Elena of Avalor S3 E2

## Plot

Elena, Mateo, Migs, and Skylar enter Vallestrella and head to the Sunbird Sanctum. Elena's scepter is finally fixed. However, Qapa and Lama tell her that Hool is dying. She used too much of her magic to fix the scepter. Elena calls Zuzo to see if he knows how to heal Hool. They have to take her to the statue of Aziluna in Avalor, like when Elena was trapped in the amulet. She's too weak to fly though. Ash and Carla are trying to solve the puzzle map. Carla just wants to rescue her dad, but Ash wants to get all the magic in Takaína first, and claims that she just solved the map. Qapa and Lama use a flower to restore Hool's youth so she can fly, but the effect only lasts for a few hours, and they warn Elena that Hool has a tendency to get distracted, so they should leave right away. Ash and Carla arrive at where they think Takaína is, but it's just an empty field. Ash thinks it could be underground, and blasts the ground over and over and over again. Carla says that if they'd just rescue Victor already, he could've helped them solve the map, but Ash tells her that he couldn't help them do anything. She apologizes for yelling at her, and leaves to cook dinner and collect firewood. Carla decides to rescue her dad by herself and leaves her mom a message in the dirt. Elena, Mateo, Migs, Skylar, and Hool arrive in Avalor. Hool has always wanted to see Tepet Muul, eat a churro, and hug a Noblin, but the others tell her that she can do all of that after they save her life. She wants to do it right away though and live her life to the fullest. She tours Tepet Muul, and heads down to Pueblo de Oro when she learns that's where the Noblins live. When she tries to hug Jiku though, he turns her to gold because he thought she wanted to eat him. Noblins can only turn things into gold, not back. Mateo can make an unyielding potion to return her to normal, but they have to go back to his workshop at the palace. Carla steals Higgins' uniform and puts him to sleep. Before Elena and Mateo can leave with the potion, they learn that she's inside when they see guards running everywhere. Elena uses her scepter to see that she's heading towards the dungeon. She wants to stop her from freeing Victor, but Mateo reminds her that they have to save Hool. What I don't understand is why they can't split up. Elena decides to stop Carla first. She blasts her tamborita out of her hand. Mateo takes it, and Higgins restrains Carla and throws her in the dungeon. Elena and Mateo get back and return Hool to normal. They finally make it to the statue of Aziluna, which is back underwater. Zuzo tells them that Hool has to swim down to the statue and touch foreheads with it to release the breath of life. Unfortunately, the effect of the flower wears off, and Hool is too weak to swim down to the statue. Elena blames herself because she stopped to get Carla, but Hool tells her that she's the one who kept getting distracted. Elena refuses to let her die. Mateo tells her that she's already done all she can, but she doesn't think so. Against the advice of everyone else, she jumps down to swim to the statue herself, even after she's told that it's most likely too deep for a human. After all, if Hool risked everything to help her, then she should do the same. She's able to make it, but it's a close call. She gives the breath of life to Hool, and it restores her life force. In a surprisingly sweet scene, Carla apologizes to Victor for failing to free him, but he's just glad that she came back. He thinks Ash will rescue them soon, but after seeing Carla's message, she's planning on rescuing them *after* she gets to Takaína. Elena, Mateo, Migs, Skylar, and Hool return to the Sunbird Sanctum. Qapa and Lama are glad to see that Hool is alive, and Elena gives them churros.

## What to Expect **(SPOILERS!)**

This isn't a review, it's more of a warning of what to expect *less of* going forward. Specifically, main characters. I personally wasn't the biggest fan of Naomi's arc this season, which doesn't even start until episode 16, which is past the halfway point. Still, at least she has an arc, unlike poor Gabe. I did the math, and he only had a speaking role in ten episodes. This means that he really only appeared and contributed something to an episode 10 out of 28 possible times, which can be simplified to 5/14ths, which is only approximately 36% of the whole season, and like Naomi, instead of getting his own focus episode like Isabel and Mateo did, he has to share his focus scenes with other characters and plots. Naomi only has a speaking role in eleven episodes, which is approximately 39% of the season. She also has the largest absence in between episodes. Isabel only went three episodes without an appearance, Gabe and Mateo tied at five, and depending on whether or not you count her silent cameo in episode 8, meaning Julio could've already replaced her by then, Naomi went either six or eight whole episodes in between appearances, which is more time for her departure to sink in, both in and out of universe. Isabel had multiple focus episodes and focus moments in certain episodes, and Mateo also had a focus episode. I kind of feel like no one knew what to do with Gabe after he accomplished his goal back in early season 2, except expand his relationships with the other characters. On his own as a main character, I think he's kind of boring and useless this season, even when he's the one who's supposed to be the military leader and strategic thinker. It's especially egregious in the series finale, because unlike Antonia, he didn't even bring his tamborita, and the only noteworthy thing he does there is take Chatana's diadem away, which literally anyone else could've done. I want to see something that only Gabe could've done. Let me see him briefly have a magic duel with Mateo and have it parallel the fights with Fiero while Mateo is under Vuli's mind control, and have Gabe or someone else, like Isabel, figure out how to snap him out of it, instead of Ixlan just slamming into Mateo, which opens up a plot hole later on when you realize that she or someone else could've done something like that to everyone in Avalor that Vuli used his powers on, and then you're left wondering why that never happened. Hell, they went to Nueva Vista again, show me the gang, or even Marisa and Marzel later on, freeing Fiero in an enemy mine situation so he can help them fight the shades, especially since Victor, Carla, Cruz, and Vestia were redeemed! Look, I don't expect every villain on the more… complicated shows to be forgiven or redeemed, nor should they be if they don't regret or try to atone for their villainous actions, but still, being turned to stone forever is… not exactly the nicest fate. At least they're not aware like Elena was when she was trapped in the amulet for decades. We don't see the defense plan that Gabe and Ixlan draw up, we don't see him giving effective orders to anyone except Antonia at the beginning of the special, who also disappears after the first fight and isn't seen again until the very end; we also don't see Gabe's reaction to all of the guards under his command being turned to stone by Cahu, his fight with Vuli was extremely brief and he was assisted by Elena and Mateo, etc. He was just *there*, except all the times he wasn't. And trust me, there are many examples. Still, I'll take bland over unintentionally unsympathetic and unlikable, *Naomi*. She just seemed so flighty and irresponsible in episode 16, which seems very out of character for someone who has risked her life and almost died for her friends before. She's literally the only reason Elena is alive right now, at least twice over! Your best friend and her family are hurting from Esteban's betrayal, and I know that you are too, but you're just making it unintentionally worse by leaving to "find yourself" or some vague crap like that instead of trying to comfort Elena and her family and make it better. She, like Gabe, also gets a weapon upgrade pretty far into the season, but she only ever uses it three times across two episodes, and it disappears early on in the series finale after Antonia takes it. Hopefully she got it back offscreen at least. It seemed like it could've been really handy. Naomi basically being in charge of Elena's day off *was* nice to see, even if I would've added at least Carla and Antonia to it as well. I think the main problem is that a lot of focus episodes this season also have to deal with the main plot butting in and share screen time as a result, so most of the focus episodes for all of the characters, even Isabel and Mateo, feel a little off because of that. We also have a lot of filler, which I normally don't mind, because it usually means character development, and there was still plenty of that… for recurring and guest characters instead of main ones. I still think that it's interesting and fun, but so many new characters, dynamics, and foils were introduced. It was a famous special guest star bananza. If it were me, I would've completely changed Naomi's arc, or at least have her leave Avalor much earlier, especially since she doesn't appear in many episodes this season anyways. I would've had her, Gabe, and the other guards receive their magic weapon upgrades sooner and have them be used more. I would've also had Ixlan interact with Antonia at least once onscreen before the series finale puts them in a relationship at the very end, even if it was just for a second or in the background like in Sweetheart's Day. Feel free to take notes from *She-Ra and the Princesses of Power*, *The Owl House*, or even RWBY. I also would've actually showed the scene where Gabe, the other guards, and Mateo fail to catch Ash and Esteban during Carnaval, thereby kick starting some sort of arc for Gabe. Maybe after that, he feels like he and his guards are inferior and ineffective compared to the magical Mateo and Elena, and Rico's comment about wishing he knew magic is simply the catalyst for him asking Mateo to teach them? Or maybe Doña Paloma's comments about his ineffectiveness as captain in episode 8 leads to imposter syndrome or something? Maybe he could've been the one to cast the paralyzing spell on his sword, or he could've fought the shades earlier during "round 2", lost to them, and then redeemed himself at the end? Maybe he needs help finding a balance between work and fun because he keeps skipping or ends up super late for his dates with Naomi because he's so busy practicing magic, training his guards, and looking for Ash and Esteban, a la Iris and Nathaniel in LoliRock? I bet Elena and Mateo are in universe shippers on deck for Gabomi. Heck, maybe Gabe and Migs could exchange thoughts and experiences on what it's like to be a leader and be responsible for others' fates based on the choices they make. I could totally see Mateo or Naomi taking a hit from Yolo for Gabe, just like Alonso ended up doing for Valentina. Or maybe Gabe himself could've taken one of Cahu's sand grains for one of his guards, or his friends/family? It could've even been a heartwrenching callback to the first episode. Imagine that Gabe takes a sand grain for Isabel, and as he's turning to stone, he tells the current crown princess, "Sorry, but it's my job to protect you." And then Isabel, or Naomi or Mateo, or whoever he took it for, tells him that it's their job to protect everyone, and he says "Yeah, I know. Tell Elena I'm sorry," and smiles sadly and sheds a single tear as he basically dies in vain? Actually, I think every main character except him has cried or had tears well up in their eyes at least once. Time to fix that! Oh, imagine how much it would've hurt for each of them to see their parents take a sand grain from Cahu for them. Oh, the pain! The drama! The angst! The possibly wasted potential! It hurts! Also, the main jaquins were barely used this season, and the rest were just modes of transportation with no personality as per usual. Same thing with them and the sunbirds in the series finale. I also didn't like that they cut Bruce Butterfrog's only scene, because "Never Too Late" came right after it, and they thought it was so funny that having a sad song immediately after it was considered too jarring, so they cut it instead of moving it. But having Hool fall asleep in the middle of a sentence and wake up while Elena is talking to the others and startles them is fine? Or characters in the background having smiles on their faces at the very beginning of the sad song, until the scene cuts and changes angles to show them with more appropriate and uncertain expressions, considering the dire circumstances and what Elena is singing about? Sorry, I just needed to get… whatever all of that was off my chest. I also do it in episode 7.