TV Review: The Dragon Prince

The Dragon Prince

In the magical land of Xadia, magic comes from six primal sources: the sun, moon, stars, sky, earth and ocean. When human mages create a seventh kind of magic -- dark magic -- they start capturing and harvesting the unique magical creatures they need as ingredients, which sparks a war between Xadia and the Human Kingdoms. Three kids from opposite sides of the conflict -- two princes and an elven assassin sent to kill them -- discover a secret that could change everything and decide to join forces and go on an epic journey. That trek could be their only hope of ending the war and restoring peace to both worlds.

Spoiler-Free Review

Never before has a television show landed so hard and fast on my Favorites list . On a scale of one to Avatar: the Last Airbender , The Dragon Prince is a solid nine. Which is hardly a surprise, since they're both created by Aaron Ehasz.

The reason the aforementioned assassin--an elf named Rayla--is sent to kill the princes and king is because the king killed the Dragon King of Xadia, Thunder, and destroyed his egg.

Except it turns out the egg wasn't destroyed, it was stolen . Kept in an underground dungeons by the humans.

The three kids find the egg and travel to Xadia to return it to its mother, in the hopes that this will end the war between humanity and Xadia. As such, the biggest themes in the show are forgiveness, the endless cycle of revenge, and how good intentions can lead to the worst villains. Seriously, every villain on this show really, really believes they're a good guy.

Season one is primarily just laying the groundwork, introducing all major characters, and building the relationship between our three heroes. Rayla is an elven assassin who's never actually killed anyone and is primarily motivated by the need for redemption, not just herself but her family. Her parents were part of the Dragon Guard and failed to protect the egg when the humans attacked.

The two human princes are Callum and Ezran, half-brothers from their mother. So even though Callum is older, Ezran is next in line for the throne because he's the one who's actually descended from the king. While this causes zero friction between the brothers, Callum does have a somewhat awkward relationship with his kingly stepfather. One of those "aw, they love each other so much but have no idea how to express it" kind of situations.

Ezran is a little kid who has to grow into his role as new king very quickly. Meanwhile, Callum wants to be a mage, picking up one spell at a time with what limited resources he has on the road.

Fun fact: the voice actor for Callum is Jack De Sena, who also played Sokka. And yes, they do make a boomerang joke.

The biggest villain opposing our trio is Lord Viren, who takes over the human kingdom after the king is murdered and immediately proceeds to escalate the war with Xadia. This at first seems reasonable. After all, his king and best friend has been murdered, and for the first few episodes it looks like the princes are also dead. Why wouldn't Lord Viren take control and strike back?

But after news gets around that the princes are alive--and therefore, next in line for the throne--Viren sends his adult children to steal the egg back and kill the princes, officially putting him in villain territory.

What makes Viren so terrifying is his manipulation. He has almost everyone convinced that he's a genuinely good person, using lies, gaslighting, and, if necessary, dark magic to get his work done.

Each season has nine episodes, although the latest season probably could have benefited from an extra episode, as there was more than one point where it felt a bit rushed. This is most clearly seen in the romantic subplot between Callum and Rayla. It came out of nowhere. The flirting started a few episodes into season three and by the last episode they were already in an established relationship and exchanging "I love you's."

Although I will admit: once those two get together, they are an adorable couple.

What immediately caught my eye in this show was the cast's diversity: Ezran is the most obvious example, being one of the main three characters and black.

Women and men both hold positions of power--queens, kings, soldiers, generals, mages, assassins, etc.--and there are several characters of color.

There are two same-sex couples, which is huge for a kids' show.

Finally, to top it off, there are a handful of minor characters with disabilities. My personal favorite is General Amaya, Ezran and Callum's aunt who is mute. She communicates through sign language, takes none of Viren's bullshit, and spends most of her time on-screen beating the crap out of elves and villains.

So far there are three seasons, and while it doesn't end on a massive cliffhanger, there are a handful of questions that need to be answered. This is good, because we have a confirmed season four. But because it's Netflix we have no idea when that's actually going to happen, and that was before coronavirus screwed everyone's schedule.

Thank you, Patrons, for making this blog possible!

become a patron