragon Reborn! Chapter 36: Daughter of the Night

My posts spoil everything. EVERYTHING.

This chapter opens with Lanfear's moon and stars because Perrin is heading into her domain and secret meeting.

The Ogier wanted to talk about the events of the day, but Perrin, jaws creaking with the effort of holding his yawns in, thought the ship must have run far enough downriver by now to make it safe to sleep. Safe to dream. Even if they tried, wolves could not long keep pace with the sweeps and the current.

Perrin's denial is pretty funny. Sure, no one wolf can keep pace with you, but also you're more likely to be within range of a wolf at any given moment because you're traveling so much, Perrin.

But if you have the bar stock to make a knife, you accept it and make a knife, even if you’d like a woodaxe. No! My life is more than iron to be hammered into shape.

Again, Perrin rages against an uncaring universe that seems to view him as no more than another tool to be crafted. It's a shame Jordan didn't do much with religion because Perrin would have so much more vocabulary to express his angst if he was any kind of faithful.

He put a hand to his belt, seeking the comfort of knowing he could defend himself, and gave a start. His axe was not there.

Though skilled in combat, in Perrin's heart of hearts he's not a killer, and T'A'R respects that.

The fog began to thicken, until only his hand told him Hopper was still there, until a glance down did not even show him his own chest. Just gray mist.

Presumably this is either a security mechanism in T'A'R or some kind of border between it and a dream shard that Ish is operating out of. Either way it would be great security except for the fact that Perrin's got a ghost on his side. In Ishamael's own rage against the wheel, he seems pretty myopic about the fact that humanity and the shadow aren't the only things in the turning.

What he saw could not have been there, not unless he and Hopper were standing in midair. He could see nothing of the wolf or himself, as if neither had bodies at all—that thought nearly tied his stomach into knots—but below him, as clear as if lit by a thousand lamps, stretched a vast array of mirrors, seemingly hanging in blackness though as level as if they stood on a vast floor.

Pretty subtle Wrath of Khan reference by Jordan here, in that his villain isn't thinking in all three dimensions.

Some of the men around him wore ornate coats full of embroidery, others plainer garb, while some seemed to be naked, or in their smallclothes.

Perrin, being a natural dreamer who came here of his own talent, is allowed an outfit that doesn't match his actual state (his boots have been repeatedly mentioned even though he explicitly took them off). These people I assume reflect how they're actually sleeping right now, in fancy nightgowns or nude. Possibly this is because they aren't natural dreamers or possibly it's because Ishamael's a dick. Also I should note the places they mention: Tar Valon where Mat was, Tear where everyone's going, and Illian that Rand has to pass through. Other nations are not brought up at all.

Hopper shifted. He felt the thick fur under his hand and gripped it hard. Something real. Something more real, he hoped, than what he saw. But he knew that both were real.

Hopper's a pretty sweet mentor, going out of his way to comfort Perrin when he's afraid.

“Some of these tasks you have carried out. At others, you have failed.” Now and again his eyes and mouth vanished in flame again, and the mirrors flashed with reflected fire. “Those who have been marked for death must die. Those who have been marked for taking must bow to me. To fail the Great Lord of the Dark cannot be forgiven.”

I think it's reasonable to assume that this meeting is a direct sequel to the prologue of TGH, though the attenance list is probably not identical. Perrin only mentions men here after all, but we know there were women at the last one. Either Perrin missed some in the crowd or perhaps none of the women were given solely the "three ta'veren" task (or at least weren't also in the relevant parts of the world), and thus aren't here to chastise. Perhaps Ish killed a bunch already a few months back over the Seanchan retreat. Perhaps others are playing longer games.

Shock hit Perrin. He could never forget a woman so beautiful. She was the woman from his dream, the one who had urged him to glory.

And yet even though you're obsessing over Min's falcon vision, you're very much not running from this beautiful girl. Foolish kid! I would not at all be surprised if Lanfear were aware of Perrin and Hopper spying and she just doesn't care to tell Ish because it's funnier that way.

Only Gray Men and Myrddraal are denied dreams. Even Trollocs can dream.

That's an interesting statement. Remember, Trollocs and Fades are the same sort of thing, just Fades are the "channeling potential" humans. Apparently their connection to the Shadow and potential connection to the Source warps them a lot further than expected. And since they can't dream, they're ironically less real than everyone else!

“I am as great as I am. What have your plans come to? Three thousand years and more of whispering in ears and pulling the strings of throned puppets like an Aes Sedai!”

She's got a point. The Black Ajah has failed utterly at doing anything about Rand thus far, the Seanchan have been taken off the table for the time bing (and the Shadow would have done far better if they'd never been ON the table at all), and the Trolloc Wars only ensured that Rand had a quiet corner of the world to grow up in.

Your master claims you forever, Lanfear. Will you serve, or do you choose an eternity of pain, of endless dying without release?

It's funny how the last bit foreshadows the "why" of Ishamael's fall but that start bit is in complete contradiction to it all. Boy really has gone nuts.

“I serve the Great Lord of the Dark and none other. Forever!”

Well it's certainly true she doesn't serve anyone else.

And unless he had missed something, she had defied the Dark One. He had been told and taught that the Shadow could have no power over you if you denied it; but how could a Darkfriend—not just a Darkfriend; one of the Forsaken!—defy the Shadow?

You know what, Perrin? That's a very good question. You're way ahead of Rand on that front. Gold star.

The wolf gathered himself and leaped, up into the air. Up and up it carried him, until he dwindled to a speck in the sky, and a last thought came.

Hopper's become an angel, I guess.

Rand, and a ragged circle of Myrddraal and men and women his eyes seemed to slide right past. Dogs howled somewhere in the distance, and Perrin knew they were hunting something. Myrddraal scent and the stink of burned sulphur filled the air.

I will assume that these are nightmare Fades summoned up by Rand's tormentors, since we were just told Fades don't dream.

Light burned Perrin’s eyes, and pain seared everything.

This and Egwene's earlier encounter with Rand are the earliest form of his "don't balefire a woman" rule, I suppose. Sure the circumstances are a bit different, but I bet Rand still wouldn't have nuked Egwene in this dream, not right away. (Also the Shadow have done a great job of making sure that Rand never, ever uses TAR as a communication mechanism, so that's points to them and headdesks for me.)

It took knocking on five doors and being cursed at twice—the inhabitants of two cabins had gone on deck—before he found Moiraine. She was fully dressed, but sitting on one of the narrow beds cross-legged, reading in her book of notes by lantern light.

After her previous encounter with Perrin, Moiraine has decided to be a never nude.

“I had a dream,” he told her, and proceeded to tell her of it. All of it. He even pulled up his shirt to show her the small circle on his chest, red, with wavy red lines radiating from it. He had kept things from her before, and he suspected he would again, but this might be too important to hold back.

Just when I'm about to congratulate Perrin for being a smart boy he has to go and ruin it with that last sentence. Oh well. Points to Perrin for being the only damn good guy to believe in anything resembling open communication all the same.

What I am trying to make clear to you is that I do not think you will suddenly begin wielding the Power. You do not have to be afraid of that.

Looking at all the rambling that precedes this, rambling that Perrin rightly calls her out for even though she doesn't acknowledge it, I can't help but note that Moiraine is a terrible communicator. Perrin asks if his being open was important and she spends a whole paragraph on a fucking tangent. You really can't blame the boys for NOT talking to her.

“Do not question me,” she said coldly. “You do not know which questions to ask, and you would comprehend less than half the answers if I gave them. Which I will not.”

On the one hand, Moiraine is really tired of Perrin's shit, but on the other hand, the boy is scared and looking at the closest thing to a leader he has and she just goes, "Fuck off kid."

“Are you no longer uneasy about the One Power being used on you, then, Perrin? No, I will not Heal it. It is not serious, and it will remind you of the need to be careful.”

It's like she gets off on being withholding. Moiraine doesn't seem to understand that trust, loyalty, and morale are all earned.

He would not keep back anything he thought was important, but if Moiraine could be secretive, so could he.

I'm not even mad at Perrin about this anymore.

That was Perrin. It was! It was him, not a dream. Somehow. I almost killed him! Light, I have to be careful!

Jeez, Rand figures this out and he still avoids using TAR for anything useful. Damn Shadow.

Two steps brought him close enough, and he leaped into the air, spinning—Thistledown Floats on the Whirlwind—heron-mark blade carved from fire coming into his hands to take her head off before surprise could even form on her face.

Of course, the Perrin/Egwene dynamic doesn't mean that Rand's ACTUALLY following his "no decapitating women at the drop of a hat" rule. Dude is hella sleep deprived.

Her headless corpse, lying on the ground, had maintained its grip on the reins, and held the animal’s head down.

That's delightfully gruesome. Just sayin'.

Abruptly he channeled—not really understanding what it was he did, or how, only that it seemed right; and it worked, lifting the corpses. He set them in a line, facing him, kneeling, faces in the dirt. For those who had faces left. Kneeling to him.

I am going to guess that Rand has exactly one hour of restful sleep in the past fortnight. That seems like the level of sleep deprivation necessary to be pulling this crap.

Frowning, he peered at the line. He had been sure there were only ten men, but eleven men knelt in that line, one of them without armor of any sort but with a dagger still gripped in his hand.

This is maybe the Gray Man that Perrin's been smelling, assuming there aren't multiple hunting Rand down. So that just leaves the one question: is Rand right to think these are Darkfriends, with the Gray Man being meant as a the trump card in case Rand could best the rest, or were they all just really unfortunate bystanders the Gray Man was blending in with?

Next time: Everybody's on a boat I guess!

[markantonys]

okay, letting some potential s3 travel plans percolate.......the facts (and safe-feeling assumptions) are these:

the girls start at the white tower, and it seems everyone else is in tar valon as well (moiraine and rand are per a description of the opening scene shown at the con, and the cast have said in multiple interviews that everyone's together at the start of the season)

showverse has already established a waygate near tar valon, and there's a set report of a waygate near the two rivers for s3

rand is in the waste by 3x04, as that's his big rhuidean episode

rhuidean is just about the first thing that happens upon arrival in the waste in the books; not to say the same will definitely be true in the show, but it's a fair guess that rand might not reach the waste until 3x03

the other scene shown at the con included egwene in a desert-y location with moiraine, rand, and lan, so feels safe to say egwene will join their trip to the waste, as she does in the books

jorin the sea folk windfinder appears in block 3 (eps 5 and/or 6) per a leak on the actress's CV

i'm guessing perrin is set up nicely to take a waygate from tar valon to the two rivers. and he doesn't really have any dependencies on the other main characters' activities since he's flying solo this season, so he can head out anytime - we'll leave him aside in this speculation.

unsure what means the waste gang will use to travel there from tar valon, but a waygate feels likely as a replacement for the portal stone.

i have to assume that jorin's presence somewhere in ep5 and/or 6 indicates that's when elayne and nynaeve (and likely mat, perhaps also min) are voyaging from tar valon to tanchico on a sea folk ship. at first it puzzled me that they would remain in tar valon so late after everyone else has left, but i have an idea now!

so, i'm thinking the waste gang + tanchico gang have 2 full episodes in tar valon (relationship-building, prophecy research, bubbles of evil, accepted tests, tower politics, meeting elaida and the brothers G, egwene discovering dreaming abilities and being summoned by amys, rand learning more about the car'a'carn from the aiel trio, rand giving mat cpr if i'm lucky, etc). then episode 3 is when they decide they have to split up, with rand & egwene needed in the waste and the others heading off to chase rumors of liandrin in tanchico.

this way, they all leave at the same time and the tanchico crew is on their way by the end of ep3, but then perhaps their plotline is left out of ep4 (with the massive rhuidean A plot and maybe a small perrin B plot, this could be an offscreen travel episode for the tanchico crew), so we catch up with them again in ep5 on the ship with jorin and approaching tanchico.

alternately, everyone heads out in 3x02, and 3x03 features the tanchico crew doing something narratively valuable during a journey from tar valon to an ocean port city. alternately alternately, waste crew heads out in 3x02 and tanchico crew sticks around tar valon 1 extra episode before heading out in 3x03. regardless, with the info we have now, i think it makes the most sense for the tanchico crew to head out pre-3x04, sit out 3x04, and reach tanchico in 3x05 (with their first scene(s) in the episode being the girls learning from jorin as the ship is still en route). but who knows how much these speculations might change as we learn more!

[butterflydm]

Additional 3x05 thoughts

Spoilers through 3x05 of the show and through A Memory of Light in the books.

It does crack me up how Egwene INSTANTLY breaks her word to the Wise Ones. You've had a single night of training, girl! I mean, also very book canon - promising that she isn't going to mess around by herself in the dream only to proceed to do it constantly is fully book canon. That plus the fact that she is definitely letting them believe she's full Aes Sedai like she did in the books does make me think she's going to need to 'meet her toh' to the Wise Ones before she parts from them, like she does in the books.

We really do need 3x06 to fully judge the fallout of the Randgwene breakup but right now it's the only plotline that I'm like "idk if this is a change that improves the books". It's certainly more High Drama than an amicable parting would be, but in a way that can potentially flatten both Egwene and Rand in the eyes of viewers - Egwene by turning her into a symbol of a Perfect Woman Done Wrong; and Rand into a symbol of Cheating Man Never To Be Trusted.

Avirand continues to be perfection (which is why I'm trying to be "okay okay let the show cook" over Randgwene's break-up, because all of the Rand & Aviendha scenes; and our two Rand & Elayne scenes, were so wonderful).

I do want to rewatch the Moiraine & Siuan scene, for sure (I mean, I'll rewatch the whole thing this weekend lol), because I was getting "shit maybe they ARE killing off Siuan and/or Moiraine for real" vibes from how much closure the two of them got, but it could be foreshadowing for a long separation because of Moiraine moving to Finnland. Moiraine specifically saying that she's (Moiraine) not at the Last Battle, though...

Delaying the vote in the Hall because Siuan and Elaida have (temporarily) come to terms with each other really worked. I liked everything in the White Tower plotline.

Alanna and Maksim's plotline really got to me! Their mutual but clashing grief over Ihvon, and how they finally come back to each other at the end. <3

Perrin's plotline also really worked to cement Faile as someone that he cares about -- her insisting on coming with, and being a key part of saving him (and the shot of the two of them near the end of their scene in the Whitecloak camp reminded me, framing-wise, of Rand & Elayne's first meeting. Can't explain why. Vibes).

Everything with the Sea Folk ship plotline was great. I finally got the conversation between Min & Mat that I wanted in the previous episodes, where Mat mentions the vision of him stabbing Rand! I loved Elayne & Nynaeve learning about the Sea Folk. <3

And Elayne still wistfully thinking of Aviendha even as we're hearing Aviendha talk about how she doesn't get how monogamous relationships can even function and how you need more than one partner -- all of that feels like a great set-up for future Avirandlayne.

So, yeah, the only part I'm like... idk if I feel like this change works is the Randgwene stuff. Both Josha and Maddy talked in interviews in ways that implied that we would actually be getting broken-up Randgwene growing into being post-breakup friends, but with such a High Drama ending between them and only one episode afterwards (since 3x07 is a full Perrin/Two Rivers episode), it's hard to see how we get there. Their breakup in the books doesn't have a "bad guy" so I'm kinda sad that it feels like Rand is gonna be the "bad guy" in their breakup in the show.

[mariailoveyou-guerin]

rewatching the ep after I calmed down about wolfalcon I’m still so high on them may never come down from this high but the ship lady said”there is many ways to be a woman”and do yall think she meant like trans woman an the tower dont accept them? Bc that’s such interesting thought I mean trans woman who can or are able to channel I wonder how they’ll worked that in

‪Can’t believe I missed so much bc I was to focused and high on Perrin Faile they consumed me in this show! and they won’t let me breathe since they showed up!

‪what happened with Valda when the Whitecloaks where attacking alanna where was he‬? disappeared!

can’t get over all that unnecessary angst they gave! and fact Perrin wasn’t even trying to k1ll him 😂I know what you are Perrin! they knew not to give us Faile patching up Perrin (that’s my fav trope)saving the best for last can’t wait for next week ep im going insane

Egewne watching nynaeve teach her baby how to be a wisdom oh what a bi*tch I’m joking but why would she do this to us ? my poor baby girl nyn and the way fans hated on her and she still obviously not over losing her baby girl and keeps dreaming about her so ofc her powers aren’t coming back bc it’ll remind her of the last time she had it the power after 6+ years in there

how and why she lost it clear PTSD but h*es up on her a88 talking about she cant do channeling yall really said oh a pretty girl and said let’s hate for Faile Egwene Suian all you jealous h*es! Probably min Aviendtha too!

great ep do I wish we got more two rivers and seasick nynaeve yes please she was so funny cute and vulnerable that’s not like her, didn’t even mind most of the moiraine rand stuff even tho we had like a whole ep just about them just last week but igaf about rand being a cheater

like wbk knew fork found in kitchen can’t believe they gave that boring storyline abih him cheating instead of giving us two rivers any of them Alanna Maksim how they got there Perrin Faile like why was she on the horse did he tell her to keep a lockout why did join on saving

people she never met and don’t know? all this and more but nah we got rand and that old hag chasing a man for 3+ is she not tired embarrassed ashamed like girl stand the fcvk up lol sorry 😔! just wanted way more two rivers Faile Perrin arc especially since we didn’t see him/them

last ep and he’s like one of the main characters! just wanted less of rand just cheating really and more of them planing how they was gonna do it anything really like why was she on the horse did he ask her to be? Why would I care about a man who’s got like 3 views and gf being a man who cheats like that’s some salt is salty duh Sherlock sh*t! him with the Aiel people was fun cute yes him in his damn dream ain’t no ask for + he was hurting my girl while being all sad she left their tent he was more accepting of her learning this time then he was in s1 so

Guess that’s progress for him! remember how mad he was egwene wanted to be a wisdom 😂 meanwhile she’s supported him every step of the way since before she even knew he was the dragon and this what he does to her oh rand can ch*ke actually! She kept almost dy*ng for him im mad!

it’s always an man who can’t handle and don’t deserve a baddie getting them too😔life is so unfair! I know they doing this to break them up but there was better way like they grew apart they aren’t the kids whom been together since they were kids anymore life threw them apart ect

now I can’t figure out if he accepted Egwene learning with the wise ones bc he either felt guilty about all the cheating so he had no right to have an opinion or bc she wasn’t going far or bc this wouldnt keep her from having a husband/kids whatever it was I don’t like it at all!

[sixth-light]

WoT 2x08 thoughts

WoT s2 really, I haven't got to blog the season like I would have wanted because (checks notes) everybody in this household has been sick for a month and counting (do not recommend). No order here, just things as I think of them, full series book spoilers possible:

They really did stick the landing on this season for me, as well as line everything up so neatly for next season. I think S2 is really going to reward a rewatch.

Particularly re:Lanfear. I literally choked when she walked up to Bayle Domon and started talking about the pieces of cuendillar she'd sold him. I know the Dark Prophecy is probably still legit because we flashed back to Ishamael reciting it as he released her BUT ALSO I am now imagining her lying on her bed surrounded by screwed-up drafts as she tries to make it sufficiently ominous.

The Forsaken shenanigans this season have just smashed it out of the park and we only had two of them. I presume we're going to highlight one or two a season for practical purposes (and ofc TSR/TFoH are the Moghedien-Nynaeve books) so I reckon next season we mostly get Moghedien and...I guess Asmodean if we're doing that plotline at all?

Man I so liked my "evil Seanchan/less evil Seanchan" theory but the way they ruthlessly killed off every named Seanchan character this episode (yes we didn't see Suroth and Alwhin's bodies, but that seemed pretty fatal, they explicitly did NOT show any ships getting away) says to me that they want to put that plotline on ice until the Corenne and Tuon arrive. It could still work but we'd have to introduce more Seanchan nobles to make it happen...or...they could make the whole Extremely Dysfunctional Imperial Family dynamic real by having one or more of Tuon's siblings tag along. That was a very tell-not-show element of the books and then rendered irrelevant by Semirhage murdering all of them at once.

Extremely out-there theory: the way they're focusing on Moghedien being 'insane' and having Lanfear refer to the rest of the Forsaken as 'the boys' and being visibly wary of Moggy...what if they merge Moghedien and Semirhage? After all, Moggy goes after the Sad Bracelets first even if Semirhage is the one who uses them...

THE POWER OF FRIENDSHIP as that gifset going around demonstrates, this really was the theme of the season. I continue to love how much these kids love each other (and the lingering fear the show has planted that it won't matter, because look where Lews Therin and Ishamael and Lanfear ended up...). Totally bought that they would all just roll with running into each other like that when there was a clear and present threat.

Rand is still so much in his 'just trying to protect my friends' era, poor kiddo, we're going to see that get more and more worn away as the Pattern forces him into bigger and bigger confrontations.

MAT, goddamn, his story took a bit of time to get moving but looking back all the pieces are there. Everything about the knife-on-a-stick sequences was just. fjlkfsdjklfsadjlkfsd. Amazing foreshadowing AND a funny and effective piece of storytelling in the moment. Particularly enjoyed the use of the dagger to open the box with the Horn.

Re: Min's vision: I'm thinking that at some point next season someone will report back to her what actually happened and we're going to see an arc with her learning about her own power and realising that her visions can be partial or metaphorical.

Man I hope Egwene gets lots of nice things next season because this one has been (not unexpectedly) brutal. Completely on board with her killing Renna. I wonder if they're getting rid of the 'sparker/learner' distinction in the show, given what she said to Renna about sul'dam just being very weak in the Power. I also wonder what 'very weak' actually means coming from Egwene, who canonically in the show can hold up against a Forsaken for some length of time (another change I am fine with).

Fascinating to think about Perrin in 2x08, straight-up killing Geofram Bornhald for killing Hopper, vs Perrin in 1x08 deliberately choosing pacifism. I don't actually mind that they gave him some unquestionable culpability here; in the books it was always SO obvious he wasn't in the wrong that it felt silly.

Relatedly, I think what's going on with Nynaeve (to the extent that anything is, she certainly didn't suffer for screentime this season) is that like Perrin her PERSONAL plot actually stalls out around book 8-9 - they're slowburning her block storyline for the same reasons they're slowburning his Wolfbrother one, I reckon. I wouldn't be surprised if she doesn't heal stilling until much later in the show than the equivalent of book 6.

I didn't even notice that we left all the White Tower-related plotlines behind entirely this episode until I got to writing this post. FASCINATED to see where we pick up with Verin, Alanna, Siuan, et al next season...not to mention Liandrin

I haven't even talked about Aviendha! She hasn't had a lot to do beyond be introduced/introduce the concept of the Maidens and the Car'a'carn but it was solid set-up for next season and in line with how much she actually had to do in TDR.

My one big lingering question for this season is whether Ingtar isn't a Darkfriend on the show or whether he IS and they decided that his verbal confession wouldn't happen/work in the show and left it as a subtextual easter egg for book readers. I think both positions are arguable from the text, I'm curious what the intent was.