I never read the books for The Wheels of Time so I didn't know what to expect but after hearing so much about it and being so popular I thought I'd give it a chance. Also, after listening to people I know who already watched it and who actually read the books and the hype that was surrounding the show I was expecting the next Game of Thrones. It's not, I was hoping it would be better. I should have known since the reviews are so mixed but people were hyping it up for months and again the trailers were pretty good. I'm about halfway through right now and it's going to be a struggle to finish it. I know it's already been renewed for another season so hopefully it'll get better but I'm not expecting it to.
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Rob13317 February 2024
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kshutch-1659029 December 2021Seems that most book-to-show projects either aim to please the readers or the new watchers...and that is generally ok. If the aim is the readers, stay true to the material to bring it to life. If the aim is the watchers, use devices to thoroughly explain the plot and make it easy to follow. I feel like they missed the mark here. This is not aimed at readers because its missing a lot, changes elements, and does not have the same feel as the books. Its not aimed at the watchers because its moving to fast for newcomers to understand and in a seemingly boring fashion.
For readers: You may be wondering - Where is Minn? Why did Perrin have a girlfriend? Where is the wonder in the Two Rivers group demeanor where even running from Trollocs and Fades they still were in wonderment of the the outside world and speaking all the time about how the old stories matched against what they have seen so far. Why are they at Tar Valon without first going to Camelyn? Where is Elayne? Who are these other warders that had no role in the books but are taking up a lot of screen time? Why is the show saying the Dragon could be a woman when the Dragon must be a man who touches the male half of the one power (saidar)? Why did they meet Thom at White Bridge when Thom should have been with them since Two Rivers to act as a plot device to teach them about the outside world? Why did White Bridge have a little wooden bridge, it should have been a massive White Bridge built by Aes Sedai. Why is Moraine and Suanne in a relationship? Why have we only seen Matt gamble in passing at the very beginning when that is literally his favorite thing in the world and the core of his future. Where was the wandering guy that teaches Perrin about the wolves?
For the watches: You may be wondering and should know more about - What is the one power and what are the differences in the male and female parts of the one power? Who is Lews Therin? Who are the Forsaken? Who is the Dark One? Are Rand, Matt, and Perrin mainly weaklings compared to Nynaeve? What role do those 3 play since as of yet they have not really done anything except fumble around (except the subtle introduction to Perrin and wolves and Rand's 2 minute "I am the dragon" reveal). Why did they show the Heron mark on Rand's sword, that used to be his father's sword, and then never say anything about it. Understand this world is super rich with history and has a lot more character development than this show is offering.
It is ok, but it could be so much better. I feel like I did when I watched Terry Goodkind's Sword of Truth adaption or Terry Brook's Shannara adaption. Both adaptations were like budget version of the stories they meant to tell and suffered greatly because of it. Seems like Wheel of Time is likely to go the same way. A few of these things are touched on in the last few episodes like Minn, The Heron Marked sword, Lews Therin, but these are done in poor order and glossed over like small details that are actually important to the later story. But come on, we see Seanchan or whatever at the end and we still have not met Elayne? -
Athanatos17310 December 2021To start with, I have read the series of books and although they were not perfect, they were highly enjoyable and epic in their scale.
Now to the series.
A show or movies based on a book or series of books is generally bound to infuriate as the finished product cannot compare to the imagination of the reader, and there are not many examples of where this has been overcome.
So far I have been watching a show that has the main characters of the books relegated to supporting characters with little to no dialogue in some episodes.
There were over 2000 named characters in the book and they still felt the need to create new characters for the show that serve no real purpose.
The acting is fairly bad. With the amount of money spent on the cinematography, you would think they would have hired better actors.
I could see how someone who hasn't read the books would be confused as to what is going on, as the explanations as to what is going on are vague, which makes me wonder who this show was made for.
If it was to introduce people to the world that Robert Jordan created then they failed.
If it was for fans of the books, then they have again failed, as they have been changing things that didn't need to be changed and generally angering fans.
If you are going to adapt a series of books, then do so correctly, otherwise write your own original story and do what you want with it.
My positive takeaway from The Wheel of Time is that the cinematography is excellent, and unfortunately that is the only thing I find worthwhile.
Maybe it will get better, but I highly doubt it.
If you enjoy reading, I would recommend giving the series of books a glance, as this show is a pale reflection of the story Jordan wrote. -
kattrambo7 October 2023Season 2 is better than season 1. The characters seem more developed, the actors seem entrenched in their roles, and much more magic. Season 3 was set up very well. Lanfear is an interesting character. I don't know what she is up to, but knowing that there is even something bigger coming is set up well. I can't wait till season 3. I do wish Nyn would eventually stop being so sensitive about everything and show what she has fully, but that is set up for season 3 as well I think. Rand and his crew are good heroes, complex, and well acted. I would love to have seen more of Rand in a magical capacity, but I think that will come. I hope. :)
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wheatley-2023020 February 2024Series 1 was just good enough to carry me to series 2, encouraged by the higher audience rating on Prime. I would score it a 6.
Series 2 is very much better, meriting an 8 or better.
Both series display very high production values. The fantasy world is superbly presented, with different cultures carefully delineated. Rosamund Pike carries dignity and power that is the key driving force of the drama. Daniel Henney, who I have not seen before, is very effective too.
The younger characters are not always as convincing, although some do grow into their roles as series 2 progresses. Also, Natasha O'Keeffe adds real bite in series 2.
The other key difference between the series is probably the way everything comes together to culminate in an epic battle in series 2, whereas the conclusion to series 1 spreads the characters into different battles.
Series 2 has left me keen to see more! -
rickey1971-131-97858022 November 2021The changes don't make sense. They say its to update with the times.... .but the books are about how women dominate the new world. So making a change to where a woman can be the dragon reborn... makes no sense. A thousand years ago, in a utopian society, men destroyed the world and tainted the male half of the source (of power). Which is why the white tower is at odds with a MAN being reborn with so much power is an issue. The main issue in the books. Making the characters older makes no sense, giving perrin a wife to kill makes no sense. Almost all of it makes no sense. I do like it. It is nice to see. Acting and special effects are nice. But the changes, which from what I see are not warranted. It doesn't help the story to move forward... it's just nonsense. And as far as all the NON white characters in a close knit town on the edge of obscurity, also makes no sense, as we see many different people and cultures throughout the books. I do like the show, but its obvious that the writers never read the series. Which makes me sad... because I so much want to see a true adaptation of the books. But for the few who haven't read the books.... I'm sure you will love the series... and you should.
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Morrowclaw4 January 2024Is it perfect? No. Did they change things? Yes. Is it a page for page retelling? No. Are characters how you imagined them? Subjective.
The Wheel of Time is a 14 novel series with one prequel book in the mix. It's thousands of pages with over 700 named characters, dozens of locations and so many different moving pieces. Y'all need to curb your expectations. I know you wanted a page for page retelling but that's unrealistic and would never happen. What book being adapted has been so being 100% faithful? Not one.
This is the best we'll get and I meant that in a good way. It's an ambitious show and I'm glad we got something half this good. -
iannikkibanks15 December 2021Loved the books although a bit drawn out but not happy with the series. The characters are far removed from their personalities. The actors are not up to the roles excluding Pike. The story line has been changed considerably but the show relies too much on the sets and costumes. Also in an effort to create a diverse cast the isolated villages have a mixed race group. How can this be. The standard is well below thoes such as Game of Thrones even eith a similar budget.
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GwydionMW19 November 2021I've never read the books, so I've no idea what the TV series.
I did find the first three programs entertaining, though I could have done without the long chats between the four about what they were doing.
Surprises are real and the magic works.
So far it owes something to Lord of the Rings. Four friends pursued by a Dark Rider, and a bold escape via a ferry. But most is original.
I look forward to more. -
jmf_taborda24 December 2021First of, I'm a relatively recent book reader, stared a year ago and I'm on book 7 Coming into this show, I had somewhat high expectations, with even though the first book being the worst of the first 7, it was still a pretty good book with such indept explanations of everything and everything was tied in such a way that kept us wondering and guessing and rooting, a fearing.. On the first Episode I understood how fast they had to move for such deep plot... But that was to be excused if they weren't gonna waste an entire Episode around a useless depressed warder and his issues.. The chacters are bland, the tone is weird because it wants to be a jolly show with dark elements and fails miserably at both, shadar logot was the biggest missed opportunity of the whole show.. The VFX and CGI of this show is simply bad, really bad! The worst I've seen in an Amazon show, let alone the one with the highest budget of them all.. everything from the creatures, the cities, everything that was soo fake and the sets in tar valon looked really cardboardy, and lets not talk about Ishamael because he just looked like a mashed potatoe. I feared for no one, i felt zero empathy, nothing of it looked reall and so one of the worst experiences of my life..
Than we have the plot changes.. from all the moments that makes my EOTW experience, they kept zero of them in the show, and traded them for women power representation or supposed to be shocking moments that none worked.. The dialogue is childish and highschoolish, weak and really poor, wasting most of it cringing.
I'm not mad for the changes just because of the changes.. I'm mad because they made up for such a weaker overall story than the book was, wand it was the worst book.
Overall, it's a pretty weak show, with weak character's, weak plot, weak motivation's and I'm having the saddest christmas eve ever with how bad tis finale was. -
Supermanfan-1330 January 2024The Wheel of Time has to be one of the bigger disappointments to come out on the last few years. I never read any of the books (or even heard of them) so I had no expectations as far as staying true to the source material because I knew nothing about it. If anything though I had pretty high expectations because of how great the trailers looked and how much people were talking about it. Well, the trailers are like most trailers by making it look better than the actual movie or show is. Season 3 is coming out later this year and even though I know better and shouldn't give it a chance. I will but my expectations are low this time.
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airandra26 February 2024The books deserve 10 out of 10, I was amazed with the first season, the way they put out the second season though Idk it's really good but the way they are doing this with show like what is the thought process behind it? They could have cut this pie so many ways, but they chose to cook one pie at a time, cut it into 4 pieces, and then they repeat the process the amount of people that need to be fed is a crowd of 1000+, It's worth the watch for sure and definitely leaves you wanting more just not a big fan on the way they went about doing the series itself that's the only reason I say 8 out 10 on the show.
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fcc_amccaleb27 December 2021Maybe it's because I haven't read all the books yet (still working on it) and they are taking short cuts to plot points further on in the series, but the show is so far off from the first book that I barely recognize it. It started to come back to the book towards the end but then the season finale blew that up. The way it ended in the book was so much better.
Also, there are several things that make this show look cheap, even though I know it isn't. The trollocs cgi is bad. Their movements are choppy and almost appear sped up. Also, some of the cities and places feel like they didn't have the money to do any sweeping panoramic shots and they are just filming on a tiny set so everything is shot in close up.
I was really excited for this series and now I could care less if it continues. I actually started reading the books because I heard it was coming out. I'm hooked on the books but not on the show. -
FishBibble25 December 2021The best source material really any show could hope for, and what is the first thing they do, change it all, change the characters, the way they behave, then changed the settings which were so amazing in the books, changed the dialogue to the point that most people are bored silly. This is not Wheel Of Time.
Whoever wrote, and directed this I feel has just done a great disservice to the Books, and clearly wasn't a Wheel Of Time fan. If you are a fan you wouldn't feel the need to completely change it. Why get a person who hated the source material to write/direct it?
The only good news is, they messed it up so badly that there is plenty of room for someone to come in and do it correctly at some future date, as this will be completely unmemorable... I find every time i try to watch it within 5 mins I am simultaneously so bored, and frustrated that I just can't watch another min. I really want to like this, and I really wanted it to be good, but it just isn't. And there is some good talented actresses, and actors in it. So I blame the writing team and the director on this one... -
arawakt26 January 2022I couldn't get past the first episode, and even then, I felt I wasted my time. What a terrible script. And horrible acting! The first scene alone was painfully overacted. It's a shame, I was excited to see such wonderful diversity in their casting... but the acting... nope. Can't watch without flinching. One star for good costumes and scenery. Although some of the backgrounds and wide shots look somehow fake. Definitely expected more.
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jordandpowell21 September 2023While the first season was good the second season is really starting to shine. Characters are starting to step into their own and the inevitable clash is starting to ramp up. Will the action and adventure continue to deliver? I don't know, but if you are into adventure fantasy viewing then this show is worth a try. With the overwhelming amount of shows to choose from this one stand out in it's genre. It is by no means perfect. Pacing, especially in the first season, can be slow at times. Overall, it does deliver on character intrigue, story line and special effects. Looking forward to updating at seasons conclusion.
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As a big fan of the books, I've always been of the opinion that The Wheel of Time (WoT) would be impossible to adapt for TV, mostly due to the huge scale of the story. It was therefore with great scepticism that I received news about the Amazon TV adaptation some years ago. However, as I learned more about the project, I actually became very hopeful that this might be something good, considering that the show runner, Rafe Judkins, is a big fan of the books and that Amazon was putting a lot of money into this for a first season. Therefore, against my better judgement, I went into this with pretty high expectations - and was ultimately left pretty disappointed.
To the credit of the show, it does do many things well. The set design is excellent, the actors shine in the roles, and it does a great job of explaining the complex world without tedious exposition (which would always have been one of the big hurdles facing a WoT TV adaptation). And it is obviously based one the of the best fantasy stories ever written, thus benefiting from amazing characters (which the show does a great job at depicting), memorable story moments and a wonderfully intricate world and lore.
But it also comes with its flaws. The pacing is a big problem, especially in the first episode. The CGI is definitely not on par for a big fantasy series in 2021, with the worst being in the final episode of the season. And linked to poor pacing, there is just not enough time spent with the main characters to make their relationships and actions feel meaningful. Why Amazon decided to limit the season to 8 episodes will always remain a mystery to me, since it feels like most of the issues could have been solved with more screen time. Overall, the positives of the series still outweighed the negatives, until the last episode, which was a big step down, with bad CGI, corny dialogue and character arcs going nowhere.
But the final nail in the coffin for me was the deviation from the books. And no, I am not a book purist - I always was of the opinion that a WoT TV adaptation would require large changes. This is due to numerous reasons, such as the huge scope (which poses practical issues for managing actors and the show budget) or the huge amount of character development and motivation that stems from internal dialogue. Therefore I defended the changes to the story - Yes, it makes sense to play up the mystery of who the Dragon Reborn is; yes, it makes sense to introduce Tar Valon and the Aes Sedai at an earlier stage to demonstrate the scale of the series; yes, it makes sense to give Perrin and Mat backstories to motivate their characters, whom are undeveloped in the early books. But, as the season progressed, it became clear that the series was not sticking to only changes necessary for a TV adaptation, but was adamant to "improve" the story. Which begs the question, why adapt a story if you don't have any faith in the source material for the medium you are intending it for? Why not rather create a new story that is more suitable for TV? What makes it worse, is that I feel many changes they failed to successfully implement, considering what was sacrificed for the change - the reveal of Rand as the Dragon Reborn felt very anti-climatic, Mat and Perrin's character arcs did not really go anywhere, despite the changes in their background, etc.
In the end, I don't think I will be back to watch season 2. As a book reader, watching the series leaves me more confused and frustrated, constantly trying to reconcile the stories of the books and show, than I actually end up enjoying it. Even if they end up fixing the objectively bad aspects of the show in later seasons, I just don't feel it is worth it for me - I'd much rather use the time to re-read the books, or watch an objectively excellent fantasy TV series, like Arcane. But, all considering, I don't hate it as a TV series and won't be ridiculous and give it a 1-star review like many angered book fans. Despite its flaws, it is decent as a TV show, I just wish different creative decisions were taken. So I will hope they manage to improve in future seasons, bringing more awareness to the books and enjoyment to non-readers, but I won't be tuning in myself for that. -
bjjao6 October 2023So I've been a bit on the fence about this show.
I really liked the books, but its been some years since i read them, so all i remember are the main strokes of the story and the feeling i had when reading them.
Season 1 and 2 have been very good, and there are a lot of great actors but also a few I've not been to fond of.
Rosamund Pike have been one of my favorite British actresses for many years, almost up there with Helen Mirren.
But in season 2 episode 8, I think I finally fell in love with this series and the way they portray the story from the book.
I still think a few of the characters haven't gotten the space to shine yet, but this is definitely one of the best recent series.
I'm really looking forward to the next episode. -
akshayjv-0522215 January 2022The most disappointed series of 2021. I honestly expected a lot but it's too bad. It had a stupid story, worst casting even poor graphics. I don't know were they spend all that money.
I don't know what they even mean by wheel of time. It feels like they were copying Lord of the rings. Most of the episode were too boring. Even the costume were funny. Doesn't create a curiosity for the next season.
If you were into this kind of series give it a try but don't expect anything much. -
scififan-6926716 January 2024Watch the show for yourself. It's not bad AT ALL.
I think some of the reviews here are a little overboard and just strange.
It's a mixture of Lord of The Rings, The Hobbit, and Harry Potter. I think it's really entertaining and suspenseful. From the action and fighting, to the more meaningful heartfelt dialog, it's extremely well done. The show feels like a expansive adventure and takes me back to when I was little watching Harry Potter and Lord of The Rings for the first time. The Wheel of Time has become one of my all-time favorite tv shows. I recommend to anyone who loves the Fantasy genre as well as action adventure.
Here's to hoping for many more seasons! I can't wait to see what's to come. -
DLochner23 December 2021The beginning is tough and slow. You hardly understand the connections, but over time the story at least picks up a bit of speed and tension. A little Lord of the Rings and a little Game of Thrones but none of that right. You can see it, but you don't have to. Excruciatingly boring.
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alistairc_200028 December 2021Such a wasted opportunity. Poor scripts. Unlikeable actors. This make Hawk the Slayer look like a masterpiece. Do not waste your time with it.
It is terrible, it is bad, it is boring, have I made the word limit now IMDB? How many ways can I say it was not worth watching? -
nicolas_ozias23 December 2023I find so weird people trying to compare the books and the tv shows. Jesus Christ, you can't people. The way you get information by reading and watching are different. They are way more room for detail, imagination (because it's your own, and no one imagine in the same way) and etc when you read it.
I see this comments here about it, just like the guy from my work "I couldn't watch, it's just so wrong.." That just tells me a person which can not adapt, deal with changes.. What it's wrong? This is a tv show! They have to make it easier and in a perception in which by watching, people will engage more...maybe if it was just like the books, wouldn't be so great watching it because as I said, a lot of the way you see the story is in your head or just the fact to follow the pace of the story, the drama, details and etc. People wouldn't have the patience.
The way I see it, if you like the universe, you should be glad for having two stories about the same thing, like two ending, two possibilities..forget about the book, the book is the book alright but how it's end in the show? Let's open our mind :)
I like fantasy but I'm not really big fan when involves magic, example. I watched the Witcher and couldn't finish it. This show was surprisingly good. We'll adapt, actors performing very well. I enjoyed and got myself going to see what happen.
I didn't went crazy for it but I mean, it is entertaining. Second season is way better and I have big hopes for the next one. -
SithHunter20 January 2022I pretty much hate every character in the show, everybody is a grumpy entitled little Sht. I'm not rooting for anybody, all the dragon born people are the worst and I wish they would all be killed off.
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karinahatem27 January 2022Don't understand the great reviews, this show is so bad, that I could barely pass beyond E5, very poor performance, weak storyline that got too many holes, every episode there new characters and storylines out of the blue, and without any explanation. The show even uses words and references that Don't make any sense.