How did the show hold up for you?

[DojoToad]

Provide reasons why in comments.  Please try to be concise.  You're more likely to be read and responded to if there is not two full paragraphs for each bullet point.  I plan to have many reasons but will try to keep the verbiage down...

Edited December 9, 2021 by DojoToad
Changed from 4 episodes to 5 before the premiere of episode 6

[SinisterDeath]

I'm sitting at about 75 of 100 from what I've currently seen. This can go up or down depending on how good or bad the rest of the episodes are.

For reference, The Boys & Invincible are both a 90 out of 100, GoT series was an 70 out of 100, and MCU is an 80 out of 100.

*Edit*
Also, I was tempering my hype. I set my internal bar pretty low so as to not suffer from hype shock. 

E.g. when a video game is over hyped and falls flat and gets review bombed even though it's an above average game.

[MasterAblar]

I’ve got definite reservations about some things and some I’m waiting to see how they play out. But overall I’m fairly satisfied and think the show is more likely to improve than not as it moves forward.

[TheDreadReader]

I'm in the like it category but coming close to love it. 

 

I have a few quibbles but most of the changes make logical sense to me and I think that I can see where they are going with them.

 

 

 

[notpropaganda73]

I am in the like it category, I have some deep reservations but to be honest one of my main concerns coming in was the ability of the cast and I am extremely happy with them so far. I am cautiously optimistic that the show will only get stronger. 

[Arthellion]

I'm in the like category but have serious issues with the pacing. If they fix the pacing, this can move into top tier quality. 

[Guire]

Had very high hopes.  To me time is going to be the rarest resource in telling story.  So far I am afraid choices made are just not the best.  Pushing the mystery of Dragons identity feels like it is limiting character development. With the time constraints I am afraid the changes don't have time to pay off.  

[Skipp]

I loved it, would rate the 3 episodes as a 7 or 8.  I see the changes they are making and and I think I am seeing the reasons for them already.

 

I would rate Episode 1 a 6.5 or 7

Episode 2 is a 7.5

Episode 3 is 8

 

I think the largest issue with episode 1 is the pacing and editing.  I feel they left a lot on the cutting room floor and what I wouldn't give to get a full length directors cut of the episode.

 

I feel like Episode 2 slowed down the pace a fair and welcome amount.  I understand other people feel it was too fast paced but to each their own.  I wish they had spent more time in Shadar Logoth but the city itself was full of spectacular views and creepy atmosphere. I couldn't be happier with the whitecloaks, Valda is amazingly smug and creepy contrasted to Bornhald's composed and almost friendly demeanour.

 

Episode 3 was solid start to finish.  Had a few issues with the pacing of Egwene and Perrin's scenes but everything with Mat and Rand in Breen's Spring was great!  Thom is very very different than how I pictured but it worked.  I was completely sold after his one on one conversation with Mat.  The twist of the episode was also spot on even if it was easy to see coming from a book readers viewpoint.

 

I loved the characterizations of all of the major characters and didn't feel like I saw a bad performance among them.  That might be my fanboi speaking and I may need to readjust when rewatch the episodes but the actors were amazing. 

 

The sets and CGI were often amazing.  There were moments where something would stand out as not right but these would occur in the middle of an action sequence and were quickly swallowed up by quality.

 

The Trollocs and Fades design was outstanding, I could not be happier with the outcome.  The Trollocs are so beastial and gruesome and aside from a couple of iffy CGI moments they were near perfect.  The Fade itself is terrifying.  Trying to make the "gaze of an Eyeless is fear" into the show wouldn't really work in my opinion but they still made them insidiously creepy.  I cannot wait to actually see one in action.

 

As a close nonbook reader friend of mind said after watching the first episode "The First episode of epic fantasy is a tough nut to crack."  He and his wife were quite happy and are looking forward to continuing the show.

 

I loved it despite its flaws and the things I had the biggest issues with, pacing and spotty CGI will only get better as they progress.

 

 

This was much longer than I realized, Sorry for my rambling.

Edited November 19, 2021 by Skipp
Rambling

[Siberian Rat]

Absolute masterclass TV. 9/10

[DaddyFinn]

Loved it. There are a lot of changes but nothing so major that it would affect my enjoyment. We watched all of the episodes three times in a row..

[Reader]

Like it.  There's clearly room for improvement, but it was better than I was expecting.  I'm glad they released that "first minute of the show" video a couple of weeks ago, to manage certain expectations, otherwise that change would have overshadowed things.

 

There are things they could have done better, but I'm happy enough for now.

[SinisterDeath]

10 minutes ago, Siberian Rat said:

Absolute masterclass TV. 9/10

lol

[Agitel]

I'm positive on it, but it's not great yet. Enjoyable, though. Casting and acting are fine. Pacing is kind of a jumble, and it's like an abbreviated version of the first book. Counterpoint is that I don't think the first book is that easily adaptable to cinema or television and might have some pacing issues itself, so I kind of get the justification for the choices they've made. Hopefully the show finds its stride.

[Siberian Rat]

My review
https://dragonmount.com/forums/topic/110377-season-1-discussion-no-book-spoilers/?do=findComment&comment=3991814

[Agitel]

46 minutes ago, notpropaganda73 said:

I am in the like it category, I have some deep reservations but to be honest one of my main concerns coming in was the ability of the cast and I am extremely happy with them so far. I am cautiously optimistic that the show will only get stronger. 

 

If the cast is solid and has chemistry, which I think they nailed, then there's definitely room for the show to find itself and recover from first episodes/season stumbles. 

Edited November 19, 2021 by Agitel

[mogi68]

A few bits I liked but I hated a lot of it honestly. Terrible writing decisions all around

 

Edited November 19, 2021 by mogi68

[Arie]

Over all, I loved it. Is it perfect? No, BUT this is the beginning of a journey, and beginnings are always messy af.

 

Since I am in the industry of tortured characters, I actually appreciate the changes to Mat and Perrin’s beginning. I like that Mat makes all the wrong choices for the right reasons, and the Perrin’s nature holds so much more depth then then is along the surface. I think if Perrin was portrayed exactly the same with the story as written in the books, it would be perfect and at the same time he would appear shallow because it’s difficult to portray that kind of pain when you have a more stoic nature. You do what’s right, but those quiet moments are heartbreaking.

 

While I feel that my only complaint may be the introduction of the Aiel and the red hair was a bit too soon, too much lore packed in can really bog down some details, I don’t have a lot of complaints. 

 

I will, however, covet that only book fans will know what Shawls and tassel length means.

 

And I suppose, now I understand how people who read GoT and got a show feel when characters come on screen and you just -know- who they are before a word is said. That feeling is a bit surreal.

[TheChief]

Lurker on this site since the series development started.

 

I'm cautiously liking this.

 

I believe I'll have an unpopular opinion here. I thought RJ really excelled at world building, but his character development (dialogue, motivation, etc) was poor, to the point where it was distracting and discouraging for me - I made it through all books despite this. In other words, I didn't love the books, but read them all (except one I just read an on-line summary because I heard it was the worst one in "the slog" ). But the world building and story arch was enough to keep me going. I haven't posted here before as I don't think it's nice or helpful to criticize books on a fan site dedicated to book lovers, which I'm not.

 

So, if you're interested in the opinion of a non-book lover (which will need to be most of the audience if the show is to continue)...

 

I was VERY hopeful that the TV series could help with writing characters/dialogue. I though that with decent dialogue and good believable motivations, this could be a fantastic story.

 

I'm worried after the first few episodes because I feel they didn't change enough, actually. The dialogue and character interactions are better than the book, but still a bit wooden and awkward. This isn't the fault of the actors - they seem excellent. I think this comes at moments when they stick closely to the source material, like when Moraine is saying stuff like "the wheel weaves as the wheel wills". It just sounds unnatural. Real people don't talk like that, and part of what makes characters believable and relatable is that they act and talk like real people. So, I'm still hopeful that the showrunners won't sacrifice character building to world/story arch building and staying "true to the series". I'll still watch all seasons they make regardless (cause let's be honest, COVID has made my TV diet pretty omnivorous), but feel like this is a huge opportunity to improve the story that I hope doesn't go to waste.

 

I hope I didn't offend anyone as that's not my intent. Just giving you insight into what a "non-superfan" thinks ?

[Deathstalker1973]

I've been reading this series since the mid 90's waited for years for this series to either be made into movies or a game of thrones style series and now that it's here I wished they would not have bothered my vision of the series is enough. Waste of time. But that said I hope others will enjoy it,  I just won't watch it

[Vambram]

Overall, I'm giving the 3 episodes a 7 out of 10 rating. Right now, I'm going to say I loved it because the cast has really done an excellent job nailing down the personalities of characters I have loved for 30 years. The cast ain't perfect and I'm looking forward to seeing the improvement I believe is coming. 

 

The pacing does feel a little rushed and I was hoping for a few more character driven scenes. 

 

I wish that "Weep for Manetheren" could have been told to the entire village. RJ's final scene after that battle was more effective than what we saw onscreen. But Rosamund Pike still got me all misty eyed after she finished telling the four with her about Manetheren. 

 

Also, I like that the Whitecloaks are now shown as a real threat to our heroes. 

 

I don't like all the changes. But I am okay with why those changes were made. 

 

I'm really believing that the rest of this season will get better and better.  

Edited November 19, 2021 by GanoesParan
spelling

[Agitel]

56 minutes ago, TheChief said:

like when Moraine is saying stuff like "the wheel weaves as the wheel wills". It just sounds unnatural. Real people don't talk like that, and part of what makes characters believable and relatable is that they act and talk like real people.

 

I've been reflecting on this point since before reading your post, but I don't think you're entirely right here. "The Lord works in mysterious ways." "God has a plan for you." Same type of comment, and Greeks and Norse and many other cultures with belief in fates no doubt made the same comments. It's a theological proverb, and I think people do and have largely talked like that. I just think in an increasingly secular world we hear these things less.

[flinn]

 I will give it a 6 out of 10 at this point. Good enough to continue watching, not good enough to recommend to family and friends yet. Hopefully it gets better.

[Arie]

And to that point, It may be worth recognizing that for 3 episodes, how many of us “hear” it vs reading it. “Light be with you.” And all that sound strange until it starts to integrate with your life in a way.

 

I do, deeply, miss the ‘bloody ashes’, however.

[SinisterDeath]

2 minutes ago, Arie said:

I do, deeply, miss the ‘bloody ashes’, however.

It was in one of the shorts!

[Arie]

Dam-it. I need to find those… *shakes fist at the Roku TV*