Continuing on from part 1 here
Summary: Eugene debates on the best course of action, destroying the moonstone or letting Rapunzel have it, while she and the others try to find a way into the chamber. But it doesn’t matter when the ghosts of Eugene’s ancestors show up to stop them.
This "Twist” Is Weaken By the Lack of Set Up
So the writers are trying to pull a double fake out by making you think Eugene is the ‘traitor’ by having him turn on Rapunzel for noble reasons. It’s not a bad idea in of itself but it’s weakened by a lack of proper foreshadowing.
The Dark Prince plot suffers the same issues as the Villian Cassandra plot in that it’s barely hinted at outside of “blink and you’ll miss it” background imagery and only two lines of questionable dialogue. It’s such a mind boggling failure in basic setup that it makes me question the experience of the crew.
How do you get to be employed by the biggest, most well known animation studio in the world and not understand how foreshadowing works? Who’s responsible for such an easily preventable failure in execution?
Rapunzel and Eugene’s Relationship Isn’t What’s At Stake Here
I said it last part and I’ll say It again, this is pointless melodrama. There’s no tension here. We know that Eugene and Rapunzel will wind up marrying in the end. The entire series is leading into the wedding short and stated as much in the opening pilot. There’s no point in calling into question their relationship unless its to address actual issues with said relationship. Misunderstandings that go nowhere add nothing to the story.
I could praise it the episode for keeping such BS short, but that only calls into question of why they bothered in the first place?
So Why Would Edmund Destroying the MoonStone Be a Bad Thing?
We know that trying to destroy the moonstone last time is what led to the Dark Kingdom’s destruction, but Edmund now has an actual legitimate chance of succeeding and the cast still acts like this a bad thing. With the moonstone gone there’s no more black rocks, no Cass betrayal, no Zhan Tiri, and no potential threat to Rapunzel’s life. Where’s the down side here?
You need to establish reasons for your conflict to exist otherwise your characters just wind up looking like dopes. What is the external conflict that’s causing this internal conflict? What’s at risk if Edmund goes through with his plan? You need to spell these things out to your audience.
So If the MoonStone and Its Black Rocks are Sentient, Then Where Does That Agency Go In Season Three?
Going back to the ‘the moonstone itself was originally evil”, this is dumped in favor of having Cassandra and later Zhan Tiri control the black rocks instead. Yet the moonstone and the rocks have been acting of their own accord since the beginning and this episode makes it evidently clear that it has some sort of primitive mind of its own, even if it’s just instinctual and focused on protecting itself and reuniting with its other half.
This leads to the question of why would the moonstone suddenly become compliant to Cassandra’s and Zhan Tiri’s wishes? Where does this agency disappear to in season three?
This Song Is Nice. Shame It’s the Only Time the Dark Prince Plot Is Put to Good Use
This is my favorite song of season two. I would have nominated this for the Emmy instead of Waiting In the Wings if it had been up to me. That said it’s brought down by the fact that the Dark Prince plot goes nowhere. It’s seemingly introduced just to create false conflict for this one episode and then is never mentioned again outside of forcing Eugene to have a relationship with his deadbeat dad.
So How Did the Lava Get There?
A sewer implies that the lava wasn’t always there. So when and how did it get there? Did Adria know about it? Is the Dark Kingdom built upon a volcano and it seeped in there centuries ago? Is this part of the destruction that was caused 25 years ago? Was there once advance plumbing to help keep the city going and destroying their water supply is why the kingdom had to be evacuated? Where did the water come from to begin with anyways? Or did it only now just show up with Rapunzel’s arrival and the black rocks reactivating. Cause if so, that’s kind of counterproductive to their goal.
Yes I’m being nitpicky here, but it’s just yet another instance of the poor worldbuilding in the series. A series that spent an entire season on a road trip exploring said world. There’s no excuse for such laziness.
Well This Is Awfully Convenient
The whole point behind deactivating the rocks back in the beginning of the season was to keep Rapunzel from being overpowered, so that tension could exist. Yet here we are pulling out the same deus ex machina all over again for no adequately explained reason and making her over powered once more.
You can’t have your cake and eat it too series. Either Rapunzel is the underdog here or she’s a demigod. Take your pick. Because all you’ve done so far is undermine the sole explanation for why you got rid of you’re main external threat. So congrats, you managed to screw the pooch twice.
Also it’s just lazy writing.
So Wait, How Exactly Was She Killed and What Exactly Does That Have To Do With What You’re Doing Now?
If trying to destroy the moonstone did indeed kill your mother then why are you trying to destroy it again? This logic doesn’t track. One would think that if you are trying to avoid repeating history with Rapunzel, then why on earth are you trying to repeat history?
Eugene’s mother dying before the destruction of the Dark Kingdom makes so much more sense. It would serve as a catalyst and reason for Edmund’s actions. It would establish the moonstone as always being a threat that does indeed need to be either destroyed or neutralized. Most importantly though, it would indeed provide a legitimate conflict to place Eugene at odds with Rapunzel over.
I honestly believe that’s what the writers intended here, but the dialogue, exposition, and backstories are so sloppily executed that it winds up just becoming a confusing mess instead. What was so hard in just having Edmund imply that she was impaled upon a black rock and that’s what kick started the series events?
Eugene Still Makes For a Poor Red Herring
So that just came and went with little impact didn’t it? He ‘betrayed’ her for all of what ten minutes? Yet we’ve spent over fourty waffling about whether or not Cassandra is trustworthy?
Once again, this plot point could have worked with better set up and execution. Provide more than one red herring; have either Adria or Varian, be suspect as well as Cassandra. Have the Dark Prince reveal foreshadowed better. Have Eugene’s fake out ‘betrayal’ last longer than half an episode. Let it have actual impact and consequence upon the story.
And Cassandra Still Isn’t a Master Manipulator
The biggest problem with how Cassandra’s villain reveal is handled is that the writers can’t decide if it was a spur of the moment decision or a planned course of action that she's had in place for weeks now, may be even months.
All of Cassandra’s actions here, and even her later motivations would suggest a spur of the moment reaction. She behaves like someone who doesn’t know what they’re doing from one moment to the next and her reasonings are based off her emotions running high.
Yet Cassandra’s words when the actual twist comes, the Zhan Tiri reveal in the shell house, and even Cassandra trying to get into the chamber here is the writers trying to tell us that this was all pre-planned out. That Cassandra, despite her better judgment, went along with a plan created by someone she had no reason to trust and somehow manage to hide her temper for months on end from her closest friend. Despite her being controlled by said temper constantly....
Like none of that adds up. Cass’s behavior, personality, actions, and motivations all contradict one another, and so in order to force the plot, she has to act contrary to her character.
Cassandra’s not complex; she’s just convoluted.
So This Is a Lie
Not according to season three and the twist at the end of this episode. Also where are you getting this info Adira? In all of that exposition dump in the last part you couldn’t be bothered to tell us where and how you learned all of this sundrop/moonstone lore?
Rapunzel Finally Shows Growth and The Narrative Punishes Her For It
As stated multiple times now, the series biggest failing is that it’s a coming of age story where the main hero learns nothing. The one time Rapunzel is shown to rethink her stance and make amends for her past actions and the narrative punishes her for it by having her trust in someone be broken for the fourth (fifth if you count Eugene’s fake betrayal here) damn time in less than two years.
I can’t claim that Rapunzel’s reaction to this, to regress and become even more of a control freak, isn’t unrealistic, but it’s not what she and the story needs. Or to put it more accurately, to never have the narrative address this decline and only reward her for her future selfishness while punishing her for daring to care, is not what the audience wants to see.
It’s not just about the conflict and the drama. There’s also a therapeutic need for a release in tension and that includes a catharsis in having the characters learn from their mistakes and change their behavior. Remember, you’re literally selling this story to an audience. Their continued satisfaction is paramount to you getting paid.
So Stealing Is Wrong, Except For When Rapunzel Does It
You’re not the one in charge here Rapunzel. This isn’t your kingdom and you don’t own jack shit here. Edmund is the one with the authority and the claim to the moonstone. And unlike your daddy dictator, King Fredric, who hoarded medicine from his people for 18 years, Edmund has actual valid reasons for keeping people away from the deadly rock, including yourself.
It’s a double standard for Varian to be villainized for trying to save his father’s life while Rapunzel get a free pass because she was born special. That’s literally what this all amounts to.
There Is No Destiny
Not only is destiny used as a lazy shorthand for ‘goals’ and ‘motivations’ with a failure to provide even a basic ass prophecy to fulfill, but like they can’t even be bothered to be consistent about it being a stand in for a goal.
Eugene wasn’t hunting for his father. There was no prophecy he had to fulfill. There’s no biases in the narrative where both he and Rapunzel could both conceivably be the hero that will save the world from the moonstone (even though there totally should have been).
Eugene consequently running into his father, who has flimsy evidence for his claims anyways, (more on that later) isn’t ‘destiny’, its narrative convenience.
The Lance and Adria Subplot Doesn’t Go Anywhere
I’ve already stated my many, many reasons for disliking Lance and Adira’s dynamic back in my Great Tree review, but regardless of my personal feelings towards the ship that doesn’t excuse how poorly written it is. If you’re going to introduce this plot point then at least follow it to its conclusion. Whether that be as a couple, friends, or Adira firmly and verbally ending things with him. Instead what we get is this one ambiguous line and then her comedically kicking his ass when he tries to say goodbye to her in the next episode. Which contradicts this moment and leaves things open ended, which is aggravating.
Having ‘Faith’ In Rapunzel Is Actually the Wrong Choice Here, But Don’t Expect the Narrative to Point That Out
Letting Rapunzel into the chamber is what leads to the mess that is season three. Hector and Edmund were absolutely in the right for trying to stop her. Edmund’s trust is also betrayed by Cassandra stealing the moonstone same as Rapunzel’s.
But it’s not like the narrative will have either Edmund, Hector, or even Adira remember this fuck up and respond accordingly. Because that would require Rapunzel being actually called out for her bullshit and facing appropriate consequences and Chris just can’t allow that.
This Is the Only Real Development Lance Gets In the Show
Yup, destroying a statue is the end all and be all of his arc.
Ok, let me explain. All throughout season two Lance was pitted as the ‘cowardly lion’ of the group. Getting more skittish than the others over dangers, hanging on to Eugene’s metaphorical coat tails, and bragging to cover his fear and taking credit for things he didn’t do. This is suppose to be Lance stepping up and learning to be brave and take responsibility. Only it doesn’t work for three simple reasons.
- His cowardly lion shtick was inconsistent. He could and would throw down with villains and the like when required, both in season one and at times during season two. When he was scared it was often for real reasons. Plus to make the trope work the writers would have to ignore his background as a world traveler and thief.
- Lance’s actions here don’t require anything special from him and him alone. He’s just doing what he’s always done and what he does could have been achieved by anyone in the group really. So it’s not much of a revelation to the audience.
- It doesn’t have any lasting impact. Lance after this point is just dumbed down even further and made even more irresponsible than he was in his first appearance.
Too Little, Too Late
I’ve touched upon this throughout the episode and the season as a whole but there’s a real pacing issue happening here. We spent a whole season trying to get to this place and now it’s over after only two episodes. This is especially off putting when we spent three episode in most other stops in season two. So what we get feels unbalanced.
Remember there’s a physiological effect you need to keep in mind when you're writing a story for an audience. People like patterns, repetitions, and most of all endings that fit whatever rhythms they’ve fallen into. If you have a pace of rotating 3, 1, 1, 1, 3, 1, 1, 1, 3, 1, 1, 1, ect then they expect you to end on a three and not a two.
Not to mention that there’s too much story here to effectively fit into only a single two parter. That’s partly why the execution is so sloppy. Exposition is is force fed to us rather than having past events shown or the having the characters actually explore this kingdom they’ve been searching for for a year. Things like the Dark Prince plot point is rushed while things like Cassandra’s betrayal is dragged out only to adburtly end.
In short, we need three episodes spent here, at least. One episode to cover the Dark Prince and Brotherhood plots and a two parters to cover the race to the moonstone and Cassandra’s eventual betrayal. There’s no excuse for why we couldn’t have gotten that give all the filler that could have been cut this season to make room for it.
How Did Cass Sneak Past Eugene? He Was Right There!
The framing of Cassandra’s betrayal is suppose to reflect Varian’s back in season one when he grabbed the flower. It looks cool on a thematic level but it logically doesn’t make sense because Eugene is there standing in front of her.
Cassandra had to push pass him in order to nab the stone from Raps in time and yet we don’t hear or see it and Eugene looks just as shocked as Raps when she grabs it even though it would have been alerted before Rapunzel was. Plus Eugene was the one who suspected Cassandra from the beginning, why would he suddenly forget that?
Layout is important people. You can’t just do what you want because you think it looks cool. You have to justify it narratively as well. Either you should have forgone the Varian parallels and shown Cass fighting Eugene or had Eugene out of the way to begin with.
Behold the One and Only Time Cass’s Injured Hand Matters
So it’s not made very clear within the story itself but the reason why Cass doesn’t get her hand blown off like Edmund did is because of the previous corruption from the hurt incantation. That’s how she can grab it even when originally Rapunzel was suppose to be the only one able to do that.
There’s multiple problems with this so let’s list them out shall we...
- There’s no reason for why Edmund had to get his arm blown off. Him losing his arm does not clarify that Rapunzel specifically should be the only one able to touch the moonstone because he’s the only one to even try beforehand and he was acting aggressive towards it.
- Furthermore, him only having one arm isn’t focused upon in the story. In fact it’s barely noticeable with his cloak on and he suffers zero setbacks or difficulties from having such a disability.
- Cassandra also isn’t shown to suffer any ill effects from having her hand hurt either and it’s easy to forget that it’s even injured to begin with because she covers it up with armor. For this scene to even read right the audience has to remember that it was her right hand that got hurt and that’s not something most people are going to keep in mind.
- In fact no else comments upon her hurt hand during this second part of the episode at all and fails to mention it in regards to this scene specifically.
- Edmund and Cassandra barely share any screen time together and what parallels that exist between them aren’t focused upon by the narrative.
- Cass’s hand is never brought up again after this point.
I’m Not Sure If Ending the Season On This Particular Cliffhanger Was a Good Thing or Not.
On the one hand this saves all the really stupid stuff for season three so you can enjoy this episode divorced from all that. It’s also an effective cliffhanger in of itself and ending on such when your ratings are low isn’t a bad idea in theory. It should bring audiences back and it did indeed pique my interest in the series after initially being put off by the show’s bad advertisement spots back during its first season. So this works for what it is.
The problem comes down to the poor pacing that I was discussing earlier, and this only carries on into season three. Moving Cass’s parts in Rapunzel’s Return back into season two and making this a three parter instead would have save everyone a lot of pain and heartache. If nothing else to give Cassandra’s story breathing room and having Crossing the Line not be cut in half like it was. It’s even possible that they would have given just a better motivation/plan for Cass considering the projection of the story thus far in season two.
But that also just might be wishful thinking. There’s no guarantee that rearranging things would have resulted in a better a story and it may have only tainted this episode even further, who knows.
Though one can still argue that Cassandra’s cutting the bridge and leaving like she did in Rapunzel’s Return, could have made just as an effective a cliffhanger as this one.
Conclusion
So that was the last decent plot episode in the show. It’s not amazing, it doesn’t quite reach season one’s highs, but it’s serviable. I’d rank it right below The Great Tree. Most of its problems stem from season three’s reveals though the issues with pacing and the episodes's confused conflicts can’t be denied.
Next week will be the second season two recap and then after that we’ll finally start in on season three.
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