- On the huge rock, the symbol of the two figures on the strange beast is obvious - Miguel and Tulio riding Altivo. It's seen repeatedly throughout the movie. What gets less focus is the long-haired, feminine figure, kneeling and praying before them (or possibly offering them tribute) - and that it resembles Chel. Not only were Miguel and Tulio destined to come to El Dorado and bring peace, Chel really was destined to lead them there and 'serve' them!
- It's even more brilliant if you remember that she was basically begging them for 'mercy' before she knew of the con, and later asked them to take her away with them to a happier life - 'heaven'. That's even the sort of thing that's said in prophecies.
- In the picture in T'zekel Khan's book there is what is clearly the depiction of Cortez. But less obvious is the little weasly, crawling figure grovelling to him from one side - and that's the first thing T'zekel Khan does when he sees Cortez.
- Irony is rather cruel to Tzekel-Kan. He didn't like the duo's pacifistic and friendly attitude and wanted them to be punishers and deathbringers to mortals. By the end of the film, guess who gets the merciless god (Hernan Cortez) that he was asking for and who repays his service with slavery and cruelty? Be careful what you wish for, pal. He might have believed that he would be spared and rewarded for his services, but the gods he wants would likely see him as just one more petty human.
- There's another easy-to-miss hint that Chief Tanabok knows Miguel and Tulio's true identities. During the climax, while the giant pillar is close to falling on Tulio and Chel's boat, Tanabok is visibly panicked for them and grabs more ropes to hold the pillar back. Surely, he wouldn't be so worried for their lives if he really believed Tulio was a god.
- There's some great irony in the fact that Chel was able to use her...ahem...feminine wiles to turn Miguel and Tulio against each other. It's almost a perfect parallel to how Miguel and Tulio turn Tannabok and Tzekel-Kan against each other. Furthermore, both Miguel and Tulio are pretty infatuated with Chel, to the point that she could be considered a goddess to them.
- Tzekel-Kan's entire philosophy in regards to the gods is proven wrong long before he shows up on-screen. The opening sequence features a pair of gods (resembling Miguel and Tulio, of course) creating El Dorado, with these lyrics in the background:Our glorious city was made by the divinities
By gods who saw fit to bestow
The gift of paradise on us mere mortals below- In other words, according to what little history/mythology we get on El Dorado itself, the gods Tzekel-Kan claims to serve are benevolent. Combine that with a great deal of serendipity favoring Miguel and Tulio (winning a fair dice roll for the map, washing up on the right shore, the volcano scene, etc) and you've got the possibility of a In Mysterious Ways plotline regarding their arrival.
- And for that matter, Miguel and Tulio are also wrong about their entire philosophy in regards to what the people of El Dorado believe gods to be; which makes sense as they're from Spain and likely grew up around Christians or are Christian. Unlike in Christianity, the gods of Aztec Mythology and many other religions weren't perfect and often were very human in their motives and actions, and as El Dorado has many Aztec traits it's likely so are their gods.
- What's interesting about the two Aztec gods shown in the opening, is that in Aztec Mythology the supreme gods who created everything are a pair of divinities that are known as Ometeotl. Its likely that Miguel and Tulio are a stand-in for this dual deity, since the gods aren't named in the opening.
- It's not too ridiculous for Cortez to actually look around the waterfall and find El Dorado. Logistically, it would be a waste, given that his only source is Tzekel-Kan, someone he already mistrust. Two, his resources are limited, so it would be unwise to use them on something he has no idea is true. Cortez would have found it easily if he simply had the time and resource to commit to it.
- There's a decent chance that Miguel and Tulio carry germs to the city that the natives have no immunity against.
- Just how many innocent people were sacrificed "to the gods" before Miguel and Tulio showed up?
- What exactly did the other rituals in Tzekel-Kan's book do anyways? The first one he looked at had a menacing figure floating over a massive fire. Bringing the jaguar statue to life was the thing he felt was the most thematically appropriate, but it may not have been the most dangerous.
- It's not too clear what Cortes did to Tzekel-Kan, but it's clear that it's too horrific even for a man who gave his culture a bad name and then betrayed his people.
- One can guess that he will be flogged, and if survives the trip, god willing, he will be flogged some more.
