Rand: You crazy. Lews Therin: No you.

Dumai's Wells was Jordan's version of his experiences in Vietnam where he served several tours and earned several decorations for bravery. The power tearing bodies apart was the equivalent of mortar fire and napalm. Whereas the chaotic fighting was reminiscent of the ambush fighting vs the Vietnamese forces.

Egwene becoming Amrylin is not really crazy when you take into account the fact that the Vatican had a similar schism and a puppet unqualified Pope was elected by the rebel side to lead. So yea. Egwene's coronation has a historical precedence.

The Slog is not so bad remember you dont have to wait Years for these to come out.

Just finished book 6 finally. I honestly felt like 90% of that book was a slog. The story has me so I'm not too worried about the grind. As long as those third acts keep coming hard.

I'm more and more convinced that "the slog" was an experience of waiting for the books and then finding them slow. Re-reading it's just not the same as it once was, and only "that storyline" really drags.

I just finished the series for the first time about a month ago, and just like you, I knew before reading that even fans would call books 7 through 10 “The Slog”. For my own personal experience, I had no issues from books 7 to 9. Maybe they were not as good as the previous books but reading then never felt like a chore that I had to force myself through like I did on other fantasy series…until book 10. There is a specific story line on book 10 that really got into my nerves and sometimes I felt like throwing the book at the nearest wall. With that being said, the feeling of wanting to know what comes next, especially this near to the end, carried me forward and the thought of taking a break or stopping never passed through my mind. I hope the same happens to you because it is worth it! Good luck!

I've really enjoyed watching each of your WoT review videos after finishing each book. Thanks for making these videos!

Just finished Lord of Chaos also. When people say Moghedien is the weakest Forsaken, I always figured that meant she was the weakest channeler amongst them, although that isn't saying much because surely that means even the weakest Forsaken can go head to head with Nynaeve, who is one of the strongest channelers we've seen. But I'm not sure if that makes Moghedien the weakest though, because the way I've seen it, as I guess Nynaeve sees it too now, her real danger comes from her prowess in the world of dreams rather than the one power itself

It was when Crown of Swords first came out that I discovered this series. I was living in Juneau AK at the time, and was on the public bus that day and everybody on the bus, or who got on the bus was reading the hard cover of that book. I seriously mean that, I was the only one not reading the book. I looked around and all I saw was the book in front of someone's face. I realized that I was missing something. I started with Eye of the World (loved the cover art) and blew through it in two days. I kept seeing 'shades' of LOTRs, but it did not sour me on the story. The Great Hunt was a page turner that vanished almost before I started reading it. It was then that I started seeing something not LOTRs and instead a well constructed new story. Dragon Reborn also pulled me to the conclusion before I really realized it was ending. Mat had started to vie with Perrin to be my fav character. I agree that all the 'girls' were threatening to over the book instead of being co-characters as they had been at the start. Morraine was an exception, I loved her. The 4th book was like a brick when I picked it up, and I kept telling myself, This is longer than the uncut version of The Stand. I did not care for all that Way of the Leaf stuff, but since I was spending time in this world that Jordan had managed to weave from whole cloth, I went on and ended the book after 4 days loving the world--hating the 'Falcon'. Leave Perrin alone, I kept saying. He was a much better character without her. Lord of Chaos was wild and I did not want it to end because I knew it would bring me closer to the moment when I would catch up with the books that were finished and the long wait between books would start. Still, it was only a couple of weeks for me to read through Crown of Swords and yes it did slow down, but I was glad. I like Jordan's writing so much that at the conclusion of that book I sought out his other books including Cheyenne Raiders. You claim that Mat is a fan fav, and he was for me too. You are doing a fine job in the wrap up on these books so keep it up.

Just finished book 6 last night!! So glad this video came into my life. LOL

Am I the only one who loves these covers? These are the only ones I'm collecting

I hope this is not a spoiler, but do not forget Egwene's training from the Wise One's as well. She is getting a more well rounded training than any other person in the book's, other then Rand.

I know that this is a very old video, but about your point that Nynaeve is able to do anything that other Aes Sedai can do; she can’t even embrace Saidar at will. While they elected the Amyrlin to be a puppet, she still needs to be a symbol for novices, accepted and laymen and a woman who can’t channel at will is not able to be that. Elayne’s royalty also excludes her from the position. Additionally, with Rand building his power, the Aes Sedai felt like it would be prudent to have someone with whom he was familiar to act as their figurehead and make him amenable to them. Other than that, I am really loving your insights and perspectives on this series that I love. It’s just that Egwene is my favourite character and I can get a little defensive over all the hate that’s thrown her way.

It shouldn't feel like a slog to a new reader. If you had had to have waited 2 to 3 years between books it would have felt frustrating. Take your time reading, some of the smallest details show up again. Also, Jordan was a southern raised gentleman, it is extremely frowned upon to hurt women. And a southern woman who has a strong personality is admired, so long as she knows when to reel herself in. The women in the series are learning how to edit themselves. Loving the videos.

So far I've been through the first 6 books, NS and I'm halfway through CoS, and gotta say I share a lot of your impressions and expectations so far. - Rand: really curious also on how the PTSD on his kidnapping will turn out to be. A little was shown so far in CoS, his madness keeps building up and I'm afradi what's gonna happen when he blows up - Mat: Same impression as you, I don't see yet why he is such a fan favorite. He's had some good moments in books 3 onwards, but very little of them, but I can see his character building up - Perrin: my favorite so far, did really miss him in books 5 and most of 6. And so far I like Faile, even when her jealousy annoys me - Egwene: wanna how she goes with Rand, with the Elaida situation and not becoming a puppet to the Salidar Aes Sedai. I really doubt she will bend the knee to Rand. - Nynaeve: really great character, but her temper gets the better of herself most of the times. Her healing stilling and gentling was one of the top moments of the series so far, imo. - Lan: missed him too, but already seen where he's heading in book 7, really liked it so far - Thom and Loial I agree, want these 2 back in the game - The Forsaken: wonder also if all of them can be returned in another body, hopefully not. From what I understood in LoC, depends on how they died - The Slog: have some expectations getting through it. So far, CoS has better neggining than LoC (first of half was though to get through, ending was amazing) - The Wonder Girls: I really like Egwene and Nynaeve so far, Elayne not so much Been watching all your reviews as I read the books, really helping me absorb their content and question some things! Will watch them until AMoL

Commenting time :) First, addressing the slog. I found it to be really overblown. After book 3, I couldn't stop myself from reading 2 WoT books a week. I had a serious addiction, and your mileage may vary. But the only book that I truly found a slog was Crossroads of Twilight (10). It wasn't the dreaded structure of the book that got me, but the fact that the plot just doesn't do much. It isn't a bad book; it is just very slow. The rest of the "slog" was actually pretty good. A Crown of Swords (7) had a really heavy first act that I found hard to read at points, but it was a beautifully executed book. You can imagine that the follow-up to the ending of Lord of Chaos would be... well... dark. The Path of Daggers (8) was really good, but I thought the climax wasn't impressive. Winter's Heart (9) is one of my favorites in the series. Some people call it half a book, but I thought it was self-contained and pretty fast-paced. Really, everyone in the fanbase has had a different experience with the slog, and you really shouldn't set yourself up for bad books. Your predictions are really interesting and insightful. I can't wait for you to read the rest of the series. And remember, "Let the Lord of Chaos rule." :-)

I have the audio books with me and it helped A LOT!! The performances are great, so I think i will get pass the slog hopefully easily. I actually recommend the audios as the performance are also doing the stormlight archive too. Thanks for your reviews looking forward to them

"They make Rand look like he's about 48 on some of these" . . . lol . . . x'D yeaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa x'D

Let's say it this way: If Tarmon Gaidon was coming, could you turn your back for good? And are the characters in the books even near to "normal RL" people in doing their duty and doing what's right? But good points in that they could keep away from Rand and do other things. But turning their backs completely? Power rankings without consulting the guide are murky. In the books there are only scattered statements: LTT was as strong as people in the AoL thought one could be. Ishammael was about as strong as LTT. Lanfear was as strong as women were believed to possibly be. Aginor was rather weak, but he made up with his genius. Demandred and Sammael fell just short of LTT (one more reason to resent him). Semirhage was strong, but behind Lanfear. Moghedien and Asmodean weren't particularly strong. In the prologue of LoC, when Demandred goes to the Pit of Doom (the place where the Bore is strongest), the DO says that even he can't save people from Balefire. And he is not bringing back weaklings and traitors. The main character roster grew from the Ta'veren to Ta'veren and super girls. There is not gonna be way less of the super girls. Actually the Slog is mainly RJ concentrating even more on secondary arcs, less on the main arc of Rand. So more Perrin, Mat, Egwene, Elayne, Nynaeve. I know you must be sick of it, but RAFO. Many of the things you touched upon will have developments in ACoS.

The slog was made worse for those who had to wait for books, i re-read them all last year and barely noticed the slog at all. When you wait a couple of years and then get a book that is a bit slow you get a bit disappointed thats all. People spoiling Shows gives me the Sh*** too, had the 6th season of Vikings spoiled every week by KZfaqrs as we were a week behind. There is a lot more of Mat coming up

yes lots of mat and per coming up, some is great some not, the great parts are really good some of mats best stuff is otw tho :)

I have come to realize something about annoyances with characters in this series. They are a philosophical/psychological look into archetypes and personalities taken to absurdity at times. Irritating confrontations like Faile's jealousy, or Egwene/Aviendha constantly berrating Rand in previous books are real things scaled for fantasy. Female on male behaviors are a deeper rabbit hole to go down in this setting, but one has to remember how well studied Robert Jordan was. WoT is effectively a philosophical/psychological thought experiment on fantasy tropes.

Started re-reading the series with the TV show hype picking up and happened upon your reviews. Great stuff! Thanks for doing this. Taking breaks between books is the best way to deal with the slog. Reading some opinions on those middle books, I feel most of it is overblow. Book 7 in particilar I felt was a very solid book that is comparable to the books before it, but I seem to be alone in that opinion. The others all have their great moments to look forward to as well. Think of how many of these books have lots of buildup with a big payoff. In similar fashion but on a bigger scale, the slog is a few books of buildup to the final 4 books, that are all fantastic in my opinion.

The slog is a real thing, it's definitely slower paced (more navel gazing and dialogue and politics than some of the others) but on the whole I think the slog's reputation is overblown. The first half of book 10 is the worst it gets, but 11 is great. There's some really cool things that happen (and a couple of really interesting characters are introduced) during these books that drastically impact the rest of the series, but it's more spaced out. I like listening to your thoughts on books, and when it comes to a long series like WoT it's always fun to see someone else's thought process as it goes along with something this huge, but I generally find I only get to watch your videos of books that I have already read since the nature of in-depth reviews tends to carry a lot of spoilers. Keep doing what you're going man, I dig the shorter intro. :)

I am truely enjoying watching you go through the book series! I kind of wish I had picked this series up later like you did. I had to go through the absolute nail biter of " aw shit is this book even going to be finished?" . I picked up this series in the mid 90's. Whitch is how I learned of Brandon Sanderson. I was looking for something to read while I waited. Worked out good for me though. You are getting enough right that I don't feel like your not really paying attention. You're also getting enough wrong that you will be pleasantly surprised. Close but no cigar. Close only works with horseshoes hand grenades and cupy dolls. You will enjoy it! I can almost guarantee it.

I never really experienced the slog, not until Crossroads of Twilight. That book is so slow it took me weeks to finish, and that book is one of the shortest in the series!

I am currently at book 7 and definitely feel the slog. It's been a few years since I last picked up a WoT book. I would love for you to do some reviews of each book as you go through them... maybe some of my motivation to read the series would come back!

Just a quick video, lol weeks of torture = a sticky situation Thanks for the video, reminds me how good this series was... up to a this point. Glad I found this channel. Enjoy your sense of humour, and of course appreciate the content.

Fun fact Robert Jordan wrote several Conan books under a different pen name.

Can I just say that I read books 7-10 after they were out, never heard a word about the "slog" and I barely noticed a difference from ther other books. It's unfortunate fans talk about it so much. Maybe it was hard for people who had to wait in between publications, but I liked them! Character development, politics and scheming (which I love) and some fun bigger events (that you CANNOT just read a summary about!🙄). Just take it in and forget about all the crap you've heard.

I love first time reader reactions

i ran through the first 8 books back around 2001/2002. I enjoyed Crown of Swords and PAths of Daggers but there were a few things that annoyed me. But I didn't feel a slog. Then Book 9 and 10 is where I felt the slog. I'm trying to get back into it after about 16 yrs to finally finish the series. In the meantime, I got more into classic literature and some lame modern thriller type books

Currently halfway through book 8... the slog is real. (I just started the series about two or three months ago. I have been reading obsessively lol)

Just remember as you wade into what the WoT fandom considers the slog, is that there are many character building highlights and a few epic third acts that will be worth the long scenic journey!

your answer to everything up to 7:00 is yes

When Lex Luther killed R2-D2 I About had a heart attack

I think the slog gets exaggerated for people new to the books now: in 2000, waiting 3 years and then getting Crossroads of Twilight as the final result before waiting a few more years was painful, but it was the wait between slog books thst really hurt.

The power rankings I see as comparison to the diameter of a pipe for how much power they can throw at once. one step higher is not a linear increase. And each step higher has a cubic function as to how long they can channel before becoming exhausted. Rand can go all day at a rate to would crush Moiraine if she even tried to burst at her best to that level and that would be a relaxed and paced rate for Rand. But the difference between Men and Women make cross gender comparisons difficult as Men are meant to force through obstacles as if they didn't exist, and Women are meant to glide around them as if they weren't even in their way. But even in gender comparisons, Nyneve is several orders of magnitude stronger than The typical mid strength AesSedai, and is almost tireless by comparison.

LOL but the fabric of the dress is Jordan's way of letting you know something that so many people miss... Where does silk come from? This question is asked and answered so many times in the books and so many readers ignore it.

I hope this isn't a spoiler. The Dark One can reincarnate the Foresaken (Chosen), or anybody else I guess, should he deem it necessary, but anybody who's been killed by Balefire is gone forever, because of the way it destroys. Their souls are not even reborn when that age comes again.

I never experienced the "slog" as many seem to have - I did have trouble getting through some books, though I'm not even sure they're the ones in the slog, but that was mostly because I was pretty young and had an imperfect memory of what preceded them. Doing re-reads, I find them to be just as interesting as any other book, and in many cases more so, because you get such a cornucopia of little pieces to fill out the massive puzzle-tapestry (I stopped caring about this metaphor already) in order to craft a better understanding of not just the world and history, but also the various characters who are all driving the plot in their own ways. If you're not big into the detailed execution and the way everything is interconnected, I get why you'd find it boring tho

Not even the Dark One can undo Balefire and would you revive a traitor?

Was that me? I didn't tell you what happened but what I've heard that Jordan had originally planned... Each and every book has important things that happen towards bringing about and winning the Last Battle. I've never had any problems with any of the books.

So, I'm at the end of book six myself right now and there's no way I'd make Nyneave the leader shit in any capacity, not even as a puppet. She's too much and I hate gender dynamics in the book so much at this point but I'm striving

control nothing. they expected to be pulled back into the tower within the week, pretty much. and knew whoever they chose would hang. basically.

If I’m ever writing a book I’m never writing any internal dialogue. These books traumatised me.

I can't believe someone spoiled Demandred for you! That's so not cool! Bad form, folks!

I think you'll look forward to Mat chapters and dreading some Perrin chapters. Jordan's descrition of individual elements are not that detailed there's just a lot of elements for each scene that are described.

I just finished book 6 and I have a question about the Wheel of TIme? does the Dark One get free at every age only to lose. Is the male half of Saidin always tainted in the end? Does the story address this? If the answers are spoilers don't say anything. Half of book 6 was slow even with the audiobook going at 2x speed. How bad is the grind for the "slog" I'm thinking of reading detailed readthroughs can picking the up at the last 15-20 chapters.

The slog for me hit much earlier than book 6. LOL. More like book 4 to the last one Jordan wrote. And I didn't start reading this series until Jordan had died because I had been burnt too many times by authors taking a long time to write their books. I don't feel Jordan did this though. Just in general. I am looking at you George R.R. So I try not to start long series until they are near done. So waiting for the next book had NOTHING at all to do with the slog. To me they were just dam tedious and boring as hell

The only reason why it’s called “the slog” is because readers who read the series from the beginning were mad. The were mad that events in books 7 & 8 were left unanswered in books 9 & 10. It’s a bull s**t opinion that practically ruined my first read through last year. To get through books 7-10 I literally had to put the audiobooks on at like 2.0 speed. So don’t listen to the opinions about those middle books. They’re all really good.

There is most definitely a slog, there are whole books that could be taken out without loss, so many useless scenes checking in with characters seemingly just for the sake of checking in. It's not character development if nothing is being added, no deeper understanding, no revelations or depths explored, it's not plot progression if nothing happens. If you have to take notes to remember something happened, it probably wasn't that important.

I think it’s kinda funny how the books start getting worse about the same time that Rand starts to lose his mind as if the series itself gets tainted alongside the main character.

I loved the middle books. The only slog for me was crossroads, which when i lend by books to friends, i have them skip that one. Its summarized, perfectly, in one paragraph in the proceeding book. Its TERRIBLE, and that's saying a lot because i have wot tattoos and totally adore the series.