On Friday the 19th, the The Wheel of Time TV show adaptation is came out on Amazon Prime Video. As an avid fan of the series, I will be explaining who you should watch The Wheel of Time. The Wheel of Time is a fantasy book series written by Robert Jordan that first debuted in 1990 with the first book The Eye of the World. Subsequent books released every few years with the consistency that could make a Kingkiller Chronicles or Song of Ice and Fire (Game of Thrones) fan jealous. Unfortunately, in 2006 Robert Jordan was diagnosed with terminal heart disease, but despite this, he was very optimistic about finishing the series. He planned on writing one more book to wrap it up, even if it was so big that “readers might need a forklift to get it out the door.” In September 2007, Jordan passed away without ever finishing that final book. He left behind a legacy of one prequel and eleven books in a series that would become one of the best fantasy series of all time, and one of the most sold book series of all genres. Thankfully before his death, he prepared extensive notes including drafts of his original vision for some of the final scenes. Within a few months, his wife and editor, Harriet McDougal, chose a new author at the time, Brandon Sanderson, who has written bestselling series such as Mistborn and Stormlight Archive, to carry the torch and finish the series. Sanderson took Jordan’s notes and ended up finishing the series with three more books rather than one gigantic book. The final of which was released in 2013. Books 8 through 14 all reached #1 on the New York Times Bestseller list. And after its completion, the series was nominated for a Hugo Award. It sold over 90 million copies worldwide as of 2021.

The Wheel of Time tells a story that has happened over and over. “The Wheel of Time turns and ages come and pass, leaving memories that become legend. Legend fades to myth, and even myth is long forgotten, when the age that gave birth comes again.” Time is a wheel with seven different spokes each representing a different age of time. The one power, a magic which flows from the true source, turns this wheel spinning the pattern of the ages, using the lives of men, women, and others as its threads. Now, there are people who can use the one power, primarily the Aes Sedai (eyes said-eye). And the one power is split into two parts—the half that can be used by women called saidar and the half that can be used by men called saidin. However, at the time of the story, the male half has been corrupted by the Dark One so that anyone who uses saidar be driven insane becoming incredibly dangerous. In fact, when saidar was first corrupted, there was an event known as the breaking of the world, where male Aes Sedai destroyed most of civilization. While some men can still channel, they are doomed to madness and destruction. Now only women can bear the title of Aes Sedai. And the Aes Sedai rule from the White Tower in the island city of Tar Valon. Male channelers of the one power are hunted down by Aes Sedai and gentled—or cut off from the power for the safety of the world—a process that is anything but gentle, and seldom does anyone survive long after being gentled. The Aes Sedai are broken up into different Ajahs, or factions, represented by different colors that all have their own specialties. They are led by the Amyrlin Seat. There are prophecies of a champion of the last age, nicknamed the Dragon, who has been reborn in this age to battle the Dark One and either save or destroy the world. Now everyone lives under the shadow of a prophecy that the seals on the Dark One’s prison will weaken and he will break free, but the Dragon will be reborn to fight him once more. This leads us to the main story, where we see Moiraine (moy [like soy] -rain), and Aes Sedai and her warder, Lan arrive in the isolated village of the Two Rivers. Moiraine has spent her life looking for the prophesied Dragon Reborn, and has searched everywhere but the Two Rivers. Will she be able to find the Dragon Reborn before the Dark One can? 

The Wheel of Time is the perfect bridge between modern and classic fantasy, and has a sprawling world with more intricacies than Game of Thrones. The series draws on elements of mythologies across the world, ranging from European to Asian, and captures unique cultures by taking real world examples and blending them together to create believable but unique cultures.  The Wheel of Time is rated TV-14, and has a diverse cast with the lead of Rosamund Pike, of Gone Girl, as Moiraine. Wheel of Time breakdown articles may be a frequent thing as I am an avid fan, but please consider checking the show out, or picking up one of the books. I highly recommend it!