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beautifulterriblequeen · 3 years ago

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Runaan: *does a battle dance* Me, 3 years later: Nice

I have found thee coolest thing today! It's badass, it's graceful, it's terrifying, and it was hiding in plain sight right under my nose, every time I rewatched TDP.

How very Moonshadow.

Okay, from the top: I've had headcanons for a long time now about Runaan probably using various little magic tricks in combat, or to avoid combat, that the big gust of wind that blew out the torches in Harrow's stairwell was created using some kind of enchantment, perhaps from a horn cuff, and that Ethari's swirlies are literally enchantments he engraves in metal to keep his husband safe somehow and that's why he loves putting them in everything he makes: the more swirlies Runaan is wearing, the more tricky tricks he has to ensure he'll come home to Ethari in one piece.

Today, watching S1E3 again, something clicked, and Lady Serotonin has blessed me with her presence. Seems that those headcanons are all tied together, and that there's much much more to what Runaan was capable of doing in battle - as long as he had all the swirlies Ethari had given him, and moonlight to activate them in.

You guys remember this Completely Extra Showmanship tee emm that Runaan displayed atop the wall before literally running down the side of it and crashing directly into Rayla's swords with his own?

Right at that last pic, when Runaan's leaping off from the wall at her, there's a pretty big sound effect. I usually watch and listen with everything down pretty low for sensory reasons, but today I had the volume up, and I realized (after almost three years in this fandom, how many times have I rewatched this show, I admit that sound is Hard tee emm for me sometimes, but GAH) that the noise that happens when Runaan's blades clash with Rayla's isn't just some dramatic collision noise. It's an actual thunderclap. It's definitely not the noise of four swords literally smacking together, not even close.

Ahaha, echoes of thunder, anyone? Yeah.

I had to stop and listen to it several times and try to figure out why it was there. I had an express train of thought that went like this, in about 12 seconds flat, and left me literally clutching my head and swearing in amazement:

bahaha Runaan has a lightning enchantment jewel in his bowblade

omg wait does he??

no, no jewels, but SWIRLIES

are. are they really enchantments after all, all of them, does Runaan really have that many spells he can yeet off if he needs them

Ethari would not like me questioning his loyalty and dedication to Runaan coming home alive all the time, no wonder he loves putting swirlies in everything

holyshitholyshit Runaan just cast a thunderclap at Rayla, no wonder she's grumpy at him in the next shot

HOLYSHIT RUNAAN CAN JUST MAKE THUNDERCLAPS IN BATTLE?? SHOCK AND FRIGGING AWE

that wind spell might have literally come from his hair cuff after all, are you kidding me rn

okay thunder and wind, these are nature sounds

it sounds like forces of nature or... acts of God fate? definitely not elf sounds, Runaan's using the illusions of natural elements to obscure his true actions and mislead the enemy

just like mystica arbora, trees are natural

no no wait wait no wait I'm missing something

because he said "Mystica Arbora" out loud, but he didn't say anything on the castle roof, what, what did he do up th-

holyshit all over again

Runaan wasn't being Extra for no reason, he was being Extra for good reason

Rayla danced with Callum to open the Silvergrove cloaking spell

Callum copied a dance from an elf who activated the Moonhenge on a floor covered with big swirlies

Runaan wasn't slish slashing randomly, he was dancing to activate his thunderclap enchantment

is this why Runaan is such a pretty fighter, because it's literally a dance battle every time?? the answer is yes!

hhhhhhhhhhelpmeeeeee

is every dance literally enchanting, then, because that actually makes sense, the moon is constantly circling and spinning so Moonshadow elves doing the same thing to activate their inherent magic would be so cool

this is why Moonshadow elves get the Elf Grace distinction in Tales of Xadia isn't it

okay so wedding dance, it's an enchantment or a spell then, or a bunch of spells? what do they do, aaaaaaaa

okay but I can't stop thinking about the Moonhenge, those swirlies on the floor

are those runes on that floor then, is that the deal, and if those are runes, then

does that mean all of Ethari's swirlies are dance moves??

Omg whew, that was a ride.

Basically, it looks like Runaan can activate some pretty fun stuff to help him out, just by dancing the right patterns in the moonlight. If all his enchantments are nature-based, I wonder what else he can do. Could he summon an illusory banther or a flock of birds? How about a fog bank? Could he make it rain bananas? Don't look at me like that, you know it would be very distracting! Echoing, ghostly voices could be fun, or the flickering lights spell from ToX, or-

You get it. Nature-based shenaniganry ftw. This is gonna be so much fun for fics.

Also, I do want to mention that there's no way to be certain that any of the things Runaan can create in the light of the full moon come from Ethari's enchantments. Maybe Runaan can just do that as a trained assassin, and Ethari's enchantments are for other things, like good sleep, warm feet, no blisters, no infections, sweet dreams, swift running, staying alert, and so on.

meta: Runaan danced the key for his thunderclap enchantment, and it released without needing a verbal trigger word

theory: Runaan dances enchantments in moonlit battle

headcanon: Ethari's swirlies are his crib notes

#tdp meta #tdp theory #tdp headcanons #runaan #ethari #moonshadow elves #moon magic #ruthari #excuse me sir that is my bullshit and i need to get on it stat #and i fortunately know a little magic. it's a talent that i always have possessed

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krixel · 4 years ago

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The amount of partially started WIPs I have for TDP is both painful and hilarious. My obsessive attention is currently focused elsewhere (Jason Todd / Red Hood) but I was scrolling through projects to try and inspire myself, and had totally forgotten about starting this one. So, here’s a snippet.

From the platform of the Sunforge, Ethari watched Runaan fall. The assassin leader’s back was turned, his focus distracted by the human abomination bearing down on Rayla. He didn’t notice the one charging for him. Ethari thought he might have screamed - perhaps Runaan’s name, or just a wordless, panicked cry. Or maybe nothing, the sound lodged in his throat, a desperate, defeated silence.

Whatever the case, it didn’t help Runaan. The monster slammed into him, crushing his side as Runaan turned at the last moment, too slow to do anything but brace for impact. Ethari hoped, maybe, the hit would knock him clear, give him space to make a retreat, but it just knocked him down.

Runaan disappeared beneath the cluster of fighting soldiers, a mix of Sunfires and Moonshadows standing against the corrupted human monsters. A few Skywings swooped overhead, but the alliance to reclaim the Sunforge belonged to the border kingdoms and the allies they scraped together.

“Craftsman, what’s the hold up?”

Ethari continued to stare at the position he’d last seen his husband, willed Runaan to reappear - spring back to his feet like he so often did. “What?”

“They’re bringing the sun staff,” said the man beside him. “Is it ready?”

Rayla, having seen the attack against Runaan’s exposed back, had cut a path towards his position. Ethari’s heart was in his throat, struggling for room against the silenced scream. He couldn’t just watch. “I have to go,” he said, climbing to his feet and ignoring the startled looks of those around him.

“Is it complete?” A voice asked.

Another echoed, “your duty is to this task.”

“My duty is to my family,” Ethari said. “I’ve done all I can here.”

#runaan #ethari #ruthari #tdp snippet #my writing #my wips

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blutopaz15 · 4 years ago

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You asked for prompts? Rayllum watching tdp on TV while cuddling?

I’m a sucker for cuddles, @critical-rayllum!!!! Also, this is ~so~ tempting to turn into a whole entire ~thing~ omg. That would make my brain to do too much logic-ing about how they got here though, so for now enjoy a snippet of cuddly rayllum! Enjoy! :)

———

“Uh...you’re not who I thought...you’re one of those, with the pointy...”

“Oh, you don’t like my ears?”

“No, I mean, yeah. Yes, I do, I guess. I meant...I meant the pointy...swords.”

Callum gulped, preparing for his second time through the wringer so far, as Rayla reached above her head to the arm of the sofa, fingers blindly fumbling for the pause button. He squeezed at her shins, which were strewn across his lap, and affixed an attempt at an innocent-looking smile to his face.

The frame froze as on-screen Rayla poked those particularly pointy swords in his direction and real-life Rayla shot him an equally pointy glare. His panic lessened, though, when her lips pursed into the tiniest smirk. Her ankles pressed against the side of his leg for leverage as she pulled herself up, and a lock of white hair swung forward just far enough to brush his cheek when she overshot her mark. Her elbows made their way to rest on her knees as she settled in a seated pose, looking at him expectantly.

“Well?” she asked. He had to wonder if she really meant to flutter her eyelashes at him like that or if that was just a happy, adorable coincidence. “What do you have to say for yourself?”

“What?” he started, reaching for the unruly piece of her hair that had escaped to tickle against his cheek a moment ago. He looped it behind her ear and back in place, lingering a moment with the tip of his finger against the soft skin at the tip of her ear. Her smirk shifted into a tiny smile as she raised her shoulder closer to her ear and edged ticklishly away from his touch. “I said I liked them, didn’t I?” He cringed when his voice cracked.

“Uh huh.” She echoed his touch, her eyes fondly watching her finger trace around the edge of his ear. She pressed his earlobe between her fingers and gave a brief tug. He wasn’t sure if that was a tease or a threat, even when she leaned forward to whisper the next words into his ear. “What were you actually going to say?”

When she replaced her fingers with her lips, he sucked in a sharp breath, the air cold on its way past his lips. Rayla hummed an amused little sigh as she put a few inches between them again. He slotted his elbow between her side and the couch behind them and let his hand fall against her, pressing her soft hair against the back of her neck for a moment before drifting up to run his fingers across her horn.

“These stood out a little more than the ears at first sight,” he shrugged, his fingers stroking momentarily again the smooth surface before pulling a piece of her hair away to twirl around his fingers instead.

“Like those too?” She asked, a dreamy little smile across her lips that told him she already knew the answer. Callum released the lock of hair he’d been messing with and pressed his fingers gently against her temple so that she’d lean closer. He chuckled into her hair as he laid a kiss there.

“Like those too,” he agreed.

#ficlet #rayllum #critical-rayllum #asks #au #though i don't know exactly what's going on in this au hahah #tried to stay at like 500ish words #hope you enjoy!!#again if anyone wants to send me fluffy little rayllum prompts #you're welcome to!

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rins-rambles · 6 years ago

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TDP Actor AU

I miss writing these, so of course I do one for my next favorite hyperfixated show

General

Callum and Ezran’s actors are actually brothers. Since they worked incredibly well together in their auditions they were both chosen to play the roles of the princes’.

This is Ezran’s actors first major acting role

Funnily enough, Claudia and Soren’s actors aren’t related, but many have mistaken them to be actual siblings. Claudia’s actress has called Soren’s actor her “brother from another mother” on her social media plenty of times.

They actually worked together on other shows/movies where they played siblings, so of course it comes naturally to them

Ezran actually acts with a Bait plushie that he now doesn’t go anywhere on set without.

Claudia actually dyed that section of her hair purple, and let Ezran’s actor paint her nails. Although she wears a wig, Rayla’s actress really wants to dye her hair white, and Claudia gives her tips.

A lot of the humor coming from Soren is usually ad-libbed by his actor. Since he sometimes comes up with something funnier than what the writers intended, they sometimes just write “Soren does/says something” and let his actor go wild

Rayla’s actress was a gymnast, which is how she moves so agilely and begged the crew to let her do her own stunts. She was allowed this freedom, but in certain fight scenes they have a stunt double doing the work.

Callum’s actor thought Rayla was just really good at mimicking accents, but she really does have a Scottish accent.

Rayla, Callum, Ezran, Soren, and Claudia’s actors when not on set like to joke around, especially “casting” magic. But instead of saying the spell, they often say, “You’re watching the Disney Channel!”

Claudia and Viren find that the dark spells are just sentences played backwards is both really cool but also creepy

One problem some of the elven actors face is when their horns would fall off during scenes, sometimes for no reason. There are lots of blooper takes so far when this happens, to the point where the actors yell “point!” every time it happens, since they made a bet to the staff that if they would get at least a total of five horn drops in a season, then they would have to treat the actors to a restaurant.

All the elf actors have to wear what they call a “finger glove” over their pinky, so their finger can be CG’d out to show that they only have four fingers. In far away scenes, they don’t worry about it so much, but on close ups, they have to wear the finger glove.

Season 1

Echoes of Thunder

Callum’s actor integrated his photographic memory and love for art into his character, and the writers went with it

The baker that Ezran steals jelly tarts from is actually one of the directors for the show

Claudia’s actress says that when playing Claudia, she’s literally just being herself.

She says that one time in the past, she did end up running into a tree when reading a book. Her father videotaped it and forever has proof.

Runaan’s hair has gotten caught and tangled with his surroundings on more than one occasion. His horns also sometimes gets tangled in his hair

Harrow and Viren’s actors are old friends, and were surprised to see each other on set when shooting their first scene together. That scene happened to be when Viren goes to offer to switch his soul with Harrow’s

Harrow’s actor begged to be able to throw in the “winter is coming” line, since he’s a huge GoT fan.

However after he’s killed off, he asks the writers if they intentionally made him the Ned Stark of this show because of it.

Pip is actually all CGI, since Harrow’s actor is allergic to birds. But he does have a cat that he calls Pip.

Callum’s actor had a hard time not tearing up when he had to say goodbye to Harrow.

Rayla’s actor tends drops her weapons more often than the other actors do

What Is Done

The two guards who are talking with each other about breakfast are actually some of the writers.

Ezran just made up the combination for the “stone rock”

Claudia was just told to act like she hated the jelly, and while it tasted a bit like oranges, she called it persimmons, because she doesn’t like those fruits

Claudia has a bit of a hard time moving in her dress down the stairs and nearly tripped a few times. So she was glad that later on her outfit gets changed

But she always liked filming the part where she treats her hand like a flashlight.

Moonrise

The egg is actually lighter than it looks, made out of thin 3D printed plastic and carefully painted

Viren and Harrow’s actors could barely keep a straight face when Harrow orders Viren “on his knees”, which is why the cameras use more close ups of their faces, since one of the other was trying hard not to crack up

In order to get the “dark” moonshadow elf look, Runaan and Rayla’s actors actually have to get more makeup applied on them, and then get layered on with CGI. They’re both less than pleased about having to spend more time in the makeup chair, but they put up with it.

Callum actually has a hard time saying the spells, because he would sometime stumble on the words. A majority of the blooper reels are of him messing up.

Everyone off set made jokes about Callum being Ariel while Viren was Ursula after Viren takes his voice

Bloodthirsty

Amaya’s actress is actually deaf, and was the first choice to play her character which she happily accepted. She has a brother in the army, and bases some of Amaya’s characteristics off of him.

She’s grown close to Ezran and Callum’s actors, teaching them ASL and starting to treat them like they’re her actual nephews

Gren’s actor is a close friend with Amaya’s actress, and is usually the one who translates for her outside and during work

The loaf of bread Amaya describes as “weapons grade” is actually a loaf of bread one of the staff members baked, but left it out for too long, so it hardened. They decided to throw that into the script.

The snail armor line was actually an argument Ezran and Callum had when they were younger

Rayla’s actress was sad when the writers forced her character to cut her braid, since she would spend some time off set to braid it herself

Rayla almost teared up when her character calls Callum out on saying she’s a monster

The cube is made out of thin metal, and there are lights inside that glow when someone off set hits a switch

An Empty Throne

Rayla’s actress does get a bit motion sick, but not to the extent that her character does

The boat ride the three ride on is shot on something like Roaring Rapids

However, the drop from the small waterfall and the close ups on the actors faces were done on green screens

Amaya’s actress enjoys how much her character calls out Viren on his bullshit.

Sarai’s actress and Amaya are actually related to each other, and Amaya’s signing to her statue are how she feels about her sister. It’s also thanks to her sister that she even got into the acting industry.

Through the Ice

Ezran’s actor has an idea of what the talk about “sandwiches” indicates, although when he asks his brother to clarify, he changes the subject

Callum’s actor had to sit down a few times because he lost his breath when performing the Aspiro spell

Rayla’s actress doesn’t like looking at her hand, because she doesn’t like the bruising color it leaves behind.

Running up the stairs and stretching is how Soren’s actor usually prepares to play Soren

His history is like a see-saw line is ad-libbed which threw of Viren’s actor and he had to adjust to that line

Offset, Claudia occasionally does call Soren “Sor-bear”

The Dagger and the Wolf

Ezran’s actor loves animals, and hopes to either be a veterinarian or an animal caretaker if he ever stops acting

The huge swordsman used to be a wrestler, and agreed to play this part as a favor to one of the writer’s who’s their acquaintance.

Rayla’s actress had a blast playing “human Rayla”, and the lines that made it in were improvised.

When getting an idea for Ava and Ellis, the girl who gave the writers some pointers ended up getting the role of Ellis, while her companion wolf got Ava

Cursed Caldera

Callum’s actor claims he had the best pun about the Cursed Caldera and everyone else was just jealous at how good it was

Rayla’s actress hates slugs and was not fond of seeing the CGI monster she’d have to fight off

Runaan’s actor admits that he didn’t like filming his scenes when he’s imprisoned, mainly because he was always cold without a top on. He thinks that the writers purposefully had him without a shirt for many different reasons

It takes roughly three hours in the makeup chair for Viren to get his “corrupted” form done

Wonderstorm

Claudia genuinely thought the “Ka-tallest mountain” line was hilarious which made it easier for her to really laugh on set

Rayla’s actress literally booked it off the set when the mummified person hisses at her

For the effect of the spider-roar, Ezran had to stand in front of a large leaf blower and he actually enjoyed that part, thinking it was funny

While the actors thought that the spiders looked cool, they admitted that they would never want to see them ever get that big

Callum’s “jerkface dance” is actually something one of the writers did for their siblings whenever they had to apologize. Callum is particularly proud of how he got down the movements in three tries.

The actors all cooed when they got to see what Zym looked like and all demanded that stuffed versions of him would be made available and they’d get theirs first

Lujanne’s actress claims she likes wearing the elven horns more than the ears

She likes to think Phoe-Phoe is based off of her own pet bird that she allowed the team to use as a reference

#tdp actor au #the dragon prince #tdp #tdp shitpost #callum #rayla #ezran #soren #claudia #viren #harrow #amaya

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royaltealovingkookiness · 6 years ago

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Hey, I really love your analyses, they're so insightful!! I was wondering, do you have any thoughts on the parallel of both Zuko and Callum falling into a restless fever from trying to change their destinies? (P.s. The Dragon Prince season 2 was amazing, and I have a feeling it'll become on par with AtLA by the end of it)

Thanks so much, Nonnie! I had to quickly close your ask, because I wasn’t finished yet with TDP and I haven’t seen that episode yet. Now I watched it - though it’s still pretty fresh in my head, all whirling around. I’ll probably have more coherent thoughts once it settled down a little, but here is a first reaction:

Yes, the parallel and contrast between Zuko’s and Callum’s fever were definitely there. They were coming from opposite ends - Zuko started out believing that he had no choice - his only path to his destiny was the one given to him by his father and that was to capture the Avatar (destroying something pure - the equivalent of dark magic in TDP). Callum on the other hand started out with endless choices and no clear destiny, until he stumbles upon his own calling. He wants to be a mage, the first thing that feels right for him. But he knows also that his path is not dark magic. So when Callum chooses to save Rayla with dark magic, he acts in contradiction who he believes he is at his core, just like Zuko does, when he frees Appa.

This is kind of the intersection of their different stories - Callum for the first time feels like he may have locked himself into the path of dark magic with no escape, while Zuko for the first time sees that he has a choice over his own destiny. They are both battling with this idea that it’s up to them to be willing to let go of something they want very badly (Zuko his honour, Callum his magic) in order to be truly free. (This also echoes the idea of the Thought Chakra in The Guru, where in order to access cosmic energy, ‘you must learn to let go’.)

The choice between the different paths is there in the imagery, as Callum sees his dark magic self, Zuko sees his unscarred Fire Lord image. The voices of their father figures King Harrow and Iroh are also playing a similar role, to remind them that they write their own destiny.

I also see definitely a parallel with the drowning images; Zuko lets go of the Blue Spirit (the mask he’s hidden his true self behind), and Callum’s real self is drowning, because he doesn’t want to accept dark magic, but also doesn’t want to let go of his destiny as mage.

While this is not from Zuko’s fever dream, but I also thought it was significant that their missing mothers were the reminder of their true core - that unconditional, pure love is a way to access the energy needed to define their own paths.

And just as in the case of Zuko, the choice is not necessarily between his destiny and his goodness, but rather about redefining his destiny on his own terms, the same is true for Callum. By willing to let go of the easy lure of the dark magic, he opens himself up to something different, a pure connection to magic.

I loved the contrast with the storyline of Claudia and Soren. Soren, who was locked into a terrible path (having to kill the princes) seems so relieved to have the choice taken away from him. Not being able to choose anymore brings him freedom. And the tearful confession of Claudia to Ezran about their mother, and the “choice” they were offered is a stark reminder, how sometimes choice is an illusion.

I love TDP. The storytelling is amazing, there are so many layers, and the characters are great. Even the villains are relatable, nothing is black and white, just people trying to do their best. Every time you think you figured out the answer, there is a narrative curveball that makes you think again, and that’s awesome in my book.

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sol1056 · 6 years ago

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anons on the dragon prince

Yes, we all know the comparison points, so I’m skipping those to focus solely on tDP. Alright, starting from the top.

It does speak volumes [...] that tDP has seemingly (and unless proven otherwise in s2 by a fan theory coming true) killed one of a major CoC after only 3 episodes [but] the fandom, and PoC fans more importantly, still trust Ehasz/Wonderstorm and the story to not let them down ...

I was talking to someone the other day who DM’d me about finally seeing tDP, who said something along the lines of “I feel like I can breathe.” Which isn’t that far off what @ptw30 and I were telling each other, when we binge-watched tDP the night of its release.

First episode, we were both a little ennnhhh over the animation style. Second episode, we barely noticed that anymore. Third episode, everything went to hell in a handbasket and yet our shared reaction was something along the lines of, “I feel like I can settle in, and let the story go where it’s going. I don’t have to stress about this. The writers have got this.”

Think of being a passenger when the driver isn’t sure where they’re going. They slow repeatedly to check road signs, show an ‘ehhhh oh right no no we’re fine’ expression (or say it out loud), or switch lanes back and forth unexpectedly. Eventually you’re going to give serious thought to pulling out your phone and offering to navigate, just so someone in the car has a clue. Failing that, you end up worrying whether you’ll get there on time (or at all).

Not once did tDP give me the remotest worry about where it’s going. Even if it seems counterintuitive that we could get to a Manhattan happy ending by way of a Brooklyn character death, the story must have a good reason. We can relax and enjoy the trip.

It’s hard to pin down what creates that trust for an audience, because it’s so many things. It’s a combination of setups and payoffs. It’s getting emotional beats at regular intervals. It’s having questions raised and getting just enough answered that you don’t feel like the story is covering for not actually knowing and/or hoping you won’t notice it’s making things up as it goes along.

More behind the cut: tDP’s handling of race, who’s right vs wrong, and whether tDP’s storytelling can/will surpass AtLA.

I rewatched The Dragon Prince recently and it's amazing how carefully they show racism in only 9 episodes [where other shows failed in multiple seasons]. You can see what happens when people in charge care not only about their own characters, but also the audience following their story.

It’s a very thoughtful story, in the sense that the writers clearly put a great deal of thought into each character’s perspective and place. General Amaya is a walking poster child for How To Do This Shit Right Yo, as is Ava. It makes sense that no less attention was paid to the potentially complicated issue of racism, and how viewers’ real-world experiences would impact and layer on top of what the story is trying to do.

I mean, tDP could’ve decided that Amaya would be deaf... and then proceed to make up its own sign language. Or that magic could (and should) heal disabilities. When the story did neither, it told me the writing team is aware stories don’t exist in a vacuum: that disabled viewers have also been waiting to see themselves on screen, as characters with agency, treated with respect.

(The lack of subtitles for Amaya may’ve confused those of us who don’t know ASL, but it was absolutely a gift to those who do. It was saying: hey, this is just for you. All those times you’ve missed something that hearing people take for granted? Now’s your turn to be the one in the know. And come on, that’s just awesome.)

Will tDP stumble at some point? Sure. Stories and people are complex things, and the world is a thousand times more so. It’s not the stumbling that bothers me. It’s when a story is thoughtless, because it won’t even recognize its stumbles, let alone fix them.

I really struggle with liking the show, specifically because it seems to take the stance that the elf girl was "right" to betray the other elves (leading to the slaughter of her entire team). beyond the pain of the ribbon, she doesn't seem to show any sadness or remorse, and then it seems that the human characters are quick to condemn the elf assassins, instead of the king's slaughter of the dragon king. what writing purpose does this serve?

It serves to prompt exactly what you’re doing: asking questions.

The story is full of conflicting interpretations of events, actions, reactions, and motivations if you just think twice. The humans may fear the elves, and do their best to prevent the elves from succeeding --- but Harrow acknowledged explicitly that it’s not as though the elves don’t have just cause. Harrow wasn’t going to go down easy, but I saw no condemnation on his part upon the elves’ retaliation for human crimes.

Callum argued with Harrow over why Harrow couldn’t just ‘make peace.’ When Rayla shows Runaan the egg and demands Runaan call everything off, isn’t she effectively arguing the same thing? Additionally, Rayla went into the castle determined to make up for her failing; if she’d succeeded in her mission (especially with Callum’s misdirection), it’d be a very short story, indeed. Instead, the three protagonists end up unified in their hope that this could prevent any further bloodshed.

Note that I say ‘further’ because what is done, and out of their control, is done. Rayla didn’t act out of a wish to betray; when she choose not to assassinate the prince, she acted out of a hope there could be peace. When the first ribbon falls off and the messenger-arrow flies overhead, Rayla’s assumption makes sense, based on those two details: her team achieved at least one of their goals. We don’t know their fate (other than Runaan), but it also sets up a later plot-point where Rayla discovers the team did not, in fact, all return intact.

For that matter, by the time she learns those details (and concludes who won and who lost), she’s already befriended the princes. From the very first scene, it’s clear Rayla isn’t cut out for this assassination business. She’s incapable of seeing targets. As Ezran later notes, she sees people as, well, people, even when they’re strangers. Is it really so surprising that she’d waffle even more, once those strangers have become something nearing friends, or at least allies?

So she chooses to keep silent, and her motivation is wonderfully complex, from a writer’s perspective. She wants peace, and believes returning the egg will do that, so reminding the two princes of her role in their father’s death would alienate them, and put her desires at risk. She likes the princes by that point, and doesn’t want to hurt them with such news. And she’s also feeling guilty for the part she played, especially knowing her secret (not just of failing her mission but of preventing anyone else from succeeding) is probably already known.

Most of that thought process seems to get decided early in the journey. After that, Rayla goes through all the stages as she realizes the consequences of failing to fulfill a sacred oath: anger, bargaining, grief. At the end, Rayla weighs the two options --- keeping her hand, vs killing someone innocent of any crime --- and decides her hand is a small sacrifice in comparison.

(Note that thematically, this is echoed in Ava’s story. Ava’s paw was caught in a trap, and escaping came at the cost of her paw. Yet Ava remains perfect as she is, and it’s only other people who require Ava appear to be whole. Part of the reason for going up the mountain is to save the egg, but Rayla also implies she wishes she could save her hand, too. Ava’s story is telling us that such a disability doesn’t and shouldn’t render Rayla broken or useless.)

Alongside that, the boys don’t seem to have fully put together their father’s role in the current situation. I think Callum might have (in a roundabout way), but not so much for Ezran. It’s a process, though. First we’re shown the princes were raised with a bias they’ve never had reason to question, about elves being bloodthirsty monsters. The story lets Rayla call them on it and express her hurt, and the boys are remorseful.

The story also doesn’t position Callum (as human) as always knowing the rightness of things; hell, it takes Rayla calling him a mage before he even realizes the meaning of what he’s done. The story also shows the boys are eager to learn (and willing to question their assumptions), when Callum asks Rayla what it’s like in her country.

By the end of S1, both princes have worked their way through several points: from ‘all elves are bad’ to ‘Rayla is the one exception’ to ‘maybe elves aren’t the monsters we were told they are.’ The next logical step is for them to begin questioning their father’s actions. Like you, the story is leading them into questioning things that they took for granted when the story began.

That’s the purpose of creating a story where perspective shifts with each new character: the story is rewarding you for digging deeper.

A story that doesn’t want those questions raised --- that isn’t prepared to grapple with them --- would tell you from the get-go, “elves are plain evil, that’s all there is to it.” Or, “humans are always good and their actions are righteous.” Any hint of a conflicting perspective would eventually be revealed as false within the story, or a minor oversight outside the story.

Where tDP is so well-crafted is that it’s given everything enough layers and conflicts that poking at the story reveals more underneath. All you have to do is give it a bit of thought, and you can see a larger picture, and that larger story’s view may be tilted from what you’ve seen so far, if not flipped outright (or flipped back again). That’s the beauty of a large cast where each character has their own motivation, agency, reasons and beliefs and assumptions: there’s always another side to things.

That’s what makes a story truly rich and deep. Not the worldbuilding, not the complexity of the final solution, not the number of product placements or jokes or high-octane fight sequences. It’s characters with individual perspectives and motivations, agreeing and conflicting per their own purposes, and each one seeing themselves as the hero of their own story.

...what is it about TDP that makes it a good show for you? What is it you like about it, what about it pulls you in? And would you say it's on par or close to the quality of Avatar?

I think my answers above have probably already covered your question, but I’ll add this: I think tDP has potential to not just be ‘on par’ with Avatar but to leave it far, far behind.

I mean, AtLA is already ten years old. In 2003, Ehasz’ credits consisted of three freelance episodes for two shows, and one episode as a staff writer. That’s it. That he catapulted from that to head-of-story for AtLA speaks to a definite talent --- but of course he’d get better from there, with ten intervening years of continuing to hone his craft.

I’d say there are two places where it’s most apparent: exposition and humor. While I (mostly) like AtLA, the exposition could be somewhat clunky. It needed to be in there, but it wasn’t always quite as deft as I would’ve liked, in terms of combining information with characterization.

The writing in tDP is far superlative in that regard. We get exposition, yes, but it's not delivering answers so much as answering one thing to raise ten more questions. There are almost no “as you know Bob” exchanges. When Rayla talks about what her country is like, it’s exposition, but it’s also a wonderful characterization moment; Rayla’s love for her world shines through, along with a certain ambivalence about her place in that world.

The other place Ehasz has improved a thousand-fold is his humor. One of the things I hated most about AtLA was its use of bathos: taking a serious moment and turning on a dime to crack a joke and trivialize the moment. (Sokka was the worst offender, but no character was immune.) As AtLA went on, the story scaled back on that, but it still raised its head often enough to make me wince.

In contrast, tDP’s humor is seamlessly organic. When Rayla yells, “I’m not falling for that flashing frog trick again!” she’s deadly serious, but that makes the bizarre phrase even funnier. When Gren translates Amaya’s sarcasm and has a beat in which he’s clearly trying to find a family-friendly way to translate “bullshit”... that beat is the joke. We don’t need someone gesticulating wildly to tell us it’s funny.

At the same time, Ehasz is clearly unafraid, now, to let the serious moments be. He doesn’t trivialize the characters’ emotions with a joke; the story isn’t afraid we’ll see it as cheesy or asinine -- as less -- when it’s being sincere.

As Carol Burnett once put it, comedy is tragedy at a distance. What tDP is doing isn’t comedy in that sense, where the characters themselves (as AtLA often did) use humor to distance themselves. Instead, it’s humor most often in one of three modes.

One is when a character intends to crack a joke: Soren and Claudia jibing each other, or Callum attempting to lighten everyone’s spirits. This is kept relatively light, so it’s not a constant thing, as if too much levity is to be feared.

The second is simply a witty delivery, like Rayla when her temper’s up. She doesn’t deliver the line “I’m habsolutely hurious” as if she expects a laugh; she is angry, after all. Or when Soren decides to let Callum 'win’ the bout: Soren’s melodramatic as all get out, but he’s not mocking Callum, for whom impressing Claudia is a big deal. Soren’s dramatic words and over-acting are actually a wonderfully compact characterization that tells us a whole lot in a single scene of what someone should expect when Soren tries to ‘help’.

In the penultimate episode, when Rayla accepts the consequences of her choice and decides she’s okay with paying, this is a significant emotional beat. Her conclusion is... well, it makes sense given her thoughts to this point.

But it’s also a blunt and rather startling way to put it. Again, this isn’t cracking a joke to create distance from emotion. It’s wittier than that.

Ezran’s shock as he registers the words is barely two frames. Any longer and it’d be overplayed. Between basically saying someone's friendship is worth a body part, and Ezran’s half-beat of shock, the combination definitely startled a laugh out of me.

And here’s the thing: in AtLA, one of the two would’ve cracked a joke. The story would’ve backed away from what really, underneath, is a pretty phenomenal admission. Not just of friendship, but also of how Rayla herself has changed so significantly between when she made that oath, versus where she sits now.

Ezran’s response is both funny (again, in a witty sense) but also just as heartfelt. It’s also extremely telling in terms of Ezran’s characterization.

The one character most likely to crack a joke --- Callum --- doesn’t always, either. In fact, sometimes he’s remarkably vulnerable and honest in ways Sokka, his spiritual predecessor, wasn’t allowed to be. At the same point that Ezran and Rayla are having their heart-to-heart, Callum’s admitting freely that he doesn’t have immense power; he just has a swirly stone that does the work for him. He doesn’t make a joke of Ellis’ compliment, nor make fun of himself.

Ellis’ line was delivered seriously, as she has every reason to believe her perspective is true. If Callum were to joke, he’d be mocking her sincerity, and the story is willing to respect that Callum is someone who responds to sincerity with sincerity of his own.

In a word, tDP is unafraid of its own heart.

#the dragon prince #analysis

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echo-of-the-eye · 1 month ago

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(Not tagging as tdp critical cause I genuinely want to see other people’s perspectives on this)

Am I the only one who doesn’t like that they made bird harrow canon?? Everyone I’ve seen seems to just be happy that the theory turned out true, which I get, but it’s such a bad story move?? Like. Surely I can’t be the only one who sees that? It undercuts how devastating a loss harrow was and bringing him back would be?!? So weird.

I think my main problem is how they did it. Like they treated it as a joke. And it was a funny fan theory, but the more you think about it the implications of it are quite horrific. Especially the betrayal by Viren. Like. If they treated it more as a horrific revelation and preferably showed us the scene of Viren doing the spell I MIGHT have been ok with it. But I’m still not sure where they’re gonna go with this.

I just. Don’t understand. Why.

#am I overreacting?!?!!#cause my initial reaction was just bafflement and then anger #I hate it #but no one else seems to??#is everyone just riding the hype of a years long fan theory being confirmed and not considering the implications of it??#or is there something I’m not seeing?#the dragon prince #tdp #tdp spoilers #tdp s7 spoilers #bird harrow #echoing thoughts #echoing thoughts tdp

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sunstone-nerding · 5 years ago

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TDP S3 Trailer Reactions

The trailer did its job. I am excited! Some thoughts under the cut.

Viren what happened to your eye holy shit. Even his restoration/glamour spell couldn't hide it. (Something about cracked mirrors...?)

Viren's uncharacteristic smirk closeup and his general poise in the throne room speech makes me wonder if Aaravos is doing a little more than whispering in his ear. Or maybe all Viren needed to feel that confident was a powerful, secret would-be lover ally.

Claudia says something worrying to Soren: "We're all that's left of our family." Does Viren expend himself in a blaze of dark magic glory? Is that the eclipse-looking thing? I would be sad to see Viren go, because he's such a complex character, but that would be a fitting end for him -- and one that he might be happy enough with. My partner pointed out that his body may not last much longer, anyway. (Maybe that's what is happening at 1:37. It could also be a magic- or Aaravos-induced dream or vision.)

Claudia gets a Sun staff. Humans get heat-being mode, maybe to make them fireproof (but they were not, apparently, immune to dragonfire). Also Kasef what happened to your hand. This is all disturbing.

However, Amaya wielding a Sunforge blade has any of several implications, and I'm eager to find out which ones are true.

Is Rayla shoring up Callum's crappy disguise with love newfound illusion magic? It resembles the dance of the Moonshadow echoes in Lujanne's historia viventum spell.

FLUFFY FELINE MOUNT.

I am intrigued by the androgynous sky mage, the one who says, "We'll need all the help we can get." The lady who picks up Zym is cute, too.

Ezran rejoining Callum and Rayla was a little unexpected, but not surprising, because this is ostensibly a kid's show. I feel neutral about this fact. I love that Lady Sun Dragon decided to ally with him, though.

#tdp #the dragon prince #tdp s3 trailer

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quarterdollar · 6 years ago

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TDP season 2 talk under the cut. i enjoyed it overall! i do want to critique some things though

really liked the themes of trust and responsibility. what was most refreshing was rayla not forcing callum to save the dragon with her if he didn’t feel up to it; she was doing what was right for her in the moment, and she didn’t shame him for not feeling up to the task. he was allowed to come to his own conclusion and joined when he felt empowered enough to do so

the moon: is relevant in the ATLA writers’ tv show

me: This Is Not Going To End Well :)

claudia is such a great character! she cares about her friends and her brother so MUCH when she Did That for soren i LOST IT she’s such a good girl

why is this show so weird about killing animals though. do hunters not exist? it’s not like claud is murdering swaths of innocent animals purely for the thrill of it. she’s taking only what she needs and doing so respectfully. fuck vegans dark magic is cool

the five kage summit meeting of the monarchs was a nice insight into the other kingdoms AND we got SARAI CONTENT FINALLY UGH DAMN

BRING HER BACK WHAT THE FUCK.

which brings me to my NEXT point which is probably my biggest criticism and that is that while it’s cool that we got to see a same-sex couple, they are relatively minor characters and also no longer living. i do love their daughter, but i was :( tbh

hopefully there will be more in the future but i’m gonna try not to get my hopes up cuz i don’t wanna ruin the show for myself which i guess is sad but?? i’m just trying to live......

i’m glad they finally let corvus do things he’s such a nice guy. hopefully he does MORE things next season. also handsome :)

soren-induced depression...he’s too good for his dad

EZRAN-INDUCED DEPRESSION......WHEN CALLUM WAS GIVIN HIM A TALK TRYING TO BREAK IT TO HIM...AND IT GETS REVEALED THAT HE WAS ECHOING HARROW’S WORDS WHEN SARAI DIED.......

THAT ONE SHOT OF “PIP”. THAT SPLIT SECOND WHERE HE ESCAPED THE CAGE. HE IS ALIVE OR SO HELP ME

this season said fuck you if you stan runaan lmao. i don’t really have an opinion beyond thinking that he’s pretty though so

ok now im gonna be on my bullshit

viren

no really. viren i love you

divorcé icon!!!

god he sucks so hard. but you can tell he isn’t 100% terrible, just too set in his pragmatic ways and frustrated that they aren’t working. now that he’s met an Even More Evil guy on spirit skype i’m hoping he’ll either become too far gone OR realize where he went wrong and try being kinder. hopefully the latter because i have feelings for h

“he was a beautiful king” this line killed me i was honestly Viren Are You Kidding Me out loud. thanks

HARROW

he WAS (and IS) a beautiful king

we got such a LOOK into what he went through and how he thought and he was such a GOOD MAN oh my GOD

if he’s 100% dead for real i am going to be pissed this is not a joke.

he is too good to be gone forever

aaravos

i was neutral on him like i saw him in promo art and his design looked cool but i was like whatever

and then

he opened

his mouth

and whoever made that decision to make him sound Like That did it for me

AND ALL OF HIS SCENES ALSO FEATURED VIREN LIKE??? quarter rights!!

he’s one of those intentionally mysterious villainy types huh........if he has any extra bug airpods. i am AVAILABLE

real talk though i either think he’ll be a really cool greater evil that will unite the human kingdoms and xadia OR his presence will somehow bungle the human/elf relations nonsense and Ruin everything. if he’s operating independently of the elves that is preferable

i am going to be optimistic though. he’s handsome and he looks like space!! i want to love him. just let him be an evil wizard guy

#shitpost #the dragon prince #tdp spoilers #the dragon prince spoilers

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ian-the-existential-crisis · 6 years ago

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Angst #14– for any Ship/Character/OC. Up to you.

“If I were to have a real daughter, I imagine she would look a lot like you.” Renona's mother, Casca, said with a voice that echoed through her dreamscape. Her voice was strong, powerful, not something anyone would expect from the four foot halfling abomination. But to Renona is was also soothing.

It had to be a dream.

Renona knew that Casca had died long ago. But when she opened her eyes, there her mother sat, very much alive. Her eyes cold, gray, and filled with mischief that followed every move with that criticizing stare. Her skin soft, pale, and flawless without the wrinkles that usually plagued others her age. Her own blonde hair held no hint of gray as she let the shoulder length strands fall freely to her shoulders. Yes, this was Casca. Her mother, the creator of all of them.

“My beautiful Renona, you look so real.” Her small hand reached out, ushering Renona to her. “So little like your brothers and sisters. So much like our child should look like.”

“Mother?” Renona whispered. She let herself slowly descend to the floor so she could sit in front of her mother. “I don't understand. Why have you created me like this?”

“You need to blend in.” Renona flinched feeling those nimble fingers run through her dirty blonde hair. “I need you to be human enough to help bring about your father's reign. I know I won't live to see the day, but he shall rule the world once more. I need you, my wonderful Renona, fight in my stead and win for us. Make us proud.”

Those words. They were the ones that Casca used to say to her when she was younger. The more Renona thought about it, the less dreamlike this was. It was a memory she wished she could bury.

Renona shivered. That's right, she wasn't really their daughter. She was nothing more than a machine to help bring about the end of the world. Her life wasn't real. Nothing she did was by choice. It was all encrypted programming. Commands that her mother entered into her long before she was actually Renona, dictating every aspect of her life.

“You're so much more that just a bunch of bolts and wires.”

The dream shifted, but Renona knew the voice. Those words that had changed everything.

The Traitor, Artemis as she called herself, reminded her of that. On the green hill of the guardians, that overlooked the world, the Brown haired vampire had reminded her.

“So what if you were made for evil. That doesn't make you evil.”

Renona didn't want to believe her at first. But�� if everything she did was truly programmed into her, Artemis would already be dead. But she stopped her spell, midcast, to listen. Her mother hadn't programmed her for that. She lived to kill everyone who got in the way of setting her father free from the hell he had been imprisoned in for the last three hundred years. But she still stopped for no reason.

Artemis was the first one to tell her, maybe not in so many words, that her life was her own. And for that, she would change everything she was meant to be. She would become a traitor to her own as well, dedicating her life to the person who saved her. She didn't need to know the brunette's goal. It was clear enough what she was trying to do.

This time the words she wanted to hear, the same ones that her mother had told her were left unspoken.

‘Figh for me. Win for me.’

So I don't usually do an A/N on prompts but this one is special. Originally I had no idea what to do with this. I was going to do a TDP ficlet but I don't know if you are in the fandom. So I decided on this. This is not how the story ends. I am wary about using the Ocs of others after many issues but know that it isn't Renona x Artie. There is only one person for Renona.

#ask #light of my life #insert-dadpun #prompt #fluff and angst #i think this turned out more fluff than angst #oc #oc babbles #renona the last #for the people who have never read my oc babbles before #renona is a sentient construct #shes basically a midevil android #ien viciously man handles words #uses any chance to write about my ocs #this has like three more pages to it #technically ive been writing this for about a year now #but again issues have forced me to stop and rewrite

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raayllum · 2 years ago

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So once I got done crying over Rayla’s letter from Through The Moon finally being released, combing over for cuteness and sad tragic parallels and all, I lingered on one of the last paragraphs, which reads:

You’re starting to stir, and the moon is almost gone. I have to go, but the sky is the strangest colour—purple and gray and gold all mixed together, like there’s a storm wrapped around the sunrise. I’m not describing it right. It sounds awful, but it’s beautiful. I hope it’s still that colour when you wake up. I hope you see it before you see this letter.

This paragraph struck me as vaguely odd, although certainly not out of character. Rayla is delaying what she feels to be the inevitable, lingering as much as she can (at this point it’s clear she hasn’t slept at all and wants to go before dawn), perhaps more of an artistic eye and appreciation thanks to Callum’s influence. (“It sounds incredible” “Yeah, yeah, it is” boat scene callback anyone?)

But I lingered on the line specifically because it mentioned the Storm, which is such a loaded symbol in TDP with echoes of thunder, Callum and sky magic, even the chaotic calm Callum and Rayla provide each other over the course of the series; Rayla waiting for him once he comes out of the storm, her leaving during one, the lightning strike in 2x04, the rain in 2x07 with dark magic and the fallen dragon.

Then I thought about everything a bit more, and well:

the sky is the strangest colour—purple and gray and gold all mixed together

and well, there are exactly two characters with those specific colour schemes.

You could also loop in Claudia, although she doesn’t quite have the same grey/silvery white in her design that the other two have. However, I am leaning towards Aaravos partially because he is the unknown storm Rayla is running right at (she wants to kill Viren, but has no idea what storm is actually waiting to be unleashed in Aaravos being freed from his mirror).

So, with that line of foreshadowing in mind, the passage is saying that Callum will see Aaravos before he sees Rayla again, which seems the surefire way S4 is heading, at this rate.

I am also going to offer up Aaravos specifically because of what Rayla says here, regarding:

I remember how I felt when my parents left me to join the Dragonguard, like PART OF MY HEART WAS MISSING and I would never feel right again [...] But, if it does—if you feel that soft aching—know that that piece of your heart isn’t missing. It’s not missing at all, Callum: I’m carrying it with me! Always.

Of course, there’s the obvious Ruthari parallel ( “My heart goes out with this one”) but Aaravos is also, very plainly, missing a piece of his star right where his chest (metaphorical heart) would be.

The kids have also thought powerful displays of dark magic (specifically, Claudia’s tracking spell) were aesthetically beautiful, even if it spelled potential doom for their future: “Dark forces are pursuing you” “Do you understand? We’ll lose everything.” (A tracking spell that was only possible because they had something of Rayla’s to use, I might add.)

Basically a very long winded way of saying I think a kinda otherwise random paragraph in Rayla’s letter is actually stealthy foreshadowing for how Callum and Rayla’s fates individually and together are going to continue to be tethered to Aaravos’ plotline and goals in S4.

#rayllum #aaravos #they need a foil tag hmm maybe #devil and the lovers #bc of the tarot associations??#tdp #the dragon prince #tdp shorts #tdp spoilers #analysis series #mini meta #probably not as impressive as i made it out to be but listen i was losing my shit #parallels #cube hostage exchange theory #adjacently as always #not at home with the dead or the living #predictions #dear callum

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