In Review: The Wheel of Time (S3 – EP6) The Shadow in the Night

Synopsis: In The Shadow in the Night, Tensions flare between Egwene and Rand. Moiraine and Lan come to terms with their destiny.

The Story

Much like last week’s episode, the story is split broadly across the world, with the various groups pushing forward on their respective missions.

Nynaeve and Elayne, accompanied by Mat, arrive at their destination and find themselves in a tavern where they begin seeking information about Liandrin’s whereabouts. Mat reconnects with Thom Merrilin, and things get a bit spirited as Elayne, with Merrilin playing his instrument, leads a lively singalong. This eventually leads them to acquiring a magical bracelet—an artifact the Aes Sedai once used to capture the Dragon.

Later, after the celebrations, the Forsaken Moghedien ambushes Nynaeve and Elayne, overpowering them and extracting crucial information about a magical artifact that could be used to imprison Rand.

Elsewhere, Rand and Egwene have a major breakup after Egwene confronts him about his intimate time with the Forsaken known as Selene—aka Lanfear—who’s been tormenting her in her dreams.

As if that weren’t enough, Rand ends up in a brutal battle. Fueled by rage, he faces off against the Forsaken Sammael. The fight escalates into a destructive clash, and in the process of unleashing his power, Rand inadvertently causes the death of Alsera—a young girl he’d recently befriended.

The Acting

Ceara Coveney gets to have a bit of fun in this episode, as we see Elayne leading a good old-fashioned singalong in the tavern—her way of charming the locals in the hope it’ll lead to useful information. Meanwhile, Laia Costa leans into her sinister side as Moghedien, delivering a chilling moment when she casts a spell on Elayne and Nynaeve in a tense and eerie scene.

We also get a strong performance from Josha Stradowski as Rand. His argument with Egwene is just the beginning of his troubles in this episode. Later, after his fight with Sammael, he comes face-to-face with the limits of his power when he fails to resurrect Alsera, the young girl he had befriended earlier in the episode.

Overall

The Shadow in the Night proves to be a solid episode that moves the various plot threads forward, highlighting Rand’s struggle with both the strength and limitations of his powers. To make matters worse, he’s also dealing with a misunderstanding with Egwene.

The episode’s high point for me, aside from the brief battle with Rand at the end, is the tavern scene where Elayne uses her talents to entertain the crowd.