The Wheel of Time’s direction ahead of season 3 creates the concern that an entire book in Robert Jordan’s series will be skipped over. While much of The Wheel of Time season 2’s ending was in line with the finale of the book it emulated, there were enough differences to suggest that the show is about to head off course in The Wheel of Time season 3. Doing so would carry multiple implications for the future, especially when it comes to the events of a specific book in the Rand al’Thor saga.
After adapting the first installment, The Eye of the World, in season 1, The Wheel of Time moved on to the sequel, The Great Hunt, in season 2, giving each of the first two novels a multi-episode arc. Of course, that’s not to say the show plans to do the same for all 14 books in the saga. There’s no expectation for Wheel of Time to run for that many seasons, meaning some books will have to be combined. Surprisingly, there’s a sense that the show might handle this problem in a different way; if its current setup is any indication, one book may get skipped altogether.
Wheel Of Time Season 2’s Ending Sets Up The Shadow Rising As Season 3’s Story
The Wheel of Time showrunner Rafe Judkins has confirmed that The Shadow Rising will be the basis of season 3’s story. The decision to look to the fourth book next matches up with what happens in the season 2 finale. In the final scene, the three Aiel who came to Falme with Perrin are shown to be among the people observing Rand. Seeing him and the fiery dragon hovering above, Aviendha called him, “Car’a’carn.” Aviendha had told Perrin before the episode that their mission was to find the Car’a’carn, the hero who would unite the Aiel. This moment doesn’t happen in Falme in the books, but the Aiel finding Rand is the foundation for The Shadow Rising.
In the books, Aviendha and the Aiel were introduced during The Dragon Reborn and didn’t have their paths converge with Rand’s until the end of the book for the big battle at Tear. This paved the way for the Aiel, who declare Rand the Car’a’carn and make for the Aiel Waste in The Shadow Rising. The long trek there is what drove most of the individual narratives in the book, as Rand, Egwene, Moiraine, Mat, were all with the Aiel during the book. By having Aviendha identify Rand as the Car’a’carn as early as the fight with Ishamael at Falme, the show has laid the groundwork for The Shadow Rising to happen early in its timeline.
It’s worth noting that this doesn’t apply to just the aforementioned characters. The book 4 stories for Perrin and Loial have been set up as well. In The Shadow Rising, Perrin and Loial head to the Two Rivers and gets caught in a conflict with the Whitecloaks and Trollocs. The same happening in the show was set in motion by Whitecloak member Dain Bornhald witnessing his father’s death at the hands of Perrin and subsequently swearing revenge.
What Wheel Of Time Would Be Missing If It Skips The Dragon Reborn
The idea that The Wheel of Time will tell the Two Rivers and Aiel Waste stories in season 3 makes The Dragon Reborn’s place in the narrative a major point of confusion. If the show is jumping from book 2 to book 4, that could mean that book 3 won’t happen. If that’s the case, the series would risk losing out on several major stories. Quite a lot occurs in The Dragon Reborn, including Rand retrieving Callandor from Tear, Mat and Thom’s adventure in Andor, the deaths of Be’lal and Ishamael, and battles with the Darkhounds chasing Rand.
In addition to these key stories, The Dragon Reborn also featured the debut of a handful of noteworthy characters in The Wheel of Time ensemble. It’s over the course of this book’s story that readers were first introduced Juilin Sandar (a frequent ally to Elayne, Nynaeve, and Egwene), Faile Bashere (the future wife of Perrin), Berelain (a political figure in Tear), and Gaul (an Aiel befriended by Perrin). All things considered, The Dragon Reborn is a significant chapter in Jordan’s story and not one that can easily be cut from the equation.
Wheel Of Time Season 3 Can Skip Most Of Book 3 (But Not The Ending)
When taking a closer look at what takes place in The Dragon Reborn, it becomes apparent that despite its importance, skipping it isn’t completely unfeasible. Ishamael’s death in season 2’s ending felt final, so a return for another showdown in Tear may not be in the cards. Plus, The Wheel of Time seems to be limiting the number of Forsaken to eight, so the fight with Be’lal may not be necessary either if the character isn’t in the show’s canon. Cutting the long journey to follow Rand to Tear would negate the need for multiple book moments and character interactions, such as the Darkhounds fights, but most are largely inconsequential in terms of the bigger picture.
However, the same can’t be said of the ending. The Dragon Reborn’s final chapters, which sees Rand get his hands on Callandor for the first time, is a massive turning point for Rand and a development too important to ignore. After all, Callandor a.k.a. The Sword That Is Not A Sword is the weapon Rand is destined to fight the Dark One with during The Last Battle.
How The Wheel Of Time Can Still Use The Dragon Reborn’s Most Important Moments
Unlike The Eye of the World, The Great Hunt, and now The Shadow Rising, The Dragon Reborn isn’t poised to get its own season, but that doesn’t mean it can’t be properly represented. While combining its story with The Shadow Rising would admittedly result in a long list of book changes, leaving it out completely would be an injustice to the source material. The best solution to this problem is to move Callandor to the Aiel Waste, thus eliminating the need for a journey to Tear. In this way, The Wheel of Time can still find a place for The Dragon Reborn’s biggest event.
Certain character introductions can be moved around as well. One example of that is Juilin Sander, who could be encountered by Nynaeve and Elayne in Tanchico instead of Tear. As for Mat and his experiences in Andor, he can be one character whose The Dragon Reborn story can be the focus of season 3. His arc in The Shadow Rising was primarily about Mat unlocking his memories, which wound up happening in the season 2 finale. Working parts of The Dragon Reborn into The Wheel of Time season 3 could prove to be a complex challenge, but it’s a more appealing scenario than the book being cut.
The Wheel of Time
- Release Date
- November 19, 2021
- Cast
- Barney Harris , Zoe Robins , Madeleine Madden , Marcus Rutherford , Daniel Henney , Rosamund Pike , Josha Stradowski , Kate Fleetwood , Priyanka Bose , Hammed Animashaun
- Genres
- Adventure , Drama , Action , Fantasy
- Seasons
- 2
