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Thursday, January 31, 2019

Watching (sobbing) through the Second Film... the Last Time Before We See The End


Whew, well... I tackled the second movie this evening! Gosh, it's basically just one day until seeing the third one! I knew this day would come eventually, just not so soon! I don't feel ready! I've made notes while watching through the second film, but they probably aren't as thoughtful as the ones I made for the first one (because I was crying too much, tbh!!). If you'd like to see my thoughts, click the "read more".

Diving into the second part! Man, I don’t know the intro lines to this one nearly as well… probably because I haven’t watched it anywhere near as many times as the first one! That’s not because I don’t like it… it just kinda throws me into an emotional rollercoaster that is probably not good for my mental health if done too frequently XD

The racing scene is so colorful and energetic! It’s a reminder that the world has gotten so much brighter and better now that we have peace… and that the budding teens have grown into young adults! It tosses us right back into their frantic and action-filled lives! Astrid is by far my favorite part of this first scene! The musical high when she gets the black sheep from the twins makes me want to cheer every time!

“That’s my future daughter-in-law!” HECK YES

And then Hiccup and Toothless show up, and all the excitement and wonder of the first scene vanishes. We remember EXACTLY why we fell for this story. These two shine so brightly in the first flight scene, and the music and cinematography are astounding!!

I love the close up shot of Toothless’s face, getting to see him excited and determined as he carves through the air. Hiccup holding his arms out while they soar together… it looks like it would be SO FUN to ride that dragon.

GotNF PARALLELS. Nuff said

Hiccup and Toothless wrestling of Itchy Armpit has got to be one of my favorite moments in the franchise. Also, dang Toothless looks heavy! Poor Hiccup XD

“Who knows? Maybe we’ll finally track down another Night Fury.” As far as we know, by the time of the third movie, Toothless is the very last of his kind. It’s really tragic when you let it sink in. 

“Afternoon Milady.” GotNF REFERENCES.

Some day soon, I’m gonna write a post about Hiccup’s sarcasm. I love how well it is handled and how it really works with his character traits in the film. I dislike it very much in the show… but I’ll save that for the post.

Wow, I just realized a single bright-side to the awful lab I left at the end of last year (joining a new one has made my life 100x better). When I gave a presentation, my old boss was furious because I gestured much too much with my hands (to be fair, she had a point). But Hiccup is doing EXACTLY THAT without noticing it in this scene with Astrid! I am now proud of my random hand movements J

My gosh. And I thought Hiccup couldn’t get more relatable than he was in film one. Some might accuse it of being melodramatic, but Hiccup’s uncertainty of who he is and who he will be is so phenomenally well done. It hurts to see him so conflicted early on, so vulnerable with Astrid. 

I LAUGHED SO HARDAstrid getting Toothless spit when she kisses Hiccup is so wrong XD Hahaha, and then she sighs and says “Hiccup”in exasperation at her boyfriend. It’s just perfect.

Oh my word. This film makes it so clear that Hiccup hasn’t met other people who train/ride dragons. UUUUUUGH. 

Toothless roaring so hotly at Eret is really, really cool looking!

The grey areas of pacifism are explored so beautifully in this film. 

Hiccup surrenders. Astrid walks along dumbfounded. Toothless goes from being cute as he follows Hiccup to looking like a straight-up nightmare as he glares and snarls at all the trappers!

“Anyone else?... That’s what I figured.” Ha, me and my bro say this line ALL THE TIME

I love how Cloudjumper is roaring and flailing around, showing off his size and strength in order to intimidate Toothless. But it doesn’t work at all. Hiccup keeps telling his dragon to hold, and it’s a good thing to. Toothless just give Cloudjumper a death glare that says, “I will end you if you touch him.” This is not a dragon to be trifled with!

Valka’s body language throughout the entire film is so masterfully executed!

Do dragons eat people in the HTTYD universe? Contrary to RoB which claimed they only eat fish, I’d say quotes from the first and second film basically confirm that it has happened…

Poor Toothless is so awkward around all the other dragons! I imagine he’s been a loner most of his life, and he’s not crazy about getting touched by everyone!

I also love how, even with the worry that Hiccup inherited his worldview and dragon training abilities from Valka, we also see that her view that “some people are born different”, and “people are incapable of change” are both solidly incorrect. Again, this film balances it’s themes so incredibly well!

I love how CHEERY Astrid is as she kidnaps Eret! She’s such a boss.

BAHAHAHAHA! I got caught up in the scene and forgot that Toothless gives Cloudjumper the smuggest look of all time! Hilarious!

I love how willing Hiccup is to forgive his mother. The selfless, humble, forgiving nature of Hiccup as a character has truly defined him since the very beginning. He trusts a dragon, not holding his mother’s “death” against dragon-kind. He holds nothing against the other teens, who, to be blunt, treated him like garbage. It’s just not in Hiccup to hold onto bitterness, and I adore that about him!

Chills. After seeing Hookfang be some dominating and frightening in the first film, it is INSANELY SCARY to see Drago break him. 

Astrid may or may not be bluffing… but the fact that she claims that Hiccup could blast through Drago’s entire fleet on the back of his Night Fury and decimate it is testament to how massively over-powered Toothless is! He’s literally a one dragon army…BEFORE he becomes Alpha!!

The beauty of Stoick approaching Valka, listening to her accusations, silently watching as she breaks down and realizes that she was the one who was in the wrong… and then giving her nothing but the purest, kindest love. It’s amazing. Stoick was a GREAT character in the first film, flaws and all, but his actions in the second clearly display why Hiccup looks up to him!

If I stopped to cover the scene with Stoick and Valka’s dance, I’ll never make it through the movie! What an amazingly high point in the franchise. The joy is so pure… especially on Hiccup’s face. It’s like he could have never dreamed of this happening. I cried through the entire thing!

Man, the dragons swarm outside. It’s the end of that one moment where Hiccup’s family was truly whole. 

The Alpha dies, and my heart immediately starts racing and I feel sick. I don’t think I’m gonna be able to comment through these next few parts…

To put it very simply: I had no idea this much water could come out of my head.

Heh… I feel awful now.

Ok. I’ve pulled myself mostly together. Man, this movie may start a little slower than it’s predecessor, but act three is just one non-stop tragedy/triumph cry fest for me!

Ok, let’s all agree that Toothless bursting out of the ice is the coolest thing we’ve ever seen! That ROAR is so angry! He’s literally never been more furious! This monster took everything from him, his will, his friend, his father. And now it tries to end Hiccup right in front of Toothless, and that’s the final straw. Toothless does the unthinkable. He challenges a mountain sized dragon, and he WINS. And it is all for Hiccup! DANG THIS MOVIE IS EPIC

Hiccup taking up the mantel of chief is one of the most mature plot aspects I’ve ever seen portrayed. It’s such a shocking arc. I love this sequel so much.

And one final GotNF parallel with Hiccup dunking that sheep… what a way to end it. I’ve spent years wondering how Hiccup, Toothless, and the village coped with the loss of Stoick (even wrote my favorite story I’ve ever done based off of that question), and now we’ll get to see. We’ll see the impact of all that happened, both good and bad, in this epic second chapter. We’re about to dive back into Hiccup and Toothless’s story, one final HUGE adventure to end it all… and I’m both excited, sad, and terrified! 

Whew…

Da Da Da, we’re dead!






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