ANI-MOVIES, *Ralph Breaks The Internet

In what seemed like a good idea at the time, Disney decided to do a sequel to Wreck-It Ralph while dipping their toes into digital culture that the even less than successful film, The Emoji Movie, did a year before. The problem with trying to cash in on a current trend is that by the time the actual movie about it comes out is that the fandom has already died out, which is at least one of the hiccups that Disney came across when they continued their video game-themed franchise. Rich Moore is back directing, but this time along with Phil Johnston who also wrote this and the previous movie, plus future-Nimona writer Pamela Ribon acting as co-writer. Even though it was nominated for numerous movie awards, it failed to actually win most of them, as well as receiving an initial profitable opening there wasn't much love for after the hype died down. Rich Moore already had plans to do a sequel, although how it developed into parodying the online world is a large mystery. Having the film come out a few months after the already similar Ready Player One movie didn't help its reputation either.

Taking place six years after the original, Ralph and Vanellope are still best buddies at the old arcade which finally gets Wi-Fi. Ralph's attempt to make Vanellope's racing game a little more exciting results in the console's steering wheel needing to be replaced. Ralph and Vanellope decide to hop on to the internet in search of a replacement game part where everything looks like a cross between Tron and The Jetsons. They manage to head to Ebay and win the part they need but for a way higher asking price because they thought the whole bidding act was a game. Not having enough money to pay for game part, our duo accepts a job going after rare items in online games which here is the car of the main character Shank in a Grand Theft Auto rip-off. Ralph and Vanellope get caught by Shank and her gang, but they help the two of them get an account started on BuzzzTube where they get paid for every weird video or meme Ralph appears in. Vanellope goes into the net to advertise Ralph's videos and when she gets to the Disney website she has a nice chat with the collected Disney Princesses, even though some of them aren't genuine princesses, in which she realizes she wants to leave her old game and stay in Shank's world. Ralph hears about this and releases a virus into the game to win his best friend back. This gets out of control, and copies of Ralph start multiplying all over until they all combine into a kaiju-sized giant that Ralph manages to calm down and delete. Vanellope decides to stay in Shank's game while Ralph returns to the arcade, and they keep in touch via online chat.

Ralph Breaks The Internet is at least not a typical sequel where they retell the story from the original all over again, but the tonal whiplash can leave a bad impression for fans of Wreck-It Ralph. Instead of a sturdy plot, the sequel is mostly just recycled pop-culture references and shameless selling out to online companies, especially that Disney now own Marvel Comics, The Muppets, and Star Wars in which was one of Stan Lee's last cameos. Despite being a theatrical blockbuster, this movie didn't leave its mark among viewers in any progressive way and makes it nearly impossible for any conceivable follow-up, unless of course they take them up into space where all sequels go to die.