Tangled The Series - What I Would Do With Varian · 3:06pm Aug 5th, 2018
Well, season one of tangled is finished, and we’re already into season 2. I liked Varian, both as a supporting character, and as the arch villain. There were flaws, but overall he had a good story arch. So here’s my way of addressing the flaws and finding a way to use him in future episodes.
First let’s recap a few important points.
1) Varian blames Rapunzel for his father getting trapped in amber.
Honestly this plot point could have been handled better. I understand Disney not wanting to taint there brand, but if it were more her fault, or looked more like it was (if only from Varian’s perspective), then he would have been better justified. Rapunzel also should have checked on Varian sooner after the Blizzard incident, and it seems like she only didn’t for plot convenience.
2) Varian reverse engineered a potion that inverts key personality traits and created a separate potion that acts as a truth serum.
3) Varian went from a bumbling inventor to an extremely competent one once he became a villain.
This could be chalked up to determination and single minded focus in someone who was once more of a flighty dreamer, but it still seemed like a pretty sharp transition.
4) The Queen seemed to show sympathy for Varian when she was his captive.
Now here’s my idea for the character’s future.
Minor villains suddenly come back as more competent ones. Dumb thugs are suddenly evil master strategists.
Eugene learns that they’re taking some kind of potion that makes them this way.
Rapunzel is sending regular letters to her parents in Corona. (Not sure if there’s mail service but something will have to be worked out).
One day, at a dramatic moment, Varian and the queen show up on what looks like DiVinci’s helicopter.
The queen tells Raps that she was lonely after she left, and spent time trying to talk and reason with Varian. He was kept in the castle dungeon, by the way.
We learn that Varian created the potion that the other villains are using. He wasn’t sure he had the will to attack corona back in season one, so he created a potion to help himself. The potion improves various skills, but also reduces self doubt. That last part is where he went wrong. Without self-doubt, he was more inclined to blame everyone else for his mistakes. Basically that’s the part that makes people evil.
They team up, though Eugene doesn’t trust him, and he’s back to being a bungling inventor to some degree.
Meanwhile Cassandra is secretly using the smart but evil potion herself.
That was work.
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Varian did have a crush on Cassandra, back in season 1. I hope they haven't forgotten that. It could make for an interesting plot point now that she's the beg bad evil Queen.