I finally got around to watching the finale. It was better than I expected. The final battle with Zhan Tiri and the ending were particularly well-executed. There are a few things that didn't like such as the body-swapping shenanigans that felt out of place tonally given the sense of urgency the finale had and the psychedelic weirdness of the Lost Realm which was too silly for my taste. Other than that, it hit the mark all around.
farerb wrote:Do you think they'll explain who did Gothel ****?
I wish they had told us who Cassandra's biological father was in an earlier episode, but there was no room in the finale and it would have felt shoehorned had they addressed it there. Still, it was lazy of them to reveal Gothel as Cassandra's mother but not tell us who her father is. Not to mention how strange it felt that no one, including Cass, wondered about who her father might be.
Disney's Divinity wrote:I loved the flashback showing when she was an adult, too, although I kind of wish she’d changed to that form an episode or two back. I thought overall, her three forms fit together neatly as an Unholy Trinity.
I liked her backstory too, although it would have been better if it was revealed in an earlier episode as you said. There's something I didn't understand though. Was Zhan Tiri a human who became an evil spirit after she was trapped in the Lost Realm or was she always a spirit who merely took the form of an old woman to join Lord Demanitus in his search for the moonstone and the sundrop? The flashback left that unclear.
Disney's Divinity wrote:When she was first transforming, I couldn’t help but be reminded of Ursula bursting out of the wedding gown.
I noticed that too. It must have been an intentional throwback.
Disney's Divinity wrote:Also I want to add how strange it was seeing Rapunzel with long, brown hair. I’m used to long, blonde hair or short, brown hair.
Yes, it needed a little getting used to. I'd love if they released some merch with Rapunzel having long, brown hair though.
Disney's Divinity wrote:I think the only things that disappointed me were: Cassandra and Rapunzel didn’t have a “For Good”-esque duet. I really thought for sure they were going, too. And it would’ve been a nice parallel to their “Defying Gravity”-esque duet in the first episode of the season.
I was disappointing by that as well. The finale needed that song far more than the other two we got. There was even a perfect spot for it when Rapunzel confronted Cassandra. They missed yet another opportunity to have them air their grievances and express their feelings through song instead of dialogue.
Disney's Divinity wrote:While the series wasn't everything it could have been--the second season was mostly meandering fluff, which I still think might've been due to Disney interfering in some ways--I've enjoyed this much more than I ever thought I would coming into it.
I wasn't that hot about the show in the beginning either, mainly because of the character designs and the low-quality animation, but in the end it was worth it. It expanded on the mythology (even if it was nebulous and contradictory at times), it improved the characterization of pre-existing characters such as Eugene and Rapunzel's parents, it gave us some new, interesting characters like Cassandra and Lance, and of course, some great songs!
WillytheDino wrote: I loved the instrumental reprise of Wind in My hair in the scene with Rapunzel and her mother on the horses.
I would have preferred an actual reprise of "Wind in My Hair" in that scene over an instrumental one. "Wind in My hair" is such an important song for Rapunzel (it became the series' theme song after all) that I felt it needed repeating now that we had arrived at the end. I really missed it in the finale.
Disney's Divinity wrote:Eugene coming to understand his father's decision, the death and healing incantations.
Those were some of my favorite moments too.
Disney's Divinity wrote:And, I have to say, and I'm not bashing Gothel for the movie fans, but I think Zhan Tiri is a much better villain than Gothel for me. Aside from Donna Murphy, I didn't really like anything about Gothel.
I never wanted Gothel to be the final villain; in fact I'm glad a fantastical, larger-than-life villain was the big bad. But I wanted her to appear as a spirit for consistency's sake (it doesn't make sense to me that Zhan Tiri's two other followers, Sugracha and Tromus, appeared but not Gothel) and for the potential drama between Rapunzel, Cassandra, and Gothel. I would have loved to see how they'd interact with Gothel and what the power dynamic between them would be.
Disney's Divinity wrote:I couldn't help noticing--and wondering if it was intentional--that there are many similar things about her to past villains (particularly the famous Disney villainesses, but also Genie Jafar) in her designs. The dark transformation has tentacles like Giant Ursula, horns like Dragon Maleficent, the body shape is just like Genie Jafar being big up top and a tiny waist (not to mention the bonds on her hands*). Even the eyes and face remind me a bit of Yzma's transformation--you know, in the first shot when it's nothing but the pink smoke and eyes, before we pan out to see she's just a house cat.
That's an interesting observation. I hadn't noticed any of that.
Disney's Divinity wrote:And her older human form we see in the flashback, her nose has the same shape as Yzma's
Her old hag form in general reminded me of Yzma in terms of design.
WillytheDino wrote:The renaming of the show in the second season to Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure feels fitting, since this show really has a beginning - middle - end. It truly is her adventure.
True. They should have just called it that from the beginning. I hate that the show has two titles. It's inconsistent and confusing.
WillytheDino wrote:When Cas 'died' and Rapunzel went to get the power from the sun and moonstone, I teared up. Also felt emotional when they made up. I was afraid it would feel rushed when they did, but somehow, it felt normal and good they way they fixed their war.
I was pleasantly surprised by how they handled the whole Cass situation. I thought her redemption would have been rushed and unearned but it was better executed than I had anticipated.
WillytheDino wrote:There were a lot of parallels between the finale and the Tangled movie, like
- You were my dream, you still are my dream
- Cas dying, Rapunzel crying and 'bringing her back'
- The hug between the main trio was the same with Rapunzel and her parents
- I See The Lights instrumental and the entire scene in the boat
I appreciated all the parallels they put into the finale. It showed they wanted to make it a true extension of the original film that can viewed as a unified whole.
Disney's Divinity wrote:I wonder how long it'll be before the last of the music will be released? I hope they please, please, please include the Decaying Incantation this time! I mean Rapunzel's version, but if they include hers and Tiri's
both, that would be even better.

I hope so too. I still don't understand why Reverse Incantation wasn't included in the season 2 soundtrack. There's no chance the other two incantations or Zhan Tiri's version will be included since they were spoken and not sung.
I didn't really like the new songs. I found "Through It All" an unnecessary and generic 'call to arms' type of anthem and "I'd Give Anything" too sweet and unremarkable. The reprise of "Life After Happily Ever After" was hands down my favorite. It was used brilliantly to bring the show full circle by addressing Rapunzel's initial doubts over her new life and role as royalty. It was also very apt to end the series with a reprise of the very first song.
D82 wrote:Since I started doing this, I thought I could list all the songs from the series. Please, let me know if I forgot any song and I'll add it.
Thanks for compiling all of the songs! Disney asked for people's favorite songs from the series on social media and then made a
video with the ones that got the most votes. They also posted the
animatic version of "Stronger Than Ever Before". What are your favorite songs from the series?
Glenn Slater said on Twitter that they had to cut a whole verse and chorus from "Crossing the Line" because of time constraints. Unfortunately, the full version was never recorded.
Glenn Slater wrote:The version of "Crossing the Line" that aired on Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure is actually just part of what Alan Menken and I wrote — we had to cut a whole verse and chorus because of time constraints. Here's the full version of the main song...
There's a line between
the winners and the losers.
There's a line between the chosen and the rest.
And I've done the best I could,
but I've always known just where we stood—
Me here with the luckless,
you there with the blessed.
And that line between the beggars and the choosers
is a line you never let me quite ignore.
How I've tried to jump that great divide!
But I never got the chances you were given.
You don't know how much I've been denied—
Well, I'm not being patient any more—
I'm crossing the line!
So get out of my way,
'cause I’m not gonna play by your rules.
It's my time to shine,
I don't need your OK—
And I'm done being one of the fools—
I’m crossing that line.
There are lines that I've been waiting in forever—
There are lines I've always felt I had to toe.
Some were blurry, some unseen,
some I've had to learn to read between—
So many bound'ries,
far more than you know!
But the line you think connects us both together?
That's a line that I'm not falling for again.
'Cause this time, my eyes are open wide—
I've been trapped by lines you never had to live in.
You were never really on my side,
so I'm doing what I should have, way back when—
I'm crossing the line!
And I'm done holding back,
so look out, clear the track, it's my turn!
I'm taking what's mine!
Ev'ry drop, ev'ry smidge,
if I'm burning a bridge, let it burn!
But I'm crossing the line...
As for us, if we're over, that's fine...
I'm crossing the line.
Source:
https://twitter.com/SlaterLyrics/status ... 7248095232
Q: Did you record the full version? Do we have a chance to get it when (or if) season 3 soundtrack will be released?
Glenn Slater: We didn't record the full version - there was just too much story to tell in the episode! Maybe someone will do a cover version with the full lyrics.
Source:
https://twitter.com/SlaterLyrics/status ... 5886210048
Q: Any chance you can put this version on Season 3's soundtrack like you did with the extended version of "The View from Up Here"?
Glenn Slater: I wish! But we didn't get the chance to record the full version.
Source:
https://twitter.com/SlaterLyrics/status ... 5127868416
D82 wrote:From the new characters, Cassandra is my favorite, but I also like all the other main ones. And I agree that Zhan Tiri is not a bad villain.
She's my favorite of the new characters too, especially her evil form. I find it much more interesting both from a visual standpoint and a narrative one. Eden Espinosa has a great singing voice which made me like her character even more.
farerb wrote:I like Cassandra and Cassandra's songs. It's a good thing they made her an antagonist cause they were able to write her songs that better utilize Eden Espinosa's vocals. Jeremy Jordan is good as well. I hope they cast both of them in a WDAS musical in the future.
Agreed!
Disney's Divinity wrote:Am I the only one who sees the title "The Girl Who Has Everything" and thinks of Ariel?
The similarities between Ariel and Rapunzel keep piling up!
Disney's Divinity wrote:Anyone else wish that Disney would make a film trilogy of Tangled now that incorporates the series storylines?
I'd rather get a sequel that picks up after the wedding and tells a new story while preserving continuity with the series rather than just having the series rehashed in movie form.
D82 wrote:And, by the way, we haven't talked about the decision to not show the wedding at the end. It was the best way to solve the problem that the new characters are not shown among the attendees in the short. And I actually think it was the right decision. We didn't need to see the wedding again, especially after such a special scene as the petition on the boat was. And it would've felt a bit repetitive because they wouldn't have been able to deviate much from what was already established in the short.
I liked the ending, but I would have preferred they ended it with the wedding to better connect it with the short (and the
scene in the pilot where it's referenced). I wouldn't want them to rehash the short obviously but perhaps show them right after the wedding getting congratulated by their friends and family and everyone having fun at the wedding reception.