Amazon’s new epic “The Wheel of Time” is hardly the stuff of legends.
Nowadays everything always has to be the new “Game of Thrones”. But let’s tell you something: When “Game of Thrones” hit the screens in 2011, what wasn’t it called? N / A? Exactly. “The new something”. Maybe the secret of success is originality after all.
This is the fate that now overtakes “Das Rad der Zeit” (on Amazon Prime), based on the 14-volume book series “Das Rad der Zeit” by Robert Jordan, which is widely touted as the new “Game of Thrones”. Driven by Amazon marketing as the hottest series of the year: Jeff Bezos wants his own “Game of Thornes”.
It is about the story of a country that is overseen by magical women, the Aes Sedai, who channel the one power to keep the peace. The Aes Sedai Moiraine and their companion Lan are looking for the reincarnation of the so-called “dragon”, a magical being that can oppose the dark king. However, the dark king is also interested in the said dragon for his own purposes. In the fantastic world of “The Wheel of Time”, time runs cyclically: everything goes down at some point and is created again. The Aes Sedai want to keep it that way. But the dark king wants to smash the wheel with the help of the dragon.
Moiraine knows that the dragon was reborn 20 years ago, but not in which body. Her search leads her to the village near the Zwei Rivers, where a surprisingly equal society emerges: women and men make decisions, women are blacksmiths, they also fight and nobody questions any of them with a sexist slogan.
Again and again you can read that the series shows a matriarchal society. In “The Wheel of Time” we see, at least in the first three episodes, a society that is clearly equal. Men are not subordinate to women, there is no structural discrimination.
One aspect is actually only reserved for women: In the world of “The Wheel of Time” only women are allowed to use said power, as the past has shown that men who use power sooner or later go mad and as The consequence of this is devastating the country. Therefore, the Aes Sedai hunt down men who use magic illegally. In return, however, a group of men also hunted the Aes Sedai.
It is exciting that when people see a society that does not give men clear supremacy in all areas, they immediately sense matriarchy.
The column writer’s great concern is that in a plot twist it turns out that this sounding ban on magic for men is insidious discrimination and a story of poor oppressed men. But we don’t want to assume the worst right away.
The Aes Sedai Moiraine now suspects the dragon to be at the two rivers. Choices are the crook and trader Mat, the happily married Perrin, Egwene, who actually wants to be trained as a healer, and the always angry Rand. The healer Nynaeve also plays a role.
The village is eventually attacked by the pleasantly well-done (Amazon Prime has money) monster army of the Dark King, the Trollocs. After many gruesome scenes, the group leaves the village together and the real adventure begins. Who is the dragon What is the seedy Moiraine really up to with the youngsters?
No, “The Wheel of Time” is not the new “Game of Thrones”. There is also a lack of plot density, tension, depth of character and much more. It’s something of its own that is definitely recommended for fantasy fans. But it doesn’t (yet) come close to the epic character of previous fantasy stories.
“The Wheel of Time”, Amazon Prime, a new episode every Friday.
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