1x01 Echoes of Thunder

The Dragon Prince is something special.

Is this an excellent introduction to the show, the world, and its characters? Yes. Is it a great episode? No, and that's okay. The show needs to introduce an array of characters in this episode, so I don't expect it to be that much fun. First, let's talk about the exposition. I'm glad it isn't just lines of text with a voiceover. Instead, we have visuals that helped me keep listening. And those final shots before the title card was beautiful.

A guard discovers Rayla and her group, who plan on assassinating the King. Right off the bat, we learn that Rayla is somebody who doesn't take killing lightly. She looks into the eyes of that guard and sees the fear in his eyes. She doesn't do it. We meet Lord Viren, who, in turn, lets us meet with King Harrow, and you can tell they've been through a lot together. And already, we learn of the conflict that'll be in the next few episodes, and the tension is substantial, as they describe the Moonshadow elves. It would've been nice to see more expression or fear from them to really sell how dangerous this group is.

When Rayla returns to camp, we can tell she's trying her best to fit in with the group and seeks their approval, specifically the group leader. We see Ezran, stealing from his subjects! It's funny but messed up. We're seeing prince take advantage of his people. Ouch. But it gives us some insight into his character. He's cunning and mischievous, and I think that's a charming character to have on the show.

Then we see Callum, who's training with Soren, and we can tell he's not a warrior. But not only that, he's got a thing for Soren's sister. And Soren's okay with this? Okay. I'm a bit weirded out seeing young male cartoon characters have a crush on older female cartoon characters, who are way too old for them. But I want Callum to do well? We get to see more of King Harrow and his fear of death and for his children and Viren with his, showing how different these two men and their children are.

Soren teases Callum that he's adopted, Callum scares Ezran by revealing the truth and Soren goes out looking for the Moonshadow elves. By sparing the guard's life, Rayla has killed her whole group. It's a solid episode. Nothing too big yet, and I guess l life and death is the main focus? I don't know.

I wasn't bothered by the choppy animation here except in a few shots. And I like the blend of 2D and 3D animation.

TL;DR
It's a great introduction but a boring episode. The show introduces lots of characters in interesting ways. There was plenty of exposition at the start but was made up by the characterisation.

It's a good introduction.

7/10