Adam’s Review
Blood Calls Blood is a mix of the two experiences I’ve had with The Wheel of Time TV Show. Lots of changes from the books to be found, and some of them are good and some of them are not.
Perrin’s moment may work for some folks, but the fact that just doing it how it was done in the books would have brought us to the same spot with better motivation and no sexist, garbage tropes makes it a reminder of what could have been.
Nynaeve’s story of Egwene’s fever was a plot point in the book to show her she could channel. In the show, it was repurposed to be a heartfelt moment between Nynaeve and Rand as they speculate on Egwene’s well-being. Zoe Robins is so good in this scene, this is my head canon for this now.
But let’s not forget the things we’d have to ignore to like the episode. The plot is so spread apart to make room for the new material, the show literally introduces a character for 60 seconds to serve as a vehicle to reunite Rand and Nynaeve. Loial just wanders into the garden and returns with Nynaeve… off-screen.
As far as lazy fucking plot devices go, this is the worst this season. There were so many other ways, from the books or not, that you could’ve brought these two characters together.
Sometimes mid-season episodes serve to set up the end of the season. Let’s hope the weak parts of the episode were just that. But for a show that people keep saying “they need to cut so much out” to excuse what they’ve changed, it makes no sense to have this bad of storytelling sprinkled into these episodes.
Rating: On a scale of Mr. Burns to Leslie Knope, this episode is a Season 1 Michael Scott.
Garrett’s Review
I really appreciate when grief and sadness are depicted well in film and TV. Two of my recent favorite films are Manchester by the Sea and The Sound of Metal – you leave these pieces of art with an abundance of emotion in you chest…and I felt the same for this episode.
Rating: On a scale of sizes the Grinch’s heart grew, this one is THREE SIZES THAT DAY.
Fei’s Review
Grief and Renewal
Or: How I Came to Terms that this is not the books
This week’s episode has a strong central theme of grief and rebirth. Normally, I love when shows employ a strong theme mid-season: it gives us a pivotal point where we as the viewer begin to see character growth and plot advancement. In season 1 of Game of Thrones for example, I would argue it’s the episode “A Golden Crown.”
This episode does not disappoint. We see grief and mourning with its very first scene. The Aes Sedai and warders bury their own as well as their enemies before we see the beauty that is Tar Valon and the White Tower. Logain wallows in self-pity after having the Power stripped from him, only to then laugh maniacally while watching Mat and Rand – perhaps passing on the mantle of “Dragon”? Perrin confesses his sin of killing his wife to Egwene before transforming into the Wolf Brother for the very first time. Finally, we bear witness to Stepin’s suicide and the ensuing funeral scene. (Blown away by the amazing throat singing!)
Seems like a strong episode… so why the title? It’s mostly this episode where I came to terms with my own grief that this show is not the books. Rafe has added multiple characters and scenes that are not in the original Jordan works to tell his own story. This is not inherently BAD. It’s just not what I expected, but I think it was this episode that I finally realized that I had to let go of my expectations and just enjoy what I was watching. Because even if this is not the original Jordan, it’s still pretty good.
Rating: On a scale of hangover foods, this is dim sum.