The biggest change I see by far is that they decided to refuse to start Rand, Mat, Perrin, and Egwene as innocent 17 year old small town yokels who are brutally ripped from their homes in a single traumatic, unforeseen cataclysm.

Not enough conflict there? Really? Had to resort to well published cut and paste clichés?

6 hours ago, Ryrin said:

I don’t think it helps either.

Perrin murdering his non existent wife isn't supposed to help, it's supposed to replace actual character development with an easy to manufacture trope.

9 hours ago, Daenelia said:

Which is why people who want to hold on to their own version should just not watch the series.

Personally, I have no issue with seeing what they did with it. I love talking about books and stories to other people and compare how each of us fills in the world differently.

 

We never get a one-on-one image in our head as the author had. We all have different Rands and Moiraines running around in our heads ... and I think that those versions say a lot about who WE are, as readers.

 

But I am so open to seeing that viewpoint, because it is just another version of something I love. Even if it is totally different from my own.

I'm sorry, but I can't agree with this.

The Lord of the Rings was an adaptation.

Game of Thrones was an adaptation.

Both of them had to make massive changes to fit their formats, yet (with the exception of the final season of GoT) stayed true to their purpouse.

This does not feel like Jordan's universe to me.
They are hamfisting in banal tropes left and right to make writing easier, and dumping a lot of the core lore in the process. Previous well loved adaptations of other stories prove that is not necessary.
 

7 minutes ago, Deadsy said:

 

 

I may be projecting a bit but I've seen dozens of people commenting, upset about the show putting down men and painting them as dirty or whatever. These are characters doing this, not the writers. 

The only good example is having Mat's father suck, but his mom sucks too. And him stealing does not make him look bad, at all. Neither does it make Thom look bad. I really am failing to see where the men look bad in general. 

Liandrin is made to look the worst of any character in the season so far if you aren't ignoring the obvious.

Liandrin is an overt psycopathic sadist who sold her soul.  I'd hope she'd look bad.

And yes, the stealing IS bad for Mat.

Mat's archetype is supposed to be the inwardly honorable trickster. They ruin that for no good cause.

His dad is the worst of it, yes 

Bran is weak.

Lan is no borderlander.

Perrin is an accidental wife slaughterer.

Like WHY? What good does any of this do?

Also, what do you mean it's characters doing it not writers? It's everything from the writers to the actors to the producers doing it.

2 minutes ago, Deadsy said:

 

 

I feel you are confusing writers with characters.

How so? Jordan is the author and Raef is the show runner, neither of them are characters.

13 hours ago, DojoToad said:

Why make changes if they don’t affect the story?

 

All your examples show that Jordan’s world already had women large and in charge, and I loved how this was portrayed in the books. But in Judkin’s world the men must be pathetic. 

Exactly this.

Jordan wrote as a male feminist. He obviously had women helping him understand the world from their perspectives while writing.

His world is full of ethnically diverse and often incredibly powerful women.

So far Raef's vision, to me, seems to be that of a male misandrist rather than a male feminist.

His female characters don't actually become more centered or self empowered than Jordan's story, they just become more dismissive of and judgemental towards men, while the men are either removed or turned into thieves/ lecherous caricatures.

20 hours ago, DaddyFinn said:

And what makes you think so? Saidin and saidar exist in the show. They just have not been mentioned yet.

It's definitely intentionally downplayed.  Raef said it's to avoid "confusing" people, but I think that's BS.

Saidar is an aspect of the divine feminine.

Saidin of the divine masculine.