#sdcc 2019

[dotthings]

We do not talk enough about this cockles nonsense from the press room at SDCC 2019. (full video here)

Jensen absolutely knew what he was doing and he could hear what Misha was doing. They’re a menace!!

[beheworthy]

#god i see what you have done for others

[doctoralhashimi]

PAGET BREWSTER at COMIC-CON 2019 all i'm saying is i don't think we gave this pic enough attention

[polkadotjohnson]

[deansraspberrypie]

Sexiest Man Alive ❤👑🔥

🍰 Tag list: @avanatural @undisputedchick2 @jranutter @fortheloveof-jackles @kazsrm67 @muchamusedaboutnothing @breath-of-snow-and-ashes @bluedragonflylady @mrsjenniferwinchester @unabashed-lover-of-fictional-men 🥧

[cas-is-my-weakness]

THEY ARE LITERALLY BOYFRIENDS

misha did not stop looking at jensen the entire time. They were crying and emotional just a few seconds back and supporting each other. Like the look is, misha's way of asking Jensen *are you okay*. I love them so.

And then jensen also posted it. He knows I'm sobbing.

[raayllum]

So with the new art of Aaravos in mind, let’s talk about stars, skits, and foreshadowing

It seems to be child Aaravos, gathered around stars. Now, most of what we know about stars were jokes included in the “Written in the Stars” skit from a comic con in 2019, where Callum (Jack de Sena) and Rayla (Paula Burrows) stargazed together their first night in Xadia, discussing different constellations between their cultures. It is adorable, and you should watch this animatic of it right now if you haven’t already, and even if you have.

Rayla talks about Garlaf ruling the night sky (with his merciless boot of crushing), Callum talks a baby banther mama banther constellation that’s clearly an Usra major / minor reference. (Perhaps Garlaf is a famous Moonshadow or Startouch elf of old?) But most notably, Callum references something called the South Star, a parody of the north star. What he says is this:

“What about that? Brightest star in the sky. A single point of light. We call it the South Star. Humans used it to navigate, you know, to find their way in the endless darkness of the night.”

Why does this matter? Well, Rayla has been consistently associated with light - not just moonlight - with Callum in her framing and in their dynamic, mostly notably in season one and season two. There is also the general theme of them being Truthtellers for each other, helping them see through the illusions they held concerning each other: Rayla to shame and murder, Callum to self worth and magic. Callum’s arc with magic and how it pertains to Rayla is also very interesting, because of the way magic (and an arcanum specifically) is defined as a Spark, like fire, the tiniest flicker of a primal source inside you.

The framing below because it is also consistent, but more specific examples to show:

[Callum walking out of the dark and into the light after his date with Claudia / now that he knows the truth, but Rayla could’ve been in darkness to signify his mood. Instead, she’s in the light (and her white hair) because although shattered, their relationship and her presence in his life is the Truth, and what ultimately helps him deal with the truth]

[More lighting and Rayla turning him towards her, toward the sun]

Which is to say, if the South Star is the Xadian equivalent of the North Star, something that Rayla comments as being like poetry (poetry clearly being important in the world of TDP, as the only information we have about Startouch elves at all are in two poems), well... Let’s look at the associations we typically have with the North Star and see if they match up, shall we?

The North Star is the anchor of the northern sky. It is a landmark, or sky marker, that helps those who follow it determine direction as it glows brightly to guide and lead toward a purposeful destination. It also has a symbolic meaning, for the North Star depicts a beacon of inspiration and hope to many.

So despite being an inverse in name, the South Star holds the same meaning in TDP’s world that it holds in ours. But, you may be saying: this all seems like a Reach. A good natured little skit, a handful of screencaps, what does this all have to do with anything, really?

And I’m not saying it isn’t a reach, and that the majority of TDP’s cute little con skits aren’t just silly (they are), but there are two skits that have some loaded symbolism behind them.

At the SDCC in 2020 when we got the confirmation for the full saga, the entire voice cast at the time did two skits. One was a fairly silly DND skit, but Aaravos, notably, was DM, controlling the game and pushing the players forward. It’s easy to see the parallels to this in show, as currently, very few characters know Aaravos is even a player in the events that have happened in s2 and s3 in particular, and only two characters really know what he can do: Runaan (whose coined) and Viren, who was using it to his own advantage. And even then, there’s a lot Viren doesn’t know.

The more interesting and painful parallel, to me, is from the opening skit of the Zoom, initially just a play on the characters having to deal with the pandemic the way we would, facetiming, social distancing, etc. However, I just want to remind you that Through the Moon, where Rayla leaves Callum to hunt Viren down on her own, came out just a couple months before the con was released, and the writers absolutely knew it was a plot point. Which is to say, this?

Rayla: Hey guys. Long time no see Callum. Good to see you, from far, far away. Ezran: Wait a minute, you guys have the same background. Are you in the same place? Callum: Uh, nope! Nope. Totally different places, separate, far away locations. Ezran: Callum, I can see part of your scarf in Rayla’s background. You’re supposed to be distancing. Callum: Oh come on, it’s a big castle! There’s — there’s lots of distancing. Rayla: Not so much that we miss each other too much.

Can be seen as foreshadowing, because in canon they are far away from each other, there is going to be loads of distancing, and they’re definitely going to miss each other (way too much). So if one skit had meaning in a small way, and this skit has foreshadowing in a bigger way, and the show loves its one off jokes being rooted in lore, like the famous explorer Sir Phineas Cursed...

Rayla is hunting down Viren, Aaravos’ current ‘vessel’ / partner in crime (even if that may be on the outs in s4). Callum has Aaravos’ Key.

All of this is to say if the Written in the Stars skit is foreshadowing that Callum and Rayla will become entangled with Aaravos’ plotline by S4’s end, and that Rayla is Callum’s chosen South Star and vice versa, to lead and help each other get through the dark times they’re going through... I will burst into tears and you can count on that.

[annikasevenshots]

not!!!!! normal!!!!! over these cinematic parallels!!!!!!!!