10 things we’re excited to see in The Wheel of Time season 3

5. New romances

Rand al’Thor met Elayne Trakand, daughter-heir of Andor, right at the end of season 2, and it was clearly a significant moment for them both. Elayne was one of the standout new characters in season 2, but we’ve hardly scratched the surface. Over time, she’s going to become just as important to the story as any of the Emond’s Field Five.

She’ll also have a very personal bond with Rand. In the novels, Rand has several romances, and one of the most important is with Elayne. They actually meet very briefly in the first book, The Eye of the World. When they reunite in The Shadow Rising, they grow closer before Rand heads out to the Aiel Waste. Aviendha, another character introduced in season 2, is also involved in this plotline. She becomes close friends with Elayne and spends quite a lot of time with Rand in the Waste.

Now, you might be asking, “what about Egwene?” Prepare for some disappointment if you’ve been stanning her and Rand: in the novels, Rand and Egwene’s relationship evens out into more of a platonic bond as they each pursue their own destinies. This really begins to manifest in The Shadow Rising, since it’s the first time she and Rand really get to spend some time together since The Eye of the World. It seems likely we’ll see Egwene’s romance with Rand wane in season 3, and Rand’s romance with Elayne wax.

Rand, Elayne and Egwene won’t be the only people exploring romance in season 3. We’re also expecting to see some new characters introduced who will be important to Perrin, namely Faile Bashere and possibly Berelain sur Paendrag Paeron, the First of Mayene. The show could streamline some of these complicated love triangles, but either way, we’re expecting romance to become a more prominent part of the story next season.

6. Rand’s blademaster moment

One of the parts of The Great Hunt that I was saddest to see cut from The Wheel of Time season 2 was Rand’s journey to becoming a proper blademaster…but I think there’s reason to hope we’ll see it next season.

In the books, Rand trains for months while traveling in search of the Horn of Valere, using lessons he learned from Lan to improve his swordplay. Rand receives a heron-marked blade from his father Tam al’Thor at the very beginning of The Wheel of Time, but he doesn’t have the skill with it to claim the title of blademaster.

When Rand finally arrives at Falme, he stumbles into a fight with High Lord Turak, who is an actual blademaster who earned his heron-marked sword. Rand’s duel with Turak is an important moment for him, because it shows that Rand has actually grown into a blademaster in his own right.

Since the show didn’t have time to get into Rand’s training in season 2, his encounter with Turak went differently, with Rand displaying his magical strength instead. I believe this was a good choice, since having Rand suddenly be a skilled blademaster without showing his extended training would have robbed the moment of its power anyway. It made sense to focus on Rand’s magic.

But it will still be important for Rand to grow into a proper warrior. Daniel Henney, who plays Lan, hinted during our interview with him that he had training scenes with a “certain other male character” in season 3, and Rafe Judkins has since confirmed that Rand’s training “is coming” still. So we’re expecting to see it in season 3. If the show goes this route, my theory is that Rand could have his triumphant warrior moment as part of his battle with Couladin, an Aiel warrior who challenges him during the climax of The Shadow Rising.