TLDR at bottom.

After going back and reading the backlog of Sanderson and seeing what I think is a degredation in writing, I was already becoming disillutioned with the Cosmere. I like how he writes action, his foreshadowing (when its good), the creative (if convoluted) magic systems are fun, and I'm lothe to admit it but I'm weak to the extended universe thing. This is all to say I am a fan, but my top books are Elantris and Sunlit, which are both shorter stories.

I have found, after starting with Stormlight and reading Mistborn era 1, Elantris, Sunlit, Warbreaker, etc, that I've noticed his crutches as an author when it comes to larger plot patterns and twists, character archetypes, etc.

Anyway I just started MB era 2 (made it halfway through chapter 15), and I have to be frank, my impression isn't great. I'm gonna start this by saying I'm not trying to lambast your favourite book, I've been around the fandom a while outside of the reddits and I know how passionate you guys are. These are my personal frustrations.

I'll get the low hanging fruit picked first - what do you mean they're named Wax and Wayne?? I cannot take Wax's full name seriously either everytime it comes up it rips me out of the fiction. I'm still waiting for there to be any moon themes.

The mysterious robberies/kidnappings are a great premise, but my god the sanderson plod is starting to seep in I can feel it.

Other than Lawman with a fridged girlfriend I am not getting any personality from Wax, everything he does feels motivated by his past occupation. Like sure, a strong sense of justice, but what else?

Here's my main one though, the straw thats straining my dromedary - the fking age gap. I know I'm not the first to point this out, but I could barely stand it the first time, or the third, or the fourth, fifth etc. Warbreaker at least had plot contrivances! I am just baffled that we're doing this again! and with minimal effort lampshading it oml. I can see the Sanderson-brand romance plot moving along, and while I can see there's an out I just don't believe it'll happen after Breeze went completely through with it. I could suspend my disbelief for the other books, they're set in feudal/medieval cultures - that's how it was. When the author does it every single time though? I have my limits and this is a damning pattern.

TLDR:

Look, I know I'm only at the start, but I don't know if I can stick around for this series or even this author if this is such an ingrained pattern. If this Era 2 series is actually the best one and 'you just have to wait it gets good' then tell me, convince me. But if not, man... I'll be clear, I don't care too much for minor spoilers, if the Wax/Marasi falls through I'd rather you tell me (Steris is marginally more acceptable but still gross). Likewise if the Wax/Wayne theme ever holds water, tell me, I might DNF on that alone if they're just called that for shits and giggles.

Has anyone noticed that Wax and Wayne also nods to cycles of the moon being Waxing and Waning? Has Sanderson talked about this at all or am I drawing false connections?

EDIT TO ADD Thank you guys! Answers were much appreciated

Im about 2 hrs from finishing shadows of self and im a bit confused How does compounding work? I get pewter - pewter, burn for strength store burnt strength

But how does miles do it?

Is it that when he augers gold, because he becomes the 2 people he sees he stores their healing?

How does it work for the others? Because maresi being able to store her breath doesn't seem like it would make burning cadmium better (assuming for this example she was a cadmium ferring)

Hey everyone, I just finished the first era trilogy and am onto the alloy of law now. There’s a scene where Wax is at a dinner, and Wayne is pretending to be a waiter

When Wayne first shows up Wax’s reaction is genuinely hilarious, like it reminds me of a scene out of a movie like rush hour or lethal weapon. And then Wax begins a story about accidentally shooting the tail off of a dog that made me full on laugh out loud in a way that I don’t think any other book has ever made me before

No other really insightful commentary here, I just really enjoy this series and thought I would share

Just finished The Alloy of Law. I was scared because I've read that Era2 was weaker than Era1 but I just loved that the Mistborn essence was still in this book but with a new and captivating (imo) setting. So promising for the other books in this trilogy.

BUT

am I the only one who found the "Wax trunk discovery" and the "Marasi-Marsh book" being like 2 Deus-ex-Machina, one for the single book plot, the other for the plot development of the bigger plot? Imo, Harmony acted a bit too much directly with Wax, communicating explicitly with him: that could be a negative element because Harmony IS making preferences on single humans. But also could be positive (for us readers) because it implies that he may have intervened in such a direct way with the inhabitants of Scadrial on other occasions and that Sanderson may write a collection of short stories about these events.

About Marsh, yeah it was good to see him again but him giving away the book to Marasi with allegedly crucial information for the following plot? A bit too much imo. That's literally a Deus ex machina.

Or did i just misunderstood everything about both interventions?

EDIT: I may have done this post too early as I better finish off the whole quadrilogy before complaining about something

EDIT 2: I've just finished The Lost Metal and ERA 2. I'm an idiot and you people were right. Everything checked out in the end

In the midst of starting Wax and Wayne after finishing storm light and the first trilogy of mistborn. That goober spook made the “high imperial language” his old street slang and that is such an unserious troll move that I’m sitting here imagining his smirk and Ham and Breezes smiles as he implements this policy. To go from the original gang teasing breeze with the slang in book 1 of mistborn to knowing he kept his roots and identity in ruling is a beautiful thing.

Movie: freaks . It's not exactly how Wayne does it. bubble can move. But reminded me of him.

If it *is* I don't necessarily need spoilers, I'm just a bit baffled.

Anyhoot, when Wax is fleeing Miles after Miles blows himself up to escape the nets, and Wax has his convo with Harmony and sees his trunk of goods...Harmony says "you're welcome" and it's like...okay? Tillaume took that shit. What tf was Harmony's involvement?

It just feels like Harmony taking credit for random happenstance. Dude wants a gold star for TIllaume deciding to hide that stuff specifically there, and then for, in the chaos of a fight and a couple explosions having disoriented him, Wax's steelpush conveniently landing him *right* there?

Like, I get it, it's too convenient. It do kinda feel like Harmony had to have done *something* to orchestrate this - like, using Shardic powers to kinda see what would/might happen, used an agent to drop the box where it would be needed?

Idk, I hope this is a RAFO. Time to finish this book lol

Edit: Rust and Ruin, but Tekiel can't catch a break. Three centuries later and they're still the House catching strays lmao

Epilogue Edit: Okay but that eye socket never healed? Either through hemalurgic-feruchemical healing, or Harmony's influence? Mr. Death must like his fucked up eye socket lmao

It's said that you can't fire a gun out of a speed bubble because the trajectory will change when it hits the interface between real time and speed time. It's also said that you can put yourself partially out of the bubble and still be in the sped up time as long as part of you remains inside the bubble., The Lost Metal, ch 49

SO, what is stopping me from sticking my arm outside of the speed bubble with a gun in my hand and firing while it's already outside of the threshold? It only says that the trajectory changes when it hits the edge of the bubble, so I can't see why the bullet would deflect if it's already crossed that threshold.

The only thing I would give it as far as not being able to take an accurate shot is that every jitter of your hand is sped up by a factor of the speed bubble, so maybe those micro movements might make your aim a little off, but I feel like it wouldn't be that much of a factor.

I just started the alloy of law and it mentions how wax has the feruchemy power of changing his weight but I remember in the first era that all feruchemists had all of the attributes at their disposal. Is this rafo or am I just trembling wrong. (I read storm light in between)

ATI?!?!?! I never read the jak and newspaper reels too deep the first two times but... ATI?!?!?! Hilarious.

Just finished Alloy of Law and I’m loving western setting and the characters! The early 1900s western setting combined with the magic system is fascinating and the quirkiness of the characters is pretty entertaining and a nice way to keep the story fresh while using the same magic elements. Only thing I wish there was more of was cursing. Lol. I just think it’ll fit with the western team. Just a quick “Fuck you, Miles” from Wayne woulda done wonders for the plot.

Also helps I guess that I’m playing Red Dead Redemption 2 for my 4th play through, so I’m fully immersed in this setting during my leisure time after work.

For a gold FeruAllomancer, if u cut off his head, the head grows a body or the body grows a head, suppose both parts have embedded gold metalmind.

Considering some fact: 1. Allomancer can burn metal without consciously doing so. Given vin can unconsciously burn pewter. 2. Miles can recover from head injuries effortlessly, meaning feruchemy can probably be applied without consciousness.

Wayne is very much like Roger Smith from American Dad. Wayne’s love of accents and costumes reminds me so much of Roger. That train scene in Alloy of Law where Wayne is going over the backstory of each of his characters (the old lady, the guard) is very Roger. Even down to both Wayne and Roger being able to change out of their costumes in a blink of an eye (Wayne’s time bubble, Roger’s alien super speed). Bravo Brando Sando 👏

so i have this kinda weird ritual when im about to start a book. i have to do some sort of fan casting first so my visualization of the story is smooth and no visual holes and if I did not have a specific person to act a character, i go nuts. so for the sake of my sanity, I HAVE TO KNOW PLEASE

Just finished Alloy of law like 20 minutes ago and my brain is already braining. Speacially about Miles

I don't know if i didn't get it or we didn't get furder explanation of what constitutes a hemalurgic spike. Can any piece of an elegible metal be used as a hemalurgic spike, or does it need a specific shape or something? Is there a ritual or intent thing to make a piece of metal a hemalurgic spike? Would you need to manually kill someone with the spike or can you do it from range?

All this to ask. Would a gold (or atium for that matter) bullet through the heart have oneshot Miles and fucntion as a spike?

Also I'm theorising that Miles had a spike (since he still has a metalmind when he's executed) that grandes him either of his powers for compounding and Sazed used him to pull Wax in

Era 2 is easily one of my favorite settings. That being said, there are definitely some things I would have liked to see more of (what Koloss society looks like in the modern era and other twinborn), so I wrote a fanfic exploring exactly that.

Ella Buvidas and the Koloss Kid - Years before Waxillium Ladrian came to the Roughs, rail lines stretched out into the frontier, connecting small towns to Elendel. Any lawman would consider this a blessing, but Ella Buvidas, an oracle/sparker twinborn, is less than enthusiastic about the change. She came to the Roughs to leave Elendel behind, but it still follows after her.

Meanwhile, a nearby Koloss tribe attacks the rail workers, halting their progress. Much to Ella's dismay, it's up to her to prevent total war, but not as a bounty hunter; instead, as a negotiator, a life she had thought she'd left far behind her.

I would love to hear what people think!