“Daughter of Night” is the first episode of The Wheel of Time where I forgot I’d read the books. There are inconsistencies, and I’m not going to pretend there aren’t, but I found myself not even thinking about them. When the credits rolled it was like I’d never seen anything about this IP. I just knew I had to wait until next week, and I was so frustrated.

Mrs. Know-It-All is with me on this one, and she’s never read any of it, so you’re getting both sides of the couch. We were both happy. Unlike some things I’ve been watching recently, we’re getting entire episodes here, because clearly Amazon knows what they’re doing. I’m not bashing anyone, I promise.

Thank you, by the way, to everybody in the comment section last week who helped correct my memory on some things. A lot of you pointed out that things were actually the way the show said they were, and I was excited about it, because it means we’re engaging. You’re not hurting me in the least. If anything you’re keeping us honest, and you’re informing the one over here who’s never read it.

Spoilers for the episode, and later on spoilers for the books. I’ll tell you when.

Getting Out of the Tower

I asked Mrs. Know-It-All what jumped out at her, and the first thing she said was that she’s really glad we left the Tower. Watching Nynaeve in there, she said, is like watching paint dry. It’s exhausting. The whining and the bickering and the stopping. And we all know what’s her name is evil, so move on.

She’s absolutely right. For me it was nice to not be at the Tower listening to them, and to follow what’s going on with Lan, what’s going on with Rand, what’s going on with everybody else. I really enjoyed myself.

When I asked her later what she didn’t like, it was the same answer. She’s over the whole Tower section. They’ve drawn it out so much, it feels like the same thing over and over, and there’s so much more going on. She realizes everything is trying to fall into place.

Here’s the one thing I’ll say for it from the books. Tar Valon is definitely seen as the hub. A lot of information goes through Tar Valon, and in the stories whole months pass, if not a year or so, while things happen there. So that’s probably why we’ve been sticking close. There are also a lot of events that still have to come out of that place. We still have the schism in the Tower, for one, if they’re going to cover it. I think they will.

Perrin, Elyas, and a Wolf Named Hopper

I liked what we learned about Perrin this week. They’ve started giving you the idea that he’s a wolf brother, the whole nine yards. Elyas makes this slight intimation that they stay away from people who can channel, because people don’t like things they don’t understand. In the books he’d been captured in the past by Reds who thought he was a man who could channel, or something close to it. They didn’t understand what was going on with him, and he was, I’m going to call it what it is, more or less tortured, until they figured out they couldn’t do anything with him. He’s an anomaly. So he likes to be left alone, and he stays away from them.

We also finally get the name of the wolf that’s been befriending Perrin. The way I explained it to Mrs. Know-It-All, and the way she said it back to me, it’s like Dances with Wolves: jumps in the air, eating fireflies, sparks and fire. Hopper. Basically, jumper.

I’m glad they kept that, because it’s very close to the books. Perrin starts to understand how they think in imagery. In the stories wolves don’t talk, so they can’t articulate words like we do. They associate the image with the thing. If it’s a stag, you’re going to see an image of a stag. If they want to hunt it, you’ll see them hunting. That’s how they speak, and I really like that the show let us see it.

Moiraine Goes Home

Last week ended with Rand accidentally burning down the inn where he was staying, the one Selene owns. So she wants to go to the mountains, and they go. While that’s happening, Moiraine goes home to Cairhien, and come to find out the older socialite who was hitting on Rand is Moiraine’s, wait for it, little sister. Her older looking little sister, who hasn’t talked to her in decades.

Mrs. Know-It-All called me out on this one. When Moiraine gets back to the Damodred house and changes, with the dress and the little gem on her head and the whole nine yards, I said that’s very close to how I imagined her. That’s how the books describe Moiraine. And that was literally the only time all episode I said anything about the book. It’s the way she was supposed to look right up until that point. You don’t really see her get into riding skirts, like she is now, until a good clip in.

Lindsay Duncan plays the sister, Anvaere Damodred. I’ve seen her in a bunch of things and she’s a good actress. Here she has to play someone who psychologically is the younger one, and I don’t know how you do that as an actor. Actors need to get so much credit, because the way you dive into those roles is kind of ridiculous.

The sister’s position is basically this: look at me, I built this house and this family into something special, and I’m not going to have you break it. All these people you’re asking about, if you want to know who the young man is, just have tea with me. Mrs. Know-It-All felt that one, because we do that in our house. We try to do it every day, just to connect. How’s your day going? How’s your day going? She thought the sister knew exactly what she needed to do, and did it really well.

Then there’s Logain. Mrs. Know-It-All didn’t realize that’s who Moiraine was going to see. Because of the wine she grabbed, she honestly thought Moiraine was going to see Rand, and then she remembered Rand was the one who took him the wine. Logain tells her, you’re the reason I’m not in the Tower. She says the Yellows and the Browns all wanted to inspect him, and he wouldn’t have found it pleasant. Then she tells him he’s going to teach Rand everything he knows, he’s going to mentor him, and once he’s done, she’ll give him the knife. He clearly wants to die. He can no longer touch the Source, and she understands that firsthand.

I’m just waiting for her to get her powers back. The minute she does, she’s going to be a beast. It’s a process they don’t understand yet, and it’s one of the things Nynaeve fixes and brings back.

Selene Is Lanfear

One of Alanna’s Warders discovers a prophecy that has to do with the return of Lanfear. Mrs. Know-It-All’s only problem with it is where he found it. Dude was snooping. All day. He couldn’t concentrate while they were meditating, and I get it, but it was in Lan’s bag. That’s Taylor Napier, by the way, who plays Maksim, the other Warder of Alanna.

So now there’s the possibility that another of the Forsaken is out. We know Ishamael is out. All Rand did was defeat Ishamael while he was in the process of getting out, so he helped him get out, and Moiraine says exactly that in the trailer for next week. All you did was release him. You released one of his strongest lieutenants. And what does Ishamael turn around and do? He brings Lanfear out. That scene at the very beginning, where he summons her and she’s brought back out of blood and everything else, is her being pulled out of the Bore. The Bore is where Lews Therin Telamon and the hundred men trapped the Dark One and the Forsaken.

They’re getting the band back together.

The major reveal comes toward the end, while Rand is bumping uglies with Selene. Mrs. Know-It-All thought she was dirty from the get-go. I didn’t, necessarily, because I may have gotten it confused with a scene from book two where Rand ends up cutting someone’s head off. The show hasn’t even remotely touched on this, but there’s a concept Rand’s dad taught him, which is actually how he ends up learning to channel better. They call it the way of the flame. As a sword master you put the vision of a fire in your head and you feed your emotions into it, which leaves you cold and barren, feeling nothing, so you can work things out logically. In the book he’s in the throes of that and ends up killing someone out of habit. I thought it was Selene. Come to find out I’m wrong, because Selene, it turns out, is Lanfear.

The minute that prophecy got uncovered I said, okay, that’s her. It’s got to be her. Lanfear’s history, briefly, and my memory is shot, so by all means jump in the comments because I know you all love doing that: I believe Lanfear either loved Lews Therin or had a massive crush on him. I’m pretty sure they may have even been together before his relationship with the woman who became his wife. Bottom line, she is psychotically, Basic Instinct-ly in love with Lews Therin, which is Rand now.

So Moiraine slices her throat and stabs her through, and they leave in a huff, because Rand’s ready to use his powers on Moiraine and she has to tell him, I can’t lie, bro. Mrs. Know-It-All wanted to know how many times she needs to say that to any of them anymore. They can’t lie. They can’t outright lie. There are lies of omission, sure. They just can’t say “I think your shirt is white.”

Min, Liandrin, and the Man in the Dream

Mrs. Know-It-All likes Min, but she thinks Min got slimy this week, and only because of Liandrin. She can’t even remember Liandrin’s name, that’s how much she doesn’t like her. What she took from that scene is that Liandrin told Min she could take away that curse she has, seeing people’s futures, and she wanted to know if that was true.

Remember, Aes Sedai can’t lie. What Liandrin has promised is that she’ll help Min find a solution, a way to get rid of it. She didn’t say she can do it herself. I brought up the Black Ajah while I was explaining it and Mrs. Know-It-All stopped me cold. There’s a what? It’s a group. It’s the evil version of the Aes Sedai.

Then Ishamael shows up, because he can travel through dreams. We talked briefly about this last week. That’s Tel’aran’rhiod. It isn’t a special power, and he’s not a mind reader. It’s a skill that’s been lost since the Breaking. They had the ability to create these doorways, where you slice into the air and it opens up a door of light and you walk right through. One thing you can do with that is go into the world of dreams. So chances are Ishamael absolutely was there in her mind, probably physically. He sits down, has a conversation, and says, I can actually do the thing she told you about.

He’s obviously a baddie. Don’t trust the Forsaken is all I’m saying.

We also forgot to mention something last week, and Mrs. Know-It-All caught it when the show brought it up. When Nynaeve was in the Arches, she used the One Power in there, which you’re not supposed to be able to do. Is it true, you really did that? Oh yeah. No, she’s lying. See what I did there. Sorry. It’s late here.

What the Books Say Happens Next

Spoilers for the books here. If you haven’t read anything and you don’t want to know anything, go away, because I love talking about the books. It helps me remember stuff, and it gets us into a conversation with you guys.

Moiraine has to be present for the fall of Tear, which I think is probably going to be next season. They need the sword. There’s a sword made of crystal, a ter’angreal, and it’s supposed to be the Dragon Reborn’s sword. In the books she’s there when Tear falls. Moiraine and Lanfear also have their big fight, and Moiraine sacrifices herself by pushing Lanfear into something, fighting her on a level nobody’s seen in a while. It’s really epic.

Mrs. Know-It-All really hopes they do a good job on that, and that they show it instead of just saying hey, there was this huge fight. Part of the issue is that Rosamund Pike is a big actress, and you don’t bring her on just to have her sit on the sidelines. In the books Moiraine doesn’t show back up until much, much later. So what do you do?

We also got our second name drop for Cadsuane today. I’m telling you, when she shows up she’s going to be a beast. Cadsuane eventually replaces Moiraine as the person trying to steer the Dragon Reborn to the final battle. Unlike Moiraine, she takes the stance that if I can’t beat him, I may as well join him and help the boy. She ends up essentially swearing some measure of fealty to him, which is incredible.

A Contracted Timeline That Works

Down in the room with the Arches, Liandrin tells Nynaeve they’re getting reports of invaders from the west. Artur Hawkwing’s people. The Seanchan.

We’re still technically in the Hunt for the Horn. I think we’re going through major swaths of book two, but we’re also creeping into book three, and even some events from book four. I think you have to. Mrs. Know-It-All made the point that you don’t have to write it linear, you can drop pieces in. Absolutely. Things going on in Canada at one point weren’t the same things going on in Brazil, and it was the same time period. It all goes the same direction.

So we’re getting a much more contracted timeline of events, and I think it’s good. I like where the story’s going. So much so that I stopped nitpicking most of the way through this episode and just watched it.

Here’s the thing about the Seanchan, since they’re establishing themselves out west and trying to get a foothold. They’re really nice conquerors. They walk in, and yes, they fight off your warriors. But once they’re in, they’re basically saying, hey, we’re reclaiming Artur Hawkwing’s lands, we don’t want to mess too much with y’all. Keep doing life as you want. Swear fealty to us. You’ve sworn fealty? Awesome, see you later. To them they’re retaking what was originally theirs, so they’re not coming in to destroy anything. You’re our people whether you remember it or not, and we’re just bringing you back under our flag. I’m down.

Where Mrs. Know-It-All Thinks It’s Going

I know what’s supposed to happen, so I asked her to speculate as if there were no books at all.

She thinks there’s going to be some really big thing going down in Cairhien, because it feels like everyone is heading in that direction. Rand and Moiraine are already there. Mat and Min are headed that way. Perrin got away, he’s traveling with the wolf guys now, and the wolves are leading him toward the city too. The ones who aren’t converging are the prisoners out west, the Shienarans and Loial, the Ogier.

And then there’s the Red. She has such a hard time with Liandrin’s name that I told her to just call her the Red. When the Red used the One Power, blew the ladies back and knocked them out, Mrs. Know-It-All’s first thought was that she’s going to kidnap them all, meaning take them to wherever they were going to be going with her. She’s either going to scoop them up or lock them up. She hasn’t decided which. I’m sure she hopes the ladies find out what they’re supposed to be doing.

The Verdict

The Wheel of Time Season 2 Episode 4, “Daughter of Night,” is an 8.0 out of 10 on the Know-It-All Index.

That’s the consensus between the two of us, and we’re sticking to it. It’s a really good, solid episode. It got us out of the Tower, it gave Perrin and the wolves the time they needed, it sent Moiraine home, and it handed us Lanfear. The show is bringing back my own memories of the books, and whether it’s following them or not, it’s very engaging.

Tell us what you thought of “Daughter of Night,” and if my memory of Lanfear and Lews Therin is off, by all means correct me. The conversation lives in the comments on the video above.