It’s such an amazing franchise. The world is so interesting and expansive. Conflicts are deep and intense. It isn’t all black and white. The characters are so three-dimensional and have personalities, dreams, and destinies all their own. The friendship between them all is so palpable, I can feel the love. The themes explored are rich and give powerful messages. At its heart, this story is about four kids who come from a broken place, are broken themselves, and learn to be better and rise up to the point they’re able to help other kids like them. That is such a beautiful and important message and I hope it’s analogous to my own life.
The ships are incredible and full of love. Jarlos is so sweet, they adore one another, and I love that the two shy, mousy characters found comfort in each other. Devie is amazing, Doug loves Evie so much and will follow her wherever she goes. Evie loves him in return and will stay by his side, no matter what. And Bal is so, so extraordinary. Such a different pair, but they are perfect for each other. They’ve had ups and downs but they made it through, and now they’ll live happily together, forever.
I love the Core Four for their chosen family (what I call found family, seems like a more accurate term), their friendships, and their development. They’re all so amazing in their own ways, and even better togethier.
(Including Ben cause I want to) Ben growing into such a wonderful king, even if he struggles sometimes. He’s so kind to everyone and wants everyone to be the best they can be. He found is own way to balance being king and being himself. I think we should all strive to be more like him.
Jay was a thief who only cared about himself and what he could get. He learned how a team worked and became someone who is very thoughtful of his friends.
Carlos was constantly bullied and was his mother’s slave. He grew more confident, and learned to stand up for himself. He knows who his friends are and will stand by them through anything.
Evie was taught to only care about her appearance, that that was the only part of her that had value. But she learned the things she did mattered more and she doesn’t need a prince to make her happy. She has her friends, her work, her boyfriend, her wonderful home, and helping the Isle kids. She’s so compassionate, and is on her way to big things and I hope she gets there.
And Mal. The one who was supposed to be the evilest of them all, but ended up finding love and not wanting to let go. Having wrapped her whole identity around being bad, she definitely struggled to figure out how to be good. But with Ben and her friends’s help, she was able to learn and allow herself what she wanted. I love that she became queen through good instead of evil, and did it for love, not power. I know she’s going to do great things, and I love her.
Descendants is my favorite franchise. It’s the first one I’ve really fallen in love with. I kinda just wanted to write a little thing attempting to express my feelings and how I see (some of) the characters (and let me add that I don’t hate/dislike any of the characters). Descendants is super important to me and I hope I love it like this for a long time 💜
