Warning: This article contains spoilers for The Wheel of Time books and may contain spoilers for Season 3 on Amazon The Wheel of Time.While I enjoyed the first two seasons of Amazon’s adaptation of The Wheel of Timeand many of its character changes compared to Robert Jordan’s books were for the better – not all innovations were a success. I’ve been anxiously awaiting the reappearance of a certain grizzled storyteller, and I’m happy to hear that he’s confirmed to be returning for season three (via Winter is coming), but I’m still worried about what Wheel of Time can cut. Thom Merrilin is equally important to the story of The Wheel of Time like anyone else, and writers need to remember that.
In the books, Thom is a dynamic character from the beginning (although there is no beginning or end to the Wheel of Time). He served as a foil for Moiraine until the group split up at Shadar Logoth, and helped Mat and Rand reach Whitebridge, where, as in the show, he distracted a Myrddraal long enough for the boys to escape, apparently at the cost of his own life. . While The Wheel of Time season 2 ended with no sign of Tom, we know he is returning for season 3. However, when he returns, the series needs to start treating his character with the respect he deserves.
Thom Merrilin should serve as Aes Sedai’s moralizing counterpart on the wheel of time
Throughout the book series, Thom sits alongside Moiraine and the other Aes Sedai as they try to direct the course of events. Sometimes he agrees with them, sometimes he argues, but notably, he is one of the few characters outside the Aes Sedai brotherhood who has a broad perspective on history, thanks to his experience as a Court Bard of the kingdom of Andor. Thom knows legends, stories and historical facts, which make him a dangerous man.
Thom is also crucial to the flow of events because, despite his sense of self-preservation telling him not to, he repeatedly puts himself in danger to protect Rand and the other boys. He serves as a father figure, especially to Mat, at a time when young ta’veren are unsure who to trust. In the books, he teaches Rand to play the flute, which allows the young Dragon to support himself as he travels the land, and shows Mat some of the finer points of gambling and carousing.
While the broadest strokes of this guidance were absent in the first season, and the events of the show have now moved past several points where Thom’s advice would have been a benefit to the boys, there are still plenty of opportunities for Thom to help them. Depending on which season 3 of Wheel of Time changes in the books, we could see Thom show up at any point, and hopefully he’ll bring his emotional baggage with him.
Without Thom Merrilin’s history of courtly intrigue, he’s just a sad old bard
Thom is more than just a fount of exposition and a fantastic mustache (although he has a full beard in the series, the books make so much of his mustache that I personally refuse to acknowledge this change despite all the on-screen evidence). , just as he is much more than a simple minstrel. For years, Thom publicly served as Bard of the Court of Caemlyn, performing for Queen Morgase Trakand and others, demonstrating his mastery of ancient tales and Highsong.
Behind the scenes, however, he also served as Morgase’s spymaster, defending her from assassins and other threats and even secretly sharing her bed. There he became an accomplished player of “Daes Dae’mar“(the Great Game) like any noble, until he abandoned his duties to the Queen to try to help his nephew Owyn, who has been struck by the madness that grips male channelers of the One Power. Since then, he has lived in the shadows, happily for looking like a simple minstrel, but always with his ear attentive to the ground.
Part of the reason I was so disappointed with Thom’s appearance in the first season was because all of that context for his character was stripped away. Since he only appeared in two episodes, there was no chance for him to even hint at how ingrained he was in the major events of the Westerlands. I suppose Thom himself would be pleased with his performance as that simple minstrel, but his role in the story deserves more screen time, and the third season will lose me and other fans of the book if it doesn’t work.
The Wheel Of Time Season 3 Cannot Continue Failing Thom Merrilin’s Character
As the 3rd season of The Wheel of Time continues with the story of Rand as the Dragon Reborn, we as an audience need Thom to return to Rand and Mat’s side. Thom’s unique blend of romanticism and skepticism, as full of curiosity as he is of weariness, is a crucial perspective not just for us as spectators, but for the young ta’veren as well. (and even Moiraine, eventually). While this rotation of the Wheel of Time is clearly different from the one that contains the novels, it is the one that still needs Thom Merrilin. Without him, Robert Jordan’s world becomes a much more simplistic scenario, devoid of the character’s essential complexity.
Source: Winter is coming
Brandon Sanderson and Robert Jordan’s sprawling fantasy series comes to life in The Wheel of Time, a fantasy TV series created for Amazon Prime Video. The series follows a woman named Moiraine, a member of the female group Aes Sedai who can wield great power. After an attack on a local village, Moiraine goes there to find a villager who may be the reincarnation of an all-powerful dragon who will save or destroy the world.