The Wheel of Time turns, and Ages come and pass, leaving memories that become legend. Legend fades to myth, and even myth is long forgotten when the Age that gave it birth comes again. But memes? Wheel of Time memes are eternal. Honestly, if you’ve spent any time on r/WetlanderHumor or scrolled through the depths of Dragonmount, you know that the fandom's ability to roast Robert Jordan’s epic fantasy series is unmatched.
It's a weird thing, really.
We love these books. We spend thousands of hours reading about braid-tugging and dress-smoothing, yet we can’t help but make fun of the fact that Rand al'Thor has the emotional range of a very stressed-out brick for at least six books. This isn't just about "haha, funny pictures." It’s about a community that has survived decades of waiting between book releases, a polarizing TV adaptation, and the literal death of the original author. Memes became the glue.
The Shared Language of the Aiel Waste
If you show a "Normal Person" a picture of a water jug and start laughing, they’ll think you’ve spent too much time in the sun without a hat. But show that to a fan? They know. They know it’s about the Aiel and their obsession with toh.
The humor in this fandom is deeply insular. It’s a reward for finishing the slog. You know the slog—those middle books where it feels like everyone is just traveling and talking about politics while Perrin looks for Faile for three thousand pages. Making memes about how long it took Perrin to find his wife became a survival mechanism for readers in the early 2000s.
Let's talk about the "Duty is heavier than a mountain, death is lighter than a feather" quote. In the books, it’s a solemn, stoic mantra for the Borderlanders and Lan Mandragoran. In the world of Wheel of Time memes, it’s usually applied to something incredibly stupid, like the weight of having to explain the magic system to your girlfriend who just wants to watch the show.
That’s the beauty of it. We take the high-fantasy tropes and drag them into the mud.
Why Mat Cauthon is the Uncrowned King of the Internet
Mat is, objectively, the most meme-able character. Sorry, Rand. Sorry, Perrin. It’s just facts.
Think about his core character arc. He spends half the series screaming "I'm not a bloody hero!" while literally diving into burning buildings to save people. That cognitive dissonance is a goldmine. You’ve seen the "Scumbag Hat" memes from a decade ago? Mat Cauthon is the fantasy version of that, except he’s actually a tactical genius with the memories of a thousand dead generals stuffed into his brain.
Most memes focus on his luck. Or his refusal to marry Tuon. Or the fact that he’s the only person in the entire series who seems to realize that Aes Sedai are, generally speaking, a nightmare to deal with.
The TV Show Impact and the Great Divide
When the Amazon Prime series dropped, the meme landscape shifted. It got... spicy.
Before the show, Wheel of Time memes were mostly based on the cover art (which, let’s be real, featured some very questionable anatomy) or fan art. Now, we have high-definition templates of Rosamund Pike looking disappointed. This created a bit of a rift. On one side, you have the "Book Purists" who use memes to complain about the lack of certain characters or changes to the lore. On the other, you have the "Show-Onlies" who are just confused about why everyone is obsessed with a guy named Bela.
Bela, for those who don't know, is the horse.
Is she the Creator? Is she a Darkfriend? The meme that Bela is the true power behind the universe is probably the longest-running joke in the history of the fandom. Even Brandon Sanderson, who finished the series after Robert Jordan passed away, has leaned into the "Bela is God" trope.
The show gave us new material, though. Like the "Moiraine leaving the chat" energy or the various ways the production handled (or didn't handle) the visual effects for channeling. Whether you love the show or hate it, the memes it produced are top-tier.
The Aesthetics of Braid Tugging
If you did a word count on the series, "braid tugging" and "skirt smoothing" would probably take up a solid 4% of the total text. Nynaeve al'Meara is the patron saint of this.
Memes about Nynaeve usually follow a specific pattern:
- Nynaeve gets angry.
- Nynaeve tugs her braid.
- Something explodes.
It’s a simple formula, but it works because it’s so grounded in the text. Robert Jordan had these specific physical tics for every character. Egwene sniffs. Elayne prattles. Min wears pants (the scandal!). These repetitive descriptions are exactly what the internet loves to latch onto. It’s a way of saying, "I see what you did there, RJ."
Dealing With "The Slog" Through Comedy
We have to address the elephant in the room. Crossroads of Twilight.
It’s often cited as the hardest book to get through. Not because it’s poorly written, but because the pacing slows down to a glacial crawl. If you look at Wheel of Time memes from the mid-2000s, they are almost entirely focused on the frustration of waiting years for a book where "nothing happens."
Today, the memes are more nostalgic. We look back at the slog like a war veteran looks at a rainy trench. "I survived the 20-page description of a bath," we say, pride in our voices. The humor helps bridge the gap for new readers. When a new fan complains that book ten is slow, the veterans are there with a meme of Rand looking insane to let them know it gets better.
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Because it does. The Last Battle is basically one giant, 200-page action sequence that pays off every single joke and plot point from the previous thirteen books.
The "Rand is a Madman" Era
The "Darth Rand" phase—where Rand al'Thor goes full emo and starts considering deleting the entire world—is prime meme territory.
There’s a specific kind of dark humor that comes from a protagonist who has a dead crazy guy (Lews Therin) talking in his head. The "I am the storm" memes are cool, but the memes about Rand arguing with himself while trying to eat breakfast are better. It highlights the absurdity of the "Chosen One" trope. Most series treat the "voice in the head" thing as a mystical guide. In Wheel of Time, it’s just Lews Therin screaming about how they should kill everyone and then maybe have some soup.
How to Get Into the Meme Scene Without Getting Spoiled
This is the tricky part. If you haven't finished the series, stay away from r/WetlanderHumor. Just don't do it.
The Wheel of Time community is notorious for not caring about spoilers for a series that finished over a decade ago. If you go looking for Wheel of Time memes, you will find out who dies, who marries whom, and what happens at the Bore.
However, if you’ve finished the books, it’s like a second reward. You get the story, and then you get the jokes.
- Start with the "No-Context" accounts: These usually post frames from the show or random art that doesn't give away the ending.
- Look for the "Bela" jokes: They’re safe. Mostly.
- Avoid the "Aginor" deep cuts: If the meme is about a minor Forsaken, it’s probably going to spoil a major plot twist.
The evolution of these jokes shows how a story stays alive. We aren't just consuming the media; we're interacting with it. We're taking the "Weave as the Wheel wills" philosophy and applying it to our own lives, usually when something goes wrong and we need a way to blame fate instead of our own bad decisions.
Actionable Steps for the Aspiring Meme-Lord
If you want to dive deeper or even start contributing to the culture, here is how you actually engage with the community without looking like a "goat-kissing" farm boy.
- Internalize the Tics: Before you make a meme, remember the physical traits. If it’s Elayne, she’s probably chin-aloft. If it’s Mat, he’s touching his foxhead medallion. Accuracy makes the joke land harder with the "hardcore" fans.
- Contextualize the "Golden Crane": Some memes are emotional. The "Will he ride alone?" meme isn't always funny; sometimes it’s a way for fans to share the genuine emotional impact of the series. Don't be afraid to be a bit "high-effort" with your references.
- Use the "Darth Rand" vs. "Zen Rand" Template: This is the Wheel of Time version of the "Drake Hotline Bling" meme. It works for everything from book preferences to coffee choices.
- Follow the Real Experts: Look up creators like Nae'Blis or Daniel Greene on YouTube. They’ve been documenting the lore and the humor for years. Their comment sections are often where the best new jokes are born.
- Respect the Creator: Remember that behind all the jokes about "braid tugging," there is a deep respect for Robert Jordan’s world-building. The best memes come from a place of love, not just mockery.
The Wheel turns. Memes come and go. But as long as someone is picking up The Eye of the World for the first time, there will be someone else ready to send them a picture of a horse and tell them she’s the most powerful being in existence. That is the true legacy of the Dragon Reborn.
Final Thoughts on the Lore-Meme Pipeline
The transition from a serious reader to a meme-connoisseur usually happens right around book four, The Shadow Rising. That's when the world opens up, and you realize how weird and wonderful the Aiel are. You start seeing the patterns. You start noticing the "wool-headed" comments.
The memes don't diminish the story; they enhance it. They turn a solitary reading experience into a global conversation. So, go ahead. Post that meme about the White Tower being a disaster. Tug your braid. Smooth your skirts. The Pattern demands it.
Next Steps:
Check out the "Top All Time" posts on the major Reddit fan subs to see the history of the fandom's humor. If you're a show-only fan, be careful—the book fans have no mercy when it comes to spoilers. If you're looking to create your own, try using a "Lews Therin screaming" template; it's a classic for a reason.