Welcome Guest
[Log In]
[Register]
| Thanks for checking out our board! You are currently viewing our forum as a guest. This means you are limited to reading the board and there are features you can't use, such as posting or viewing member profiles. If you join our community (or log in, if you're already a member), you'll be able to access member-only features such as creating a profile, sending personal messages, and voting in polls. Registration is simple, fast, and completely free. Sorry that we have to require registration, but it keeps out the hit-and-run spammers. Join us! If you're already a member please log in to your account to access all of our features. |
| The Wheel of Time | |
|---|---|
| Topic Started: December 17, 2010, 4:02 am (176 Views) | |
| GC Rust | December 17, 2010, 4:02 am Post #1 |
|
Burn With Me!
|
Just finished up A Gathering Storm, Book 12 of the Wheel of Time. All I can say is: It's about time this series kicked it into high gear. It saddens me that Robert Jordan won't be around to see his opus completed, but at the same time it is what he gets for padding the series so horribly. Seriously, A Gathering Storm gets as much accomplished as the previous eight novels (Am I the only one that thought after The Dragon Reborn the whole series screeched to a halt?) and it never feels like anything has been neglected. Hell, he's got time to insert a nice little side adventure with Mat. I have a Love/Hate relationship with the Wheel of Time. The first book (not the Prequel but Eye of the World) is a chore to get through. Great Beginning, Decent Ending, horrible, horrible mid-section when the party breaks apart and we get chapters of Mat and Rand stumbling around, near starvation. I almost gave up on it, but struggled through and was satisfied enough to carry on. The Great Hunt and The Dragon Reborn were both brilliant I thought. Lots of stuff going on, and a lot of revelations. Then...well. Stuff happened, to be sure. But seriously, the next eight books could be compressed into Three Novels without much lost. Jordan became obsessed with the world rather then the story. It's rather horrifying too, when you consider the books become thicker as the series keeps going, but each novel fewer and fewer events of note are happening. Winter's Heart and Crossroads of Twilight were the worst, I think. Knife of Dreams at least started the ball rolling again. But it's bad enough that I still haven't the courage to read through the entire series again. A Gathering Storm handles a lot of the complaints I had about the series and it looks like it's finally going to get on with it. Again, it's never a good thing when a creator dies before his work is finished, but given Jordan's rumblings of more Prequels and an Encyclopedia, the best thing to happen to this series might have been his passing. Edited by GC Rust, December 17, 2010, 4:03 am.
|
| All That I'm After is a life full of Laughter | |
![]() |
|
| Blue Phoenix | December 18, 2010, 9:12 am Post #2 |
![]()
Administrator-For-Life!
|
. . . ouch . . . I haven't read this series, but I take seriously your opinion of too much extraneous info in so many books. Could it be that Jordan was emulating Tolkein in that he spent a lot of time describing the countryside, and you simply had to wade through it because the books are worth it? Did Jordan ever comment on his reasons for including 'padding'? I remember talking to a friend after her first major publication, and she invited my opinion on it; one of my comments was that I understood completely her paragraphs describing music, but I didn't at all 'get' the many paragraphs describing art. Her response was that she had heard that from a lot from musicians... and had heard just as many comments from artists saying they 'got' the art information but not the music. In other words, she had included something especially luscious for each group, but not everyone got both parts. ...and ARGH!!! it looks like you're going to entice me start a new series just to understand why it's so very popular, and at the same time fails on an important level! ![]() btw, what, basically, is this story about, overall? |
![]() Come with me and you'll be in a World of Pure Imagination | |
![]() |
|
| GC Rust | December 18, 2010, 11:25 pm Post #3 |
|
Burn With Me!
|
Jordan never commented on the padding to my knowledge. A lot of cynics like to say the man was stretching the series and milking it for all it was worth, and given his constant bouncing between Prequels (One of which was released) and the proposed Encyclopedia, there might be some truth to it. What's worth noting is that when Jordan was diagnosed with his rare blood disease, he realized the story needed resolution and began jotting down notes - including writing the final paragraph of the story and telling friends and family members the ending on his death bed while his wife searched for a replacement author. He's not like Tolkein. Tolkein relished in scenery, Jordan relished in the mundane, every day lives of his world's inhabitants. It's made the world feel far more alive then most fantasy outings, but again I really could care less about the political dynastic structure of various kingdoms and principalities when they have very little overall to do with the advancement of the plot.
Roughly Three Thousand Years Ago (In an Age Long Past and an Age Yet to Come), a highly advanced Magical society drilled a hole into the world to tap a then-unknown fount of power that was something beyond the current fount of power they had known. Unwittingly, they unleashed The Dark One upon the world. Many were swayed to the Dark One's banner, chief among them Thirteen of the most powerful Magic Users (Known as Aes Sedai) in the World. These became the Dark One's Chosen, the Generals of its armies, the Forsaken of their kin. Now it's worth pointing out that while the world had both genders in Spellcaster roles, they tapped into different "channels" of the same fount of Power. Males and Females did not cast the same spell alike. During this conflict, a leader arose, the greatest of the Aes Sedai, known as The Dragon. He lead One Hundred of the most powerful Male Channelers against the Dark One and the Forsaken, and succeeded in sealing away the Dark One and its followers. Unfortunately, in so doing, the Male Aes Sedai were forced to allow their channel of Power touch the Dark One, allowing the Dark One to taint the Male Half of the One Power. The Dark One's taint irrevocably caused every Male Channeler - without exception - to go Mad and Rot while still alive. This event resulted in what would be known as "The Breaking of the World". The Dragon committed suicide after murdering his family, drawing in so much of the One Power that a mountain now stands where his home used to. The Prophecies say that the Dragon will be reborn - the Wheel turns, and those once living shall be born anew - and that his rebirth will herald the Final Battle against the Dark One. The Novel Series tells of the coming of the Dragon Reborn and the Final Battle. Fantasy Apocalypse, essentially. |
| All That I'm After is a life full of Laughter | |
![]() |
|
| alicelouise58 | December 20, 2010, 8:47 am Post #4 |
|
300
|
I have just started the Wot series. So far I am liking it. I am on Book One. I like background, culture, and political machinations, if, it is done well and I can tie it to the plot. Tolkien did this well and pithily in his LOTR trilogy. In just three books we get a very good sense of Middle Earth, in depth characterization, and a plot that moved at a good clip. Jordan seems to draw out the world description and backgrounds. It may be germane to his story. No judgment or condemnation. The WoT series came recommended from a friend who likes the same type of literary style as myself. Spoiler: click to toggle
|
![]() |
|
| Blue Phoenix | December 20, 2010, 9:40 am Post #5 |
![]()
Administrator-For-Life!
|
Not sure an apocolypse is to my taste, but i'm interested in knowing more... And anytime people talk about a monster from the depths of the world, the Christian devil just naturally comes to mind, the same way that fliers are usually thought of as angels until they're better described. "Now it's worth pointing out that while the world had both genders in Spellcaster roles, they tapped into different "channels" of the same fount of Power. Males and Females did not cast the same spell alike. " ~Rust THAT is interesting... how different is a spell, depending on the gender of the caster/channeler? How do channelers become magic-wielders? LMAO at Alice's spoiler! ![]() Political machinations is not my taste, either, having seen too much of bad politics in my own town, lol. But I will be interested in reading where your story takes me, Alice! Can't wait to see more! Rust, you really ought to join us in our new RPG game. ![]() |
![]() Come with me and you'll be in a World of Pure Imagination | |
![]() |
|
| alicelouise58 | December 20, 2010, 2:52 pm Post #6 |
|
300
|
Rust, you really ought to join us in our new RPG game. ![]() Yes GC Rust you should join the RPG game! So far there will be a Psionicist, A Wizard that looks like Ben Franklin(for now), a Paladin, and others! Not too many though!
|
![]() |
|
| GC Rust | December 20, 2010, 5:38 pm Post #7 |
|
Burn With Me!
|
Heh, unfortunately between Work and Wedding Plans, my time is rather occupied. As for Rand, he's not as overpowered as he might appear. While he does have instances of Mary Sue (or Gary Stu, I suppose), it's counter-balanced throughout the story so that when he does pull a fantastic stunt, it doesn't feel "cheap". For all that though, Rand suffers the most in terms of characterization after awhile. He just...stalls out while everyone else continues growing. Not to give anything away, but this problem is corrected as of A Gathering Storm. In the final few chapters, Rand comes back into his own. The Final Chapter is awe inspiring and a real turning point for his character. I'll say this about Jordan and the Wheel of Time: It might drag on at times, but Jordan at least crafted a stable of characters that are all entertaining to read in their own right. I'd have to say that my personal favorite is Egwene. Her personal storyline is worth the price of admission alone. Mat's also really come into his own in the last three books. One advantage to starting the series now is there's not a huge wait between books (You'll only be waiting for the last one), so the series shouldn't drag as much. Though you will notice the story slow down, at least the story keeps advancing.
The Dark One is very much based off the concept of The Devil.
The difference between users is based in part to how they summon the True Source to work their magic. Females "embrace" the Source, imagining it like a river that they submerge into and then gently guide it's currents. For Males, they "seize" the Source, and it's very much a struggle against the overwhelming flood of power. Given Male Channelers have been shunned since the Breaking of the World (and are actively hunted by Female Aes Sedai), most Male Channelers end up killing themselves and any unfortunately nearby the first time they try to summon their power. As for how one becomes a Channeler - it's genetics. Indeed, its commented on within the series itself prior to current events, the quality and level of power of the Aes Sedai - not to mention number of girls to train in the arts - was diminishing rapidly due to the depletion of number of males who could Channel as well as most Aes Sedai opting against having children themselves. Of course, the Aes Sedai are also handicapped by their own traditions. While a woman can teach herself how to channel the Source (Whether she realizes that's what she's doing or not), the Aes Sedai only take on novices within a certain age group. If a Woman is found who can Channel but isn't within that age group, she's generally encouraged not to do it any more and summarily ignored. As a result, the actual amount of Channelers is quite high. The amount of Trained Channelers, on the other hand... |
| All That I'm After is a life full of Laughter | |
![]() |
|
| Blue Phoenix | December 23, 2010, 9:46 am Post #8 |
![]()
Administrator-For-Life!
|
I found 'The First Part of Book One of' The Wheel of Time. 'The first eighteen chapters of The Eye of the World' (Not sure what the heck that means; it's a normal-sized novel of 273 pages.) Also found The Great Hunt, which is book two. Am I missing something in the first Wheel of Time book? Was it published in sections, or was this just an early edition with odd marketing? |
![]() |
|
| GC Rust | December 23, 2010, 5:41 pm Post #9 |
|
Burn With Me!
|
You got some strange Preview Copy of The Eye of the World, Blue. The actual book itself is Fifty Three Chapters at 782 Pages long. EDIT: I pulled my copy from the bookshelf to check. Yikes, how long has it been since I read this? The pages crackled when I opened the book and there was - I'm not joking - a cobweb attached to the top. Hmm, I use Receipts from Work as Bookmarks, and it still has one...extraordinarily faded, but it appears the last time I read this book was around July of 2007.
Edited by GC Rust, December 23, 2010, 5:45 pm.
|
| All That I'm After is a life full of Laughter | |
![]() |
|
| Blue Phoenix | December 24, 2010, 6:37 pm Post #10 |
![]()
Administrator-For-Life!
|
~grumble~ Well, i can read the first 18 chapters while i hunt for the rest, anyway! ![]() |
![]() |
|
| 1 user reading this topic (1 Guest and 0 Anonymous) | |
| « Previous Topic · One Step Beyond · Next Topic » |
| Track Topic · E-mail Topic |
12:55 PM Jul 11
|
Hosted for free by ZetaBoards · Privacy Policy










Not too many though!
12:55 PM Jul 11