The Wheel of Time Season 3
Hey everyone, and welcome. Today, we will be talking about season 3 of the show The Wheel of Time. Spoilers ahead. Fun fact: In the Wheel of Time books, there are 2,782 named characters. I struggled to remember the characters this season and had to write them down, and I just know I would have to keep extensive notes if I ever read the books. This season came out in 2025 and stars Josha Stradowski, Rosamund Pike, and Madeline Madden, and was developed by Rafe Judkins. So without further ado, let's get right into it.
The Wheel of Time Season 3 sees Rand, aka the Dragon Reborn, on a journey with Moiraine, Lan, Aviendha, and Egwene to prove to the Aiel that he is the Car'a'carn. After the black Ajah reveals themselves in the white tower, Suian, the Amyrlin seat, tasks Nyneave and Elayne with tracking them down, and Matt and Min tag along. All while this is happening, the Forsaken, Black Ajah, and Aes Sedai are moving into place to either convince Rand to join them, control him, or kill him.
The Wheel of Time is a Fantasy show filled with magic and lots and lots of lore. It has similar vibes to Game of Thrones, Avatar: The Legend of Korra, or The Lord of the Rings.
The Wheel of Time somehow keeps getting better and better. The story is interesting, and while it is confusing, I think they do a good job of explaining things so you can understand if you didn't read the books, or at least explain enough to get by. The show is like a chess game, there’s so many moving pieces on the board. The actors were impressive too because not only do have to give a performance as this character or in Josha’s case, multiple characters, but you also have to learn all these new words for what to call different groups, or locations, or even just peoples names which can be alot but they do so well. Fantasy is hard, but the Wheel of Time is proving that you can get the right people and you can make it work. I will say I look up every character I hate to see their fate because I want to know if they are going to get taken out by someone I like or something, cause some of them deserve nothing good. Every time I do this, I forget in like 2 days' time, but it's always fun.
Let me start by saying there are so many things to learn that it can get very confusing. Sa'angreal magnifies power.
The season starts off with the trial of Liandrin, who is accused of being sworn to the shadows, a darkfriend, but we, as the viewers, know she is. When Siuan moves to still her, the other Black Ajah members reveal themselves, and an all-out battle breaks out. I thought this was cool to see because I didn't really like Liandrin and knew something was off, but it lets you know that she's willing to kill for her cause. This scene is also the perfect way to show that there is division in the white tower, and it's not just Liandrin. Moraine is worried, but she technically is banished, so she can't go help the tower or her secret lover, but she does when she is almost crushed when the battle spills out into the city. Alanna gets a moment to shine and pretty much takes on all the black Ajah, but in the process, loses one of her warders. This was not only a fantastic opening but also showed how there was doubt cast by these Black Ajah, but now there is going to be doubt cast on the Aes Sedai, because how did they not see this coming? They capture 2, but there is a lot of physical damage, and we don't know how much of the remaining Aes Sedai have faith in Siuan.
There are many different Ajahs; we have Blue, Green, White, Brown, Gray, Yellow, and Red, but this season gives us one that is not on the level of a Forsaken, but an evil version of the other Ajahs, Black. I love how there are members from each Ajah who are in this as well, who have been waiting for their moment to shine. I wish the show delved more into how they are able to renounce their oaths to the Amyrlin and make new ones or live oathless. I love how they still keep wearing their colors, but there is a lot of distrust amongst them, which has and will continue to cause problems down the line. They go to Tanchico to go after a collar like the Seanchen have that can cage a man with hopes of controlling Rand. Their numbers seem to be dwindling, unless there are more of them, due to Liandrin killing one whom she couldn't trust and Elayne killing one to defend an old friend. By the end of the season, Liandrin and the Black Ajah have all the missing pieces and seem to be on their way to either get help from the Forsaken or find Rand, but it won't be easy considering Rand is powerful, he's not alone, and she helped unlock Nyneave's powers, who definitely will not be on her side.
I will say that while I do love this show, I still can't tell you the difference between the Ajahs. I know for sure the Green are battling, Red goes after male channelers, and Yellow is healing, but the rest I'm clueless. Upon research the Red actually are supposed to be handling missuse of the one power which is not limited to men but typically is men, Green is battle Ajah so i was right, Brown’s gather and preserve knowledge, Yellow like i said is healing, Blue focuses on righteousness and justice, Grey is politics and mediation, White is logic and philosophy, and of course Black who are darkfriends aka evil little snakes. The only ones who seem to be doing their jobs decently that the show has shown are the Greens, more specifically the absolute badass that is Alanna and the Yellow Ajah, who are great at healing; the rest seem to be so embroiled in politics so much that they skirt their duties.
I usually hate when a show with people with powers has someone lose their powers or show how they are powerful, but underutilizes them. I think this show might be the exception because I didn't hate when Moiraine was shielded, and I don't hate Nyneave having a block. I can't really tell if it's because I just love the characters too much, there's too much going on, or the story explains it in a way that just makes sense, but it could also be all three of those. In the last season, Moiraine gets her life together, and in this season, we find out more about Nyneave's block, especially when Moghedien is in her head, and we learn she is traumatized by the One Power. In a near-death experience, she is able to reconcile with her life she saw in the arches and fight for herself and show us why people keep saying she's so powerful in such a beautiful moment. That scene reminded me of a quote from Avatar: the Legend of Korra where spirit Aang says “When we hit our lowest point, we are open to the greatest change” because Nyneave was literally at her lowest point cause she was about to die but also at the lowest point of the body of water she was in. I think this show just balances the frustration you feel wanting these people to be able to channel with an interesting story that makes you want to give them time to come to terms with their situation.
The way they show channeling in this show, kind of like wisp and the darkness and dark clouds, is pretty cool. Some people we see one or the other, and I love with Rand, we always see both to show the struggle he is always going through. I love how it's transparent when they're doing something like whatever globe thing Moiraine was making in the finale, or when Lanfear shot that stuff at Moiraine that sent her flying. When we see how the Sa'angreal named Sakarnen was created, it's a beautiful display of magic. The show also shows with Moghedian how it can be very scary uses too, where we see her have people look like they are in a spiderweb, but mixed with blood and magic, and it's so creepy. The display of magic use always leaves me in awe, and I love how they switch up the style for different things.
The choreography of the fights is so well done in this series. We get the first fight and we see how the Black Ajah come together and have like a protection circle while they are fighting, which was a great organization, but also the way we see them using their powers with their hand movements is just great to further show the different styles of fighting and power levels. Whenever Alanna and her warders fight, we get cool choreography, and even cooler if they are all together, because then we will see how well they mix the magic use with the use of swords and arrows. The Aiel fight even differently because of how they were raised, and they are extremely deadly. It's impressive how they not only choreograph all the different magic users but then to also do the same for people in different fights throughout the season, like the beautiful episode of the two rivers defending their home.
The Forsaken are such an interesting group of people because they don't operate out in the open; they pull strings from a distance and then every once in a while come to the front lines. I love that we see this because we can see how manipulative they can be, but also how easy it is for them to slip in like Moghedien and really cause some damage. They are so manipulative that you might think one has been in your life forever, like in Elayne's case, which is not even true. In the case that you do come face to face with one, the show lets you know that just because they usually aren't on the front lines announcing to everyone who they are and causing fights, doesn't mean that they are weak. Rand is one of the few who could hold their own against them, and even with a Sa’angreal boosting her powers, Moraine was struggling to take on Lanfear. Their power levels are high, and there are fewer restrictions on what they can do, which the show does great with visualizing and also helping the viewer understand why someone would want to join them.
The Dragon Reborn is the topic on everyone's minds. Many want to control or kill him, and there are very few who are actually looking after him. Rand spends most of the season with the Aiel and learns about his past and goes through trials so he can formally announce he is the Car’a’carn, who is destined to be both the destroyer of these people and the savior of those who survive the calamity he brings about. This understandably makes some people scared, and Lanfear tries to sow seeds of doubt with the clans by giving some dummy dragon tattoos. Siuan is protecting his whereabouts secretly due to a pact made by her and Moiraine, even though some members, or maybe only the Blacks, want him stilled. The Black Ajaah later is looking for a collar to control him, which they succeed in getting. Moiriane seems to be helping him, but early in the season, she plans an attack with Lanfear to separate him from his friends so she can control him more while also trying to support him. It was interesting that her uncle cut down a tree selfishly, which started a war, and Rand’s dad was killed opposing him, which shows they are more connected than I thought. This also makes me wonder what about Rands’ mom, cause we have seen her but don’t know her connections. To me, this seems like something a member of the Blue Ajah would do since they are known for having spies and exerting influence, which she is trying to do with Rand. The planning of getting him alone shows how she has observed these people and knows what path they would most likely choose, but also, she's so set on helping him that she's willing to die to ensure he rises to power.
Rand’s close friends are the only ones who truly seem to care about him. While they separate at the beginning of the season, most are still doing things to help him. Egwene is the only one with him, considering they were in love before she saw him hooking up with Lanfear in his dream. Even after this, she still tries to help him and reminds him to find this balance within himself while using the One Power. In the first episode when he uses it she calls and calls for him to stop, towards the middle of the season she sees how easily he was able to stop a Foresaken but how in the process he killed a little girl and he tries to revive her, then at the end he sees him pronouncing himself as the Car’a’carn and begs him to stop using the power as it seems to be having a negative side effect before the screen goes black. I'm interested to see how he battles with the power he has more and how his friends will attempt to help him.
Speaking of his friends, they have been through a lot, and I'm glad they are finding their footing after being thrust into madness. Perrin is in the Two Rivers and is protecting them from the white cloaks, whom I hate, and the Trollocs. Egwene is obviously with Rand but she is also learning how to dream walk and how to use that to her advantage, Nyneave is helping find Black Ajah but she still has a block that she has no clue how to remove until the finale when Liandrin tries to kill her and she figures out how to unblock her power, Elayne is trying to balance being a the future queen and an Aes Sedai and decides she will be queen on her own terms and does not have the Aes Sedai ring as jewlery but will also learn to channel but learns she must address a forsaken that has manipulated her family, and Matt who has always struggled is dealing with voices in his dead from blowing the horn and wants them to stop and meets an Eelfin who grants his wish but says there is a price and almost dies. There's so much going on with them, which makes sense why they are all on separate journeys, because there is no way they would really be able to help Rand if they can't get their own houses in order.
We go to some cool locations, which really help expand this world. I'm always impressed when a show or movie can make an area filled with sand look so interesting, but they did that. Tanchico is a bustling city and reminds me of somewhere pirates would go to catch a break or black market people to sell stuff. The two rivers are even beautiful, nestled in nature where they are constantly under attack, but have some advantages. They constantly show us new places in the white tower, so we don’t keep re-visiting the same rooms. The colors really pop, which also shows how cool the outfits are this season and how much their respective Ajahs influence them, or what people wear to blend in. I feel like this is an improvement, especially over season one, where I felt the outfits and lighting, and effects were lacking and made the show feel cheaper and duller, but not unwatchable. The show has constantly improved on this especially with more characters, different ways of channeling, and new locations and how to capture all this and keep the viewer very interested. one of the best uses is when they go to Rhuidean which is just gorgeous, scary if you had to go through trials but from the outside i was in awe. Even when Rand is going through history, it's cool to see locations and how they used to look vs what changed while learning about his ancestry.
The finale for this season saw more pieces falling into place, but also left so many questions that I need answers to. It reminded me that I still hate Liandrin after she launches Nyneave into a lake or the ocean, and I can't wait for her downfall, but I am nervous now that she has the collars. We meet the Eelfin, who is through the red arch gate that Matt goes through, who silences the voices, and I think protects him from the one power, but also hangs him for some reason. We see Elaida went through the same arches with the goal of being the Amyrlin which she is now, but we don't know what the cost is for both of them using the Eelfin's help. Lanfear interferes in Rand declaring himself the Car’a’caran, which seems to split the Aiel's support, and Rand displays his power, but he seems to be losing control. Elaida deposes Suian and confides in the others to sentence her to death and kills her, which Moiraine feels because of the oath they took in a heartbreaking scene. I'm interested to see where sides will be drawn in the white tower because I know the Aes Sedai aren't all goint ot be happy with how Elaida won her throne. Perrin is with the White Cloaks to face justice even though id prefer they all die cause they suck. Elayne needs to figure out how to take out the forsaken that's in her house, which I know will be hard. So many groups are going after Rand while he's gaining supporters, but they all have some other stuff they need to figure out, and the finale made me so excited to see how it all gets resolved.
My favorite part of this season was episode 7, which showed the Trolloc attack on the Two Rivers. It showed the amazing leadership of Perrin, who helped prep the town, and Alanna, who found channelers who helped her to help the villagers out. There were plenty of times I was on the edge of my seat, like when Alanna almost died, and Padan Fain comes back after infiltrating the ranks of the White Cloaks and almost wins, but Perrin comes out on top. Unfortunately, Loial sacrifices himself to sever the waygate, which was a sad end for such a likeable character, but also a fitting end because he seems like the one who would sacrifice himself for the greater good. Eamon Valda comes back and of course goes after the ones that can channel and he knows Alanna so he has his eyes set on her but what he doesn’t realize is the two girls he is trying to protect, Bode and Eldrin are channelers and he killed their mom so they light his butt on fire and it was so pleasing to see because I hated that man. In the end, Perrin agrees to turn himself in for killing the head Whitecloak's father in exchange for their help with the battle. The townspeople are angry but respect Perrin's wishes, but do deem him lord Perrin. I was on the edge of my seat the whole episode, and it was a great episode to not only cheer for the two rivers defending themselves but also to see Perrin get over his guilt for accidentally killing his wife.
The Wheel of Time just keeps getting better and better. The cast is amazing, and the story can be complicated, but you just have to buckle down and pay attention. I do think they should make longer seasons to flush more stuff out, but it's a minor issue. The way magic is shown here is cool, and there's a lot of it to keep you interested.
