Danny Franks

Caught another bit of House of the Dragon, and I can't see how anyone enjoys this shit. This clip was of a serving girl confessing to the queen that the queen's son raped her. And the queen poisons the girl so she can't tell anyone because it would be embarrassing. This is supposed to be entertaining? Oh, they're so evil and dastardly! What fun! They murder innocents to cover up their crimes, and it's so entertaining! "But it's realistic!" the cry goes up... about a show that has magic and dragons in it. No fucking wonder there's such a rise in casual misogyny, when this passes for high quality entertainment.

Her new name was Tuli. In the books Renna let her keep her name too, until Egwene disappointed her and she took it away as a punishment. I'm sure we'll see her do that in the finale. But I'm also sure the other two Wonder Girls will rescue her and uncover the secret of the sul'dam. Leaving Renna wearing the a'dam and stuck in that cell will be a fitting punishment. Never one-on-one. When Siuan meets him, she has Moiraine and Verin there too. The scene in the show was a much abbreviated version of it, and obviously ended very differently. In the book, Siuan basically tells Rand who he is and that he will fight the Last Battle, but she never tries to control him or Shield him. I think she suggests later that she thought about it, and Verin admits she thought about whether they might have to Gentle him. They've made all the characters more formidable and competent, but especially these three. Book purists have been whining that they're "doing Rand dirty" as though he should be the Head Dragon in Control already and not still the sheepherder with a great destiny that he can't even get his head around. But we're already seeing him grow as a character, and he has to, to keep up with Moiraine and Lanfear. I find myself definitely hoping the storyline of Alanna losing a warder is part of season three. I like all three characters, but they are using Maksim and Ihvon too much as a peanut gallery and exposition fairies.

Maiden handtalk! I didn't know if we'd get it in the show, but I'm really glad we did. More ji'e'toh and Aiel customs. They're a harsh people. So that flashback is how I wanted the first season to open - the birth of the Dragon Reborn and Gitara Moroso's Foretelling. I don't think they executed it quite like I imagined, but it worked. Seeing young, optimistic Moiraine and Siuan was nice. All these plans they had, completely uprooted by fate. It's hard to disagree with everything Siuan said to Rand. He has no idea what he's doing, he doesn't know how strong he is, I'm not sure he even knows the basics of recognising the different strands of the One Power. "Can you imagine what would happen if one of the Forsaken got their hands on him?" Yeah, about that... But now things between them are definitely on the outs, with Siuan using Moiraine's oath to obey against her. Lan giving Rand a bit of a telling off and a bit of advice was nice. Cat Crosses the Courtyard was a nice moment in the books. I want more scenes between the two of them. Leanne has to be one of the best dressed characters in this show. That coat she was wearing was amazing. And it's fun seeing Aes Sedai interacting and scheming. They're all so suspicious of each other, and usually for good reason. Lanfear is still completely owning this show, her scenes with Rand are just sizzling with sexual tension. The cut from her little smile to just torching the fuck out of the city was perfect. She can be subtle when she wants to be, but when she doesn't want to be... Ishamael isn't far behind her. His crazy was way more obvious in this episode. He genuinely wants to break the Wheel and destroy the world. Nynaeve is just so bull-headed, of course she wants to bust right into the palace to save Egwene. And of course Elayne is the voice of sanity, while barely being able to stop from rolling her eyes. Nynaeve saying "get up, don't encourage her" when Loial knelt to Elayne. Heh. The damane Top Gun scene was cool. Renna's pride in 'owning' such a powerful damane, Egwene almost taken satisfaction in people actually recognising her strength. The Seanchan training methods are so fucked up. Brutal and harsh, then pampering to play on the vulnerability of the damane and create an emotional dependency. One episode to go, and lots to cover. I hope it ends with the bang that it should.

Immediate revulsion for Renna, from her first line in The Wheel of Time. Sure, she's a product of her society and its beliefs, but she's a complete monster who genuinely believes slavery is right and that those enslaved should be thankful. The actor's performance is so good, too. Everything is played so minimally, with this cajoling, faux-empathetic attitude and a sense of actually being hurt when the slave doesn't act like a loyal animal.

This season has book two's overall plot, but there are elements of both books one and three, in different storylines. Perrin meets Elyas in book one, for example. And Rand is off on his own in book three, but the Selene stuff is in book two. Meanwhile, we don't meet Aviendha until book three. The girls are all firmly in book two. I think most of book three will be glossed over without losing too much that's important. But there will be some elements of it folded into season three.

I think they will. Alanna is a much more important, and likeable, figure in the show, so they're unlikely to miss the chance to shock the audience with that scene. They've built up enough of Alanna's closeness to her warders that her being completely unable to deal with Rand would be a fun (albeit traumatic) angle to play.

Instead of being enraged over something you clearly don't have the full picture on, you should perhaps be aware that Morgase is still Elayne's mother, and is not Queen of Cairhien in the show. The Queen of Cairhien is Queen Galldrian. In the books it was King Galldrian, a character who never appeared on the page. So... yeah, really significant change, there. The point of the change is quite clear, and obvious to anyone actually watching. Barthanes Damodred is set to marry Galldrian Riatin, uniting the major houses of Cairhien. This wedding obviously won't happen, as we know Cairhien is going to fall into anarchy. In the books the anarchy happened because the domino effect of Rand playing politics ended up with Thom murdering the king. Considering Thom's actor wasn't available this season, they had to figure out how to effect the same chaos in the country that the books had. And pairing that whole storyline with Moiraine's drive to succeed in her mission, even at the expense of her family, will make what happens to Cairhien even more bitter. As for "the casting is an abomination," that's a shorthand I'm familiar with by now. I don't think you'll find much sympathy for it here.

I knew this was going to be a rough episode to watch. Egwene's ordeal in the books was tough to read, and seeing it on screen was just as bad. Renna treating her like a frightened animal was perfectly on point. The Seanchan simply don't see women who can channel as humans. The casual, impersonal kindness and the equally casual cruelty. The detail of the a'dam collar cutting into her neck was an effective touch. I liked the pitcher as the emblem of Egwene's resistance. Though I'd prefer the show had made the passage of time clearer to show that she was being broken down over a longer period. It was nice to see Loial's Treesinging ability, even if it came from the Seanchan being, 'oh, look at this freakish thing. Isn't it entertaining?' They just fucking suck. Nynaeve and Elayne bickering. So good. I love seeing Elayne already losing her patience with Nynaeve's sheer, stubborn disagreeableness. Elayne tinkering with things again, trying to figure out the ter'angreal. I stan Lanfear. She's so fucking crazy, but it's all hidden under a thin veneer. You just see glimpses of it, from time to time. She's so good at putting doubts in Rand's head, but so susceptible to him putting doubts in hers. You can see her yearning for him to love her (which just makes her scarier). And then she was so different in her scene with Liandrin. No attempts to charm her at all, just unnerving and unpredictable. That was fucking dark. She just kills Liandrin's son in front of her, and there's not a thing Liandrin can do. She's spent all these years, even sworn to the Shadow, to keep her son alive and along comes a Forsaken to just make it all worthless. I really like seeing more of Moiraine's flaws, and her singular drive that comes off as so incredibly selfish and cold. And it is, because you feel like there has to be a way for her to combine her mission to win the Last Battle with being a decent person. Love Rand and Mat's reunion. Their sheer joy at seeing each other again, Mat immediately asking after the others. Mat hears Rand's story and learns that Ishamael has Egwene held captive. His response? "So... we'll go." Min should have kept her mouth shut. Mat's self-loathing clearly overrides everything else, when given the slightest pretext. Lan's story is still just a bit of a headshake. Alanna and her guys really thought he was a darkfriend? Really? The show needs to cast some more Aes Sedai, so it's not just the same five or six, shown over and over again.

More jealousy and miscommunication over the phone. More Jean being useless, and now a random sister has appeared. Let me guess, she'll actually make the situation worse, with her immaturity and wild ways! Maeve's professor is an insecure dickwad, but I'm sure he'll eventually see how wonderful she is and ask her to stay in the US. Isaac is still a creep, and now apparently they're throwing Aimee at him. Poor girl. Adam's storyline feels like it's from a different show. Which is actually a good thing. I'd rather watch Connor Swindells and his very attractive new friend teach kids to ride horses than whatever the rest of this show has become. I did like Otis and Jackson talking, and wish the show had actually had them do that before. Otis actually having a conversation with another guy who isn't Eric.

Hoo boy, this was pretty bad. The long distance misunderstandings were right out of 'how to write miscommunications 101' and entirely predictable. The new school feels like something a crusty old conservative would write to make fun of progressives schools - no grades, students decide what's taught, slides and yoga studios and almost everyone is LGBTQIA and completely out and confident with it. They got rid of Lily and Ola and Olivia and Anwar but kept boring ass Cal, for some reason. I'm really not a fan of 'competent, professional, successful woman completely goes to shit because she's had a baby' plotlines, but this one was something else. It was insulting to Jean's character to have her be so utterly inept and trying to force Otis to be a co-parent. Plus points - well at least they're still writing funny lines for Aimee.

Yeah, this is the sort of nod to the books that puts a complete lie to claims by show haters that Rafe and other writers haven't read the books. Only someone who was really invested in Perrin's character (which isn't easy, even for devout fans of the books) would think to put this in. It's fascinating to me because the pairings they've given us had no relationship at all in the books. I think Mat spoke to Min in the final book, but only briefly, and Perring may have spoken to Aviendha outside Rand's chambers in Tear. But it's fun. I don't mind Gaul being replaced with Aviendha, and I don't mind Aviendha having toh to Perrin. We know she can't follow him to the Two Rivers because she's going to be called home by the Wise Ones, but she can ask friends to go with him instead, which could give us Gaul, Bain and Chiad. I'm already eager to see her being mean to Rand next season. I loved all their scenes together in books four and five - Aviendha seething in anger at her situation and Rand just completely flummoxed by her behaviour.

The Three Oaths are sworn on the Oath Rod, which Siuan made Moiraine swear on in season one when she was banished. It's a ter'angreal, which is a device that uses the One Power to function, and it binds those who swear to always abide by their oath. Essentially, Aes Sedai are magically bound to be incapable of telling lies. The Aes Sedai who swear to the Dark One appear to have a way of removing or altering the Three Oaths. So if you catch an Aes Sedai in a lie, they are almost certainly a darkfriend. However, as we've seen, Aes Sedai can tell the truth in such a way that people believe they've said something very different. I believe there's also a loophole for colloquialisms and idioms. For example, an Aes Sedai could probably say "my ears are burning" if she suspects people are talking about her. When it comes to using the One Power to attack another person, my understanding is that the weaves would dissipate if an Aes Sedai tried to use them to actually cause serious harm. The lore behind why they swear these three oaths that limit their abilities is super interesting, and I think Egwene touched on it briefly in season one. They may go into it more deeply on the show at some point.

I enjoyed this episode a lot, and it feels like the plot is really ramping up, after a lot of setup. Heh. I liked the visual representation of Seanchan disgrace - a punitive nail clipping. Suroth certainly has some balls, talking to Ishamael the way she did. I feel like normal Darkfriends should be more cowed by him than they are. I really liked the way Lanfear's healing was represented - these black tendrils flowing into her from... somewhere. And now she's just being her crazy old evil self. Vindictive and petty and dramatic as fuck. Moiraine doing the cop show thing of "commandeering this vehicle" made me laugh. It felt so anachronistic. And then they did the old gag about sending Lanfear off after the horses Aviendha! She's still not what I pictured from the books, but she was immediately amazing. "Perrin Aybara, do you like to dance?" So cool. I love the Aiel. Dain Bornhald was surprisingly likeable. I twigged early on that it was him, and he was hiding his Whitecloak costume. Perrin revealing he was from the Two Rivers... ah shit. Verin is still so great, and I love how dorky the other Browns are. But she still seems like she's a lot more aware of everything around her than people think. Loved the scene with Suroth and Liandrin - the shared loathing and sniping between them. I found it really interesting that Liandrin freed the girls, just as she left. Yes, she obeyed her master, but she clearly doesn't want the Seanchan enslaving more women who can channel. Poor Egwene, though. She looks like she's going to be in for a rough time. Lots of concepts introduced and expanded on in this episode - Compulsion, Tel'aran'rhiod, Tarmon Gaidon (might have been mentioned before, but I don't know if that term was used), the Forsaken/Chosen. Some Aiel lore - Three-Fold Land, Car'a'carn, ji'e'toh. Probably a lot for non-book readers to take in. I wonder whether we should have a thread where these concepts can be explained without spoilers?

So the change to having the seals needing to be broken to release Forsaken is interesting. I think I like it as a change, rather than having them all just randomly showing up at different times. But it does make Ishamael's continued existence more important, and I always liked the scheming and backbiting between the rest of them. And Lanfear in the show is spectacular. She really is. Arrogant, cold, infinitely petty and cruel and vindictive... and completely flamboyant and showy. If she doesn't become a gay icon, something is wrong. I've tried to avoid speculating or imagining scenes from the books being interpreted for the show, but I just have this end of season, post-credits scene stuck in my head - The Whitecloaks riding into Emond's Field and Bornhald saying "we're looking for a golden eyed man. His name is Perrin."

I think she's trying to be noble and protect Lan from the danger of fighting the Forsaken. Especially of fighting the Forsaken without Moiraine being able to channel. She genuinely cares for Lan, but she's likely seen that he's got something else to live for than just the Dragon Reborn - Nynaeve - and she doesn't want to see him toss his life away when he could have happiness. She was apparently being cold to Lan for months, but she really only pushed him hard after she read that poem that told her Lanfear was likely free. She's prepared to do anything to ensure the Dragon Reborn succeeds, but perhaps the one limit she puts on it is letting Lan follow her into danger she doesn't expect to survive.

Sheriam actually made me think of Sister Michael, from Derry Girls - "if anyone is feeling anxious or worried... please, please do not come crying to me." She gives off the air of someone who has dealt with teenage girls for decades and is just done with their shit. And someone who has delivered this bad news too many times to share any empathy over it.

Lindsay Duncan is baby sister Damodred. That was a cool reveal, and it's nice to see that Moiraine keeps everyone at a distance, including family. When she said her only goal was to ensure the Dragon Reborn would be victorious, she wasn't kidding. I can't believe Rand and Selene broke up. I was really rooting for those crazy kids. Honestly, Lanfear is a master manipulator. She played the absolute shit out of Rand, and I'm pretty sure she was going to bond him at the end. Nynaeve is more than a little worse for wear, which is understandable. But man, Accepted get much better quarters than Novices, don't they? But perhaps her experience in the arches was much the same as every other Aes Sedai's, it just went on for longer. I guess it's a blessing that it fades. Still loving Elayne, she's fitting in well with Egwene and Nynaeve. She doesn't pull social rank when Nynaeve orders her out of her own room, she just goes. I really like that they've set Liandrin up in a way where I genuinely believe she regrets doing what she did to Nynaeve, but she was told to by someone she cannot refuse. But Rosamund Pike kills every scene. She appears serene and calm in the surface, but you see it fraying and hear urgency in her voice. It's such a good performance. Poor Perrin is not enjoying the foreign food, but he's got a new pal. Hopper is the best boy. I'm glad we're getting to the meat of Perrin's storyline now (if you'll pardon the pun). Mat and Min are a fun pair. I knew the first time we'd see a free Mat, he'd be gambling in an inn. I was not expecting Ishamael to show up in her dream, but I really like that development - he promises things. Things that people truly want, and that only he (or so he claims) can provide.

Nynaeve's visions in the Arches were interesting. I forgot that her parents were killed when she was small, but it makes sense that it's the basis of one of her greatest fears. And of course, fear number two is an epidemic in Emond's Field that she can't heal. Because Nynaeve is the Wisdom and she looks after the people. Leaving them weighs on her all the time, and if she's left them for the White Tower, why isn't she trying her hardest to succeed there? Nynaeve is stubborn as hell but, deep down, she knows it's hurting her as much as anyone. The bait and switch with her 'emerging' for the third time was pretty good. But I guess her third fear is turning her back on the One Power, and on Egwene, because she's just too stubborn to follow their rules. What would it cost her, and people she cares about? The fact that she has to leave just when she thinks her loved ones need her most is brutal. I've always thought that was so cruel. And the coldness of the Aes Sedai who, to be fair to them, have likely seen this a hundred different times, with a hundred different women. I think the romantic reunion with Lan was when I realised it wasn't real. But well played, I genuinely didn't know what was going to happen. The Seanchan are just so extra, and I love it. Their aesthetic is so completely alien and weird. So unnerving. And they have American accents! The little blond damane was perhaps they creepiest thing in the episode. Poor Uno. That was fucking awful. What's not awful? Selene. She's stunning, vivacious and so intriguing. She and Rand clean up a treat, don't they? I particularly love the decorations on Rand's coat. Still absolutely loving Elayne and supportiveness of Egwene. She's great. And really loving new Mat. He's a charming arsehole, which is exactly what I want Mat to be. I don't like Min being Liandrin's spy, but it seems like she's reluctant.

He wasn't directly in cahoots, but we found out that Liandrin and Suroth were in cahoots, coordinated by some Forsaken or other, to deliver Nynaeve and Egwene to become damane. I don't think so. I'm not sure what she knows about him, other than his links to whatever Moiraine is planning. I really liked Ishy speaking to Perrin and reinforcing his fears of becoming a wolf. He's the Father of Lies, and he knows exactly how to press the right buttons. That was definitely Selene infiltrating Rand's dream - she was so very Lanfear-like and her encouraging him to "let go" and "show me" was surely about trying to get him to embrace who he is.

This was presumably the secret "man you meet" that Moiraine threatened her with in season one. Moiraine said she'd reveal it to Liandrin's Red sisters, and Liandrin looked completely shook. I don't know if Moiraine knew who the man was, or just assumed he was Liandrin's secret lover, but the idea of it being revealed to the Red Ajah clearly terrified Liandrin. So if she asked a Yellow sister to help out, the secret wouldn't be safe, and now that Nynaeve knows, the secret may not be safe.

Episode 2: Elayne is the Elayniest Elayne that ever Elayned. Did they somehow drag her from the pages of the books? I can't wait to see her and Nynaeve travelling together, like the ultimate odd couple. Selene is wonderful. How do you cast "the most beautiful woman in the world?" I don't know. But you can cast an incredibly beautiful actress and let her get her sexy on. Not many men would be able to resist her. When her lover left she was "shattered"? Yeah, that's kind of an understatement, Mierin. I feel like Liandrin is going to be the show's stand in for a few different Black Ajah characters - Alviarin in particular. The depth they're giving her is fascinating, and Kate Fleetwood is killing it. Mat and Min making friends is something totally unexpected. The two of them never actually conversed in the books. Not once in the entire series. But their scenes together were fun.

First things first - I love Min's casting. Not because I think she's perfect for the character or anything, but because Min is the waifu character of the absolute worst elements of the WoT fandom and their fantasies of a hot, barely-legal-looking tomboy putting her life to one side just to look after them have been completely dashed by the show casting a woman who looks to be in her thirties and has a slightly butch energy. Glad to get more of Rand in this one. Though not as much of him as Selene is getting. They're pretty hot together. He's a porter in a mental hospital now? Or pretending to be. And he's getting to learn about Aiel, and possibly about swordfighting. The hints that he fears going mad as well. Moiraine being a dick to Lan is annoying, but I guess she's doing that 'push them away before they can be be hurt even more' thing. Perrin's weird new abilities are intriguing. He's seeing the past, in some way, but it's lucky that he's got Elyas to teach him how to use it. The dead Fade was creepy as fuck, and the practical effects on it were very solid. Finally, Nynaeve realises there are good uses of the One Power, and perhaps a reason to become Aes Sedai - you can heal better with weaves than with herbs. Kate Fleetwood is absolutely killing it with her patient, earnest yet completely manipulative mentoring of Nynaeve. I'm intrigued by her secret. She's clearly older than she looks. I'm glad Mat isn't completely cowed. His Andy Dufresne act paid off quickly. Instead of finding a sewer pipe, he found a rogue Min. Their scene together was fun, and did a lot to establish two character's we need to know better. Aah! Elayne! And she's also perfect. Posh, entitled, oblivious and genuinely sweet. Man, I love her already.

I suspect Moiraine believes (or desperately hopes) that she's only shielded, rather than Stilled. She tried to find the One Power at the end of the first episode which suggests she can still feel it, in some fashion. I'm going to have to rewatch and pick up on all the dialogue to be sure, but I couldn't tell whether Lan knew she can't channel, or whether her failure to channel at the end of the episode was supposed to be a reveal for him. He should know if she can't. Edit: I have rewatched, and he does know. But, typically of Moiraine, she's kept all the details of how it happened from him.

No, Mat was never captured by Aes Sedai. This was likely an idea developed late in the day, after they lost Mat for the last two episodes of season one, but I think it works for his character - we know that Mat can't stand Aes Sedai in the books, to the extent that one of his wishes in the Rhuidean archway is to be free of them. He hates the One Power being used on him, he hates feeling manipulated and misled by Moiraine. Mat doesn't really become Mat until midway through book three. At least, not the Mat that so many readers talk about. He's sullen and paranoid and self-centred, until the dagger's influence is completely removed. I don't think the producers of the show wanted two whole seasons of that Mat.

Opening scene - Fares Fares is killing it. He's charming and disarming and I really enjoyed the analogy for the appeal of the Dark One, and how easily he can sway the innocent. That little girl's parents are obviously Darkfriends, and she likely will be too. Moiraine having to do everything by hand, much as she would have done as a novice, while looking miserable as fuck. Sitting in the bath, crying at the hopelessness of it all... That's an energy that a lot of people will empathise with, these days. But I loved her poise in the rest of the episode. She really exudes that Aes Sedai serenity. Rosamund Pike is such a boss. It looks like Daniel Henney got even more jacked for season 2, which will go down well with most people. And Verin! Played by Meera Syal! Perfect. And Bayle Domon! Even perfecter. Egwene's horror at Alanna spending quality time with her warders made me laugh. And her "do you need a moment to get dressed?" Obviously she's not asked that question before, when she should have. Looks like her and Nynaeve have a season of 'witches at boarding school' ahead of them. A classic. Only Nynaeve is so stubborn she goes to witch school and hangs out with the security guards. The new Channelling CGI looks good. I wanted to see the weaves have different colours, and they do. And Nynaeve is a stubborn arse. Not a whole lot with the boys - Perrin is hunting Padan Fain and meeting a guy who will surely be his mentor, Nu Mat is in a really fucking unpleasant position, and Rand is keeping his head down (and shaved). The show looks better, I think. I know they adjusted the colour grading and it seems to have worked well. Not quite as bright, but still not GoT gloomy. It looks and feels like it had a bigger budget. Still some shots that were supposed to be outside but were clearly on sets, though.