The Wheel of Time at NYCC 2023
by Transmute Jun
Warning: this article contains spoilers for Wheel of Time Season 2, and books 1 through 3.
Prime Video made a splash at New York Comic Con (NYCC), bringing a number of properties to the con as part of its Empire Stage panel on Saturday, October 14. Chief among these was The Wheel of Time, which recently concluded its second season.
In addition to this, Prime Video hosted a special event for fans on Sunday, October 15, featuring a private theatre screening of Episode 208, the second season finale. It was incredible to see the episode on a massive screen, rather than a small one. After the viewing, showrunner Rafe Judkins spoke about season 2 and what lies in store for Season 3.
The theme of Season 2 was that no one can do things alone. Unlike the first season, in Season 2 the main characters of the series are separated, each of them having to struggle without the aid of the group. Judkins explained that this served the narrative purpose of allowing the audience to understand each character individually, by seeing their struggles and journey throughout the season.
In addition to this approach, Judkins set aside 2 episodes of the season’s 8 to focus on side stories highlighting specific character struggles: one episode regarding Nynaeve’s trials through the arches to become Accepted, and one focusing on Egwene’s struggle with (and eventual submission to) her role as a Damane. While the streaming series is unable to focus on all of the side stories in the book series, Judkins felt that these two story arcs in particular were an especially important part of the story arc as a whole. Such stories in the streaming series are intended to have a similar impact as the singular point-of-view chapters in the books.
One story element from the books that Judkins wanted to include, but was ultimately forced to cut, was the reveal of Ingtar as a darkfriend. The scenes were actually filmed, but disrupted the flow of the main plot too much, and so were removed. Judkins promised that this storyline would likely be included as deleted scenes for the series.
The crew is already working on Season 3, which will encompass the events of Book 4 in the Wheel of Time series. This season will take place in new locations, including the Aiel Waste, the city of Rhuidean, and the realm of Tanchico. The Seafolk people/Atha’an Miere will also be introduced.
At the very end of Season 2, viewers learned that Ishmael released the remaining Forsaken before he was killed by Rand. These new villains are represented by an appearance by Moghedien, as she confronts Lanfear. These other Forsaken will be a big focus of Season 3.
At NYCC, Prime Video demonstrated the depth of storytelling behind The Wheel of Time, as well as the enthusiasm of its fans. I am eagerly looking forward to Season 3.
Did you experience The Wheel of Time events at NYCC? Join the conversation on the FoCC forums!
