tdp: where do we go from here?
or my ARC TWO (s4 and s5) predictions
So. S3 happened. A lot happened, not only in the season itself, but in the way it wrapped up 90% of the main arcs of the first main arc of the show. Even before it was announced that there would be three main arcs (and even before the seven seasons planned in total reveal, if I remember correctly) I had three main predictions
Narratively, at least one timeskip has to happen
Aaravos as endgame big bad and a unifying threat for both elves and humans to deal with on a large scale
Zym would be home by S4, and it wouldn’t fix Everything
So honestly, watching S3, and given how the season ended, I was gratified more than shocked. There were shocking moments in the season, for sure, but narrative wise, things had panned out the way I’d predicted, if not even better than I thought they would.
I also definitely got things wrong, though. I thought they’d return Zym home a little later, Rayllum had another season to go before being canon, and that returning Zym home would mean less than it ended up doing so, as I thought it would be a gesture from just one human from one kingdom, not Duren and Katolis together from the King and crown prince, amid other elves and important humans like Janai (the new Sunfire queen) and General Amaya.
That being said, here are my predictions going forward, as an expansion on the three I’m still holding, and the three that may lie ahead
I’ve been gunning for a timeskip since March 2019, and honestly longer, if I think of when I first wanted it internally. It was something I was always very sure on narratively, just because it made too much sense, for these reasons down below:
The show had no fixed end of when Zym had to be returned. With no ticking clock (think of how in ATLA, everything was mandated by the Comet’s return) it gave an opportunity for things to stretch beyond just a few weeks, months, or even years
Seeing Zym grow into a slightly terrifying force of nature would make all too much sense, and while untrue, give weight to Viren’s words that he “would’ve become the most powerful creature in the world!”
Give Callum a reasonable amount of time, largely off screen, to connect to the other primal sources, otherwise multiple ones would have to be crammed into one or more seasons and it could begin to feel repetitious to see him connect to five other ones
Now it’s been confirmed that there will be a timeskip in between Books Three and Four. Yet because I wanted it so much, I did doubt myself a little. I also know that some people are hesitant about having a timeskip, and that’s totally understandable. (I personally got used to them because the “How to Train Your Dragon” franchise, including the tv show, has five timeskips.) The main concern seems to be of what if the timeskip is too big, but I don’t think that would happen for a number of reasons.
I’m personally betting on anytime from three months to one year as the time skip between S3 and S4, specifically six months. We don’t want to keep Aaravos cocooned for too long and have to keep flashing back for information, but long enough for things to settle. A timeskip of this manner would:
Allow Ezran time to grow and settle into his kingship in a time of peace - or working towards it in better ways than he was previously able to
Solidify Ezran’s council (Opeli and Corvus) and Soren reinstated as crown guard for the true king
Give a reasonable amount of time for Callum to more or less master sky magic and set hit sights on another arcanum
Rayla having fulfilled her duty as a Dragon Guard for a while, so that when the story picks up again her leaving it makes sense
Show off more established Rayllum, in a more secure way than in the immediate aftermath of 3x05 did
Zym can grow (and his relationship with his mother) now that he is no longer what binds the Trio together in quite the same manner
But mostly, for post-war politics which I’ll get into it down below
Season three hinted at a lot of really interesting Xadian politics, and told us some really important things too. Namely that the elves are non united and each type/group seems to operate under their own command. The Dragon Queen is less of a reigning monarch and more just a monarch for the dragons themselves, which some elves then choose to serve. It also shows that among dragons there’s big issues of dissent, like Sol Regem, a previous monarch (however that works) being uncaring about burning his technical prince alive.
That’s not to say that what Ezran and to a certain extent, Katolis, did doesn’t matter. Katolis and Duren’s alliance will be stronger than ever, and with Janai as the Sunfire Queen, you’ll have her factions as well (having Amaya, who was such a prominent General at the Breach, in a relationship with her / on her side doesn’t hurt either).
I am curious about the other human kingdoms though, as two lost their rulers and had no replacement mentioned, but they clearly aligned with Kasef. In addition, King Ahling will have survived and recovered from his encounter with the shadowy assassins, but will have to come to terms with how his son died. And it was still never confirmed to any of the human kingdoms that Xadia hadn’t staged that attack in the first place, but Viren with dark magic.
Things will be strained in more ways than one, and I’m really excited to see where it goes. And also how it can reflect in our main characters, specifically the trio…
This is the theory I’m most excited for it, and it hinges on our core three: Ezran, Callum, and Rayla. Each are completely different people than they were at the start of the series and they’ve grown so much and have chosen new responsibilities or paths for themselves. And of course, because it’s me and my brain, I have gone the angst route.
Ezran and Rayla’s relationship is one that is one of my favourites and has always been very sweet. They don’t tend to really disagree and Ezran was the first one to trust her, even if he was the only one out of the two princes who was her target. Rayla to a certain extent also takes care of him, and it’s Ezran in more ways than one that brings her and Callum together. So I think, to a certain degree in the next arc of the show, we’re also going to see him rip them apart.
That’s not to say Ezran will do so maliciously or on purpose, or that I think Callum and Rayla will break up. I don’t think any of those things. But I kept thinking about Rayla’s line in 2x08: “You’re not my king. But you are my friend.”
Rayla is still an elf from Xadia with her own duties, and her own political loyalties. Ezran also has a different responsibility to his own people, the other human kingdoms, and to upholding peace. Callum, meanwhile, is caught in between. He’s a human who will likely live in Xadia and can connect to a primal, but he’s still a prince of Katolis. He loves Rayla but Ezran is his brother and the only family (other than Amaya) that he has left.
So basically, I think Ezran and Rayla are gonna disagree on something major, and while I think Callum will align a bit more with Rayla’s viewpoint, I think he may still choose to stand by his brother’s side. What the disagreement could be about, or why, I don’t know. But I think Callum is going to be torn between two places and people, and he’ll have to make some really hard decisions. I also think that Rayla will understand him standing by Ezran better than Ezran would if Callum just flat out sided by her, but that is just flat out speculation.
This would also take the external conflict and internalize it hard, particularly because not only have Ezran and Rayla never disagreed to the same magnitude that Callum and Rayla did, but that they would probably work to resolve it because of the effect it’s having on Callum, too.
Our trio has been our solid ground, to speak, for all of Arc 1, and given that Arc 2 is really going to shake things up, and the idea of peace being just as hard as war (but more worthwhile) I wouldn’t be surprised to see it extremely tested before they re-solidify, stronger than ever.
When we see Viren after the fall, it’s unknown if the bag of coins is with him. However we do know that Rayla knows there are elves in there, and that Gren knowns Runaan is one of them. Rayla also knows that her parents didn’t run away and would therefore think them worthy of being saved.
Viren and Claudia being spotted would be motivation enough for her to leave the Dragon Guard, perhaps, along with Callum and some allies to try and find the coins. I also think a confrontation between Claudia, Callum, and Rayla is coming eventually, given how messy their history is and how much resentment Claudia would hold towards Rayla (who is the reason Viren died, after all).
I think by the end of Arc 2 (aka s5) Rayla’s parents and Runaan will be out of the coins so we have everyone together before the final Arc and all the fun possibilities and character work that can bring. It also might be one of those moments, since S5 will presumably end on a terrible note (especially since Arc 1 ended on such a high note at the end of the day) in a very ‘Empire-Strikes-Back’ sort of way, with of “at least we have this good thing that happened / we’re all alive.”
We got more hints of this in S3, but given that something is going to be emerging out of that cocoon at one point, I wouldn’t be surprised if we get more of the full story. Especially since now Claudia is embroiled in Viren’s relationship with Aaravos, which might deteriorate while hers simultaneously improves.
I also think it’s important to get out Aaravos’ backstory, and why he was imprisoned, and all of the possibly good and evil things he’s done explained to the audience at least, so we can understand the full weight and consequences of why him getting out of that mirror is a “Oh shit no” moment when the time comes.
But yeah, that’s basically all I got for now, and I hope you enjoy my theories! Feel free to add yours or discuss them down below! :)
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