Uploaded August 2020 | Updated September 2026, 13 hours ago

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𝙸'𝚟𝚎 𝚌𝚘𝚖𝚎 𝚜𝚘 𝚏𝚊𝚛 𝚋𝚞𝚝 𝚘𝚗𝚌𝚎 𝚒𝚗 𝚊 𝚠𝚑𝚒𝚕𝚎 𝚒𝚝 𝚋𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚔𝚜 𝚖𝚎
𝙸 𝚝𝚛𝚒𝚎𝚍 𝚝𝚠𝚒𝚌𝚎 𝚊𝚜 𝚑𝚊𝚛𝚍 𝚝𝚘 𝚋𝚎 𝚑𝚊𝚕𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚖𝚊𝚗 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚖𝚊𝚍𝚎 𝚖𝚎
𝚃𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎'𝚜 𝚊 𝚝𝚑𝚘𝚞𝚜𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚏𝚊𝚌𝚎𝚜 𝚋𝚞𝚝 𝚢𝚘𝚞'𝚛𝚎 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚊𝚛𝚘𝚞𝚗𝚍
𝚆𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝙸 𝚖𝚊𝚔𝚎, 𝚠𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝙸 𝚖𝚊𝚔𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚙𝚛𝚘𝚞𝚍 𝚒𝚏 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚌𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝚜𝚎𝚎 𝚖𝚎 𝚗𝚘𝚠?

ᴀʙᴏᴜᴛ
I haven’t made a proper fanvid in almost 3 years (partly because my computer kept hogging memory when I uploaded anything to Premiere Pro). Got a new computer recently and was totally inspired to make something once Wizards hit Netflix. The Tales of Arcadia universe has that strange It factor for me—a subtlety in writing and characterization, an artful use of the quiet moments between dialogue, a stunning soundtrack that is on par with animated films, gorgeous and stunning world building across multiple genres. And most importantly, TOA features understated heroes who quietly push themselves to such extremes of goodness and sacrifice. Jim carved a place for himself in my hall of Heroes for everything he’s done for others and I’m just astounded that now TOA features twice in my hallowed hall (joining Hiccup, Tony Stark, the Tenth Doctor, and Jim Lake Jr.).

There’s such a quiet conviction in Douxie, a belief that by just quietly and doggedly *doing good*, he can earn the Mastery of Life his master kept telling him about, never realizing that after 900 years, it’s the very belief that he’s not quite there that makes him wise, makes him humble, and makes him worthy. He kept seeing the staff as a synecdoche, a summation for the whole person a wizard is, as a means of validating his worth. And so he never realized that he already achieved wisdom without it.

Merlin never approved of Douxie. And it hurts to see him treated as a servant in Camelot by the only person he knows as father. Yet it does not make him hate Merlin. He just tries to follow his advice with even MORE conviction and humility than before. His first meeting with Merlin is a perfect encapsulation of Douxie’s relationship to Merlin: Doux immediately bows to his master (he still respects him, even though he abandoned him for a millennium!), then snarks with 900-years worth of frustration, and then immediately jumps into kid-like enthusiasm about how much magic practice he’s achieved since they last met. Only to be sidelined for the Heroes of Arcadia, who’ve spend maybe 2 years max fighting death and witches. Yet Douxie doesn’t throw Merlin under the bus after such a monumental f@#*-off—He just keeps trying to prove himself and do good. He just refuses to let other people’s failures get to him or affect the goodness in him. (Hell, he even took Jim and Morgana!Claire’s insults at him in the restaurant scene in Trollhunters 304 like a champ.)

And this dogged goodness is what eventually convinces Merlin that he’s been wrong about Douxie—He wasn’t just a servant, but a son. Not just someone to teach, but someone to love. And he’s wronged his son for eons by not giving him the love and support he deserved. He’s a better person than Merlin ever was, more dedicated to being a Wizard-Hero than merely a Wizard-Sage. Putting his own life on the line to preserve the life of the people he loves and the lives of everyone. Because he holds himself to a higher standard, because he has this power, because he *can* do something.

This vid celebrates Douxie’s growth and relationship with Merlin. How much Douxie’s frustrated by him, how much he loves and misses him, how much he feels like, despite everything Merlin’s done to him, Merlin’s advice and presence in his life meant he had a father, had someone who taught him how to live. He wasn’t perfect, but he was his dad.

(Personal note: Like Doux, it seems the most I’ve learned from my parents sometimes is how not to live. That you can’t be caught up in your own pain and bitterness so much that you lose sight of how to take care of others. They gave me the foundation of what goodness I have, but ever since I reached Doux’s age, they couldn’t give me the mentorship and support and parenting I needed, and in the end, it was their children who had to parent them.. I guess that’s how I connect with Douxie too, because we both had to somehow grow up on our own, with what wisdom we’ve gained from the people who raised us, who emotionally vanished from our lives when we needed them most.)

ꜱᴏᴄɪᴀʟ
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