The death of Percy in The Legend of Vox Machina Season 3 has many dazed, although there's enough to show that his leaving is anything but permanent. While it was a gruesome and emotional affair for his funeral and seemingly the finality of his death, fans of the long-running show Critical Role would well recall that Percy's death would be nothing but a plot twist, albeit a temporary one.
Adding a scene about the funeral was controversial on several discussion forums because most fans saw it as a time for character growth rather than goodbye. As is the case in many stories about Dungeons & Dungeons, death can often trigger even greater challenges, especially regarding Critical Role and its lore.
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Several discussions have begun on Reddit, one of which is from IEatGoodMemes on r/voxmachina, about whether or not Percy was coming back. Many fans think that even though it will take time before Percy returns, it is happening because it is part of the story. His death provides a good opportunity for the characters to mature through their reactions.
Spoiler warning for those who haven't caught up with Season 3.
Does Percy die in Vox Machina? Here's what fans on Reddit think
Fans of the Legend of Vox Machina went into a buzz following the death shock of the character. The Reddit thread by IEatGoodMemes received lots of responses, and most commenters are sure that Percy will be back.
Namewithak, a longtime fan, commented,
“Obviously, they’ll bring him back somehow since he’s far too important to future events and lore.”
This rang a bell for most people; it probably indicates that, although the resurrection may be delayed, the story of Percy is by no means over.
Others have observed that the overall narrative choice of following Dungeons & Dragons resurrection rules helps The Legend of Vox Machina step away from the campaign and affords it more heft at this moment.
As another commentator has pointed out, making a DnD resurrection by rules seems to debase the story since a show on TV is not the same media. The point of view expounds on the delicate balance that Vox Machina must strike between maintaining the original essence and making a good show.
Fans were excited not only at the speculation of Percy's return but also for what stories his possible return would reveal from Ripley's escape now that she is out in the world. This would make the eventual confrontation with Vox Machina even more charged and, by extension, the resurrection of Percy even more impactful.
What this means for Ripley and the rest of Vox Machina
Another major deviation from the source campaign is how Ripley escapes rather than having a climactic standoff with Vox Machina, which was much fanfare. Per the thread, this gives much more screen time toward developing Ripley as a villain.
Namewithak pointed out that Ripley is an amazing villain, so we get a bit more time with her. In addition, she shows another plot shift as an opportunity to escalate the stakes even more.
Read more: Which horror villain are you per your MBTI?
In addition to the basic ripples for the rest of the group, the implications of Percy's death also really affect characters like Scanlan and Vax.
One Redditor, SupremeLegate, speculated,
“It also makes their eventual confrontation with Ripley more powerful, as they’re going to have to actively seek her out. Then they’ll have to deal with what is undoubtedly happening to [Percy’s] soul.”
This, of course, suggests that Percy's resurrection will not be simple. It will come with much plurality conflict leading to his actual resurrection. Therefore, these changes are welcome for the fans of the original campaign.
This should make the show more flexibly lit up in character development and give room to revisit those arcs, such as Percy with Orthax and the demonic connection.
This chapter of events allows them to explore a different take on the Percy/Orthax arc that would have been had Scanlan not swiped The List from Percy back in the Briarwood arc, which came before The Legend of Vox Machina.
Available to stream on Prime Video: The Legend of Vox Machina Season 3.
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