#the main character was Callum in this situation

[raayllum]

Anyways time to analyze this screencap

This was originally a split second clip from the Bardel projects' reel, although it's since been omitted... and interacted with online by some of the team / cat's out of the bag, so uh - here's the meta!

The first aim is to try to establish when this is taking place timeline wise (aka in which season and when). The second will be who I think this scene involves (which is Rayllum and I'm gonna explain why). Spoilers for 6x01 thanks to previous Cons and proceed with caution if you don't want any spoilers!

So 6x01, "Startouched," has Rayla and Callum embark to the Starscraper by the end of the episode alongside Stella. This means they will presumably not be reuniting with anyone else from the Main Cast until at least the season's midpoint (6x05) if not later (6x07-6x08), by which point the plot will likely be in full swing, even if Aaravos was not released by the season's midpoint. That means there may not be as much time for something that seems like a cute little filler moment as this seems to be.

Not impossible, but I think it's unlikely that this shot/scene is from S6 from a plot / time standpoint.

Another reason in this column is that we know Hat at least, but presumably the other Baitlings too, are with Soren and Zym when they go to Lux Aurea to meet up with Corvus again.

So there's no way, realistically, it could be in early season six. If it is in later season six, it means that Callum and Rayla succeed at the Starscraper / escape relatively unscathed enough with a small window between reuniting with the boys / Ezran and shit hitting the fan. It is a window, narrow, but not impossible

My early estimate could also be early S7 as, again, the latter half of the final season will be particularly intense, and I could see the characters trying to have some down time / make the best of a bad situation earlier on in the season when there's a bit more time, well, to let them try

As for the boat itself...

The first thing is that the boat is decorated quite prettily and prominently with roses, which just feels romantic. Stella is juggling and the Baitlings (who seem to be singing) seem to be putting on some small, endearingly silly sort of performance. possibly added by the two (Star arcanum?) birds we see. There's also a warm yellow-ish light source coming from the bottom of the picture and subsequently probably the upper middle of the boat, which makes me think of candles.

I'm willing to bet that this is a Rayllum moment since it just screams Callum being very sweet and romantic, and setting up this (maybe they have to take a boat and he wants it to be better, maybe it's just for fun) boat to try and distract Rayla because she doesn't really like them. I can't see Janai or Amaya being interested in a little animal circus performance, so that rules them out to me, and we hardly ever see Stella be separated from Rayla, even temporarily. So I think this being a Rayllum scene makes the most sense because of Stella's inclusion, and maybe it is Callum wanting to do something special for her, whether it's them officially getting back together, or just spending some time together even while the world is ending cause y'know, they missed out on two years of dates they could've gone on, and want to use some of the time they have left for that.

Stella is also juggling Adoraburrs, which have a tendency (presumably) to be primarily close to the Moonshadow forests, since we don't see the tiny ones anywhere else in Xadia, so it could even be a pit stop on the way back to the Silvergrove to get her and her family unghosted, perhaps (and all the more reason to try and take her mind off things).

My other consideration for a pair is Sorvus, since I could see Soren being silly and setting up the Bailting choir (he seems close to Hat in particular) and I think Corvus would be endeared by it, ultimately. That doesn't account for Stella though, and while Soren and Corvus are clearly friends/co-workers on the crownguard, they haven't had a lot of even teasingly romantic development, so I don't feel like the story is really gonna prioritize them heavily as a romance (especially because we have Karim/Miyana, Callum/Rayla, possibly Aaravos and someone in his past, Claudia/Terry breaking up and presumably getting back together, we're gonna get Runaan/Ethari back in these coming seasons in addition to Lain/Tiadrin, and there's always Janai/Amaya, of course). TDP already has a lot of romantic relationships in it, so I feel like Sorvus, if/when they do get together, would probably be a smaller moment later in the final two seasons, and they probably wouldn't get as big a focus as a scene like this seems to imply just from a pacing/character standpoint

Plus, Rayllum kinda has a thing with boats and important moments for them happening on said boats, but that is a meta for another day

[theredhairedmonkey]

I actually like how Devon Giehl’s description of Callum in 5x08 is a lot more nuanced than what many people have concluded: for starters it’s not just about Rayla, and it’s not just about Dark Magic.

Sure, Rayla may have been the catalyst, and Dark Magic may have been the result, but the Callum’s “dark side” doesn’t just come out when Rayla is in danger, and it had already come out by the time he used Dark Magic.

It comes out in situations when things rapidly spiral out of control, and it comes out when he feels his back is against the wall and he has to force the situation back into something he can handle.

Second (and more importantly), this isn’t unique to Callum: everyone has a darker nature that they don’t fully understand or even like, but part of growing up is realizing you will become this person from time to time. This is also true for the other main characters—Rayla lies and abandons Callum for the sake of a revenge quest, Ezran lashes out at Runaan’s arrow, and Soren can be casually cruel.

What Callum goes through this season is an inversion of his journey leading to learning the Sky Arcanum. If connecting to the Sky was about realizing the depths of his potential, connecting to the Ocean was about realizing that he doesn’t fully know or understand those depths and that those depths can drag him to a pretty dark place. Now, the tail end of the series will be about Callum reconciling both of these conflicting sides of him.

[crustyfloor]

stupid. Really weird theory because this doesnt exactly make sense but I need to vent

so what if the mist is actually… *drum roll* a sort of limbo for the characters

In some of the character stories they go to the most a little bit before they’re hinted to die, like Cora, she was running away from her father after he attacked her. She likely would’ve died had it not been for the mist. But what if she ALREADY DIED? oh and for Amari, the dude was about to die in the plane crash buttt he didn’t because of the mist. This type of situation occurs a few more times with other characters

Eiji and Jun (Got into a car crash. Didn’t die because they were transported)

•Seoung (could’ve died/got possessed in the main timeline because of the ritual. Didn’t because of mist)

•Eman, Aaaqil, Callum, and Yronica (Could’ve gotten killed by principal had it not been for mist)

•mamo (could’ve died from the bus crash. She didn’t but then got transported to mist)

•Dakota (could’ve gotten ran over. Got misted instead)

• Parker and Gavin (almost crashed, didn’t. But got misted)

•Kyle and Serena (not exactly sure about this one but I think they could’ve died to Cole had they not been transported)

•Sarah (drowned, got transported)

•Emil (could’ve died from either getting kidnapped or his wounds. Got misted)

•Lyndon (his story is sort of vague but either two things could’ve happened, he could’ve died from the guys or hopping overboard and drowning)

•Janitor (died from the fall down the stairs)

but as you may notice, most of these aren’t deaths, and some of them are. They are more like near death experiences. So I think that mist isn’t like a normal limbo where people go when they die, but it’s half that. Simply a phenomena that occurs triggered by near death and death experiences from people. So like a pseudo limbo, though I don’t really have an explanation for characters like Taylor who didn’t die or have a near death experience. I might expand on this idea later but it’s an interesting thought. Mist is definitely more than it looks on the outside.

[constantinemaddentheenemyofdeath]

My rating of The Iron Trial:(please read)

OMG I LOVED THIS!!!! IT DEFINITELY CAN RIVAL YHE LIGHTING THIEF AND THE PHILOSOPER’S STONE!!! The world and plot is unique and the magic system is so so so good.

I love the characters, they all got something going on. Call is definitely my favorite character, I like his personality and the fact that he’s morally gray.

The relationship between the main trio is wonderful and strong. I also love how even tho Call is the mc he isn’t the “chosen one” and that Aaron is more like that. But what I really wanna talk about is the plot twist. Because what. The. Fuck. I never ever saw that coming like??? It’s definitely unique for me and also supports the fact that Call is definitely not the chosen one in this story bcs he got an another role even tho he doesn’t want it.

The only problem I have is that the fandom is so so small;( I don’t understand why because it’s made by two extremely popular and successful writers and it’s seriously as good as Pjo. Maybe i understand later in the books but don’t give away any spoilers!!

For those who have never heard of this book:

“Think you know magic? Think again. The Magisterium awaits... During your time at the Magisterium, there will be five trials to complete — one for each school year. They will test your magical skill, your endurance and your ability to handle dark and dangerous situations. It begins with the Iron Trial . . .”

“Most kids would do anything to pass the Iron Trial. Not Callum Hunt. He wants to fail. All his life, Call has been warned by his father to stay away from magic. If he succeeds at the Iron Trial and is admitted into the Magisterium, he is sure it can only mean bad things for him. So he tries his best to do his worst -- and fails at failing. Now the Magisterium awaits him. It's a place that's both sensational and sinister, with dark ties to his past and a twisty path to his future. The Iron Trial is just the beginning, for the biggest test is still to come . . .“

This is the cover for the first book. Call is on the left(the mc)(the fact that he’s not in the middle but Aaron is just shows my opinion that Aaron is the “chosen one”) Aaron is in the middle and Tamara is on the right.

It’s not a long book so please consider reading it, I’m really begging you(´༎ຶོρ༎ຶོ`)

[callumsgirl]

Play the game, first lines!

The wonderful and talented @sempervera tagged me and of course, I'm in! ❤️

Rules: List the first lines of your last 10 published fics and see if there’s a pattern.

I feel like I'm drowning (Buck x Bucky)

It was so quiet here in the States, in Casper. He had been travelling and somewhere else for so long that Casper somehow felt strange and not really like home anymore.

2. I feel a bit broken...(Buck x Bucky)

Two days, Gale thought. Only two days had passed since he had been out of that cold, muddy hole in Stalag III.

3. one new message (Austin x Callum)

Callum had endured such a long week at work and filming his new project, all he wanted to do was change ouf of his black suit, grab dinner and a scotch and lounge around on the couch in his black brief boxers without a responsibility in sight.

4. sweet beginnings (Buck x Bucky)

It was Saturday again and the Officers' Club was full to the brim. The band played pleasant, danceable music and sometimes someone even sang. Gale preferred to watch the action from the sidelines.

5. getting in trouble (Buck x Bucky)

The 100th bomb group is celebrating another 25th missions and the whole evening is relaxing, full of dancing and fun until a dumb RAF officer says something really stupid to Gale.

6. strawberries and dirty talk, pt. 2 (Buck x Bucky)

It had been a long, exhausting few weeks. Between all the breakneck, dangerous missions over Germany, where more of John's friends were shot than he could count. It had been a constant dance with the devil and death. A power struggle that was different every day and a single moment could change and decide everything.

7. say yes to heaven (Buck x Buckx)

It had been a hell of a week for Bucky. Starting with the mission to drob bombs over Bremen, Gale missing for two days and his thoughts gone crazy about losing his best friend, his man and lover.

8. sweet like cinnamon (Buck x Bucky)

John and Gale are spending a whole weekend alone far away from base and enjoying each others company. It's summer and the sun sets down, painting the sky in dark red and orange shades.

9. Blue Jeans (Buck x Bucky)

A lazy morning back in the States. The goddamn war is finally over and both of them, Bucky and Buck made it back home. After they spent some quality time with their families, they decided to go on a little adventure together.

10. strawberries and dirty talk pt. 1 (Buck x Bucky)

It's quiet this morning. Very quiet in fact, and cozy and warm too. Gale sighed softly and buried his nose in the soft white sheets of the double bed. It smelled like soap and fresh roses.

summary: I often use descriptions of places, feelings or situations to start a scene. I usually mention my main characters by name or their thoughts.

tagging: @bloodynereid @hogans-heroes @austinbutlermischief @austinbutlerslovers

[kehideni]

Everyone is thinking it (and saying it) and i just wanna say it too:

I think Aaravos will use Callum's loyalty to Rayla to corrupt him, similar to Finnegrin, just use his love for her to force him into situations where he is forced to use dark magic, which gives him accest to his victims, i believe.

Which... well DUH it's the same thing that he did to Viren.

It's the "perfectly rotten thing" to do because, which person wouldn't do everything for those they love?

It's a pretty basic human thing to do to protect your loved ones whatever it may cost you. I honestly wouldn't be able to blame Callum because if I was in his place i'd do the same. Screw that magic snake, i'm turning it's slithering ass into a chain bruh, and i'd use that chain as a whip on Aaravos till he stopped moving.

And i was a 100% on Claudia's side when she killed those deer to heal Soren. If the show wanted to say something with that they missed the shot.

Viren did everything he thought he needed to do to save his loved ones, Claudia is like WHAOW the epitome of ride or die, and Callum is very much the same.

And as i was writing this i just came to realise: this trait was suspiciously only shown with human characters in this show so far. (I'm sure elves can, and do possess this personality trait too but the point is that it's not shown.)

I mean Sarai, Harrow, uuhh Aanya's parents(forgot their names, sorry), Amaya, Viren, Claudia, Callum, Soren, just about every main human character except for Ezran has shown going to great lenghts to protect those they care about. (And, well even Ezran can be argued as he did jump into ice water to save Zim's egg)

In contrast Rayla's parents refused to separate, they'd rather both leave Rayla to grow up without them than have one of them stay behind to raise their kid, while the other is guarding the egg.

(No i refuse to let that go, I know it's explanation, i understand they are stronger together and in the end both of them were needed againts Viren and still they barely got the egg saved, while both of them got coined, but that's an unpredictable event- as other guards were supposed to be there as well. In return they got an emotionally neglected daughter, congrats, parents of the year, round of applause)

And if you read Aaravos' short story on the website, he does admire humans for all the twisted reasons. (Aforementioned willingness to do ANYTHING in a situation desperate enough, and more interestingly the patience of humans [his words, not mine])

In The Dragon Prince humans are depicted as this "lesser than" species (as admitted by Sol Regem) who were said to be treated rather horribly by everyone else (which is why the unicorns took pity on them in the first place)

I HC that Aaravos was keeping a very close eye on humans, because he was probably the only person who didn't underestimate them, and decided he can use them for whatever end he wanted them. Maybe he had beef with the unicorns idk.

Or it could even be a Satan vs God situation, where Unicorns say humans are pretty neat and Aaravos was just like "look how neat they are once they know all these messed up stuff" but at this point i'm just spitballin'.

Rant done.

[joseopher]

Let's talk about how Callum desperately wants to be liked by Tristan in the "what we had was significant" scene.

"Liked" is perhaps not the word considering that he is partly trying to upset him with the whole Rhodes situation. Yes, he's presenting Tristan with the fact that Libby needs to set off a nuclear bomb because he promised he would find out how to get her back buuuuuut he is also presenting the knowledge specifically to Tristan, with no interest to present it to anyone else.

And thinks this:

"Which was thoroughly impossible. A comedy of errors to the highest degree. And this was who Tristan had chosen over Callum! This was what he had done, and in the murky plumbing of Callum’s allegedly nonexistent heart, he hoped that Tristan suffered for it."

This is punishment. This is jealousy. This is also a cry for attention.

The main reason I'm making this post is that Callum is constantly applying techniques from "How to Win Friends and Influence People":

"For example, one way to make people like you was to smile, which Callum winningly employed now."

Why is he applying this?

A) For the irony

B) Because he is a petty bitch

C) Because he is a sad lonely man that connected his sense of love to Tristan and then was betrayed by him and still longs for his attention

D) Because he wants to be liked by Tristan specifically despite how he says he doesn't want to be liked in book 1 (perhaps he wants more complicated emotions than liked, he wants to be remembered, he wants to matter to someone)

E) All of the above

E IS WHAT I THINK THE ANSWER IS! LISTEN THESE CHARACTERS' EMOTIONS ARE COMPLICATED!

Tell me doesn't want Tristan's attention after reading this line:

"And yet, I am the only one in this house who’s been any help to you at all, Tristan, so you’re welcome."

It's not only that he wants to be "liked" by Tristan. It's mixed up with several other emotions as well but wanting to be "liked" is also there.

The punishment theme is there as well mixed in with bitterness of the world, Callum knew he shouldn't have gotten attached but he did anyway:

"This was just the world. You trusted people, you loved them, you offered them the dignity of your time and the intimacy of your thoughts and the frailty of your hope and they either accepted it and cared for it or they rejected it and destroyed it and in the end, none of it was up to you. This was just what you got. Heartbreak was inevitable. Disappointment assured."

Then Callum claims he's fine for no reason, which just further emphasizes he's not:

"Honestly, Callum was doing just fine with his grief."

His grief over being betrayed? Being almost murdered? Grief over losing Tristan?

Likely all of them.

Then he admits that Tristan is correct about the "what we had was significant" speech:

"Mostly, though, Callum wanted Tristan to suffer profoundly for every honest word out of his mouth."

This speaks for itself.

I will conclude this with Callum's parting words to Tristan:

"Callum exhaled. And smiled. People did not like to be contradicted, said Dale Carnegie, master of influencing, apparently. It was best not to criticize, even when people were wrong about silly things like where they had placed their loyalties.

'Good luck,' said Callum. 'With everything. Hope it works out between you and Rhodes.'"

WHY IS HE APPLYING THESE TACTICS??

A) For the irony

B) Because he is a petty bitch— *GETS SHOT BEFORE I CAN TALK ABOUT THIS FOR 100K WORDS*

[darkmagicmirror]

I was trying to figure out why Callum specifically holding onto the potion and waiting until Claudia saw it and asked for it back before he emptied it out reminded me of a typical Disney villain vibe actually and then it hit me

Like okay sure, you're fighting your enemy, but then he also waited until she saw him for sure, she said something about it, and then he opened it?? Why??? 😭

(If you don't know who the cat is: 1. You're missing out, and 2. It's Yzma, the main villain/antagonist in the Emperor's New Groove, and she has the potion the main character needs to go back to being a human)

Ironically it's a reverse situation not only because one is a protagonist and the other is an antagonist, but one has a potion that changes the other person's body to be less human-like, while the other has a potion that changes the other person's body back to being human.

Both potions help the person who would use them, though. For survival, or for going back to a normal life. (And Claudia's also trying to go "back to normal" in the sense that her goal is to keep her dad alive.)

Anyway this post wasn't supposed to be that serious, but it just baffles me

[kradogsrats]

Katolis has a monarchy but no other class structure in place? Heck but that’d be crazy? How would the council get chosen? They’d let some child king just pick his best buds? Run elections where Bait stands as a joke candidate and accidentally gets elected? C’mon that’s no way to govern a feudal society now is it.. is it?

Listen: orphan girls imprisoning godlike puppetmaster elves is no basis for a system of government.

So I know this is moderately jokey but I want to discuss it anyway, because I think it’s interesting. Part of the setting is taking the trappings of faux-medieval fantasy and layering them over what is, to modern sensibilities, a fairly idealized liberal social structure. I’m not going to debate the merits of storytelling that handles representation via an idealized setting like TDP vs. storytelling that does so by acknowledging and incorporating the lived experience of people struggling under societal inequities, because that’s a whole thing and not really relevant—suffice it to say that a setting with racial and gender equity where everyone is assumed to be bisexual and there’s no organized religion is, at a very basic level, completely incompatible with the classic medieval fantasy social structure.

But let’s look at Katolis:

First of all, I would like to point out that none of these characters have surnames. None. Zero. I’m actually very pleased with that because 90% of the time I’ve seen settings use surnames as a loose class marker, they eventually fuck it up and yes I am looking at you, Dragon Age. So points there for consistency. But what this indicates, in keeping every single title being paired with the given name, is that there’s relatively little social emphasis on bloodline or family connections with regard to class status. It also means collecting taxes is probably a pain in the ass, but whatever. There’s the royal bloodline, and then everybody else.

We also have the structure of Katolis’s military—specifically, it’s a volunteer (there’s no evidence of compulsory military service, which is something I’d definitely expect to be discussed as the main characters age into late teens if it were in place), apparently standing, army of what appear to be career soldiers. There’s a hierarchy of officers—lieutenant, commander, captain, general, etc.—but not a concept of knighthood as linked to a hierarchy of nobility and land ownership. It’s a notable omission from a faux-medieval setting. Now, the wiki (ugh) describes the Crownguard as “knights” and I don’t know why, but regarding them specifically: they’re certainly an elite force, and it’s implied that Soren can take command of the situation with Pyrrah because of his status as a Crownguard. However, it could also just be his Captain rank, that’s a little unclear. However, it’s also clearly an open-recruitment, merit-based force (though we could start a side discussion here about exactly how much that applies to Soren) because Soren is able to recruit Corvus, despite Corvus being implied to have a low-status background.

Now, going back to the royal line, there’s a lot we don’t know here about bloodline succession and such—Ezran is crown prince over Callum, so the preference is clearly for an heir from the bloodline. It’s kind of unclear whether Callum is in line for the throne at all, though presumably if Ezran died he’d be eligible as an orphan. In a hypothetical situation where Sarai and Callum survive both Harrow and Ezran, who knows?

We also have a complication to dynastic succession that the show neatly avoids, which is branching family trees. “Noble” bloodlines are frequently offshoots of a royal house, descended from non-inheriting lines. The best way I can explain around a 300-year-old unbroken dynastic bloodline apparently having no extended relations is to assume that it does, but the cultural tradition is that anyone not part of the immediate royal nuclear family is basically the same being unrelated. This would mostly apply to non-inheriting siblings, with the expectation that they disperse to live their own lives at some normal life transition point, such as reaching independent adulthood and pursuing a career, or getting married. The monarch could certainly place their siblings on the Council, but since those positions don’t seem to be hereditary there’s no dynastic effect. (At least not automatically.)

Another thing frequently tied to social class that we have absolutely no idea how the setting handles is land ownership. I’m not going to dwell on this much because it’s deeply intertwined with a lot of other societal factors that are more complex than I want to think about right now, like childhood education or industrialization of agriculture. Given the socially egalitarian emphasis of the setting, I seriously doubt that the creators intended a feudal or even feudal-like system, though.

So with that out of the way, what does confer social status in Katolis? We know one answer is money, because there’s a limit to how idealized a setting can get. My bet would be that both the big money and the civilian prestige in Katolis is in industries or professions that support the military. Respected professions would probably be things like crafting armor and weapons (smithing and leatherworking), engineering (particularly related to weaponry), medicine (human and animal), and… idk, animal husbandry and training (all those crows gotta come from somewhere). The industries making people rich would then be the suppliers for those—mining, military food production, and of course, trade. When you have a large standing military, just the supply logistics are practically an industry of their own.

(I do personally imagine a loose guild system for a lot of the trained crafting professions just because I enjoy that shit and also it’s an easy education pipeline. Probably also for medicine, I don’t see there being a lot of medical schools floating around so again, apprenticeship-based training.)

Just to spin things out even further, in the absence of organized religion—a BIG absence—is there what could be considered the equivalent of an “educated” class? Well, education is another thing we know literally nothing about, so… scholarship likely remains the province of the wealthy or people who can charm a wealthy patron. In the public sphere, if you look at Opeli as kind of a combination attorney general and master of ceremonies, she likely has an office of nerds living their best lives doing her bidding, and that’s as close as you’ll get to a “priestly” class. (Or to a lawyer, since the most we’ve seen of the justice system is “Opeli puts people in prison and the monarch sentences them.”)

Okay so now that even I have forgotten what I’m talking about… that’s my social picture of Katolis, I guess. Communitarian, but susceptible to the issues that come with having a strong military-industrial complex influencing your socioeconomic balance.

[ghostoffuturespast]

I have to ask about SIG for the WIP game. Is it an acronym? Something else? I need more deets

WIP Game Here

😉 I think you're pretty well acquainted with this one lol

SIG - So It Goes

I don't really have any new snippets or anything to share at this point, apart from what I had earlier. But I figured this'd be a good opportunity to share some behind the scenes for this one. So here goes!

There's been three different plot threads I've been juggling throughout this thing. A-plot (which is the main events of the game, V trying to solve their relic problem), B-plot (the romance), and C-plot (for conspiracy). It's been an entertaining challenge weaving these three threads together, and also expanding on things that I wish had been included in the game. But I'm very excited about getting to the end of this thing so I can put a bow on this horrible magic trick.

One of my favorite sections to work on was probably chapters 16-22. Largely B-plot with a little bit of C-plot mixed in. For me, it was an interesting way to have Grandpa and River get to know each other better in a way that I think we didn't get enough of in the game, and I'm really proud that I also managed to expand the whole Monster Hunter gig (the one with Jotaro Shobo, which was pretty short) out with just the shards you pick up around town. Because there are a shit ton of them. Like the human trafficking situation in NC is bad, but finding out literally one sick bastard is fueling so much of it, on top of finding out how many other people were involved was crazy. But all the characters that were involved and the details I included in this part of the story were all inspired by and taken straight from the game.

Jacob Miller (the murdered media River and Han were investigating), dead NPC you can find under the Gold Beach Pier in Wellsprings. Callum Black (the cop that V and River end up kidnapping and interrogating), name dropped in the messages you get off Jacob and also, presumably, the one who killed him, since Jacob was trying to blackmail him. David Beemer (the detective that V and River made a house call too), NPC from one of the NCPD scanner gigs. You can deal with him and find out he's been working with the Scavs and SoCal border patrol. Jerry Fawlter, corrupt NCPD Commissioner was name-dropped in several shards you find in Northside. (I know everyone was excited about the celebs at the party in PL, but man, I was so excited to see Jerry. Evil middle-manager in a suit got to be a real NPC!)

One of the main reasons I love this games so much, is just how detailed and interconnected it all is. And all of that was a tiny piece of it. Like they didn't have to go this hard, but they did. And you don't put that much detail in for no reason. It's been a lot of fun tickling my brain playing connect the dots and puzzling all of this out.

Thanks for the ask!🧡

[raayllum]

I just finished Book 5, and do you think that Ezra’s arc will have him learn that words aren’t enough? Some fans do think that he’s the least emphasized of the Dragang

I don't think Ezran is going to learn that words aren't enough (they have been, often times in his life, and trying non violent routes are important) but I do think he's going to be presented with more and more situations where it is, as he acknowledges, "Not that simple" (4x03).

In Arc 1, you had the transformative trio of characters (Callum, Rayla, Soren) who were rapidly changing as people versus the more "circumstances change and drag out certain personality traits either more or less" stagnated trio (Ezran, Viren, Claudia). In Arc 2 thus far, it seems that Soren, Claudia, and Ezran are the 'stagnant' ones and Viren, Callum, and Rayla are the transformative ones. That being said, I do think S5 focused on Ezran as much as S4 focused on Rayla, so it's not surprising there's a bit of a trade off (especially with Janai very much being a Main Character in arc 2) with Callum (always our main Main protagonist) getting a decent amount every season. There's definitely a lack of Ezran in the first four episodes (he gets about one scene a-piece) but I do think it's over quality > quantity, in some ways. (Bow from She-Ra for example is in every single episode of that series, but gets very little by way of arcs or conflict or interiority, y'know?)

That said:

I talked about this a bit more in a podcast review I did for the season / this meta, but I think Soren and Ezran are having slowburn arcs that will come to fruition in S6. Soren, after all, hasn't really changed as a character since the end of S3 - he's on team good guy, he's reaffirming his choices and love for his friends, he still cares for Claudia and still views his father as a cruel villain (which, Viren is/can be).

Ezran, likewise, is dealing with his own well, slowburn of problems. In a lot of ways, Ezran has to hold it together when everyone else is falling apart (Rayla is MIA, Callum is a mess; staying level headed even when they're arguing; being the main negotiator seemingly between the Pentarchy and the dragons of Xadia; and ruling is own kingdom). He takes his duties seriously and wants to broker peace further, if maybe a tad faster than people are ready for. Like Janai says, I think, his priorities have changed since becoming king. His duty first and foremost is to his kingdom/the world. (Not that it wasn't his mindset before, but it wasn't his responsibility before pre-series, y'know?) Which is very Rayla of him, I think ("I let them all down" in 3x04 / "I just feel like I'm letting everybody down" for Ez in 3x03).

And we see how much this weighs on Ezran based on how heavily he takes responsibility for his perceived and or literal mistakes. Whether it's speeding things up too fast / not giving enough room for his people's, or his own anger...

E: I had a speech planned for today. It was about peace and love and hope. But I think I left something out. I ignored something that was true. I denied something that is undeniable.

or in doing the right thing in saving the Baitlings, but putting his friends in danger.

And Soren acknowledges that this isn't really fair for Ezran, either:

Soren: This is all too heavy. It's not fair you have to struggle through this alone. You deserve time to do kid stuff. If you spend all your time doing adult stuff now, you'll grow up weird, like your brother and Rayla.

Now, on the certain level, Ezran is alone because he's like - he's the King, and that's its own unique position. However, if you look at how close Viren and Harrow, and Harrow and Sarai were, in their decision making, they did everything together. In spite of being a single dad, Harrow was never alone in what he did as king (for better or for worse): "I accept that tonight I may pay the price for our mistakes."

So I think it's interesting this emphasis on loneliness/alone in the same season we have Amaya and Rayla's conversation about it too:

A: My big sister Sarai was the smartest, strongest, bravest person I knew. When she died, I felt lost and weak without her.

I hated feeling that way, so I learned to be strong alone. Stoic, strong, and lonely. [...] To have that kind of strength, it is not enough to love someone. You have to trust them to share the burdens you're carrying.

So who does Ezran depend on to carry that burden with him? Because Ezran isn't supposed to be alone as king, and Harrow spelled it out for us:

When I am gone your brother Ezran will become king, and you will be his partner, his defender, and his closest advisor.

So the question is... has Callum really fulfilled his role for his brother? Callum isn't crownguard, so actually protecting Ezran is primarily in Soren and Corvus' hands, exemplified by Soren being the one to get angry over the ruined painting in 4x03, to run to Ezran in 4x09, and for Callum to be absent from the Dragon mission in S5. And when Callum is there to have a duty to fulfil:

Then we see the brothers - not Ezran and Rayla - disagree on how to proceed forward with Aaravos, getting momentarily a little heated before they both turn to Rayla (and remember those Rayla parallels I mentioned earlier?):

Now, it's not surprising that Ezran wants to take the diplomatic / least violent route. He's the one primarily appealing to Akiyu rather than barrelling onwards, and expresses great concern for her (even after she tried to kill them). Claudia thinks she can appeal to him in 5x09 because of his empathy. A more compassionate, reasonable route is what he's always done, trying to reason evenly with Finnegrin and with Rex Igneous, even if it doesn't precisely work out... simply because they, like his brother, don't exactly Value the same things Ezran does.

Alright, so the broyals disagreed once, and Callum is a little flighty as a High Mage. So what? Well: Callum now knows, and has already committed himself, to helping Rayla free her parents from the coins, including Runaan.

And Ezran's short story going into S5 hints that this may not exactly be something he's happy about:

Ezran gripped the arrow tight. The thing in his hands was a terrible letter, the ribbon its message: the king of Katolis was dead. King Harrow. His father. Something cold lurched inside him. He fought against it. He’d fought it before, that same hurt, years ago—when he’d found out what really happened that night in Katolis. Still, it haunted him. He couldn’t help but imagine the scene, all of it playing out like grim theater before him, as though he’d been there, as though he’d stood by and watched it happen. That Moonshadow elf upon the castle ramparts, skulking toward his father’s chambers. 

It stared up at him. Ezran felt a coldness twist its way around his heart. It took his lungs, too, and for a long moment he could not breathe, could not feel anything but an unfamiliar anger so potent it seized the whole of him, inside and out. Ezran stepped towards the arrow— —and stomped down on it as hard as he could. He wished he were bigger, stronger, he wished his boots were made of iron and not something soft. Still, it was enough. When he pulled his foot away, Ezran glared down at the arrow’s hawkish head, flattened and broken. Its ruby eye slipped from its socket, its black metal bent like frayed feathers. He left it there in the dark.

Full short story here.

So Ezran is going to find out, or possibly feel, that Callum and Rayla are keeping a secret from him (again, just like S2, which didn't make him happy then, either). Callum is going to side with Rayla over him if he mandates that Runaan shouldn't or can't be freed, giving into his anger and grief much the same way his father did. He may pull rank - and Callum is going to disregard it. A very similar fallout repeating itself...

Ezran being increasingly isolated (especially if Callum and Rayla are working, or leaving, to find the Starscraper), his disapproval and grief, trying to manage the possible fallout of Zubeia being injured/MIA, feeling undervalued and disregarded by his brother... There's little doubt in my mind that Callum and Ezran (and Rayla) will reconcile and find their way back to one another, healing their hurts, but Ezran has a lot of potential anger and angst to express and a lot on his upcoming plate, steadily added to and set up by the previous seasons.

Which in a lot of ways, makes sense. Ezran as king and Callum as high mage, and as brothers, have to prove they won't fall apart the same way that King Harrow and Viren did, more necessary than ever now that Callum has done dark magic again. Ezran was there to pick up the pieces after Rayla left, but he may still have anger over that and their joint secret keeping from him / feeling like they're treating him 'unfairly' like a child. We've also never really seen Ezran have this type of conflict before, nevermind for the trio as a whole (most of the time it's been Callum and Rayla disagreeing, a couple brief instances of Ez and Rayla, and Callum and Ez a few times in S1 / 5x05) so for Ezran to be what starts falling apart would really rattle all three of him, and seems to be where he's headed, character wise.

And I for one cannot wait to see it.

TLDR; Ezran's slow burn arc, much like Soren's, is being steadily set up and is going to likely be a big focus in the next two seasons, pushing him and other characters in brand new directions and with some really emotional, powerful storytelling to upstage our previously held status quo in all the ways.

[theredhairedmonkey]

Morality in the Dragon Prince

TDP does an excellent job weaving in several ways of moral reasoning without outright stating whether any of them are right. To wit, there exist the Big Three types of moralities: consequentialism, deontology, and virtue ethics, which we will call here (1) Outcome-driven, (2) Rule-driven, and (3) Character-driven. There are main characters who are influenced by each of these three camps.

Outcome-driven morality focuses on the ends. Creating the greatest good for the greatest number. Actions don't have values in of themselves, all that matters is what the result of those actions were, and what the benefit was. The characters who mesh most with this morality are Viren, Claudia, and Karim.

Rule-driven morality focuses on following principles and duties (like don't lie or steal), rather than consequences. Actions are inherently right or wrong, depending on whether our moral obligations were fulfilled, and are universal and impartial. The characters who mesh most with this morality are Ezran, Rayla, and Janai.

Character-driven morality rejects both of these camps. Morality isn't about achieving good outcomes or following good actions, but about cultivating good character traits such as compassion, courage, and wisdom. The idea is that pursuing virtuous behavior leads to personal flourishing, which in turn leads to good conduct. The characters who mesh most with this morality are Soren, Callum, and Amaya (i.e. the ones who are training or learning all the time).

But each of these moralities have serious pitfalls, which in turn influences the flaws of each of the characters above.

Under outcome-driven morality, the ends justify the means. It doesn't matter if Viren has to kill the princes, Claudia has to do unspeakable things, or Karim has to kill his sister. The outcomes (bright future for humanity, saving one's family, or saving one's people), at least in the minds of each person, are good, so any action taken, no matter how terrible, is justified. Hence why each of these three descend down the slippery slope of villainy pretty quickly.

No matter how dangerous. No matter how vile.

Rule-driven morality avoids this problem, but instead creates a different one: these characters become rigid and inflexible, and unable to deal with nuanced situations. Hence why Ezran gives up the crown: violence is bad, so he does what he can to avoid bloodshed, which only leads to a much larger war in Xadia. Whereas Viren and Claudia can justify too many actions, Rayla and Ezran can't justify enough to do what they should be doing.

How can I let this happen?

Character-driven morality, meanwhile, has two big problems that matter here, one impacting Soren and the other impacting Callum. The first is that virtues don't really provide clear guidance in complicated situations, so people may get roped into situations that are hard to justify. Such as...a plot to kill the princes.

The right thing? I don't know if I can do that.

The second is that what's virtuous often differs based on roles. The virtues in being a soldier (bravery, strong will, etc.) is going to be different from the virtues of being a scholar (intelligence, wisdom, etc.). But what if you are both things? What happens when what's virtuous in one role is wrong in another?

This is where Callum often finds himself in. On the one hand, being a good primal mage involves integrity, and adherence to ethical standards when using magic. Dark magic is a clear violation of that, yet on the other hand being a good prince means Callum should display duty and courage, especially in defense of those people he's loyal to. So in that case he should use dark magic if it means he can fight to protect those same people. Thus, Callum's character gets splintered into two, hard-to-reconcile halves.

Look at you. Slave to your friends, your loyalties, your pride.

There aren't any easy answers to any of these, let alone which moral code is most correct. But where these moralities succeed or fail parallels pretty closely to where these characters rise or fall.

[bees-without-borders]

So, I'm brand new to TDP, and just binged the whole show with a friend. Not sure how the fandom feels about it yet, but anyone else really disappointed with the time skip?

Like, I feel like there was so much potential there for good stuff! The three major things I think we missed out on:

The development of Amaya's romance

Rayla's quest for revenge and eventual realization that she already had something way more important

Claudia's meeting Terry and having adventures while trying to collect the stuff for her potion

I feel especially mad about Rayla's missed plot, because she leaves as a character we like and returns as a character we like, so it's hard to relate to why Callum is so angry at her. They explain it and it makes sense logically, but it's a classic show don't tell situation.

The best I can figure, there was no season in between because none of those things involve the two main boys especially: Ezra and Callum. But, seriously, you couldn't find anything for them to do? I feel like Ezra taking on his father's role could have had lots of potential, and investing more time in Callum as the high mage would have made his susceptibility to Aaravos all the more anxiety-inducing!

I was pretty disappointed. Would love to hear what others think and what the general fandom's reaction was!

[stelladoesstuff]

#what is that side note OP #WHAT IS THAT SIDE NOTE OP???

Honestly? It is with great heartache and deepest sorrow that I have to admit that I don't expect Amaya to survive the series (nor have I since the confrontation with Viren).

Amaya is a character that is

A) Loved by fans

B) Close enough to a lot of characters that her death would invoke a strong emotional reaction from them.

C) not so integral to the plot that it could not move forward without her.

Then there's just a few little things like

'this show's theme is getting darker and it's overdue for a horrific loss' (Ibis wasn't near close enough to enough of the main cast to be REALLY Devistating to the drag-gang)

'The fact that Sunfire elves live so much longer than humans has not been addressed could this be that it doesn't matter because Amaya's not going to grow old?'

and (while not based on any evidence [and let's say Amaya and Janai forgo a normal engagement for a quick wedding due to Karim's schemes]). Sarai and Amaya both marrying into the throne and dying as Queens to save their people it would be a cinematic parallel that writers go nuts over.

Honestly- dang, all of that really does make sense.

Apart from Amaya, Callum and Ezran really don't have any other family left. Her death could also act as a parallel to what happened in Claudia's situation after Viren's death. If Callum truly is 'fated' to play into Aaravos's hands, he could very well be drawn in by a similar desperation to bring back Amaya that Claudia felt towards Viren.

Quite the setup for the Callum villain arc that a lot of people have been theorizing around. If he was met with a chance to save Amaya, especially for Ezran's sake, would he take it?

The lack of addressing elf life spans also raises questions between Rayla and Callum's relationship. Amaya's premature death could be leverage for Callum to realize that chances are he will die long before Rayla does, which will only continue to draw a divide between them as he starts to believe he'll only drag her down--limit her.

We also have Rayla getting back her parents [in coin form, at least. Who knows how quickly they'll be able to be freed] just as Callum risks loosing the last parental figure he really has. In his mind, why would she need him when her family is right there?

So what happens when a grief stricken Callum turns his back on everyone but himself and Ezran, realizing that their lives are too short of be of any meaning to the elves surrounding them, and decides to offer his assistance to Aaravos in exchange for Amaya's life? Being truly selfish for the first time in his life because suddenly all that matters is keeping his family safe.

...and then what happens when Ezran inevitably rejects his plan, and parallels are drawn between their king/high mage dynamic and the one between Harrow and Viren? Callum has already started demonstrating parallels to Viren, after all.

I seem to have rambled quite a bit there, but well, theorizing is all we have while we wait for answers. Amaya's death would be crushing, but the parallels... the parallels would be even more crushing lets be honest.

[jamieedlund]

So we know your thoughts about Aaravos and Callum, what are your thoughts about the Mage fam?

I haven't thought of them in a long time and also I had no idea what mage fam meant until you told me it's team rocket I mean claud sore and lord virginia's family wheezes

Um... Huh.... I don't know if I wanna make this another lengthy answer so I'll do my best to make it brief...

Keep reading if you're ready to see me lose my sanity again. If not then just look at this cute Cally and Aary doodle of them trash talking "someone" You know you love them.

1. I will never understand viren's motivation nor do I love him as a character. . . Actually nah... "do not love" is still putting it very mildly. I despises the cartoony villain vibe that they wrote for him. I think he coulda been a better written villain but I just...hmgggggg the writing pisses me off. I would be smiling with genuine happiness if he's dead for real this season. I see no appeal in him. Fuck that guy.

2.Claud...

I sorta? understand her...but i feel like I don't ...like her as much as I should...Is it the gas lighting...? Is it the very cringe romance they wrote for her and Cally? Is it just something part of her personality that I don't...like??? No idea. I read something here about how she was murdered as a character (albeit I don't really notice it but if you say so I suppose???) I'll tell you what though I really wanna see her becoming the main villain of the show. She will be a very compelling villain in my opinion. It's all gonna be super fun with her.

#freeaaravosfrombeingcalledavillainofthiscursedshow

Also they missed out the chance to do what is in my opinion one of the most interesting dynamic in this entire show: Raydia.

I'm not a huge fan of shipping nor do I go around spilling things about ships but I see so much potential in these two it's baffling like why didn't the writers go for this duo? They'd be fun as heck girlfriends - or just besties for now if romance isn't on the table yet WHICH I DON'T CARE FOR EITHER WAY, just give them a chance man.

They have so much to play off each other like daddy issues, their own very strong views the world, that sweet sweet enemies to besties/lovers trope is going on strong here. PLUS THEY'RE SUPER DUPER GOOD AT WHAT THEY DO AND IT'S AMAZING. Like bruh callum was BARELY an enemy they're like chill after 2 days I cannot --- *face palm* anyways... She's semi wasted in that aspect.

Soreeeeee-n

By far the only character in this show that hasn't been a running mouth piece for the writers very bad, overly-simplified view of good and evil

(except for that one episode in season 3 where he's like "someone who tell you to do something bad and convince you it's good is a villain" like woah woah woah woah hold the phone okayyyyyyy this line applies to viren and VIREN only. Because in the context of Aaravos the man just really wanna get tf outta jail does ANY OF YOU KNOW WHAT IT FEELS LIKE TO BE LOCKED IN FOR 300 YEARS?! uh nope cause YOU WOULD HAVE DIED A LONG TIME AGO AFTER LOOSING YOUR DAMN MIND. So to me when he says this it felt like the writers are putting words into his mouth and trying to foreshadow or tell the viewers that oh yea aaravos is TOTALLYY A VILLAIN NO- like fuck that shit ohmygod - if it's been 300 years and the only way out you can see is feeding to a terrible man's ego in order to get him to do what you need YOU FUCKING TAKE IT. That doesn't make you a villain that makes you more of an enabler. AND IT'S NOT LIKE HE CAN DO ANYTHING ABOUT IT IF VIREN CHOSE TO NOT LISTEN TO HIM SO POINT. AARAVOS. I can think of like 5 different ways where Cally can turn the situation viren was put in with aaravos into something fun, wholesome AND DEFINITELY WOULD NOT FRAME AARAVOS AS A BAD PERSON AT ALL fuck-)

hasn't received arguably a lot of special treatments in order to make him look good and is the only character I understand the most. He's overall well-written and I love him very much. I think he should receive more love and be appreciated a bit more by the people around him. Most of his action makes sense to me and that is all I need to put him as my most favorite canonically speaking.

[meganwasbored]

The Dragon Prince Thoughts Season 2 Episodes 1 and 2

I took a little break because I am sick and feel like crap rn but I finally have the energy and motivation to watch more so I’m back!

Episode 1

-aw what happened to the sparkly hands in the intro

-fire elf things I’m assuming

-is she in Xadia cause there’s elves but also how would she get there before Callum and Ezran

-“you were looking for another good word to describe me, right? Well I consider myself quite daring” I love her

-STOP I FORGOT HE DIDNT KNOW HARROW WAS DEAD

-I’m serious if he never gots to read Harrow’s letter to him I’m done

-is Ellis gonna be with them from now on because I have no complaints

-well at least Viren doesn’t look like a zombie anymore

-“You’re out of order, Lord Viren. Only a king or queen can call for a summit” I totally forgot her name but this girl is awesome

-Phoe-Phoe is literally so pretty like I want her as a pet

-girl why did you have to TELL THEM THAT why can’t they just eat in peace

-“my duty is to prevent humans from discovering this place” well I gotta say you’re doing a bang up job

-ay Bait’s looking a little jealous

-AWWWW

-if they’re trying to make me feel sympathy for Viren it’s not gonna work

-“save it for someone who cares” she’s so done lol

-Zym is literally so cute I wanna die

-y’all chill out it’s a freaking bush

-this show is literally so pretty oh my gosh

-going out on a limb here but I think he’s gonna learn magic guys lol

-Note to self: the old elf lady’s name is Lujanne

-ah yes the classic “I overheard someone else’s advice and decided that it also applies to my situation” love to see it

-the Crow Master seems like a cool guy ngl, even the nameless characters are the best

-ok I get that she’s trying to tell him the truth but like I think he knows he’s human you can stop rubbing it in

-I’m sorry but the way she just picked a rose then dramatically passed out was so funny

Episode 2

-yay the sparkly hands are back!

-“are we gonna fight or is this a talent show” HAHAHAHAH

-“I keep telling people, “sweep the leg” is not a thing in sword fighting!” hehehehe

-Gren is so chill about being in this dungeon

-FINALLY some has an appropriate freak out response to Zym’s cuteness

-someone make this a meme

-Soren feeling really guilty one second and convincing himself he’s doing something good the next is actually really sad I feel so bad for him

-Claudia’s appearance makes her look super cool and dangerous but really she’s just some magic geek who loves cute animals and I love that for her

-she actually has a point like we kill bugs all the time why not get some use out of it

-so like it’s obvious that Callum is gonna learn to do magic on his own the question is does he learn because he finds a way to understand it like Lujanne was saying or does he have some elf in his bloodline or something

-the fact that the main character’s unrealistic crush is usually really cold to them and doesn’t like them but Callum and Claudia are literally besties rn is so refreshing like yes more of this

-has Rayla been just stalking them this whole time they were hanging out like where has she been

-“I can see you believe it. But I’ve known Soren and Claudia for years. You and I don’t have that yet” dang.

-when Soren said “I took no joy in that” after Claudia brought up the zip line and the way he says it sounds like it’s supposed to be funny when really it’s the truth

-“I’m glad my wisdom helped”

“It didn’t, it was wrong”

“Was it? Or was it just differently true?”

Imma start using this whenever someone disagrees with me

-am I supposed to recognize the place in the mirror

-hold up are Callum and Claudia less far in age than I thought cause what was that

-“I know what happened, he’s gone” I knew this was coming so why am I crying