Nostalgia Critic - Raya and the Last Dragon

Synopsis
Critic reviews Disney's Raya and the Last Dragon, a computer-animated fantasy epic adventure film along with stars from the movie. Voice of Raya, Kelly Marie Tran, voice of Sisudatu, Awkwafina, voice of Namaari, Gemma Chan, voice of the Spine Chief, Ross Butler, voice of the Tail Chief, Patti Harrison and the voice of Dang Hai, Sung Kang.

Transcript
(After the Channel Awesome and theme song play, the Critic sits on the couch in the living room.)

Nostalgia Critic: Hello, I'm the Nostalgia Critic. I remember it so you don't have to. Let me tell you the story about the most successful Disney Asian princess film from 1998 called Mulan.

(Images and various posters of Mulan from 1998 and 2020 are shown as "Reflection (Pop Version)" by Christina Aguilera plays.)

Nostalgia Critic: (voiceover) Back in 1998, Mulan became one of the most popular Disney animated film of all time. The film takes place in Ancient China where Fa Mulan, daughter of Fa Zhou, has to impersonate a soldier to defeat the Hun army from attacking all of the country with the help of her new dragon friend, Mushu. Yes, Mulan certainly seemed like the first Disney Asian princess movie. Then the 2020 remake came around. It failed critically and financially. The live action remake was released on Disney+ Premiere Access on September 4, 2020 instead of being released in theaters due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It doesn't have I'll Make a Man Out of You, Mushu, Shan Yu, Cri-Kee...

Nostalgia Critic: AND SO MANY OTHERS! What happened? It was like the first Disney Asian princess flick, and then it got lost to this God-awful sequel and that failed remake. However, thankfully, Disney made the Southeast Asian princess film from 2021 that is simply known as Raya and the Last Dragon.

(The movie's title screen is shown, followed by a montage of clips from the movie.)

Nostalgia Critic: (voiceover) Yes, you asked for it, now here it is. Raya and the Last Dragon, the first Disney Southeast Asian princess film from 2021. It came out in theaters and on Disney+ Premiere Access on March 5, 2021, received positive reviews from critics, became a box office success, and sadly, even though I'm a fan of Asian martial arts movies, Kelly Marie Tran, the voice of Raya, literally shipped Raya and Namaari.

(Cut to Nostalgia Critic who sits next to the left and right are Kelly Marie Tran dressed as Raya, Awkwafina dressed as Sisu, Gemma Chan dressed as Namaari, Ross Butler dressed as the Spine Chief, Patti Harrison dressed as the Tail Chief, and Sung Kang dressed as Dang Hai. All are in their normal get up.)

Kelly Marie Tran, Awkwafina, Gemma Chan, Ross Butler, Patti Harrison, Sung Kang: (in unison) That's where we come in!

Kelly Marie Tran: Raya's Kelly Marie Tran...

Awkwafina: Sisudatu's Awkwafina...

Gemma Chan: Namaari's Gemma Chan...

Ross Butler: The Spine Chief's Ross Butler...

Patti Harrison: The Tail Chief's Patti Harrison...

Sung Kang: And Dang Hai's Sung Kang.

Nostalgia Critic: That's right. This movie will now be reviewed by Asian and American actors and actresses.

Gemma Chan: It makes as much sense as anything else in this movie.

(The images of Raya and the Last Dragon are shown.)

Kelly Marie Tran: (voiceover) Taking place in a dystopian land of Kumandra, it follows Raya searching for the last dragon named Sisu, who hasn't been seen for 500 years as they would reassemble the Dragon Gem to blast the Druun away.

Ross Butler: (voiceover) So, naturally, for months, fans of the film shipped Raya and Namaari, claiming it not only missed what Disney should do, but made the people very sexy that this film should be able to spawn a sequel or two.

Nostalgia Critic: Did (poster of 2009's...) Mulan: Rise of a Warrior do good?

Awkwafina: Yes.

Nostalgia Critic: Then this did very good.

Patti Harrison: (voiceover) And with all the requests the Nostalgia Critic gets to review this, he couldn't imagine how this movie became a huge financial hit like Mulan did. And now, let's get right to this.

Sung Kang: Let's not put it off any longer.

Nostalgia Critic: Let's take a look at Disney's Southeast Asian film. This is Raya and the Last Dragon.

(The movie opens with Walt Disney Animation Studios logo with bird and insect noises.)

Nostalgia Critic: (voiceover) The film opens with the Walt Disney Animation Studios logo as we hear bird and insect noises.

Kelly Marie Tran: I hope you're ready for this epic review.

Nostalgia Critic: Of course I am.

(The movie opens with Raya who rides on Tuk Tuk to the last river in Tail.)

Nostalgia Critic: (voiceover) We see our main character, Raya, voiced by Kelly Marie Tran, who searches for the last dragon who hasn't been seen for over 500 years.

Raya (Kelly Marie Tran): (narrating) I know what you're thinking. A lone rider. A dystopian world. A land that's gone to waste. How did this world get so broken? Well, that all began 500 years ago. Kumandra.

Nostalgia Critic: That's right. Kumandra. A place of humans and dragons that constantly reminds us of the Philippines, Indonesia, Malay, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Brunei, Burma or Myanmar, Timor-Leste, and Laos.

Sung Kang: Well, as an Asian-American, I'm offended.

Nostalgia Critic: You are?

Sung Kang: Yes, paying homage to the countries of Southeast Asia.

Gemma Chan: I, for one, embrace culturally diverse names that Kumandra has food culture like rice, fish, meat, pasta, and many others.

Nostalgia Critic: Wow, I really didn't think this was the angle you people would lean.

Ross Butler: Of course. Japan's got Godzilla, Gundam, Gamera, and Ultraman.

Patti Harrison: China's got fortune cookies, Ip Man, The Karate Kid, and Bruce Lee.

Awkwafina: And Korea's got Kim Jong-un, who wants to destroy the world with nuclear missiles.

Nostalgia Critic: Oh, I see what you're saying. A rose by any other name would smell as sweet.

Kelly Marie Tran: But, if you name that rose kitty-kitty-aspen...

Sung Kang: You might wanna definitely change everything.

Nostalgia Critic: (voiceover) During the opening scene, we see the plague called the Druun.

Kelly Marie Tran: (voiceover) That's right. The Druun. So, in the concept arts, the Druun were originally supposed to have arms, legs, and faces with sharp teeth which they look like Scroop from Treasure Planet. Here, they're actually soulless beings that turn everyone into stone.

Nostalgia Critic: (voiceover) Even they turn the dragons into stone as well. After Mighty Sisudatu, the last dragon, voiced by Awkwafina, blasted the Druun away and Kumandra became enemies, we cut to six years earlier, Raya prepares to pass the test in the temple as we see her wearing her hair ring and then we get to the title card.

Nostalgia Critic: That's ironic how the title screen appears after Raya wears her hair ring.

Nostalgia Critic: (voiceover) When Raya enters the temple, she sees her father, Chief Benja, voiced by Daniel Dae Kim.

Chief Benja (Daniel Dae Kim): Not today.

(Young Raya and Chief Benja fight at the temple.)

Ross Butler: (voiceover) When Raya passes her test, Chief Benja does the boop to her nose with his sword.

Nostalgia Critic: (voiceover) You know, I'm actually just gonna use stock lines like that.

Wilkins (Chris Bores): (voiceover) Yoink!

Heavy from Team Fortress 2 (Gary Schwartz): (voiceover) Pow!

Kelly Marie Tran: I truly believe that Team Fortress 2 has better gameplay.

Nostalgia Critic: (voiceover) When Benja prepares the feast, Raya plans to invite the other lands like Tail, Talon, Spine and Fang where they have tiger-sized cats with sharp fangs.

(A serlot kitten hisses.)

Nostalgia Critic: Oh, come on! They couldn't even sound it that right! It actually hisses?

Ross Butler: Why not just have it sound like...

(A sound of Lucifer yowling is added to a serlot kitten being held by Chief Virana.)

Ross Butler: And I'm sure they'd eat something good like Chicken McBites.

Nostalgia Critic: Chicken McBites? What the fuck does Chicken McBites have to do with Rooster Teeth? It really McBites my dick!

Ross Butler: Yep, but I'm also sure it was discontinued so quickly as they look similar to popcorn chicken from KFC. Do you know why? Because it's bullshit!

Nostalgia Critic: (voiceover) So, Chief Benja invites the other tribes to the feast. Spine Chief, voiced by Shazam's Ross Butler, Dang Hai, voiced by Han Lue's Sung Kang, Tail Chief, voiced by Patti Harrison, and Chief Virana, voiced by Big Fat Liar's Sandra Oh.

Gemma Chan: You know, just because you're preferring to people who starred in other movies doesn't mean you have to say everything out loud.

Nostalgia Critic: (voiceover) Raya befriends Namaari, the princess of Fang, as they all have a feast at the throne room.

Young Namaari (Jona Xiao): We both have single parents who are terrible at telling jokes. We’re both warrior women who despise uncomfortable formal wear.

Nostalgia Critic: To be fair, though, I actually prefer to ship Raya and Namaari.

Kelly Marie Tran: Don't worry. Maybe the Slumming-It Fairy can help.

Nostalgia Critic: Really?

Awkwafina: Yes. She magically provides stock lines when you don't want to put real work into a character.

(Gemma Chan takes out a bell and rings it. The Slumming-It Fairy (Tamara) pops up.)

Slumming-It Fairy: Yeah, what?

Patti Harrison: Well, we don't want to put any effort into one of Disney's greatest princesses.

Ross Butler: But we still want a paycheck for it.

Sung Kang: Can you supply with some dated angst?

Slumming-It Fairy: Yeah, sure.

(She waves her wand, and a small box with the word "Best Quotes from Raya" on it appears on the table. Excited, NC opens it, taking a note)

Nostalgia Critic: Oh! Here's a tired classic! "From one dragon nerd to another".

Young Namaari: From one dragon nerd to another.

Ross Butler: Here's one with no effort. "Kumandra's a joke".

Spine Chief: Kumandra's a joke!

Patti Harrison: And who can forget the popular... "Nice speech, Chief Benja"?

Tail Chief: Nice speech, Chief Benja.

Sung Kang: Oh! And don't forget... "The land of Heart already has everything".

Dang Hai: The land of Heart already has everything.

Nostalgia Critic: We did it! We reduced someone so special to so many to someone not the least special in any way!

Slumming-It Fairy: Yeah, don't forget, you get stock parental advice for no additional charge.

Kelly Marie Tran: Oh, she's right! (takes another note) Including "We're both Sisu superfans".

Young Raya (Thalia Tran): And we're both Sisu superfans.

Gemma Chan: "Blades all day".

Young Namaari: Blades all day.

Awkwafina: And "It may feel impossible, but sometimes you have to take the first step".

Sisu (Awkwafina): It may feel impossible, but sometimes you have to take the first step.

Nostalgia Critic: Thanks, Slumming-It Fairy. You took from other source material, even though we have plenty of source material to already take from.

Slumming-It Fairy: Whatever. Can I get Diet Coke from the fridge?

Nostalgia Critic: Sure.

Slumming-It Fairy: See ya. (leaves)

Nostalgia Critic: This is only gonna get better, isn't it?

Ross Butler: Yes, it is.

Nostalgia Critic: Save some room in the couch.

Ross Butler: (voiceover) Namaari gives Raya her dragon pendant as a gift after she told her that Sisu fell into a long dormant. But not before her, she actually betrays her at the temple, revealing her diabolical plan.

Young Namaari: In a different world, maybe we could have been friends. But I have to do what's right for Fang.

Nostalgia Critic: What did you think for the directing scene was like?

Sung Kang: Non-existent.

Nostalgia Critic: (voiceover) After Namaari lost her fight, she calls the soldiers for help to steal the gem while Benja orders the Fang soldiers not to take one step. But the other tribes come here and look hungrily at the gem.

Spine Chief: No! Spine should have the gem!