Hi, I don't think gender roles were the reason the show tanked. Nor was it the deviations from the source material except perhaps indirectly. Apples Foundation series is an example of them taking one of my favorite SF series and wandering pretty far afield from the source material while still telling a high quality story. There were two major problems: The writing team didn't have the skill to make the changes they did and still keep the focus on the development and growth of our young Edmonds Field heroes. They lost the plot or never truly understood what made the story special. It also doesn't seem to have the darkness and violence that American audiences want although the violence was more graphic than it needed to be. The second is that the story was owned by a shopkeeper (Jeff Bezos) who was trying to top GOT and it became clear that that wasn't going to happen he threw a hissy fit and cancelled it instead of plowing along. I don't understand streaming economics but season three was up from 2. It could have been recovered.

Well so the gang is still here. I have stayed away a long time. I will just add to the repetition. I am a book fan who has read the books through 3 separate times plus the initial interminable wait for the story to be finished. I also listened once through on audio after the show was cancelled. I struggled a bit with the show in the beginning but began to enjoy it as I released my comparisons with the books and just tried to enjoy the team's work. I agree with those who believe the show failed because of the lack of world building. I said before on various threads that the decision to rework various story elements, instead of focussing on smooth cutting of fluff was the show's downfall. Thus it didn't pull in the non fantasy fans and, obviously, alienated a segment of the book fans. Too much of the creative team's energy was spent on new material instead of reworking existing material to fit a visual presentation. Be all that as it may I was very disappointed they didn't get a chance to finish. I also remind folks that there are very few original stories. Most stories are reworking through the story tellers eyes. Anybody know what Greek story Romeo and Juliet was adapted from? Some adaptations may exceed the source material. Some not so much but quality is always a function of the story receiver's consciousness and judgment. I am sure Shakespeare's plays were not always that well received at the time but they have stood the test of time in the fact that they are still retold as written as well as being adapted in many ways and forms. I also believe, as several others have stated, that this is too juicy a story and world for it to be permanently gone. "Hollywood" is desperate for good stories and are currently recycling slop that should have stayed gone. I hope that the shopkeeper will give up the IP to a primarily creative group who can take the story and make video magic. I personally welcome a bit of AI to help reduce the costs of some of the special effects. Another point which gets discussed here a lot is what exactly makes WOT so great. Any tweaking must take that into account. You only have to look at the Star Trek universe to see what happens when things drift off course.

Well I have been lost in the ways since the end of last season. I thought I would drop in and see what people think and share my thoughts. I have finished E4. After last season I listened to the books on audio for the first time. That was a great experience and was free since I have a library app. Having read the books numerous times I could listen to the narrator tell the tale and not have to focus on it. The slog was much more enjoyable. Watching the first 4 episodes of season 3 was very helpful. I no longer think of the Amazon story as an adaption. It is a derivative story that leans more or less heavily on the source material. This mostly frees me from the compulsion to compare the Amazon story with the book story and evaluate the Amazon story on its own merits. That said I will say that the writing team for the show is not up to the caliber of RJ. The story is best when they remember that Wot is basically a young adults hero's journey story and not a we all live in GoT dark slime story. I was puzzled by the number of Rand's ancestors lives they elected to show in E4. That is a spot they could have trimmed to add other material like having Matt's quarterstaff exercise be in front the guard trainee's and novices instead of a private affair. There are numerous other nits to pick with the decisions so far but why bother. I will just enjoy the show for what it is and not worry about what it could have been. The good news is that when AI starts creating these shows one could program it to reboot the series and have the show that could have been. More fidelity to the source material with careful pruning of the story, where instead of making up unnecessary storylines, unnecessary storylines are cut. I am not sold that the timeline shuffling is going to make the series better. There is a character arc they are supposed to go through and going to Tear before Rhuidean is a key part of that arc. I will also be interested to see what happens to Moraine. She is the "star" and I was unable to pick out from her Rhuidean visions what will replace her book plot scenario and keep her in the show. I may have to rewatch to try and pick it out. In summary this show is a whole lot better than no show and I prefer it to the Rings of Power or GoT. If the writers can keep themselves from wandering too far from the source material they will have an excellent show by the end given the season by season improvement arc so far.

So I have been away for a while and I am sure much discussion is under the bridge. After Season 2 I actually checked out the WoT audio books and listened to them. It was most interesting and a completely different experience than reading them as I have done many times before. My conclusion after that was that the show will never be as good as the book story. It has the potential to be a good or even great story on its own but it is no adaptation. It is a different story and needs to be judged on its own. I will watch the story as long as it isn't too stupid, too dark or any other thing that turns me off a show. I do feel that the more the writers can incorporate source dialog and situations the better the story seems to me. Perhaps I mistake familiarity with better. I do feel that season three is finding its way and seems better than the first two. I will address some specific comments in other threads.