How It Changes The Books
Warning: Spoilers for The Wheel of Time season 3, episode 8
After a full season of building up to its epic Moiraine vs. Lanfear confrontation, The Wheel of Time has finally revealed the fate of Rosamund Pike’s character. Ever since her experience in the glass columns of Rhuidean, Moiraine Damodred had been of the mindset that she most likely wouldn’t survive her inevitable clash with Lanfear. Despite Pike’s status as the top-billed star of Prime Video’s adaptation of Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time books, there was a good reason for viewers to ponder her future as well.
After all, Moiraine’s battle with Lanfear in the source material did result in the former’s apparent “death.” She didn’t actually die, but what happened here certainly had long-term repercussions. The show spent much of the third season addressing the question as to how it would approach this particular twist, and finally adapted the moment in question in The Wheel of Time season 3 finale. Miraculously, Moiraine won the battle against Lanfear, setting up a whole new future for her character.
What Happened To Moiraine In The Wheel Of Time Books
Moiraine Disappeared After A Successful Attempt To Stop Lanfear
Moiraine didn’t face off with Lanfear in The Shadow Rising when Rand’s group was in the Aiel Waste, but they did engage in a showdown in the following book, The Fires of Heaven. Taking place in Cairhein, the fight unfolded when Lanfear flew into a rage after finding out about Rand becoming intimate with Aviendha. When Lanfear attacked, Moiraine intercepted her to protect Rand, leading to a test of their One Power capabilities. As one of the strongest channelers in existence, Lanfear unsurprisingly held the advantage.
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Understanding that stopping her would take desperate measures, Moiraine shoved Lanfear through a ter’angreal gateway, causing the pair to go through together. Afterward, both characters were presumed dead for quite some time. Consequently, Moiraine missed out on several Wheel of Time books, not coming back until the thirteenth installment, Towers of Midnight. In the book, she was found by Thom and Mat’s group, who discovered that she was being held in stasis in the Tower of Ghenjei, a nexus point to the dimensions of the Aelfinn and the Eelfinn, the fox species Mat encountered in the finale.
Apparently, going through the ter’angreal door took Moiraine to the worlds of the Aelfinn and the Eelfinn. Once freed by Mat and Thom, Moiraine Damodred was finally able to rejoin the narrative in a meaningful capacity. However, the series was nearing its completion by this point. In other words, The Wheel of Time had only brought Moiraine back in time for her to be a main character in just one more book – the last and final entry, A Memory of Light.
Sakarnen Was The Key To The Wheel Of Time Changing Moiraine’s Fate
Sakarnen Had Nothing To Do With Moiraine’s Book Story
Considering Lanfear’s power level in The Wheel of Time, such a scenario where Moiraine would have to make a sacrifice to beat her in the TV show as well, made a lot of sense. However, adding Sakarnen to the equation laid the groundwork for the series to take a different route. Sakernen, a powerful sa’angreal she never had in her possession in the books, leveled the playing field a bit, enabling Moiraine to put up a much better fight. In this way, the show was able to let Moiraine win outright – albeit with some help from Lan and some extra motivation from Siuan’s death.
Wheel of Time avoided both Lanfear and Moiraine having to take long-term absences from the story.
Moiraine was badly wounded and Lanfear got away, which is obviously an outcome that contrasts greatly with what transpired in the source material. Due to this change, The Wheel of Time avoided both Lanfear and Moiraine having to take long-term absences from the story. Presumably, this wouldn’t have been possible had it not been for Moiraine’s decision to take Sakarnen from Avendesora in the city of Rhudiean.
The Wheel Of Time Still Has A Few Moiraine Stories From The First Few Books To Tell
Image via Prime Video
When examining the possible fallout from The Wheel of Time changing the ending of Moiraine and Lanfear’s fight, it’s important to note the adjustments in the timeline. The fight happened at the end of book 5, The Fires of Heaven, meaning that Rand had already taken the Stone of Tear, gained control of Cairhein, and had contact with Elaida over her rise to power as the Amylrin Seat. Many of these events from The Dragon Reborn and The Fires of Heaven are still likely to happen, and based on the progression of the story, it won’t be surprising if they all happen in season 4.
Because Moiraine was involved in one way or another in all of these book events, there’s a good chance they won’t receive any major changes, at least as far as her character is concerned. These storylines are still on track to play out accurately, such as Moiraine trying to give Rand political advice in Cairhein and her killing a Forsaken with Balefire at the Stone of Tear.
Most Of Moiraine’s Stories Will Differ Considerably From The Wheel Of Time Books
Moiraine Wasn’t In Most Of The Books The Show Will Adapt Later On
Image via Prime Video
Beyond what happens at the Stone of Tear and Cairhein, The Wheel of Time is poised to make a long list of changes to its stories on account of its decision to keep Moiraine around. After all, so many challenges had to be tackled without her, including the battle of Dumai’s Wells, Rand’s capture at the hands of the Red Ajah, the formation of the Black Tower, and the many other fights that Rand had with the remaining Forsaken in The Wheel of Time. It’s unclear if any of these incidents would have played out differently if Moiraine hadn’t disappeared, and now the show can answer that question.
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For instance, it’ll be interesting to see where Moiraine will fit into the upcoming standoff between Rand and the Aes Sedai. In Lord of Chaos, members of the Red Ajah gathered together to subdue and gentle Rand. Having Moiraine at his side could lead to a decidedly different take on this conflict, and perhaps a direct retaliation against Elaida on Moiraine’s part.
There’s also the matter of Rand’s decision to unite and train male channelers – a bold choice Moiraine may or may not have opposed. All things considered, there’s plenty of storytelling potential for The Wheel of Time to explore when it comes to the roles Moiraine could play in upcoming book adaptations.
6/10
- Release Date
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November 18, 2021
- Network
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Prime Video
- Showrunner
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Rafe Judkins
- Directors
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Sanaa Hamri, Ciaran Donnelly, Salli Richardson-Whitfield, Thomas Napper, Maja Vrvilo, Wayne Che Yip
- Writers
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Amanda Kate Shuman, Dave Hill, Rohit Kumar, Justine Juel Gillmer, Celine Song, Rammy Park, The Clarksons Twins, Katherine B. McKenna
