I kind of always thought RJ intended the minor characters to be bland
darius_sedai Send a noteboard - 03/02/2013 12:00:33 AM
When you consider that important plot lines like moiraines return, and rand getting the seancan on his side were treated in a half dozen paragraphs, it seems an extravagant one.
The "clever" uses of gateways were tiring in my opinion.
Sandersons constant resort to a light character figuring a novel way to use a function of the power that already had well defined limits was reminiscent of the Harry Potter series.
It was like a poke in the eye each time it happened again and again.
The relationship stuff between Androl and Pevara I have no problem with. But the fact that Androl has effectively booted longstanding characters like Flinn, Narishma, Grady, Neald and even Logain to the sidelines was problematic.
Vanity by the new author is a good way to describe it.
In fairness to Brandon, while I agree with your analysis of the handling of Androl (who is an awful lot like Kelsier if you think about it) and his pet Red, I also think that his side characters are generally WAY more interesting than RJ's rather bland and sometimes cookie-cutter Darkfriends, who seem to be the only characters that get true side plots when RJ is driving ("true" in that they're fairly disconnected from the heroes throughout). Androl is interesting in a way that Narishma really wasn't. You had to infer an awful lot with Narishma to make him cool. If you were dripping with fan theories and fiction, you probably liked him a lot more than someone like me who ingests only what's in the books.
I'd have liked for RJ to have done more of this Sanderson-style sidetracking, because his own sidetracking always seemed annoying and distracting to me. It never seemed to go anywhere, was not really interesting because of how repetitive it was, and more and more I just started internally moaning at the text and looking expectantly along the page for a main character to crop back up.
But I do agree that Androl and Perava got WAY too much screen-time and had an annoying and unnecessary toolbox full of gimmicks.
He had such a massive cast of characters each of whom played some tiny role in Rands journey to TG. He introduced a handful of 3rd tier folks like Pevara and Yukiri to ensure Ajahs didn't get over stereotyped or Dobraine to show that Cairiehenin could be trust worthy etc... This also seemed like a device to give RJ a grab bag of characters with misc abilities such as shielding talents or traveling talents which saved him from creating someone new should he require a skill. Much easier to give Leanne and a handful of already existing Novices a minor Cuendillar talent than introduce a new group of women just for the one scene showing the rebels making Cuendillar to sell.
Domani Drag Queen in the White Tower ... Aran'gar watch out!
So, am I the only one who kind of liked the whole Androl/Pevara plot?
- 31/01/2013 02:30:15 PM
2249 Views
It was extremely irritating...
- 31/01/2013 02:34:32 PM
1291 Views
It felt like a plot tacked on as a vanity by Sanderson
- 31/01/2013 02:49:09 PM
1072 Views
Indeed...
- 31/01/2013 02:58:50 PM
1102 Views
Re: Indeed...
- 31/01/2013 03:05:44 PM
1208 Views
I kind of always thought RJ intended the minor characters to be bland
- 03/02/2013 12:00:33 AM
922 Views
I feel the same about Mat's luck powers. You talk about plot armor, his is a plot bulldozer.
- 01/02/2013 12:53:58 AM
970 Views
You're not the only one who liked it. I thought the mind meld was cool. *NM*
- 31/01/2013 02:39:48 PM
864 Views
I liked it. Most of the whining about is hilarious.
- 31/01/2013 03:01:10 PM
1056 Views
I hated it because it reeked of sanderson pandering to "internet humour" for lack of a better term.
- 31/01/2013 04:47:54 PM
1010 Views
It wasn't bad. However, it took away time from characters that readers were more invested in. *NM*
- 31/01/2013 04:52:25 PM
481 Views
It was a fairly bad execution of some good ideas
- 31/01/2013 05:01:59 PM
1462 Views
That one line characterizes the last two books of WoT generally. *NM*
- 31/01/2013 08:52:06 PM
499 Views
He probably didn't have enough time to learn the characters completely
- 01/02/2013 01:45:11 PM
1020 Views
Re: He probably didn't have enough time to learn the characters completely
- 02/02/2013 04:48:45 PM
1170 Views
Pretty much. But I think significant blame should be laid at Jordan's feet for his abysmal pacing.
- 02/02/2013 10:48:06 AM
1032 Views
Yeah, yeah.. it's the f*cking silk washing's scene's fault
- 02/02/2013 05:59:30 PM
1304 Views
Damn you are on a roll ... Nicely said. *NM*
- 03/02/2013 12:46:57 AM
557 Views
Its true, but RJ should get some blame
- 05/02/2013 03:56:20 PM
1020 Views
Certainly RJ deserves some of the blame. But pacing issues were not the only issue with AMOL
- 10/02/2013 02:45:02 PM
911 Views
I liked it more than reading about Perrin. And seeing Mat butchered even further. *NM*
- 03/02/2013 02:28:42 AM
580 Views