This will be our full spoiler review and episode breakdown for The Wheel of Time, Season 3, episode 5. When we say “full spoilers,” we’re including the entire book series, as we will be discussing changes from the books and potential ramifications for the future. If you don’t want plot points from the books that may show up in future episodes and seasons of The Wheel of Time spoiled for you, please read our spoiler-free review of the season instead.
Introduction
After the high point of Rhuidean last week, this episode needed to transition us into the back half of the season, and set the stage for everything that’s to come. Rest assured — although it has big shoes to fill after Rhuidean, episode 305 is hardly a slog. Read on to see our recap and thoughts.
Summary of Episode 305 – Tel’aran’rhiod (written by Àjé Ibironke, Directed by Marta Cunningham)
Aiel Waste & Tel’aran’rhiod
Somewhere in the Aiel Waste, Moiraine (Rosamund Pike) is trying to use the Sakarnen. She manages to channel enormous weaves of the One Power, but ultimately can’t control it. Lan (Daniel Henney) catches her just as she is able to release the Source. He notes that her use of the sa’angreal feels euphoric and hungry, and asks what she saw in the rings.
Later, the group travels with the Taardad Aiel toward their home, Cold Rocks Hold. They will wait there until the other clan chiefs are able to make their way to Alcair Dal so Rand (Josha Stradowski) can present himself as the car’a’carn. Aviendha (Ayoola Smart) is tasked by the Wise Ones to teach Rand in the ways of the Aiel, a task she is none too thrilled to undertake. At Cold Rocks Hold, we meet Rhuarc’s (Björn Landberg) other wife, Lian (Nicole Sherwin), and his granddaughter, the adorable Alsera (Julie Van Leeuwen), who takes a liking to Rand. Aviendha tries to teach Rand how to eat like an Aiel, and Rand’s relationship with Alsera deepens. Moiraine and Lan seem to be at odds.
The Wise Ones attempt to teach Egwene the ways of Dreamwalking. In Tel’aran’rhiod, Lanfear finds Egwene and chokes her. It’s only through luck that Egwene wakes before she is killed. The Wise Ones reveal to Egwene (Madeleine Madden) that she’s being stalked by a Forsaken in Tel’aran’rhiod and in her dreams.
Lan and Melindhra (Synnøve Macody Lund) speak of Malkier and she shares some of the beauty of the Malkieri culture. Egwene packs her things to leave the bed she has been sharing with Rand, so she can keep training with the Wise Ones.
Moiraine finally confides in Lan about what she learned in the rings, at least the gist of it, which is that she sees no future in which she and Rand both live. Lan asks if her death will happen tonight and when she says no, he asks her to sit and have a drink with him. The scene ends with them laughing together.
Rand is dreaming and Lanfear (Natasha O’Keeffe) visits him. He is on the same rock in the mountains of the Two Rivers where he sat with Egwene in the first episode. He tells Lanfear what he learned of her past, and she in turn expresses her love for Rand.
Moiraine, looking desperate, asks Egwene to take her into someone else’s dream. Egwene tries to refuse, citing danger, but finally agrees. Moiraine enters Siuan’s dream of her fishing hut, and delivers the message that if the White Tower does not bend the knee to Rand, he will lose the Last Battle. She and Siuan discuss their relationship, frankly, seemingly for the first time in a long while. Siuan wishes Moiraine had been Amyrlin, or that they had never seen Gitara at all, and left the White Tower for a simpler life. It is clear that while their relationship has been irreparably broken, they hope to find each other again in another turning of the Wheel.
White Tower
We see Siuan (Sophie Okonedo) reading a letter from Moiraine as Elaida (Shohreh Aghdashloo) walks in. The conversation is hostile, to put it politely, and we learn that Elaida taught Siuan as a novice and has not forgotten her relationship with Moiraine. Siuan shares that Elayne (Ceara Coveney) is on a journey. Elaida, obsessed with the White Tower’s appearance and status, calls Siuan “river trash” after sharing her plan for a vote in the Hall regarding caging Rand.
Verin (Meera Syal), Leane (Jennifer Cheon Garcia), and Siuan concoct a plan to bait Elaida using Joiya (Joelle) and Amico (Zenobia Kloppers) as well as Adeleas (Nila Aalia). Elaida walks with Alviarin (Clare-Hope Ashitey ), attempting to convince Alviarin that Siuan is destroying the Tower. Elaida then encounters Adeleas, who drops a few hints attempting to lead Elaida to the trap Leane and Verin have set for her. Elaida visits Joiya and Amico in the Thirteenth Depository. Elaida demands the names of the Black Ajah. Amico resists and Elaida kills her. Elaida uses the power to try to force Joiya to speak, but a grey man interrupts, killing Joiya and stabbing Elaida. Leane kills the grey man, who we see is Jaichim (Jared Doreck) that Moghedien (Laia Costa) transformed in the season premiere, and Siuan heals Elaida. Elaida realizes she was baited.
Two Rivers
Maksim (Taylor Napier) wants to leave, maybe to Ebou Dar. He does not understand why Alanna (Priyanka Bose) wants to stay. Faile (Isabella Bucceri) announces that the Whiteclock reinforcements are arriving.
Eamon Valda (Abdul Salis) wants to question Natti Cauthon (Juliet Howland), but Dain (Jay Duffy) refuses. When Natti tries to grab Dain’s keys, a sudden blast of the One Power is used to push Dain away, and Natti immediately claims responsibility. Dain drags her to Valda, offering her up to be questioned.
Alanna, Maksim, Perrin (Marcus Rutherford), Loial (Hammed Animashaun), Faile, Bain (Ragga Ragnars), and Chiad (Maja Simonsen) wait for their chance to rescue the Cauthons. Alanna offers to create cover and Maksim is upset, as that was not their agreement; they argue and Alanna reveals she’s brought them to the Two Rivers to begin building an army–two of the White Tower’s strongest channelers, as well as the Dragon Reborn and the Hornsounder, came from the Two Rivers, and Alanna is sure there is more to uncover in this village. The conversation ends with Alanna masking her bond to allow Maksim to leave and find Liandrin (Kate Fleetwood) in order to exact his revenge.
Alanna creates a thick fog as the rest of the group sneaks into the Whitecloak camp, where Valda and Byar (Guy Moody) are suspicious of the fog and Valda suspects it is the work of a witch. Perrin finds the Cauthon sisters (Litiana Biutanaseva and Lilibet Biutanaseva), and Bain and Chiad lead the girls to safety. Perrin and Faile stay to find Natti, but find she has been burned at the stake as a witch. Dain and two other Whitecloaks attack Faile and Perrin. The pair fight back and escape, but not before Perrin and Dain confront each other.
Valda and Byar find Alanna, who is still channeling to maintain the fog cover, and Valda orders an attack that results in Alanna being repeatedly shot with arrows. Maksim returns, having tracked Alanna down after she inadvertently unmasked the bond, and kills the Whitecloaks while sustaining numerous injuries. Valda is conspicuously absent from the dead Whitecloaks.
Sea Folk & Tanchico
Elayne, Mat (Dónal Finn), and Nynaeve (Zoë Robins) are confined to a room on a Sea Folk ship. They are an unhappy bunch: Nynaeve can’t stop vomiting, and Elayne and Mat are bickering. Despite their promise to the Sea Folk, they leave their room to venture onto the deck for fresh air, where Nynaeve receives some sage advice from the Sea Folk Sailmistress (Dany Verissimo-Petit). Mat spots Min (Kae Alexander), who stowed away on the boat when the group left Tar Valon. Min agrees to let Mat stay in her room, where he sees her drawing of her vision of him hanging from a doorframe.
Elayne and Nynaeve spend the night on deck, and wake to the sight of the Windfinder (Carmela Bonomi) channeling to boost the speed of the ship. Nynaeve and Elayne promise not to tell anyone in the Tower, as the Sea Folk wish to keep their channeling aptitude a secret. The Sailmistress shares with Nynaeve that “channeling is like the sea; it cannot be controlled, it flows whether you want it to or not.” Mat introduces Min to Nynaeve and Elayne. The group passes under a hanged man at the dock as they venture into Tanchico and Min warns them of the danger of the city.
In the final scene of the episode, Egwene visits the dreams of her friends, realizing quickly that they cannot see or hear her. Nynaeve is teaching Elnore (Asia-Sky Fenty) to listen to the wind in the Two Rivers. Elayne is a Windfinder on a Sea Folk boat, Aviendha at her side. Mat has provided a life of safety for his sisters, and finally receives affirmation from his mother. Perrin, Faile, and Hopper live happily at the forge in the Two Rivers. Rand is at the rock where he and Egwene once sat, but this dream turns nightmarish as Lanfear appears and Egwene realizes that the Forsaken torturing her is also connected to Rand.
Review of Episode 305 – Tel’aran’rhiod
Likes:
The Sea Folk make their show debut (beyond a background extra in Season One), and – despite the lack of book-accurate bare chests – we loved their portrayal, especially how they illustrated not only different ways to channel, but a different philosophy on control. Between Ryma helping Nynaeve last season and Nynaeve’s conversation with the Sailmistress in this episode, the seeds for learning to break her block have been planted. The visual design of the Sea Folk weaves is stunning, almost evoking natural phenomena such as the aurora borealis, which emphasizes the Sea Folk connection to the natural world. And the newly introduced musical motif is, as always, incredible. Hats off to Lorne Balfe.
The dynamic of Elayne, Nynaeve, Mat, and Min is a welcomed comedic break from some of the darker things happening elsewhere. They even kept poor Nynaeve’s penchant for seasickness and Elayne’s penchant for worldbuilding exposition. And Min’s approach to her visions is another aspect we like, as she wants to remember their details so she can change their outcomes. It introduces more agency to her character and expands the season’s already established themes of prophecy, visions, and choices.
Alanna and Maksim’s scenes have a wonderful blend of tragedy, grief, and humor. The conversation in the forest, where Alanna finally shares why she is in the Two Rivers, is excellently shot and acted. We can feel the pain of their conflict and Napier’s wry yet emotional delivery, even as he scoops up an Alanna riddled with arrow shafts, makes us laugh despite our worry. And speaking of the Two Rivers, we loved our first glimpse of Faile’s skills with her daggers. She’s a tiny killing machine, earning the immediate respect of Bain and Chiad. Seeing Dain get beat up was also fairly cathartic, if we’re being honest.
While it’s painful to watch, because book readers are well aware of Siuan’s imminent downfall at Elaida’s hands, we can’t help being drawn to the White Tower politics and intrigue as we watch the cracks continue to form. Shohreh Aghdashloo’s performance as Elaida is terrifyingly fantastic. As expected, the show continues to adapt compelling villains.
While this episode isn’t nearly as Aiel-heavy as the previous episode, there were still many lovely moments, such as our introduction to Cold Rocks Hold, a Roofmistress, and a proper trip into Tel’aran’rhiod alongside the Wise Ones. Seeing Egwene learn about the dream world and how to control her Dreamwalking abilities was a treat. We even got to see her beautiful costume from her Accepted test make a return, in a moment straight out of the books. The eeriness of the dream world is also a perfect homage to Robert Jordan’s love of including horror elements into the books, such as the ghost-like images of dreamers and objects moving of their own accord. The sound design and music also contributed to the unsettling ambiance – there was even a creepy doll.
And finally, how could we not mention the final sequence of Egwene drifting through the dreams of the people she loves, in perhaps one of the most emotional scenes of the season thus far. Elayne, who is destined to be a queen, is not dreaming of a palace, or ruling, or crowns. Instead she simply dreams of being free on the open sea, weaving the One Power alongside a woman she loves. Perrin is dreaming of home, in a calm and peaceful Two Rivers, with a new partner at his side (and Hopper!). Mat dreams of safety for his family, and of finally earning his mother’s pride. Nynaeve dreams of a daughter, forever lost in the arches. And through it all, Egwene displays genuine joy as she sees her dear friends happy and at peace; she even imagines her Two Rivers braid. This sequence is one team member’s favorite of the entire season, and never fails to make some of us tear up every time.
Dislikes:
While this isn’t necessarily a dislike, we know some fans will be disappointed that their theory about Moiraine and Siuan’s intentional ruse in Cairhien has been officially debunked. We hope our ruse theorists continue to predict new and interesting plots and schemes.
The lack of consistency with the level of physical damage characters can survive continues to be distracting. One one hand, we have a number of people surviving multiple stab wounds when convenient for plot reasons while other characters die from lesser injuries if the plot requires it (see: Ihvon).
There are a lot of plotlines in this episode, and we feel the Two Rivers storyline gets a little lost amidst the rest. But we know that with an episode labeled Goldeneyes coming, we will have plenty of time for the Two Rivers crew to shine.
The conversation between Rand and Lanfear felt a little too on the nose for us, but it probably won’t hurt for the show-only audience to have a few more explicit reminders of Lanfear’s motivations as we approach the end of the season.
Finally, Lorne Balfe recently shared on social media that there is not a plan for another music album. This episode especially makes us very disappointed to hear that, because the score this season has been particularly incredible, and we need another album, or two, or three.
Book to Screen Comparisons
One of the things explored again this episode is the Aes Sedai-warder bond. In a reversal from last season, Moiraine and Lan are closer than ever, and it’s Alanna who seems to be pushing away her one remaining warder. This is not a scene from the books, but considering how most warders in the books were set pieces more than characters, it’s a welcome expansion. While heartbreaking to watch, it’s also a commentary on grief and the different ways people can react to it. Alanna and Maksim both grieve for Ihvon, but their different approaches put each other at odds. Moiraine is grieving being a part of the future she’s fighting so hard to make reality, but Lan is there to support her in the way she needs.
The death of Natti Cauthon is horrific and heartbreaking — the last thing we see from Natti is her sacrificing herself to protect her girls, a far cry from her actions in the very first episode. We understand why this works in the story, as Natti Cauthon isn’t necessarily a core character in the rest of the book series, but it still makes us sad to see the end of our time with Natti and Juliet Howland’s incredible work on the show. Sadly, a show this large will always have to trim down its cast list over time.
Egwene’s progress as a Dreamwalker is very fast in comparison to the books. This feels like a necessary change for television, though we wish there were more scenes of her learning. The short scene of her clothing changing into armor was a nice nod to the training scenes of the books. The rules that govern Tel’aran’rhiod seem to be a little more flexible than in the books as well, but in a lore-heavy season we think this can be forgiven.
Final Thoughts
After the intense revelations of the previous episode, this one allowed both the characters and the viewers to breathe. For the Two Rivers, we hate to see our characters in pain, but we know that big things are coming and it is time for them to prepare. The rest of the episode is filled with smaller character moments in contrast to the more intense action and revelation of episode 304. We see our characters struggle and grow while preparing for the next threat. We love these characters, so sitting with them for a bit as we head towards battles and destiny is a nice change of pace. This episode was very much an emotional anchor for the season.
We’re treated to a rare sequence where we can know, without a doubt, that we are seeing our characters as they wish they could be – their true heart’s desire. In an epic tale of destiny and prophecy, where our characters are swept along by the tide of fate, we treasure every moment where they can just be, even if only in their dreams.
This episode ranks among our team’s collective favorites across all three seasons. The only true downside is that we’re now in the back half of the season, and only have three episodes remaining.
Ratings
(Due to the bar being raised so high this season, we found it difficult to rate episodes with only half or full ratings to choose from. As a result, we have decided to add quarter ratings this season. Ratings are best compared to other episodes of the same season, versus across seasons.)
Episode 5 – Tel’aran’rhiod(Overall: 4.3/5)
Lane: 3.75/5, Sara: 4.5/5, Eri: 4.25/5, Omar: 4.25/5, Cait: 4.75/5
I'm a longtime SFF fan but Wheel of Time will always be my first love. I want to call myself Green Ajah, but--let's be real--I'm probably a Brown. In my spare time I enjoy cooking, writing, and getting lost in the wilderness.
Lover of fantasy and other geeky goodness.
I love books of all kinds and especially Wheel of Time (I even have a tattoo!) I also love video games and building community online. Blue/Brown ajah (don’t make me choose) and Spoiler Gaidin for the show-only crowd. Find me @feelinmyshelf.bsky.social
This has truly been the most wonderful season of television except….
I cannot stand Elaida’s actress and her unintelligible frog noises. Anyone who wanted her to play cadsuane should be tarred, feathered, hung, and quartered.
Quarrels or bolts. That is what a crossbow shoots; not arrows. I was disappointed in Alanna’s fight with the WC’s. Compared to ep 1 against the BA, this one seemed mishandled. I guess she wasn’t expecting a counter assault. Also, where was Loial? He should’ve had her back.