The next book in Fourth Wing details were more important than before. That being said, Onyx Storm also highlighted a villain problem I have been noticing in the series since Iron Flame, which has hurt other aspects of The Empyrean Series' overall plot.
Onyx Storm's villain characters are annoying over threatening, with most of them dying quickly or only playing minor roles in the storyline. A few of them, such as Halden and Aura, only have time to inconvenience Violet and Xaden before they are killed or simply written off, highlighting just how unimportant they are. This issue affects some of the bigger villains in Onyx Storm as well, emphasizing this villain problem within The Empyrean Series. However, the way the villains are portrayed also grants Rebecca Yarros all the tools she needs to fix them.
The Empyrean Series Has A Villain Problem & It's More Obvious After Onyx Storm
Theophanie Was The Empyrean Series' Most Interesting Villain To Date
The villain problem within The Empyrean Series can really be seen within Onyx Storm, as every antagonist is given little to do with one exception. As mentioned, most of the villains in Onyx Storm and the overall series have little motive outside of hurting Violet and being evil and selfish to varying degrees. Colonel Aetos forbidding Violet and Xaden to date while he was a professor and stationing the Iron Squad at the outpost as punishment are two big examples, as Aetos is not given much else to do character-wise besides be mean to Dain and Violet.
5 Fourth Wing Characters I'm Totally Convinced Are Venin After Reading Onyx Storm
There are several Fourth Wing characters I heavily suspect could be venin after the events of Yarros' third book in the series, Onyx Storm.
The one exception to this is Theophanie. Theophanie is Onyx Storm's most interesting villain because, unlike characters such as Varrish or Jack Barlowe who are simply evil people there to stand in Violet's way, she has a slightly sympathetic backstory. Theophanie's background as a priestess of Dunne stands as a dark contrast to Violet's own power and devotion to others, which would have made her a fascinating villain had she lived longer in The Empyrean Series. However, Yarros can explore that mirror story aspect in other ways..
The Next Fourth Wing Book Needs To Give The Series' Villains More Depth
Yarros Should Explore Berwyn And Colonel Aetos' Relationships With Xaden And Dain
The Empyrean Series' next book needs to focus on how Berwyn and Colonel Aetos are connected to and are mirrors of Xaden and Dain respectively, giving these remaining villains more depth than previous ones. Exploring how Dain could have become like his father would help expand on Colonel Aetos' disappointing Onyx Storm character arc, as the tensions between father and son could force Colonel Aetos to showcase the fears and ambitions behind his choices, terrible as they may be. That could lead to a great moment for him and Dain, emphasizing their new paths as Dain chooses courage over cowardice.
The next book in The Empyrean Series can showcase how easily each character could have fallen into the wrong side had they made a different choice.
Berwyn and Xaden's dynamic could do something similar, as Berwyn could discuss how he became venin and his own potential struggles with his powers, mirroring some of Xaden's own past after he discovered his second signet. Having that kind of connection between the characters could add more complexity to Berwyn beyond being an evil taskmaster. He could even try to use his own story to break Xaden softly. The next book in The Empyrean Series can showcase how easily each character could have fallen into the wrong side had they made a different choice.
- Genre
- Fantasy
- Publisher
- Entangled: Red Tower Books
- Franchise
- The Empyrean Series
- ISBN#
- 1649374186
- Author(s)
- Rebecca Yarros
Violet Sorrengail faces new political intrigue and battles old enemies while uncovering the secrets of her second signet. As she strives to save Xaden from venin corruption, her relationships with allies and dragons are tested, leading to intense confrontations and unexpected revelations in a world of dragons and magic.
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