ANI-MOVIES, *How To Train Your Dragon 2

Taking place after the first theatrical movie, a few shorts, and a series on Cartoon Network, How To Train Your Dragon 2 got released four years after the original and seriously veering off the source material. Based on the book series of the same name, the sequel goes its own route once again written and directed by Dean DeBlois who made it with the intention of turning the franchise into a trilogy. It was so popular that Dreamworks is of course doing a live-action remake similar to the original. The fact there's an entire section of it in Epic Universe proves that the sequel helped add to the brand's stalwart position in family entertainment.

Set five years after the first movie, Hiccup and Toothless uncover new lands and entire islands covered in green ice. These uncovered territories are inhabited by dragon trappers who are collecting for their warlord, Drago Bludvist. Hiccup is certain he can talk Drago into giving up his tyrannical ways despite everything his father Stoick's advises him about. Along the way, Hiccup finds his mother Valka who has been hiding away in a sealed off sanctuary of dragons watched over by an alpha dragon. Valka has spent the last two decades keeping the dragons safe from Drago who wants to add them to his dragon army. After a brief reunion with Hiccup and Stoick, Drago's army attacks and takes control of the refugee dragons via his own alpha. The alpha has the ability to control other dragons and temporarily causes Toothless to kill Stoick. Hiccup and the rest of his crew make it back to Berk to stop Drago and defeating his alpha, although Drago's fate is never revealed, even in any of the expanded media.

Having Hiccup go from being the shame of his village to following in his father's footsteps as the new chief is a good direction to take the main character as he and the others have grown up. The supporting teenage characters are mostly just sort of there hanging around and not adding much to the plot, although you can see how Astrid and Hiccup's relationship has strengthened over the years. Dreamworks really upped the ante with their production which is a serious evolution from not only the original film but the animated TV series as well which was lacking int the usual Dreamworks quality. The stakes a higher here and there is a darker presence for the heroes to struggle and suffer through. The only downside is that just like the first one is that they never actually explain "how to train your dragon".