siuan sanche appreciation thread

[Sam 19]

Siuan gets a lot of flake these days for being wussy and silly and a bryne fanatic. I thought it would be nice to remember why some of us love her.

[Olivia 26]

I thought it would be nice to remember why some of us love her.

Because Moiraine loved her.

 

JK Siuan actually irritated me when she was first introduced in TGH. One scene in WoT that sticks out for me is the "lesson" between her and Nynaeve on the boat to Tar Valon. Nynaeve is my second favorite character after Moiraine, so I was disappointed and frustrated at seeing her so humiliated and owned (even if Nyn was acting pretty childishly and did deserve it). Siuan was introduced as such a commanding, ball-busting hard-ass, and became even more so in TDR when she turns the girls into BA hunters and takes Mat down a peg.

 

I'm not sure when I started to like her, but I remember being angry during the scene in TSR where Elaida usurps her, same way I was upset at Siuan's treatment of Nynaeve - because somewhere along the line I had started to think of Siuan as a character I cared about. TFoH and onwards (i.e., post-Bryne meeting), I was a bit interested in her intrigue in the rebel camp and her mentoring of Egwene, but I slowly lost most of my liking for her. NS Siuan remains the best (and my favorite) incarnation of her character.

 

But throughout the series, Siuan is strong, determined, commanding, stubborn, capable, intelligent, and like most WoT protagonists, she never gives up. Even in her wuss-ified state, she's still got the heart of a lion. Maybe that's what caused her downfall as Amyrlin - her secretiveness and stubbornness - but she came out of that strong too.

 

Also, she has purdy blue eyes. And is occasionally hilarious.

[Marie 73]

I loved Siuan from the get-go: love women in power, what can I say. I still loved her even after she got stilled and deposed, I was cheering for her (you stay strong, bb girl!). But she never defended Moiraine. There's Nynaeve going on and on about "omg Moiraine is such a Darkfriend NEVER TRUST HER!" and Siuan is just like "o rly?". Not cool, hommie. Unless you knew them back in the day, people around Siuan wouldn't guess her and Moiraine were best buddies. And yet, Egghead who is hanging around Ice Queen was able to figure it out. So Moiraine shows enough emotion--Moiraine! Emotion!--for Eggy to pick up on their friendship and hot-headed Siuan gives no glimpse to her affections. OK, I was fifteen at the time and little sensitive to betrayal by friends so maybe my opinion of Siuan was a bit harsh; but it stuck so on her.

 

But I digress. On of my fave Siuan moments is when Merean says Moiraine must be in shock about her uncles deaths and she has to stay behind and Siuan is all "oh yes! She was having nightmares! She should stay!" and gave a wide-eyed smile of innocence and Moiraine is standing there going "why did I ever let you touch my secret place!" and then Merean says Siuan can stay back with her pillow friend and Siuan's smile gets frozen on her face. I love that. I love imagining Siuan with that no longer valid smile.

 

Also, the fact that she let Moiraine name her "Suki the maid". That's friendship. That didn't last! *shakes fist*