Pirates Attack THE DRAGON PRINCE Producers!
Saturday, July 22, 2023, 2:45 p.m.
At the San Diego Convention Center, Room 6BCF has a seating capacity of 1500. Alas, it wasn’t enough space to accommodate everyone eager to learn about Season Five of The Dragon Prince. Those who could attend would be treated to not one, not two, not three, but four surprises.
The panel was run by series co-creators Aaron Ehasz and Justin Richmond, executive producer Villads Spangsberg, and special community guest Hailey Karter of Cartoon Universe podcast, who showed off some gorgeous pieces of fan artwork inspired by the characters. (Jack de Sena, the voice of high mage Callum, had been announced to appear but didn’t for publicly-undisclosed reasons.)
Then came the first surprise: a screening of the first episode from Season Five, “Domina Profundis.”
The second surprise had been foreshadowed by an announcement from Wonderstorm on July 10:
(WARNING: This panel is strictly limited to landlubbing con attendees only. Due to recent threats of salty shenanigans, NO privateers, nautical criminals, or seafaring ne’er-do-wells of any kind will be permitted entry. Thank you for your understanding.)
Despite “security precautions,” two lady pirates barged onto the stage shouting demands to give more screen time to Berto the parrot, and to play the rest of Season Five … now. The panelists would be held hostage till their demands were met.
Ehasz assured the crowd that everything was under control.
Behold the ferocity of the pirate ladies. Arrrrr.
Luckily for everyone, Justin Richmond, Aaron Ehasz, and Villads Spangsberg just happened to have a special briefcase with them.
Which they opened.
And pulled out a red button.
That Ehasz pressed.
At that moment—or close to it—came Surprise Number Three.
The entire Season Five became available for screening on Netflix, about a week ahead of its previously-announced date of July 27.
The victorious pirate ladies pulled off their hats, beards and nautical garb, revealing themselves to be Paula Burrows, the voice of Rayla the Moonshadow Elf—and Surprise Number Four—Boone Williams, who plays a new character, Astrid, from Season Six.
Q & A followed. One youngster wanted to know if Soren (the Crownguard who needs to shave) was going to be in more episodes, because he was funny. Answer: He is. The panel topped off with a round of audience applause.
Season Five awaits your viewing pleasure.
For The Dragon Prince: Mystery of Aaravos, Seasons Six and Seven are yet to come.
Dragons ‘R’ Us!
On July 10, 2023, I officially launched a website featuring these two clueless dragons, at www.dragons-r-us.com. They’re sort of a classical comedian duo, “fish-out-of-water” in a world of humans. I’ve already drawn rough storyboards for some shorts, which will be revealed in time. Yes, I’ve always wanted to work on a slapstick cartoon, and this is it.
Coming July 27: The Dragon Prince Season Five
Here’s another interruption in my New Zealand travelogue for this announcement: The Dragon Prince, Season Five, is now slated to premiere on Netflix on July 27, 2023. Here is some key art:
And a couple of video previews:
And here’s an earlier version of the scene, as presented at San Diego Comic Con in 2019 by Jack De Sena and Paula Burrows:
Eastbound to Dunedin
Friday morning, March 3, 2023.
I’m riding the InterCity bus from Queenstown, New Zealand to Dunedin on the South Island’s east coast. It’s a four-and-a-half hour trip. And the bus doesn’t have a toilet.
What do passengers do when they get the urge?
Fortunately the bus allows for two pit stops. One is at Cromwell. This stop has a decorative wall. Photo from Google:
Farther down the road we have a longer break at Lawrence, which has public toilets as well as a convenient convenience store.
This particular store, Night ‘n Day, is part of a nationwide chain, the equivalent to America’s Seven-Elevens. I bought some fried fish for lunch, and they offered two patties of hashbrowns for NZ $1.00. Who could resist that?
Presumably the store gets lots of business from all the bus stop traffic.
The bus passes through some gorgeous scenery with the road meandering through mountain valleys.
I sat on the right side of the coach. I thought it odd that the sun wasn’t shining through the windows on my side. Instead, it was shining through the windows on the left side. Why? Because New Zealand is below the equator, in the Southern Hemisphere. It was an interesting sensation, having lived in the Northern Hemisphere all my life.
The bus made one more stop at Dunedin’s International Airport, 28.3 km from Dunedin itself. We unloaded at the heart of the city, the InterCity bus stop at 331 Moray Place, Platform K, outside the Countdown Supermarket. It was shortly after 12:30 p.m., plenty of time to walk to my pre-booked lodgings and partake of a local attraction.
InterCity also offers a Queenstown-to-Dunedin afternoon run from 4:15 p.m. to 8:50 p.m.
Queenstown Sojourn
While in Queenstown I learned at least a couple things.
(1. Electrical outlets have switches. To get the electricity, you have to flip the switch.
Image from nzpocketguide.com
I found this out the hard way when I tried to recharge my cell phone overnight. I had purchased a new adapter and thought the problem was with it. No. I didn’t flip the switch. Which I learned from the pharmacy clerk, called “the chemist.” He was kind enough to recharge my cell phone while I walked around town for an hour. He offered to do it, and so, it was yet another example of Kiwi hospitality.
(2. Elevators are called “lifts.” And the ground floor is not considered the first floor. The next floor up from ground level is the second floor.
My trip to New Zealand would last a month, and throughout my travels, practically every place I stopped at had public restrooms. Here in Queenstown, they had a large facility near the lake:
No doubt Kiwis do have a sense of humor / humour with their labeling. More on this later.
Friday, March 3, 2023.
To travel by bus in New Zealand, one would ride the InterCity bus. Check their schedule for their times of service, pay for tickets beforehand (which I did at their Queenstown I-SITE location), and show up ahead of departure time. My next destination was Dunedin on the east coast. Their departure time was 8:00 a.m. It would be a five-hour drive.
Prior to that, I needed breakfast. But where? Most of the town’s businesses were closed at 7:00 in the morning. Who would be open at that time? McDonald’s! There was one on Camp Street, close to the bus stop. They were open 24 hours a day.
Sunrise was at 7:24 a.m. on March 3 in Queenstown, so it was still dark. Well, not quite so dark. Downtown, there were plenty of lights around as you can see here:
I still had time to swing by Fergbaker, which had opened at 6:00 a.m., and buy one of their delicious pastries. I then went to the wharf one last time to view the local wildlife. It astonished me that the local ducks, gulls and terns were so tame around humans.
As I was standing around watching, a duck spotted me and waddled close enough to touch.
I had been saving my pastry for later in the trip, but I broke off a corner and fed the duck. I think it made her happy. She stuck around for more.
She was joined by other hungry featherheads.
Before leaving the park, I had to get a couple shots of the Emu statue. Here’s one:
While in Queenstown, I noticed many of the businesses were closed from the Covid pandemic, even though the restrictions had been lifted in NZ. Why? Well, when NZ shut down, restaurants–who were largely dependent on tourist dollars–had to lay off their employees. The former employees found work elsewhere–and at higher wages. So when the Covid restrictions were lifted, restaurants needed their servers back. But those former employees remained with their new higher-paying jobs, so now there’s a labor shortage for restaurants, who offer minimal salaries.
Here’s a shot of some closed downtown businesses. On the mountaintop in the back is the Skyline gondola building.
I made it to the bus stop ahead of time. The driver signed me on, loaded my luggage, and shortly after 8:00, we took off for Dunedin.
The Shear Experience of Walter Peak Farm
Thursday, March 2, 2023.
On my second full day in Queenstown, New Zealand, I elected to visit Walter Peak High Country Farm, which is on the western shore of Lake Wakatipu. To get there, tourists take a steamboat trip on the TSS Earnslaw, a.k.a. “The Lady of the Lake.” The boat provides a snack bar, a pianist tickling the ivories, and a splendid view of the surrounding mountains.
Walter Peak offers an optional barbecue, so, to partake of the local Kiwi cuisine, I took the 11:00 a.m. trip. The ride lasts about 30 minutes. Here we are approaching the farm:
Here’s the view from the restaurant towards Queenstown:
The barbecue was presented buffet style, and prepaid by the ticket. Drinks were optional and one had to pay extra for those.
Next came the farm experience show, presented on a nearby stage. Here, the presenter shows the sheep prior to shearing. The roundup dog just lies there. He’s seen it all before.
Buzzzzzzzzz.
Finished.
The sheep is then placed in a small enclosure at the back of the stage.
In the second half of the presentation, a canopy opens up for a wider view of the hill where the flock is grazing, scattered about. The roundup dog corrals them down toward the stage area.
After the show, we boat back to Queenstown.
Here’s a downshot of the steam engine apparatus:
And a shot of the snack bar on the upper deck:
Entering Queenstown Bay, passing the Crowne Plaza Queenstown, with the Skyline Queenstown Gondola ride on the mountain.
The ship captain bids us a good day and we disembark after a fun trip.
Late that afternoon, I visit the Kiwi Park, next to the Skyline entrance. Alas, the Kiwis–being nocturnal birds–are kept in dark enclosures. No photography allowed. The park does have other interesting birds on display.
I return to my lodgings and thus ended my last full day in Queenstown.
The Dragon Prince and the Great Big Wave
We interrupt this New Zealand travelogue with another promotion from Wonderstorm: this impressive poster from Season Five of The Dragon Prince, coming this summer from Netflix. The image is called “The Wicked Depths.” I can believe it.
Look closely at the wave. There appears to be something … inside it. What could it be?
Click here for a look at earlier posters.
