Warning: The following article contains spoilers for The Wheel of Time Season 3, Episode 5, “Tel’aran’rhiod.”
In The Wheel of Time Season 3’s latest entry, Siuan Sanche sets a trap for Elaida do Avriny a’Roihan designed to expose the Red Sister’s true loyalties. But is Elaida really part of the Black Ajah, or is Siuan barking up the wrong tree?
Is Elaida a Black Ajah Member in The Wheel of Time Season 3?
No, Elaida isn’t a Black Ajah member. That said, it’s easy to see why Siuan suspected otherwise. Elaida is ruthless, calculating, haughty, and power hungry – all qualities you’d expect from someone secretly pledged to the Dark One. She’s also openly hostile to Siuan, which could be construed as further evidence she’s in league with The Wheel of Time‘s baddies.
Yet by the time Season 3, Episode 5’s credits roll, it’s unequivocally clear that Elaida may be many things, but she’s not a Dark Friend. Sure, she visits Tar Valon’s imprisoned Black Ajah Sisters, as Siuan expected she would. However, Elaida’s there to interrogate them, not set them free. And when a Gray Man shows up to silence the White Tower’s captives, Elaida’s nearly killed along with them!
Is Elaida Part of the Black Ajah in the Books?
No, Elaida isn’t allied with the Black Ajah in Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time novels, either. Just like in the Prime Video series, the Red Sister is a real piece of work, but she invariably follows her own agenda – not the Dark One’s.
What’s more, the books’ version of Elaida shares her TV counterpart’s interest in rooting out any Black Ajah moles operating within the White Tower’s walls. So, for all that Elaida makes life tough for our heroes on the page, she’s ultimately a different kind of foil to Liandrin and her Shadowsworn ilk.
The Wheel of Time Season 3 is currently streaming on Prime Video, with new episodes dropping Thursdays.