Made by the same person who created the animated movie, The Book of Life, Maya and the Three is an animated Netflix series about a demigod Princess. More specifically, Maya is a warrior princess on a mission to fulfill an ancient prophecy and defend the world from power-hungry gods. On her mission, she’ll soon learn why she has such a big part in this mess between humans and gods. Maya and the Three is an action mini-series made in 2021, one season with nine episodes. However, it has the best depictions of Ancient Latin American culture.
Maya and The Three
Maya and the Three was created by Jorge R. Gutierrez, a Mexican animator, writer, producer, director, artist, and voice actor. The setting is in a fictional world inspired by Mesoamerica, with cultures inspired by Southern Mexico or Central America. The Maya and the Three series has many depictions of Mayans, Aztecs, and the Mesoamerican mythologies of the Underworld and its gods. This series helps to show a fine difference between two goddesses that tend to be mixed up, the Goddess of Death and the Goddess who rules over the dead.
Maya is a Teca Princess, her home and design are inspired by the Aztecs. The story begins with Maya showing how she’s dissatisfied with her stuffy life as a Princess and dreads the day of her fifteenth birthday. She will also be having her coronation as well, ending up with too much responsibility to be able to sneak out and fight. Surprisingly, on the day of her coronation, a warrior from the Underworld arrives with a message that she is to be sacrificed as soon as she turns fifteen. To avoid this, she must gather three powerful warriors to help her after her royal family is defeated.
Latin American Inspirations
The research, world-building, and character designs for the Maya and the Three series are inspired by ancient South American civilizations. Maya is a princess of the Teca kingdom which is based on Aztec civilization. Her ally Chimi, a god character, is from the jungle inspired by Mayan culture. Rooster Island, a location in the show, was inspired by the Caribbean islands and their culture. Finally, the Golden Mountains and the character, Picchu, were heavily inspired by Incan culture and the ruins of Machu Picchu.
The background music leans more towards modern tunes. That detail, however, is small compared to the character designs, such as the golden bands, headdresses, and the designs of the gods that stuck close to their cultural inspirations. The designs were especially complimented by the animation style, created with Blender and 3D animation. The 3D animation almost makes each character appear as a wooden doll or marionette figure.
Depictions of the Gods
Many deities were depicted and shown throughout the mini-series, including demigods like Maya, Zatz, and Chimi, a full god, as one of their allies. There is Maya’s true mother, Lady Micte, the Goddess of death, and her husband, Lord Mictlan. The Candle Maker, La Muerte, and Xtabay only had background appearances in Maya and the Three, but they did have more appearances in a previous animated series that Gutierrez made.
The remaining deity characters were Bone and Skull, Acat, Vucub, and Chivo. Each of the gods was depicted as a powerful magic user or warrior. One major element in Maya and the Three that helped viewers to tell which ones were allies or enemies was by knowing which Gods were labeled as ‘Dark Gods‘. They were in an alliance with Lord Mictlan, the main antagonist of the story. The gods who allied with Maya did so because they saw the truth of her cause. Others remained unaffiliated.
Conclusion
Maya and the Three is an incredible action and fantasy animation series with a powerful female lead starring as the main hero. It has positive depictions of Mesoamerican culture, a heart-wrenching story about a mother doing her best to save her daughter. It’s a wonderful combination of action, adventure, and romance. Gutierrez based the main character, Maya, on his wife, who was also once a rebellious and strong person. And he finds her as a good role model for young girls wanting to be strong.
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