How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World (2019)

“I’ve just been thinking about what I needed. I never stopped to think about what you needed.”  -Hiccup

I am going to put this right out there: I hate endings. I know these are fake characters in a fake world, but there’s something about this series that really hit me. These characters are so real. we’ve seen them as kids, and now, in The Hidden World, we see them fully become adults. It’s been a great ride, and now it’s over.

I’ve reviewed the first two movies (here, and here), and had the opportunity to go see The Hidden World as it screened three weeks early. Naturally, I jumped at the chance. I will try my best to keep this review major spoiler free, however it obviously will not be completely spoiler free. I will attempt to warn of major spoilers as we go (you have been warned!).

So how does The Hidden World rank, not only as third chapter of a trilogy, but as the ending to the story of Hiccup and Toothless? Let’s look at how it stacks up.

Story

From the trailers (and there are three of them) you think you know what’s going to happen in this story: Toothless meets a girl, Grimmel the villain wants the Night Furies, Hiccup will not give him the Night Furies, and so to keep away from Grimmel, Hiccup, Toothless, all the dragons, and people from Berk have to find and flee to the Hidden World, the ancestral home of the dragons. Obviously things happen, Grimmel puts up a fight, blah blah.

Pretty straight forward right?

Um…. no.

That’s what the trailers want you to think is going to happen. Well… I’m here to tell you that the people who did this trailer are GENIUS. See this?

And this?

oh and remember this part in the trailer?

and remember hearing something like this from Stoick? “I believe it’s your destiny to find the Hidden World.”

Or Hiccup telling Toothless “It’s you and me bud, always.”

Yeah. NONE of that is in the actual movie. I mean, some of it is, but not in the way shot and presented in the trailer.

This story was kept secret in the most beautiful way. You go in expecting to get this epic movie with epic battles and a very “this is really going to be the end of the dragons if we don’t fight,” and… it’s not. Not really. I honestly felt more was at stake with Drago and his dragon army, and I can’t really explain why. That being said, you do get the idea that the world is shifting and that while Berk has changed and embraced their way of life with their dragons, the rest of the world still hasn’t – in fact, they’ve gotten even more gung-ho about destroying them.

What the trailer does present that is true is Hiccup’s search for the hidden world, and his idea that they all have to “disappear” if they want to keep their way of life. (and for the record, as I’m writing this and watching Hulu in the background, they’re now doing TV spots that are much more in tune with the truth of the story!)

What is also true is the focus on the movie between the romance between Toothless and the Light Fury. One of the first surprises in the movie is exactly how he meets up with her. Let’s just put it this way – she’s more a part of the story than I ever thought she could be.

Another big chunk of the story is the relationship between Astrid and Hiccup. It is very much welcomed and extremely well done, so much so that I would watch this movie over and over again strictly to watch their interactions. Their relationship has always been so real, and in this movie it really shines.

Between balancing these two focuses and the presence of our villain, Grimmel (who we’ll get to near the end), there’s really not much room for anything else. It runs at an hour forty five minutes, and to be honest it flew by.

This movie may not be what the trailers made it out to be, but this story is what it had to be. It’s a story about growing up, protecting those you love, and being who you need to be. It’s a story about relying on those around you to keep you safe, and those who have your back for eternity. It is a goodbye, but it is the most perfect goodbye that Hiccup and Toothless could have given us.

I could watch the last 10 minutes for the rest of my life.

Animation/Design

I’m sort of going backward in my review this time, because… well, you’ll get it.

I’ve always touted how great the animation is in these movies, and this one does not disappoint. It’s a noticeable step up from even the last movie, and if you watch the first one and then this one, I’m sure the improvement would be astounding.

I mean, I was sitting in the fourth row of the theater and I could see the hair on Hiccup’s face. The light hairs – we’re not even talking about a five o’ clock shadow here!

The Hidden World itself is a visual treat. The colors, shapes, and movements that take place during this scene are gorgeous.

And it wouldn’t be a How to Train Your Dragon movie without introducing at least a few new dragons. There’s really only a few, but again, I would have loved to be on the design team for these guys, because it still blows my mind how they can make so many different kinds of dragons.

This is a Crimson Goregutter. And he really doesn’t like being in a cage

This is a Hobgobbler – He’s a bad Omen and Gobber doesn’t like them.

Apart from the dragon design, the kids got an upgrade too. They all wear dragon scale armor now, and the effects are quite impressive. I love how they’ve also taken Hiccup’s sword and flight suit and improved it movie by movie. It’s really impressive, and in this movie is actually extremely important.

Supporting Characters

As mentioned at the beginning of this review, the characters in this movie are very special to me. I’m going to save an entire section for Toothless, Hiccup, and Astrid, but let’s look at the other characters here, see how they shape up, and how their story comes to an end.

To be honest, I was a bit underwhelmed by how little some more prominent characters were in the movie, most notably Valka, Gobber, and Eret. They were such an important part of the second movie, it’s a bit of a shame we don’t see that much of them in this one. That being said, they still serve their purpose. Eret’s knowledge as a former dragon trapper helps in dealing with Grimmel, and without Gobber, one of Hiccup’s conflicts would be non existent. As for Valka, let’s just say she gives a bit of advice to Astrid on how to deal being involved with the Chief.

This. This is it. Most we hear him talk the whole movie.

Hiccup’s dragon riding gang makes their appearance here right at the beginning, in an opening scene that is much different than the previous two movies, and quite honestly one of the best scenes hands down. We’re re-introduced to our gang and their dragons and their new moves, new armor, and new abilities. As always, they’re pretty much there for the laughs, but in this movie, the humor really outdoes itself.

Snotlout, who has spent the last two movies pining over women (Astrid the first movie, Ruffnut the second) has found a new target, which is… weird. But Snotlout maintains his larger than life ego. I am sad to say there is not enough Hookfang in this movie.

Fishlegs is sporting a new mustache and Meatlug’s baby, Fishmeat. He’s still relied on for being the go-to person on new dragons (of which there are a few in this movie), but short of this he’s not in this movie much. Meatlug is even less in it, but her baby is adorable and steals the few scenes she’s in.

Now there’s Ruffnut and Tuffnut. The twins are probably my least favorite of the gang, but I do have to admit that through the Netflix series Race to the Edge, I have grown to appreciate their specific type of humor. In the Hidden World, it is front and center, and you see more of the twins (especially Tuffnut) than you did in probably both other movies combined. A specific scene with Ruffnut made our entire theater laugh out loud. While these two have been known to be somewhat annoying, in this movie they resort to just being kooky and well, themselves. I think it pays off.

Hiccup & Astrid

I’m upping Astrid’s status to main character for this movie, because she’s an incredibly important aspect of this movie, and to be honest she deserves it. While the the movie mostly focuses on the relationship between Hiccup and Toothless (which it should), Astrid and the Light Fury come in close seconds. Astrid is as we’ve always known her: tough, rough, able to beat Hiccup with the turn of a hand, smart and resourceful. In this movie, we see a bit of her soft side as she laments how adorable it is that Toothless has fallen in love, and, most importantly, she is there to teach Hiccup that he doesn’t have to make decisions alone, that he can rely on her, and that he can be a good leader, even when Toothless is off courting his girl.

There is a beautiful callback scene to the very first movie between Hiccup and Astrid that is done so wonderfully in this one. Remember this?

That’s the scene from the first where Hiccup is upset because his dad just took Toothless to find the Red Death. He’s moping, and Astrid talks him into realizing he has to do something “crazy and stupid” to get him back. This scene is done again in this movie, almost word for word, when Hiccup has given up. He’s done everything “to the book” as his father would have done, and (spoiler) it hasn’t gone too well. It’s almost like Astrid is talking him back into being himself. It’s a scene that’s a nice callback but also shows just how important she is, how much she loves him for him, and how much he really needs her. Astrid is awesome.

While we’re on the subject, let’s switch to Hiccup. Now only a year has passed between the second movie and this one, and in that time Hiccup seems to have grown into his leadership role quite nicely. He’s “established the first dragon/person Utopia,” which is true, but also a little crowded. To him, this is the first step in the greater world accepting and befriending dragons. But… that’s not what happens.

Hiccup, in this movie, learns to let go. He learns to let go of his belief that he can change the world. He learns to be less selfish. He learns to let go of his best friend and let him go off to court his girl. He learns and accepts that the world isn’t ready for dragons like Berkians are. If the second movie was about him growing and accepting his job as a chief, this one is about him stepping into that position and really understanding what it means. He’s still Hiccup: he’s still sarcastic and clumsy, but sweet, thoughtful, and caring. He’s always seemed to have this chip on his shoulder and that’s still there. But he learns to accept it and let Astrid take part of that chip, because they’re in this together.

I mean… just look how he’s looking at her!

Toothless & the Light Fury

Toothless. Oh Toothless. This dragon, much like Hiccup, never really changes, but instead grows up. We saw him at the end of the second movie become the Alpha of the dragons – they obey what he says to do. I’m happy that they actually took that aspect into account in this movie. We see him showing newcomers how to behave in Berk, and later the fact he’s an Alpha comes very much into play.

On the other side, we still have a very playful dragon who is still very much attached to Hiccup. That is… until he gets scent of the Light Fury.

I LOVE that this series has always gone very much into the biology of these animals. it makes it that much more believable as a world. In the first movie, we learned basics, like how many strikes a gronckle has, blind spots, etc. In the second we learned more about their social structure and abilities, and in this one we learn about their mating rituals. Like how Night Furies mate for life, and apparently most dragons mimic birds in terms of courtship.

In that aspect, Toothless is about as clumsy as Hiccup, evidenced by the BEST scene with him in the movie (which has been plastered all over trailers. Believe me, it’s better in the movie!). But this doesn’t stop him from trying, and doesn’t stop Hiccup from helping him try to impress her (they are, after all, the last two Night Furies believed in existence.)

This scene was better than I ever could have imagined…

I love the scenes with him and the Light Fury, because it’s almost like he really found his place, and we get very much that he cares about her. At the same time, you can’t help but get a little sad, because you see the bond he and Hiccup had beginning to change, and nothing is going to ever make it the same again.

As for the Light Fury, she’s never given a name, which I think suits her.

She doesn’t trust humans (and for good reason), including Hiccup and Astrid. I viewed her much more of a “wild” dragon that couldn’t and probably shouldn’t be tamed. I love that she almost has to teach Toothless things about being a night fury that probably would have come second nature to him had he had a dragon family to be with.

He’s channeling Thor

Once they get to the Hidden World (I promise that’s not a spoiler) it’s hard to imagine a more perfect place for any of the dragons or Toothless to be.

That’s where our Villain steps in.

 

Grimmel the Grisly

As far as I was concerned, they could have made this movie without a villain, just watching how Toothless and Hiccup are dealing with growing up and dealing with pulls in different directions. Of course, that’s not how movies work.

Going into this, I wasn’t that excited about the villain. We didn’t learn much about him from the trailers, and given that I’m not a huge fan of either of the other villains, I was very “meh” about the whole thing.

Holy freaking heck was I wrong. Grimmel is an awesome villain! He’s SMART. He’s a hunter. He LOVES the hunt. He’s always thinking three steps ahead of what he’s hunting (in this case it’s the Berkians and Toothless). His traps are incredible and just his whole idea for capturing Toothless is brilliant. You realize very quickly meeting this man that HE WILL EVENTUALLY GET TOOTHLESS. This man will not stop until he gets what he wants, and he’s not afraid if any person or any stupid dragon gets in his way.

To be honest, I was quite impressed with not only him, but likewise how smart Hiccup and the gang got to being able to deal with him. But like I said, Grimmel was always two steps ahead. He’s THAT good.

Oh and he also has those awesome dragons that don’t listen to the Alpha because he’s poisoning them with their own venom. What?!?! I would have loved them to delve more into that or have Hiccup realize and try to save them, but that would have just been a subplot that wouldn’t have mattered. But they were cool!

I think the best part is that you think Grimmel is going to be so much more important than he really is. I mean, he is don’t get me wrong. But to me, he wasn’t the focus of the movie.

Hiccup & Toothless (SPOILERS)

These two:

These two are the focus of this movie, no matter how many times you try to tell me otherwise. I will always say it is them. They love each other. They will die to save each other, and no matter what happens, no matter how many times Toothless goes off with his girl, that would never change.

We’ve seen them grow together, and in this movie, Hiccup really does want what’s best for his friend. That’s why he fashions a tail that Toothless can use without a rider, because the Light Fury is afraid/angry at people, but he needs to fly to continue his courtship:

It’s an extremely hard thing for Hiccup to do: watch his dragon fly off on his own. He even wonders if he’ll ever come back. He second guesses everything about their relationship. It’s hard to watch, but it’s so relatable. He just wants his friend to be happy, and sees that he’s not when he’s not with her. He begins to understand that now, she’s more important to Toothless than he is. That is a hard pill to swallow.

They’ve learned so much from each other in six years. They’ve become who they need to be because of each other. They have a friendship that can withstand anything.

Even saying goodbye.

I knew it was coming from the moment I saw the trailer, and I still wasn’t prepared. As soon as Grimmel was gone, I knew it was coming, and I still wasn’t prepared. I wasn’t prepared for any of them to say goodbye. But they did. All of them. And this is how everyone, including me, was left feeling:

*Insert intense bawling here*

Conclusion

How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World, is as good as critics are saying. It is worth that 98% or whatever it is on Rotten Tomatoes. It’s easy to follow, it’s smart and witty, it’s full of heart, and it’s REAL.

It’s taken us nine years, but we’ve finally said goodbye to Toothless and the gang. You can tell the people who made this movie loved them just as much as we did. They gave them the best farewell they could, and for me, they hit it out of the park. You’ll leave the theater crying, but you won’t be able to figure out if they’re happy or sad tears.

I give How to Train Your Dragon (2019) a 5 out of 5.

 

 

 

 

 

How to Train your Dragon 2 (2014)

“Men who kill without reason cannot be reasoned with.” – Valka

this movie never ceases to amaze me…

Four years passed between the first How to Train Your Dragon (which I reviewed here) and the second movie. Given how much I loved the first one, you would think I would have been the first person in line to watch this. I am sad to say that I didn’t see this movie until it came out to BluRay, and I can’t for the life of me remember why (and don’t you worry, I’m making up for it with the third one).

Some people might say that four years between sequels is too long, that you’ve lost your audience. The world does seem to be in this “let’s churn movies out as fast as we can and hope they’re good” phase, so it’s refreshing to see Dreamworks take this franchise so seriously.

I do have to note that for this review and all subsequent reviews moving forward, I will no longer be giving a synopsis. I may mention parts of the story, but the whole point of a review isn’t to recite the movie, it’s to examine the movie. As such, let’s break down this one, shall we?

Let me start by asking a question: What’s the point of a sequel?

To a studio, the answer might seem simple: Money. You have already established characters re-emerging into the world every few years to sell tickets, merchandise, etc. 

As a movie-goer and a fan, you love these characters and what to see more of them. There’s a story that hasn’t been told yet. You want to delve deeper into the world that the director, producer, and screenwriter have spent so much time on. You’ve invested yourself with this world so much that it begins to feel real, and what happens to them becomes utmost importance (come on, who wasn’t sad at the end of Return of the King??)

if you didn’t cry during this moment you are dead to me.

Thank god for this movie, Dean DeBlois was on our side. The Director/writer of this movie, as well as the other two installments, viewed this sequel as a stepping stone to a much bigger story. In his mind, this was always a trilogy, and actually refused to be attached to the franchise unless he was given the freedom to tell the story how he wanted. He viewed these movies much like Star Wars. In fact, he used The Empire Strikes Back as a tonal model for this movie, which is… well, that’s kinda cool.

So does this sequel do what it set out to do? Is it not only a good sequel, but a good movie? Let’s find out

Characters

As I’ve said before in many of my reviews, a movie can have a really horrible plot, but as long as the characters are good, I’ll like it. Characters to me are one of the most important aspects of a movie. Their behavior, their relationships and their interactions with one another affect so much of the movie. If one part isn’t believable, the whole movie won’t be believable.

So in a sequel, I expect a few things in terms of characters:

1. continue the relationships set up in the first movie

2. continue to give good side characters their spot, we learn more about them and even grow to consider them as important as the main characters

3. introduce a FEW good, new characters with the same quality as the original characters (but please don’t overload us with so many new characters we can’t remember their names!).

One of the best things about the first movie was the relationship between Hiccup and Toothless. We saw its start in the first movie through a mutual respect and understanding that they both needed each other. In this movie, it’s just gotten five years stronger. Hiccup is still that sarcastic, independent viking, still willing to do something crazy if he thinks its the right thing to do, and Toothless is along to save him and remind him with ear slaps and tail whips that not all his ideas are smart.

Hiccup has grown up five years too (Hellloooo animation longbottom-ing!), and with that has come a lot of new knowledge in the realm of dragons (including his awesome sword coated with Monstrous Nightmare gel, Zippleback gas, his new flight suit and some upgrades to Toothless’s harness as well. He also must deal with a whole slew of new personal conflicts, and this takes front and center throughout the movie as we follow the external conflict that is Drago and the dragon trappers.

His father wants him to become chief, a position he thinks he can’t live up to and says very early in the movie “it’s not [him].” It’s the typical Young Adult mindset: a life of being bogged down with responsibility on Berk, or a life of carefree exploring the world on the back of a dragon, discovering new species and new lands.

It’s only through the external conflicts of the movie that he learns exactly what being a “chief” means and where his place truly lies. It’s an amazing storyline for our lead character and done extremely well.

Toothless is still as lovable as ever. Now as an older dragon knowing who he can trust, he and Hiccup really do think and act as one. They could have made Toothless more serious in this installment, with the severity of the storyline, but they didn’t. In some sense, they made him a good chunk of the comic relief in this movie, but it’s done in a subtle and very tactile way, the same as the first movie. The comedy comes from Toothless’s own lovable, loyal, carefree personality, and here, he really shines. 

This entire post could have been Toothless GIFs and I wouldn’t have been sorry…

Like Hiccup, Toothless ends the movie on a higher pedestal than he started, but it suits him. I really enjoy the fact that we learn along with toothless some of the abilities he really has.

I will talk more about the relationship between the two a bit later. But first, onto some other characters. 

Stoick, the chief of Berk and Hiccup’s father, really grew on me in this movie. In the first, he was painted as a bit of a villain – unforgiving, not willing to listen to his son, desperate to try and connect with a boy who he didn’t feel a connection to, who only had one thing on his mind (to find and kill the dragons). In this movie, he has changed into a man who really feels a connection to his son, his island and his people and the dragons that inhabit it. Although half of the movie he’s literally chasing after his son and his “bullheadedness,” he’s doing it to try and keep him safe. He’s using his wisdom of the situation and his experience with the villain, Drago, to try and talk some sense into his son. In this case, he’s completely right, but mistakes have to be made to grow, and well, maybe this mistake was the biggest of all.

Astrid and the gang (Gobber, Ruffnut, Tuffnut, Snotlout, and Fishlegs) are back in this movie, and this time they come along with dragons of their own. Though obviously not as explored as the relationship between Hiccup and Toothless, you get the feeling these guys care just as much about their dragons (and the Netflix Series: Race to the Edge solidifies this). With the exception of Astrid, the others lend for a lot of the comedy and teen banter in this movie, which can either hit right on or fall short. I believe it really takes the right person in the right mood to appreciate Ruffnut and Tuffnut.

Snotlout & Hookfang

Ruff & Tuff with Barf and Belch

Fishlegs & Meatlug

Astrid & Stormfly

As far as Astrid and Hiccup go, they are obviously in a relationship and have been for who knows how long since the first movie, but it takes a backseat to everything else that is going on. Which is the way it should be. They get a great scene together in the beginning, where it is obvious that they love and respect one another. It’s a REAL relationship, and I’m here for it. It’s what I would expect from Astrid. She’s a strong enough character that she would never sit there and pine for a guy. Instead, she goes off, does her own thing, gives him her advice, and supports him when he needs it. They adore each other. It’s the best.

In terms of new characters, there’s really only two (other than the villain) worth mention. The first is Eret, a dragon trapper turned dragon rider by the end of the movie. He works for Drago and voiced by Kit Harrington, which took me way longer to figure out than it should have. He’s charged with floating around on a boat and hunting dragons to bring back for Drogo’s “Dragon Army.” Hiccup and Astrid discover him while they’re out exploring, and Astrid and the gang end up kidnapping him later to get him to lead them to Drogo’s hideout, which they think is where Hiccup is (spoilers, he’s not).

Astrid’s dragon, Stormfly, takes a strange liking to Eret, eventually going so far as to risk her life for him in Drogo’s camp. It’s only then that he realizes maybe what Hiccup and Astrid first told him might be true. Eret is a likable guy and has a good story arc. I can’t wait to see what they do with him in the third movie.

Fun fact: Astrid tells Eret “don’t you know anything?” when they get into Drago’s camp. This line was specifically put in there because of Kit Harrington’s “you know nothing Jon Snow.”

The other new, and much more important, addition to the story is Hiccup’s Mother, Valka. We don’t hear much about her in the first movie other than a quick mention about how Stoick made Hiccups viking hat out of the other half of her breast plate (keeps her close, you know). While trying to track down Drogo, Hiccup “accidentally” runs into her atop her dragon, Cloudjumper.

This is an incredibly beautifully animated scene

Turns out, she and Hiccup have a lot more in common than he ever could have guessed. She’s spent the last 20 years after being taken by Cloudjumper learning about dragons and saving them from Drogo’s traps. Through her, we learn about a number of new dragons, including the rare Alpha species, a huge dragon who protects all of the smaller dragons. She knows so much about dragons that it puts Hiccup’s abilities to shame. She knows exactly how old Toothless is, shows how he can make tight turns, knows he might be the last of his kind, etc.

Valka is voiced by Cate Blanchett, who apparently was the only choice for the roll. I think she does a good job. Valka is an extremely interesting character. She’s calm but forceful. She has been away from people for so long you can tell she’s nervous when Stoick and Gobber show up. She finds more in common with the dragons and even mirror’s Stoick’s words of “we have to protect our own” to Hiccup, while referring to the dragons. 

For Hiccup, Valka represents one of the choices he can make. She invites him to stay with her and save the dragons, which at first very much appeals to him. But he is both his mother AND his father, and his want and need to speak to Drogo makes it difficult for him to just give up and “protect his own,” without trying to stop the problem at the source. You have to give him credit for that, even if it goes horribly wrong.

Valka’s existence is found out by Stoick and Gobber, leading to a short but very memorable few scenes between the two of them. For a few brief hours, Hiccup had a family, and she had agreed to return to Berk.

Now onto Drago. Voiced by Dijimon Hounsou, Drago is a man who believes dragons are the way to rule the world, or as Hiccup so wonderfully puts it. “You need dragons to rule people.” He has spent who knows how long amassing a dragon army, built upon the idea of fear.

I’m not going to lie, the first time I watched this, i squealed a little when we first actually saw him interact with our heroes’ dragons, because it mirrors the “old” ideas of dog and horse training vs. the newer methods (oh yeah, I’m a dog trainer, have I ever mentioned that?). After learning so much about how Hiccup got the relationship with Toothless in the first movie, Drago is a complete contrast. He scares the dragons into doing his bidding. He isn’t scared by their fire or their tactics, and just keeps coming at them until they are subdued. 

Why is he like this? we really don’t know. He’s missing an arm, so you get the feeling that this is all payback for what they did for him. He wears what looks like a night fury cloak around him, which also begs the question if he’s the reason they’re supposed to be extinct. He’s an imposing, scary man, so much so that he himself has his own Alpha who will do his bidding. Upon defeating Valka’s Alpha (sorry, spoilers), he orders his Alpha to take control of all the other dragons (including Toothless!!) to go after Berk. 

There’s no reason for him doing this. And this is where I would argue he’s actually the weakest character in the whole movie. There’s no room for growth, no story arc, he’s just a bad man who at the end learns that loyalty and respect is better than fear and control. Still a good lesson, but eh, I feel they could have made him more interesting.

Ok, so real quick, back to Hiccup and Toothless. When it comes to their relationship, I could write an entire entry on that alone, but all I need to do is talk about a scene near the end of the movie, and you get how strong it is. And that’s the scene where Hiccup attempt to talk toothless out of his trance-like state that Drago and his Alpha have put him in. 

Diogo said it was impossible. Valka said it was impossible, but it happened. Hiccup was able to talk Toothless out of his trance and challenge the Alpha. Just. Wow. THAT explains how strong their relationship is, and you believe it because of everything else that has happened in this movie and the previous one. 

LOOK AT HOW HAPPY HE IS!!!

These characters, on the whole, are amazing. Do they fulfill the three things that I believe sequels should touch on?

1. continue the relationships set up in the first movie?   Yes, all in realistic, better, and continuously believable ways.

2. continue to give good side characters their spot, we learn more about them and even grow to consider them as important as the main characters?  They did this hit or miss. You certainly learn more about Astrid and Stoick, whereas I would argue the others retain their “comedic” undertones from the first movie. Still enjoyable.

3. introduce a FEW good, new characters with the same quality as the original characters? Yes. Love Eret and Valka, Drago is meh, but better than the first movie’s strange Red Death dragon.

Story

Ok, so I’m not going to do a synopsis of the storyline, but what do I think of the story overall? does this storyline do what sequels SHOULD do? more importantly, what is that, really?

A sequel shouldn’t just be another story with the same characters. I really believe it should be a continuation. There should be an overarching story between all the volumes. Whether conceived before the first movie/book came out or decided upon after seeing how successful the first movie/book was, both can be executed well if the storytellers remember there is ONE story to tell.

I already mentioned how Dean DeBlois has said in interviews that he looked to Empire Strikes Back when he conceived the rest of this storyline. So for all intensive purposes, let’s look at this story with that aspect in mind. Empire might be one of THE BEST SEQUELS of all time, but why? And did DeBlois actually use it to inspire him? Let’s look at a few key points.

1. We’ve already talked about characters, but it’s worth mentioning in here that this movie, like Empire, really kept to its same core characters while introducing a few (not numerous) new ones, and hey, we even have a parent reveal in both. hah.
2. Part of what makes Empire so great is it’s 3 acts: Good guys win, good guys lose, good guys win again. Does this follow that?
3. Are the storylines hard to follow? Are there any that are extraneous, or are they all needed?

Let’s look at #2, because this is an interesting one. You would think at first glance that How to Train Your Dragon 2 does not follow this outline AT ALL. I mean, come on, the bad guy is defeated, the dragons are freed, Hiccup is Chief, Toothless is Alpha, how is that following the outline put forth in #2 at all?? 

It’s not. I would have said that all the way up until writing this. Then I thought about it more and I realized something: This movie wouldn’t even have happened if Hiccup hadn’t insisted that he go talk to Drago and “fix” this whole thing. Drago might have never found Berk, or at least it might have been years before he floated that way. He seemed surprised at the mention of the place, like there was nothing worth anything there. If Hiccup hadn’t gone off, his father would have never died.

This whole movie is about Hiccup making mistakes. If he hadn’t done what he did, Berk would still be hidden and safe, unknown to any of the dragon trappers or hunters out there. By doing what he did, he put Berk on the map. He made them a target. Even though they defeated Drago, he still lost. He lost his father, he lost the innocence of childhood, and he was disillusioned to a whole heck of a lot, like you can’t change everyone. He and Berk Lost.

But you can’t do that in a kids movie, so let’s make it all happy in the end. yay!

Alright, now when it comes to my point #3 about extraneous storylines, this one is quick: no, there aren’t any extraneous storylines. You’re really only following two, and for a short time three storylines: one with Hiccup and Toothless and then Valka, one with Astrid and the gang and Eret, and for a short while you have Stoick and Gobber searching after Hiccup. Nothing is hard to follow. It’s all needed, and it all brings about different aspects of the story leading to the climax very well. Something these movies is very good at is giving its viewers information in a subtle way and having it pay off in the end (babies aren’t controlled by the alpha, every dragon has its secrets, etc). There is nothing in this movie that is fluff. Except maybe Ruffnut pining over Eret.

This scene made for the best sound editing in the entire movie and made me laugh way too hard.

All in all, great story for a sequel. Not just another romp with the same characters. In this one, they have things to lose, and they do.

Animation/Score/Etc

To finish up some last technical bits of this review, I want to talk about the animation, score, and just stupid small things that I notice, because it’s fun.

I’ve always enjoyed the style that dreamworks picked for this series. It’s realistic to the point that you think that this really could have taken place in the world we live in, but cartoon-y enough to appeal to everyone. The backgrounds expand with this one to different islands, snow, ice, etc. and it’s well done. 

The dragons, including the new additions, are well designed. I love cloudjumpers look with his four wings and his owl-like face. The Alphas are beautiful, and the other newer dragons are all so unique that i can only assume all the animators had a blast designing these guys.

In terms of the music and the score, there are only a few movies that I watch where I get the score stuck in my head for weeks upon end, and both the first movie in this series and this movie are some of them. The score is beautifully written and matches the action and fun and intensity that this movie can have. It can help make us cry when they’re sending Stoick out on his ship, and make us root for Toothless when he’s flying among the clouds.

Final Thoughts that don’t belong anywhere else

• I would watch a sitcom with Stoick, Valka, Hiccup, Gobber, and the two dragons. That would be some hilarious stuff right there.
• I still don’t understand why both Fishlegs and Snotlout were going after Ruffnut. Are pickings really that slim on Berk?
• It’s hard to watch this movie after watching Netflix’s Race to the Edge because while that show did an amazing job tying in some things, there is just so much more that doesn’t make sense!!

All in all, How to Train Your Dragon 2 is one helluva ride. I enjoyed it more than the first one, and it’s one of those movies I could watch over and over again without getting sick of it. It’s not just a great sequel,  it’s a great movie.

I give How to Train Your Dragon 2 (2014) a 4.8 out of 5. Solid entertainment.

Up Next: How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World (2019)*

Note: I’m going to see Hidden World tomorrow 3 weeks early! Will try to get a review of that one up as soon as I can!!!