…and there is absolutely no way anyone can mentally or emotionally prepare for what is being teased.
This year, I have spoken at length about the incredible feats that Miraculous Corp has accomplished with the one and only global hit series, Miraculous. A statement that continues to become more and more concrete with each new development. While the company has been hard at work bringing new collaborations, merchandise, a stage show and so much more to life, the main star of the show has undoubtedly been season six.
After closing out the Gabriel Agreste-centered arc and the first major phase of Ladybug, Cat Noir and their ensemble team’s journey of heroism, many began to wonder where the story could possibly go from there. Miraculous Corp answered that question by introducing an even more cunning and dangerous villain in Lila, increasingly complicated interpersonal relationships and the growing weight of the secrets that now lie buried deep within Marinette’s subconscious.
In many ways, season six wasn’t simply a turning point for the story and its characters. It transformed the series into something even more extraordinary, embracing more serialized storytelling and developing plotlines that lead us directly into the next season. With an even more dangerous villain who doesn’t simply want their Miraculouses, but seemingly wants to bring the characters, and likely all of Paris, down with her, a secret organization playing the long game in the background, and a hero lying to protect the feelings of the one person she cares about most, the stakes have never felt quite so personal. Throw in developing romantic relationships, friendship complications and one major identity reveal, and season six fundamentally changed how fans, both new and old, have come to understand Miraculous.
Yet, while all these developments greatly impacted season six, it seems they may have been nothing more than the prologue for what season seven has waiting for us.
And thanks to two newly released teasers, it is becoming increasingly clear that the danger is greater, emotions are stronger and choices that could change everything are preparing to unfold.
Neither Ladybug nor Lila can afford to make the increasingly risky decision to sit idle while the other makes a move. Because now, it feels as though this battle is becoming less about simply gaining the upper hand and more about bringing the conflict to an end, provided the other side, and the external forces surrounding them, don’t challenge that. Then again, drama has always been at the very core of Miraculous, so we can be fairly confident that nothing will go entirely according to plan on either side of this fight.
Ahead of the seventh season’s arrival next month, Miraculous Corp has begun rolling out new teasers. And did they ever refuse to hold back. If anything, what we’ve been shown already speaks volumes about where this story may be headed.
In the first teaser, we get a closer look at Lila, our increasingly dangerous and manipulative antagonist.
While the clip begins from her perspective during the events of the season-six finale, as the heroes are hot on her trail, revisiting those moments is far from the most important thing we witness. Rather, it’s how Lila appears to be slowly unraveling as she becomes increasingly desperate to prove that Marinette is Ladybug. She is no longer simply convinced of this possibility; she seems to feel it deep down, and the fact that she cannot prove what she believes to be the truth appears to be making her more unstable, more on edge and even more willing to take increasingly bold risks. She has become so deeply transfixed on this one thing that it almost feels as though she is preparing to discard her entire carefully constructed plan just to receive the validation she so desperately wants.
We even see her admitting to someone that she has maintained numerous identities, with the teaser giving us a glimpse at the different faces she has used along the way.
Fans already knew Lila was playing an entirely different game from the late Gabriel Agreste, but now we’re beginning to see just how excessive her methods have become and how far she may be willing to go to bring Marinette down. Suddenly, the fact that she impersonated Marinette’s uncle feels more like a stepping stone than the monumental move it once appeared to be. That fact alone is horrifying, especially when it seems as though Lila is continuing to push her boundaries to the point where they may no longer exist.
She’s willing to impersonate one of Ladybug’s trusted heroes, seemingly exploit a moment of Adrien’s emotional vulnerability to turn him into another pawn in her game, and even appear before Cat Noir to play yet another side of her increasingly complicated long game.
Lila is proving herself to be a far more unpredictable and personally dangerous threat than Hawk Moth ever was. And Marinette has every single right to be terrified.
However, as intimidating and intense as our first teaser is, the second one is far more somber.
Sitting on the opposite side of Lila’s increasingly destructive ambitions is a broken Marinette.
Last season, we saw just how the events surrounding Gabriel’s death and everything that followed slowly began to break away at her from the inside. The weight of her secrets, her responsibilities and the ever-present fear of Chrysalis have left her scrambling for answers and ways to stop the growing danger posed by the new holder of the Butterfly Miraculous. All while desperately trying to find a way to enjoy the romance and happiness she has longed for throughout so much of the series.
But now, we see her appearing so small, almost as though she has become a shell of the bold, determined girl we have come to know and love.
Sure, we see Ladybug leaping into battle alongside the other heroes, and even using her Lucky Charm to create what becomes a beautiful display of fireworks during a romantic moment with Cat Noir. But the somber music accompanying these scenes doesn’t make those moments feel particularly grand. Instead, it makes them feel almost heartbreaking. Even the moments that should be filled with excitement and happiness seem to carry an overwhelming sense of sadness. We also hear Marinette calling out to Cat Noir that he is being lied to, suggesting that Chrysalis may already be making moves to drive a wedge between our beloved heroic duo.
But that alone isn’t the saddest part.
We see Marinette visibly overwhelmed and in tears, while Alya appears shocked by something unfolding before her.
And perhaps most importantly, we see Marinette inside her room, seemingly preparing to make a somber decision as she announces that she’s ready and begins filming a video. What exactly she intends to reveal remains unclear, but when we consider this moment alongside another scene showing her holding her own Miraculous in her hands, someone insisting that it’s the right thing to do, and an emotional group hug, it’s difficult not to wonder whether Marinette is preparing to make one of the biggest decisions of her life.
A decision that could truly change everything.
Emotions are running high as we prepare to enter season seven. The threats are greater, relationships are becoming increasingly complicated and uncertainty seems to be waiting around every corner. There is simply no way to be fully prepared for what comes next, and perhaps that is part of what makes this new era of Miraculous feel so extraordinary. It feels real, raw and almost like life itself, where no matter how carefully we plan, how hard we fight or how desperately we try to protect the people we love, we can never truly know what is waiting for us around the next corner.
And for Ladybug, Cat Noir and everyone caught in the middle of this increasingly dangerous battle, it seems that uncertainty may be the greatest challenge of all.