re: Talk to me about Wheel of Time series.

quote:

---

Its one of the GOAT fantasy series

---

I read the series. You have to like it to actually finish it because it's so damn long. Someone already said the names are confusing/too similar and that's spot on. Jordan didn't do his readers any favors to keep things succinct and you have to slog through a lot of stuff but the main storyline is worth it and the world is great. The 'magic' system is also very cool.

After having finished that series, I said 'never again'. I'm glad to watch the up-coming show, but even thinking about reading it again gives me the sweats.

quote:

---

I've read the series already, but I'm now going through the audiobook versions. I'm on book 7 right now. It is such a great series. It's crazy to see how much Jordan foreshadowed what happens in the series in earlier books. Not looking forward to the slog I'm about to run through but I know whats on the other end of it thankfully and will power through.

---

I've found that outside of Book 10, it doesn't really grind on me as much anymore. You can skim it pretty solid.

And yes, Jordan's foreshadowing is incredible throughout the books. He sets up character traits to highlight how someone will react like 5 books in advance. I love the little subtle hints of world building, little artifacts they discover, etc. Plus with so many books, the character arcs of people like Egwene, Rand, etc. are just fantastic with several distinct sections.

I haven't ever heard of a spinoff trilogy planned before - there may have been something in his notes but he had a bunch of random shite that was a little all over the place, some contradictory ideas, etc.

He did have the ending of last battle and epilogue pretty well planned out though from what I understand

quote:

---

People always mention the Mat hiccup when Sando took over, I didn’t notice a difference besides Mat might have been funnier? I got my friend and wife to read the series and they didn’t notice a difference either, Mat was their favorite character after book 3. We all loved the whole series, as everyone here has said struggle through the Elayne parts of book 10 and RJ returns to form in 11 while Sanderson brings it home from 12-14. Was it true RJ originally planned for a spinoff trilogy with a couple of the characters after the finish?

---

Sanderson got Mat's internal voice COMPLETELY wrong and it was extremely awkward. Its not just fans: Sanderson freely admits that he just couldn't find the voice there and knows he didn't do well in that regard.

Mat just isn't "Mat". Its hard to explain for long time readers who know these characters so well, but he's more of a clown than the rogue in those books.


As to the SPINOFFS:

Not happening. Harriet/Jordan's estate has said that those will never happen at this point.

quote:

---

Book 10

---

I just started book 9 and finally finished the incredibly long prologue lol. I thought I had just finished 9, but I was mistaken. That was 8.


Anyway, Book 9 (Winter's Heart) starts up with Perrin riding with the Prophet to take him back to Rand (Chapter 1 here, not the prologue). Up until this point Perrin and Faile have been probably my favorite characters. To go back to those of you saying they are the worst; is this something that occurs from this point going forward? (No spoilers please). Right now Perrin is unaware of Faile's capture, and I am going to start Chapter 2 a little later.

I'm just trying to figure out if the Perrin hate was all along or springboards from this point going forward? If it was something prior to this, what creates the dislike for the character? If afterwards, I'll wait and see how it plays out.

quote:

---

Anyway, Book 9 (Winter's Heart) starts up with Perrin riding with the Prophet to take him back to Rand (Chapter 1 here, not the prologue). Up until this point Perrin and Faile have been probably my favorite characters. To go back to those of you saying they are the worst; is this something that occurs from this point going forward? (No spoilers please). Right now Perrin is unaware of Faile's capture, and I am going to start Chapter 2 a little later.

I'm just trying to figure out if the Perrin hate was all along or springboards from this point going forward? If it was something prior to this, what creates the dislike for the character? If afterwards, I'll wait and see how it plays out.

---

Oh. My bad. thought you had finished.

Yes, I don't want to give too much away, but the next two books with Perrin/Faile are...slow. Very very slow. It is NOT hate for Perrin the character but for the Plotline for the next few books which isn't overly entertaining.

Again, without giving anything away, Book 9 has one of the biggest moments in the series, but it can be slow.

Book 10 is EXTREMELY slow. You kind of just have to get through it because the rest of the series is pretty breakneck from then on out, at least in terms of WOT.

I never liked Faile either.

Rafe Judkins, the showrunner for the Amazon Wheel of Time show, is on record saying that Faile is one of his least favorite character in the entire series, and that he plans on changing her a little bit to make her a bit more likeable but still keep the essence of her character alive.

quote:

---

Things I have been reading make me not excited for this series. Mainly that the showrunners are saying that they don't need to follow the books in order, and that they can show stuff from later books in the first season. Also they are making Morraine the main character.

One of the nice features about this book series is that there are no true main characters. Sure Rand is the focal point, but page time is about equal between all the main cast.

---

THIS POST IS FULL OF SPOILERS UP TO BOOK 8 or 9

There are things not to like about Rafe's approach and some of the changes they are making, but the "books not in order" thing is definitely not one of them.

Here's why:

They are not adapting Eye of the World. They are not adapting Lord of Chaos. They are adapting Wheel of Time. Once you are through the series, you will realize that there are some things that RJ didn't know where he was going early on and didn't figure out until much later

This is a 14 book series. They will be LUCKY to get 7-8 seasons to adapt it. GOT had to rush their ending because 8 seasons was too much essentially. So a lot of things have to be cut or go. They will never get even 10 seasons. Its a streaming show and those shows have short leashes.

Also, unlike GOT, they are dealing with a book series that has an ending. It is finished. So they need to get from Point A: Emond's Field to Point Z: The last battle. Having an ending let's them plot out 8 seasons (specifically mentioned by Rafe), where they can accelerate timelines that need accelerating (Mat!!) and just cut out trash that ultimately doesn't even matter to the end of the series (The Bowl of the Winds, the long ongoing Shaido plotline, the Coronation, Masema/The Prophet, etc etc etc).

Its important that they adapt Wheel of Time, not individual stories.


As for Moiraine being the "main character"...I don't think she is. I think they are selling that because Rosamund Pike is by far the most famous person in the cast (followed by Alvaro Morte, in an expanded Logaine plot which I LOVE), and they have to sell this series to the masses.

But I very much think while Moiraine will have an expanded role, this will be ensemble. They also want to mask who tDR is for as long as possible.

What worries me more than anything is Rafe has some definite SJW tendencies and that will bleed into the work. Also his favorite character is fricking Egwene, like a psychopath.

This is also getting into heavy spoiler territory, but...

He does plan on changing the relationships quite a bit. For instance he has hinted that the Rand/3 Lovers plotline he does not like very much, and plans on changing it from Polygamy to Polyamory, implying that the girls will have relationships with each other (Elayne Aviendha is heavily implied in the later books IMO but not explicitly). I think some people are going to hate that.

Also, Brandon Sanderson has read the scripts and seen some of the filming, and his comments were VERY reserved, and he implied that there would be some controversial changes that he was having a hard time wrapping his head around. We will see.

quote:

---

Brandon Sanderson has read the scripts and seen some of the filming, and his comments were VERY reserved, and he implied that there would be some controversial changes that he was having a hard time wrapping his head around. We will see.

---

This is very concerning then, because Sanderson understands and even supports changes from book to screen. I saw him talking about it once, and he was saying that it's necessary due to the limitations of screen time. So for him to be showing reservations that tells me the changes they are implementing undermine the series.

Its implied from people in the know that BS wasn't ready for some the basic structural changes that they have made in terms of Point A to Point B story.

It seems that the essence of the characters and story are mostly in tact.

And I think what he wasn't crazy about are some fairly major changes that are rumored. If you want spoilers for the show I can give them.




SHOW SPOILERS






There is a current theory that Perrin is getting married on winternight, and then the Trollocs come, ending for him in tragedy. Gives a reason for his sadness and aloofness, and his hesitancy towards Faile. BS has been on record that he does not like this plotdevice in story telling, so most people think this is the one he is uneasy of.

It is also theorized that they do not go to Caemlyn at all (its a practical matter of sets), but instead Tar Valon. They don't meet the Andoran Royals at all until S2.





END POSSIBLE SHOW SPOILERS