The Potential of a Raya and the Last Dragon Sequel (Spoilers)
Posted: Tue Mar 30, 2021 6:29 am
I've said a couple of times here and elsewhere that Raya and the Last Dragon has real potential for a sequel, more so then any other Disney series and that is all thanks to how the film ends. By the end of the film the Druun are defeated, those who were turned to stone (some of whom have been stone for 6 years) have returned, Namaari has redeemed herself and began to rebuild her relationship with Raya, and the Dragons. Kumandra is now a post-Post apocalyptic world and seeing how things can progress has so much potential especially in regards to Raya and Namaari's characters.
All her life Raya has only known life living on her own and she is now almost as old as her father who was one of the people who was turned to stone for 6 years. Raya also still likely has some trust issues and while she took the first step the road to recovery is long & hard and it's possible that it will take her a while to truly trust those she once saw as enemies aka Namaari.
Speaking of which Namaari has just as much potential in terms of her journey. Sure, she helped save the world but A) She's still one of the reasons said world was nearly destroyed. B) Even though she saved the world peoples lives were still no doubt ruined by her choice and C) Even though she and Raya have begun to rebuild the relationship Raya is still likely going to have issues trusting and bonding with Namaari. We've seen villains with redemption arcs before with Zuko, Catra and Vader all making a heel-face turn to do the right thing and as I've said before, Namaari isn't unique as a villain turned hero as we saw this with Iago from Aladdin and Anastasia from Cinderella. But Namaari is unique as she's her redemption takes place at the start of her story instead of the end.
So, it would be interesting to see how Namaari handles dealing with the fallout of her choice and how that effects her and her relationship with Raya. Which of course leads to the main point, Raya and Namaari's relationship moving forward. Given Tran's open support for Rayaari, even calling herself the first person to really ship the two, leads to the question whether the former rivals will go full Catradora with the two becoming an official couple.
There is, of course, the question of the supporting cast and I think Sisu, Benja (Raya's father) and Virana (Namaari's mother) are all characters that have a the most to add to the story and the two leads. The former two are people who are out of time and have to learn to live in the world they are in now and Benja likely would need time to really adjust to the fact that he missed 6 years of time spent with his daughter. Virana, much like Namaari, is someone who has to deal with the fallout of the choice she and her daughter made and I do think what she said in the film will come to pass, that the other clans, or people within the other clans, will blame Fang for breaking the world.
While Fang is partly responsible for what happened they are not the only ones to blame for what happened. The chiefs of Talon, Spine and Tail all broke the Dragon Gem AND kept the pieces for themselves and put the blame solely on Fang who is the one who started it all. It be interesting if Virana made this point as part of a way to gloss over the fact that Fang is the one most chiefly responsible for what happened but it also being a case of "Straw-man has a point". Eventually Virana does take blame for her part in things while the some of the ones who blame Fang try to deflect blame from their clans part in what happened.
I think Sisu needs to learn the lesson that you can't always put trust in others as this was one of the weaker points of the film and having it were Sisu is willing to show that you can't always trust and can't always forgive others would be a good move forward for her character. I also think it would be interesting for her to be sorta like Miles from Into the Spiderverse as her inferiority complex was never really resolved in the film and part of her arc is learning that she is just as good as her siblings. It would also be interesting if she got to keep all her powers she gained from the film instead of them disappearing at the end. Also, I can totally see her being a Shipper on Deck with Rayaari as she's found of both women and likely would catch on to the bound they have.
As for the rest, I think Tong, Noi and Boun have all played their parts and with their arcs complete I think it would be better to keep the focus mainly on Raya, Namaari and Sisu with MAYBE a "Sixth Ranger" coming in later from one of the other tribes but TBH I think the main three are more then enough to support a whole series. I would to catch up with the others and have them guest star in a few episodes or a couple of arcs but I don't think their interesting enough to be series regulars.
That just leaves one major point left, the Antagonist.
The Druun are gone but what caused them to appear in the first place? We never get a full explanation for the Druun other then that they've always been around and they are fueled by human distrust. Also, can they come back since we don't know what caused them to appear in the first place, especially if everything was sunshine and rainbows 500 years ago as the opening says. Personally, while I would like the Druun to return in some form their part in the story is done and I think we should focus more on the fallout of their effects on the world but given that they are part of the series maybe they will take on a new form or something like the Druun take their place. For example, maybe we can have an enemy like the Dark Spawn from Dragon Age but ones based on South East Asian mythology as Raya and the Last Dragon IS a series hugely inspired by South East Asian Culture.
To switch series for a moment one of the best things Dragon Age 2 did for Dragon Age was how it helped really expand the world of Thedas and the stories that could be told WITHOUT needing to tie into the Dark Spawn the the Blight. The Qunari, the Mage and Templar conflict even Corypheus and the Seven Magisters that assaulted the Golden City all started in DA2. While the game made a LOT of mistakes it did help lay the ground world for a series that doesn't need to depend on just the Dark Spawn and influence of the Fade.
So, introducing factions outside of the main clans would help further the potential for a Raya series especially if, like with every group throughout history there were just people. Some good, some bad and some who are little bit of both. To go to Dragon Age age, Sten and Iron Bull are good people but the Qunari are, quietly frankly, a dangerous cult that is dangerous and needs to be stopped and see some Major reforms.
A sequel for Raya and the Last Dragon is supposedly in the works thanks the film's positive reception but given how the film will likely under performed in theaters (thought it did do pretty good for itself considering we're still in the middle of a pandemic) and out right BOMBED on Disney+ and given how much can be done I think and hope that Raya will head to the small screen instead of the big screen.
As this post showed there is a LOT that can be done with this possible series and I think trying to cram it all into 1 movie is asking to much. A TV series would be much better suited for the world and characters and there have been series that started as a film that went on to have more successful TV series (Stargate and Buffy come to mind and those movies were okay at best and look what they created).
Also, speaking from an LGBT standpoint, if Rayaari is to become canon having a TV series would be a good thing as LGBT characters are in higher numbers there then they are in major blockbuster films and given the popularity of Rayaari it could happen. Again, we live in a Post Korrasami world were it's not a case of "Man wouldn't it be cool if these two could hook up" but rather "Man I hope they hook up".
So, yeah, I want a sequel, I would prefer a TV series and maybe even a few games and also for Kumandra to be added as part of the Disney Animal Kingdoms Asian area. I WANT to go back to this world and see the story of Raya, Namaari and Sisu continue.
MAKE IT HAPPEN DISNEY!!!
All her life Raya has only known life living on her own and she is now almost as old as her father who was one of the people who was turned to stone for 6 years. Raya also still likely has some trust issues and while she took the first step the road to recovery is long & hard and it's possible that it will take her a while to truly trust those she once saw as enemies aka Namaari.
Speaking of which Namaari has just as much potential in terms of her journey. Sure, she helped save the world but A) She's still one of the reasons said world was nearly destroyed. B) Even though she saved the world peoples lives were still no doubt ruined by her choice and C) Even though she and Raya have begun to rebuild the relationship Raya is still likely going to have issues trusting and bonding with Namaari. We've seen villains with redemption arcs before with Zuko, Catra and Vader all making a heel-face turn to do the right thing and as I've said before, Namaari isn't unique as a villain turned hero as we saw this with Iago from Aladdin and Anastasia from Cinderella. But Namaari is unique as she's her redemption takes place at the start of her story instead of the end.
So, it would be interesting to see how Namaari handles dealing with the fallout of her choice and how that effects her and her relationship with Raya. Which of course leads to the main point, Raya and Namaari's relationship moving forward. Given Tran's open support for Rayaari, even calling herself the first person to really ship the two, leads to the question whether the former rivals will go full Catradora with the two becoming an official couple.
There is, of course, the question of the supporting cast and I think Sisu, Benja (Raya's father) and Virana (Namaari's mother) are all characters that have a the most to add to the story and the two leads. The former two are people who are out of time and have to learn to live in the world they are in now and Benja likely would need time to really adjust to the fact that he missed 6 years of time spent with his daughter. Virana, much like Namaari, is someone who has to deal with the fallout of the choice she and her daughter made and I do think what she said in the film will come to pass, that the other clans, or people within the other clans, will blame Fang for breaking the world.
While Fang is partly responsible for what happened they are not the only ones to blame for what happened. The chiefs of Talon, Spine and Tail all broke the Dragon Gem AND kept the pieces for themselves and put the blame solely on Fang who is the one who started it all. It be interesting if Virana made this point as part of a way to gloss over the fact that Fang is the one most chiefly responsible for what happened but it also being a case of "Straw-man has a point". Eventually Virana does take blame for her part in things while the some of the ones who blame Fang try to deflect blame from their clans part in what happened.
I think Sisu needs to learn the lesson that you can't always put trust in others as this was one of the weaker points of the film and having it were Sisu is willing to show that you can't always trust and can't always forgive others would be a good move forward for her character. I also think it would be interesting for her to be sorta like Miles from Into the Spiderverse as her inferiority complex was never really resolved in the film and part of her arc is learning that she is just as good as her siblings. It would also be interesting if she got to keep all her powers she gained from the film instead of them disappearing at the end. Also, I can totally see her being a Shipper on Deck with Rayaari as she's found of both women and likely would catch on to the bound they have.
As for the rest, I think Tong, Noi and Boun have all played their parts and with their arcs complete I think it would be better to keep the focus mainly on Raya, Namaari and Sisu with MAYBE a "Sixth Ranger" coming in later from one of the other tribes but TBH I think the main three are more then enough to support a whole series. I would to catch up with the others and have them guest star in a few episodes or a couple of arcs but I don't think their interesting enough to be series regulars.
That just leaves one major point left, the Antagonist.
The Druun are gone but what caused them to appear in the first place? We never get a full explanation for the Druun other then that they've always been around and they are fueled by human distrust. Also, can they come back since we don't know what caused them to appear in the first place, especially if everything was sunshine and rainbows 500 years ago as the opening says. Personally, while I would like the Druun to return in some form their part in the story is done and I think we should focus more on the fallout of their effects on the world but given that they are part of the series maybe they will take on a new form or something like the Druun take their place. For example, maybe we can have an enemy like the Dark Spawn from Dragon Age but ones based on South East Asian mythology as Raya and the Last Dragon IS a series hugely inspired by South East Asian Culture.
To switch series for a moment one of the best things Dragon Age 2 did for Dragon Age was how it helped really expand the world of Thedas and the stories that could be told WITHOUT needing to tie into the Dark Spawn the the Blight. The Qunari, the Mage and Templar conflict even Corypheus and the Seven Magisters that assaulted the Golden City all started in DA2. While the game made a LOT of mistakes it did help lay the ground world for a series that doesn't need to depend on just the Dark Spawn and influence of the Fade.
So, introducing factions outside of the main clans would help further the potential for a Raya series especially if, like with every group throughout history there were just people. Some good, some bad and some who are little bit of both. To go to Dragon Age age, Sten and Iron Bull are good people but the Qunari are, quietly frankly, a dangerous cult that is dangerous and needs to be stopped and see some Major reforms.
A sequel for Raya and the Last Dragon is supposedly in the works thanks the film's positive reception but given how the film will likely under performed in theaters (thought it did do pretty good for itself considering we're still in the middle of a pandemic) and out right BOMBED on Disney+ and given how much can be done I think and hope that Raya will head to the small screen instead of the big screen.
As this post showed there is a LOT that can be done with this possible series and I think trying to cram it all into 1 movie is asking to much. A TV series would be much better suited for the world and characters and there have been series that started as a film that went on to have more successful TV series (Stargate and Buffy come to mind and those movies were okay at best and look what they created).
Also, speaking from an LGBT standpoint, if Rayaari is to become canon having a TV series would be a good thing as LGBT characters are in higher numbers there then they are in major blockbuster films and given the popularity of Rayaari it could happen. Again, we live in a Post Korrasami world were it's not a case of "Man wouldn't it be cool if these two could hook up" but rather "Man I hope they hook up".
So, yeah, I want a sequel, I would prefer a TV series and maybe even a few games and also for Kumandra to be added as part of the Disney Animal Kingdoms Asian area. I WANT to go back to this world and see the story of Raya, Namaari and Sisu continue.
MAKE IT HAPPEN DISNEY!!!