‘The Wheel of Time’ S2E8: An Epic Showdown

Episode Grade: (8.5/10)

Plot (38/50)

The season finale delivers an action-packed episode filled with great moments and consequential actions. Ishamael’s plan begins to crumble as soon as Lanfear brings Rand to Falme. Her betrayal, coupled with the arrival of the Whitecloaks, spells the beginning of the end for his plans. Rand is then able to defeat him once and for all thanks to massive support from his friends. He is proclaimed Dragon Reborn before the people of Falme to cap off the victory, but unbeknownst to everyone, Ishamael had released a new threat into the world before his death.

Ishamael’s Plans Fall Apart

For the second time in a row, the episode opens with a flashback. This one takes us back 3,000 years ago to the moment Lews and his followers sealed Ishamael away. It is a cruel fate for Ishamael, and Lews knew it. His inability to garner the support of his closest friends in times of need defined him then, and it would define him again 3,000 years later. Back to the present, Lanfear drops Moiraine and Lan off in the beaches near Falme so she and Rand can continue to the city alone.

Ishamael is worried by this development as he believes it’s too soon for Rand to choose the Dark. A short but personal conversation between the two confirms to Ishamael that Lanfear has betrayed him, so he’s forced to pivot. He calls on Padan Fain to tempt Mat into touching the dagger so that he might turn to the Dark once more, but Mat resists the urge. Instead, he makes a glave out of it that he then uses to escape. Ishamael also turns to Suroth for his endgame, but she gives him more bad news, both of which were instigated by Lanfear.

First, she unleashed Rand in the city knowing that he would stop at nothing to free Egwene. On his way to find Egwene, Rand encounters Turak and his men, so he uses the One Power to kill them all. The second bit of bad news is that the Horn of Valere was stolen. Earlier, Ingtar mentioned that a lady from Cairhien helped them get the Horn. That had to have been Lanfear. With Turak dead and the Horn lost, Ishamael puts his final plan in play. He tells Suroth to take her strongest damane to a ship with a line of sight to the Tower and wait for his signal to shield and ultimately gentle Rand.

The Battle at Falme

Meanwhile, the Whitecloaks, led by Geofram Bornhald, ambush the city. They take the Seanchan by surprise, so a fight breaks out all across the city. The sul’dam take their damane to the top of the tower to mount a defense, and it appears to be working until Egwene refuses to continue. Their side of the tower is then hit, thus compromising the Seanchan’s greatest weapon. The city is overrun with Whitecloaks who now have momentum on their side.

Elsewhere, Perrin, Hopper, and his Aiel friends run into Ingtar, Masema, and Loial. They managed to retrieve the Horn of Valere during their escape, but Loial refuses to leave without Egwene. Ingtar then unnecessarily dies protecting the Horn. As the combined group fights off Seanchan soldiers, they run into Mat, who uses the glave to unlock the Horn. Perrin tells him to take it to Rand, and Mat obliges. Amidst the fighting, Valda spots Perrin and tries to kill him. When Hopper tries to defend Perrin, Geofram Bornhald kills her. An enraged Perrin retaliates by killing Geofram as his son, Bain, watches on.

Over to Nynaeve and Elayne. Their plan to infiltrate the sul’dam falls apart after the fighting breaks out. Nynaeve insists on carrying on, but Sata is quickly killed and Elayne is hit with an arrow. Nynaeve is unable to channel, so she must rely on her Wisdom skills to remove the arrow. They’re of no use to Egwene, who ends up not needing anyone’s help. She and Renna are the only survivors on the tower. Renna goes to punish Egwene for her disobedience, but Egwene collars her. She then hangs Renna in the same manner she hung her. Renna has no choice but to release Egwene, but Egwene doesn’t return the favor, instead leaving her to die.

The Showdown

Rand arrives soon after, but their reunion is cut short by Ishamael. He swats Egwene away and signals Suroth, who orders her damane to shield Rand. With Rand shielded, Ishamael once again gives him a chance to join the Dark. Rand refuses, so Ishamael feels he has no option but to have him gentled. Meanwhile, Mat had blown the Horn to call on its Heroes who then help him get through a group of Seanchan soldiers. He arrives to the top of the tower just as Ishamael has given up on Rand. He throws the gavel at Ishamael, but it was only projection of him, so it actually hits Rand. This triggers the final sequence.

With Rand shielded and wounded, there’s nothing left in Ishamael’s path, or so it seems. As he closes in, Egwene steps in to defend Rand. She manages to hold off Ishamael for a bit, but she soon begins to falter. Luckily, she doesn’t have to do it alone, as Perrin arrives with the shield Uno gave him to back her up. Nynaeve and Elayne arrive as well, but Nynaeve is ineffective, once again. Instead, it’s Elayne who heals Rand. There’s one problem left, and that’s the fact that Rand is still shielded. This is where Moiraine steps in. She had noticed that Rand was being shielded, so she destroys the ships with the damane.

With Rand now free to use the One Power, he picks up his sword and stabs a defeated Ishamael in the heart. Moiraine then sends a fire dragon signal to proclaim Rand atop the tower with his friends by his side. Having foiled Ishamael’s plans and saved Rand, Lanfear looks on from the crowd with glee. Her last item of business is making sure the other Forsaken are never released. She goes to collect the six cuendillar so Master Domon can dump them in the ocean, but she’s shocked to discover that they’ve been broken. Moghedien confirms that Ishamael released them all as she issues a solemn warning to Lanfear not to interfere with their plans for Rand.

Final Thoughts

This was an action-packed finale that set up an exciting next season. It felt like the show’s best episode to date, but a closer look reveals several gaps. There was alot going on, with plenty of big moments, but that also meant other moments felt rushed.

I’ll start with what played out well. Ishamael was given the mercy of death in a way that justifies Rand and co.’s ability to defeat up to him (more on that in the next section). To me, that and Mat’s redemption were the two most powerful moments in the episode. I like that Egwene ended up freeing herself, it sets up an interesting dynamic for her. Perrin is also well-positioned as his rivalry with the Whitecloaks goes to a whole new level. Moiraine restored the bond with Lan in a nice moment that finally put that subplot to bed. The chat between Lanfear and Moghedien was a fantastic way to close out the season.

Now for the bad. There was a ton of inconsistency, some of which could’ve been avoided with some added detail. To be clear, there were no particularly jarring inconsistencies, but the ones that were there were certainly distracting. First, what was going on with Ingtar? Why did he need to die? It felt so random. We know now that there was a deleted scene which would’ve revealed that Ingtar was a Darkfriend all along. That knowledge would’ve tremendously helped, but we didn’t get it, nor could we have deduced it from what we had seen of him.

The next biggest one was Egwene’s ability to pick up the collar. She clearly intended on using it against Renna, so she shouldn’t have been able to pick it up. I suppose you could argue that it wasn’t used as a weapon, but there shouldn’t be an argument at all. Then there was Rand’s precise use of the One Power against Turak and his men after they had spent a season telling us that he learned next to nothing. I also didn’t like how useless Nynaeve was. Finally, while the ending was great in that it set up Moghedien as a serious threat, what happened to Lanfear being the most dangerous of the Forsaken?

Character Development (14/15)

If not for some of the inconsistencies mentioned above, this category would’ve received a perfect score. There were a number of big breakthrough moments for some characters while others had setbacks. That juxtaposition keeps the show interesting and ensures that each character follows their own path. With that said, overlapping paths can be a good measuring stick for how far characters have come, and there was definitely some of that here.

Ishamael

Ishamael has arguably been the most interesting character of the season. His motivation was clear, but there was always nuance to his interactions with others. The flashback we got at the beginning of the episode was incredibly effective in highlighting Ishamael’s humanity. It showed that he believed he was doing the right thing by aligning himself with the Dark so that they might break the Wheel once and for all. He believed that was the only way to end people’s suffering. The flashback also solidified that Ishamael is miserably exhausted with life. Lews did not afford him the mercy of death, so he’s suffered silently for the past 3,000 years.

That betrayal, along with what Ishamael felt was Lews’ original betrayal, has defined much of Ishamael’s psyche. Lanfear is his best friend and is supposed to be on his side, but even she betrays him in a matter of days. It’s quite a tragic existence. No matter what he does or how long he plans, he will always end up alone. He longs for the sort of friendship that the Dragon has. So when he sees Rand’s friends flock to his side, he surrenders to his fate. No matter how many times the Wheel turns, he will inevitably face rejection and defeat at the hands of a well-supported Dragon.

At that point, there’s nothing left for him to live for, so he lets Rand put him out of his misery. And what a relief it was, to not have to suffer through the turning of the Wheel. We can argue right and wrong, but it’s clear that Ishamael felt he was doing the right thing. Whether accurate or not, he felt that the Wheel brought only suffering onto people as they were forced to relive their misery time and time again. Seeing his relief upon death confirms that his intentions were pure. Take that as you will.

Moiraine and Lan

This season has been rough on Moiraine and Lan individually and as a pair, so it was nice to see them end it on a high. Lan had to learn to channel his frustration at being pushed away by Moiraine into being useful to her in ways she might not necessarily agree with. He’s had mixed results thus far, but either way, it shows his unwavering commitment to Moiraine. He even made peace with Moiraine’s comment about them not being equal, but he would soon learn that he had it wrong all along.

We all know that Moiraine only said what she said to push Lan away as a means to protect him, but Lan needs to have it spelled out to him, so Moiraine does just that. She tells him that she’s always believed him to be better than herself. That revelation moves Lan, who is more insistent that ever that Moiraine restore the bond. Moiraine finally obliges, and the two share a tender moment as the pent up emotions over the last six months flood in.

What follows is a dramatic show of teamwork very few Aes Sedai-Warder pairs can rival as Lan fights off the Seanchan soldiers and Moiraine takes down Suroth’s ships. And unlike in the encounter with the Fades at the beginning of the season, Lan expertly protects Moiraine despite being heavily outnumbered. Their actions ultimately save the day as Rand is able to use the One Power to take down Ishamael. Moiraine’s final action is proclaiming Rand as the Dragon for all to see, thus fulfilling the prophecy at Falme.

Rand

Rand has had to play pawn to other people’s schemes ever since Moiraine arrived to the Two Rivers in the show’s first episode. That remains the case, but at least his actions here were personally motivated. From the moment he saw Egwene in a Seanchan cell, he had only one goal in mind: save Egwene. It did not matter what the Amyrlin Seat or Moiraine or even the Forsaken wanted. All that mattered was getting to Falme so he could be there for Egwene.

However, when he arrives, Egwene had already freed herself. His sense of purpose was gone, and now he had to face off against a determined Ishamael without his powers. This forced him to looks inwards and recognize for the first time that he is the Dragon Reborn, and that he will always fight the Dark, no matter what or who it costs him. I suspect that he will still struggle with the sacrifices that must be made, but now that everyone knows who he is, he can no longer shy away from the responsibility.

Mat

Speaking of which, Mat completed an emotional redemption arc after finally taking responsibility for his future. Much of Mat’s early development was focused on how he was drawn to the darkness because of his downtrodden luck, be it a bad household or otherwise. This was emphasized by Ishamael in his efforts to control Mat. In fact, he was so sure that Mat would turn to the Dark going so far as to say that Mat was “born” his. The mind games he played on him with the tea seemed to have broken Mat once and for all, so when Padan Fain brought him the dagger, you’d be excused if you thought it was game over.

But no, Mat was not destined to join the Dark. In fact, it was the opposite. There’s no denying that he struggled with the temptations of the dagger, but what matters is that he overcame them. He put his rugged skills to good use and made a glave out of the dagger, ensuring that he can use it as a weapon without ever touching it. It helps him escape and Perrin, who tells him that he must take the Horn to Rand. Once again, he puts the dagger to good use, this time using it to unlock the Horn from its box. He’s already well on his path to redemption when he sets off to bring the Horn to Rand.

On his way to deliver the Horn, he’s intercepted by a group of Seanchan soldiers. He knows he can’t fight them on his own, so he blows the Horn. This summons forth the Heroes of the Horn, but it also restores his memory. It turns out he too has been a Hero of the Horn in previous turnings. That discovery overwhelms him with emotion, having finally proved that he can and will do good. It’s an epic moment for arguably the most troubled of the Two Rivers five. Unfortunately, the season doesn’t end on a high note for Mat. Ishamael’s illusion ensures that the self-doubt will live on in his mind, especially if Rand’s scar ends up somehow corrupting him.

Perrin

Perrin has been haunted by the accidental murder of his wide in the Trollocs attack of the Two Rivers. He will probably never completely get over it, but learning about his nature as a wolfbrother helped him open himself up a bit. The friendship he formed with Hopper brought him joy we haven’t seen since that fated night in the Two Rivers. His experiences fighting alongside the Shienarans, hunting for the Horn, and allying himself with the Aiel, most recently, have developed him into a fledgling leader. It bodes well for him and his friends as they face further challenges ahead.

Perrin demonstrates this newfound strength by coming to his friends’ aid. He puts himself in the line of fire with no hesitation. That confidence is in stark contrast with Perrin’s usual indecision, and it caps the assertive attitude we’ve seen in recent episodes as well. The question is: how much of that can be attributed to his wolfbrother nature? And more importantly, how else will this manifest itself in his life now that his transformation is close to complete?

Ishamael and Elyas have already alluded that the transformation will make Perrin more like a wolf and less like a man. His reaction to Hopper’s murder at the hands of Geofram Bornhald gives us the best insight yet. Perrin is crushed by the loss of his friend, but that agony quickly turns to rage as his eyes turn yellow (seemingly permanently). His raging thirst for vengeance drives him to murder Geofram immediately. If not for Uno and Loial’s intervention, who knows what more he would’ve done. Looking ahead, this ordeal furthered his feud with the Whitecloaks and positioned Dain as an important enemy.

Nynaeve and Elayne

There’s not much to say about Nynaeve and Elayne because they spent most of the episode immobilized due to Elayne’s wound. Nynaeve’s lack of training came back to bite her here as she was unable to channel. That rendered her virtually useless. And while she was able to “treat” Elayne as a Wisdom, that was basically at the instruction of Elayne. When her friends needed her the most, she failed them once again. This was as big a moment as can get, and she shrunk under the bright lights. Hopefully this serves as motivation for her to take her training more seriously moving forwards.

Elayne, on the other hand, slotted right in among the original group of five. She guided Nynaeve through a chaotic situation on her way to healing Rand’s wound. For a royal princess, she sure has grit. One thing to note is that she introduces herself to Rand simply as “Elayne.” Is that a sign that she’s outgrown the traditional role of a princess, or was she just sharing a moment with Rand. If the latter turns into a relationship, how will that affect her friendship with Egwene? Either way, she comes out of this ordeal a changed woman.

Egwene

No character has had quite as dramatic a development as Egwene has had this season; her contributions here solidified that sentiment. She’s had to endure horrors under Renna’s enslavement, and while her friends intended to come to her aid, she ultimately did not need them. She defied Renna even when it meant that she would risk losing her hands. And when Renna sought to inflict further punishment, Egwene’s quick thinking put her in a position to free herself.

I’m going to set aside the questionability of the collaring because it has little bearing on the actual character development. What matters is that Egwene put herself in a direct battle against Renna where she used her increased tolerance for pain to handily defeat her enemy. In truth, Renna never stood a chance once the playing field was level. Egwene had to suffer through Renna’s pain of death, but that didn’t stop her from keeping her promise. It’s a brutal end to a brutal chapter in her life, albeit one that she’s learned much from.

Murdering Renna left her in a state of shock that was compounded when a presumed-dead Rand shows up. Their reunion is interrupted, and she does come to Rand’s aid, but I don’t think all is well between the two. The others will understand Rand’s intentions, but I believe Egwene will feel that Rand abandoned her. Perhaps she even blames him for the suffering she had endure. Regardless, they will never be as close as they were before.

Lanfear and Moghedien

Finally, there’s Lanfear. She successfully completed almost everything she set out to do in Falme. She promised Rand that she would help him defeat Ishamael, and she did. Lanfear chose him over her own friend, just like she promised she would. Now, was it enough to gain Rand’s trust? That remains to be seen. Also, keep an eye out for how his relationship with Elayne develops. Earlier in the season, Moiraine mentioned that Lanfear only turned to the Dark after the Dragon had broken her heart. It seems we’re headed in that direction.

In the meantime, both Lanfear and Rand will have to contend with six more Forsaken. Lanfear intended to dump the six cuendillar in the depths of the ocean so that no one could ever release the other Forsaken. Unfortunately for her, Ishamael released them all after learning of her betrayal. This set up a stunning introduction to Moghedien, who has history with Lanfear. It seems as if Moghedien has the meticulous planning of Ishamael and the unhinged danger of Lanfear. That’s a scary combination, but one I’m definitely excited to see in season three!

Theme/Messages (4/5)

• Sometimes death is a mercy.
• The betrayal of a close friend or family member can define a person forever.
• There’s strength in unity.
• It’s scary how much people are willing to justify when they have their mind set on something.

Acting (15/15)

The massively improved quality of acting this season has been a big reason for the show’s overall improvement from the first season. Newcomers such as Natasha O’Keeffe (Lanfear), Fares Fares (Ishamael), and Xelia Mendes-Jones (Renna) have been outstanding, and this episode was no different. Fares delivered an especially powerful performance that conveyed his character’s emotions brilliantly. Dónal Finn (Mat) was another standout in his delivery of an emotional performance that was a far cry from his first few appearances. Let’s not forget Laia Costa (Moghedien), who has already made an impression in the couple of minutes she was on screen.

The new arrivals helped take the acting of some of the returning cast to the next level. There’s not much more I can say about how fantastic Rosamund Pike (Moiraine) is. Josha Stradowski (Rand) and Daniel Henney (Lan) put in their best performances to date, but it was Madeleine Madden (Egwene) that stood out once again with poignant delivery. I almost can’t believe how far she’s come. Her scenes were tough to watch in season one and in the first half of this season even, but season six really flipped a switch in her. She was outstanding then and she was outstanding here. Kudos to her for turning it around and winning me over.

Cinematography (14/15)

This was a visually stunning finale that would’ve gotten a full score in this category if not for a couple weak scenes. The first was Moiraine’s overly dramatic channeling on the beach. It was borderline comical. The second was the fire dragon that Moiraine released at the tower. It was corny. I felt like it took away from the significance of the moment.

Other than that, the episode was littered with great shots:

• They waited two seasons to give us a full intro, but it was certainly worth the wait!
• Nice shot of the palms tree in the desert (5:02 onwards)
• Great shot of the Ways (6:21)
• Cool shot of the Waygate on the beach (7:24)
• Nice shot of Falme (8:11)
• Shot of Ishamael overlooking the city and the desert (9:14)
• Touching shot of Lanfear sitting next to Ishamael (10:27)
• Shot of Renna towering over Egwene in her cell (13:10)
• Far shots of Lan and Moiraine on the beach (19:00 onwards)
• Shot of the tower in Falme from above (22:51)
• Powerful shot of the decimated bodies of Turak and his men (25:21)
• Nice shot of the beach (26:42)
• Powerful shot of Renna’s dead body hanging (39:19)
• Poignant shot of Hopper laying dead as her spirit exits her body (45:50)
• Cool shot of Moiraine and Lan standing side by side but facing opposite directions as they prepare for battle (54:28)
• Potentially foreshadowing shot of Egwene standing to the side of the others who stand firmly behind Rand (1:01:32)

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