Editor’s Note: The following article contains spoilers for Season 5 of The Dragon Prince.
The Dragon Prince Season 5 faced various challenges, including scattered storylines, slow progression, and an uncertain main plot trajectory. Unfortunately, these factors resulted in a disappointing season. One of the side quests focused on Callum and Rayla’s attempt to kill Aaravos, which ultimately did not impact the main story. Additionally, the plotline involving Viren’s decision and the Sunfire Elf storyline remained unresolved and irrelevant. The lack of connection and meaningful intersection between these storylines, combined with the limited number of episodes, hindered character development and exploration of side adventures.
While Season 5 of The Dragon Prince showed improvement compared to the previous season, it still struggled with similar issues. The characters were scattered across Xadia, their individual stories progressed at different paces, and the overall trajectory of the main plot felt uncertain in a disappointing way. The show attempted to accomplish more than it had time for, incorporating side adventures, character development for multiple characters, and progression of the main story into only nine half-hour episodes. As a result, the season felt underwhelming.
From the beginning, it was unclear what the end goal of Season 5 was. It continued where Season 4 left off, focusing on Callum, Rayla, and Ezran’s efforts to find the prison of the Startouch Elf Aaravos. However, Season 5 deviated from the quest to find the Archdragons as a driving force and instead followed Ezran seeking help from the Archdragon of the Ocean, Domina Profundis. The next three episodes primarily focused on Callum and Rayla’s quest to learn how to kill Aaravos, with Ezran rejoining them in the fourth episode. Despite devoting a significant portion of the season to this side quest, it lacked any substantial impact on the overall story. In fact, Ezran convinces Callum and Rayla to keep Aaravos imprisoned, rendering the information they learned about the “Nova Blade” irrelevant to the season’s story.
Another significant plotline revolved around Claudia, Terry, and Viren’s journey to reach Aaravos’ prison. Throughout this journey, Viren is unconscious due to his use of dark magic in the Season 4 finale. While unconscious, Viren experiences visions of his past, causing him to question his resolve and fear that Claudia will follow his destructive path. In the Season 5 finale, Viren decides against performing the dark ritual to ensure his resurrection, but the consequences of this decision are left unresolved. We do not witness his death or see Claudia and Terry’s reaction. Given Claudia’s failure to free Aaravos, it seems likely that Viren will die early in the next season. However, the buildup to his decision comprises a significant portion of their storyline in this season, leaving it unsatisfying to be resolved later. Alternatively, the ending suggests they may find another way to save Viren, which would undermine the narrative impact of his journey. These ambiguous options detract from one of the stronger arcs of Season 5.
The Sunfire Elf plotline also saw limited progress. By the end of the season, the characters were almost in the same position as when the arc began. Prince Karim secured the Sun Seed and gained an army of loyalists, but the majority of the plot’s action was ultimately inconsequential. Despite Karim’s failed attempts to steal the Sun Seed, General Miyana delivers it to him anyway. Miyana’s involvement in the story was minimal before this point, making Karim’s schemes with Pharos and Kim’dael feel like a wasted opportunity that could have been better utilized to develop other storylines. Additionally, the infection of the Dragon Queen Zubeia with dark magic, which occurred in Episode 4, seemed like a setup for a climactic finale but was resolved in the last moments of the season through a questionable deus ex machina.
One of the biggest issues with Season 5 is the lack of meaningful intersection between the various storylines. Many of these stories are unrelated, and even when they do intersect, the impact on each other is minimal. Callum and Rayla’s visit to the Sunfire Elves, for example, does not significantly contribute to the Sunfire Elf plotline; it only temporarily removes the character Amaya from the camp. However, Amaya’s absence does not greatly affect the Sunfire Elf storyline, which primarily revolves around Karim, who is not present at the camp either. Furthermore, the two groups hunting for Aaravos’ prison embark on parallel journeys and only cross paths at the very end of the season, despite heading towards the same destination. In contrast, Season 4 allowed these groups to interact while traveling to Rex Igneous’ lair, revealing Claudia’s descent into villainy and progressing her dynamic with Callum as their magic pulls them in opposite directions. Moreover, the connection between the Sunfire Elves and the Aaravos plotline remains unclear. Queen Janai’s nightmares about her sister Khessa’s death at Aaravos’ hands suggest a connection, but after two seasons exploring the “Mystery of Aaravos,” this lack of clarity hinders the Sunfire Elves’ storyline. Despite consuming a significant amount of screen time, their plot moves too slowly and lacks compelling elements to justify its existence without any insight into how it ties into the overarching narrative.
Even within individual episodes, the show struggles to effectively integrate all the plotlines. Claudia and Terry spend most of the season traveling through the same forested area, with few significant developments. The most prominent development is Terry constructing a raft to convince Claudia to rest, while tensions arise as Claudia continues to embrace dark magic. However, these conflicts were already explored in the previous season, making their inclusion feel repetitive. Despite this, the show dedicates time in most episodes to checking in on these characters, wasting precious minutes in a half-hour runtime.
Several changes could address these issues. One option is reducing the number of characters and allowing some to take a backseat, emphasizing those most crucial to the main narrative. For instance, Viren died in the Season 3 finale but remains a prominent character, occupying time that could be better utilized to delve into Claudia’s arc. Another approach involves adjusting how the show structures its stories, condensing certain arcs into single episodes. Restricting Claudia and Terry’s scenes to one or two episodes would make them feel less wasteful. Similarly, if Karim’s blood-elf scheme received dedicated focus in a single episode, its placement and dominance throughout the season would be improved. However, the most effective solution for the issues surrounding The Dragon Prince: Mystery of Aaravos would be to increase the number of episodes per season. The show attempts to accomplish too much within its limited time, following in the footsteps of shows like Avatar: The Last Airbender without the same duration for side adventures or explorations of the villains. With more episodes, the show could allocate more time to develop supporting characters, explore intricate plotlines, and create a more cohesive and satisfying viewing experience.
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Khushi Patel is a science fiction author who lives in Austin, Texas. She has published three novels, and her work has been praised for its originality and imagination. Khushi is a graduate of Rice University, and she has worked as a software engineer. She is a member of the Science Fiction Writers of America, and her books have been nominated for several awards.
