#fun fact: while writing this my best friend came over to give me a rayla ornament for christmas so i have the best friends

[raayllum]

articulation of need: a rayllum meta

My brain was thinking over a few different but interrelated aspects of Rayllum’s dynamic, canon s1-s3, and Through the Moon, so a few disclaimers before we begin:

Neither half of a couple, nor Rayllum, are or can be mind readers! That’s not a fair expectation for anyone in any kind of relationship. These kiddos are just deeply in love, and traumatized, and doing their best. That goes for both of them in all ways. Furthermore, this doesn’t mean that they aren’t compatible, or that the way Callum expresses love for her is lesser than how she expresses love for him. 

This is just a small pattern in their dynamic extrapolated upon + some hopeful ideas of how S4 could resolve it, if it’s something canon has picked on as well. Also not a flaw of canon or Rayllum if they don’t, this is just me being an English major who thinks about these two kids and their all consuming love for each other way too often. Okay? Okay.

With that out of the way, let’s get into it. 

Today we’re gonna talk about Rayllum and how they express Need.

Short form: Callum expresses that he needs Rayla mostly through action. Rayla expresses that she needs him through both action but, predominantly, word. Now, this is different from the usual way they show love to one another. Callum is very heavy on words of affirmation (always complimenting her, etc.), and Rayla shows affection through both acts of service and physical touch, like all those shoulder touches in season two and handholds in season three. But that’s the key difference: affection versus need.

So, let’s begin.

Precedent 

There is a pattern, however slight, of Rayla and Callum expressing their feelings for each other in ways we wouldn’t quite expect. Callum is talkative and open, with lots of words of affirmation for his loved ones: “Well you seem pretty great too,” “Every team needs good support,” “I am so proud of you,” and basically everything he’s ever said about Rayla. Rayla, meanwhile, is much more Moonshadow, doing lots of acts of service (aka every favour she does for Callum) and through physical touch / being a more overt protector. But when it comes to the development of their romantic relationship, the seeds of it are planted in the opposite manner we’ve come to expect.

Callum is quietly drawing her and holding things to his chest while he privately works it out.

Rayla is the one making first moves and talking too much, a lovable, flustered train wreck for anyone (and especially Callum) to see.

This goes back to the idea that Callum has a fantastic memory for spells, able to recall ones he saw only once very easily, due to their tie to art. But Rayla is the one who remembers exactly what people have said to her, even if they don’t; words haunt her in ways they don’t haunt Callum. (The only time we see him harken back to something that has already been said is with Harrow and Ezran regarding Sarai, and then Harrow’s death). For example:

And last but not least, the famous 2x07 scene contrasted with 1x02, where at the time we thought nothing was really getting through to Rayla, and it turned out that everything was. 

We even see this directly contrasted in early season one in regards to magic. Callum can’t remember what Claudia was saying, even though he was there for the spell, and she only got slightly cut off when it came to fulminus. But Rayla, through a little prior knowledge and word association, is able to realize that it wasn’t fool Claudia was saying, but fulminus. 

But why does all of this Matter, you ask? Well, here’s the thing...

Callum has never said he needs Rayla. Not the way she has repeatedly with him. And this shows up in a few ways, so without further ado, let’s shift from the precedent to the present.

Heartfelt Speeches

2x09, 3x01, 3x04, and 3x05 are the Heartfelt Speeches for these two, when it comes to getting all swept up in their feelings and affection for each other. So let’s put these four speeches, two each (and each pair a day apart from one another, in canon timeline) back to back and see the commonalities, shall we?

R: Callum, wake up! You’ve got to stay with me! Oh, Callum. Please come back. It doesn’t matter what you did before, I just want you to be okay again. Callum! I can’t lose you like this, you mean too much to me! Callum, I... I—

R: I agree with you, Sol Regem. Some humans are evil. But not this one. Not Callum. The only reason the Dragon Prince is alive is because of this human. He left his home and his family to save the egg, and he sacrificed everything so Azymondias could be born. He’s noble, and true. When we met, he could’ve had me captured or killed. But he didn’t. Because without knowing me or anything about me, he saw past human hatred, and did what he knew was right. He’s smart and kind and brave and he’s... My friend. My best friend. So please, allow him to pass into Xadia and help me take the Dragon Prince home. Because I don’t think I can do it without him.

Now, let’s look at Callum’s heartfelt, swooning speeches concerning Rayla.

C: You’re too good to feel this bad about yourself. I know that and you should know that. You have true courage and a big heart. I’ve seen you get knocked down so many times before, and every single time you get up again. That’s real strength. And... and you’re ten times funnier than any human I know. See? See, you know you’re amazing. You’re smart, and fast, and beautiful. Rayla, you’re the most amazing person I’ve ever met.

C: It’s because Rayla is a hero. Rayla’s brave. She saves people. Even when it puts her own life in danger and even when the odds seem impossible. Even when it means her own people might misunderstand and turn against her. Rayla is selfless, strong, and caring. That’s what makes her a hero. That’s what makes her Rayla.

Now look at the bolded, and look at how Callum’s speeches aren’t bolded at all. Can you tell what the difference is? Rayla’s speeches — pleas, really, for Callum’s life — are equally as complimentary as Callum’s in some ways in 3x01, but she also adds and keeps circling back to something that Callum never does. Rayla admits, out loud, to herself, Callum, and Sol Regem, that she needs him. 

The root of Callum’s speeches is admiration for her, explaining how he sees her, and why she should think better of herself. He loves and admires her kindness first and foremost, closely followed by her bravery and resilience, all qualities he thinks make her heroic. Now, Callum deserves credit where credit is due. His speech in 3x04 is particularly perfect and all things Rayla desperately needs to hear, while he also delicately dismantles so much of her verbal self loathing (even down to small things, like concern over her appearance; meta here). Nor does Callum viewing Rayla, rightfully, as a hero means he thinks she doesn’t also need help or needs to be saved sometimes; if anything, it’s the opposite.

But Callum’s speeches are about admiration and love, not need. See the difference? He’s not saying that he needs her, or that he can’t lose her, or that he can’t do this without her. But Rayla is, she continually does.

And we see this sort of pattern follow them into

Through the Moon

TTM is an inherently cyclical work, specifically about the patterns Callum and Rayla have formed with each other, and based off their parents’ relationships. Rayla follows in Runaan’s footsteps, leaving her lover behind and believing the fault is all in her. Callum follows arguably in his mother’s footsteps, supportive of a plan he doesn’t 100% approve of. However, we see the exact some precedent and pattern from the show follow them into TTM regarding need.

Now, by the time TTM rolls around, Callum has expressed that he needs Rayla, very clearly, in action. Following her down in 2x07 and risking himself by doing dark magic; jumping off the Pinnacle at just the slimmest chance of saving her in 3x09. We see this exact type of devotion play out again in TTM when he follows her into the Nexus and prepares to help her hunt down Viren, even if Callum still isn’t convinced (and understandably so) that Viren is actually alive.

Rayla is the one who consistently says, however, that Callum shouldn’t risk himself. Not even on her behalf. Callum worries about her, yes — god does he worry — but ultimately, Callum has only ever said, “Let me come with you.” He never outright says to her that the risk isn’t worth it, or that she shouldn’t do something dangerous without ultimately folding.

And again, Callum’s reactions and choices and relenting all make sense! He’s giving her agency, or feels helpless, or in 3x01′s scenario, literally does not have almost any other choice. He’s doing it out of respect, and because he knows Rayla. Even if it’s not her responsibility, she feels like it is, and Callum does his best to support her through it. To stand by her. But Rayla has a very different approach when it comes to prioritizing Callum’s safety and emotions, largely above all else.

C: There’s something after us! R: [Hanging up, unfurling her blades] Keep running.

R: Callum, Ezran, go.  C: But— R: Just keep it safe. R: Or it’ll blow you up until you’re dead. [...] If you die out there, I swear I’ll kill you!

C: In the end, I didn’t have the guts. R: Good.

R: It’s okay, Callum. I’m not asking you to come with me.

C: Getting Zym to Xadia is all that matters [Rayla reluctantly agrees] I’ll go back home VS If me dying is the only way for you and Zym to get across safely, then it’s time for me to meet the end. R: Calm down.

R: Okay, let’s do this. Just one more thing — I go into the portal alone [...] You said it was dangerous, I’m not going to risk both of us.

R: What are you doing here? Now we’re both trapped!

R: No! I’m going alone. Viren has taken away everyone I love — everyone except you. I can’t risk you coming with me.

We see this time and time again when Rayla puts Callum above the mission and her better judgement. Offering to go back into the tower in 1x03, going to the Banther Lodge and still getting the cube even if her life is now in danger in 1x04, wanting to tell Callum the truth so badly in 1x06 even if the egg is at risk, staying extra days at the Nexus in 2x01, allowing Claudia and Soren an inch in 2x02, putting herself on the ground and the boys safely on Phoe-Phoe in 2x03, saying that Callum doing dark magic doesn’t matter in 2x09, grabbing him instead of Zym in 3x01, etc. Rayla needs Callum, and we know this because she says it out right — in spite of trying to be independent her whole life in order to not need anyone — and because of TTM, where she leaves him because she needs him alive more than she wants to be happy with him. She’s asked him to stay in the past, but she can’t bring herself to do it now, because she feels too much like a liability.

However, the closest Callum ever comes to asking her to stay is in 3x08, but he never says the actual thing. Callum doesn’t really actually talk about how he feels during their argument in 3x08. He’s just guessing (or stabbing) at how Rayla feels: “You’re going to stay here and die out of pride? Honour, ‘redemption,’ it’s just pride!” “I know you feel guilty, but you’re not thinking straight!”

Callum doesn’t say “I need you,” or “I don’t want to lose you,” or anything along those lines, even if we know he’s feeling all those things. (Again, action over word). In many ways, it’s a perfect parallel as to why he gets pissed off at her in 1x06, when she’s the one dodging her feelings about their dynamic and focusing on his and the political. In some ways, this is communicated through his devotion to her. It’s not as though Callum doesn’t prioritize Rayla, he absolutely does. And Rayla absolutely needs someone who stays and runs after her, given everything in her history, culture, and personality. It’s already been a transformative, radical relationship for her, after being abandoned both short term and long term by her family before. She’s never had someone who stays, before. But I also think she needs Callum to ask her to stay.

Consequences

TTM comes closest. “I couldn’t lose you” and “I made the biggest mistake of my life, I could have lost you” are close to being “I need you” and “I need you to stay.” But it’s still buffered by an offer to come, to say that Rayla isn’t wrong to continually risk her life, just that Callum also deserves to be able to risk his life alongside her.

And again, I’m not going to say it’s bad writing if the show — or season four — never goes in this direction to rectify. TTM already had much more delicate work in regards to mental health and trauma than I was expecting the show or canon to have time for. A core part of the series is these kids taking a stand even if that means undertaking dangerous tasks;  you can’t have a story with heroes who go “Y’know, maybe I won’t try and stop the second coming of the most evil elf that’s ever existed.” 

But I do think it’d be very nice, and full circle, and important for Rayla to hear, from Callum, “It doesn’t always have to be you. You don’t have to sacrifice everything for everyone else. You think that you’re worth more than me and I can live without you, but that’s not true. I need you. I need you to stay,” given this pattern (mind you, possibly unintentional, but I don’t think so) set up in their dynamic.

Because that’ll be Rayla’s real test in season four. If and when Callum asks her to stay, can she say yes? Can she not only let Callum come with her, this time in life, but can she choose to stay with him through it all? Can she accept that someone needs her just as badly as she needs them?

Because I hope so. I really do.

[aetheternity]

Rayllum x Hanahaki disease P2.

Rayla's dark eyes flickered open to the soft yellow lighting in an otherwise dark room. She didn't move her entire body. Nothing except her eyes, soft orbs dancing over whatever she could catch a glimpse of from where she was in the unfamiliar room, the deep brown resembling that of the bark of an oak tree. As well as the huge desk pushed right up against the wall, a small desk lamp perched on its surface lighting the whole room.

There wasn't too much in the room to actually take in honestly. The desk was littered with books, some open while others rested precariously on the edge. Right across the room sat a lone chair. Looking hand carved in the slightly darker space a small almost unrecognizable branch hanging just above it with a small leaf poking from its tiny tip.

Rayla finally focused back to the bed, body currently sinking into the soft mattress like foam. It had to be the softest thing she'd ever rested on but she tried not to think about it too long as a tall lean elf suddenly appeared at the entrance of the small room.

Rayla stirred, eyes locking onto his with quickening almost short breaths. The man smiled though, deep sky blues cresting over to Rayla.

“Seems you're finally awake.” The slightly young looking elf chirped. He walked over to the desk near Rayla instantly exposing the perfectly white looking wings attached to his back. The beautiful set of wings were closed and yet still so breathtakingly gorgeous, catching what little light there was and honing it to parade the depth of each feather.

“Y-Yeah..” There was no denying just how pretty this elf was. Nothing like the description Runaan had used when discussing sky elves. “Where am I?” A recollection blossomed in her mind. The cave and Ezran… those flowers all popped up like little jolts in a quiet stream. “Where's Ezran?”

“You mean one of those young human friends of yours?” The elf pondered dipping his head and smiling showing off what were the equivalent of his beautiful wings inside his mouth. “I killed them.”

“What?!”

“I'm kidding! I'm kidding!” The elf remarked with a loud chuckle. “Healer humor! Or possibly just my humor.” He shrugged but Rayla didn't find it funny at all not to mention the fact that he kept referencing a them. “Are you so mad that you don't care about my name?”

Rayla's head had been cloudy from the moment she woke up and it still was. She lifted a hand to press to her temple jerking it away when she felt just how hot it was. She tensed trying to relax back as she said, “Why would I care about your name? You clearly have no understanding of humor in the slightest.”

The slightly older elf raised a hand to his chest, mouth open with deep blue ears peaking. “Rude…” he huffed, blowing a small breath and crossing his arms over his chest. “But I'll tell you anyway! It's Avalon.” He clapped his hands together smile bright as he said his own name.

Rayla raised an eyebrow. “Avalon?” She questioned.

“Yup! Two A's an L one O, N, and V.” He smirked, looking extraordinarily pleased with himself.

“So where's Ezran, Zym and…”

“What that's it?!” Avalon whined, pouting like a small child. “Not even gonna thank me for healing you?”

Rayla hadn't really thought much about how she'd ended up here. Or even what had really happened but now she had to admit she was a little curious on how Avalon had healed her with minimal damage to her body. Not to mention just how childish he acted.

“Well now that you mention it I would be interested in exactly what you did to-”

“Rayla! Thank the God's you're ok!” Ezran remarked rushing into the room. Not slowing down even a little bit as he clung to Rayla, Zym directly behind hoping up onto the bed with loud barks of sheer enthusiasm and plenty of happy electrified licks to boot.

“Hey!” Rayla replied happily, embracing the young king in her arms as best she could with the slight soreness of her ribs. She pressed forward giving Ezran the best hug she could manage while simultaneously rubbing Zym's head.

“We're so glad you're ok... You scared everyone!”

“I'm so sorry… I didn't mean to freak you out Ezran. Or you Zym.” She patted the young Dragon prince's head as he cocked it to the side tongue disappearing into his mouth. “How did you meet Avalon anyway? And why didn't he try to kill you?”

“He came to the cave we were resting in when he saw us from up above. To be honest with you I don't think he's capable of killing anyone. Not only is he a healer but he's also really interested in learning about humans! So me and Callum told him we'd teach him anything he wanted to know if he healed you.” Ezran finished with a big smile.

“Ezran here is so cool, you've got an amazing friend! He taught me about this thing humans do called zip lining! Which I've gotta try when I get the chance!” Avalon added, high fiving Ezran and giving a smaller high five to Zym which was just Zym's nose pressed to his palm.  

“Callum?” Rayla couldn't help but whisper. The rest of the conversation dissipating into thin air when a voice came from the still open front door, carrying a very tired looking Bait.

“Rayla?! You're ok. I was so worried..”

“Who are you!” Rayla jumped back, eyes transfixed on the approaching human. She was practically on her knees, empty palms digging into the mattress as she reached for her blades but came up empty. Her ribs screamed in agony at the sudden movement but she didn't rest her stance even slightly.

“Rayla, what're you doing? What's wrong?” Ezran asked stepping in front of Callum.

Zym jumped off the bed with a soft whimper near Callum's feet, instantly being picked up and pulled close in Callum's now empty arms as Bait had scattered off when Rayla rose on the bed.

“Rayla..” Callum muttered, voice thick like he was talking through a mouth full of syrup. His face fell and his eyes filled with concern. “It's me… it's Callum… don't you remember me?” He was practically whispering now, eyes glossy as he stared deeper and deeper into Rayla's eyes.

Ezran had never relinquished his stance as though he thought Rayla might actually hurt Callum. But a single touch to his shoulder made him pull back, allowing Callum closer to her bedside.

“I… I.. don't know a Callum…” Rayla's eyes bounced back and forth along soft green's. Soft crestfallen green's, ones that were currently melting and breaking and Rayla couldn't understand why.

Now it was Avalon's turn to speak. Voice a lot more serious then it had been the entire time he was becoming acquainted with Rayla. “The surgery for Hanahaki disease removes not only the flowers of the one infected but also the memories of the one they were in love with.”

“L-Love….”

(Me: Pushes this towards my followers along with 4 boxes of tissues.) I have a friend who I send alot of my writing to. Some before I post it online and some after, and the second she finished reading this she screamed at me. Other then that yes this is extremely fun for me to write. 😊

[canvaswolfdoll]

CanvasWatches: The Dragon Prince (Season 2)

Well, this is back. And since the last season I’ve… (rereads last season’s review) failed to continue the grand Digimon rewatch.

Welp. I need to get on that.

Adopted a dog since then! So that’s nice.

So, general mood after seeing the second season: it’s a good example of media that really makes me want to create something amazing, but feel somewhat lacking in being able to do so. Or, like, play D&D.

It’d make a good D&D campaign.

The animation quality improved. Besides a few jitters in the first couple of episodes, it’s gotten a lot smoother. Character writing remains super strong. On the negatives, most of the nine episodes felt like our heroes were spinning their wheels as far as physical progress goes. Meanwhile, Team Dark keeps stealing the spotlight.

However, it’s overall a positive increase, so I’d bump the ‘Skippable’ rating of last season to ‘Give it a glance if you have time’. Keep building, The Dragon Prince! I believe in you!

The weakest character ‘faction’ (IE, the subgroups that get individual plots) is, unfortunately, our main heroes (who we’ll label Team Escort). Their stories focus on the emotional growth of Ezran and Callum, and while they accomplish the goal of reaching the elf half of the continent by the end of the season, visually they’re mostly in three places: the Moon Sanctuary they reached at the end of the last season, a ship taking them over a body of water, or a cave at the edge of a town. Rayla also took a secondary role this season, which is fine since she carried a lot the last season, but it’s still worth noting her passive role.

Meanwhile, Amaya, the stand out of last season, appears twice near the start of the season, and in a flashback story, but doesn’t have many dedicated scenes. They do solidly confirm she’s deaf, though.

Team Dark (Soren and Claudia) had the moral conflict plot this season. They catch up with Team Escort, and suddenly have to come to terms with their father’s secret orders: kill the princes and prioritize the dragon egg. In an honestly amazing use of secret keeping, both Soren and Claudia eventually are honest with one another in meaningful ways and just as soon as maintaining secrets no longer made sense. They also express reluctance about fulfilling the terms, and individually abandon the missions with good explanation.

Because, and this is something I love, they’re both friends with Callum and Ezran, and aren’t as pragmatic as Viren.

At the Moon Sanctuary, time is also taken to fuel the potential of the Claudia and Callum ship by showing that, yes, Claudia is receptive to the idea.[1]

Which brings us to Team… Viren. Viren is a team of one, so no fun name for him. He’s trying to figure out what’s up with a magic mirror. The answer: there’s a dude in there! A starry elf dude! And he’s going to teach Viren a spell![3] Viren is hesitant, because he doesn’t know much about the elf, so that makes sense. Plus, Viren needs to run his various ‘take over the kingdom and wage war on elves’ machinations.

Which go oddly south. Despite the implications of the last season, Viren didn’t just casually snag the regent crown. There’s a council that’s very much not onboard with that, and Viren explicitly has no authority. He’s running on charisma and bluster, which runs out by the end.

From my poking around on Tumblr, Viren doesn’t seem popular. Which is unfortunate, because Viren is a great morally-grey villain.

In fact, the whole cast is great! Clear motivations, well established cause-and-effect, and no one makes a dumb move for the plot. There’s a hundred small missteps that build up into the big problems we face now, but the show establishes the motive behind each misstep, and you can’t blame any one.

Heck, Big Bad[4] Viren and Big Good King Harrow both share a character flaw: they’re overly self-sacrificing. The difference is Viren has a hierarchy of who’s important, while Harrow is treats everyone the same. Which means Harrow will sacrifice the lives of his own citizens for lives from another kingdom, while Viren will sacrifice a few lives for someone he feels is needed.

Viren also placed the lives of King Harrow and the Queens of Duran above himself. Because Viren doesn’t view himself as important.

Viren is tool towards his own vision of a greater good.

Which makes an amazing character.

Viren is only trying to take over the kingdom because he believes they’ve run out of better options. He doesn’t want the throne, but he thinks no one else can be effective there.

Back to Team Escort: Callum had to sacrifice his arcane focus to hatch the dragon, Zym, so he’s feeling glum being unable to do magic, and all the magic aligned beings in his vicinity are just like ‘Nay, tha’s eet, laddie. Nae mo magick fer yeh!’ But Callum remains resolute!

Team Dark tracks them down at the Moon Sanctuary, and suddenly face their inevitable moral dilemmas. Rayla, being suspicious girl, doesn’t trust them as Soren tries to assassinate Ezran and Claudia tells Callum that, yup, Harrow’s dead.

But Callum and Claudia had a date, so good on them!

In the end, Rayla proves her suspicions with the help of illusion magic. So that’s sad.

Team Escort heads further East, and need to charter a ship over an inland sea. Callum hires a double eyepatched pirate with a snarky parrot, and the two just steal every scene they’re in. Team Escort rides the ship for the middle third of the season and Callum gets some exposition from a letter Harrow left him as Viren gives the same exposition to a council of the five kingdoms.

By the way, there’s five kingdoms, and Viren needs their help to declare war. Three of the monarchs agree that, well, if that’s what everyone else wants to do, I guess they could.

Number five is a child queen who fired her regent and is just like ‘Sell me on this Viren’.

Viren tells the story about how her parents came to Harrow to help feed their people during a harsh winter, and Harrow decides ‘Cool, let’s share the pain! Sacrifice our people to save our neighbors!’ While Viren is like “No, sire, that’s dumb.” and Harrow’s all ‘I hear what you’re saying, but I’m going to do it anyways.’

And then Viren figures since Harrow’s dedicated to this, he might as well look into a mutually beneficial solution. Which involves the heart of a magma monster.

Which is why the two kinda need each other. Harrow had the moral backbone to make hard decisions, Viren had the will to support and pivot big dumb moves into better big dumb moves.

Queen Sarai thinks murdering a magma monster’s not the best idea, but Harrow is kinda bullheaded (but well meaning!), and she supports her husband anyways.

Conflicts ensue, Queen Sarai and the Child Queen’s parents die in the attempt, and the lesson Viren tries to impart is sometimes sacrifices must be made.

The Child Queen then declines to declare war on the elves. Because there’s a difference between sacrifices forced by external forces and trying for the greater good, and sacrifices because you’re the aggressor.

Then the other three monarchs fold.

So Viren goes home and summons magic assassins to spur the other kingdoms into action. Practical, if kind of evil. Also, the royal council is mad Viren called the council of kings and took the title of regant without permission. Such Drama!

Viren ends up striking an allegiance with the mirror elf, and then Viren gets arrested for treason.

After crossing the giant inland sea, Team Escort moves to a cave where they spend the rest of the season. A dragon’s posturing around a nearby town, and upon the arrival of Team Dark, Soren decides it’s time to slay a dragon!

Soren starts a fight with the dragon, property damage ensues, Claudia uses magic to wound and ground the dragon, and they end up releasing the tracker Amaya sent after Team Escort last season.

Callum finally informs Ezran about Harrow’s death before Team Escort goes and involves themselves with the Dragon conflict.

Team Dark (and assistants) bind the dragon down, Team Escort free the dragon, Callum does some dark magic, and the dragon sends Soren into a boulder and turns him into a quadriplegic!

Which is harsh for a kids show, and emotionally breaks Team Dark. Soren’s happy to have an excuse to not kill the princes, and Claudia’s upset that her brother’s this hurt and is a bad poet.

Callum then falls into a fevered state due to using dark magic, and has dreams where he must reject dark magic (boo!), and eventually unlocks the ability to do wind magic! He’s an Airbender!

Ezran runs off to think, the tracker catches up with Rayla and Callum, and some exposition is shared there.

Ezran meets with Claudia, and the two have a heart to heart that’s adorable. Ezran then helps Claudia find magic ingredients, but not the ones Claudia told him.

She kills Bambi for a surge of life magic, and uses it to get Soren to his feet.

So here’s my problem. The main mark against dark magic is that it’s done by sacrificing life (mostly bugs and body parts). However: meat. Humans eat meat. Animals eat meat. Nature often swirls around extinguishing life and, especially for humans, using parts of the dead to sustain themselves and make various processed goods. But because it allows humans to do magic as well, suddenly extinguishing life is an unforgivable sin?

Dark Magic seems fine! I can’t actually back up it just being straight bad. Viren’s use of it is bad, yes, but so is feeding someone blowfish liver. There’s not enough cause to call the tool evil over its use. And Claudia used it to heal!

Team Dark is innocent, dang it! Adjust your narrative and, like, add a parasitic, earth killing  and salting element. Unbalance the scales.

Ugh.

Anyways, Ezran decides to go home as Rayla and Callum go to deliver Zym to his mother.

Ezran is revealed to have a psychic connection to Zym as the two parties go separate directions and Rayla and Callum cross into Xadia and into a cliffhanger of meeting a scary desert dragon! Oh no!

So this season is an improvement on the last. Moral complexity is increasing, but in a child friendly way. The world’s expanding, and it’s not afraid to upset the status quo. I’m excited for the third season.

Still, more backdrops for Team Escort, and maybe a few filler episodes for fun and character growth would be good to see. But The Dragon Prince is good now. Watch it when you have time.

If you enjoyed my writing, consider supporting my patreon for early access and exclusive content, or give to my Ko-Fi account if monthly subscription isn’t for you. I hope to do new and exciting things!

Kataal kataal.

[1] Rayla and Callum is the inevitable ending pair, but pretending Claudia has a chance will still be fun. She’s a fun character.[2] [2] Also, neither are Sexy Lamp characters! Rayla and Claudia have defined personalities and goals outside of romance! Good writing! [3] Had Aaravos been aligned against Viren, I would’ve used this as an extended joke where he teaches Viren how to do a sleight of hand trick. Disappearing a coin or a card trick. Not right for the story, but something I need to remember for my own work. Just a sage dude messing with the villain with pranks. [4] Well, until the end of season...