The Wheel of Time's exemplary freshman outing ends with a bang with Rand taking centre stage in the conflict with the Dark One. I am beyond impressed with the Dark One's subtle manipulation and seductive behavior. Fares Fares brought his A game for this final episode, managing to be both chilling and charming at the same time. Hopefully this isn't the last we see of him.
Rand certainly gets the quieter, more introspective part of the finale, spending most of it trapped inside a dream world with Egwene and their possible future child. Even from the beginning, he doubted it was real because Egwene would never give up wanting to go to the White Tower and become an Aes Sedai but it took him a while to see the truth past his own dreams of a peaceful and happy life.
The Dark One plays off these dreams masterfully, trying to convince him to make it real and give into the Shadow. He made it sound so reasonable and innocent as well and even I half believed it as I was watching.
The battle for Rand's soul was suitably tense and ultimately he used the sa'angreal Moiraine gave him and channelled his magic to attack the Dark One. I'm not a big fan of that smirk on his face as he vanished and this is definitely proof that this isn't the Last Battle as Moiraine had believed.
Rand ends up departing for parts unknown, afraid that the inevitable madness the saidin brings will make him hurt the people he loves. It's the kind of noble thing Rand would do and I look forward to the inevitable moment everyone finds out he is not in fact 'gone', as Moiraine so elegantly put it.
Elsewhere in the episode an army of Trollocs and Fades descends on Fal Dara, laying waste to everything in its path. Egwene and Nynaeve team up with a few other channellers to become the last line of defence for the city. They end up drawing on too much power and burning from the inside out.
Nynaeve proves once more how badass and powerful she is by sacrificing herself to save Egwene and you know, I was pretty sure she died. 100% dead. So unless I'm 100% mistaken, Egwene brought her back to life? Seems like there should be some kind of consequence for that in the second season. Unless I misread the scene of course.
Perrin meanwhile briefly discovers the Horn of Valere, a powerful artefact, before it falls into the hands of Padan Fain who is revealed to be a Darkfriend. He tells Perrin that he came to the Two Rivers because it is highly unnatural for five ta'veren (people who can reshape the Pattern, changing the course of the other threads the Wheel weaves) to be found in one place. It is good to know that even though four of them aren't the Dragon Reborn, they still have an important part to play in the fate of the world.
It's an interesting ending for the show to leave us on while we wait for the second season. Rand and Mat are loose in the world though the latter looks to be back in Shadar Logoth, I assume to seek out more of the darkness like an addiction. It was good to have one final glimpse of Mat before the actor change and I'm excited to see where his character goes in the next season.
I'm looking forward to Moiraine's storyline as well now that she's been cut off from the One Power and it'll be interesting to see how she reforges her connection to it. And then of course there's the mysterious and enigmatic ending of a fleet of ships arriving, using a host of channellers to create a gigantic wave and I'm sure their significance will become more apparent when the show returns.
What did you think of the season finale of The Wheel of Time? Impressed with how the first season went? Which storylines are you most looking forward to seeing play out in the next season? Sound off in the comments below and see you in season 2!
