The Wheel of Time Season 2 Episodes 1-3 Review: A Taste of Solitude / Strangers and Friends / What Might Be

This piece was written during the 2023 WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes. Without the labor of the writers and actors currently on strike, the series being covered here wouldn’t exist.

The Wheel of Time Season 2 reunites us the Emond’s Field Five, Moiraine, Lan, and company. Three episodes are a hefty introduction, but by the end of The Wheel of Time Season 2 Episode 3, “What Might Be,” there’s still this feeling that the main arcs of the season haven’t been set up yet.

Maybe The Wheel of Time Season 2 Episode 4, “Daughter of the Night,” will hit the ground running, but that is doubtful. Everyone is still spread out, and Moiraine is still keeping secrets — her favorite hobby.

For the most part, you spend the three-episode premiere blindly following everyone around, trying to remember who everyone is. The show should’ve taken more time to gently remind us of things, as it did with Logain and Rand by flashing back briefly to when Logain noticed how Rand was watching him being paraded through the streets.

It’s a simple way to help make the audience not feel so completely lost at times, especially when it’s been a while since the previous season aired. Unfortunately, this isn’t the only time some viewers may feel a bit lost during the premiere.

For viewers, like myself, who haven’t read the books, you can tell there is more that we are supposed to be picking up that’s just out of our grasp. It is a little frustrating. All you can do is hope that for the big stuff, the show will make things clear, and in the meantime, you just have to do your best to keep up.

The Wheel of Time Season 2 Episode 1, “A Taste of Solitude,” and The Wheel of Time Season 2 Episode 2, “Strangers and Friends,” deliver some absolutely top-tier angst between Moiraine and Lan. It’s heartbreaking but also so good.

The relationship between a warder and his Aes Sedai is fascinating because every pair’s relationship is different. Moiraine and Lan don’t have a romantic relationship, but it’s clear that the two are very near and dear to each other.

And then this season, there’s the added complication of Moiraine being cut off from the One Power.

It’s fascinating to hear Lan talk about how the bond helped their relationship in the past, especially when it comes to Moiraine’s closed-off nature, and now that it’s gone, Lan’s struggling.

They may be separated for now, but here’s hoping the two reunite soon and maybe mend this rift that’s between them. Time apart from one another could help put things in perspective.

Egwene and Nynaeve’s time at the White Tower is underwhelming.

They are novices, doing manual labor, and not learning much of anything about channeling. There’s one lesson during the entire three episodes, and it’s not a very good one. The idea itself is there, but it falls flat.

Nynaeve flat-out refuses, and her walking off cuts the lesson short, and we aren’t given the opportunity to spend time with Egwene to really explore her powers and how training is going for her. She has one conversation about how she’s feeling stuck, but that’s it.

There’s so much potential when it comes to storylines about young people, especially young women, learning their craft, and it’s a shame that The Wheel of Time doesn’t take advantage of it.

The trials have promise, but they also are underwhelming. All a novice has to do is walk through three arches, undergo some trauma, leave when the doorway re-appears, and get splashed in the face with water.

It’s a cool premise, and we do explore more of Nynaeve’s personality and character through her trials. The underwhelming part of this storyline is when “What Might Be” tries to make us believe she’s perished in the arches.

Sorry, Nynaeve is too important of a character for that to be plausible, and the show has released photos of Nynaeve from scenes that haven’t happened yet, making it clear that she’s not permanently gone.

If someone seemingly less valuable, like Mat, had gone through and “died,” then it could have been more convincing. Did you think Nynaeve was actually 100% dead?

The parallels between Nynaeve’s first arch trip and how her last one ended are fascinating. I wonder what exactly it means, or if the One Power was using it to force her out of her dream life and back to the real world, so she could be a part of the final battle.

Stray Thoughts

• I like Elayne Trakand. Her scenes with Egwene are cute.
• If Mat does attack Rand with the dagger, that will wreck me.
• Surprisingly, I like Mat and Liandrin more, which is a vast improvement from Season 1.
• Verin knowing about Rand is interesting; I can’t decide what to make of this development yet.
• We don’t gain a lot from Rand’s storyline besides seeing that he’s still working on controlling his powers.
• I’m very curious about what deal Liandrin struck with Min.
• I am not following Perrin’s storyline at all, but stay safe out there, buddy. Kneel when you need to and avoid those spikes.

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“A Taste of Solitude” is written by Amanda Kate Shuman and directed by Thomas Napper.

“Strangers and Friends” is written by Katherine B. McKenna and directed by Thomas Napper.

“What Might Be” is written by John McCutcheon and directed by Sanaa Hamri.

What did you think of the first three episodes of The Wheel of Time Season 2? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

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New episodes of The Wheel of Time release on Fridays on Prime Video.

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