Why Mat Was Hanged In The Wheel Of Time Season 3 Finale

This article contains spoilers for The Wheel of Time season 3, episode 8.
Mat Cauthon comes terrifyingly close to death in The Wheel of Time

season 3’s finale, hanging after he claimed three wishes from a member of the Eelfinn. One of The Wheel of Time‘s three ta’veren, Mat has paid a heavy price for his unique role in the Pattern. The One Power allows him to remember fragments of his past reincarnations, an experience that threatens to drive him mad.

The Wheel of Time season 3’s ending sees Mat stumble through a ter’angreal – one similar in nature to the arches in the White Tower, in that it transports him to another plane of existence. There, Mat encounters a member of another race, the Eelfinn, and the fate of his life appears to take an unexpected direction when he wishes for his memories to be erased. Unfortunately, there is a price, and Mat comes close to death when the Eelfinn hangs him.

Mat Being Hanged Was The Price For His Three Wishes

The Eelfinn are a race of beings who possess tremendous power. They live in another dimension, one that Mat accessed when he stepped between the redstone doorframe; it seems they are bound to grant three wishes to anyone who makes their way through that doorway, rather like a genie. There is a catch, though; the Eelfinn are dangerous creatures, and the wishes they grant will always come with a price. The Eelfinn grants Mat his first wish when it tells him what it is, aware this wastes a wish; it then removes his memories, but scrambles his mind.

Mat rightly realizes that the redstone doorframe is a trap when he recognizes the smell of death. The Eelfinn grant three wishes, and then prey upon the ones whose deepest desires have been fulfilled, feasting on them. Mat’s third wish is to leave, to escape, but he unwisely fails to specify the terms of the deal. The Eelfinn transports Mat back through the redstone doorframe, but leaves him hanging, choking to death.

How The Wheel Of Time Changed Mat’s Hanging Scene

Something like this happens in Robert Jordan’s books, specifically in Shadow Rising. There, Mat bargains for slightly different things: to have the holes in his memory filled, to be free from the One Power and the Aes Sedai, and to return to the city of Rhuidean if the Eelfinn did not answer his questions. He failed to set a price, just as in The Wheel of Time, but was actually hanged from Avendesora, the Tree of Life, in the Aiel city.

In the books, Mat was discovered by Rand al’Thor rather than by Min, and it is implied he’d hung there for rather longer; Rand saves his life by using the One Power to make Mat’s heart beat again. The Wheel of Time has switched things up quite considerably here, keeping the ta’veren apart for a little longer. To be fair, it’s probably better for the Pattern; one ta’veren alone is a force of nature, and three together cause chaos.

Why Mat’s Big Season 3 Moment Is So Important To His Wheel Of Time Future

Mat Cauthon’s Wheel of Time has been switched up significantly, meaning it’s difficult to say exactly where things are headed. That said, in the books, this is one of the defining moments of Mat’s life; among other things, he is left with a permanent scar that testifies to his bargain with the Eelfinn. He tends to hide this scar with a kerchief, and soon after adopts a hat that completes his trademark look. We’re basically on the route to the classic Mat Cauthon of the books.

What is odd, though, is that The Wheel of Time‘s version of Mat has had his memories erased rather than clarified. In the books, Mat’s encounters with the Eelfinn transform him into a peerless tactician because he is able to remember strategies from his past lives; that seems unlikely to happen in the Amazon TV show just yet, and Mat appears to have more holes in his memories than before. It’s possible he has been set upon a path that will see him head back to the Eelfinn, once he has come to recognize how much he needs these memories.

The Wheel of Time has made many changes to the books. In this case, the changes are quite dramatic, and they appear to set Mat on a very different path. It will be fascinating to see how events play out.

The Wheel of Time

6/10

Release Date

November 18, 2021

Network

Prime Video

Showrunner

Rafe Judkins

Directors

Sanaa Hamri, Ciaran Donnelly, Salli Richardson-Whitfield, Thomas Napper, Maja Vrvilo, Wayne Che Yip

Writers

Amanda Kate Shuman, Dave Hill, Rohit Kumar, Justine Juel Gillmer, Celine Song, Rammy Park, The Clarksons Twins, Katherine B. McKenna