Wheel Of Time Season 1 Ending Explained: What Happens Next?
Charlotte Adams Amazon's Wheel of Time season 1 has come to a dramatic end, with the Dark One apparently defeated - but is that really what's happened?
Amazon's Wheel of Time season 1 came to a spectacular close - with the heroes incorrectly believing the Dark One defeated. "The Wheel of Time turns, and Ages come and pass, leaving memories that become legend. Legend fades to myth, and even myth is forgotten when the Age that gave it birth comes again." With these words, fantasy author Robert Jordan welcomed readers into what would become one of the most well-developed fantasy worlds of all time. Long considered impossible to adapt for the small screen, Wheel of Time has now become a TV series on Amazon Prime.
The first season of Wheel of Time saw Moiraine, one of the Aes Sedai - the sorceresses of Jordan's world - visit the small rural village of Two Rivers. There, she discovered five ta'veren - people central to the Web of Destiny, who influence the world around them. She believed one of them to be the Dragon Reborn, the champion destined to stand against the Dark One, the franchise's version of the Devil. Desperate to prematurely trigger the Last Battle before the Dark One could regain his strength, Moiraine took the two to the edge of the Blight. Successfully identifying Rand al'Thor as the Dragon, she took him to confront the Dark One.
Wheel of Time season 1, episode 8 follows a fairly traditional fantasy format. It divides its attention between two events; the mystical confrontation between Rand and the Dark One at the Eye of the World, and a Trolloc invasion at Tarwin's Gap. As is common in works of fantasy, the magical battle is really the key to everything that happens, with the actual war - complete with the slaughter of thousands - serving as the B-plot. But what does it all mean?
Lews Therin Telamon, The Last Dragon Reborn Explained
The story of Wheel of Time begins 3,000 years ago, when the last Dragon Reborn - Lews Therin Telamon - brought one cycle of the Wheel to an end. He believed himself powerful enough to chain the Dark One, and took an army of male Channelers with him. The Aes Sedai of his time refused to support him in his endeavor, instead holding back to repair the world they believed he would break in his Last Battle against the Dark One. Without their presence at his side, Lews Therin Telamon was only partially successful; he faced the Dark One at the Eye of the World, binding him with seals of an almost-unbreakable mineral called cuendillar. But victory came at a price, with the Dark One touching the One Power and corrupting saidin, its masculine half. From that day forward, any man who wielded the One Power was destined to be driven insane - as Lews Therin Telamon learned when he returned to his home, and slaughtered all those he loved.
What Happened To The Dark One? Is He Dead?
Moiraine took Rand al'Thor to the Eye of the World in the hopes he would repeat the process and bind the Dark One once again. Her hope was that this cycle of history would end with the Last Battle forestalled, but in truth she was naïve in the extreme. The Dark One had long been aware of the power stirring in the Two Rivers, and his agent Padan Fain had watched the five ta'veren grow. He doesn't seem to have believed Rand to be the Dragon Reborn - it's unclear which of the five ta'veren he considered most likely - but he knew the premature confrontation with the Dragon would not serve to defeat him. Moiraine initially believed Rand defeated the Dark One, but she had completely miscalculated. This was not the Last Battle - it was the first one, with the Dark One manipulating events to free himself a little more, and identifying his true opponent in the Dragon Reborn.
The best comparison is with J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, which culminates in an apparent victory for Harry - but is really about both Harry Potter and Voldemort coming face-to-face for the first time since he was just a child. The comparison is imperfect, but it just about holds; Rand refused to yield to the Dark One's influence, but that does not mean the threat of the Dark One has been defeated. He is still out there, he has countless agents, and he is powerful indeed.
Cuendillar: What Moiraine's Rock Means For The Dark One
Moiraine realized this truth when she looked down at the cuendillar seal at the Eye of the World. In Wheel of Time, cuendillar - also known as heartstone - is a rare mineral forged by sorcerers during the last cycle of history. It is almost indestructible, absorbing any force that attempts to break it, and the seals to the Dark One's prison were made of cuendillar to restrain him. But cuendillar can indeed be destroyed by the True Power, and when Rand channeled through the sa'angreal he unleashed enough power to break one seal. Assuming Wheel of Time follows the same pattern as the books, there are other seals scattered across the world, and they too are beginning to fail.
How Nynaeve Could Help Moiraine In Season 2
Wheel of Time season 1's finale deviates dramatically from the books, incorporating some ideas from later novels. One of these is the idea that Moiraine loses access to the One Power; in the Amazon Prime series she is stripped of her ability to wield it by the Dark One himself. This will certainly serve as fascinating setup for Wheel of Time season 2, which will presumably explore Lan's struggle to deal with the breaking of his Warder's Bond; it's possible he will choose to bond with Nynaeve, given the two are clearly falling in love and do indeed wind up bound together in Jordan's books.
Nynaeve and Egwene are both remarkably powerful, and they may well be able to accomplish the impossible in helping Moiraine regain access to the One Power; there seem to be almost no limits to the power those two women wield, with Egwene literally bringing Nynaeve back from the dead. Alternatively, Amazon's Wheel of Time could make that part of the overarching narrative in season 2, with Moiraine resorting to the same methods she used in the books - wearing a powerful bracelet angreal making her even stronger than before.
What Happens Next To Wheel Of Time's Main Characters
Wheel of Time season 1 has blasted through the plot at a remarkable rate, rewriting many aspects of Robert Jordan's lore to build to a satisfying conclusion. The finale goes one step further, even incorporating some plots from later in the series, making it particularly difficult to figure out precisely where the characters will go from here. Still, it's clear Egwene and Nynaeve will find their way to the White Tower, where they will become embroiled in Aes Sedai politics - and it's quite possible Liandrin will be exposed as a Darkfriend. Meanwhile, the three male ta'veren will continue their own arcs; Rand must confront the Madness he faces now he has tapped into saidin, while Perrin and Mat must confront their own demons.
Wheel Of Time's Biggest Book Differences In Season 1's Finale
Wheel of Time season 1 plays out very differently to the books, most notably in Moiraine's understanding of what the Eye of the World is in the first place. In Jordan's novel, it is a pool of pure, uncorrupted saidin, created by the Aes Sedai at the end of the last cycle of history; they intended it to be a resource for the Dragon Reborn to draw upon, so he was not forced to channel tainted saidin and risk the Madness. This difference in approach naturally means the confrontation between Rand and the Dark One plays out completely different in Amazon's Wheel of Time - in the books, it is Rand who channels the One Power to destroy an army of Trollocs, with Egwene and Nynaeve powerful but nowhere near so spectacular. All the Emond's Field five are present at this fateful battle, and play their parts, where they are scattered in the Amazon Prime series.
On the whole, the adaptation feels faithful to the central themes and ideas of Robert Jordan's books, but it is definitely playing fast and loose with the details. That's leading to a somewhat mixed reception, with some fans somewhat shaken at how things have been switched up. In this case, a number of ideas from later in the series have been integrated into the first season - such as Moiraine's losing the One Power - which will naturally lead to intense speculation over the show's future direction.
Wheel Of Time Season 2 Setup: Seanchan Villains Explained
Wheel of Time season 1 ends with a new threat arriving on the western shore of the continent - the Seanchans. In the books, the Seanchan Empire was established a thousand years after the Trolloc Wars, and it has already endured for generations. The Seanchans have successfully wiped out all the Shadowspawn on their continent, but they have come to view the One Power as a tool that should be used; they use cuendillar necklaces to control channelers, turning them into puppets under their control. The final scenes of Wheel of Time season 1 hint at just how dangerous the Seanchans truly are, as their arrival is heralded by a gigantic wave of destruction. In the books, the Seanchans actually manage to capture some of the most powerful Aes Sedai, bending them to their will - and they even manage to leash Egwene herself. It remains to be seen whether Amazon's Wheel of Time series will follow the same approach, or whether the plot will be twisted around somewhat.
