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- 15 details you missed in 'The Wheel of Time' season 1
15 details you missed in 'The Wheel of Time' season 1
Ayomikun Adekaiyero
![15 details you missed in 'The Wheel of Time' season 1](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fstaticbiassets.in%2Fthumb%2Fmsid-88263698%2Cwidth-700%2Cheight-525%2Cimgsize-690774%2F15-details-you-missed-in-aposthe-wheel-of-timeapos-season-1.jpg&w=3840&q=75)
- The first season of "The Wheel of Time" is streaming on Amazon Prime.
- The show, which is based on a book series, has made several changes from the original plot.
"The Wheel of Time" is based on one of the best selling fantasy series since "Lord of the Rings."
!["The Wheel of Time" is based on one of the best selling fantasy series since "Lord of the Rings."](https://staticbiassets.in/thumb/msid-88263804,width-700,height-525,imgsize-572314/quotthe-wheel-of-timequot-is-based-on-one-of-the-best-selling-fantasy-series-since-quotlord-of-the-rings-quot.jpg)
"The Wheel of Time," which premiered on Amazon Prime on November 19, is based on a successful fantasy book series written by Robert Jordan.
The story follows the battle between light and dark when a chosen one, called the Dragon Reborn, has to stop the main villain, the Dark One, from escaping his prison and destroying the world. In the "The Wheel of Time" world, people can be reincarnated hence the Dragon is the name of a powerful magic user that has reincarnated multiple times.
While the series and books have many characters, the focus is mainly on five heroes from a little village called Emond's Field: Rand al'Thor, Egwene al'Vere, Mat Cauthon, Perrin Aybara, and Nynaeve al'Meara. One of these five heroes is the Dragon Reborn.
The book series is made up of 14 volumes and a prequel novel, however, the last 3 books of the series were completed by Brandon Sanderson after Jordan's death in 2007. The book series also inspired George R.R. Martin's "Game of Thrones."
The first season adapts the first book of the series "The Eye of the World," however it takes a couple of storylines from other books. In this book, the five heroes learn about their destiny as they are chased by the Dark One's forces because the Dark One wants the Dragon Reborn on his side.
The opening credits reference the weaving pattern of the Wheel.
![The opening credits reference the weaving pattern of the Wheel.](https://staticbiassets.in/thumb/msid-88263801,width-700,height-525,imgsize-116430/the-opening-credits-reference-the-weaving-pattern-of-the-wheel-.jpg)
In the books and the show, fate is controlled by a giant cosmic loom, a machine to make cloth, called The Wheel which was put in place by the creator of the universe. The opening credits illustrate this while also referencing the Ajahs of the Aes Sedai, the name of an organization of female witches in "The Wheel of Time" world.
The Ajahs are different sections within Aes Sedai who specialize in different skills, as we learn in later episodes. Blue Ajahs, who typically wear blue robes, for example, are the spies for the Aes Sedai whereas Green Ajahs are warriors. The only color not shown is Black Ajahs which are introduced later in the book series.
In the show, Perrin is married to a woman he dreamed of marrying in the books.
![In the show, Perrin is married to a woman he dreamed of marrying in the books.](https://staticbiassets.in/thumb/msid-88263797,width-700,height-525,imgsize-270350/in-the-show-perrin-is-married-to-a-woman-he-dreamed-of-marrying-in-the-books-.jpg)
"The Wheel of Time" showrunner, Rafe Judkins, said on Twitter that all the five adventurers from Emond's Field would be aged up to be in their 20s instead of teenagers like they are in the books.
In the show, Rand (Josha Stradowski) and Egwene (Madeleine Madden) have a romantic relationship together and Perrin is married, all of which were not a part of the first book.
Laila Dearn (Helena Westerman), Perrin's wife, is mentioned in the books as someone Perrin dreamed of marrying once but that ends up never happening.
Egwene's braid in the first episode represents a woman who is mature enough to marry.
![Egwene](https://staticbiassets.in/thumb/msid-88263795,width-700,height-525,imgsize-521796/egweneaposs-braid-in-the-first-episode-represents-a-woman-who-is-mature-enough-to-marry-.jpg)
While it may seem like a small detail in the show, the braid Egwene has in her hair alludes to her being of marriageable age.
In the books, women in the Two Rivers put their hair in a braid once they are mature enough to be married. In the first book of "The Wheel of Time" series, Egwene gets rid of her braid once she finds out she could be one of the witches of Aes Sedai.
In the first episode, Mat Cauthon mentions Callie Coplin, who is a member of an important Two Rivers family in the books.
![In the first episode, Mat Cauthon mentions Callie Coplin, who is a member of an important Two Rivers family in the books.](https://staticbiassets.in/thumb/msid-88263792,width-700,height-525,imgsize-363084/in-the-first-episode-mat-cauthon-mentions-callie-coplin-who-is-a-member-of-an-important-two-rivers-family-in-the-books-.jpg)
The Coplins and the Congars are two troublemaking families in Emond's Field that confront Moiraine Damodred (Rosamund Pike) — the Aes Sedai that protects the main heroes — after the village is attacked.
While the Callie Coplin mention is an Easter egg for fans, it also points to a distinct difference between the show and book series.
In the books, the men are the ones that take charge of the two families, but the Amazon series seems to emphasize women being the ones in power. This is also shown when female villagers team up to fight the minotaur-looking monsters called the Trollocs in episode one.
Episode one also foreshadows Padan Fain's betrayal of the Emond's Field adventurers and his secret identity.
![Episode one also foreshadows Padan Fain](https://staticbiassets.in/thumb/msid-88263790,width-700,height-525,imgsize-40162/episode-one-also-foreshadows-padan-fainaposs-betrayal-of-the-emondaposs-field-adventurers-and-his-secret-identity-.jpg)
Padan Fain is a Darkfriend in the books, humans who help the Dark One and spy for him. The only confirmed Darkfriend so far is Dana, a completely new character.
While the show has not revealed Padan to be a Darkfriend yet, he enters riding into town on a horse right after we see a Fade, one of the Dark One's monsters, for the first time also riding into town on a horse. The parallel appears to foreshadow Padan's identity and eventual betrayal.
The Aes Sedai symbol is mysteriously shown two times in the series.
![The Aes Sedai symbol is mysteriously shown two times in the series.](https://staticbiassets.in/thumb/msid-88263783,width-700,height-525,imgsize-117890/the-aes-sedai-symbol-is-mysteriously-shown-two-times-in-the-series-.jpg)
In the books, the Aes Sedai symbol is described as a round black-and-white disc, similar to a yin and yang symbol.
In the show, the symbol has not been shown prominently by the Aes Sedai, but it has been used as a warning that it is not safe for Aes Sedai. First, in episode one, dead goat bodies are arranged into the symbol and found by Lan (Daniel Henney). Then in episode six, the symbol is shown on the door of what's left of young Siuan Sanche's (Keira Chansa) house after it had been burned down.
In episode three, Dana mentions towns from the first book that we never see in the show.
![In episode three, Dana mentions towns from the first book that we never see in the show.](https://staticbiassets.in/thumb/msid-88263781,width-700,height-525,imgsize-321222/in-episode-three-dana-mentions-towns-from-the-first-book-that-we-never-see-in-the-show-.jpg)
While in Breen's Spring, the only non-prominent village on the journey to Tar Valon in the original book, Rand and Dana mention key cities in the world of "The Wheel of Time."
Baerlon and The Lion Throne of Caemlyn were both visited by the Emond's Field adventurers in the book but both are merely mentioned in the series. Same with Whitebridge, which is mentioned by Moraine in episode three.
Stone of Tear is where the prophesied sword Callandor resides, which can only be used by the Dragon Reborn, the chosen one to save the world from the Dark One. Meanwhile, Ogier Stedding is the haven for the Ogier race, a troll-like peaceful species in "The Wheel of Time" universe.
The stars on the King of Ghealdan's dagger in episode four represent the Ghealdan flag.
![The stars on the King of Ghealdan](https://staticbiassets.in/thumb/msid-88263778,width-700,height-525,imgsize-63908/the-stars-on-the-king-of-ghealdanaposs-dagger-in-episode-four-represent-the-ghealdan-flag-.jpg)
The flag can also be seen in the background at the beginning of episode four.
The books never narrate what actually happens in the battle of Ghealdan, a city in "The Wheel of Time" that gets captured by a false Dragon called Logain Ablar. False Dragons are men with magic who believe they are the chosen ones. In the books, readers only learn of the battle through rumors from different citizens on the heroes' journey to safety.
In the show, we see Logain attacked with the starry dagger by the King of Ghealdan after trying to persuade the king that he should join his quest to change the world.
In episode four, we see the voices advising Logain. One of the voices could be the Dark One.
![In episode four, we see the voices advising Logain. One of the voices could be the Dark One.](https://staticbiassets.in/thumb/msid-88263776,width-700,height-525,imgsize-47912/in-episode-four-we-see-the-voices-advising-logain-one-of-the-voices-could-be-the-dark-one-.jpg)
During the book, we never see Logain's perspective so we have no way of telling if he's mad. In the Amazon series, we see manifestations of Logain's madness just like the male wizard at the beginning of the first episode.
However, Logain's madness in the show is different from the male wizard as his illusions are made of darkness, not an actual person. There are also two voices, one that is named Elusha Salid and a voice that isn't given a name on the cast list. This voice could potentially be the Dark One or Ishamael, a powerful sorcerer who works for the Dark One.
The dreams in the first few episodes could be teasing our heroes' first encounter with the main villain in the first "Wheel of Time" book.
![The dreams in the first few episodes could be teasing our heroes](https://staticbiassets.in/thumb/msid-88263772,width-700,height-525,imgsize-30066/the-dreams-in-the-first-few-episodes-could-be-teasing-our-heroesapos-first-encounter-with-the-main-villain-in-the-first-quotwheel-of-timequot-book-.jpg)
In the first book, Ishamael, rather than the Dark One, gives the Emond's Field adventurers their scary dreams. He is also described as having eyes and mouths like caverns of fire just like the monster seen in multiple dreams in the series. Ishamael is one of the Forsaken, powerful servants of the Dark One.
In the books, he does this to try and work out who is the Dragon Reborn so he could bring that person to the dark side. He is often seen as a manipulator which has made some fans believe that he is free from being locked away and was the one to persuade Stepin to take his life at the end of episode five.
Kerene and Stepin's death happens in "The Wheel of Time" prequel instead of the first book. Their names may have foreshadowed their fate.
![Kerene and Stepin](https://staticbiassets.in/thumb/msid-88263766,width-700,height-525,imgsize-403216/kerene-and-stepinaposs-death-happens-in-quotthe-wheel-of-timequot-prequel-instead-of-the-first-book-their-names-may-have-foreshadowed-their-fate-.jpg)
In episode four, we are introduced to multiple Aes Sedai when Moraine, Nynaeve, and Lan (Moraine's special guard called a Warder) meet up with the captured false Dragon.
Two of the Aes Sedai — Kerene and Stepin — also appear in the book series, albeit in the prequel rather than the first book.
In the prequel "New Spring," Kerene is a powerful Aes Sedai sent to find the Dragon Reborn with her Warders, Stepin and Karile. However, Kerene and her Warders are slain by Aes Sedai working for the Dark One.
The fact that the show chose the names Kerene and Stepin foreshadowed that both were likely to die, which is what happened in episode four and episode five.
Stepin's dolls are representations of major "Wheel of Time" villains.
![Stepin](https://staticbiassets.in/thumb/msid-88263765,width-700,height-525,imgsize-68068/stepinaposs-dolls-are-representations-of-major-quotwheel-of-timequot-villains-.jpg)
In the books, The Forsaken are the major servants of the Dark One. They are 13 male and female channelers who are locked away by a former dragon Lews Therin Telamon but are released one by one when the current Dragon is reborn.
In episode five, Stepin is seen lighting candles in front of eight dolls meant to depict the Forsaken, which could imply the show may not have all 13. He particularly mentions that he is warding off Ishamael "the father of lies" by lighting the candle.
The little girl's doll in episode five is named after Birgitte Silverbow.
![The little girl](https://staticbiassets.in/thumb/msid-88263764,width-700,height-525,imgsize-36240/the-little-girlaposs-doll-in-episode-five-is-named-after-birgitte-silverbow-.jpg)
In "The Wheel of Time" books, there are a number of heroes that are reincarnated over and over. When they're not alive, they reside in a dreamworld called Tel'aran'rhiod.
Birgitte is one such hero, an archer who is part of many legends and is always romantically linked to another hero called Gaidal Cain.
Episode five shows the mountain Dragonmount.
![Episode five shows the mountain Dragonmount.](https://staticbiassets.in/thumb/msid-88263761,width-700,height-525,imgsize-47452/episode-five-shows-the-mountain-dragonmount-.jpg)
In the background of Tar Valon in episode five is the volcanic mountain Dragonmount. It was created during the Breaking of the World by the former Dragon named Lews Therin Telamon.
According to lore, Lews Terin used so much magical power that he destroyed mountains and recreated the world. In the books, Rand is born on Dragonmount and later found by his adopted father Tam Al'Thor. There is a moment in episode five where Rand says he has seen the mountain before which could foreshadow Rand learning his true origins.
The dagger that possesses Mat is tied to a major character from the books that hasn't appeared in the series.
![The dagger that possesses Mat is tied to a major character from the books that hasn](https://staticbiassets.in/thumb/msid-88263757,width-700,height-525,imgsize-150204/the-dagger-that-possesses-mat-is-tied-to-a-major-character-from-the-books-that-hasnapost-appeared-in-the-series-.jpg)
Episode six finally shows that Mat was cursed by the dagger he stole from Shadar Logoth rather than the Dark One.
The books explain in-depth how Mat gets possessed. In the books, the dagger belongs to Mordeth, a man corrupted by darkness who clashes with the Emond's Field travelers multiple times. The show does not mention Mordeth at all and changed the backstory of Shadar Logoth to remove his involvement in their destruction. However, the character may be introduced later in the show in a different way to reclaim his dagger or cause trouble for the Emond's Field adventurers.
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