As fun as it is to see the spinoff exploring new ground,The Librarians: The Next Chaptercould bring major improvements to one type of villain briefly explored in the original series. The new series' storytelling potential currently feels almost unlimited, especially withThe Librarians: The Next Chapterseason 2already confirmed to be filming. Fans are falling in love with the newThe Librarians: The Next Chaptercast, but the roster could be built out even more with the inclusion of some incredible recurring villains.
In its original run,The Librariansincluded all manner of villains covering a wide range of magical backgrounds, andThe Librarians: The Next Chapter’s storyhas already taken a similar approach.Thespinoff has established the existence of classical deities, powerful sorcerers, and even the Devilin the span of just half a season. However, one ofThe Librarians' most original ideas has yet to be explored in the franchise’s latest incarnation.
The Librarians: The Next Chapter Needs To Bring Back The Original Series' Fictionals
Fictionals Allow For Centuries' Worth Of Possible Enemies
While there are already plans for multipleThe Librarianscameos inThe Next Chapter, bringing back specific characters isn’t necessary for revisiting one of the original series' more intriguing concepts. InThe Librarians,the Fictionals are literary figures brought to life as magical beings with corporeal form. These entities are the main villain focus ofThe Librariansseason 2, in which Shakespeare’s Prospero is joined by the likes of Professor Moriarty, the Queen of Hearts, and Frankenstein’s monster.
Although season 2 isn’t exactly considered one ofThe Librarians' best seasons, introducing Fictionals inThe Librarians: The Next Chapterwould open up a world of storytelling possibilities. The spinoff has already brushed up against the idea in a loosely conceptual way.The Librarians: The Next Chapterepisode 6 takes the form of an Agatha Christie-style mansion mystery, but the Devil-focused storyline doesn’t leave room for Hercule Poirot to show up as a potential ally. Nonetheless, bringing Fictionals intoThe Next Chaptercould make up for the original series' failure to utilize them to their full potential.
The Librarians Season 2 Never Did As Much With Fictionals As It Could Have
Not All Of Them Were Even True Fictionals In The First Place
While the Fictionals seem brilliant on paper, the idea didn’t fare too well when it came to execution. One of the biggest roadblocks to establishing Fictionals as a unique threat lies inThe Librarians' core premise. The series already includes artifacts, characters, and other story elements based on everything from both monotheistic and polytheistic mythologies to Arthurian legend.It’s hard to distinguish Fictionals from the already large array of legendary characters confirmed to exist in this universe, an issue that becomes more pronounced over time.
In fact, not all the Fictionals who appear inThe Librariansare technically Fictionals at all. When the team meets Dorian Gray, it’s only natural they’d assume him to be another enemy summoned into the world by Prospero. However, he’s merely an immortal magician who had a fling with Oscar Wilde. Even the primary villain of the season that introduced Fictionals in the first place arguably isn’t one, as Prospero is revealed to be Shakespeare himself in a magically altered form. Since Fictionals never appear again, onlyThe Librarians: The Next Chaptercan still do justice to the concept.
The Librarians: The Next Chapter Could Use Vikram To Explore Fictionals In A New Way
His Backstory Could Provide Fictionals A More Dangerous Upper Hand
At face value, it might seem as ifThe Librarians: The Next Chapter’s Lysa Pascal(Olivia Morris) would be most affected by the inclusion of Fictionals in the spinoff. She’s done a surprisingly remarkable job in most episodes of trying to scientifically justify magical occurrences, but meeting a literary character like Aslan or Dracula would be harder to explain. However,Vikram (Callum McGowan) is from a time when stronger ley lines would have made Fictionals a more common occurrence, meaning he could already have a history with some of them that might add more drama to the story.
Vikram’s temporal displacement could also make choosing which Fictionals to include a more interesting prospect. He might be intimately familiar with older characters who have become less popular, leaving his friends comparatively helpless in predicting the Fictionals' next moves.The Librarians: The Next Chaptercould also introduce an adversary who summons Fictionals from literature or media created after Vikram’s time, putting the Librarian himself in danger while his team has to rely on sheer cultural knowledge to assist him. However they’re introduced, the Fictionals have abundantly more credible threat potential in the spinoff than they ever did in the original.
The Librarians: The Next Chapter
Cast
The Librarians: The Next Chapter features a time-traveling librarian from the past who becomes stranded in the present. Upon returning to his now museum-castle, he accidentally unleashes magic across the continent. To address this, he assembles a new team of Librarians tasked with restoring balance.
