#also rayla sure did look stunning this season

[trash--cannot3]

Yeah

Why is aaravos so sassy? Both season 4 and season 5 he roasted people

[fandomsandflyingstingrays]

Full thoughts on season 7! (Or at least, as many as I can remember, sleep-deprived and emotional as I am)

Starting off positive: things I liked!

THE RUTHARI REUNION WAS EVERYTHING

Runaan's gentle kiss to Ethari's hand? The way the camera rotated around them for their kiss?? Their hug afterwards??? Ethari's little "my heart"???? This was worth the six-year wait

The moonfam in general was one of my favorite things about this season. Runaan calling Rayla his daughter again, his and Ethari's unconditional support of her, the way they interacted with Callum... it was exactly what I dreamed of

And speaking of Runaan: his speech to Ezran in 7x09 will be living in my head forever. The way his tears weren't pretty, they were real. The was he said "I'm alive". It was such a stunning conclusion to his arc

On that note: the voice acting? Spectacular. Callum and Soren had me in floods of tears when they met in the ruins of Katolis. And don't even get me started on Zubeia during her fight with Avizandum

The lighting and music were also so on-point

TERRY'S REDEMPTION ARC LET'S GO

His speech to Claudia was stunning

Also, his "hello, Zuko here" moment made me cackle

I love that he and Soren are on their way to friendship, I always thought they'd get along

I also really liked that Aanya was present throughout the season! Every time she was in an action scene I was screaming

I thought the plotline with Miyana being pregnant was really interesting, because it presents a moral dilemma that isn't explored a lot. Plus, the way Karim reacted, calling the baby his heir and never his child, was very telling of his mindset and priorities

This is going to sound really weird, but I loved the moment of Rayla taking up Runaan's bow to fulfill his promise. Like, obviously it's tragic and I was in tears, but also, it really shows her respecting Callum's agency? She was able to respect his choice and put his wishes above her own needs, and it was cool to see

I'm so glad they addressed the bird theory. There was way too much of a focus on Pip for it not to go somewhere

Things I disliked:

There were times when the animation really threw me off. Like, after Callum froze all the guards in 7x02 and they were trying to break free, they were just... tapping the ice with their weapons. Really slowly. It kind of axed any urgency. And during Ezran's speech at the end, some of the characters in the background were just... done in a completely different style? I'm sure it was a reference to something, but as someone who doesn't know what that was, it really took me out of what was supposed to be an important scene

There was a lot of explaining things over and over. Yes, we know Aaravos never lies, you don't have to keep telling us. Yes, we know the Orphan Queen wielded the nova blade, you don't have to keep telling us. Yes, we know people are not all good or all evil. You used to be really good at showing that instead of making speeches about it once an episode

Also just a lot of monologuing? Like, why did Callum have to explain in detail to Aaravos his plan to trap him before he did it? I know we the audience needed to know but from a strategic point of view, it was... not the smartest he's ever been. It would have made more sense if he was trying to explain it to Rayla, I think

It didn't really... feel like a finale. They left a lot of loose ends open, and beyond that, it felt like there was very little payoff for things that had been set up throughout the arc. Why did we spend two seasons looking for the nova blade if we were never going to use it? Why did we spend all arc foreshadowing Callum's corruption if it was never going to happen? I get that they left it for arc 3, but even so, the resolution of an arc should still feel like a resolution, much like arc 1 did

(Also, are we ever going to come back to that hallucination Callum had? Like, is he not at all concerned by the fact that he had a conversation with himself with seemingly no magical involvement?)

I wish we had gotten to see Anya act like a person. It was great to have her around, but it felt like she was in queen mode the entire time, and I'm really curious about who she is beyond the crown

Finally- the thing that I disliked the most was the way things with Callum, Ezran, Rayla, and Runaan were handled in 7x02, because it made it very hard for me to root for Callum and Rayla afterwards. I totally understand that Rayla has an attachment to Runaan and Callum has an attachment to Rayla, but neither of them seemed to actually consider Ezran at all. Like, here is this twelve-year-old boy, who just lost the home he lived in his entire life. Who lost his father at a very young age and, as a direct result, was forced into a responsibility that he absolutely should not have had to carry. I feel like at the very least the people who are supposed to love him the most could say, "hey, I understand that you're angry" instead of treating him like he's totally unreasonable. And then! They just leave him! A twelve-year-old who just lost his entire home! Who has literally no other family! And whenever they talk about mending things, it's never, "oh, I'm sorry I left, I'm sorry I never took time to validate how you were feeling", it was just "we're family, we'll find our way back to each other eventually". That's not how it works. When there's a hurt like that, you don't just stop being angry without coming to an understanding. I love Runaan, and I wanted him to be free and happy, but I also think that he did in fact commit a murder (yes, technically just of a bird, but he didn't know that) and it's reasonable to expect him to face some consequences. Even if it's just, like, community service. You can be merciful without condoning

But just to be clear: I have absolutely no ill will for anyone with different views on this plot point. My frustration with it is more from a personal perspective than a writing one- my dad was killed a few years ago, so I'm siding with Ezran from an emotional standpoint. But I thought the plot was worth mentioning, since it really affected how I viewed the rest of the season

Overall, as a season, book 7 had a lot of moments that I really loved and will be rewatching very often. But as a potential sendoff, it didn't really leave me with much of a sense of closure. Fingers crossed for arc 3, I suppose!

[flourchildwrites]

have you started watching dragon prince's new season?

Hey, @an-unexpected-trollogy!  I’m glad you remembered that I’m a fan of the show.  I just finished season 3, and despite the controversy, some rushed pacing and a few odd jokes…

Warning!  Spoilers under the cut!

I debated whether I wanted to watch season 3, but obviously, I did.

I still enjoy the inclusiveness of this show.  General Amaya was the sassy, bad-ass (possibly wlw) aunt I never had.  My heart swelled during that scene where she held Janai back, saying with actions rather than words that she truly understood the depth of Janai’s loss.  And this kiss between Runaan and Ethari… AMAZING.  Their body language was sincere and felt natural.  I teared up a little at the softness of it all.

Litte Ezran is now King Ezran, long may he reign as the rightful king!  Though young, he made hard decisions and stepped outside the shadow of expectation.  And he grew up.  No longer just a child who steals tarts from the kitchen, this boy comes into his own and still retains the best qualities of being young and flexible in his approach.

And can we talk about Soren’s character development?  He started off the series as this jock-like jerk, and the conflict mounted within him through seasons 1 and 2.  I was particularly troubled in season 2 when he expressed relief upon being paralyzed because it gave him an excuse to not confront the terrible, terrible mission his father had forced upon him.  Yet, in season 3, Soren did not forget and forgive; he didn’t give himself an out when the power-dynamic in Katolis shifted in his father’s favor.

He said this:  “I’ve known Viren longer than anyone here.  I mean, because he’s my dad, but it took me a long time to understand who my Dad really is.  And it was hard to see because I really…  I really looked up to him.  He’s smart and the way he talks, you really believe that he’s a good person, that everything he does is to protect his family, his home or all of humanity.  He makes you think that as long as you do what he says, you must be doing the right thing.  Even when he asks you to do something bad, something evil.  So, the truth is, someone who wants you to do horrible things and convinces you that they’re good, that’s a villain.  My Dad… is a villain…”

Overall, I also enjoyed the fast pace of season 3, especially when compared to the heavy character development in season 2.  It’s a nice change.  And if, in fact, there is no more Dragon Prince to come, most of the plot threads are loosely tied up.  Perhaps, not as tightly as one would like, but this season did give me a sense of resolution regarding a major conflict dictated in the first season.

Still, I hope we learn more about Aaravos.  And on that note, I LOVE when the person you thought was the big bad at the outset is revealed as the pawn of something bigger and bad-er, re:  Viren and Aaravos.  False climaxes for the win!  There’s still so much to learn about this world, and I would love to see it come together in such a stunning animation style!

But…  I have my concerns.  The biggest one is Rayllum.

I have expressed my view of this ship before, and unfortunately, season three did little to dissuade me that these two make more sense as friends.  Put bluntly, the foreshadowing isn’t there in season 2, and the spectre of what could have been built looms over this ship like a Debbie-downer rain cloud.  It’s too much, too fast, and I can only suspect this is because the creators really weren’t sure if there would be a season 4.  

In terms of the show’s timeline, it seems like only yesterday that Callum was on his date with Claudia.  And, rightly so, he discarded his childhood crush in light of Claudia’s laissez-faire dark magic opinions.  That’s gonna totally come back to bite her, and I’d like to see a single Callum as part of that conversation.  But he moves on so quickly.  It felt almost like… a rebound.  And, let’s be honest.  Rayla deserves more than falling head over heels for a sudden, “you’re a hero” line.  I wanted Callum and Rayla to put the work in.  But that didn’t happen.  😪

In sum, there’s so much to love in The Dragon Prince, and there are a few things going on in the background that cast a long, dark shadow.  I hope the sun comes out and we get more fantastic fantasy content.

[river-of-asgard]

The Dragon Prince S2

So I just finished binging TDP S2, and I have Thoughts. And Feelings. And I need to get them down somewhere. Fair warning: Here there be spoilers.

Gods. Where to start. Okay.

I love the pacing of the story, to start. This feels like a story which, when all is said and done, is going to happen over the course of a few months at best, and I love it. There's a lot of things happening in this world, a lot of huge things, paradigm-shifting things, and it's kinda amazing to see them happening at the pace they're happening.

General Amaya. Gods I love General Amaya. And I love how nobody treats her any different, even though she's deaf, and how her soldiers all know sign to communicate with her. I wish like hell we had subtitles translating when sign is happening around her, but I feel like that adds to everything about her--there's even a moment during the flashbacks where she and Sarai have an exchange about Harrow, which he doesn't understand, and they just giggle and shrug it off, like you would when talking about someone behind their back in front of them in another language. And I love the moment in the first episode, when the soldier warns her about the Sunfire elves behind him with a subtle thumb motion in their direction. Even if that's not actually sign language, it's clear enough, and she completely understood him, and I think that was beautifully done.

Ezran and the dragon's connection is incredible. I've no doubt that THAT is what will eventually lead to lasting peace between the human kingdoms and Xadia. Plus, Ezran's ability to communicate with animals seems an awful lot like magic to me, and I'm curious to see how that develops.

Gods, so many pop culture references in this season. Ellis saying, "Don't you forget about me! Don't, don't, don't, don't!" Rayla trying to explain her connection to moon magic to Callum, complete with a straight-up Sailor Moon reference. I'll have to watch to catch more, but the writers saw their opportunities and took them, 100%, and I love them for it.

I totally ship Callum and Rayla. I've kinda been shipping them since S1, but even moreso after this season. I'm calling it "Raylum" and I will absolutely go down with that ship.

CALLUM! CALLUM CALLUM CALLUM CALLUUUUUUUM!! Callum the mage! Callum the human mage! Callum the mage who can use Sky magic even though humans aren't supposed to be able to use primal magic! AAAAAAHHHHHH CALLUM! And that whole vision quest he went on after using Dark magic was creepy as fuck but beautifully done and I was seeing touches of the other magics there, too. I want to see him using ALL the primal magic by the end of the series. Please please please please

Claudia and Soren. Poor, poor Claudia and Soren. Soren...sweet boy, but dumber than a box of rocks. He just wants Viren's approval, and I hope it doesnt destroy him trying to get it, because Viren is a narcissist to say the least, and trying to win the love and approval of a narcissist only leads to pain. And Claudia! I've always felt squicky about her use of Dark magic, and what she did to heal Soren at the end of the season...oh, poor girl. I don't want to witness her self-destruction, but I think I see it coming, and it's gonna break my heart.

Viren. Holy shit Viren. Or should I say, Viren and Aaravados (I probably got his name wrong but you know who I mean). Admittedly, I thought that elf was female at first, but whatever, minor details. His look is stunning. I have a feeling we have our true villain in him, with him working with/through Viren, and I'm also about 90% certain we're going to see Viren self-destruct by the end of the series, likely bringing A through to the physical plane.

LESBIAN QUEENS WHO HAVE A DAUGHTER WHO IS NOW A CHILD QUEEN. HOLY FUCK I DIDN'T KNOW HOW MUCH I NEEDED TO SEE INTERRACIAL LESBIAN QUEENS WHO NOBODY BATS AN EYE AT. THIS SHOW IS FUCKING *KILLING IT* WHEN IT COMES TO REPRESENTATION.

Strangely, I'm completely unconcerned by the fact that the season ended with Rayla and Callum facing down what appears to be a sun/fire dragon. They have the dragon prince with them. They'll be fine. Whatevs.

I'm pretty sure Corvus is going to become one of my favorite characters in the series. Gren is getting there, too. "I could think of myself as being chained down...or I could think of myself as being chained UP!" Hahaha. Oh Gren. You're so damn precious.

I literally just finished watching this season, and I already want to watch it again. I want the next season out already. Waiting for the next 5 seasons (cause c'mon, they're totally following the Avatar setup, and there's 7 types of magic, sooooo) is going to be so hard. I love this show. The fight scenes are amazing, the characters are incredible, the story is even more compelling now that we're past the expository season 1... I just love it. I can't wait to see more.

[johnfaa]

Review: The Dragon Prince Season 2 [Spoilers]

Season 2 is so much better than season 1 and yet still has ways to go.

I’ve just finished watching season 2 and that was such a better, smoother ride than season 1, which felt clumsy, unfunny and unmemorable. I honestly had zero expectations and didn’t even intend to watch season 2. But I’m glad I did. It was damn fun.

It’s almost too tempting to compare TDP with A:TLA or even LoK, but if I do this, than the standards are waaaaay above the narrative quality that’s been given to us on TDP, so I’ll try and refrain to do this as much as possible, and instead talk about this show as a solo piece (although I’m pretty sure Callum is the first Avatar of TDP universe, but nevermind that -- ruling over certain elements is a dead old trope in Fantasy writing and nothing special to A:TLA).

Aside from the dad jokes that are repeated throughout the season -- and some “shout out” jokes that completely break my suspension of disbelief (see “one does not simply walk into Xadia”) -- this season was much stronger comedy-wise. I actually laughed out loud at some parts. The narrative is finally weaving itself into more meaning than just “look at this group of misfits in an adventure!”.

The characters are more rounded and less cookie-cuttered, with Callum being the one that literally grew a personality since season 1. Rayla still has ways to go, she has been left to the side on this season, which bothers me a little. We’ve had two seasons of TDP already and I still feel like she is barely more than your generic elf companion on an adventure, guiding the main characters somewhere, with some comedy slapped into her. I need a lot more from a character than comedy and badassery, tbh. Ezran got the most growth, I guess, even though Callum is the “magical boy” on this show. The now young king was the most consistent character since the beginning, and he remains so.

As for our anti-heroes (and not necessarily villains), Claudia and Soren, it’s... okay, I guess? I feel like the writers are trying to make a point here, much like with Zuko, but it’s not coming across very... elegantly, or even convincingly. I honestly still haven’t made up my mind about those two. I still can’t quite put my finger on what’s wrong with their character arc yet.

There was a lot more worldbuilding this season. I always wondered why TDP felt so bland and forgettable to me, and I think a huge part of this feeling stems from the fact that the creators chose a medieval European setting for this story with absolutely all of its old ass tropes (I believe the only thing missing are dwarves) and it’s pretty hard to have an original, interesting take on this. Combine this setting with some queasy writing, and you have TDP season 1.

I can’t talk with a lot of property about the “backstage” of TDP -- I wouldn’t even say that I’m a “casual fan”, I wasn’t a fan at all up until maybe S2E3, when it dawned on me that wait, they actually had a mission to accomplish that I felt invested in!

I’m still getting used to the graphics. But not gonna lie, elves look GORGEOUS, especially the new villain/Evil Queen Mirror Stand In/prisoner of some lost war/Space elf with his absolutely stunning visuals. The dragons were also beautiful. Aesthetically speaking, this season was also more pleasing than its predecessor.

I still miss depth. Even though, aesthetically speaking, this show is “darker” than other animated shows out there targeted for the same age group, I feel like the storyline and the messages are very... basic. Or at least, they’re delivered in a very straight-forward, basic form. They still over-explain things. They still tell, don’t show. They don’t trust the audience to make simple deductions without having a character blatantly explain it to us, and that was painfully evident it the last couple of episodes.

Having said all of that, I still enjoyed it. Maybe I’ll rewatch it to have a second perspective on it. I didn’t know I would end up writing this little review, it was never my intention (hell, I didn’t even intend to watch it!), but here we are.

I really, really hope that as the series progresses, it will also improve in narrative quality. Season 1 was like a 4 out of 10 for me, honestly. This season is a solid 7. I hope season 3 becomes a 9!

[idkmanjustdabit]

so I just finished The Dragon Prince and here’s some thoughts:

Pros:

Jack did an amazing job voicing Callum I’m so proud

The animation was so different than anything I’ve ever seen, and looked so good on the elves, monsters, and dark magic users

The lore is very intriguing and reminds me a lot of ATLA

Rayla’s character is so thought out and interesting and beautiful and I would lay my life down for her tbh

Each of the main characters have a purpose and role to play, and are not just there for show and I love it

The deaf representation! I absolutely loved it!!!

It had me laughing out loud and even tearing up at some points, A+ on that

Cons:

Sometimes the animation seemed a little choppy and not flowing together nicely and took me out of the scene momentarily

Some of the dialogue was just odd and out of place

The voice acting was not incredible, sometimes it felt like the actors just read the line once and moved on

The way the characters interacted was also confusing at times, like how they’d dislike each other one second but then the next immediately trust them and be on their side. I wish they could have built those moments up.

WHY DOES THE KING HAVE SUCH LAME ASS HELP HE DIDN’T HAVE TO DIE I’M SUING

Both of the sibling relationships sometimes seemed a little weird and not that well built upon

The music was absolutely stunning but again, sometimes seemed out of place in some scenes

I hope we get to see more about the sources of magic and how the magic works exactly and how Ezran can talk to animals-but I’m sure it’ll get explained in the next season

Lastly-the whole story seemed a little rushed. I wish they could have gotten a few more episodes to really have flushed out the characters and environment and everything more. After all, we’re just meeting them.

All in all-I give it a 7.5/10. I will definitely be watching the next season.

And Rayla is my new child thank you.