As the finale of The Wheel of Time begins, we jump back in time 3,000 years as Lews Therin Telamon (Alexander Karim) and Latra Posae Decume (Katie Brayben) discuss their options. They accuse one another of splitting the Aes Sedai in two and having men against women as Lews argues it is time to cage the Dark One. Latra believes he is only trying to serve his own interest and his power could run out of control if touched by the Dark One. Lews is confident they won’t fail if they have the female Aes Sedai with them, but Latra says they’ll be here to pick up the pieces if they do. Lews jokes about the world’s fate being decided in a nursery although she refutes that. She says the decision will rest with Lews when he faces him. Latra insists she just wants her friend to know he isn’t invincible despite being the Dragon Reborn. When she leaves, he walks over to the baby and claims today is the day he’ll make the world safe for them.

After the intro, Moiraine (Rosamund Pike) and Rand (Josha Stradowski) run into a dead body and she explains the boys from the borderlands often try to test themselves against the Blight and fail. She warns him not to touch anything because the Blight is a rot that comes from the Dark One’s prison and consumes everything in its path. Back in town, Egwene (Madeleine Madden) and Perrin (Marcus Rutherford) argue about what they should do and whether they should search for Rand. Perrin says they can’t find him since only Moiraine knows where he is. Still, Egwene is desperate because she loves Rand. He agrees and promises they’ll always be alright. Moiraine realizes they’re getting closer and decides to rest nearby for half an hour or so. Rand sees the Seven Towers of Malkier which is where Lan (Daniel Henney) says he was born. Moiraine reveals it was miles away from Tarwin’s Gap three years ago so it is proof that the Dark One’s strength is building.

Rand asks whether it was hard for her to leave him behind, but Moiraine won’t answer. Instead, she gives him food and encourages him to eat to keep up his strength. Nynaeve (Zoe Robins) approaches Lan to see if he is okay and whether he can feel anything through the bond. Lan knows Moiraine doesn’t want to be followed. Nynaeve finally reveals that she never tracked Lan and instead tracked Moiraine because she has a tell and she can teach him how to do it. When she admits she’ll let him go if she brings Rand back, Lan calls her a remarkable woman. She knows a Wisdom will never wed, but she might be something different when she goes back to Tar Valon. Lan confesses he’ll hate the man she chooses because it won’t be him. Yet, he’ll love him if he makes Nynaeve smile. He goes on to tell her how beautiful and strong she is before asking how to find them. Rand has a nightmare in which Moiraine is killed by the Dark One. Rand shoots him with an arrow although it doesn’t hurt him.

The man reveals his face and says he looks nothing like Lews although he is. Rand knows it is a dream, but the Dark One doesn’t think it matters and asks him to sit down. He tells Rand about coming with 99 companions before and the fact he is only coming with one Aes Sedai now. He wonders if Rand even knows what he is doing. Once Rand pulls out his sword, he notices the heron on it and asks about it. Rand says his father Tam gave him the sword, but it is revealed he wasn’t Rand’s father at all. He jokes he never thought the Dragon Reborn would be a fool. The Dark One wants to tell Rand what those women never told him about being the dragon. Rand refuses to listen, says it is a dream, and drives the sword through his stomach. He immediately wakes up as he hits the ground and Moiraine asks about his dream. Rand assures her he didn’t believe anything the Dark One said. As they continue forward, Rand asks about her plan because she always has one.

Moiraine shows him a sa’angreal that was made before the breaking of the world by thousands of male channelers using the One Power. When you channel into it, the object increases your power a hundredfold. Rand asks what he will do with that power so Moiraine says he’ll put the Dark One back to where his touch can’t reach the Earth for another 3,000 years. Rand believes Moiraine thought it would be Egwene since she taught her how to channel and introduced her to the Amyrlin Seat. He confesses he thought the same. Egwene approaches Nynaeve who says she has heard nothing since the day she channeled. Egwene listens carefully and hears the same thing they heard on Bel Tine, but it seems much worse this time. Rand and Moiraine have to stop suddenly because they believe they’re being attacked. Thankfully, it is only a tree falling and everything is okay.

He asks if she can teach him to channel. She says no because touching the source will push him closer to madness although Rand says he won’t care what happens to him after today. She is confident he will embrace the One Power when he confronts the Dark One. Moiraine tells him about the Aes Sedai who beat her with the One Power at night when she was young and have difficulty channeling. She wouldn’t stop until the pain and fear were overwhelming enough for Moiraine to take the One Power and use it to stop her. Moiraine instructs him to channel the One Power into the sa’angreal when the time comes. Meanwhile, Egwene, Loial (Hammed Animashaun), and Perrin visit Min Farshaw (Kae Alexander) to get some answers. Nynaeve and the others want to know what she told Moiraine about Rand, but she isn’t eager to tell them. She only says that everything she has ever seen has come true eventually. She sees Nynaeve fall to her knees in agony while the soldiers nearby are killed.

When a horn sounds in the distance, the other guests rush out of the pub. Rand and Moiraine learn about the possible attack on the city. She explains the only way to stop it is by stopping the Dark One. Meanwhile, Lord Agelmar (Thomas Chaanhing) learns about the large army of Trollocs coming their way as his sister Lady Amalisa (Sandra Yi Sencindiver) reminds him she was right. Yakota (Amar Chadha-Patel) warns him that the ropes to the drawbridge were cut so Darkfriends are inside the walls of the city. Agelmar wants to send the entire force to support the men in the Gap’s fortress although he knows it won’t hold. He tells Yakota and Uno (Guy Roberts) that they know what to do. As Rand and Moiraine reach their destination, he asks her to confirm this is it. He says he knows this place. Before heading down, he asks Moiraine whether she will survive the encounter with the Dark One.

He tries to get her to stay, but she isn’t willing to accept his advice. Lan follows their path. Next, Agelmar and Amalisa talk about their father’s epic battles as she tries to convince him to stay in the city. Agelmar tells her that the men will hold the gap. If they cannot do that, the women will hold the city. It has always been done this way. He admits his sister has been right all along and they should’ve asked for help from the White Tower a long time ago. He goes on to say the Last Battle is here, but it is not theirs to win. They’ll slow the Dark One’s forces while their messengers rush to the other cities to warn them. He hopes they can give the other cities a fighting chance. His sister is adamant that she is not going to let the city fall. Moiraine tells Rand they don’t know what this place was since its existence was purged from the White Tower’s libraries by Darkfriends.

He sees Lews and believes he fought the Dark One here. He remembers the symbol below him and touches it. When he does, he is transported to a different world where he has a baby and has been living with Egwene. He walks outside before being asked by Egwene if he finished the lantern for Joiya since Mat (Barney Harris) is never going to find time to do it. Rand takes the baby while Egwene goes inside to do it. In the real world, Moiraine struggles to wake Rand and bring him back to reality. The Dark One appears and asks what she thought would happen. She tries to use the One Power to defend herself, but the Dark One easily overpowers her and removes her ability to channel. Agelmar and the others prepare for battle with the Trolloc army. They rush to the fortress while foreigners begin leaving the city. Amalisa instructs the women to take whatever they need and leave nothing in reserve.

Min leaves the city while Uno and Yakota head to the throne room to retrieve something hidden underneath the throne. While Perrin, Egwene, and Nynaeve contemplate what to do, Loial arrives and says they’re looking for all women who can channel to help defend the city. As the Trollocs rush toward the fortress, Agelmar and his men take them out using crossbows. Egwene and Nynaeve join Amalisa and the others outside. Perrin asks Loial how they can just sit there while everyone else is ready to fight. Loial gives him advice. Rand continues enjoying himself in the fantasy world created by the Dark One although he suspects something is wrong. He thought Egwene wanted to go to The White Tower, but she says she wants to be here now. He asks her about something from their childhood. When she gets the answer right, Rand believes she is the real Egwene. Then, the Dark One freezes Egwene and the baby as he approaches Rand. He tells Rand that he can use his power to remake the world in his image.

He offers to show Rand how to do it. In the real world, he tells Moiraine he wonders whether Rand will choose light or dark. Moiraine quickly pulls out a blade and puts it against Rand’s throat to ensure he is dealt with if he makes the wrong decision. Loial takes Perrin to Yakota and Uno so he can help them dig up the hidden object. The Trollocs overwhelm the fortress and Lord Agelmar is killed. The Dark One tells Rand that everything can be gone in an instance before slashing Egwene’s throat to prove it. Rand pleads with him to stop so he quickly heals her wound. When Rand asks how he can make it real, the Dark One tells him it is simpler than he could ever imagine. Padan Fain (Johann Myers) is the one who helped the Darkfriends enter the city. He watches as his Darkfriends kill several women before Yakota and the others uncover the box under the throne. Perrin learns it is the Horn of Valere that should be blown by the Dragon at the last battle.

Yakota says it will call the Pattern’s greatest heroes to stand at their side. Next, Amalisa and the other channelers watch the Trollocs storm through the fortress. Egwene wonders if this means Rand failed. Amalisa tells the women to open themselves to her and let her in. The women link their powers together as the Trollocs rush toward them. Perrin and the others pull up the same concrete block again. He sees Padan in the corner of his eye and tells him to stop but he doesn’t. The Dark One tells Rand to look into the baby’s eyes and empty himself of everything while turning everything into want. As Rand does as he says, we see the power around him transforming from white to black. In the real world, Moiraine is told he is channeling and she doesn’t know what he is trying to do. With Uno’s help, Yakota pulls the box from the hole in the floor. They leave the box when they heard Darkfriends screaming nearby.

Once the Trollocs get close to Amalisa and the others, Lady Amalisa uses her power to destroy all of them using lightning. Moiraine notices the sa’angreal in Rand’s bag glowing and realizes he picked the light. Rand turns to the Dark One and asks what Egwene wants. Although he wants this, he knows Egwene doesn’t. The camera spins in circles as Rand stands up holding the sa’angreal toward the Dark One. Once the spell is cast, the Dark One disappears and the ground below him is cracked. When Moiraine asks what happened, Rand says he did it. Perrin gets spooked by a bat before he hears Loial screaming behind him. He rushes back to the throne room only to find his friends dead or clinging to life. He watches as Padan kills Loial. Lady Amalisa can’t let go of the Power so the faces of the women begin burning. Amalisa says she feels everything and seems happy. Egwene convulses on the ground so Egwene crawls over to her and takes some of her pain.

As a result, she saves Egwene at the expense of her own life. Amalisa collapses to the ground and dies as well. Padan tells Perrin he went to the Two Rivers because he knew about the five of them while he grabs the box. His Lord saw what Moiraine saw so they sent the Trollocs to ensure the five of them would come to the Dark One. Padan says they need the Dark and balance. That means some of them will turn to the shadow. We see Mat returning to the city where he found the cursed blade. Moiraine tells Rand they cannot go back to Fal Dara just yet. He confesses he isn’t going back and he wants Moiraine to tell the others he didn’t make it. Although she can’t lie, he believes she’ll find a way to fulfill his wish. He felt the madness and worries he will go mad and kill everyone he loves. Padan tells Perrin that today is not the end. Instead, it is the beginning. He walks closer to Perrin who quickly grabs a weapon nearby. Padan tells him he selected the Dark with a tiny push.

Then, he claims all five of them have a part to play although Rand is the dragon. Perrin watches as Padan leaves with the box and his Darkfriends. When Lan catches up with Moiraine, she tells him Rand is gone. He asks her to unmask the bond and let him back in, but she can’t because the Dark One took her ability to use the One Power. She can no longer touch the source. Perrin steps on the balcony and sees all the dead bodies on the ground while Egwene cries and holds Nynaeve’s body. She puts her head against Nynaeve’s and someone uses magic to cure Nynaeve and bring her back to life. Rand is shown leaving on his own. Moiraine shows Lan the cuendillar. He looks at it and admits he thought heart stone couldn’t be scratched and not even the One Power could break it. She thought the same and argues it means this wasn’t the last battle after all. It was likely the first.

We see a small girl on the western shore. She looks out to sea and spots a bunch of ships heading toward her. Several women step onto the deck and chant in unison. They use the power to create a massive wave in front of them and send it toward the little girl on the beach.

 

The Wheel Of Time Review

With a second season already announced, the writers really had no obligation to create a magical first season that could captivate audiences. In fact, it often felt like more emphasis was placed on creating the most diverse cast we’ve ever seen in a fantasy drama while everything else was put on the backburner. Throughout the series, it was clear that the actors and actresses put a lot of effort into their respective roles, but the writing left them helpless. Even during the painfully humiliating magic scenes, everyone kept a straight face and strived to make them as authentic as possible.

It is hard to blame anyone on the cast because it is foolish to believe anyone could’ve made the characters any better. It was the responsibility of the writers to take the book’s characters and transform them into likable, sympathetic figures on the small screen, but they failed in this regard. It was also disappointing that the first season didn’t educate the viewer regarding the story’s lore besides a few tidbits here and there. Ultimately, The Wheel of Time wasn’t terrible or outstanding. If it has been any other television show, it likely wouldn’t have been so bad.

However, the show had so much hype surrounding it and that made its mediocrity more disappointing. As for the finale, it has some genuinely good moments although they were overshadowed by questionable choices. One thing that struck me as odd was the scenes where they were trying to retrieve the horn from under the throne. It seemed like we saw the same exact scene more than once. While it was likely just me, it irked me and felt like sloppy editing. In some ways, it is a perfect example of the love and care that was actually put into the show.

Another issue was the way Lady Amalisa just let her brother, Agelmar, die in the fortress. Once she teamed up with the other channelers, they destroyed the Trolloc army in seconds. They emphasized the fact that she didn’t want her brother to go to the fortress, yet she never offered this solution. The Perrin character was mostly worthless during this episode too. I suppose they could flip the script and make him a healer of sorts so he’d be the one to heal Nynaeve at the end.

Otherwise, the character has served its purpose since he watched Padan slaughter Loial and the others before letting him walk away with the horn which is vital. At the very least, he could’ve summoned his wolves to defend his friends and the horn. The whole Sa’angreal thing was rushed and never fully explained either. Unfortunately, there was really no real climax in the finale at least not in terms of battles and fighting.

Again, the finale had some touching moments, but they were few and far in between. As the finale of a show that needed to go out with a bang, it, unfortunately, didn’t do enough. I am not sure the season or finale did enough to warrant a second season, but we’re getting one regardless. A lot needs to change for the majority of viewers to justify watching the next season. I wouldn’t be surprised if many watched the opening episode of season two to decide whether to continue.

Then again, I could see many dropping out now and it’d be difficult to criticize them. From my experience, the first season is usually the best for any TV show, and many drop in quality from that point forward. If The Wheel of Time follows this trend, it will be over before it even begins. We can only hope those involved will listen to the criticism and use it for inspiration. Only time will tell. The finale scores a 6 out of 10. The Wheel of Time recaps are available on Reel Mockery here.