I’m about to start my 3rd watch. First since right after the show was finished. (Watched as it came out, then binged again afterwards.)

I’m not sure you’re on solid ground here. “The public” is not the same as “hardcore fans of the book”. It’s also not the same as US viewers. By all accounts, S1 was extremely popular around the world. It’s also unlikely they would have green lit S3 already if the metrics proved that “the public” didn’t like it.

I'm not sure about the forehead makeup, but if memory serves all of the other damane I've seen pictured have the same heavy eye makeup. So that seems to be a common trait. I'm interested whether the makeup on the sul'dam will also be a common trait. I like that look.

Maybe for some. I quite like it.

They will need snappy dialogue that's mostly different from what Jordan wrote because the way Jordan's dialogue flows will - for the most part - translate poorly to screen and fail to accomplish what it needs to from a screenwriting standpoint.

*folds arms and stares*

I know it seems like that. But because of the need to truncate so much for the screen, the dialogue really has to carry the scenes, something Jordan never attempted to do in the books. That being said, there are a number of memorable lines that I hope they manage to include. I agree that the dialogue in the show was not great. I just don't think borrowing directly from the books is the answer to that problem. The solution is just to write better.

I 1000% disagree with this. The Eye was indeed a trap designed to expose the Dragon and set in motion Ishy's plan to use Rand to break the Wheel.

He wrote some really good lines of dialogue, no doubt. But you have to admit that he doesn't write snappy, dialogue driven scenes the way GRRM did (see what I did there?). His style is too florid - you spend too much time inside the character's heads to have dialogue drive the story.

I love these books. But I wouldn’t describe Jordan as writing particularly great dialogue. His strengths are his plotting, world building, florid descriptions and his characters. His dialogue is, as my kids would say, mid.

I think people underestimate the impact of COVID on some of the production quality issues. I'm stoked to see if the CGI improves. (The weaves in the trailer are trending in the right direction).

I get it. A lot of people felt that way, and I'm not trying to criticize you for it. On the other hand, other than your pre-established feelings about the show, I'm just trying to figure out what put you off about the trailer. Not trying to shame you for not liking the show. Just trying to figure out what makes you feel that there's been no change in direction.

It's so hard to tell. The most visually arresting shot from the first trailer (Egwene in the multi-colored pool) wasn't in Season 1. That boggled my mind.

I think they were going for “sorta creepy, thematically linked” music to set the tone. I’m not familiar with Halsey at all and did not recognize the song, so it definitely didn’t pull me out of the moment the same way something I’m more familiar with would have. I didn’t really hate the lyrics either. I took them as sort of a montage of thoughts in Rand’s mind as the madness begins to overtake him. As @SinisterDeath put it, Totally subjective though. I hated A Knight’s Tale. Music totally ruined it for me. Other people absolutely love that movie.

I don’t think the music will be in the show. Seems like it was used more as a tone setter. The tone seems to be leaning into the horror/thriller aspects, which would be a smart way to go, tone wise. The VFX of the weaves are much improved and the visuals are still top notch. The costuming also looks good. I’m not sure what’s not to like from a visual standpoint. As for “purposefully continuing down the path set during season 1” can you elaborate? What “path” did season one go down? And how does the trailer demonstrate that S2 will continue following that path?

You got that all from a 2 minute trailer? Specifically what makes you say that?

Meaning?

First impression: LOVE IT! Need to watch it several more times now and digest.

@DreadLord31 That's solid analysis, right there. I absolutely agree with you about the "fake" deaths. You can establish healing by having grievous, but not fatal injury and create and relieve tension without resorting to the fake death tactic, which saps the tension out of battle scenes.

Hmmm... June 14 would fall on a #WoTWednesday. I'm calling that as S2 trailer release day. Let's see if I continue my impressive .000 prediction streak.

@Cipher also consider that there may be thematic reasons that the Tower will look more or less white depending on the context of the scene or arc of the story. Television is a visual medium. For example, in the shot you posted the shadows in the foreground sort of bisect the picture, enhancing the yin/yang themes. The Tower itself is pictured as (1) obviously white, (2) covered in shadow, and (3) with certain bright points shining amidst the shadows. In that one shot, you have a visual description of the state of the Tower and its politics as the story begins. The way the Tower is lit in these larger shots will probably change in ways to reflect the ebbs and flows of power throughout the series.

What even is this photo? This isn't a still from the show.

This is the standard you've established. So I'd like you to explain how some of the things you mention makes it so, "the story [no longer] works without [the source material]." How do the changes require a major overhaul of Mat's story? And how will these changes make it so that the story doesn't "largely work" anymore? Rand does go off on his own at the beginning of tDR, but explain why having him go off on his on now makes it so the story doesn't "largely work" anymore. Why will this mean that the story doesn't "largely work"? In short, which changes do you feel have broken the story and why.

There are plenty of fair criticisms of the writing in S1. There are plenty of reasons to say that a particular scene in the book would have been superior to what was ultimately put on screen. But at the end of the day, that's picking nits. @WhiteVeils is absolutely correct: Adapting a television show from a book is far more complicated than people seem to think. You have to think about the number of locations, number of sets, costumes, actors, filming schedules, time constraints, etc. -- all before you even get to which scenes from the books you are going to film, what you have to cut, and how to patch over the things you have to cut all while being able to get the exposition necessary for any fantasy series across without being ham-handed about it. Season One wasn't great. But it wasn't horrible either. And nothing about the core story has changed so drastically that it can't be accounted for in later episodes.

I missed that. Still, Ishy with the Seanchan makes sense to me.