The Dragon Prince Rewatch 1.9, "Wonderstorm"

Read the previous entry here.
Read the next entry here.

As the first season of the series closes, some problems are solved--but others emerge to take their place.

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1.9, "Wonderstorm"

Written by Aaron Ehasz and Justin Richmond
Directed by Villads Spangsberg

Synopsis

Look closely, and you can just see them,
small creatures against the size of the world.
Image taken from the episode, used for commentary.

On the mountainside approach to the cursed caldera, Ezran reiterates that there is no miracle healer to be found. Callum presses for an explanation that stretches credulity. Ezran notes an ability to speak with animals, and Callum reacts badly. The group presses on, beginning to encounter strange sounds and sights.

Claudia and Soren press on, as well, approaching the tallest mountain of the kingdom so that Claudia can cast a spell to track Rayla and the princes. Their trip appears to go reasonably easily and well.

Spooky.
Image taken from the episode, used for commentary.

Along the way, Rayla is persuaded to scout for people in need. She goes alone, leaving the rest to defend the egg, and finds what appears to be a spiderwebbed body. Investigation reveals that the form is but dust, despite it having moved and spoken; Rayla returns uneasy to the group and reports on her disturbing findings. Ezran begins to wander off on his own and encounters a spectral face no others see; Ellis notes a feeling of being watched, but Callum demands they press on in the interest of the egg. The group is hindered by spiderwebs stretching across their path, and they soon find themselves beset by monstrous spiders. They flee to little effect.

That, there, is quite the apology.
Image taken from the episode, used for commentary.

Ezran realizes, however, that something else is amiss. Citing a mismatch between the spiders' utterances and what he knows from other spiders, he reports that the spider facing them is not real and presses ahead. Callum realizes that Ezran is correct in his assertion, and he apologizes for his earlier bad behavior; the form attracts no small attention, allowing the group to pass easily, continuing its ascent to the tree Ellis notes was the site of the healing miracle.

Cue up Manfred Mann...
Image taken from the episode, used for commentary.

They are soon joined by a luminous presence that descends to them upon the back of a large bird. Said presence is another Moonshadow Elf, whom Rayla recognizes as an illusionist. She introduces herself as Lujanne, guardian of a magical nexus. Ellis voices confusion about Ava's healing; Lujanne explains. When Ezran presents the egg to her, and Rayla explains its presence, Lujanne notes that the only way to save the egg is to hatch it--which will take a storm, although the night is clear.

After a short period of despair, Callum realizes that a magical object he carries will avail, and he smashes it. A storm swells overhead, and the egg is hatched, if with some peril and after some doubt. The young dragon, Azymondias, releases Rayla from her bonds and gives hope to the group.

An ill omen, indeed.
Image taken from the episode, used for commentary.

Atop the highest peak in Katolis, Claudia casts the spell to locate Rayla and the princes. The manifestation of the spell appears to the group around Azymondias, and Lujanne recognizes it as an ill omen. Back at the castle of Katolis, Viren also recognizes what is happening, and he is far happier to see it than she.

Discussion

It is of some interest that the (illusory) creatures that bar Ezran, Cayla, Callum, Bait, Ellis, and Ava's path are monstrous spiders. It seems to be a nod to the expected secondary audience of the series, one that watched Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings and Hobbit movies and / or read Tolkien's books from which they are adapted; it is, as might have been mentioned before, not a stretch to think that parents who number among that group (myself included) would recommend the present series to their own children. Others, of course, have written at great length and with great eloquence about Tolkien's relationship with and literary depiction of spiders; I need not rehearse the work here, though the Society's own Luke Shelton would be an excellent point of contact about such things.

I am put in mind, also, of the recent guest post from Kristine Larsen, discussing comets and their manifestations in medieval and medievalist work. And I find it interesting that the comet-like manifestation of the Claudia's spell at the end of the present episode occasions delight in beauty from Azymondias, Ezran, Callum, Rayla, Ellis, and Ava--who, being young and inexperienced, can be assumed not to know better; fear and apprehension from Lujanne; and a smirking satisfaction from Viren. Lujanne alone holds to the typical reaction to comets--although Viren's enjoyment of the manifestation connotes his approval of tumult and upheaval, the "death of princes" to which Larsen, following Shakespeare, attests. It is an effective use and reappropriation of the medieval, deliberate or not, and another point that makes the continuation of the series more happily anticipated.

Please note that next Thursday, 26 November 2020, is Thanksgiving in the US. I live in the US, and I will be taking the time to spend with the people in my home. Be safe, be well, and be back in two weeks as I get into the second season of The Dragon Prince on 3 December 2020!