My main thoughts on the execution of the “Rayllum subplot” in S4:
So from what we know so far, the only point of Rayla leaving for two years was to create dramatic tension between her and Callum, which is… not a good writing decision, in my opinion. It seemed very forced and out of character for Rayla to leave for that long only to ultimately give up, return to Katolis empty-handed, and pretend that nothing ever happened and things can just go back to the way they were (besides her waiting to talk to Callum about their relationship). I don’t understand why writers continue to think that there has to be constant drama between love interests in their shows; is it so unrealistic of a concept to simply portray a healthy, wholesome romance between the leads where they don’t all of a sudden act like completely different people than usual just for there to be an emotional rift? Not every relationship needs to have some major conflict in order to keep the audience engaged. I would have much preferred for them to deal with some minor conflicts here and there instead of this ordeal, because their relationship is already such a small subplot as is that this season barely spends any time at all focusing on it. Really hoping that changes in Season 5 or else we legitimately might not see them fully get back together until Season 6 or even 7.
Wonderstorm themselves said that the audience would not need to read TTM to understand S4’s plot. While that is technically true, not reading it certainly does make Rayla’s absence and abrupt return feel even more awkward, confusing, and out of place. I really thought the handling of TTM’s ending in the show itself was executed very poorly.
With both of those thoughts in mind, however, I actually do think their relationship was handled nicely this season (that is, when the show actually took some time to focus on it lol). Callum’s anger and resentment was completely justified and I’m very glad that he and Rayla didn’t make up immediately. I also appreciate that the writers took several moments to show that they still do love and care for one another, and that this isn’t a complete reset of their relationship, nor is it a “will they, won’t they” scenario. We all know they will eventually rekindle their love, it’s just going to take a little more time before Callum is ready to have a Big Feelings talk with Rayla.
Also wanted to share my thoughts on people’s criticisms of the overall writing quality of S4:
I think people should keep in mind that Season 4 is the “set-up season” for the rest of this new arc, similar to Season 1. I see a lot of the same flaws in Season 4 that I did in Season 1 and while I do think that most of them could have probably been avoided simply with better execution, I also think that it makes sense why they occurred when remembering that the writers have to get the proverbial ball rolling for an entire multi-season arc in just 9 half-hour episodes. Those kinds of constraints are not easy to work around, and I think the failure to use all of the available time given in the best way possible is really what has led to the majority of this show’s problems.
Furthermore, here’s something to put into perspective: Aaron Ehasz, one of the lead writers of The Dragon Prince, was also the head writer of Avatar: The Last Airbender, a show that - according to Aaron - the team takes heavy inspiration from. That show had 3 seasons with 61 total episodes. TDP will end with 7 seasons, but only 63 episodes. There is a big difference in the amount of time that Ehasz has had to work with for each individual season’s story; because of this, I think that his approach is to simply put much more focus into the overarching story. In my opinion, I think it’s only fair that the audience does the same. I say this not to completely justify the growing pains of this show’s writing quality (particularly in its newest season), but rather to shed some light on potentially why it has probably been more difficult for Aaron this time around, and why it is important that we all stay patient and wait for the entire story to be finished before making any definitive claims about the show’s quality.
I do, however, 100% agree with the criticisms of TDP’s attempts at humor. It feels like there is less and less effort put into the comedy aspect of the show with every new season, which is really disappointing. Less fart jokes, please?
In the 4th season of the Dragon Prince Callum in taller than Rayla we all saw that but is he really taller if he is wearing shoes with a small heel? Sound like cheating to me. And in the other 3 seasons Rayla is the one wearing the small heels and Callum’s is just slightly shorter. They are all cheating the hight, seeing who can be taller 😂
I tried finding photos with their shoes but I can’t. I love those two so much they are my top OTP! 🥰
When are we seeing more of Rayllum? I need those two in my life 🥺
Because more people need to be aware that size has nothing to do with athleticism and coordination and flow and he actually did all his combat stunts himself! 💪💪💪
(Which is such a misconception, as if we didn’t have Sammo Hung kicking ass for decades in the hk kung fu movie scene 🤦)
The adhd urge to post every chapter immediately after writing it vs the autism urge to wait until the entire fanfic is finished and has pictures to go along with it before even mentioning it exists