S01.E02: Shadow's Waiting

[paulvdb]

Quote

Moiraine and Lan lead the four villagers to safety, unsure which is the one from the prophecy. But the friends are equally unsure about their rescuers, especially once they see how far Moiraine is willing to go for her mission – and how far astray Lan is willing to lead them.

Premiere date: November 19, 2021

[Zonk]

Sufficiently epic opening credits visually, but really boring music. Should have gotten Bear McCreary.

I really wish there wasn't so much dumb, young, straight relationship drama in this. But it seems they might be mostly done with that after this episode.

"The old blood runs deep in you"... A bit hard to believe when clearly different blood runs in all our heroes. It's important to have representation in a show, but maybe next time do a bit of a rewrite...

This one shot really sparks my imagination:

Looks like that used to be a gigantic river, with a bridge longer than the eye can see. I wonder what could have dried that up. Was it part of the story, where the queen burned the land? Was the magic so powerfull that it made the river disappear?

 

Either somebody really overdid it with the artificial film grain (sometimes added to give CGI-scenes a more realistic look) or Amazons codec has some major problems (looked even worse in motion):

Also the CGI of those buildings wasn't great in general, tbh.

Since the sky looked fine in the other scenes, I really think somebody might have cranked up the film grain way high, to hide the ugly buildings and didn't look at the sky.

 

So why didn't the trololos jsut wait outside of the cursed city for them? Actually, where are they? Did they just go home?

 

But overall this episode was still very enjoyable. :)

Edited November 19, 2021 by Zonk

[quarks]

Ok, I am really loving the opening credits here. 

But my favorite part was probably the confrontation with the Whitecloaks, which served both as a very convenient way to show precisely how the Aes Sedai work within that "Speak no word that is not true," oath and to emphasize just how creepy some of these Whitecloaks are - while also showing some of the cracks in their unified front. Well done.

Also interesting: showing the Whitecloaks capturing and burning a Yellow Aes Sedai alive, in the same episode where Moraine makes a point of saying that she can use the One Power as a last resort to defend herself or one of her sisters, and in the same episode where a Whitecloak noted that the Aes Sedai have the ability to heal. So....since you've just admitted that they can do something useful, why are you burning them? 

Overall, solid introduction to the Whitecloaks.

Shadar Logoth, nice and creepy, though, yeah, some of the CGI was a bit wonky. 

[Danny Franks]

The White Cloaks are terrible people. At least, the Questioners appear to be, but the commander seemed far more reasonable. I like that they have such a fussy, impractical uniform. I didn't like that they capture, torture, mutilate and burn Aes Sedai. 

I thought this episode was a big improvement on the first. We got to slow down and learn a bit more about our characters and how they interact with one another. We got some world building and exposition that fitted well into the narrative.

Moiraine being ruthless with that ferryman then timid with the White Cloaks and ever stern with the four youngsters. She may not be able to lie, but she's definitely not being completely honest.

Shadar Logoth looked cool, and I didn't get any of the graininess that @Zonk mentioned. It did look a bit CG in places, but nothing I thought too obvious.

Mat is still the standout of the Two Rivers characters, with his witty comments and his quiet concern for Perrin (who seems to be just moments away from losing it, in his grief and self-loathing).

Last scene - hey she didn't get eaten!

[supposebly]

I couldn't help but be reminded of Fellowship of the Ring. Rushed departure, hunted by orcs, pardon, trollocs and a bad guy reminiscent of Nazguls and an escape on a ferry.

Well, and then farmer Maggot, I.e. the ferryman dies. So, much more grim.

I liked the city but it still feels we're checking off the standard tropes of fantasy. Bad place, nothing to be touched and of course, one touches something anyway, things go bad, a narrow escape and the breaking of the fellowship. At least, Mat is still alive. 

And we are introduced to the White Inquisition.

The scene with the wolves was interesting. 

Edited November 19, 2021 by supposebly

[SueB]

I though the entry to Shadar Logoth was great.  Looked perfect on my screen. As did the vista that Rand and Egwene saw. 

LOVED the singing.  Yes, it’s a standard in fantasy trope but I loved the Mantheran song and the backstory.  
 

Excellent cinematography with the super polished silver goblet reflecting the burning AES Sedei.  Yes, I hate that White Cloak guy. Booked the older one.  Moraine is excellent with Obsfucation. True they did pass through Tarren Ferry and many were injured.  Everything was true— from a certain point of view (gratuitous Obiwan reference). 
 

Rand has a temper.  He seems even keel then burst out in frustration.  The bat in the throat was gross. Well done. And they are all having the dreams. 
 

The wolf that kicked Perrin’s leg looked more like a dog — that’s okay, but it’s hard to feel as nervous. 
 

Mat, you idiot. Doesn’t every cautionary tale tell you not to pick up something from a haunted place.  I mean, major props for giving Perrin your knife.  But you don’t randomly pick up a knife in a place Trollocs fear.  
 

loved the chase at the end. 

Edited November 20, 2021 by SueB

[paigow]

Note to Trollocs: Cut the rope before humans reach safety.

Note to Wizard: Let them get on the raft before sinking it. 

 

[DearEvette]

'The Wheel weaves as the wheel wills"  Really nice openings credits. I liked the visual rep of the wheel weaving a tapestry, the threads etc.  which is an important, repeated motif in the story.  Also enjoyed seeing the different colored threads all representative of the different Ajahs until we see the end result is a Tapestry showing women repping the different Ajahs.

The Whitecloaks make their appearance and are nicely fanatical.  I liked the scene with them and Moiraine.

Several things stand out the most for me this episode:

- Shadar Logoth.  Feels like I visualized it in my head and the shadow creeping was great

- Moiraine and Lan telling the Two Rivers Crew about the Trolloc Wars and Manetheren.  This is the type of deep history in SFF books I enjoy.  I am always fascinated with how well authors can build their world and the deep back history they give it.  It was interesting to hear about the City of Manetheren, of it's Queen and King and army.  Only to know that it is now the small village of Two Rivers.  So much unsaid of what happened between then and now.  Same with Shadar Logoth.  Seeing what was obviously a great civilization, now abandoned and haunted by the decisions of its inhabitants.

- Mat with the dagger.   I haven't read early the books in at least 15 years.  I had forgotten about the dagger until Mat picked it up.  Of course Lan's "touch nothing" falls on deaf ears. 

- The Song.  I loved he song about Manetheren, even the little snippet we got. It was lyrically and musically lovely.  Felt like a gospel spiritual almost with the call and response element. 

-Nynaeve making her reappearance like a Boss!

[thuganomics85]

Well, these White Cloaks seem like pleasant individuals!  Especially the Questioner!  Give him a hand!  Or two!  Or all of them!  I'm sure this is going to be far from over, and it's going to get interesting once they cross paths again.

I get not wanting to fully trust Moiraine, but did Rand really wonder if she was a better option than the Trollocs?  I mean, considering the Trollocs are currently barreling towards you at full steam with the intention of massacring you, while Moiraine is trying to lead you away from the slaughter, I would easily that, yes: Moiraine is the better option here.

The scene with Perrin and Mat was nice.

Shador Logoth was well done: as was all of the shadow stuff.

"Speak no word that is not true."  Good to know that the Aes Sedai can't lie, but they are all about misleading, dodging questions, or other forms of trickery when the time calls for it!

Mat getting that dagger isn't going to end well, is it?

Figured Nynaeve wasn't done for, but that was still a cool reveal at the end.

Opening credits where cool.

[paigow]

3 minutes ago, thuganomics85 said:

"Speak no word that is not true." 

Not really an oath per se... more like guidelines..

 

[SueB]

Second watch notes:

I like the abandoned road and bridge pets in the middle of nowhere.  They mention the earth breaking by a man in the first episode.  I wonder if that’s why there is so much jaggedness to the mountains and formations.  
 

Still not over Rand pulling a bat from his throat.  
 

I really thought this episode was outstanding. Heavy action, more backstory, more character development.  
 

That Whitecloak Inquisitor dude needs a serious comeuppance.  And he’s a coward.  The soldier Whitecloak heads towards trouble, the Inquisitor goes in the opposite direction.  I may take to hissing at the screen when Inquisitor dude shows up. 

[silverstream]

13 minutes ago, SueB said:

That Whitecloak Inquisitor dude needs a serious comeuppance.  And he’s a coward.  The soldier Whitecloak heads towards trouble, the Inquisitor goes in the opposite direction.  I may take to hissing at the screen when Inquisitor dude shows up. 

I found it odd that, if he didn't believe Moraine - and I took the "going in another direction" as proof of that - he didn't just detain all of them on the spot, it's not like anybody could have stopped him. If they'd tried to fight, the jig would have truly been up.

And an extremely minor quibble, but why did the White Cloaks split up and ride in different directions on that very spot? It didn't particularly look like a crossroads, so is one of those groups just going to travel on straight through the woods without a path?

[MissLucas]

On 11/20/2021 at 12:07 AM, supposebly said:

I couldn't help but be reminded of Fellowship of the Ring. Rushed departure, hunted by orcs, pardon, trollocs and a bad guy reminiscent of Nazguls and an escape on a ferry.

Well, and then farmer Maggot, I.e. the ferryman dies. So, much more grim.

 

 

They skipped Bree and Imladris and went straight to Khazad Dum. 

[tennisgurl]

The White Cloaks certainly are a pleasant bunch aren't they? Burning people alive, hacking them to bits before hand, and constantly wearing white even as they march around the woods, which must mean hey have massive laundry bills which I bet they never pay. They are just as fanatical and creepy as I imagined, their scene with Moiraine was extremely tense. I like that they are already showing some dissent within their ranks, the slightly more reasonable commander seemed to be pretty irritated by the sadistic inquisitor, they are laying down a lot of interesting things with them already. I thought this episode was really good, it improved a lot on the first episode, feeling a lot more natural now that a lot of the exposition is over and the story proper is on its way. The characters are becoming more defined and the world being explored is showing itself to be really interesting, I especially like all of the ancient ruins everywhere which also tied into Moiraine's story about the great city that used to sit on Two Rivers, it makes the worlds history feel so rich, that this place has existed for millions of years and this is just one part of a story that has been playing out for generations. It feels like something huge happened in the past where these great civilizations fell and we haven't been told why yet, its really interesting.

I love the credit sequence, with everything looking like a giant spinning wheel slowly revealing the different Ajahs on a massive spinning loom, its very visually striking and thematically appropriate. Moiraine leaving the ferryman and his family to their fate was brutal but you can see the logic behind it, I can see why the gang would be put off by her, even if its pretty clear that they don't have a lot of options. Moiraine really does mean well, but she's very big picture and that can mean making some hard choices, while the Two Rivers folk have just lived in their cute hometown their whole lives mostly not bothering with the outside world, so they are a lot more concerned about individual lives then the more nebulous Greater Good, at least for now. 

Shadar Logoth was very cool and creepy, those shadows were majorly spooky. Oh Mat, of course he grabs the first shiny he sees even after being specifically told not to touch anything from the creepy ancient city. I did like his scene with Perrin a lot, it showed a bit more maturity from him. 

I really liked the song sequence, it had a very old spiritual kind of vibe, and it gave the world even more layers to it. 

 Nynaeve showing up like the badass she is! And just after we split the party! Never split the party!

[Taryn74]

5 hours ago, tennisgurl said:

Never split the party!

Right? LOL. First rule of any adventure!

[ferjy]

On 11/19/2021 at 11:53 AM, Danny Franks said:

I didn't like that they capture, torture, mutilate and burn Aes Sedai. 

When the questioner sat there eating the Aes Sedai’s tongue in front of her! 🤢 That and pretty boy pulling the bat out of his gullet. I hope they don’t start relying on gore as the main attraction. I’d rather see good storytelling and acting than shock value. 

Glad to see Nynaeve alive and back. 

 

[Danny Franks]

2 hours ago, ferjy said:

When the questioner sat there eating the Aes Sedai’s tongue in front of her! 🤢 That and pretty boy pulling the bat out of his gullet. I hope they don’t start relying on gore as the main attraction. I’d rather see good storytelling and acting than shock value. 

Glad to see Nynaeve alive and back. 

 

That wasn't her tongue, it was the Wheel of Time equivalent of an ortolan bunting - a French delicacy (which is, I think, mostly illegal) where a songbird is force fed, drowned in brandy and then cooked and eaten whole. A symbolism of the shameless cruelty of the White Cloak Questioners, I'd say.

[ferjy]

1 hour ago, Danny Franks said:

That wasn't her tongue, it was the Wheel of Time equivalent of an ortolan bunting - a French delicacy (which is, I think, mostly illegal) where a songbird is force fed, drowned in brandy and then cooked and eaten whole. A symbolism of the shameless cruelty of the White Cloak Questioners, I'd say.

Oh, lol. Thanks. I went back and had a longer look. He even explained it all! I blame it on being queasy the first time watching it when I assumed it was the tongue and quickly looked away. Then they panned to her severed hands! I was afraid they were the second course.

 

[Anduin]

Ah, good old epic fantasy. People start singing for no reason. And guess what? The song ties into the backstory. Of course it does. In fantasy, every song has a purpose. No one ever sings a song just because they like it. The whole deal just makes me smile.

[AnimeMania]

For once the accompanying animated story needed no explanation, or should I say had a wonderful explanation from the main story. I really enjoyed the scene of the Queen's hair blowing in the wind as she stood on the walls of her castle. 

[lucindabelle]

Now I remember why I stopped reading this book.

a bunch of people go on a journey. Fight stuff. Journey some more. One of them keeps mistrusting the leader.

 

yawn.

too much fighting and gore.

and while I guess some see the song backstory as world Building I thought it was extremely clumsy exposition. I even said that out loud- there’s a LOT of exposition in this show. 
 

Game of Thrones has a huge backstory too but very seldom did someone just flat out say, let me tell you the story of…

Game of thrones this is not.

the city with nothing alive in it was creepy. Won’t be rushing to watch more though. 

[Scarlett45]

On 11/21/2021 at 2:49 AM, thuganomics85 said:

I get not wanting to fully trust Moiraine, but did Rand really wonder if she was a better option than the Trollocs?  I mean, considering the Trollocs are currently barreling towards you at full steam with the intention of massacring you, while Moiraine is trying to lead you away from the slaughter, I would easily that, yes: Moiraine is the better option here.

I agree with you. 
 

Rand seems like his emotions were all over the place (and rightfully so), Moiranine has been leading them away from beings that KILLED their loved ones. He saw that with his own eyes. I would be following her as well after those Trollocs attacked my village.  I never got the impression though, that he hated Egwene. It seems that he genuinely loved her and wanted to marry her, but she chose another path. He’s not an asshole, but yeah he’s hurt, so I get why he didn’t want to cuddle up/have sex with her after all that. The actor’s face is very well formed. I don’t blame Egwene for wanting to seek comfort in their familiar relationship but she essentially broke up with him- you don’t get to be comforted like that any more.