'The Dragon Prince': What Comes Next

It took barely a single episode for The Dragon Prince to capture my heart. I found the characters to be lovable and the plot gripping – and right from episode one you are drawn into a world of adventure, mystery and a little sorrow. The creators plan on having the show run for seven seasons, Netflix permitting, and so far they show no sign of slowing down. You could say that the scripts are writing themselves.

Beware the spoilers ahead, there’s a lot to discuss here.

I’d like to mention a prediction I had back when the series started, that I now think won’t happen, but would like to put out there anyway. Throughout the first season I wondered if King Harrow was actually dead. The frequency in which we saw the raven, and the way Viren spoke to it, led to me to think that maybe Viren hadn’t killed Harrow – maybe he’d managed to turn the King into a bird somehow. Yet, the raven hasn’t appeared in a while, and Viren has descended into darkness, so this theory can probably be laid to rest.

Anyway, let’s discuss predictions and wishes for season four.

Firstly, Claudia is going to become fully evil. Currently, she is ‘neutral evil’. While she uses dark magic, she honestly believes her actions are for the benefit of the world. She has used substantial amounts of dark magic to save her brother and her father, which has taken a physical toll on her body, possibly representing her decent into fully fledged evil. In the first two seasons, she was anchored by her brother, and a lingering affection for the princes. That, however, was no doubt decimated as Claudia, ever loyal to her corrupt father, witnessed her own brother run a sword through their father’s chest in defence of Prince Ezran. Sure, it was an illusion, but Soren didn’t know that at the time – and now Claudia sees that Soren’s loyalty isn’t to their family. I believe what we’re going to see is a naive character who had good intentions become a crazed vessel of dark energy. Don’t worry, it won’t be as rushed as Danaerys’ face-heel turn.

On that note, I think over the next season or two we’re going to see a big shift in the dynamic of the ‘evil side’. Now that Viren no longer has his ‘creepy bug pal’ whispering in his ear, and Claudia’s dark transformation is at the very least halfway done, prepare your hearts to be ripped apart and stomped on as here is what I think might go down.

Aaravos, of course, is going to become the Big Bad. He’s currently in a cocoon, presumably to regenerate from ‘creepy bug’ to a more powerful state – full fledged Startouch elf, or Creepy Bug 2.0. He has outright said that Claudia will be of importance in future. In the same scene, we see perhaps the only shred of humanity Viren had for most of season three, when he tells Aaravos that Claudia is his daughter, not an ‘asset’ to be used. Let’s look again at where these three are at the end of season three; Aaravos is in his little cocoon. Claudia’s body is showing the toll of literally bringing her father back from death. Viren is alive, thanks to Claudia. Up until this point, Viren was pretty sure he was in full control and Aaravos was aiding his cause. Throughout season three we also saw Viren’s motivations, a desire for revenge driven most likely from survivor's guilt. Is that need for revenge strong enough to push him through four more seasons? I don’t think so. No, I think we’re going to see Viren struggling with his new role when Aaravos returns – if he stays alive that long. Aaravos only has one use for Viren now; as a pawn to gain Claudia’s loyalty. Claudia has been cut off from everyone, feels betrayed by her closest friend (her brother, Soren), and is a victim of her own naïve desperation to do good and make her father proud. She’s easy prey, and it won’t take much for her to be fully corrupted by the dark powers she possesses. Meanwhile, Viren really does love his daughter, and I don’t think he’ll be too thrilled to see his little girl becoming an evil shell of her former self. I forsee an event that makes Viren question his every action, that makes him realise that his quest for revenge has come at the cost of his children, that makes him want to wrap Claudia up in a burrito blanket and tell her she is not the monster she is becoming – but it will be too late. The only question left is; to complete Claudia’s transformation, will Viren have to be killed, or will he get a shot at redemption?

This brings us neatly to our next topic; the eventual united front. I doubt we’ll see this in season four, this is climactic season seven territory, however in the next couple of seasons we must see more lead up as humans and Xadians begin to learn to work together. We’ve already seen this on a small scale with the final battle of season three, but with Aaravos rising there is no doubt in my mind that the five kingdoms (or what’s left of them) and the Xadians will have to join forces in a glorious battle to rival Helms Deep. Well, close enough. Will our heroes be sent on a quest to unite the Elves and the five Kingdoms, or is there something else in store for us? With the writers themselves changing things at the last minute to reflect the character’s decisions, I don’t think we’re going to be able to easily predict where the story is going next. Although, now the Dragon Queen is awake I have no doubt we’re going to learn what the mysterious mirror is all about.

So, things I want to see in season four;

More Soren. Soren has had a lovely character arc reminiscent of a ‘coming of age’ story. Having at last defected to the side of good, Soren really has a chance to shine as his own man in coming seasons.

Runaan and Ethari reunited. Their story in season three almost brought me to tears (don’t look at me like that, I was emotional!) and the writers couldn’t hint any harder that they’re thinking of bringing him back. It’s been shown that his flower is still lit, and that the ‘dead’ that Viren collected are being kept in a little baggy. It’s entirely plausible that we’ll see Runaan soon.

More Elves! There are still two species of Elf we haven’t seen, one of which we still don’t have a full name for. My current theory is Oceanheart for the Ocean elves, but I digress. We’re being drip-fed each elf race, and basic information on them, at an easy to process pace. Now we have seen four of the six, surely we’ll get to see the final two – especially as one, the Earthblood Elves, has already been references. Did anyone else get an Aussie vibe from Callum’s Earthblood Elf impression?

Callum’s powers. We’re obviously going to see him do more magic, but that’s not the question we’re all asking. What we want to know is how. Is there something special about Callum? Was his father an Elf or other magical being? Can more humans do magic but just forgot how? I have a feeling it’s going to be linked to his father, after all, we have been reminded often that he is the ‘step-Prince’.

The mirror. This is last on the list for a reason – I’m pretty sure we’ll get an explanation soon, though really all we need is the loose ends tying up. The Dragon Queen is awake and will no doubt have the information. Namely, why was Aaravos locked away, and where? We know he didn’t like the Dragon King, but what evil plot did he have in mind that caused him to be imprisoned? We must find out soon – because we can’t have our heroes getting too comfortable thinking Viren is dead and evil has been destroyed.

There is a lot waiting to be explored, and it all feels very promising. I feel like The Dragon Prince has done a good job of keeping an exiting pace. I hope the creators get the full seven season run they are planning for, and I look forward to seeing what lies in store.

Until next time,

~Anduril