Based on Robert Jordan's beloved high fantasy book series, Amazon Prime Video's The Wheel of Time season 3. However, this isn't necessarily working out as book readers and diehard fans had expected, with the show continuing to take liberties with the book story.

Mat has been an integral part of Rand al'Thor's journey thus far. As the Dragon Reborn, Rand (played by Dutch actor Josha Stradowski) needs Mat Cauthon more than he knows and will rely on him to win in many ways. That's why, out of all The Wheel of Time characters, Mat's story is one of the most critical and needs to be done right. Although the show doesn't need to be faithful to the books to the letter, it has to get to the same place eventually. Therefore, many may be wondering why Lan replaced Mat in the Melindhra plot.

Melindhra Was A Darkfriend In The Wheel Of Time Books

Melindhra Is More Than She Seems In The Wheel Of Time

Melindhra in Wheel of Time.

Out of all The Wheel of Time characters that may be darkfriends, Melindhra is the most suspect. Synnøve Macody Lund has ed the cast of The Wheel of Time season 3 as Melindhra, who is probably more than she seems, as per the books by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson. Melindhra may appear to be forming a relationship with Lan of some description, but casual fans who haven't read the books will probably be disappointed if they think Lan has a new love interest in Melindhra. Moiraine exhibits strong insight in her apparent suspicion of Melindhra.

Why Lan May Be Replacing Mat In The Wheel Of Time's Melindhra Arc

Mat Isn't Following His Canon Story In The Wheel Of Time

Lan Mandragoran, played by Korean-American Daniel Henney, appears to be replacing Mat in the Melindhra storyline to a certain extent. Mat's arc was all over the place up until The Wheel of Time season 2's ending, with many hoping that season 3 would get him back on track. However, he didn't go to the Aiel Waste as he did in the books, and this lapse in faithfulness was disappointing to some. In the books, Melindhra tried to drive a wedge between Mat and Rand, but it seems that the show is dispensing with this part of the source material too.

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How Rand's Relationship With Lanfear Compares To The Wheel Of Time Books

The Wheel of Time season 3, episode 5 sees Rand's relationship with Lanfear make a surprising change to their dynamic in the source material.

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season 3 hugely changed Mat's story by keeping him out of Rhuidean, which was ultimately done to try to give Rand and Mat their own plots in a way that each character could shine separately. But since the show excluded Mat from the Aiel Waste story, it may have decided to use the Melindhra plotline, but with Lan instead of Mat. Perhaps Melindhra could be working toward causing a divide between Moiraine and Lan. In that instance, The Wheel of Time would be changing her story a lot but still using her in a similar way.

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The Wheel of Time
Release Date
November 18, 2021
Network
Prime Video
Showrunner
Rafe Judkins

WHERE TO WATCH

Streaming

The Wheel of Time follows Moiraine, a member of the powerful all-female organization Aes Sedai, as she leads a perilous quest with five young individuals. Moiraine suspects one among them could be the prophesized reincarnation of a mighty figure destined to either save or doom humanity.

Directors
Sanaa Hamri, Ciaran Donnelly, Salli Richardson-Whitfield, Thomas Napper, Maja Vrvilo, Wayne Che Yip
Writers
Amanda Kate Shuman, Dave Hill, Rohit Kumar, Justine Juel Gillmer, Celine Song, Rammy Park, The Clarksons Twins, Katherine B. McKenna
Franchise(s)
The Wheel of Time
Main Genre
Fantasy
Producers
Darren Lemke, Rosamund Pike, Ted Field, Uta Briesewitz, Rafe Judkins, Mike Weber, Marigo Kehoe, Rick Selvage
Seasons
3
Story By
Rafe Judkins
Streaming Service(s)
Prime Video