there’s this really interesting parallel between the raven king in trc and the raven king in aftg. not the books, but the figures and perceptions of glendower and riko themselves.
in trc, glendower is this great-man-cum-genie’s-wish. he is man and myth in one. gansey’s focus on the yet-to-be-confirmed magic of glendower instead of the very real magic that exists all around him makes it so that, when glendower is found to be impotent, gansey sees no other solution to stopping the story’s great evil than his own sacrifice. we know there was another solution all along, stemming from a magic there had been tangible proof of since book one, but gansey still dies, even if he is ultimately revived.
in aftg, riko is made a god through his parasocial relationship with his fans. there’s a mythology around him: his perfect court and the fact that he was trained from childhood by one of the inventors of the game he plays, at the most prestigious program in the world. but behind the scenes, riko is propped up by a criminal organization and encouraged by his mentor to abuse his power. this, combined with neglect, turns him into the root of worst things to happen to each of our three main characters: kevin’s hand breaking, drake finding andrew, and neil’s dad finding him.
both riko and glendower end up exposing the main characters to almost dooms, glendower passively through the power of gansey’s faith, and riko actively through the power of the public’s adoration.
