Wherever there’s trouble, The Wheel of Time Reread Redux is there! And not even always because I caused it! Today’s Redux post will cover the Chapters 1 and 2 of The Great Hunt, originally reread in this post.
All original posts are listed in The Wheel of Time Reread Index here, and all Redux posts will also be archived there as well. (The Wheel of Time Master Index, as always, is here, which has links to news, reviews, interviews, and all manner of information about the Wheel of Time in general on Tor.com.) The Wheel of Time Reread is also available as an e-book series! Yay! All Reread Redux posts will contain spoilers for the entire Wheel of Time series, so if you haven’t read, read at your own risk.
And now, the post!
Chapter 1: The Flame of Tar Valon
Redux Commentary
“It’s windy.” LOL. I’m such a shit sometimes.
Hard-walled and high, Fal Dara, both keep and town, never taken, never betrayed.
I was going to be sad that this is no longer true, but then I seem to recall that Fal Dara was never actually taken in the Last Battle, was it? The Borderlanders razed it themselves, to keep it from being used by the Shadow. Which is awful, obviously, but still means that technically, it never fell to the enemy. A cold comfort of sorts.
[Lan] snatched up his own sword, almost the twin of Rand’s except for the lack of herons, and whipped off the scabbard. The blade, slightly curved and single-edged, glittered silvery in the sunlight.
It was the sword of the kings of Malkier. […] Turning his blade in the light, Lan spoke. “In the War of the Shadow, the One Power itself was used as a weapon, and weapons were made with the One Power. […] With the One Power, Aes Sedai drew iron and other metals from the earth, smelted them, formed and wrought them. […] Blades that will not shatter or break, and never lose their edge. […]
“One of those swords, a plain soldier’s sword”—with a faint grimace, almost sad, if the Warder could be said to show emotion, he slid the blade back into its sheath—“became something more.”
I think I missed this bit the other times I’ve been through this chapter, probably because I don’t think it gets explained or referenced ever again, but I like it because it hints at a whole origin legend for Lan’s sword that would probably be a very cool thing to hear. An ordinary soldier’s sword becomes the sword of a king? Yeah, there’s definitely a story there.
It doesn’t even bother me that much that we will almost certainly never get to hear the story; it’s just satisfying in some way to think that Jordan knew that sword’s story, and that that knowledge was there to flavor the main story, even if only for one easily-overlooked line. Of such little details are a vast universe built.
From the original commentary:
By the way, I hope everyone’s caught that a Warder telling Rand that he’s good enough “not to stab himself in the foot” means that by any other standards he’s already pretty damn deadly with a blade. This makes me happy.
Yep, still makes me happy.
I suppose one could complain about the coincidence of Our Hero just happening to be a prodigy at swording, but whatever, it’s a soul thing as far as I’m concerned. Bel’al mentions in TDR that he and Lews Therin basically picked up swordfighting for the LOLZ back when they were still buddies (and reinvented pre-industrial warfare while they were at it), so it’s pretty clear from context that Lews Therin came to the art rather late in life, and yet still managed to become a master at it. So hey, once a freakily quick study, always a freakily quick study. I’m happy to just go with it.
On the question of how exactly Tam al’Thor obtained a 3,000-year-old heron mark sword: I don’t have the specifics to hand, but at one book signing or another Jordan apparently said that Mattin Stepaneos presented the sword to Tam for being a total badass while serving with the Illianer Companions. Which is (a) yet another untold story it’s fun to think about, and (b) a thing I (and most of the commenters) evidently did not know during the original Reread. AND NOW WE KNOW. And knowing is half the battle!
(To anyone who gets that reference without looking it up: congratulations, you’re old. And/or obsessed with horrible 1980s toy merchandising thinly disguised as kids’ cartoons. Now get off my lawn!)
[Lan:] “You want to spend as much time as you can with your friends from home before they go? That’s why you’re dragging your feet? You know what’s sniffing at your heels.”
Rand surged angrily to his feet. “All right, it’s Moiraine! I wouldn’t even be here if not for her, and she won’t as much as talk to me.”
“You’d be dead if not for her, sheepherder,” Lan said flatly, but Rand rushed on.
“She tells me… tells me horrible things about myself”—his knuckles whitened on the sword. That I’m going to go mad and die!—“and then suddenly she won’t even say two words to me. She acts as if I’m no different than the day she found me, and that smells wrong, too.”
I suppose Moiraine ought to be congratulated for her mastery of manipulation here. If she had been all up in Rand’s Kool-Aid in Fal Dara he would have spooked like a deer with an anxiety disorder, but her ignoring him is so baffling and unexpected a move under the circumstances that Rand is sticking around basically just to see what the hell her damage is, whether he realizes it or not.
My comparison of Rand to an easily-spooked deer isn’t a random one, either. Me and nature are no longer friends, but back in the day I did my share of outdoorsy stuff, and we learned quite a bit about getting wild animals to accept your presence. And pretending to ignore them (while subtly showing that you might have yummy treats to share if they only come closer) is the single best way to keep them interested without scaring them away, because it’s behavior that’s both weird (i.e. intriguing) and non-threatening, completely unlike what you’d expect from your standard predator type. So I guess it’s not so surprising that in the right circumstances it works on naïve farmboys just as well as on fuzzy woodland creatures.
(Ergo, Rand is awfully lucky that Moiraine is not actually a wolf in sheep’s clothing. Not that he (or we) could be sure of that at the time.)
Chapter 2: The Welcome
Redux Commentary
Odd that this chapter has the Flame of Tar Valon icon instead of the previous one, when the previous chapter was actually named “The Flame of Tar Valon.”
But then, the entire chapter is all about Moiraine Aes-Sedai-ing the hell out of Rand by proxy, and we do see Siuan’s party much closer up in this chapter than in the last one, so from that point of view the icon is appropriate, I suppose. Still, the aesthetic fussbudget in me objects on principle to having both the Prologue and Chapter 1 have the same icon twice in a row. (In lieu of the white flame, I would also have happily accepted the heron-mark sword icon, since swords are practically all Rand and Lan talk about in that chapter anyway.)
But I digress!
His hand drifted to the cloak of its own accord. As if uncertain what they would feel, his fingers brushed the stitching of a serpent curled almost into a circle, but a serpent with four legs and a lion’s golden mane, scaled in crimson and gold, its feet each tipped with five golden claws. His hand jerked back as if burned. Light help me! Was it Amalisa had this made, or Moiraine? How many saw it? How many know what it is, what it means? Even one is too many. Burn me, she’s trying to get me killed.
I have to say, even while I still enjoy the trope-tasticness of Moiraine’s stealth Superboy makeover, Rand’s concerns re: the dragon embroidery specifically do have a point. There’s making him look like a lord/blademaster, and then there’s painting a giant target on his chest, and this seems like the latter.
The knee-high boots fit as if he had worn them a year. He hoped it was just a good cobbler, and not more Aes Sedai work.
I vote Aes Sedai work, because I will believe in Power-wrought boots long before I’ll believe in riding boots that don’t have to be broken in first.
Re my self-destructive behavior theory for Rand: it doesn’t actually go against my jumpy-yet-intrigued deer theory from above. I’m willing to bet there’s plenty of deer out there who came to deeply regret giving into their curiosity about the seemingly-harmless human ignoring them.
Or, you know, they would have regretted it, if they weren’t subsequently wall décor. Ain’t I cheery?
The tall woman drew back the curtain of the palanquin, and the Amyrlin Seat stepped out. Dark-haired, ageless as all Aes Sedai were ageless, she ran her eyes over the assembled watchers as she straightened. Rand flinched when her gaze crossed him; he felt as if he had been touched. But her eyes passed on and came to rest on Lord Agelmar.
You have to give Siuan props, in hindsight, for seeing a guy lit up like Christmas in the crowd and not showing even the tiniest sign of it.
And thus begins several chapters of Rand running around like a beheaded chicken, because I’m going to compare him to ALL the random animals, and you can’t stop me.
Fortunately you’ll have no need to, because I will stop myself instead. Because I am a giver like that. Have a lovely week, y’all, and I’ll see you next Tuesday!
Leah,
Way to tell it like a Real American Hero! (Go Joe!) ahem. well…not that I ever watched, er, partook of such stuff. I always liked that bit about Lan’s sword, though I imagine that power-wrought blades were rare enough in the modern age that it did not matter much if they were originally a common soldier’s sword or more of a General/Lord’s sword. Still there is the hint that there is some story there.
I was always fascinated by Rand’s ‘I’m being hunted’ complex in these opening chapters, it really adds to the tension, in addition to the normal darkfriend/shadow stuff going on. You really start to feel for the guy over these chapters.
Leigh, if Moiraine were a wolf in sheep’s clothing, what would Perrin have thought?
Is it just me or is Moiraine the most Aes Sedai Aes Sedai we see in the entire series. Out of all the sisters, she seems to embody what the common person thinks of an Aes Sedai: mysterious, all-knowing, but at the same time never answering the question asked. On the one hand, it is possible that we view Moiraine through the eyes of characters who are not used to the ways of Aes Sedai and are not the sophisticated, worldly characters they grow into by the end. When we get points of view of other Aes Sedai, we the reader truly see them as not all the same type of mysterious woman. Rather, we see them as individual women: some smart, some not; some worldly, some not; some mentally tough; some not, some natural leaders, some not. Also, we get to see the inner workings of how Aes Sedai interact with each other.
Nevertheless, there is some element of the mysterious, all knowing nature to Moiraine that is not present with other Aes Sedai. This is still the case when she reappears at the end of ToM and makes appearance at the Rulers conference in AMoL. IMO, this mysterious, all knowing nature is due in part several of Moiraine’s character traits (in no particular order): Moiraine’s intelligence; her mastery of the Game of Houses; her belief that one’s life is controlled by the Wheel; and her love of theatrics. (While I do not believe it is stated in the text, Moiraine seems to have a love of theatrics. Whether it was the way she told the Emond’s Fielders about the history of Manetheren or the way she acted when she first met Lan in NS or the fishing scene in TDR with Perrin and Loial, she has a flair for the dramatic). It is something that is not present with any other Aes Sedai, including Cadsuane.
Thanks for reading my musings.
AndrewHB
Ingtar betrayed Fal Dara, no?
I take it from what @gadget states that the “half the battle” quote is from a G. I. Joe series? That would be way after my time of childhood shows!
I suppose even a 3000-year old power-wrought sword can eventually melt! And Rand eventually told Tam that he “lost it”. *rolls eyes*
Rand’s panic is understandable thinking he was going to be gentled, but the first time I read the book I wondered why he just didn’t find Moiraine and ask her if that was going to happen, then he could panic and try to hide or leave. Alas, I would come to realize that there was a lack of communication among the populace of Rand-Land. Nothing was ever cut and dry.
Yum, Kool-Aid™! I just might go pour a nice cold glass of the cherry-flavored……….
I’m NOT looking forward to the next chapter. Egwene’s epic hypocrisy there is more character-establishing for me than anything she did in the previous book.
And also blatant foreshadowing that she’s going into politics.
I knew, the battle was half won, I must be old. crap.
The first time I read this chapter, 23 years ago (I said I was old!) I felt an incredible tension. What would Moiraine tell the Amyrlin Seat? WHY did they embroider Rand’s cloak like that? All the minutia here cleverly crafted to heighten that feeling. If I wasn’t hooked during tEotW (I was), this chapter would have done it.
Aes Sedai fitting boots – heh, I could use that. I hate shoe shopping.
Is Rand sensing Saidin when he gets his void on or is it something more sinister?
And who sent the wind that kept Rand from evading Lan’s practice sword?
The wheel and wind passage at the beginning of chapter 1 seems to be different than in other books. I never noticed that before because this is the first time I read this book in English (it was the only WoT book I only had in German, but I finally got an English copy).
Are Rand’s thoughts about his boots here where Brandon’s obsession with boots comes from?
If a man is gentled before he really gets used to channeling, would it affect him the way it does someone who is already addicted to the OP?
Leigh
Okay, I get the outdoorsy explanation of Moiraine trying to be “mysterious and reassuring” (and to anyone who understands that reference, I heart you to itty bitty tiny pieces). But somehow she seems to have missed the part where she should at least hint at having treats for our deer Rand (sorry).
However, all she does is dick around, freak him out and potentially get him killed. This outdoorsy approach makes me be all un-endorsy of Moiraine handling wildlife. Dragons in particular.
re: lost sword
Yeah, what thell Rand? “I lost it”? Seriously? At least tell the whole story, bro.
“I lost it… IN ISHAMAEL! BAM!”
*father-son high fives ensue*
WDWParksGal @@@@@ 4: Rand’s comment to Tam about “losing” the sword seems to be another homage to Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings, but the comment Frodo made to Bilbo about losing the ring was only in the movie, not in the book, so maybe not an homage.
Wow Leigh, you took me back to “cobra la la la la” and the redemption of Cobra Commander; which, in turn, took me back to the first time I heard a cartoon cuss. RIP Ultra Magnus
Lots of world building here, and lots of foreshadowing. I definitely didn’t notice the references that Rand being a farmer would be “Maybe far away forever, now” the first time. Very subtle, among all of Rands other discomforts, but Rand never returns to Emond’s Field or his home, except for dropping people off (was it Loial or his family?). Also, the one or two paragraphs where Lan explains Heron Wading in the Rushes, obviously.
I also noticed one moment where Rand thinks that the water is always cold for the men. I don’t know where this fits in the whole gender politics of the story, and we don’t need to debate it anymore, but in Shienar at least, it seems that women have the upper hand.
On another hand, am I the only one who thinks Lan’s story wouldn’t be described this way later in the series? It seems like the whole magic idea, where RJ wanted to get away from the titles and ornate description here. I mean, is any later person described as, “Lord of the Seven Towers, Lord of the Lakes, and uncrowned King of Malkier”? I don’t think so.
Lastly, I feel like upon rereading the book and knowing of the bubbles of evil, this one feels much stranger than it initially did for me. I always considered the bubbles starting with the mirrors, but this one definitely qualifies. I don’t know if this is from the magic becoming more mechanical as the series progresses, but I seemed more readily to believe Lan in saying, it’s just something to do with the Blight, get over it. That’s all I have for now, see you all next week!
BillinHI @10- I’m sure Frodo tells Bilbo in Rivendell “I lost it, you know.”
cdrew147 @12
It fits better as a BOE than anything I can propose. That explanation wasn’t even on my radar scope.
I always thought the wind was the one called by the AS to travel faster, but RJ said it was a bubble of evil:
Interview: Oct 6th, 2005
Robert Jordan’s Blog: AND ONE MORE TIME
Robert Jordan
For Phil Reborn, the wind that makes Rand almost impale himself on Lan’s practice sword was one of the first bubbles of evil. A tiny one, but still dangerous.
@10, actually Frodo does tell Bilbo that he lost the Ring in the Chapter “Many Partings” Bilbo asked: “…what’s become of my ring, Frodo, that you took away?’
‘I have lost it, Bilbo dear,’ said Frodo. ‘I got rid of it, you know.'”
Roldan: Ah, I was looking only at the end when Frodo is at the Grey Havens. My Kindle for PC apparently only shows the first 100 matches for a search term and I had started at the beginning of the book. I stand corrected.
birgit @16
Thanks for the reference!
[Long time catcher-upper, near first-time poster…]
I love the Re-Read Redux! A great excuse for yet another WOT re-read. I like GOT, but is it so wrong to want a bit of joy from time to time?
I, too, would love to learn more of the back-story of the Power-forged blades. Bummer. I also wondered about the seeming coincidence of Rand being found by someone who just happened to have such a rare sword. Could Rand’s ta’veren be so strong it worked before he was born?
RJ’s confirming that the wind that pushed Rand was an early tiny Bubble of Evil didn’t quite mesh in my mind with Lan’s statement that strange things happen this close the blight. I got the sense from Lan’s statement that tiny bubbles of evil were not a brand new development. As the series went on, I assumed that we got bigger bubbles because the DO was closer to touching the world. If that’s not the case, then what were the other strange things to which Lan referred?
@9 – Randalator – awesome recreation of the “I lost your sword” speech. Bam.
Reading that sentence about Fal Dara now, I have to actually smile proudly. For while it’s true the city did have to be destroyed in the end, the Shienarans did it on their own terms, and the Shadow gained nothing from it. So in that sense it could still be said to never have fallen, both physically (razing it yourself does not equal conquest) and metaphorically (it would still live on in their hearts).
I had forgotten about that bit with Lan’s sword. I think at the time I thought it to be just a line Lan was feeding Rand to engender respect for heron-mark blades, or that it was a general statement (i.e. not that his sword in particular was a plain soldier’s sword that became a king’s, but that something like that had happened to all the first heron-marked blades in the Age of Legends, thus accounting for the symbolism and its meaning). But looking at it now, it does rather suggest a specific and interesting story, doesn’t it? Then again, considering all the fighting along the Blight through the centuries, it wouldn’t be surprising if the kingdom which was there before Malkier (Rhamdashar, I believe) had brave hardy farmers, one of whom could have had a sword that became the sword of Malkier’s kings, and that’s all there was to it. Not that that makes it any less of a good story, but it does suggest it might not be quite as unique as Lan was making it sound.
What I haven’t forgotten, though, is that this whole scene seemed to me on first reading to be extremely similar to the last scene Rand had with Lan at the end of TEotW. I don’t think the language is identical (would have to compare) but I know both involve them sword-fighting together, discussing whether Rand would leave, mentioning Moiraine ignoring him/refusing to speak to him or explain herself. The only real new information is the bubble of evil. I guess this could be an example of Jordan helping to recap the reader on where we last saw the characters, but I always thought it a bit redundant. Seemed to me that the scene at the end of TEotW was superfluous, that he could have kept it to Rand’s talk with Egwene with Moiraine listening in, then leave this scene in TGH as is. But, it is what it is.
That’s a very interesting point, that Lews Therin mastered swordfighting as insanely fast as Rand did. So while you could probably still claim Jordan was being unrealistic for the sake of the story/fantasy tropes where the Hero learns quickly so he can face down the bad guys, at least he was consistent in it, and in a way that was true to both his world-building and characterization!
I actually thought the story of how Tam got the sword from Mattin Stepaneos was in fact revealed by Jordan and shared by you on the re-read, Leigh: but later on, around either TSR or ACOS, since that’s when Tam and Illian respectively figured into the plot again. In which case you’re still correct: it wasn’t revealed to the re-read or discussed by us the first time the sword was talked about, either in TEotW or TGH.
(I never watched G.I. Joe and I stll got the reference. :P )
You know, I never really considered why Moiraine might be doing what she was doing other than “being Aes Sedai/manipulative”…but you have a good point. If she’d come right out and told Rand he was the Dragon Reborn, he’d have bolted–in fact he practically did anyway, during and just after the audience with Siuan. If it hadn’t been for the need to go after the Horn and dagger, he would have then; that quest caused him to delay his running away until the start of TDR. So by withholding that from him now, she at least got him to stay in Fal Dara long enough for him (and her) to meet with Siuan (and Verin). Her intent of course was to allow Siuan to know he was the Dragon Reborn, so she could start making preparations with the Hall (and they could work on their plan for “guiding” him), but in the end it turned out to be quite fortuitous thanks to Ingtar and Fain’s actions. Ah, the weavings of the Pattern…
Chapter 2: Well, to be fair, coupling Chapter 1’s title with the flame icon would have been just a bit on the nose. And in that chapter, while Lan and Rand were discussing swords and duty and such, they also talked about Moiraine and the Tower and its plans for Rand, so the Flame still applies there.
Yeah, even though I could tell (even without the information we receive later) that Moiraine was dressing Rand up the way she was to help give him the perception of a lord he would need to inspire/compel/frighten others into obedience and respect, I remember being annoyed at her for making it so obvious who he was and why he should be followed. A random Shienaran (or Andoran) minor lord is one thing, but with all the dragon embroidery, how could anybody not guess who he was in two seconds flat? Granted, the only ones at first who seemed to put two and two together were Liandrin and Verin, both of whom have other reasons for and means of making the connection, but still…even setting aside the fact the real Dragon was supposed to not be gentled, she had to know how everyone would react to the Dragon’s rebirth. I guess this was her deliberately engineering such reactions now, so that Rand would come to her in fear for protection? If so, that certainly backfired on her.
LOL…the boots…I wonder how Power-made boots like that would work?
In retrospect of course, knowing what we do of Siuan, I’m not surprised in the least she showed no reaction to seeing Rand be so strongly ta’veren–and not just because of her Aes Sedai serenity. Ovaries of cuendillar, Ms. Sanche has. And I heart her for it. Not so much hearting for Rand, though what’s coming up next manages to be both funny and pitiful enough that I can forgive him.
@2 AndrewHB: I agree, and I don’t think Jordan did that by accident. (Well, nothing in the series seems accidental to me, but especially not that.)
@3 sps: Yes, but from his POV it was a “betray it to save it” sort of thing: if the Shadow’s going to win anyway, might as well get it over with now and maybe there’d be a chance some of his people would live under the Shadow’s rule rather than die pointlessly defending southern lands that don’t even care or believe in Trollocs and Fades.
@@.-@ WDWParksGal: To be fair, even aside from not wanting to admit he can channel, I can’t imagine it would feel good to Rand to tell his father that the weapon his father entrusted to him got destroyed. (Not that being lost is much better…)
@6 scissorrunner: I was pretty sure what she would tell Siuan (namely, he’s the Dragon Reborn). What I didn’t know was how either of them would be able to broach this to the Hall without the whole Tower jumping the gun and the Reds at least (probably more) demanding he be gentled anyway. What I really didn’t expect was them turning out to be in cahoots because they were old friends!
@7 Ways: Could be saidin. Could be the nearness of the Blight, the approaching bubble, Fain, Ba’alzamon…any number of things. And the wind was a bubble of evil.
@9 Randalator: Exactly. She expected him to come to her for help/protection, but other than “you get to live, ungentled (if you do as we say)” she never offered any rewards for him to do so. Not that getting to live ungentled isn’t a great reward by itself, but something extra would have gone far toward actually reassuring him. Or just plain get him to see her as someone trustworthy who cared about his welfare.
LOL at the high-five!
@12 cdrew: No, but Rand certainly accrues a large number of titles by the end. (Just consider all the various titles that pertain to being ruler of Illian or Tear.)
And you’re right, this bubble is very different, and not just because of its weakness. Maybe the Dark One is just still too sealed away for his essence to produce more than this?
@20 TaiSharNedStark: Possibly, but it could also just be the Pattern. It certainly arranged everything as far as Gitara’s Foretelling, Tigraine, Laman’s Sin, and the Aiel War, so making sure Tam found him and that he had such a sword doesn’t seem too hard for the Wheel by comparison.
Hey guys,
I don’t know if anyone has pointed this tiny detail out, but I’m in the middle of my own reread of WOT and just got here: when Rand’s complaining to himself about the coat with dragons that he has been given, he thinks Bloody Moiraine won’t even talk to me but now she’s given me bloody fine new clothes to die in! By coincidence, Rand just happens to be wearing an identical copy of this coat when he goes to Shayol Ghul in AMOL. If Robert Jordan had planted this hint here intentionally, knowing exactly what Rand would be wearing at the last battle, then this is pure genius!
Just starting yet another re-read of this book, and I noticed Lan off-handedly mentions Ingtar is with the Amyrlin’s party. “Coming back from a hunt” supposedly (AKA – Coming bask from the prologue chapter).
Did anyone else catch this?
Leigh?