Maya and The Three - Limited Series Review

What dos you get when you take the combined mythology of all of Latin America, animation that rivals anything Disney/Pixar is throwing out, and cast the greatest collection of Latina/Latino talent in the history of television and cinema? One of my favorite animated series of all time, that’s what.

Let’s discuss.

Maya and the Three is a Young Adult Animated Action/Adventure film brought to us by Actor/Director/Writer Jorge Gutierrez. You may recognize him from his work on the underrated Book of Life and one of my favorite cartoons from when I was a kid, Mucha Lucha! Obviously Jorge Gutierrez has a love for his heritage and culture, but whereas Book of Life dropped the ball in the pacing and character building category, Maya and Three succeeds on almost every front.

The film centers on Maya, a young Teca princess on the day of her quinceanera, aka ascension to womanhood. She is the heir to the throne of her people. Unlike most animated film protagonists, Maya understands the responsibility in front her. She gets what the job of a politician is and what’s involved. She just doesn’t want the crown. She wants to be on the battlefield fighting alongside her heroic Jaguar brothers, but when confronted with the fact that the job she is inheriting is much more important to her people, Maya accepts the duty. Unfortunately, on the day she is to be presented as the queen in waiting, an emissary of the gods appears and declares that Maya is to be sacrificed to the God of War. Oh and Maya’s mother is actually the Goddess of the Dead and not the woman who’s raised her for the last fifteen years.

Say Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat?! (SPOILERS AHEAD)

I know, I know—it’s not that shocking for an animated film, but the way it is all handled is so mature and grown up. Maya as well as her parents face down these facts and where a lesser show would have Maya’s parents try to lie and Maya then rebel, this show has a more realistic outcome. Maya’s parents tell her the truth. Her adopted mother tells her that she has never considered Maya as anything other than her own child and Maya accepts the fact that she has a mother she’s never known—a mother that abandoned her.

As an aside, I have had friends who were children of adoption. One of which found out they were adopted before his adopted parents had planned on explaining the situation. It was a painful, confusing situation for him and yet, much like in this show, he accepted the facts because he was in a loving home. So often in these films, adoption is used as a dirty word. In my friend’s case, his biological mother was very young when she gave birth and she just wanted her child to have a chance in the world. His parents helped him track her down later in life and she was able to explain herself. Much like what happens in this show, everyone came to terms and understanding. I love the realism in this. Not every adopted kid is a bad seed. Not everyone who gives a child up for adoption is a bad person.

Let just dismount this soapbox.. Ugh, mmf—I need to workout more. Whew, give me a second.

Okaaaay. So, Maya finds out she’s a bastard and watches her father and their nation’s army march off to war against the gods. You see there was this prophecy thingie and they think it says that her father is going to conquer the gods and save humanity. Well, when her father’s body is dragged home half dead by his battle cat and her brothers are killed, they decide they probably didn’t read it right. In her grief, Maya communes with the spirit of her brothers and they lead her to the true prophecy hidden within the depths of the capital ziggurat. It states that a young eagle will gather a fellowship of warriors from each of the kingdoms and together they will close the gates of hell.

Thus, Maya finds and recruits companions from the other three kingdoms. You've got a mage from Luna Island, a ranger from the Jungle Kingdoms, and a musclebound warrior from the barbarian tribes. Each of these characters has history and each is an orphan in their own way. They each get an episode to establish how they became the people that they are. Rico was orphaned at birth, but was raised with love by the Grand Wizard of Luna Island, well until her killed him and many others when he lost control of dark magics at a young age. Then you’ve got the Barbarian Prince Picchu, the brute with a heart of gold. Whose defining act was granting mercy to a defeated combatant. A combatant who returned and committed genocide against his people. Then there’s Chimi, bow master of the jungle. She was born albino to a mother who lay dying post birth. Chimi is an outcast due to the color of her skin, and thus is exiled from the jungle kingdom to be raised by the animals.

Fun Fact - In many third world countries Albinism is an executable offense. In Africa, babies born with white skin are considered a bad omen. Some tribes still practice killing and eating these children or people in order to take the magic power that their skin represents. It’s awful and barbaric. It’s also something that a lot of media in those areas, at least the ones that have media, do their best not to broadcast. As if a child born with albinism doesn’t have enough issues to confront, right? I love how this is represented in the show.

Moving on…

These kids have dark pasts. Some of these episodes are tough to get through due to the emotional and physical violence therein. This is one of the rare examples when an animated children’s show has stakes. People die. Characters you know and love are killed in horrible ways. Sacrifices mean something in the universe of Maya and the Three. My wife was blubbering in tears by the time the final credits rolled.

It’s just great.

Please watch this show. Support Latin creators and support great art.

Maya and The Three is a Netflix Exclusive Limited Series.