Episode Grade: (8.5/10)
The Amyrlin’s arrival to Cairhien causes all sorts of problems for Moiraine as the two clash over Rand. Lanfear adds to the chaos by making her presence felt.
Plot (38/50)
Division grows amongst the Aes Sedai as Siuan and Moiraine clash over what to do with Rand. So much focus has been put into the issue of the Dragon Reborn that they aren’t aware of everything else that’s going on. The growing influence of Darkfriends is especially concerning. Ultimately, Moiraine won out ironically thanks to Lanfear’s interference. Meanwhile, Ishamael continues to set plans in motion in Falme. The most immediate threat to his plans are Nynaeve and Elayne. If they’re able to break Egwene out, the situation will get very interesting very fast.
Divergence
The episode opens with a flashback showing Gitara Sedai, a seer, having a vision of the Dragon being reborn. She assigns Moiraine and Siuan the responsibility of locating the Dragon, but she warns them against sharing this knowledge with others. Back in the present, Siuan questions Moiraine’s judgement over the past six months. She believes she must interfere because Moiraine is no longer capable of handling Rand on her own seeing as how she’s been stilled.
Siuan summons Rand for questioning. They have a tense conversation that escalates once Siuan reveals that Tower Law requires the Amyrlin Seat to cage the Dragon so that they may be used as a weapon in the Last Battle. Rand’s defiance is easily swatted away by Siuan. When he starts to channel, she effortlessly shields him from the One Power. This earns the ire of both Moiraine and Lan, who feel betrayed by Siuan’s actions.
The Escape
Meanwhile, Liandrin delivers orders to Barthanes that he is to kill Moiraine tonight. His plan is ultimately foiled by his mother, Anvaere, who had overheard the two talking. Again, Moiraine is clueless to this threat as she focuses on freeing Rand. When she concludes that the Forsaken need Rand to declare in Falme so that everyone would know when they kill him, Rand calls on Lanfear for help. Surely enough, she draws the attention of Siuan and most of the other Aes Sedai as she wrecks havoc on The Foregate. Verin takes this opportunity to lead Moiraine and Rand to a Waygate so that they may escape.
As this was happening, Lan was busy questioning Logain about Moiraine’s One Power. Logain confirms Lan’s suspicions that she had not been stilled. Instead, Logain reveals that her weaves were tied in a knot. Ishamael had essentially created a self-sustaining shield around her. When Lan meets up with Moiraine and Lan at the Waygate, he shares this information with them. Rand is then able to cut through the knot, which then allows Moiraine to open the Waygate by channeling for the first time since the clash with Ishamael at the Eye of the World.
Just as they’re about to leave, Siuan arrives. She quickly disposes of Lan and shields Rand once again. She feels betrayed by Moiraine for her defiance in trying to sneak Rand away and for her apparent dishonesty about being stilled. Moiraine tries to reason with her, but there’s no use. Siuan forces Moiraine to close the gate owing to her physically binding Oath. It’s all for naught as Lanfear arrives to swat Siuan away and reopen the Waygate. The four of them enter the Ways as Siuan lays injured.
Falme
Much of the episode centered around Cairhien, but there were still a few important developments over in Falme. Renna and Egwene attended a training session in the desert designed to test the powers of the damane. When it was Egwene’s turn, she let out a burst of the One Power that was felt across the city itself. Renna was pleased with Egwene’s display and once again tried to connect with her by revealing that the Seanchan’s mission is to unite everyone in preparation for the Final Battle. Egwene responds with a succinct promise to kill Renna.
If she wants to make good on that promise, she first has to find a way to get free of the collar. Luckily, Nynaeve and Elayne are working on that. And while it doesn’t look like they’re any closer to finding a way to unlock the collar, they now know where to find Egwene thanks to Loial. In order to gain access to the cells, they collar a sul’dam. It’s not entirely clear how that’s going to get them through, but at least things are moving.
Finally, Ishamael’s grip on Mat strengthens after Lanfear somehow teleported him to Falme. I thought for this was all taking place in his dreams, but that does not seem to be the case. Assuming he is in Falme, he now looks set to fulfill the vision seen by Min thanks to Ishamael’s coercion. He gives Mat some “truth-telling” tea which puts Mat in a trip. Ultimately, he concludes that Ishamael’s way is the way to end his suffering.
Final Thoughts
This was a solid outing that set up the finale well, but to get to that point, the jumpiness hurt the overall quality of the episode. The idea that the White Tower is in shambles while the Forsaken are literally just getting started opens the door for a third party to make a difference. That third party, of course, is the combination of Rand and his Two Rivers friends. The show has, at times, struggled to use the story to enhance the importance of the main five characters. What we’ve seen over the past couple of episodes is promising.
Now, there were some unfortunate inconsistencies that have been slowly stacked on specifically with regards to the Forsakens’ treatment of Moiraine. First, Ishamael lets her live to torment thinking she’s been stilled. Then, Lanfear lets her go instead of pursing her. Then, she promises to kill her if she sees her with Rand. Now, she lets her live to keep Rand’s trust. I can accept that, but why let her tag along? Surely, she could’ve spared her to keep Rand’s trust without bringing her along. If they want her dead, why don’t they just do it themselves? Why send Barthanes? Also, how does Verin know to find a Waygate?
Inconsistencies aside, there were some intriguing revelations. Barthanes being a Darkfriend highlights how ingrained Ishamael’s network is. Moiraine getting her powers back was necessary to her ability to make a difference. And the most interesting revelation of all was what that Tower Law requires the Aes Sedai to cage the Dragon to be used as a tool, not as a leader. Finally, as the characters converge towards Falme, there are some big questions ahead. Will Siuan be able to hold onto the Seat? Will Egwene be freed? How will Rand’s friends react to seeing him alive? What does Ishamael have planned? And where does Lanfear stand?
Character Development (15/15)
The previous episode set a high bar in the character development department, and this one still held its own with Siuan and Moiraine’s relationship being the highlight. The likes of Lan and Rand stepped up after a series of underwhelming contributions. The follow-up to Egwene’s tragic outing last time out was short yet effective. Several other characters took big steps as well.
Siuan and Moiraine
Earlier in the season, Alanna revealed that something happened 20 years ago that changed Moiraine forever, almost as if it had sapped her happiness. Well, it turns out that’s exactly what happened. The flashback from 20 years ago shows Moiraine and Siuan in bliss as they plan out their lives together after the end of the Aiel war. When they go to break the news to Gitara, she has a vision of the Dragon being reborn. As she’s dying, she tells Moiraine and Siuan to find the Dragon, but that they must tell no one of their quest. As they digested the enormity of the responsibility, they knew right then and there that there would be no happy retirement.
They found the Dragon, but they can not keep it a secret any longer. The situation is made even more delicate as a result of Moiraine’s supposed stilling. Siuan is unhappy with Moiraine for keeping it a secret from her. Moiraine did not want to burden Siuan. By that same sentiment, Siuan now wants to take Rand off Moiraine’s hands. Furthermore, upon meeting Rand, she decides to bring him in in accordance with Tower Law. She feels that he has not made any progress over the past six months and that Moiraine can not control him without the One Power. Moiraine protests, but Siuan has already made up her mind.
Siuan and Moiraine Continued…
While Siuan was busy mobilizing the other Aes Sedai against Lanfear, Moiraine helps Rand escape. This was obviously in defiance to Siuan’s direct orders, but Moiraine felt she needed to take matters into her own hands once again. When they arrive at the Waygate, Lan reveals that Ishamael didn’t actually still Moiraine, he simply shielded her from the One Power. Rand is then able break the shield. As she reagins access to the One Power, Moiraine is flooded with a sense of relief. Her suffering is over. She opens the Waygate just as Siuan arrives.
Siuan feels betrayed. Not only did Moiraine defy her orders by freeing Rand, she also lied to her about being stilled. Once again, Moiraine tries to plead her case, but the damage is done. Siuan orders Moiraine to close the Waygate. When Moiraine refuses, she threatens to force her to do it by way of the physically binding Oath she made to her before her exile. Moiraine implores Siuan to reconsider, but she goes ahead anyways. Moiraine closes the Waygate against her will. In essence, Siuan had just violated her. Moiraine goes from mortified to disbelief to enraged while Siuan feels guilty, but Lanfear arrives to interrupt any further discussion.
Despite what was just done to her, Moiraine still warns Siuan against challenging Lanfear. Siuan does not heed the warning and is crushed with ease. As she lay injured and powerless, she calls out to Moiraine. As the images of their time together 20 years ago flashes through her memory, she makes the difficult decision to leave Siuan behind. It was a bitter end to a series of gut-wrenching betrayals that damaged their relationship beyond repair. The tragedy is that their relationship was doomed from the moment Gitara altered their lives 20 years ago.
Lan
Lan made massive strides in this episode by finally taking on an active role. He had been Moiraine’s silent pillar for so long that he had lost the ability to challenge her way. Their time apart helped him realize that he could still help Moiraine even if his methods directly contradicted hers. He knew that she needed help that she would never ask for, so he asked for her.
His biggest contribution was realizing that Moiraine wasn’t stilled. He had his suspicions, but he went about confirming them in a clandestine manner as to not expose Moiraine’s secret. He also showed his darker side when dealing with Logain. Logain murdered Kerene, which led to Stepin’s suicide. Lan has not forgotten. He gets the information he needs from Logain but refuses to give him anything in return. This is as vicious as we’ve ever seen Lan.
Additionally, he takes on a sort of mentorship role to Rand. Lan offers Rand plenty of valuable advice before his meeting with Siuan. He knows that Rand can be impulsive, and he doesn’t want him to come off that way to Siuan because she will read it as a threat. Unfortunately, Rand is unable to control his emotions, and what Lan feared came to pass. Still, that setback didn’t stop Lan from trusting Rand to break the shield around Moiraine later on. On that instance, his faith was repaid.
Rand
As I mentioned above, Rand is still impulsive. Part of that is because he hasn’t had proper training with the One Power, but he’s really always been driven by emotion. Even after learning of the Forsaken’s plan to kill him in Falme, he still calls on Lanfear’s help to escape. On the one hand, restoring his freedom is a logical choice, but on the other hand, we know he wants to get to Falme so he can free Egwene. Additionally, he’s grown protective of Moiraine after being distrustful of her for so long. He finally recognizes that she’s committed to protecting him, so he’s more willing to overlook her irritating methods.
Others
There were some important developments for a number of other characters:
- Ishamael legitimately longs for peace via an absolute death, and that is what motivates him to stop the Wheel.
- Mat is weighed down by the feeling that he can not escape his destiny of betraying and hurting the people closest to him.
- Egwene’s spirit is broken but not defeated. Once she’s free, she’ll be able to channel the trauma she faced at the hands of Renna into a raging power.
- Elayne is taking charge after growing frustrated with Nynaeve’s stubbornness. She’s not taking no for an answer.
- Much like Lan, Nynaeve is showing her darker side. After seeing what the Seanchan did to Ryma, she has no trouble inflicting that same pain onto them.
- Aviendha’s loyalty extends past death, it seems. Perrin is in good hands.
- Anvaere’s commitment to doing the “right” thing might rival that of her sister’s. The woman locked away her own son one day before he was set to wed the Queen. It pained her to do so, but she did without any hesitation.
- Liandrin legitimately hates Moiraine.
- Either Verin is the smartest woman in the room, or she’s a Darkfriend. They’ve done a really good job keeping her loyalties a mystery.
Theme/Messages (5/5)
- Is it selfish to protect the people you love at the expense of others?
- “There’s one rule above all other for being a man: whatever comes, you face it on your feet.”
- “In this world, it is wise to guide your truths.” People are rarely what they seem.
- Do you really “have to trust someone at some point?”
- The parallels between the Aes Sedai and the Seanchan is a reminder that perspective makes all the difference.
Acting (14/15)
This episode continued a string of much-improved acting this season. Rosamund Pike (Moiraine) and Daniel Henney (Lan) were the standouts. Madeleine Madden (Egwene) and Xelia Mendes-Jones (Renna) have great chemistry. Dónal Finn (Mat) is really settling into this role after a bit of rough start. This is the best I’ve seen Josha Stradowski (Rand) yet. Last but not least, I don’t believe I’ve seen Natasha O’Keeffe (Lanfear), Fares Fares (Ishamael), or Álvaro Morte (Logain) have a single misstep. They have their roles down to a tee.
Cinematography (13/15)
- Wide shot of the White Tower to open the episode (1:13)
- The flashback was really well-done. The clothing, color contrast, and ethereal aura, in combination with whatever editing they did, made them seem much younger.
- Shot of Siuan in an expansive hall with the window in the middle shining a bright light in (4:41)
- Shot of Rand from behind as he approaches an intimidating Siuan on the throne (8:56)
- Bird’s eye view of Renna and Egwene standing with the impact of her release of power etched into the ground around them (20:52)
- Cool transition shot from hourglass to the desert (25:18)
- Shot of Moiraine standing before Siuan with Lan and Rand behind her, now with light shining through all three windows (31:06)