A lingering point of curiosity for me is what and how much do you tell recurring supporting roles about their character’s arc, especially for multi-season television series. On the one hand, how far out do you have things planned as you bring on the talent. On the other hand, you have to give them an idea if only to know they are willing and able to come back. Which leads us to this interesting bit of news. In a piece published in The Times (subscription required) about Hymn, a new play written by Lolita Chakrabarti (Marin al’Vere), there’s a little nugget tucked away that will surely excite the average Wheel of Time fan. In covering some of Lolita’s most recent work, the article reveals (emphasis mine):
And she went to Prague for a small role in a new fantasy series on Amazon, The Wheel of Time, which will become a larger one if and when it reaches its third season.
So, far from being just your average fan, this has me more than excited. For one thing, it satisfies that curiosity I was talking about. Secondly, here we are waiting for the Wheel to spin us a first season, and it spins out a thread about season 3. Yes, super excited. Third, “larger” role for beloved Marin al’Vere in season 3 is wholesomely wonderful. And finally, now we’re talking timelines.
Pacing
The general consensus has alternated between “who knows how many books per season”, “Rafe, how dare you do 2 books for season one” and the current “most of ‘The Eye’ plus some TGH” for season 1. So if we take that last and run with it, and then take an expanded role for Marin al’Vere in season three, that looks a lot like The Shadow Rising in S3. As a reminder, it is in TSR that we see more of Marin al’Vere in the second Trolloc attack on the Two Rivers. My speculation on pacing gives us a second season covering the rest of The Great Hunt and The Dragon Reborn. This is as far as I’m willing to speculate with the limited information we have, but just in case I was not clear earlier: super excited.
The Talent
Now that I’m done rattling on about beloved characters and supposed timelines, I wanted to note that this production has done a wonderful job with casting accomplished and outstanding talent. I’ve heard it said many times that The Wheel of Time TV series will make a lot of stars. It very likely will. But what is more true and important is that a lot of talented cast and crew members will make The Wheel of Time a fantastic show. Lolita Chakrabarti is one such example. Playing the smallish role of Marin al’Vere, she is an accomplished and award winning writer. Her writing for theatre work includes The Life of Pi, Calmer and the subject of the article, Hymn. Lolita isn’t the only cast member with a background in Theatre; Sophie Okonedo (Siuan Sanche), Hammed Animashaun (Loial), and Kate Fleetwood (Liandrin) are among other cast members with extensive background in theatre.
You can purchase a pass to watch Hymn on demand from the Almeida Theatre website.
I am a long time fantasy fan. Also a technology generalist with a knack for research. That likely makes me a Brown, but I'm more torn between the Yellows and the Blues.
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