The Forsaken

[True Source Creator]

So, yeah, I got to Mesaana's defeat (sheesh I've reading slowly), and I found it silly that, before dying, as she had the a'dam on Egwene, she said she would have used this on Semirhage, given that Semi has more knowledge of the a'dam and is simply more powerful. At least Mesaana had an excuse for not killing Egwene right off the bat; she needed to find that dreamspike, unlike Semi who should have just escaped with Rand when she had the chance. Both characters are underrated, though, IMO. Semi should have had more screen time. Her blood story was fascinating.

[Asha'Dude]

Moridin is the epitome of what real evil is. Logic like every other concept, has a dark side too.

[True Source Creator]

Yep, Moridin is awesome. I wasn't so much a fan of him when he first appeared in ACoS (the Mindtrap chapter), but Ishamael had been alright, and then Moridin grew on me in the next few books. Now I'd put him in the top two for the Chosen, only rivaled in awesomeness by Lanfear. Moridin may be a better villain, but I have a soft spot for Lanfear.

[Hybrid]

Moridin has always been my favorite.

 

I think Asmodean could have been used better. He would have made an interesting character, but unfortunately the plot dictated that he become roadkill.

 

I also like Demandred and Semirhage (at least until the events of TGS).

 

Sammael, Graendal, and Lanfear are solid, though I like the first two better than the third.

 

The others are much less developed as characters and feel more like stand-ins to bring the number of Forsaken to 13.

[Joshua Hendrickson]

Semirhage is my favorite. She just creeps me out the most, in the way that present-day serial killers creep me out. Also, I like that she was a cruel secret sadist long before she ever swore oaths to the Dark One, even before the drilling of the Bore--proof that evil is not really external to mankind, as fantasies like WOT frequently suggest. Her evil seems purest somehow of all the Forsaken, and all the worse for being so often quiet and calm.

 

Asmodean is my next favorite. He had depth and variation that I don't see in the other Forsaken. Also, as an artist turned evil turned reluctant instructor, he's easy to identify with, for me if not for everyone. I really wish Asmodean had not been killed after one bare volume's worth of action (and the twitting secrecy of his killer's identity irks me still as really unnecessary). He could have become the most interesting of the Forsaken by far.

 

As the Mad Scientist of the Forsaken, Aginor really fascinates me, but he was killed off too quickly, and I don't like Osan'gar (or Aran'gar or Cyndane or Moridin for that matter--the whole plot device of the Dark One resurrecting dead Chosen long after their usefulness has been extinguished along with their lives, well, it annoys the hell out of me, and I consider it one of WOT's greatest flaws).

 

Ishamael was a great and spooky threat during the first three books, and his scene at the very beginning of TEOTW was classic, an excellent taste of things to come. Also, his status as the one Forsaken who was never (or only partially) bound is fascinating. However, three epic duels with Rand were a bit too much. Also, I know he was more than a little insane, but the way he kept cackling "Fool!" was just too old-fashioned and rather silly.

 

Lanfear, for all her secretiveness and craftiness, was even in her early scenes as Selene in TGH always a bit too unsubtle to be very effective as a character, I thought. Despite that, her single-mindedness about desiring LTT was a strong trait, and her death at the hands of Moiraine was one of the most satisfying climaxes in all of WOT.

 

Demandred is pretty interesting in his mysteriousness. Despite what others on this forum say, I still wonder if he is Mazrim Taim.

 

Moghedien had a striking first appearance and an interesting run as the collared slave of the Supergirls, but after the mindtrap thingy I start not to care.

 

Graendal, Mesaana, Rahvin, Be'lal, Sammael, and Balthamel (despite his freaky first appearance and fantastic death at the hands of Someshta) all feel like filler to me, especially Be'lal.

[Joshua Hendrickson]

Comment on Moghedien:

 

In THE WORLD OF ROBERT JORDAN'S WHEEL OF TIME, it is stated that Moghedien used to be an investments advisor, an occupation which remains mysterious to contemporary historians.

 

LOL!

 

Moghedien, a Wall Street type! That's so perfect for the Forsaken who never takes risks unless she is certain of the outcome. Businessmen are notorious for wussing out when market conditions are "uncertain"--as if life is ever certain, the big babies. Not to mention their corrupt habit of rigging the game so that their risks pay out for them when they win, and the losses are absorbed by others when they don't.

 

Again, laughing out loud!