Review
While Prime Video’s adaptation of The Wheel of Time has officially been canceled after its third season — and with the showrunners having made it clear that they won’t shop Wheel of Time Season 4 around to other platforms — that means yet another fantasy show will fade away into the annals of TV history. Even the third season’s significantly improved reviews weren’t enough to keep the wheel from grinding to a sudden halt.
It may well be that this marks the beginning of the end for prestige fantasy TV, an era that began when HBO’s Game of Thrones took the airwaves by storm and sent every major streamer scurrying to catch the same lightning in a bottle, and now may see those same giants fall on their faces for failing to understand the very medium they hoped to capitalize on. Yet hope for Wheel of Time fans yearning for the end of Rand al’Thor’s story is not yet lost, because there’s always the option that can’t be canceled: the books.
Where You Can Start The Wheel Of Time Books Now That Season 4 Is Canceled
Despite What You Might Think, The Answer Isn't Book 4 – It's Book 5
The Wheel of Time‘s third season ended neatly in the same place, narratively speaking, as The Shadow Rising, the fourth book in the 14-novel series. That means, for those looking to find out what’s happening with Wheel of Time‘s dangling plot threads, the logical place to start is book five, The Fires of Heaven, which immediately dives into the ramifications of Rand’s new status as the Car’a’carn of the Aiel, as well as Elaida’s coup at the White Tower.
If you’ve been paying any attention at all to the buzz around Amazon’s version of Wheel of Time over the past few years, though, you’ll know that transitioning from the show’s version of the story to the one found in the books isn’t as simple as putting down the former and picking up the latter. All adaptations innately change things from their source material as they try to find their own footing as a discrete work of art. And in the case of The Wheel of Time, those changes are far-reaching.
The Wheel Of Time Books And Show Have Some Significant Differences
While The Amazon Series Made Some Changes For The Better, Others Continue To Baffle Me
Amazon’s Wheel of Time made huge changes to Robert Jordan’s original books from the beginning. Characters were introduced in different orders or under different circumstances, entire story arcs were shifted or even removed outright, and all of that clearly contributed to why the show’s first season fell so flat with viewers: despite showrunners’ assurances that they respected the books, it seemed that they were bent on telling their own version of the story.
As a result, someone picking up The Fires of Heaven will likely be more than a little confused by the fact that several major characters who died quite dramatically at the end of season 3 are still alive, or that it’s Faile and not Perrin who has been kidnapped, or even that Rand has a very strange and ominous sword. Thankfully, there are more than a few substantial summaries of the books available elsewhere online, as well as our past coverage of the differences between the books and Amazon’s Wheel of Time.
Instead, at least for those who have the time, the best approach is the simplest one: read the books. All the books.
Still, given just how convoluted the plotlines of the show and the books are, and the way Robert Jordan’s (and later, Brandon Sanderson’s) writing often hinges on the subtle parts of world-building that often didn’t make it onto the screen, a quick Wiki perusal might not be the best way to catch up on the written version of Randland’s era of chaos. Instead, at least for those who have the time, the best approach is the simplest one: read the books. All the books.
It's Worth Reading Robert Jordan's Series From The Beginning If You Can
There's Something Liberating About Binge-Reading A Giant Stack Of Fantasy Novels
Starting a 14-novel series (15, if you count the prequel, New Spring) is certainly a daunting undertaking for any reader, especially with an average page count of 700 per book. However, there’s something to be said for taking the slow and steady approach to consuming a story. In an era where prestige TV shows are juggling bloated budgets and diminishing episode counts, it’s almost a relief to know that a story has plenty of room to play itself out. And at its length, The Wheel of Time has that room.
For too long, the power controlling genre media has sat in the hands of streaming giants.
The fantasy TV bubble is finally deflating, and no network will be willing to cut the multi-million-dollar check necessary to save this turning of The Wheel of Time. Honestly, I’m okay with that; for too long, the power controlling genre media has sat in the hands of streaming giants. Now it’s time to return it to where it belongs: in the books, in the hands of readers and their unlimited imaginations.
