Never let it be said that I was too timid to speak my mind. 
I really would have liked to see the story take some of those tangents, mostly because I always thought RJ was being devilishly clever in his machinizations. He laid the groundwork for many plot-twists, but failed to use most of them, IMHO.
View original postI'm still checking in.
Good.
View original postLet's start with the Androl/Pevara plotline. I too, enjoyed some of the interesting aspects of their 2-way Bond, etc. However, this is stuff that, interesting as it may be, would best have been included in a previous book, as it was way too late and of very little value to throw into the finale. These characters were 2 benchwarmers, (at best), and their by-play stole valuable playtime from what should have been a high-light reel for our star players. IMO, Logain, (even though he was a minor character in many aspects), should have led the way in cleaning up the BT issues. He was there in the background from the 1st book, and was always meant to assume command after the Last Battle. Instead, Sanderson made him out to be a self-centered, bent-on-revenge slacker. While we saw him and Rand have a bit of a standoff in Tear, I don't believe we saw anything that would have led us to think he was carrying around that sort of emotional baggage, and just how mentally frail he was. Sanderson portrayed him as the Logain from Salidar, (wanting vengeance against the Red Sisters), not the more mature leader Logain we saw interacting with Toveine and the Asha'man in the BT(determined to fight the LB).
View original postI agree wholeheartedly. I was able to enjoy it for what it was, but I was constantly conscious of the fact that other characters were suffering because of their inclusion. I was definitely sad when Logain lost out. After the fight at the manor (? with Rand and death gates, fire-wires) and then what you mentioned re: Toveine/AM, I definitely expected more from him. Tbh, I've always had a soft spot for him because I love the scene where Nyn heals him. I know that's a silly reason to like HIM, but I can't help it.
Lost in all of this is that Logain was probably set up by Red (Black) Sisters to be a false Dragon. (Most likely ordered by Ishamael). I don't recall if we know for sure Logain's story was made-up to suit Siuan, or if it was actually the truth. Regardless, I think most of us developed an attachment to him while he was in Salidar.
While on that subject, I always thought it was a foregone conclusion that Taim was set up. That he was captured and then freed before he could be taken to Tar Valon always looked suspicious, and now that we know for fact he was Demandred's minion, speaks that he probably had a hand in it.
View original postThen there is the whole Moiraine sidebar, which is about as much credit as we can give. Min mentioned several times that w/o her, Rand stood zero chance of winning. WTF did she have to be there for? Her reappearance was worthless. Anyone could have said her lines, and Rand certainly could have used someone stronger in the OP to link with. Not only that, we didn't even get to see her exchange pleasantries with practically anyone. (A short reunion with Siuan or Lan? ). I really would liked to have seen her and Nynaeve have a little chat. (Afterall, it was the main thrust behind Nynaeve leaving the Two Rivers in the first place). 900 pages and Sanderson can't sqeeze in a couple paragraphs to give Nynaeve and Moiraine a little airtime?
View original postAgain, I agree. I truly did not expect Mo and Nyn to apparently do nothing. As I said previously, I do know that isn't entirely fair, but I can only represent how I feel as a reader. I don't understand why we were even told that Mo and Lan had a tense moment, if there wasn't time to do anything else. And the Nyn hug... ARGH. Those are precisely the moments I'd want to read.
View original postPersonally, my biggest story issue was the 200 page chapter of Trolloc attacks. Don't get me wrong, I expected a huge battle, but do a little comparison of how RJ wrote his battle scenes and how Sanderson chose to do his. Reread Dumai Wells or the battle of Cairhien, and you will note that RJ sprinkled in fighting, with pov's of the characters in them. RJ put us in the shoes of our heroes, fighting the battle through their eyes, feeling the heat, the fatigue, the loathing of what they were doing. Sanderson's telling reads more like a blow-by-blow history book reenactment watched from above. (I am one of those people that read every word of a book, and sometimes I will even reread a page to make sure I understood it. That chapter made me want to skim, skim, skim.)
View original postI agree. I remember flying through it, and that I had several moments of surprise when I realized I didn't want to pay attention to it. I've always said that when Jordan is writing real action, I can't stop reading, and I don't want to. This disappointed me.
View original postMy second biggest issue was the ending. I understand that RJ penned most of it, but it fell short on many fronts in my estimation. Mostly, it felt rushed, (like Mat taking care of Fain/Mashadar/Ordeith in a few hurried sentences), an afterthought loose-end that needed to be tidied up. No forward-looking glimpses at all. It was just too abrupt, especially after 13-14 books plus 200 pages of battle scenes to be satisfying.
View original postIt was too abrupt. I about had a coronary post-Mat/Mashadar. WHAT. It's one of those moments where you actually feel like turning the pages back and forth to see if some of the words are hiding somewhere else. It made me feel like we were dropped of a cliff, and expected to be happy about it.
View original postI could only shake my head when I read one of the posts that stated the complainers were disappointed because our theories didn't come true. (I knew most of mine were "out-there" theories that had long-ago been disproven). You know as well as I, most of us visiting the MB here and at wotmania had poked-and-prodded every prophecy, foretelling, et.al., so that practically every outcome had been discussed at one time or another. Truth-be-told, I think it's a shame that some of those meandering paths weren't the direction that the story took. RJ gave us glimmers of light straying down darkened corridors of what might transpire, but in the end, the story marched down the well-lit broader avenue of predictability.
View original postActually, this is along the lines of what I wanted to talk about. Primarily, anyway. Has there been much talk of Min's viewing about Aviendha and her babies? I'm curious as to what people think - is it that she changed the potential future re: Seanchan/rings/Rhuidean, or is it that Rand is now ... well, brunette? 
I do miss talking about these things, and I feel frustrated that this ending didn't indulge me more. I didn't need it to be what I wanted, but I did need it to feel more like Jordan.
I do miss talking about these things, and I feel frustrated that this ending didn't indulge me more. I didn't need it to be what I wanted, but I did need it to feel more like Jordan.As to Aviendha's babies, I haven't seen them discussed, but I think you probably hit the nail on the head. If Rand didn't get her pregnant during their latest tryst, it would be the perfect explanation for why there was something "odd" about them, as per Min's viewing. (That was very insightful of you, BTW ).
View original postAlthough I am happy to have a conclusion, I am left wondering "what might have been".
View original postYes. I think we probably know a bit about what might have been, which is what makes it worse. Oh well, at least I have you guys. 
What is more frustrating is that RJ said many times that he knew the ending when he started writing the story. He should have spent some time fleshing it out once the story grew much bigger than I think he originally planned.
Where once was Shadow
Now reigns Light
Darkness fades
Into the Night
I made the switch!
Now reigns Light
Darkness fades
Into the Night
I made the switch!
Finally finished it - don't agree with most complainers - thought it was pretty damn good!
- 09/03/2013 05:17:28 PM
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No change here ... Still feels like a rather rushed book that focused too much on a battle and not
- 10/03/2013 10:52:17 PM
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I quite enjoyed it, don't really understand what all of the fuss is about.
- 11/03/2013 12:52:56 AM
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A few other things.....
- 11/03/2013 02:58:41 AM
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Finished it last night. I don't have to mention that here be spoilers.
- 13/03/2013 09:08:07 AM
1176 Views
- 13/03/2013 09:08:07 AM
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Re: Finished it last night. I don't have to mention that here be spoilers.
- 13/03/2013 10:23:09 AM
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- 13/03/2013 10:23:09 AM
1033 Views
That's a really good point.
- 14/03/2013 08:03:29 AM
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Re: That's a really good point.
- 14/03/2013 10:32:10 AM
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Re: Finished it last night. I don't have to mention that here be spoilers.
- 02/04/2013 01:15:51 PM
1079 Views
- 02/04/2013 01:15:51 PM
1079 Views
Re: Finished it last night. I don't have to mention that here be spoilers.
- 04/04/2013 04:16:49 PM
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- 04/04/2013 04:16:49 PM
835 Views
Very true about Nynaeve, she essentially did nothing.....also.....
- 14/03/2013 03:34:27 AM
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Have you been reading down the page?
- 14/03/2013 08:01:32 AM
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Re: Have you been reading down the page?
- 14/03/2013 04:01:23 PM
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Mine was Graendal.
- 14/03/2013 10:05:29 PM
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Hi Nossy
- 18/03/2013 11:23:25 AM
1001 Views
I'm getting the feeling that you may not have wanted to type that up.
- 18/03/2013 09:00:56 PM
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- 18/03/2013 09:00:56 PM
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Am I going mad, or did the title of this thread change and then change back? *NM*
- 14/03/2013 05:42:15 PM
505 Views
it's like not getting a star wars film for 18 years, then when it finally gets made and released....
- 15/03/2013 09:46:55 PM
1231 Views