I can’t be the only one who’s seeing this pattern in fantasy shows like The Wheel of Time

Amazon’s The Wheel of Time has delivered one of its best seasons, raising fans’ hopes for future seasons. From shocking deaths to spectacular battle sequences, Season 3 has included every aspect that makes a fantasy show work well and shine through.

However, just like every other fantasy show, The Wheel of Time is also grappling with the issue of not being able to give space to plotlines and character arcs that would help the stories of epic fantasies strike a chord with the audience. The reason behind this shortcoming is the recent formula used by the streaming platforms: the 8-episode run.

More on this in our story.

Disclaimer: The article contains spoilers for The Wheel of Time. Reader discretion is advised.

The Wheel of Time’s eight-episode run might have affected its character building

In Season 3 of the fantasy series, characters like Rand and Moiraine had devastating yet powerful journeys. However, due to the show’s time constraint, their story and the surrounding characters who helped make their stories impactful did not get enough time to connect with the audience.

For instance, in Rand’s storyline, the introduction of Alsera, Rhuarc’s young granddaughter, appeared to be bonding well with him in episodes 5 and 6. This resulted in Rand’s frantic behaviour after her death, which was caused due to him unleashing an intense burst of One Power. Rand felt responsible for the young Aiel girl’s death and blamed himself. However, Alsera’s death would have been more impactful if her character arc had had more time to build.

Other than individual storylines, the season also shocked the fans with major character deaths such as Siuan Sanche, Natti Cauthon, and Loial. The creative liberties allowed the show to shock and surprise even the fans of the source material with deaths that didn't take place in the storyline of the novel. However, with just eight episodes, it was difficult to depict the ripple effect that these deaths might have on the other important characters in the Robert Jordan novels.

Therefore, the new concept of eight-episode seasons for fantasy shows is affecting the character and world-building of these epic stories, which need more room to develop a character's story to get the audience emotionally invested in them.

The Wheel of Time and new fantasy shows are affected by this new pattern

Various other fantasy shows that recently premiered, such as Shadow and Bone, House of the Dragon season 2, and another Prime Video show, The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, all have faced a similar issue of compacting an epic story into eight episodes, which have affected the overall depth of the stories.

In an interview with Polygon, renowned fantasy author Brandon Sanderson, who finished The Wheel of Time novels after Robert Jordan’s death, also talked about how streaming services have yet to find their footing with creating fantasy shows. He said:

"I’m not convinced that we have hit stability in the streaming market. Streaming has had a big problem with epic fantasy, and this has me worried. Rings of Power and Wheel of Time have not gone as well as I would’ve hoped. Shadow and Bone lasted only two seasons, after a very strong first season. Streaming hasn’t figured out epic fantasy yet."

The Wheel of Time is available to stream on Prime Video.

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