Okay, so it's reasonably fair to say that Wayne Yip directs the absolute cr*p out of this week's addition to "The Wheel of Time" & after doing such an undeniably impressive job helming "The Dragon Reborn", I can definitely see why Amazon's therefore made a very wise decision, bringing him on board to shoot 4 episodes of their upcoming "Lord of The Rings" TV adaptation. Always knew he was talented behind the camera (ever since I saw his work on Channel 4's UTOPIA in the UK, which I'd recommend checking out) but wow, his talents have superceded my expectations here. If anyone previously possessed any doubts as to his abilities as a filmmaker, then kindly allow his contributions to S1 to dispel them immediately. This guy has VISION.
However, I must unfortunately concede I haven't read the books (yet) so can't comment on faithfulness to the source material / quality of the adaptation but what I can say is as a casual viewer - seeing the world gradually being brought to life & the way in which it's realised, this is the first episode that really feels like it proved why I should continue watching. A slow burner, of sorts. Of course, I'd still like to get to know these characters more (we're thrust in to beautifully constructed action sequences so often, it can be hard to find available time to expand upon their development) but I feel as though in this particular installment, the balance is struck more evenly than before - allowing for an equal amount of both astonishment (in terms of the visual grandiosity / awe inspiring set pieces) & much needed emotional investment.