I'm not complaining or ripping on Demandred. He did the job that was expected of him. Standard fantasy villain job fulfulled. He would have been much more impressive to me had he had more time on screen over several books. I just didn't love the whole "surprise I'm here with an unstoppable force and a super sa'angreal" bit. I would have been cool if he had been around long enough to make the Sharans more of a threat. It goes to my feeling that the entire finale just felt rushed. I am sad that there was a huge chunk of the plot that took place off screen, why show us Demandreds compassion/love for the Sharans but never explain it beyond some trite dribbles.

As to the sword fights, they fly in the face of Demandreds thought process about being a general in WH. Imperfect Ter'angreal that would not have given G/G/L much advantage if Demandred had chosen to,just Balefire their asses.

Graendal's plot would have worked as well as they did regardless of Demandred showing up with the Sharans. Her manipulations are what drove the Light back to Merrilor. Couple that with her being an actual character throughout the series and you have a fully flushed out character who accomplished some solid evil deeds. Not to mention she was a badass at Shayol Ghul ... And she had a demise that was quite fitting for her