I Read "The Wheel of Time" AFTER Watching the Show

Gonna say I like the idea of you seeing it as a person who hasn't read the book, but you definitely do a great job with the reviews approaching it either way.

LOL. I'm not surprised you don't have the time to respond. Unlike me, YOU have a life, and things to do. I really don't have much going on, which is why I was able to drone on for so long. I look forward to your opinion of the next book, "The Great Hunt".

David Lyse

Ahh I sadly don't have time to resond to all of this but OMG I loved this, thank you. I'm surprised that the show is more sexed up, as I would have thought teh books would be.

Jessie Earl

I'm really really excited to get to t he Aes Sedai politics, cause that sounds right up my alley!

Jessie Earl

Thank you for sharing this :-) I just wanted to comment that I agree that I found the show to be more sexed-up than the books, and the only relationship I enjoyed them adding was Moiraine and Siuan. I didn't particularly appreciate how quickly Nynaeve and Lan got together because I enjoyed their long journey together (especially their marriage). Thank you for highlighting something that I was annoyed at but unsure why.

Liz

I love the Aes Sedai politics of the rest of the books. I feel like the women get more focus as the world continues to grow, some of my favourite characters were the Aiel. The main cast end up split up most of the time. It's been a while since I read the books, but I remember feeling like the dudes have their stuff and women have their stuff but neither are more important or better than the other. I say keep reading!

Liz

Hi Jessie! I would like to start by warning you that this is going to be a long post. I am a huge fan of this series, having read "The Wheel of Time" when it was first released in 1990 and was the only book in the series. At the time, I had no idea that it would take nearly 20 years for the completed story to be published, so to say I have invested a lot of time in the series is an understatement. I have physically read all 14 volumes in the series, and I have listened to the audio versions (not the Rosamund Pike version) multiple times. In fact, I am currently re-listening to "The Crossroads of Twilight" at this moment. I highly recommend the “old” version of the audiobooks as the combination Michael Cramer and Kate Reading reading the various parts of the book is interesting. First, I would like to talk about the show. I was SO excited when I saw previews for the show, and from those previews, it seemed like it was going to be a great show! Having now watched all the first season, I can say that, as a stand-alone show, it wasn't bad. The special effects were well done, and it seems like the show has a decent budget. I felt that Rosamund Pike was a perfect choice for Moiraine. Rosamund looks the way I always imagined Moiraine to look. As an adaptation for a beloved book series, it was a steaming piece of shit! I have SO many complaints about the show, and what was done with the show makes me angry on so many levels. You mentioned that the show takes a lot of the book’s themes and ideas and “streamlines” them. I certainly agree with you there. I believe the writers/producers of the show have streamlined it so much as to nearly be unrecognizable as “The Eye of the World.” I also believe that the writers/producers have left out so much of the story that later seasons are very likely to be confusing or disjointed. I believe that, on a first read, the book may be scary to some people. However, having both read the novels and listened to the audiobooks so many times, I don’t get the same sense of fear. I will say that there are parts of the overall story that still make me emotional to this day. I won’t spoil things for you by saying what. On the subject of Fades/Myrddraal/Half-men (and many more), I also agree that the show didn’t do them justice. Nowhere in the books does Robert Jordan (RJ) ever describe Myrddraal as having a mouth full of pointy teeth. In fact, he emphasizes how, despite their total lack of eyes, Myrddraal seem like tall, thin men. I am also disappointed that the Trollocs lacked the variety that they do in the novels. In the show, they are all too like each other. I love the amount of detail that RJ put into his world. I can’t imagine how much “source” material he had to create before even writing the main story. The “Old Tongue”, the prophecies, etc. are all there to provide “flesh” to the “bones” of the story. Imagine how much blander the Lord of the Rings would have been without Tolkien developing the Elvish language and history first. I hated how the show portrayed “The Ways”. I felt they could have done much better with the sense of otherworldliness described by RJ. How the ways were pitted and crumbling, and how Loial describes them as once bright, and fully of light and life. The writers/producers missed a huge opportunity there. I also seriously object to the characters being caught by The Black Wind, Machin Shin. In the novels, being caught by The Black Wind was essentially a death sentence where your soul was ripped from your body, and your body torn to pieces by insanely jabbering voices. Had the show done The Ways justice with some information beforehand, I believe that their affect on the characters would have evoked much greater reactions from the audience. You are absolutely right when you say the first novel in the series has some “pacing” issues. I believe there are some places where the narrative is too drawn-out and would benefit from being tightened up. I am sad to say that the entire series suffers from this problem. If the story were condensed by tightening up the pacing, I would bet that the series wouldn’t be 14 books but would be closer to 12. I have a lot of issues with Perrin and Egwene’s adventures with the White Cloaks. The writers certainly took “creative license” with Perrin and Egwene’s interactions with the White Cloaks, and they used totally different characters. For example, it wasn’t Emon Valda that they met, but Geofram Bornhald, and no one ever cut up Perrin’s back. I also object to the way they treat Perrin’s eyes. The show makes it look like his eyes only turn yellow when he is angry (rather Hulk-like), instead of being consistently yellow. Elyas was also one of my favorite characters, and to see that he is left out entirely was very disappointing. My biggest complaint was how sexual the main characters were portrayed. In the books, the attitude towards sex (as opposed to gender) are far more medieval. The novel describes Rand and Egwene as all but "promised" to each other, but the show has them actually having sex and sleeping together. While I have no qualms about premarital sex in real life, in the context of the books, it is TOTALLY inappropriate! First, the young women of Emmond's Field needed the approval of the Women's Circle before they could even put their hair in a braid (thus signifying their attainment of womanhood), and it was typical for young people to be “betrothed” for an entire year before marriage. If the writers hadn’t “sexed up” the show, they would not have needed to “age up” the characters. I believe that Rand, Mat, and Perrin are only about 18 at the start of “The Eye of the World”, and Egwene is a few years younger than they are, while Nynaeve is older. You commented that the relationship between Nynaeve and Lan in the book seemed abrupt, but in the show made more sense. I would have to respectfully disagree with you. Having read all 14 novels, I know how long it really takes for Lan and Nynaeve to even admit to having an attraction to one another let along being physically intimate, and yet the TV series shows them having sex. Again, totally inappropriate! A self-respecting woman of Emmond's Field would never have premarital sex. While I am talking of sex, I am seriously annoyed by the show's portrayal of Moiraine and Siuan as lovers. Don’t get me wrong. I do NOT object to a lesbian relationship, nor alternative lifestyles. Like you, I am a trans woman. There are mentions of women being "pillow friends" later in the series, and there may even have been mention of Moiraine and Siuan being "pillow friends" when they were novices, but a relationship like the one shown in the TV series is a complete and unnecessary fabrication. I could go on and on, but I will end with saying that you should most definitely read the next books in the series rather than waiting for the show.

David Lyse

it's been a hot minute since i read the book and have been debating a re-read first or watching the series first. the review pushes toward watching the series first

Lori Lum

Jessie once again a great review. As to whether you should read the next book before season 2 I recommend against it. As someone who has read the entire series several times I find your outsider perspective very valuable. I knew going into the tv show that significant changes would have to be made. It's too big a series to do otherwise. But I find that what I think are good or bad changes is perhaps too influenced by my nostalgia and having the perspective of someone new to the material helps me have a better frame of reference for these changes and whether or not they add or detract from the story.

Kevin Freitag

Good take, Jessie. Yes: later books are more women-centric, with quite a bit of autonomy and agency. I'm re-reading the first book after many years and the LONG foreshadowing buried in there is really thorough!

Scott G