TV Review: "The Wheel of Time: Tel'aran'rhiod" (S3, Ep. 5)
The Amazon series delivers yet another emotionally powerful, poignant episode, one that also moves the story forward in some important ways.
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Warning: Full spoilers for the episode, and for the Wheel of Time book series, follow.
Oof, what an episode! Now that we’ve moved beyond the halfway point of the season, Rand and company have to grapple with the consequences of what’s happened before, whether it’s the journey to Rhuidean, the Whitecloaks taking over the Two Rivers, or the ongoing scheming in the White Tower. This is a well-balanced episode that manages to be both deeply affecting and also moves the plot forward in some important ways.
The future weighs particularly heavily on Moiraine. Not only has she had a taste of just how much of saidar she can wield with the Sakarnen in her hands; she also has to grapple with the fact that in order for Rand to be around for the Last Battle–let alone to win it–she must die. Pike, as always, does a truly fantastic job excavating Moiraine’s pain and her regret, for what has it all been for if she will not even be alive for the battle for which she has sacrificed so much? If there is a bright side, it’s that she gets to spend another heartfelt and poignant moment with Lan, and it’s really quite uplifting to watch them share some Aiel liquor. Sometimes, as Lan points out, it’s okay to just live in the present and let the future tend to itself.
Rand, for his part, finds himself given the responsibility of integrating with the Aiel, to learn their ways. I quite enjoy the way that Aviendha continues to needle him, thus laying the groundwork for what will be one of our hero’s many romances–assuming that they take his arc along the same lines as the book. More potent, however, was Rand’s immediate bond with the girl Alsera, which goes a long way toward showing us just how good a man he is. He might be the Dragon Reborn, and he might be a bit of a twit at times, but Rand has a good heart. As he has throughout this season, Stradowski continues to flex his growing acting muscles, and I am here for it.
In the White Tower, meanwhile, the rivalry between Siuan and Elaida continues to heat up. I’m sure I’m not the only one who appreciated the mother-off that took place when the latter met the former in her office and proceeded to deliver a great deal of scathing commentary about her lack of class and the simplicity of her office. It takes someone either very brave, or very foolish, to call the Amyrlin Seat “river trash” to her face and to mock her bond with Moiraine. I have to say that Aghdashloo’s performance as Elaida continues to give me life, and one can see the wheels turning in her mind as she tries to figure out just the right way to both get under Siuan’s skin and to topple her from the position that the Red still believes was rightly hers in the first place. At the same time, Okonedo shows that Siuan isn’t to be so easily manipulated, and I loved the way that she constantly referred to Elaida’s cloying rose perfume.
The thing is, I really do believe that Elaida thinks that what she is doing is the right thing by undermining Suian. While we might not look at her particularly fondly as she attacks one of our favorite characters, but such is the commitment of Aghdashloo’s interpretation of the character that we can’t help but find ourselves drawn to her, even when she’s doing ruthless things like killing an Aes Sedai in cold blood, even if she is Black Ajah. I’ve seen some question whether the Three Oaths, at least as they have been articulated in the series, would enable Elaida to kill Amico and torture Joiya, but we have to remember that this particular Red Aes Sedai is one of those people who truly believes in her own sense of rightness. From her own point of view, she is more than justified in killing someone whose very existence is a threat not just to Elaida but to the White Tower as a whole, even as doing so puts her in the path of a Gray Man.
Since it seems more likely than not that the series is going to go the book route and follow Elaida as she topples Siuan from power, the latter’s decision to Heal her and offer the hand of peace will come to seem even more tragic in hindsight. As we know by now, Elaida isn’t the kind of person who is willing, or able, to let sentiment cloud her judgment or her pursuit of what she believes is right. Even if she manages to forge a friendship with Siuan, or even an alliance, she isn’t going to let this stop her from doing what she thinks is best for both the Tower and the world at large.
I continue to love what the show is doing with Nynaeve, Elayne, Mat, and Min. This fabulous foursome often provides some much-needed levity, whether it’s Nynaeve’s chronic seasickness–very true to her character in the book, by the way–or Mat’s friendly banter with Min. There’s a nice balance among these four characters that jives with the book, with Elayne providing the knowledge and strategy, Nynaeve the passion, Mat the lightness, and Min the street smarts. They’re certainly going to need all of these if they’re going to survive a cutthroat and very grimy city like Tanchico, which is clearly a rather rough-and-tumble place to be.
I also love the way that this series has really upped its game when it comes to depicting the ethereal majesty of weaving saidar. This was particularly evident in Moiraine’s use of the Sakarnen, but it’s there too in the Wavefinder’s use of the One Power to keep the ship moving. Just as the many fight scenes are choreographed so that they look almost like dancing, her use of saidar here is exquisite, and from the way that Elayne in particular seems enraptured by it, it’s clear that they’re setting the scene for the later use of Sea Folk skills in the cleansing of saidin.
Now, I have to admit that the Two Rivers storyline has never been one that I have been particularly invested in, and this was true of the books, as well. Thus, though I love Alanna and Maksim, I do find their interpersonal drama and conflict to be a trifle overcooked, if occasionally poignant. However, as a friend of mine also pointed out, the series is clearly attempting to condense a lot of the Aes Sedai drama that involves other named characters, so it makes sense that they would focus so much on these two and their ongoing grief over Ihvon’s death and their disagreement about what to do about it. I will also say that both Priyanka Bose and Taylor Napier continue to give really emotional performances.
Perrin, meanwhile, takes a bit of a backseat, though he does take the lead in saving the Cauthon girls, though he’s too late to save Natti from being subjected to Eamon Valda’s torture and eventual burning. I’ve always thought that Natti Cauthon drew the short stick in terms of her depiction in the show, and this episode just confirms it (though mercifully we don’t have to see her actually burned at the stake). Narratively, however, I’m actually rather glad that they’ve now given this character a send-off, though it remains unclear how her demise at the hands of the Whitecloaks will affect Mat.
All of which brings us to the fateful final few moments, when Egwene–having learned a great deal about the World of Dreams thanks to the Wise Ones–visits the dreams of her loved ones. Even though she is just an observer, there’s still a remarkable amount of emotional power in this sequence, stemming from Nynaeve’s beautiful imagining of her daughter, Aviendha embracing Elayne while the latter acts as a Wavefinder, and Mat’s particularly heartbreaking dream of his mother and sisters, the four of them forming a family unit that they never do in the waking world. I love the fact that The Wheel of Time isn’t afraid to wear its heart on its sleeve.
Of all of the changes that the show has made to the books, one of the best has been drawing out the sapphic nature of Moiraine and Siuan’s relationship. Making them not just lovers but beloveds changes the dynamic in ways that adds poignancy, heart, and heightened emotional and dramatic stakes to the show as a whole. It certainly helps that Pike and Okonedo have such palpable and tender chemistry. Watching these two on-screen together, you can well believe that these are two people who really and truly love one another, despite all of the things that have passed between them.
There’s something particularly heartbreaking about Moiraine’s dream, since it makes clear, to both Siuan and to those of us in the audience, that the bond they once shared has been permanently broken by the events of Cairhien. This isn’t to say that they don’t still love one another–one need only see the way they look at one another to know that there’s a bond there that will surely pass the test of time. Furthermore, because The Wheel of Time is an essentially optimistic show, it also makes it clear that there is still hope for them, if not in this life then in the next. They are two souls that are truly bound to one another for every turning of the Wheel, and I give a lot of credit to both Pike and Okonedo for delivering those fateful lines, which make it clear that they will always find a way back to one another.
The episode ends with a wrenching moment, with Egwene witnessing Lanfear once again wrapping her tendrils around Rand. For all that Lanfear might seem to genuinely want to break her oaths to the Dark One, and for all that she might seem to have some remorse, the truth is that she cannot or will not entirely break free from the more sinister parts of her personality. The way that she looks at Egwene makes it clear that she remains motivated by desire, and that she will lash out and destroy anyone who stands in the way, no matter how much they might mean to Rand.
It should come as no surprise to anyone that I ended up loving this episode. It was nice to rejoin the characters that took a backseat in the previous episode, and the story moved forward in some meaningful ways. It’s really quite extraordinary the way that the series as a whole continues to stay true to the essential elements of Robert Jordan’s vision, while also ensuring that it works within the confines of television storytelling. One thing’s for sure. I can’t wait to see what next week holds for us!