Wheel of Time on Amazon

[lonestar]

Didn't even know this was a thing, though I'd imagine it'll be quite an undertaking with the bazillion pages in the series itself. Never read through them, but their reputation makes me excited nonetheless...

http://epicstream.com/news/JakeVyper/Amazons-Wheel-of-Time-Casts-Its-First-Actor-Confirms-Brandon-Sandersons-Involvement?utm_content=buffere9325&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_campaign=epicbuffer&fbclid=IwAR1ECUOC9o9Y-mCKjreVceybXtPnI_SMuT1l0pxG1sJQg-vsoLfgPyxT8ls

[The Walrus]

Been following this for quite some time, I know we have a couple other big WoT fans here that are also excited. About time they started announcing the cast. I think she has just the right face for Moiraine. I imagine they'll be dying her hair brown, of course.

The books are interesting. Uneven and sometimes a downright slog, but when they're good, boy they're awesome.

[lonestar]

Yeah my days of piling through a 15- 1000 page book series are long gone, so I'm glad they got it rolling.

[Grappler]

Sanderson said that there are some changes to make this translate better to TV.  He is fully behind these choices so that the TV show is a bit different than the books and not just a scene by scene copy of them.  I like that.

I've watched Bosch and Jack Ryan and love them both, so I trust Amazon and the showrunner for WoT seems to really know the series well.  I'm excited!

[Shadow Ninja 2.0]

How much of the runtime will be women adjusting their skirts?

[Lynxo]

And how much will be about men bitching about women and women bitching about men?
It's been a while since I read these books but I seem to remember there being a lot of that. How any babies get born at all in this universe is beyond me.

[The Walrus]

They better get Nynaeve a wig for all the braid tugging she's gonna be doing. That poor woman will rip her hair out in one season.

They should get Diana Rigg to play Cadsuane. 

[Shadow Ninja 2.0]

And how much will be about men bitching about women and women bitching about men?
It's been a while since I read these books but I seem to remember there being a lot of that. How any babies get born at all in this universe is beyond me.

Definitely. There's lots about the books that's fantastic, but there's a lot that's infuriating, too. Like the romances, for example, holy fuck.

[King Puppies and the Acid Guppies]

For those that missed it. The Wheel of Time Trailer dropped a couple days ago. I am so hyped for this!! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Fus4Xb_TLg

I don't care that they've had to make changes to adapt it to the TV medium. You can't simply do a scene for scene copy, it wouldn't work. Especially with all the inner dialogue that we get in the books.
I just look at it like another "turning of the Wheel", instead of the exact story of the books. As long as the show is good, that's good enough for me.

[lonestar]

Thankfully I never read the books lol

[King Puppies and the Acid Guppies]

Thankfully I never read the books lol

That's another reason they needed to make changes. For the people who have not read the books. Doing a scene by scene copy would leave a lot of people confused, I would imagine.

[Grappler]

I've read the entire series twice and am so excited for this show!

[hefdaddy42]

I always wanted to read this series, but frankly, it's too fucking long for me to devote that much time to it.

But I'm looking forward to the series, for sure.

[MoraWintersoul]

I only got up to book 5 about ten years ago but my sister's been whipping me to finish the series. She's meh about the trailer and so are most of my other WoT-loving friends. Hoping season 1 lines up with one of my visits home so we can line up and have a watch party like in the good old days of Game Of Thrones, because whatever Amazon thingy you have to get to watch this, I'm not getting it.

[Logain Ablar]

My expectations are pretty much zero for this. I'll have a watch when it comes out, but if it's crap, I'll move on and not worry about it. I have the same attitude for the upcoming LOTR series too.

It will be interesting to see how the fantasy elements come across, as I'd say that WoT is fantasy-heavy, but if it's done more in a Game of Thrones style, then I'd call that fantasy-light. I don't think that would work. I think the Witcher did a good job of presenting the fantasy elements, so something close to that direction may work.

Obviously they are going to have to take a hatchet to an awful lot of the characters in the books, and just try to pare it down to the main ones.

[Grappler]

The first three episodes are out!  I thought that they were really good, and it's pretty neat to see Aes Sedai, Myrddraal and Trollocs on screen.  The last time I read the series was about 7 years ago, so the first book isn't terribly fresh in my mind.  They seemed to hit the major moments that I can remember.  Looking forward to the rest of the episodes!

[lonestar]

Yay!!! More shit to watch!!

[hefdaddy42]

Oh cool, didn't know this was starting.  All the recent commercials just said "coming soon".

[ZirconBlue]

Watched the 1st episode last night and really liked it.  I haven't read the books, so I'm judging strictly by what I see on the screen.

[jingle.boy]

Got this on my watchlist for sure. Looks intriguing ... even though I've never read any of the literature.  Same had been said for The Witcher, so while I'm not sure what to expect with this, I do expect to be entertained.

[gmillerdrake]

Got this on my watchlist for sure. Looks intriguing ... even though I've never read any of the literature. 

Same. Have seen the advertisements and watched some trailers.....looks intriguing enough. I'm certain I'll give it a whirl.

[LudwigVan]

I only got through 1 book and half of another... it was decent stuff, but also felt like a bit of a slog.  I'll be checking this show out.

[Logain Ablar]

I’m watching the 3rd episode right now. I have to say, I’m pleasantly surprised so far. I knew the series was in development, but I haven’t been paying to too much attention so’s not to spoil it for myself.

The casting is good. Rand, Perrin, Mat and Lan match up pretty well to how I imagined them. Rosamund Pike looks weird with dark hair, but I think she’s a good Moiraine. The only one that feels off to me is Egwene. Maybe she’ll grow on me.

The trollocs are really well done - a good mixture of practical design and cgi. I think they may have taken some influence from the Uruk Hai in LOTR.

I have seen some complaints online about changes from the books, but that was always going to be inevitable. There’s no way to adapt a book series like this with such a complex world, and the sheer amount of characters that WoT has, without taking a taking a hatchet to it.

The real test will be to see if they can preserve the overall tone and direction of the story.

[jammindude]

I’m a little shocked that they didn’t choose to go with a book per season. My understanding is that they’re going to try and cover the first two or three books in season one. I think it’s a big mistake. You’ve got probably the most loyal fantasy following in history with the exception of Lord of the rings itself. I’m positive that they would support 13 or 14 season show.

Having said that, rand was the only one who seemed out of place to me. Everyone else truly looked like they came from that village. The guy who played rand looked like he had just come from Beverly Hills. I thought his look was way out of place with the tone. Everyone else was cast very well and Mat was PERFECT.

[Logain Ablar]

Apparently Mat is going to be recast for season 2! 

I think his casting was good too. He has that cockiness, but you can real potential for a good story arc, if handled properly.

A book per season would be interesting, but I wonder if they are playing it safe and not wanting to commit to 14 years of development?

At least it won’t be like GoT where they run out of source material, and the quality takes a nose dive.

[jammindude]

Apparently Mat is going to be recast for season 2! 

I think his casting was good too. He has that cockiness, but you can real potential for a good story arc, if handled properly.

That is extremely disappointing. I thought he captured his character better than anyone else on the show. His look and his swagger completely nailed the character.

[jammindude]

Also, we are two episodes in and I have yet to see any braid tugging. What’s up with that? 

[Logain Ablar]

Also, we are two episodes in and I have yet to see any braid tugging. What’s up with that? 

 

There’s a mention of a braid in the first 5 mins or so that made me chuckle. If they’re true to the books, Nynaeve will need a wig by time the last season airs.

Not sure why the Mat actor was recast. I’ll have to do some digging.

I do like the fact that they’ve went with pretty much unknowns for the main characters. I think it will help with character development over the seasons.

I noticed that Harriet McDougal (Robert Jordan’s widow and editor) and Brandon Sanderson (writer of the last 3 books) are both consulting producers, so hopefully that will help to keep things on track and true to the books.

[King Puppies and the Acid Guppies]

Having said that, rand was the only one who seemed out of place to me. Everyone else truly looked like they came from that village. The guy who played rand looked like he had just come from Beverly Hills. I thought his look was way out of place with the tone. Everyone else was cast very well and Mat was PERFECT.

You know that is intentional right? I don't want to go into spoilers for those who haven't read the books, but he looks how he is supposed to.

[jammindude]

Having said that, rand was the only one who seemed out of place to me. Everyone else truly looked like they came from that village. The guy who played rand looked like he had just come from Beverly Hills. I thought his look was way out of place with the tone. Everyone else was cast very well and Mat was PERFECT.

You know that is intentional right? I don't want to go into spoilers for those who haven't read the books, but he looks how he is supposed to.

I read the first four. So I kind of get it. But it’s not like it’s just that he didn’t come from that village. It’s that he looks like he just stepped out of a Beverly Hills salon

[King Puppies and the Acid Guppies]

Having said that, rand was the only one who seemed out of place to me. Everyone else truly looked like they came from that village. The guy who played rand looked like he had just come from Beverly Hills. I thought his look was way out of place with the tone. Everyone else was cast very well and Mat was PERFECT.

You know that is intentional right? I don't want to go into spoilers for those who haven't read the books, but he looks how he is supposed to.

I read the first four. So I kind of get it. But it’s not like it’s just that he didn’t come from that village. It’s that he looks like he just stepped out of a Beverly Hills salon

Fair enough.

[Grappler]

From what I read, it isn't that they are adapting several books at once, but just moving parts of what happened in later books into earlier seasons. 

So a few or scenes or events from books 2 and 3 may show up in season one.

[lonestar]

Thankfully I didn't read the books so I'm not tainted going in. 


Watched the first two last night, entertaining enough to carry on with it.

[King Puppies and the Acid Guppies]

Having read the books multiple times (it's my favorite book series), I actually don't mind most of the changes they have made. Considering the nature of the Wheel of Time universe, I just consider the TV show an alternate turning of the wheel.

Admittedly, there are some character omissions/additions that I'm not too happy with, but I can live with it.

[Shadow Ninja 2.0]

I watched the first episode and really enjoyed it, more than I expected actually since I'd read some discussion on it and knew a lot of people weren't super happy with it. It probably helps that I consider the books in general to be 50/50 between great stuff and annoying bullshit, so I really don't mind the changes that they're making.

I also saw some people complaining about the CGI, which makes me think some of these motherfuckers haven't watched enough Doctor Who, because I think the CGI looks fine.