Y tu Luna también: Trollhunters: Rise of the Titans (2021)

*Premise spoilers, which spoil the ending of Wizards.*

Oh boy.

Not to get too dire, but this epic feature-length culmination movie had a lot of Tales of Arcadia fans metaphorically quoting that T.S. Eliot line about the way the world ends. Pound for pound, I don’t think it’s a full-on abomination, but the bad parts of it are very glaring, and what’s worse, it can take away from some of the enjoyment of the previous series. Other than Aja and Krel, I’m not super invested in the franchise as a whole, so I don’t take the film as a betrayal, but it’s certainly the most dubious of the Tales of Arcadia properties and a pretty unsatisfying finale. Here we go!

At the end of the Wizards, two-thirds of the ancient Arcane Order, Bellroc and Skrael, gain possession of the all-important Genesis Seals. They can be used to end the world, but for that, they need their now-unwilling third cohort, Nari. Douxie is determined to protect her from the others, but as the world is facing its greatest danger, all the heroes of Arcadia Oaks (and Akiridion-5!) must come together, led by a Trollhunter who’s doubting his abilities.

Our final character of the week is Nari of the Eternal Forest, voiced by Angel Lin. Perhaps because she is the creator and guardian of natural life, she’s not down with her siblings’ plan to destroy everything and throws her lot in with the heroes. She often comes across like a cryptic little sprite, but she has a lot of strength, and that’s one thing that is displayed well in the film.

The other main thing you need to know from the end of Wizards is that the Trollhunter amulet was destroyed. Without it, Jim has no magical armor/sword, and although he’s still determined to fight with everything he has, he’s not sure whether he’s even still the Trollhunter anymore. This is an understandable character journey for Jim in the film, but it’s frustrating to see him throwing himself ill-equipped into danger for the sake of proving himself—it gets him and his friends into trouble, since his friends are then distracted trying to keep him safe. I think of the first Thor movie, where Thor has similarly been stripped of his powers. When the Destroyer attacks Earth, Thor urges Sif and the Warriors Three to face it without him, acknowledging that, with his mortal body, he would only get in their way. I get that Jim is still a teenager, so it might be tough for him to make a mature decision like that, but he doesn’t really recognize that there are other ways to lead.

Another thing this plot does is make it clear that, rather than being the Avengers: Endgame of Tales of Arcadia, the film is, first and foremost, a Trollhunters story. Jim is the protagonist, and while Aja, Krel, and Douxie are all protagonists in their own series, they make contributions here but are ultimately secondary to Jim. Which is aggravating, especially as someone who likes 3Below best. The film includes major players from all three properties but doesn’t really use them well. The story doesn’t take much advantage of fun combinations of characters we haven’t really seen together before, and favorites get sidelined or underused.

On the other hand, being underused might not be the worst thing, since a few of the more prominent characters are served poorly by the story, forced to act out-of-character for the sake of the greater plot. Toby and Steve, two characters who normally bring a lot of comedy, are almost purely comic relief here, with Toby getting saddled with the Clueless Sidekick bit too often and Steve getting stuck in a truly dumb side plot. Aja, though, is the hardest hit. She’s also out-of-character, but in ways that specifically frame her as wrong, not just as trivially comical. She’s given the task of being pretty much the only character to openly question whether Jim is still the Trollhunter, and because we’ve already established that Jim is the One True Protagonist here, that makes everyone else clutch their pearls over how she could say such a thing. But the thing is, her points are valid. The world is close to ending, so maybe they ought to put a pin in coddling Jim’s ego and recognize that they may need something stronger than The Power of Believing in Yourself. Essentially, the film goes the “Lucas from season 1 of Stranger Things” route with Aja—her arguments do make sense and shouldn’t be ignored, but because they place her in opposition to a character we’ve already been told to love, it automatically places her in the wrong. It’s an unfortunate position to put Aja in.

I don’t want to be entirely down on the movie, because it does have some genuine good stuff in it. I like the fun arrest montage when a subset of the gang gets brought in for doing blatant magic in public. Douxie shows off an impressive display of power, and he later has some excellent stuff with Nari. The eponymous Titans, when they show up, are coolly designed—they’re like giant mech golems, gargantuan creatures built of the natural elements and piloted by members of the Arcane Order. We get a brief appearance from the always-welcome James Hong, Varvatos gets a few good moments in, and Claire proves herself to be a total boss witch. The action in the final battle is pretty cool-looking.

When it comes to Diego Luna/Krel, he falls into the underused category. Which, again, considering what the movie does with Aja, might not be the worst thing. Even though we see frustratingly little of him, the film does establish that he’s fully integrated into the crew now. He stays more on the tech side of things, away from the front lines, but he designs some sweet stuff for the team. Not to mention, he irritates the more analog members of the gang by filling their base of operations with dance music. “It helps me concentrate!” he explains, without apology.

Once the main action starts, though, he’s literally nowhere to be found. Krel’s offscreen entirely for more than half an hour. Like, we don’t even get Guy in the Chair moments from him? He could’ve come in handy as the team divides and conquers, helping the different groups coordinate across distance. While he’s back for the third act, it’s wild that we just plain don’t see one of the Tales of Arcadia protagonists for such a big chunk of the film.

But despite his limited screentime, Luna still makes the most of it. Krel has a great role to play during the arrest sequence—Luna’s triumphant delivery of, “…And your mom!” gives me life. He also has some good deadpan reactions and some endearing moments during the final battle.

So that’s it! The end of all the Tales of Arcadia projects. Final thoughts:

Recommend?

In General – Eh. It’s not all bad, but it’s not very good. A disappointing ending that many fans of the franchise actively hate.

Diego Luna – Argh, I might! I can’t help it. Luna is just so much fun as Krel. There is a very solid chance that this character will end up in my eventual Top Five/Ten post for Luna. Even when he doesn’t get much to do, his performance never misses.

Y tu Luna también: Wizards: Season 1, Episode 10 – “Our Final Act” (2020)

*Episode premise spoilers.*

Season finale time! It’s pretty good, although it can lay on the themes a bit thick. Also, it’s very much intended to lead directly into the fourth and final(?) project in the franchise, Trollhunters: Rise of the Titans—more on that next time.

Douxie returns from his dragon quest of last episode to find their safe haven in disarray. The Arcane Order has captured most of his friends, and even though the world-saving priority is to protect the Genesis Seals, Douxie naturally doesn’t want to leave them to their fate. With limited backup, he searches for a solution that would allow him to do both.

Our character of the week is Arthur, played by James Faulkner. Like Morgana, he’s been carried from his namesake era into the present day. Throughout the series, Arthur has been framed as a would-be good guy who nevertheless stands in opposition to our heroes. He’s deeply suspicious of trolls and magic, Merlin notwithstanding, and in his own time, he oppressed otherworldly elements in the name of protecting his kingdom. Big fearmongering energy.

The finale has a little of everything. Action, with big magic battles and clever gambits. Humor, such as Steve attempting a prison break when he and the others are held in blocks of ice— “Hold on, big guy,” he shouts to AAARRRGGHH!!!, flicking his lighter, “I’m about to bust you out!” Emotional moments, especially with Douxie, Jim, and Claire. An earnest if somewhat oversauced message about prevailing with the power of friendship.

Most everybody gets a moment here or there, but the episode firmly reiterates that above all, this is Douxie’s show. While it’s filled with costarring Trollhunters characters and references to mother show lore, the others are mainly here to fill out the big battle scene—Douxie is the one making the tough choices and the big plays.

Still not a ton of Krel, but this is probably his biggest appearance in Wizards. He’s the lone ally who escapes capture by the Arcane Order, so he’s left to fill Douxie in on their current predicament and offer a hand as they prepare for Douxie’s next move. When Douxie finds him, I like how Diego Luna’s performance balances Krel’s fear and anguish after their big loss with his drive toward practicality; even as Krel relates what happened with a kind of stunned dismay, he still finds presence of mind to show Douxie playback from the fight that Ricky Blank recorded. He is going through it, though. As the scene continues, Krel sits on a table, shivering as he holds himself with all four arms.

Krel also acts as a sounding board for Douxie and gets to do a bit of tech-wiz stuff, cheerfully exclaiming, “Akiridion tech and magic are so compatible! Who would’ve thought?” But, perhaps because the finale needs a strong “Douxie stands alone” moment, we don’t really much of Krel and Douxie actually working together. After this opening, the episode just sort of pops back in on them once the plan is set, and Krel’s role in it going forward isn’t very active. As someone who loves Krel as a character and generally thinks most Diego Luna projects should have more Diego Luna in them, I would’ve wanted more.

Last thoughts on Wizards before moving onto Rise of the Titans.

Recommend?

In General – I think so, although again, it’s probably more satisfying if you’ve also seen Trollhunters. But either way, Douxie is a good protagonist with a strong arc, and the story goes to some interesting places.

Diego Luna – Even though Krel is disappointingly underused in this, I’m still gonna say yes. I’m not one to turn down opportunities to take whatever Krel I can get, and Luna’s performance remains terrific despite his limited screentime.

Warnings

Violence, scary moments for kids, a little gross-out humor, and thematic elements.

Y tu Luna también: Wizards: Season 1, Episode 9 – “Dragon’s Den” (2020)

Good penultimate episode, although it’s woefully light on Diego Luna/Krel. Even though a big part of the draw of 3Below is the wildness of introducing aliens to an urban fantasy, I feel like the 3Below characters aren’t very well incorporated into the franchise outside of their own show. Characters like Douxie and Archie, one a magic user and one a magical creature, fit in easily amid the trolls and prophecies and spells. The Akiridion tech wiz? He’s kind of the odd one out, and Wizards doesn’t quite know what to do with him.

After a hard blow from the Arcane Order in the last episode, Douxie is at his lowest point. He’s not sure he can press forward, but his friends encourage him to keep going. A notorious dragon might hold the keys to a clue about the all-important Genesis Seals, and Claire has a surprising encounter with Morgana in the Shadow Realm.

Our character of the week is Morgana, voiced by Lena Headey (who’s playing rather according to type—Morgana’s no Cersei, but she has some definite Cersei qualities.) Morgana first appeared in season 3 of Trollhunters, as the biggest of Big Bads, and Wizards gave our heroes the chance to see her in a different light when they traveled back to Arthurian times. Claire’s interactions with Morgana have always been complicated, in part because they’re both wielders of shadow magic, and her recent experiences in the past have left her more conflicted than ever. It’s interesting to see these two meet one another in the Shadow Realm, warily circling one another but not quite fully being on opposite sides.

Like I said, this is a hard episode for Douxie, and he really has to dig deep to reckon with his losses and keep fighting. The episode nicely balances the emotional content with action and lighter moments, giving space for the serious scenes but not being unrelentingly sad for the whole episode. We also get fun scenes with a dragon and a nice flashback.

Side note: this version of Merlin will never be half the being that Gandalf is, but he does admittedly know his way around a pithy declaration. I love, “A wizard does not make mistakes. He makes unexpected possibilities!”

As I said, very little Krel here—I’m pretty sure Diego Luna only has one line, and a short one at that. With Douxie-Archie in one major plot and Claire-Morgana in the other, most of the other characters are just hanging out in hiding, which is where Krel spends the episode. He does, however, spend pretty much all of his screentime clutching Ricky Blank’s head like a security blanket, which is super cute and makes me smile.

Y tu Luna también: Wizards: Season 1, Episode 8 – “Wizard Underground” (2020)

*Premise spoilers for the series, along with episode premise spoilers.*

While both Trollhunters and 3Below were multi-season shows with a mix of standalone and arc-based episodes, ramping up their arcs as they neared their respective finales, Wizards is a little different. It’s just one short season, ten episodes instead of thirteen, and each episode builds on what came before it. As such, it’s a little weird to be jumping in on episode 8 (since last week, I did just go ahead and rewatch the first seven episodes along with this one.) But here we go. It’s time for Wizards, people!

Before we get into the episode, a quick overview of what the series is about. Douxie, heretofore framed as an older teen occasionally seen around Arcadia Oaks, is in fact a 900-year-old wizard. He’s Merlin’s apprentice and still trying to prove himself to his legendary mentor. When a very dangerous new threat rolls into town, Douxie, Merlin, and the Trollhunters crew get separated in the melee: Douxie, Jim, Claire, and Steve get sent into the past, to Douxie’s old Arthurian stomping grounds. Our heroes navigate the growing conflict between Arthur and the trolls in the forest, frantically trying to keep their presence from disrupting established history.

Most of the series takes place in Arthur’s time, but this episode kicks off with the gang’s return to the present (cue Steve: “Ah, sweet, sweet pollution, how I’ve missed you!”) The Big Bad threat, the Arcane Order, is still very much a factor, but Douxie and co. are ready for it this time and are able to help their friends escape. Our heroes go to ground, and Merlin emphasizes what’s at stake as the others worry about a friend who was left behind.

There’s a lot going on here, but again, we’ve already had seven previous episodes leading up to this one. Jim was seriously wounded prior to the events of the series, and while the time travel stabilized him, returning to the present has restarted the clock on his injury. Douxie’s wizard staff can take the form of a Stratocaster, which is super fun, and at one point he utters the line, “Good evening, doers of evil and ancient terrors.” Side note: I really enjoy Douxie as the protagonist in Wizards. He’s eager and kindhearted, prone to good-intentioned mistakes but always desperate to fix them. Colin O’Donoghue does a great job in the role!

Our character of the week is Merlin, voiced by David Bradley, a.k.a. Walder Frey, a.k.a. First Doctor William Hartnell in An Adventure in Space and Time. Unsurprisingly, he’s good at playing an exasperated old crank, frequently lecturing Douxie over his fumbles but still having the tiniest shred of a soft spot for his apprentice. That’s especially apparent in this episode during a faceoff with the Arcane Order.

Since Krel doesn’t show up in the series until this episode, he didn’t get to take part in any adventures to the past, which I suppose is just as well. He thinks 21^st century Earth technology is primitive enough; the boy was not built for the Middle Ages! Anyway, when the gang is looking for shelter in this episode, they run into him at the local electronics store. “Come on, Krel,” Toby urges, “we’re on a mission!” Krel trails after him, calling, “Wait! Seems I missed a lot.” Later, as Merlin is outlining the all-important MacGuffins that have to be kept safe from the Arcane Order, Krel groans, “Ugh, destroying the world, again??” Hee!

Placing these scenes at an electronics store adds some extra bits of fun. Krel is there because he has some repairs to do on Ricky Blank, so he awkwardly explains, “I need spare parts for, uh, my dad?” as a robot head falls out of his backpack. It’s also important, because it brings tech into play in the series. So far, it’s been a lot of magic, and Krel doesn’t know much about magic, but he’s obviously something of a wizard himself when it comes to tech.

Even though it’s only been eight episodes since the end of 3Below, it’s still a delight to see (well, hear) Diego Luna as Krel again. There’s something I just love so much about this character, and even though, again, Krel’s lack of adjacence to magic makes him kind of an odd man out in this group, he still automatically joins in and does what he can to help.

First impressions:

Recommend?

In General – I think so, though I’d start at the beginning of the series. It’s only ten episodes altogether and Diego Luna is in three of them. (Plus, Stephanie Beatriz voices one of the characters in the Arthurian episodes!) However, I’d add a caveat that this series is less liftable than 3Below—it definitely helps if you’ve seen Trollhunters too.

Diego Luna – Of course. I’ll never turn down a chance to watch more of Luna as Krel!

Warnings

Violence, scary moments for kids, a little gross-out humor, and thematic elements.