Prime Video’s The Wheel of Time has always been easiest to define through comparison. It’s just one of many high-concept, high-fantasy shows fighting for space in the zeitgeist — and its timing is never quite right. Though its first season premiered about a year before Prime’s other big fantasy adaptation, The Rings of Power, it’s often labeled the Lord of the Rings wannabe. It’s not beating the Game of Thrones comparisons either: HBO’s marquee franchise is effectively evergreen, overshadowing any adult costume drama that dares to follow in its footsteps. Still, The Wheel of Time isn’t giving up. It’s long been the underdog in the race to become The Next Big IP Series, and its third season feels even more determined than those that came before.
With two successful seasons already under its belt, The Wheel of Time no longer has all that much to prove. Season 3 is overwhelmingly assured as a result, hitting the ground running with a bombastic mix of action and pathos. At this stage, it knows its audience and the story it wants to tell, and it deserves some credit for sticking to its guns. It’s neither Lord of the Rings nor Game of Thrones, but a secret third thing — at least, it ought to be. But in this season’s attempts to set itself apart from its competitors, it finds itself in the crosshairs of another infamous franchise: Dune.
