Because Of Wheel Of Time’s Season 3 Plan, I’m Worried This Major Character Won’t Be In The Show

The plan for The Wheel of Time season 3 creates concerns that one of the main characters’ biggest allies won’t have a presence in the TV series. Admittedly, Prime Video’s show has only covered the first two installments in Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time book series, leaving plenty of time for its TV adaptation to build its cast. But while the show may have several seasons left in its run, it’s not reasonable to expect every character from the books to appear. Being a TV version of a series comprised of 14 books understandably gives it a ton of material to tackle.

For that reason, it’s understandable that some Wheel of Time characters ultimately won’t get live-action counterparts, with many getting combined into one or simply getting cut altogether. After just two seasons, it’s already become apparent that The Wheel of Time has been forced to take this approach. Aginor, Balthamel, Hurin, and Vadene are all examples of characters the series has seemingly removed from its narrative. Naturally, this has generated much discussion over who else could be cut. And, based on the direction of the show, one of the many candidates for exclusion is much more important than those mentioned above.

Wheel Of Time Season 3’s Story Means Juilin Sandar May Not Appear

The Wheel of Time looks to be skipping the book that introduces him

Among the many allies the main characters pick up during their long journey to defeat the Dark One is Juilin Sandar, a thief-catcher from Tear. Juilin Sandar makes his first appearance in The Dragon Reborn when Nynaeve al’Meare and Elayne Trakand arrive in Tear. This results in a team-up between the three, who work together against the Black Ajah. But due to Liandrin’s Compulsion power, Juilin is forced to turn on them. However, he quickly redeems himself by teaming up with Mat to save them in The Dragon Reborn’s grand finale. But with The Dragon Reborn not being the focus of season 3, it looks like this story won’t happen.

Rather than continue on its current course and adapt the third book (The Dragon Reborn) for season 3, The Wheel Of Time is jumping straight to book 4, The Shadow Rising. That means that instead of moving the story from Falme to Tear, The Wheel of Time will head to places like Tanchico, Two Rivers, and the Aiel Waste. In addition to the repercussions that move could have on characters who experience significant character development in Tear, there’s also the matter of what impact that will have on Juilin, a person who lives – and debuts – there.

Juilin Sandar Is Far From A Lock For Wheel Of Time’s Show

Juilian Sandar isn’t indispensable

If The Wheel of Time doesn’t use The Dragon Reborn’s ending or Tear, Juilin Sandar could technically be cut from the story. Of course, his presence in the series admittedly extends well beyond The Dragon Reborn, but it’s important to keep in mind that if Nynaeve and Elayne didn’t bump into Juilin in Tear, he never would have been relevant to the books that followed. As a simple thief-catcher, it’s hard to imagine Juilin ever entering the picture at a later point had they not met in Tear. In other words, his entire role was built on what happened in The Dragon Reborn.

What’s more, Juilin Sandar isn’t exactly essential to the main plot, nor has there ever been any official confirmation that he’ll show up. He plays a key role in assisting key characters like Elayne, Nynaeve, and Mat, and also enjoys a personal arc of his own, but he’s still not on the same level of importance as the books’ biggest players. Not using Juilin would rob the TV show of some great moments, a fun character, a romance, and several memorable interactions, but none of these omissions would completely alter the trajectory of the story or be considered game-changers in any way.

Adding to all that is the growing size of The Wheel of Time’s cast. The books are packed with dozens of recurring characters, yet each season is limited to just eight episodes. The Wheel of Time has thus far avoided cutting someone as important as Juilin, but considering how many characters it already has on hand – not to mention those that still need to be introduced, like Elayne Trakand’s family – it’s unfortunate but also inevitable that some will wind up not getting the screen-time they probably deserve. Juilin could be one of these characters, and the setup for season 3 supports that possibility.

How The Wheel Of Time Can Still Use Juilin Sandar In Season 3

Theoretically, The Wheel of Time could always find another way to use Juilin Sandar if the writers were determined to use him. As evidenced by its handling of Min, Thom, and Elayne, The Wheel of Time has been willing to change the timing and locations of characters’ debuts before, and while Juilin’s case is a bit more complicated since Tear is his birthplace, it could still make his introduction work. Whether or not that will happen remains to be seen, but avenues for that scenario exist, thanks to the major role he holds in The Shadow Rising, alongside Thom, Elayne, and Nynaeve.

In The Shadow Rising, both Thom and Juilin are in the company of Elayne and Nynaeve when they look for the Black Ajah in Tanchico. Since Tanchico is one of Wheel of Time season 3’s confirmed locations, there’s a chance Juilin will be a supporting character in this storyline, even if he’s supposed to already know Elayne and Nynaeve at this point. Whereas the book saw Elayne and Nynaeve seek out Juilin’s services as a thief-catcher in Tear before leaving together for Tanchico, the show may hold off on their partnership until they’re already there. It could be that in the world of the show, Juilin is based in Tanchico, not Tear.

As far his Dragon Reborn arc goes, that too could get reworked for the show’s Shadow Rising adaptation. At some point, Moghedien or Liandrin could force him to help the villains, setting up an interesting redemption arc later on in the season. And since his main love interest – Amathera – is from Tanchico, it wouldn’t be difficult to make that part of his story. All things considered, it’s true that The Wheel of Time doesn’t “need” Juilin, but he’s still a character worth exploring and someone who could yield some interesting interactions with Elayne and Nynaeve in their upcoming adventure, as well as the ones to come.