#tdp themes

[beautifulterriblequeen]

Brittle - a Narrative of Strength theory

We've all seen the explosion in the S6 trailer by now. Something very big is going BOOM.

And I think I know what it is.

See the ledge in the foreground of the above image? See the ridges on the green hills in the distance? We've seen this before.

I think this is the same ledge that Rayla sat on when she tried to cut off her binding ribbon back in S1.

Remember what she could see from that vantage point, in the distance?

In this recent theory post, I compared the Cosmic Order to King Harrow's Narrative of Strength - two versions of the same concept. And ages ago I had fun creating the theory that Harrow's Narrative of Strength is represented by his castle (Banther Lodge = Narrative of Love).

Lads, I've been thinking about Katolis Castle getting destroyed for five years.

I am so very excited right now. Do I still have time to fill Viren's old dungeon with popcorn kernels?

Speculation time: who blows it up, and how does Ezran handle losing all those chains of rulership?

[1lovepeace]

With 13 days left until the premiere of TDP S5 and SDCC, we're most likely getting 1 or 2 more short stories and perhaps some surprises about our characters. After reading the new short story, Deep Below, and learning about Ezran's own extreme emotional turmoil and conflict. We see how Ezran feels so much anger and hurt

But it got me wondering about how Rayla is going to handle her very own extreme emotional conflicts and negative feelings in all of this as well, knowing she has her own severe conflicts and extreme tormented emotions about her family because of all the separation and fragmentation they've had. Like she's happy and relieved that they're alive, but deep beneath the surface of her heart, she's likely having to process her own negative feelings such as hurt, anger, resentment, and bitterness towards her family for what they put her through. We possibly might get that in the new short story next week.

I don't know what's about to happen with this, but what I do know is that it's gonna be an extremely massive and monumental mess. Where so many emotions are gonna run high for our main trio. Let the main trio be angry and bitter. Let them be an absolute angry and grieving mess. They've held in their hurt, pain, anger, and bitterness for far too long.

[beautifulterriblequeen]

This feels like a Theme. Callum did dark magic when he was 14, should he be punished for not knowing any better? Claudia learned to see living beings as spell components from a dad she adored, should she be punished for not knowing any better? Rayla did her best to be just like the dad who took her under his wing and became an assassin, should she be punished for not knowing any better? Viren learned dark magic when he was young as a way to finally mean something, should he be punished for not knowing any better? Runaan took up the assassin way when he was young and swore to die keeping his people safe so no one else would have to kill anyone, should he be punished for not knowing any better? Soren learned to be a jerk trying to get his dad to love him, should he be punished for not knowing any better?

It's a good question. I think we can put Anak Arow in with the others for it.

We never saw Sol Regem in Aaravos' version of the story. I wonder if he was still a little dragon, who either thought he was doing the right thing based on what he was taught, or happened to mentioned it to the wrong people by accident. Maybe he wasn't malicious, and had no idea Leola would be punished so harshly.

[pendovah]

[its-leethee]

viren, season 6: the sacrifice... oh... it's unthinkable.

claudia, season 7: unthinkable is just another kind of thinkable.

[evilmskitty]

My friend held me at gunpoint and said “Watch all 7 seasons of the Dragon Prince”

Damn it

It’s good af (send help)

[beautifulterriblequeen]

My own pregnancy trauma is not bothered whatsoever by whatever Viren has going on with spawning Sir Sparklepuff so I actually love this idea and I'm glad someone else has seen it as well. It seems extremely clear that Aaravos got that caterpillar positioned just right for those blasts of Sun magic to kick it into a growth cycle.

The extra fun part is: though Aaravos claimed that he dealt with Aditi by swallowing her, so what does that mean in light of the fact that Viren swallowed Aaravos too? Is she a part of him? Did he burp her back out in a different shape as well? Is he kinda sorta her dad now?

is that why his double diamonds symbol is all over Katolis

Sorry but I need to revisit the growth cycle of Wormvaros/Sir Sparklepuff

I know literally no one likes to think about this because it occupies that deeply weird niche where "visceral body horror" and "uncomfortable awareness that someone out there has this fetish" overlap but bear with me.

Back in the post-s3 days, I concluded that Wormvaros grows due to crossing into Xadia where magic is plentiful, basically absorbing magic and funneling it to Aaravos, which is why Aaravos has Viren go after powerful magic sources in the Sunforge and Zym. Then I just kind of never thought about it again.

But that's wasn't even accurate then: Wormvaros starts growing at a very specific point, and that point is somewhere between when Aaravos and Viren discuss visiting Lux Aurea and when the Sunforge is corrupted. Before that, it doesn't grow at all.

When Aaravos is pitching the plan to Trojan Horse into Lux Aurea, Wormvaros is his regular 2-inch or so Hot Topic earcuff size:

Then when it emerges at the Sunforge, it's suddenly like... a solid 2 feet long? I'll spare all of us the disgorgement shot, here it is crawling up Viren's arm for scale:

Now, the timeline of events in this series is... fuzzy, at best, but I don't think it's incorrect to interpret that the entire Lux Aurea business takes place in a single day. At the least, I think the Sunforge corruption and Viren walking back to the camp are the same day. By that point, Wormvaros has already grown into a jaunty scarf. By sometime mid-next day, it has attained its full drag show fabulous feather boa status.

Wormvaros grows exponentially within the 18-24 hours between the Sunforge and the final battle, presumably feeding/having fed on the massive source of corrupted magic that was formerly the Sun nexus. Except that's not quite right, either: Wormvaros has already had its first growth spurt before the Sunforge is corrupted.

Also just to quickly go over this scene in light of s5... Wormvaros bites Pharos, and the corruption then goes from Pharos to the Sun primal stone in the staff, and from there to the Sunforge itself. The artbook, of all places, notes that Pharos (there just "Sunfire High Priest") has a "direct connection to the Sun primal [that] helps him channel the incalculable power of the Sunforge."

The "direct connection to the Sun primal" bit is I think a bit misleading, since that should describe... every Sun primal mage, at minimum. Channeling the power of the Sunforge, however, explains the transmission of the corruption. It's not an accident of proximity that makes Wormvaros go for Pharos, it's that there has to be a transmission vector from Wormvaros to the Sunforge, and it's Pharos's arcanum during this ritual where the Sunforge's power is brought to bear.

But anyway, back to Wormvaros's growth. Viren is also exposed to the power of the Sunforge when he's tested in the throne room, though on a smaller scale. I bet that's when Wormvaros starts to feed.

I still think the magic has to be corrupted to be of use to Aaravos's specific purpose, here: neither the Sunforge nor the staff are diminished, so the power is either being replenished as fast as it's consumed or the corruption was itself the act of consumption. I feel like you could even say that the corruption of Sunforge power also happens in the throne room test ritual, in that whatever power from the Sunforge reaches Wormvaros where it's hiding inside Viren, it could easily have been filtered through and affected by Viren's own corruption.

On the one hand, all of this means that by whatever method Wormvaros... got inside Viren to Trojan Horse into Lux Aurea, it was still comfortably small at the time. On the other hand, it also means Wormvaros grew to like 10x its former size in the space of a few hours, while inside. Which... hhhnnnnnrrggh.

No, don't leave yet. I promise I have an additional point that's not just making everyone exquisitely uncomfortable about mpreg.

Wormvaros goes from a static, growthless state to a period of rapid maturing when exposed to the Sunforge. The Sun primal. The sun. After some time it returns to a similar hibernating state in the chrysalis. And then:

Hmmm.

[chaikachi]

Quick outfit swap for two wizard boys. I think they'd make good friends. 🥰

[beautifulterriblequeen]

So, regarding your post about the TDP angst and Runaan/Ethari possibly dying to balance out needing both an Elf and a human to die in regards to Aaravos's chaos.....

An Elf ALREADY died.

Ibis! Was literally killed! In the retrieval of the Staff of Ziard (and what we now know to be the third Quasar Diamond)!

Maybe this is just me trying to convince myself that Runaan and Ethari will get their happily ever after and nothing bad is going to happen to them😬😬

I hear what you're saying, and I feel for all our worries as we anticipate S7's swift arrival upon us! I'm not saying I definitely expect Ruthari to perish. I'm just acknowledging sad connections that I see, so they don't sneak up on me and surprise me terribly if they turn out to be true, because for me that would be miles worse than at least seeing it coming.

There are a lot of characters in the show, so any one of them only has a low chance of dying, statistically speaking. Chances are good that they'll survive! I'm sorry that I worried you with my, uh, worries.

As to Ibis specifically, his death feels like it is still part of the cycle to me. He died in battle with a human, as they fought over a unique weapon. He was trying to stop the cycle, but he was trying to do that by killing Claudia. He said so, specifically.

In contrast to that, Viren's death sacrificed only himself, and no one else. That was a necessary step for him, choosing to use his own heart instead of Soren's. It's wild to realize that Viren died further from the cycle than Ibis did, but that's what I see here.

Regardless of who the unlucky character in S7 is who steps forward and makes a sacrifice, it sounds like it'll be one made in the same spirit as Viren's choice: to personally take the L in order to save lives, rather than killing to save lives.

I love Ibis, he's a great character! But the cycle ate him, too, and made him try to eat Claudia.

Here, have an endless kissing Ruthari gif as compensation for me making you worry, fam. Sorry about that.

[dotcircledot]

sketchy things bc school and i cant do big rendered things for a while :’)

[beautifulterriblequeen]

I love how this illustrates TDP's theme that good and evil are not permanent states, but a series of choices.

Viren didn't magically absolve himself of his crimes by sacrificing himself, but his last choices did change who he was, during those days of his life. He was a better person, those days, than he was when he was making evil choices. No one else has to accept this, especially if he hurt them (looking at you, Soren bby), but we as the audience can see the change in him.

The same can be true of Aaravos, then, if he chooses differently in the future. And Claudia, and Runaan, and anyone else. They can be better than they were, even if no one else trusts that. It will still be true, if they truly mean to make better choices.

The Dragon Prince: Hatred & Vengeance vs Justice.

We are always told that Justice is better than Vengeance. If someone does something morally wrong with no defense for their actions, then they need to be brought to their actions.

Viren killed Rayla's parents, at least put them in a fate worse than death, she is justified in her hatred. Viren is also a threat to Xadia, a threat to peace, willing to kill a baby dragon, start a war with Xadia, kills humans just to achieve that war. He's dangerous and needs to be dealt with. That's justice. Do what needs to be done and nothing more. However, when Viren disappears, Rayla can't rest until she knows he's gone. She gets obsessed with revenge and this makes her leave Callum behind, believing she was doing what was best for him. As she admits in the second arc, it was wrong to leave him behind and go searching for Viren. She didn't even find him so all she did was leave Callum for 2 years.

Then there's the characters who lost who they loved in similar situations.

Avizandum, the Dragon King, struck down Sarai as she attempted to save Viren's life. She didn't want to go on the mission to Xadia, she thought it was wrong what they were doing, but she died doing the right thing. Avizandum was protecting the border, he was doing his job, he's not a threat to anyone who doesn't cross it. There's no need for violent justice, sadly. It was cruel, but that's just how things were.

Similarly, Leola was tattled on by Anak Arow, which caused the Star touch elves to deem her worthy of death. Her crime, she gave magic to humans, and thanks to divination, they foresaw that this would lead to the end. Yet, she was a child who just wished to be kind to the people she loved. They were just enacting what they saw as justice, it's cruel and sad, but there is no need for justice as violence.

The best form of justice here, is making sure they don't die in vain, to fulfill their wishes. For Sarai, making sure the people could survive the winter. For Leola, making sure the humans had a chance.

However, justice is doing what is necessary and nothing more.

Both Aaravos, as well as Callum and Harrow, are justified in their hatred. (Heck, I hate the Star touch elves and Leola is not even my daughter).

How they act on their hatred determines who they are as people.

Harrow was willing to leave Avizandum alone, knowing vengeance for Sarai would not fix anything, only creating a bigger mess. Callum seeing Avizandum dead does not bring him joy, despite still hating the dragon. The reason, he's sad for Zym, it's his father and Zym is an innocent. Zym had nothing to do with what happened to his mom, heck Zym is a friend. Who is he to wish the death of a parent on him, despite it already happened, he can't be happy for it knowing what Zym has to live with.

Then there's Aaravos, who has spent centuries enacting his vengeance, trying so hard to destroy the cosmic order. Leola would have been content with humans just knowing primal magic, but he chose to make a bigger mess of things by giving them dark magic. He not only enacts vengeance on Sol Regum, but causes the end of several Xadian rulers all to cause war and have Xadia destroy itself. He killed Khessa for no reason, tried to kill baby Zym for no real reason, and had Katollis destroyed for no real reason (he could have had Claudia sneak in and get it). When Sol Regum eventually does die, Aaravos has to taunt him over the fact he's been manipulated for centuries, and enjoys his suffering. Meanwhile, he doesn't care that a kingdom of innocent people got torched.

Aaravos doesn't seem to care about lives anymore, only seeing people as potential pawns. He seems to enjoy arrogant people meeting their end in painful, humiliating ways, even if those people had nothing to do with his suffering.

Terry is right: What happened to him was awful, but he's been so twisted by hatred and vengeance that it's turned him into a monster with no concern for life, living for the suffering of others.

Callum and Harrow are better for attempting to not let their hatred rule them, Rayla is better for choosing justice over vengeance, but Aaravos is a villain for choosing violence and chaos and war.

[tategaminu]

Isn't cute how Rayla's clothes has something similar to Katolis' diamond patterns? they are matching now 🥹

[imminent-danger-came]

I really do hate when people complain about a character trait/writing choice that isn't instantly gratifying (what they wanted) but contributed to the work's ideas and themes as a whole (what the writers wanted). Like idk get with the program man

[thatartiststudios]

Snake Boi Callum Week 3.0 — Nov 21

“God And The Devil”

Well he’s a broke down, yeah he’s a bad seed He’s all coked out, down on his knees He took a wrong turn down the wrong street And he, he got burned by his family He says, “I’m givin’ up” He says, “I’m givin’ in” Got the preacher man preachin’ ‘bout livin’ in sin He’s got God and the Devil fightin’ for his soul He got [bought] for a price and now he’s sellin’ it all, singin’ Hey man, c’mon down Singin’ hey man, c’mon down Singin’ hey man, c’mon down They’re sellin’ truth on the corner now Look at him all dressed in white Said the angels must’ve came into town last night

— C’mon Down–Poor Mans Poison / 5x08, 6x06, 6x03

[Edit based on a part from this AMV]

[beautifulterriblequeen]

I just rewatched S5 over the holiday and had a similar thought when Finnegrin was holding Ez's crown, but it went in this direction:

Ez got his crown back (both times), but Karim is still out here missing his tin ring. The ring that means a lot to him, but no one else.

The guards said it belonged to Janai now. I wonder if we'll see him reclaim it, and how that'll go.

So I've been trying to figure out what the fuck is Up with the pattern of Ezran giving up his crown (3x04 yes, but particularly in the scenes with Rex Igneous in 4x08 and Finnegrin in 5x06) and I think I've got it

E: My father was a strong king, and I wanted to carry that strength with me. But he also taught me that strength isn't always about weapons and war. This crown reminds me of that lesson.

Which, given that it's confirmed we'll see Ezran's pacifism be tested, and the crown being representative of his relationship with Harrow in a variety of ways + lingering grief and anger towards Runaan... Tested indeed, it seems!

[raayllum]

Is it you? Have my prayers been answered? Is it really you standing there, or am I dreaming once more? You look different, your eyes look tired Your frame is lighter, your smile torn Is it really you, my love?