I accept your point concerning how far back Rand could see into his previous lives.

And yes I agree killing the DO would have been a very bad idea indeed...this is made clear in the vision shown to Rand. What I was trying to say was that I had simply hoped for a more meaningful end to Rands tale. I had assumed, perhaps wrongly in the 1st place, that there was purpose or point to Rands story outside the usual and expected turnings of the Wheel. That this time would be different from all that had went before in Rands previous lives as the Dragon/Champion. I had assumed we would see perhaps not the DO killed per se, but him being more securely sealed away...perhaps in a way that came at a terrible cost to humanity ie the breaking of the wheel and the cycle of the dragon etc with perhaps the consequence being the loss of channeling and therefore a world that would never again see the paradise that was the Age of Legends? Just an example.

 

I disagree because in my mind everything would have lost all meaning had Rand done such a thing.  To me the beauty is in the Journey.  As an analogy: Yes, I fully expect that Rand (now in Elan's body) will eventually die and grow old.  That is unavoidable.  I knew that starting the series that the main characters were unlikely to turn immortal.  However, I still wanted to hear their story.  I still wanted to know their journey.  It is the same with the turnings of the wheel.  Every turn is somewhat different, and even if you know that the wheel will once again turn someday, it doesn't (to me) make hearing the stories any less worth it.

Oh please do not mistake me. It will always ever only be about the journey. The world Jordan created from the prophecies to the varying people's, Aes Sedai to the Aelfinn and Eelfinn, the multiple worlds etc etc has captivated me for years. How the series ended has not paled that fact in the slightest. Like I said in my post, I perhaps wrongly assumed that this story was being told because it was in some way unique. But I simply refused to read the words in front of me. There are neither beginnings nor endings to the wheel of time. Rands tale was simply a beginning and as AMoL concludes, an ending.

 

 

If he was able to look back and reminisce about what he had done wrong as Lews Therin, then why not look back further again to previous battles, previous encounters as different entities?

He only had a glimpse of those lives on DM during "VoG". He did not have access to them after like he did with the LTT memories. Further it was made pretty clear that killing the DO was a bad idea and not inline with how the wheel works.

I accept your point concerning how far back Rand could see into his previous lives.

And yes I agree killing the DO would have been a very bad idea indeed...this is made clear in the vision shown to Rand. What I was trying to say was that I had simply hoped for a more meaningful end to Rands tale. I had assumed, perhaps wrongly in the 1st place, that there was purpose or point to Rands story outside the usual and expected turnings of the Wheel. That this time would be different from all that had went before in Rands previous lives as the Dragon/Champion. I had assumed we would see perhaps not the DO killed per se, but him being more securely sealed away...perhaps in a way that came at a terrible cost to humanity ie the breaking of the wheel and the cycle of the dragon etc with perhaps the consequence being the loss of channeling and therefore a world that would never again see the paradise that was the Age of Legends? Just an example.

Had to share my thoughts on the final book somewhere. I have been reading WOT since 2000 and having now finished the series I am entirely satisfied. A story as grand as this or any other "epic" for want of a better (if not overused) word (well said Thom Merrilin) was always going to be about the journey. WOT through 14 books has always kept me salivating for more. Never have I read a series and been taken on such a journey of discovery.

Addressing the final book, is somewhat difficult for me. It was a book perhaps overshadowed by my own emotions; accepting that the series had finally come to end, a realisation that this was indeed another painful goodbye to Mr Jordan and an understanding that Rand, Mat, Perrin et al would no longer be part of my life. For these reasons, and those outlined in the beginning of this post, AMoL was never really going to disappoint me.

However trying to shirk my inane bias toward the series, looking at AMoL as a stand alone novel, there are a few points I would like to address.

1. The opening half of the book, prior to the Last Battle, felt mundane, dare I say repetitive almost. It concentrates on humanities last skirmishes against the Dark One before regrouping for the Last Battle itself. Each theatre of war (Tarwins Gap, Kandor, Andor, Shayol Ghul) follows the same process; description of battles, momentum swings for either Good or Evil, and ultimately the fall of a Great Captain to trickery or compulsion at the hands of the Forsaken. Rinse and repeat.

2. The Last Battle. As in THE actual Last Battle, that monstrous chapter of near 200pgs, is the most spectacular piece of writing describing the ebbs, flows and pulses (thanks Mat) of battle in the entire series. Throughout this section, as with all series' as grand as this, some set pieces delighted whilst others fell flat; some death sequences shocked, others tugged at your heart strings or strangely had the entirely opposite effect (Gawyn). Overall it was a breathtaking chapter and one I know when I read in years to come will likely effect me in different ways.

3. Rand vs The Dark One. This I'm sorry to say for me turned from being the most exciting, compelling part of the book, to being the most disappointing. Going into AMoL I wanted to believe that Rand's story was being told for a reason. I wanted an explanation as to why in this cyclical world, ruled by the Wheel of Time, where major events would ultimately repeat themselves, did Jordan decide to tell us Rand's tale? And oh boy did I think I was going to find my answer. Rand's bold statement of intent at the start of AMoL (to kill the Dark One) set my pulse racing. I knew as soon as he said it that it couldn't, shouldn't be possible. The Dark One indeed showed Rand the consequence of a world without evil. A world sterilised by the lack of free will to commit evil acts. Still however I thought ok, we can't have a world without the Dark One, at least have one where he's sealed up properly...FOREVER...but at some terrible cost to humanity; the breaking of the wheel? the loss of channelling forever? the merging of all worlds, Finn-land, Tel'aran'rhiod etc into one (my apologies for those obvious and over theorised examples). I, humbly, might I add, wanted something more. More than Rand saying oh hell, let's just fix this great big hole up properly until someone decides to bore a hole into again in 2000yrs time. It felt like an unsatisfying end despite having such a bold desire at the start of the book. It made me question the point in what he done!? If he was able to look back and reminisce about what he had done wrong as Lews Therin, then why not look back further again to previous battles, previous encounters as different entities? Elan Morin said it himself; "You and I have fought a thousand battles since the turning of the Wheel, a thousand times a thousand." I always assumed that the prologue, and Elan Moran's words where an unspoken challenge...try and change this cycle Dragon??? Perhaps I should have simply interpreted those words as sense of foreshadowing or foreboding as to how the series would end? How things turned out however almost seemed like an easy way out when there was the possibility of something grander!?

Overall, the rest of the book, despite varying criticisms I have read concerning its open endedness relating to a number of characters and/or story lines, was in line with my own personal expectations. I would hate to end this post sounding negative. AMoL was not a negative experience. The END, the OUTCOME, the GRAND FINALE, call it what you will was not how i had imagined it, but never the less I enjoyed it all immensely. I laughed, I cried, I embraced it as part of the collective series I've known and loved these past number of years. It is done now and I was glad to have the pleasure of reading it.