The Wheel of Time season 2 dropped a big episode last night. “Eyes Without Pity” tackled one of the most important parts of Robert Jordan’s novel The Great Hunt, dramatizing the brutal story of how Egwene al’Vere (Madeleine Madden) was tortured by the Seanchan in an attempt to convert her into a damane. In essence, the Seanchan view women who can channel as walking weapons rather than people; they are valuable, but they are also slaves who have no say over their lives.
Egwene isn’t the only channeler to be faced with the horrors of enslavement by the Seanchan. As Ryma (Nyokabi Gethaiga) tells Nynaeve al’Meara (Zoë Robins) and Elayne Trakand (Ceara Coveney), when the Amyrlin Seat first learned of the Seanchan threat she sent a group of Aes Sedai to investigate. At the start of “Eyes Without Pity,” Ryma is the only remaining member of that group who is free. Two of their number were killed, and one –a Sitter of the Blue Ajah — is enslaved.
The episode ends by revealing the identity of this Aes Sedai, who is occupying the cell next to Egwene. We’re going to break down exactly who that Aes Sedai is below, so consider this your obligatory SPOILER WARNING.
Who is Maigan, the Sitter of the Blue Ajah in The Wheel of Time?
Sitters are the heads of an Ajah; each has three, who convene along with the Amyrlin Seat when serious White Tower business needs to be decided. We saw them during the sixth episode of season 1, when Moiraine, Liandrin, and Alanna were brought before the Amyrlin to answer for the gentling of Logain Ablar, and Moiraine was subsequently banished from the White Tower.
The Sitter in the cell next to Egwene is named Maigan, and she is the foremost among the leaders of the Blue Ajah. We saw her order Moiraine to stay at the White Tower in season 1, which is what led to Siuan banishing her instead so she could go to the Eye of the World. Maigan is played by Scottish actor Sandy McDade in The Wheel of Time.
We haven’t seen Maigan since that time, so the fact that she’s now a Seanchan prisoner is a huge reveal. It shows how serious the Seanchan are that they don’t fear collaring even as important a person as Maigan.
We’ll find out whether Maigan is able to or if she’s doomed to prolonged captivity when the final two episodes of The Wheel of Time season 2 drop on Prime Video. New episodes drop Fridays.
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