The Wheel of Time is a long awaited series.

The books have sold over 90 million copies worldwide and it's been in development for decades.

And while there are many surface similarities to Tolkien's Lord of the Rings, we've got

color-coded mages, we've got evil beasts like warriors, a powerful dark lord with hooded

servants to stride black horses, and a chosen one who can save the world.

There's a lot more going on here.

The world in question is matriarchal in nature, and its residents are all to aware that the

history of this world repeats itself forever, slightly differently each time.

I'm Glen Weldon and today we're talking about Amazon's The Wheel of Time on Poplar Happy

Hour from NPR.

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Joining me today is Natalie Escobar, an associate editor for NPR's Culture Desk, Natalie.

Hey, it's good to be here, Glen.

Welcome, welcome.

So The Wheel of Time series on Amazon Prime is an adaptation of Robert Jordan's best-selling

14-volume fantasy epic of the same name.

It's set in a high fantasy world of magic and mystery, and it stars Rosman Pike as

Maraine, a member of the Ice Sadai, an elite organization of female mages who are seeking

...