Official Wheel of Time Trailer Released [No Spoilers Please]

[doctorbadwolf]

Yep. I just don't think you do this story in 2021 with the three guys as the prophesied heroes and the two women as the hangers-on.

Plus, they seem to be hinting that it won't be obvious (to a new audience) as to who the Dragon Reborn is for the first few episodes at least, or maybe not until the end of the season.

Yeah and I'm glad. i really like how they're moving forward.

The wheel keeps turnin. No one said it'd be the same every time.

The characters have been aged up for this series. They will be depicted in their mid 20s at the start of the series.

Wheel of Time's Main Characters Will Be Older Than Their Book Counterparts

The Wheel of Time showrunner Rafe Judkins explains why main characters including Mat, Rand, Perrin and Egwene are aged up for the Amazon series.

www.cbr.com

Yep, and watching the trailer and teaser, it's obvious that Egwene is not a teen contextually. She's almost certainly going through some sort of coming of age thing when she gets yeeted into the river, and her and Rand are clearly not kids in that half-naked scene where they're alone in the tavern at night.

And good. Regardless of the whole "teenagers change too quickly for a many years long show" thing, I think the story runs just as well in their 20's, and a lot of the things they do and how people react to them later on will feel a lot less odd with them being at least 20.

 

[TheSword]

I remember reading something that Jordan never intended to write them as children but the publishing company made strong suggestions to that effect because back then fantasy was seen as teen fiction.

it makes far more sense. Egwene and Nyneave being seen as instrumental from the start is also a big improvement. This is exciting stuff.

 

[Parmandur]

Yeah and I'm glad. i really like how they're moving forward.

The wheel keeps turnin. No one said it'd be the same every time.

Yep, and watching the trailer and teaser, it's obvious that Egwene is not a teen contextually. She's almost certainly going through some sort of coming of age thing when she gets yeeted into the river, and her and Rand are clearly not kids in that half-naked scene where they're alone in the tavern at night.

And good. Regardless of the whole "teenagers change too quickly for a many years long show" thing, I think the story runs just as well in their 20's, and a lot of the things they do and how people react to them later on will feel a lot less odd with them being at least 20.

I saw an interview with the show runner that they wanted to cast clearly older actors so that it isn't perceived as a "young adult" show (Not that there's anything wrong with that!).

 

[TheSword]

It definitely went wrong with Bran Stark. So I whole heartedly support them.

 

[Parmandur]

It definitely went wrong with Bran Stark. So I whole heartedly support them.

So, in a non-spoiler-y way, I'm going to discuss the timeframe of the books:

973 "New Era": Nyneave is born

978 NE: Mat, Perrin & Rand are born

981 NE: Egwene is born

998 NE: Eye of the World begins

So, in the book, Nyneave is 25, the three guys are 20, and Egwene is 17.

The last book takes place in the year 1000, believe it or not: those long books cover a short period of time.

 

[MGibster]

I'll give it a shot I think. But I've got to admit that I started reading the series in 1989 and finished it when the last book was released in 2013. I read the books many, many times and I just don't know if I have the patience to sit through a whole television series. Even if I end up being unable to enjoy it, I hope it's decent and other people have a good time with it.

 

[Parmandur]

The essential point, to me, isn't the exact detail of their age, but the harrowing experience of being naive country bumping thrown into a situation wildly beyond their control and stumbling through while playing catch up. I am not getting my hopes up that the show will be able to fully convey the subtlextual, personal & mythological thematic of being sent to Vietnam as a young man at the heart of the story...but I hope they try.

 

[aco175]

The trailer looks like a group of 1st level PCs and a DMPC to make the story go their way.

 

[Parmandur]

The trailer looks like a group of 1st level PCs and a DMPC to make the story go their way.

I mean...that's basically how this starts, yes. But it goes interesting places, in clever paths, from that fairly generic start. And it was fresher in 1989.

Fun fact, Robert Jordan used the Red Box to bond with his 12 year old stepson by acting as the DM for the son and his middle school friends, which sent him towards writing fantasy (previously he wrote historical fiction)

 

[Paul Farquhar]

I was fairly underwhelmed by the trailer, but I'll give the series a try anyway.