The Wheel Of Time Season 3 Needs More Than Its Release Date Advantage To Turn Things Around

Amazon's The Wheel of Time has finally gotten a release date announced for its upcoming third season, which will be available on Prime beginning on March 13, 2025. Since Wheel of Time's explosive season 3 trailer was released at CCXP 2024, it's seemed that the struggling fantasy series may be finally reaching a balance between needing to remain faithful to the beloved book saga and finding its own identity as a TV show. Season 3 of The Wheel of Time promises to show some major pieces of world-building that haven't yet made it to the screen.

So far, though, The Wheel of Time has struggled to find support from old and new fans. Although it looks like Wheel of Time season 3 will change at least one complaint about its adherence to established canon for the better, the show is in a precarious position and in dire need of solid success. With Wheel of Time season 3 also positioned to introduce long-awaited characters, there's a lot riding on this chapter if there's hope for a fourth season.

Wheel Of Time Season 3's Release Date Advantage Is Good, But It Needs More To Succeed

First-Mover Advantage Won't Be Enough To Correct Two Seasons' Worth Of Audience Discontent With Wheel Of Time

It's objectively a good thing that The Wheel of Time will be released without any competing show splitting viewers' focus — one of the issues plaguing The Lord of the Rings:TheRings of Power is its repeated release alongside The House of the Dragon, forcing viewers to prioritize which show they watch. In the modern streaming environment, where initial stream counts are a major benchmark by which a show's continued viability is judged, not having to worry about another platform stealing viewers is a blessing for a show that's spent the past two seasons continually making choices that alienate potential viewers.

The Wheel of Time Ratings By Season (via Rotten Tomatoes)
Season	Critical Rating	Audience Rating
Wheel of Time season 1	81%	60%
Wheel of Time season 2	86%	80%

However, Wheel of Time season 3 still needs to deliver something compellingif Amazon hopes for it to course-correct and find itself in viewers' good graces. There are plenty of narrative and production opportunities ahead for the streaming giant, and as the show begins to explore some of the more critical turns of the plot from the original Wheel of Time books, it's crucial that season 3 not just keep making the same story mistakes, no matter what external advantages it has.

How The Wheel Of Time Season 3 Can Turn Around The Show's Biggest Complaints

A Little Bit Of Consistency Could Go A Long Way Towards Reinvigorating Wheel Of Time's Narrative

Although slow to find its footing, Wheel of Time's second season was a positive change for the struggling show, providing far more action than the occasionally plodding season 1 while also introducing many of the elements from the books that audiences felt had been missing. While the initial setup of season 1 was so heavily changed from the source material that many fans felt the world was almost unfamiliar, season 2 introduced important characters like Elyas Machera (Gary Beadle) and Masema Dagar (Arnas Fedaravicius), both of whom have great significance in the books.

Season 3 needs to continue on this trend, not necessarily by suddenly conforming to the novel canon 100%, but definitely by following up on the Wheel of Time book events from the season 3 trailer. The novels provide a rich tapestry of text to draw from, and the changes Amazon makes often feel arbitrary rather than like they contribute to the story. Rand (Josha Stradowsk) and company visiting the forbidden city of Rhuidean is such a pivotal moment in The Shadow Rising, and if executed well, it could well help The Wheel of Time redeem itself — at least, for most viewers.

It May Be Too Late To Win Some Wheel Of Time Book Fans Back Over

Some Fans Will Never Be Satisfied, Regardless Of Adherence To Wheel Of Time Canon

It's no secret that the changes The Wheel of Time has already made from the books have alienated numerous fans of the novel series. In particular, giving Marcus Rutherford's Perrin Aybara a wife just to fridge her in the first episode has long inspired the ire of critics and fans alike. Even novel author and show consultant Brandon Sanderson has apologized for that particular narrative choice. With season 3 set to introduce pivotal characters to Wheel of Time — namely Perrin's eventual love interest Faile Bashere (Isabella Bucceri) — it raises the question of what other repercussions these changes may have.

It was inevitable that Amazon's version of The Wheel of Time would be different from the books because that's the nature of any adaptation. Yet many of these changes feel like they've been done simply for the sake of changing things, and that's rubbed enough fans the wrong way that the show may not ever be able to recover, even if season 3 winds up blowing critical expectations out of the water. When season 3 of The Wheel of Time premieres on March 13, 2025, it may well prove to be the beginning of the wheel's slow grind to a halt.

Source: Rotten Tomatoes