Elena of Avalor- Series Overview

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Jabroniville
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Elena of Avalor- Series Overview

Post by Jabroniville »

ELENA OF AVALOR RE-WATCH:
* So I've decided to re-watch Elena of Avalor on Disney+ until I hit the end or I get bored- whichever's first.

Straight away, the history of the show is highly problematic because it came about in an odd manner- it's a spin-off of Craig Gerber's other show, Sofia the First, and so it's reliant on her universe to start (on Disney+, you can't actually find her debut in the "Elena" section but the "Sofia" one). And they have to root various things in her lore, like giving this Latino-themed kingdom the name "Avalor" because that's the name they gave her mysterious amulet years before this.

Oh, and the release of the show was just a MESS, as Disney had this completely random-ass idea to throw a bunch of Elena episodes out there BEFORE the Special, which contained absolute tons of lore and important information. I still remember watching my first Elena episode and being met with this bewildering Text-Dump of "Okay so Elena and her family were trapped for 41 years and an evil witch ruled her kingdom but now she's gone and so they're back but haven't aged at all yay!". It wouldn't be for a few episodes before we figured out exactly what happened, and so the lore got mixed up for me, and I've long since forgotten almost every aspect of the original episodes.

The Sofia the First Three-Parter Debut:
* We start off with the three part Sofia the First: The Secret of Avalor, which gives us our lore- the old Grand Wizard, Alkazar, observed the evil sorceress Shuriki invade Avalor, kill the King & Queen (this kids show doesn't SAY that, but it's pretty clear), then attack the orphaned Princess Elena. Since she was wearing the Amulet of Avalor- a protective item- she was saved from death and instead trapped within it. So now Sofia has to travel to Avalor (a long distance away) and free Elena, who's been testing her all along via the blessings and curses of the Amulet!

Pretty quickly we learn that Shuriki is menacing and keeps the populace in check. No music; no dancing. The people look pretty poor. Her Chancellor is Esteban, whom we later learn is Elena's COUSIN and helped Shuriki rule the kingdom, and Armando is the majordomo of the palace, and kind of a lovable goof with his puppet shows. Three Jacquins that recur through the show appear, but are instead anti-Shuriki pranksters who swipe food and defy the no-singing laws! And Mateo, grandson of Alkazar, is an amateur wizard and is integral in helping Sofia bring Elena back.

The Secret of Avalor is pretty fun so far, but it's hilarious how much danger Sofia puts her family into for her job. "Oh hey, six-year-old girl- bring your family to this kingdom where Evil Jane Fonda murdered some nice royalty to take power". Man it's surreal to watch, though- I swear this feels like a hundred years ago when this debuted. I barely remember ANY of it...which will happen when they aired a bunch of episodes BEFORE the special debuted, making it all kind of confusing and hard to figure out.

So weird seeing them in the style of that show, lol. Elena has REALLY dark eyeshadow and bright red lipstick, and everyone's moving in the more cartoony Sofia style, bouncing around with animated facial expressions. lol I didn't realize Armando was there in the very beginning with his puppets. And it's the three Jacquins, all being more prankster-ish. haha, elena finally gets speaking lines in the debut and she almost immediately trips, giggles about it, then squeals and hugs Sofia. Pretty much an "establishing character moment" right there. (Sofia's head being bigger than Elena's is kind of funny)

This is one thing I've not thought about in AGES since the show never brings it up that I can remember... Elena was in the amulet and was AWARE the whole time! "Being in an amulet for 41 years- you forget how to walk" "I KNEW you were the one!" and all that. Technically she IS as old as she should be, but hasn't been around people so I guess still acts like a teenage girl instead of someone in their 50s-60s. Someone theorized this is why she was so "touchy" with her friends in the show- decades without contact. I also think this might be why she's so impulsive: Here she can barely stand but she's ready to fight Shuriki one on one with no battle plan. She's cramming a lifetime of loneliness and inaction into every square minute.

Elena's Debut:
"My Time" is a really good song, though- probably one of the best she got in the show. Though I was never quite as much into the songs. "I know your spell by heart, Shuriki. It's echoed in my mind for 40 years- VADISSIMA!"- that was 100% first degree murder if it had worked. Elena is HARDCORE. And that is one hell of an epic line. Tragically, the spell fizzles out. Another establishing feature- her running in with no plan and just assuming things will work out. lol Skylar immediately calls out Elena's battle strategy at the beginning of part 3. Aimee Carrero really acted the hell out of her confrontation with Shuriki, I gotta say. She comes off enraged and exasperated all at the same time. I think her best moment is still the confrontation where she pours her heart out to Esteban in S3, but this was her proving they were right to hire her. I think Aimee, who's older than Elena by a bit, probably knew this was make or break time for her career. I mean, this was a four year job for her.

lol "Since when do people ride Jacquins?" "Don't get USED to it". oh, Migs, if only you knew... oh wow I totes forgot that Esteban established right from the beginning he helped Shuriki invade. I thought that was a truth-bomb dropped by Victor. wow, three minutes before the end and she FINALLY shows up in the ballgown. And I notice that Mateo was the main guy in Part 2 but is barely in Part 3 at all. Man it's surreal to watch, though- I swear this feels like a hundred years ago when this debuted. I barely remember ANY of it...which will happen when they aired a bunch of episodes BEFORE the special debuted, making it all kind of confusing and hard to figure out. It's still absurd how little of this I remember. But that's probably because a handful of episodes I saw more than once, while this one was released after 4-5 had already come out, and I never once saw it again. Probably because it had a different title and my recorder never picked it up.

One tricky plot thing... we're shown Isabel & the Grandparents in the painting, but have never heard the characters speak before. So that part doesn't quite "hit" except in retrospect. The fashion styles seem very different- I was ripped on for calling it a "Mexican Peasant" look but everywhere here is in simple colors with big ponchos over them- one guy is shirtless and looks like a hobo, and everyone's in sandals. I assumed this was supposed to be Shuriki oppressing everyone and hoarding wealth, and these were all unfortunates... some people were a bit put out and said it was insensitive because these are "traditional Mesoamerican clothing styles", haha. But like... in the main show, once it starts, the citizens of Avalor are dressed MUCH more nicely! More details on the clothing, floral stuff, etc. Nobody has a big brown poncho on! Even the actual farmers are more colorful. In the end, I think it might just be a shifting art tone and the more advanced Elena animation engine compared to Sofia's- the backgrounders can just have more detail now.

Interestingly, they lay down some lore right away- "Ancient Maru" is namedropped as a big source of old ruins, and this becomes more and more important as time moves on.
Jabroniville
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Re: Elena of Avalor- Series Overview

Post by Jabroniville »

1) This is the "Big Debut", with Elena giving a (very) quick narration of what happened in the Sofia the First animated special. She mentions that she fought Shuriki so Alakazar could save the rest of her family, which is new information... then infodumps the Origin Story, leaving out Sofia entirely. And then we see our new Character Designs, as they modify the Sofia style with smaller heads and more detail (Elena's hair goes from a singular block to more detailed strands). Elena's lipstick is less prominent I think, and the face animation is much better, with more mobile eyebrows and less cartoonish, round faces.

Mateo and the Jacquins get redesigned- Mateo is now shorter like a preteen and has much brighter hazel eyes, while the Jacquins are now more catlike and have different bodies and faces- Migs is now a fussbudget instead of a generic prankster and is the most "broad" of them, while Luna is more slender. And now we meet our NEW cast! Gabe the royal guard shows his character right away by being too excited, then modifying it with this false bravado ("YEAH IT'S MY FIRST DAY! I mean... it's my first day as your royal guard. I am Lieutenant Gabriel Nunez- but YOU can call me Gabe"), and Elena immediately bodies him by rolling her eyes "Okay, Gabe" and running off somewhere.

Naomi, daughter of the harbor-master, also becomes important, as she's demanding and a bit more practical, being one of the few not to beat around the bush with Elena and insist upon her helping with the missing boats on the dock. Her original design looks kinda odd- like the "off-model" Elsa seen in early Frozen merch. Very elongated eyes and a more bug-eyed look.

Funnily enough, Naomi is only helpful because she tells Elena about the ships being stolen, then chases her down after another ship (with Isabel on it) is taken. And for THAT she's put on the Grand Council, lol. Gabe, meanwhile, doesn't do very much- he actually gets captured by the Noblins right away.

Several backgrounders are seen as well: Dona Paloma, head of the Trading Guild (who immediately shows some arrogance), and Higgins, the most useless guard.

The funny thing here is that the show's Opening Theme has this big dramatic 360 shot of the Main Four all acting bad-ass and swinging their weapons around (Elena's scepter, Gabe's sword, Mateo's tamborita & Naomi's lasso)... but in the actual show, they're completely curbstomped like a Level 1 party against the Noblins, who easily trip them up and knock them around. And neither the scepter or lasso are weapons in the show yet! And when the gang loses, they talk things out and realize why the Noblins are doing what they're doing (they're swiping ships so they can go back to their home village- they'd been imprisoned in Avalor's castle by Shuriki to help her get rich).

So a pretty solid establishing episode- we get over-eager (but superficially charming) Gabe, needy Mateo & pushy Naomi.
Last edited by Jabroniville on Fri Mar 12, 2021 3:46 am, edited 1 time in total.
Jabroniville
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Re: Elena of Avalor- Series Overview

Post by Jabroniville »

2) Model Sister: So it's Elena's first royal visitor (the Emperor of Satu- a Japanese-themed country- voiced by George Takei... and yes, he pulls out an "Oh MY!"), and she's supposed to show him Avalor, but also Isabel is mentioneod as an inventor with a big "invention fair" to go to, and she needs Elena's help! So I'm sure you can immediately guess the nature of this story- a "Two places at once!" comedy of errors.

This one's just kind of neat, as it establishes the "early characters" well: Elena means well but over-promises and kind of makes impulsive decisions that all go wrong then she tries to go back and fix things, handling them herself. Esteban shows "ego" (actually insecurity) by trying to show everyone how great he is, but becoming kind of a butt-monkey that fate punishes. Isabel kind of wants attention and to be a part of things. And these are the very first episodes- they have to establish the cast, their flaws, etc. So Esteban as the kind of needy know-it-all fits at first- he's seen as kind of an antagonist, but more in the sense that he's egotistical (but we'd later learn that it's insecurity, not ego, that fuels him). lol and then he just details his Evil Plan right to Higgins ("I'm going to be the power behind the throne, and make Elena look stupid!"), who is the LAST person I would ever tell a secret to. I thought it was an "Isabel episode" but is more about Elena's struggles, too. Isa's shown as smart and capable, but kind of hurt that Elena bails on her, so her short bits in the episode actually have some punch, too. Elena offers to show the Emperor Avaloran stuff, but Esteban is like "NO! We must prepare Satu food! Do a Satu dance! Wear Satu clothing!"... and Elena keeps having to run off to help Isa, ultimately hurting her feelings.

The twist at the end is pretty good, with Elena confessing everything to the Emperor, who is impressed with her focus on family, while Esteban humiliates himself showing off all of his knowledge of Satu but butchering their traditional dance ("I already KNOW what Satu is like!" the Emperor declares- he proves Esteban wrong by preferring to learn about Avalor instead). So we land on a lot of important character beats.
Jabroniville
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Re: Elena of Avalor- Series Overview

Post by Jabroniville »

3) I considered the "Charoca" episode ("A monster is attacking a village! You have to stop him!") kind of filler when I first saw it, but it's actually super-important. It's one of the first times the council votes, when Elena convinces them to try it her way, and when she pulls a Diplomacy check on a potential enemy. Very much setting the stage for the show.

Meanwhile poor Gabe is over-eager and way too protective. Possibly the first time Elena did her "Angry Face" to a protagonist in the show, lol (She's like "I wouldn't call it an ATTACK", Gabe: "I WOULD" Elena: *death glare*). So the "monster" is a rock creature whose anger can set off the volcano. But he's constantly trying to be calm, but hates people stealing his volcanic rocks and is overwhelmed by rage. Elena & Naomi can talk him down, but he soon loses his temper at seeing MORE rocks taken, and the village is nearly destroyed. Finally, Charoca nearly sacrifices himself to save the day, focusing his inner calm and stopping the lava flow.

They'd come off as "filler" episodes but it's important to her character. Even the "Esteban de-ages to childhood" one is important to showcase him.
Interesting notes in this one and another- Elena puts Luisa on the Council "because you see the good in everyone" which becomes ironic (and impactful) when she refuses to forgive Esteban later. And in the Charoca one she says "Nobody attacks my familia and gets away with it!"

Oddly for this show, Charoca would appear only once more.
Jabroniville
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Re: Elena of Avalor- Series Overview

Post by Jabroniville »

4) In this one, Esteban eagerly joins the group in finding the travelling island which contains the Fountain of Youth! Turns out Esteban is desperate to become young and good-looking again.

He says "Ever since I was a child, people were ALWAYS telling me what to do", which is really a huge part of his character. He wants to be important- to MATTER. He wants to be heard. This is eventually his backstory as to why he invited Shuriki in, so it's impressive they had this figured out all the way back then. He has a power-hungry sentiment about him, but he's such a putz he comes off as less-threatening for it, so he comes off very innocuous. Also the debut of Elena's "Adventure Poncho", with the big puffy sleeves, as she & Mateo have to chase an increasingly-young (and finally, baby-aged) Esteban across the island and give him the "reversal" water before he disappears or is lost on the island for good. Again, an entirely predictable episode, but important to his character- he'd drop his "I want to be young again" angle, but his desperation to matter and be important is the sticking point.
Jabroniville
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Re: Elena of Avalor- Series Overview

Post by Jabroniville »

5) Mateo finally becomes the Royal Wizard, but he's having his classic "Lack of Confidence", which becomes his major character trait, and Elena has to talk him up and make him feel better about himself, in a song that probably showed up in 9 million YouTube shipping montages between the two. And we meet Fiero, the Malvago (evil wizard), who freezes people in stone!

This is a big "Gabe is an ass" episode, as he's shitty to Mateo the whole time, doubting his abilities, complaining when he drops something on them while saving their lives, and more. Elena repeatedly looks extremely annoyed with him, often disgusted, because the whole point is Mateo's doubting himself and Gabe is piling it on- Elena's "Angry Mom" thing is hilarious to watch, and she looks like she's about to deck the guy. However, this actually kind of helps, because Mateo gets defiant and starts insisting that he knows what he's doing- it's almost as helpful as Elena repeatedly telling him how great he is, and how much she trusts him... this is pretty well when the "Eleteo" ship gets started in earnest, lol.

And Mateo finally beats Fiero by reversing his stone-sleep spell and Gabe congratulates him "I'm sorry I doubted you- nice work, hero". So at least he comes around... but I can't help but think this sank Gabe's chances with Elena even more than his "fake cool guy" act did! Fiero seems done for now, but it's a very big deal that the show finally has a "Super-Villain" again- every other episode thus far has been about "Royal Shenanigans" and getting to know the supporting cast. Magic and conflict appear, but this is the first time since Shuriki someone showed up and tried to KILL THEM.
Last edited by Jabroniville on Thu Apr 01, 2021 8:36 am, edited 1 time in total.
MacynSnow
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Re: Elena of Avalor- Series Overview

Post by MacynSnow »

I'll slice anyone from Stem to Stern if they say i watched this show avidly......BUT, i honestly like the burgoning "Archie Triangle" of Elena/Mateo/Gabe. It added some decent drama to an otherwise Spanish/Mexican rip-off of Disney's own Sofia The First. Weirdly, my Favorite character is Esteban. He LEGITIMATELY tried to redeem himself and, despite his own failings & egotism, i think he succeded...
Jabroniville
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Re: Elena of Avalor- Series Overview

Post by Jabroniville »

MacynSnow wrote: Wed Mar 24, 2021 10:30 pm I'll slice anyone from Stem to Stern if they say i watched this show avidly......BUT, i honestly like the burgoning "Archie Triangle" of Elena/Mateo/Gabe. It added some decent drama to an otherwise Spanish/Mexican rip-off of Disney's own Sofia The First. Weirdly, my Favorite character is Esteban. He LEGITIMATELY tried to redeem himself and, despite his own failings & egotism, i think he succeded...
The Love Triangle thing is kind of funny, because the writers so clearly didn't want to make it a thing. But like... behind the scenes they wore "Team Gabe" and "Team Mateo" t-shirts and played up some stuff in "blink or you'll miss it" ways- Gabe seems to have an obvious crush on her that only older viewers would see, but Elena & Mateo are always paired up together in other episodes. And then you get Gabe/Naomi practically shoved together in the lead-up to the finale, and Elena is usually very aromantic, lol.
Jabroniville
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Re: Elena of Avalor- Series Overview

Post by Jabroniville »

6) And we get our first "Adversarial Royal" as Prince Alonso makes his debut, and he immediately tries to kiss Elena's hand and put some manner of moves on her, possibly the only time in the show someone notes her looks- Gabe's angry looks are classic, as is Elena's SUPREME disgust when Alonso's lips get close to her hand. Alonso's dad is the King of Cordoba, and is insistent that his son learn some responsibility from Elena, whom he sees as a mature, worthy peer... but Alonso keeps trying to get them to blow things off and relax. So Elena's "Type A" stuff and Alonso's laziness are in opposition... and poor Gabe keeps getting left behind. Alonso's song is REALLY good, though, with some extremely good dance choreography as Elena slowly gets into the idea of relaxing for once.

The two royals are put in charge of finding the perfect bridge-building site, but Alonso peer pressures her into bailing, leading to a mystical (but polite) giant awakening and smashing up all the gear while they're off having a picnic by some waterfalls! Elena curses herself for being so irresponsible and they head back to the palace. Thankfully she figures out why the giant's attacking (he's the guardian for the owls on the bridge site) and gets him to stop via diplomacy- the giant does not appear again, but Alonso becomes one of MANY "Recurring Royals".

Hilarious bit as Elena's building a new nest for the owls the giant is defending, and asks Gabe "Are you with me?", and he says "I'm ALWAYS with you" with the most profound significance ever, which is completely lost on her as she's like "kay, grab a shovel!". LOL can I get an "A moment for our fallen brother" here?
MacynSnow
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Re: Elena of Avalor- Series Overview

Post by MacynSnow »

Jabroniville wrote: Thu Apr 01, 2021 8:41 am Hilarious bit as Elena's building a new nest for the owls the giant is defending, and asks Gabe "Are you with me?", and he says "I'm ALWAYS with you" with the most profound significance ever, which is completely lost on her as she's like "kay, grab a shovel!". LOL can I get an "A moment for our fallen brother" here?
This was the episode that made me want to 'ship Gabe & Elena. Our Brother, despite everything thrown his way(untill Disney executives forced him to pair up with "Cardboard" Naomi) was more loyal to Elena than his OWN FAMILY.
....Not that i actually watch girly Disney stuff....STOP GIVING ME THAT LOOK JAB!
mrdent12
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Re: Elena of Avalor- Series Overview

Post by mrdent12 »

These early episodes of Elena were much different than later ones. They were more fun than the darker later ones that lost something either because of marketing or some other tampering.
Jabroniville
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Re: Elena of Avalor- Series Overview

Post by Jabroniville »

mrdent12 wrote: Thu Apr 01, 2021 3:03 pm These early episodes of Elena were much different than later ones. They were more fun than the darker later ones that lost something either because of marketing or some other tampering.
You think? I find that fans generally preferred things as they ramped up, especially in the second season. I know S2 was when I went from “hey, this is kinda fun” to like, “... wow they are making a BIG story here”.
mrdent12
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Re: Elena of Avalor- Series Overview

Post by mrdent12 »

Part of the fun of the first season for me was the world building and more light heartedness of the episodes. I was(and still do at times) watching it with a a younger child, so the bigger over arching story wasn't something I was able to get into. When the later episodes came along, especially with the plot of Victor, his wife, and daughter it felt like a different show overall for me.
Jabroniville
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Re: Elena of Avalor- Series Overview

Post by Jabroniville »

7) "Finders Leapers"... I remember almost NOTHING about this one, lol. Like, the only bit I recall is the description on my channel guide that always points out "Duendes, which are part of Latino folklore...". But it revolves around the conflict between Naomi & Esteban- Esteban is the old guard and the most exprienced politician and nation-runner in the cast, and Naomi is the newest and from "common" stock, so he's naturally snobbish about her.

OMG: "Dad, you're not gonna believe it! They're putting me in charge of digging up an old Maruvian ruin!" "Of course I believe it! One day you'll be running the whole KINGDOM for them!" Did they seriously know where they were going with Naomi from the beginning?! Esteban is the WORST in this episode, lol. Screws up everything (letting Duendes go and nearly unleashing them on all of Avalor) and blames Naomi, constantly ripping on her every chance he gets. He kinda had the same "arc" Gabe did in the Fiero episode, but Gabe was a lot more apologetic and nice at the end- Esteban actually interrupts and hampers the efforts to re-capture the Duendes and Naomi has to do everything herself with her ideas. Esteban DID at least say "You and I have too much work to do on the Grand Council" and emphasize she was still in charge of the dig.
Jabroniville
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Re: Elena of Avalor- Series Overview

Post by Jabroniville »

8) "Royal Retreat"- another important one, as Elena goes on her first "Royal Retreat" with various other kingdoms' rulers... and it's headed by King Hector. It's kind of funny how Hector might be the most unlikable character on a show with actual murderers on it. Just that unique combination of arrogance, bossiness, cruelty and delusion. Like, at least Shuriki & Ash are competent and self-aware, lol!

So it turns out that Hector is the high king of douche mountain, acts like a total man-baby, and loves to play practical jokes on the other rulers, and they just go along with it, because he is vastly wealthy and buys them all excessively huge gifts (including huge ships). So the other kings are kinda sycophantic but you can tell they hate it, and hoo boy does Elena hate that. But she's trying to fit in and go along with things, since it's her first Retreat and all... but then she finds Hector trying to capture Marposas.

The Marposas are an interesting addition to the show's "Zoology". Giant pink dolphin-creatures that lay eggs? I wonder how many other curious animals there are out there, aside from those in Vallestrella. This one introduces a few other Kings that aren't quite so important, but showcases the whole "issues with other royalty" thing that would... honestly show up a LOT in this show. Hector, Alonso and eventually Valentina all come in as big "Rival Royals".

This one has a pretty simple story, but complex in the way that the other Kings finally learn that Hector's selfishness and pigheadedness aren't worth the gifts he gives them. Also that Elena generally won't put up with bullying and obnoxiousness- her desire to fit in here makes her way more patient than she'd otherwise be. But she frees the Marposas, getting her best friend among the Kings to help her out, and dumps on Hector to his face. "You'll never be one of the Kings!" "I don't need to be one of the Kings- I'm going to be QUEEN!" That comes off like it was supposed to be a major catchphrase they'd show a lot in ads, but I don't think they did.

And Hector would go on to become an annoyance in another episode or two, because this show wastes NOTHING.
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