Maya and the Three Is a Typical Modern Princess Show, But Is That Really a Good Thing?
When I first saw the trailer for Netflix's Maya and the Three, it looked like the most generic modern princess show I'd ever seen. Now that I've actually watched it... I feel pretty much the same. Though not produced by Disney, this show takes all the modern-age princess tropes that Disney developed over the past decade leading up to Raya and the Last Dragon and drags them out over the course of ten episodes. If you want to see what the media is currently pandering to the next generation, you need look no further than Netflix, the wokest streaming network around. Maya and the Three is produced by the same people who worked on the 2014 animated film The Book of Life and shares many of the aspects that made it both memorable and not so memorable. Like The Book of Life, Maya has a unique and creative art style inspired by Aztec, Mayan, Caribbean, and Incan influences, making it a visual feast for the eyes. Yet, its story leaves much to be desired, and its modern influences act as a hindrance to its otherwise unique form of storytelling.
My biggest issue with Maya and the Three stems from one of the show's greatest strengths--its character designs. The level of creativity in this show can give Disney a run for its money, right down to its gimmicky occasional breaking of the aspect ratio bars. Despite such a heavily stylized look, the animators failed to consider the physics of their whimsical world. The women are built like little toothpicks, while the men are massive brick houses. That would have worked okay if the show wasn't trying to establish (like many other modern princess properties) that women are just as strong, if not stronger, than men, especially those born into royalty. That makes the opening scene of tiny little Maya beating up a world-renowned fighter who is at least ten times her size feel campy instead of empowering, even in a world filled with magic. In fact, Maya is so tiny in comparison to the other characters that I thought she was an eight-year-old girl until several episodes in when it was revealed that she was supposed to be eighteen. Her childish appearance made the romantic aspect of the show feel even more awkward in a story that was already bloated with other characters and subplots.
I can't blame Maya and the Three for ruining princess culture. That has been a slow and ongoing process for at least a decade. I can, however, blame it for pandering to it and exacerbating the process. I did not find this show as problematic as the live-action Mulan remake since Maya is willing to ask for help from the "three" warriors referenced in the title. Still, it is difficult to take her seriously when she appears to be a small child leading a group of gargantuan fully-grown warriors. Some of this could be explained by the truth behind Maya's origins, which is revealed early in the show, but it never establishes whether or not that is actually the reason that her physical ability is not reflected in her appearance. Still, the series proves that not all hope is lost for modern princess culture. It demonstrates the benefits of modern princess stories just as much as the faults. Maya shares more in common with Elena of Avalor than just her Mesoamerican heritage. Both are strong leaders who understand the importance of teamwork and must occasionally make amends for their own shortcomings, which are all positive lessons for children. However, Maya is less feminine than Elena overall, which furthers the more problematic aspects of modern-day princess culture, even after studies have proven that feminine heroines actually have a positive impact on the development of young girls.
The story behind Maya and the Three may not have been so bad if I hadn't already seen so many similar properties within the past year or two. It has a lot in common with Raya and the Last Dragon with the concept of a warrior princess needing to gather a colorful cast of companions from various lands in order to form a team powerful enough to save her kingdom. There were a few surprises that gave the show some heartwarming moments, such as the reason her kingdom was being threatened, which leads back to the age-old tradition of princesses as targets. It may have worked better as a movie than a series because so much of it felt like filler or just animators showing off. I realize the irony of this statement since I thought Raya and the Last Dragon was too rushed to develop its large cast of warrior companions, but I didn't care enough about Maya's companions to desire extended episodes about their backstories. As much as I liked that show included a romance for the princess heroine, even that felt underwhelming and superficial.
Maya and the Three succeeds as a perfect time capsule of what fairy tale princesses are supposed to be like in the 2020s. For that very reason, it cannot stand on its own as a great show. The mythology and creativity behind it are certainly impressive but are not enough to make up for how obviously the series panders to modern feminist ideals. Even the twist ending demonstrates this lack of attention to creativity with its innovative concept that is so rushed in the form of a voiceover that it never gets the opportunity to leave the impact that it was meant to. Maybe I'm too old-fashioned to truly appreciate these types of stories, but I still find it difficult to relate to a 50-pound girl who is capable of beating up a 500-pound brute.
