Tag: animation

“Hi, I’m looking for a one-legged Viking and a Night Fury. Tell me where they are!”

As promised, the actual posting:

Season Three: Race to the Edge

Enemy of My Enemy starts with Astrid catching Hiccup and Toothless sneaking out, intending to go on a recon flight alone.  She tells Hiccup it’s far too risky and points out it’s been months since the Viggo episode (bit of fourth-wall leaning there, love it).  Hiccup appears to agree and let Astrid come, but as soon as she goes to get Stormfly, he and Toothless fly off alone.  Hiccup is eager to test out Toothless’ new tail and really enjoys the flight, until they come across a ship with seemingly unconscious men.  More like a trap.  Toothless gets hit with an arrow, but Hiccup manages to get them to an island.  He has to hide his dragon and keep him safe.  Hmm, maybe Astrid had a point.

Someone is secretly helping Hiccup.  And to everyone’s surprise, it’s Dagur.  Who swears he is not there to hurt Hiccup.  We’re all a bit skeptical.  Hiccup remains calm, though weirded out and wonders if he’s in an alternate archipelago.  Turns out, Dagur went through a major learning experience, discovering he was dispensable to Viggo, then getting stranded on the island for months alone.  All that alone time has given him time to think, though he’s still got his crazy laugh.  Dagur is calmer for the most part and also wants to do right by his sister.  Heather is blood, which makes her closer to Dagur than even Hiccup (still weird).  Dagur continues to be helpful to Hiccup, with knowledge of the antidote to Dragon Root.

It’s Dagur who counsels Hiccup on seeking revenge and obsession.  It’s a dark road to go down.  Paranoia is a terrible existence, the older boy tells his ‘brother,’ and it’s not Hiccup.  However, the guards discover the young men.  Dagur protects Hiccup and Hiccup even defends himself with a mace, lifting it with ease (remember back at the beginning of the first movie and he could barely lift an axe?).  But Hiccup is still mistrustful of Dagur and when it appears that the antidote may not be working, Hiccup attacks Dagur.  They fall in front of guards again and again, Dagur tries to protect Hiccup, especially when it looks like the Hunters will brand the younger man.  Dagur manages to get free and has to leave Hiccup.  The younger man shouts after his adversary “I hate you!”

But Dagur holds to his word to help Hiccup and comes to the rescue on Toothless.  And now he understands the crazy stunts the two pull and is impressed, and queasy.  The two shake hands and go to destroy the Hunters’ ship.  They’re separated and Dagur sails off alone, eager to find Viggo himself and rid the archipelago of the man.

The Fireworm Queen arrives on the Edge, looking for Hookfang in Crash Course.  She persuades the dragons to come to Fireworm Island.  But it’s not a hunter threat, it’s a creepy new dragon that’s eager to destroy her nest.  Fishlegs pulls out his dragon cards to figure out what the new dragon is (similar to fantasy cards…I guess.  Not quite into that), calling is a Cavern Crasher.  This thing oozes mucus out of its body to allow it to squeeze through impossibly tight cracks; it’s also wicked fast.  All accurately pointed out by the twins; they do have their moments.  Hookfang and Snotlout stand with the Fireworm Queen to defend her nest while the other riders try to figure out how to get rid of the new dragon.  They dry out its mucus and it runs off.  Hiccup even praises Snotlout for his actions, this after he encourages the twins.  He’s becoming a good leader.

This gets tested a bit in Follow the Leader by Fishlegs, who was put in charge of the twins and Snotlout.  But they walk over him and he doesn’t put up much resistance, instead daydreaming (in a different animation style) of being renowned by Berk and Hiccup and named the next leader of the Dragon Riders when Hiccup starts training to be chief (by a more Scottish sounding Hiccup).  When Astrid and Hiccup return to the Edge and find things on fire due to the rambunctious riders, Hiccup expresses his disappointment in Fishlegs.  This sort of thing can’t happen out here; they’re on their own and Viggo is certainly a threat. 

So Fishlegs wanders off and discovers a new cave with some interesting finds, such as a sword and writing on the wall.  He also discovers albino Night Terrors, who seem to make him their new leader when he closes an opening that was letting too much light into a big cavern.  They like him so much they don’t want him to leave.  Meanwhile, Hiccup is feeling guilty, that maybe he was too hard on Fishlegs.  Meatlug alerts the other riders to Fishlegs’ plight.  Fishlegs helps all of them get out of the cavern, with a little help from his favorite Terror, Darkvarg.  They close up the hole, so the Night Terrors can’t get out.  Then Fishlegs and Hiccup both apologize.  Fishlegs points out that Hiccup leads by example, not fear.  Hiccup also admits he struggles with containing the twins and Snotlout as well.  The friends then eagerly geek out over Fishlegs’ discoveries.

Hiccup is working on his ‘Dragon Fly Two’ in Turn and Burn.  Toothless is not amused, even when Hiccup talks about the precarious situations that it gets his rider into that he also has to rescue him from.  Snotlout and Hookfang want to help their leader, but end up lighting Hiccup’s hut on fire.  Before Snotlout and Hiccup can truly get into an argument, Stoick arrives, to speak to Snotlout.  Spitelout is driving the chief nuts, now wanting to improve everything.  Stoick feels they are out of Spitelout’s place in the tribe, or station in life.  His relationship with Spitelout is very similar to Hiccup’s relationship with Snotlout [a lot of the fandom hold that Snotlout and Hiccup are cousins, which is inspired from the books, from what I’ve heard].  Spitelout’s main idea is an off-Berk secret cache.  Now that man hasn’t been seen in a month.  Stoick has come to get Snotlout to help look for his father.  Hiccup joins them.

The men find Spitelout’s building and dragon traps, but not Spitelout immediately.  They do discover a new dragon, a Singetail, which Spitelout appears to save them from.  Stoick and Spitelout argue and Stoick appears to have a double standard.  “Stoick is allowed to take whatever ridiculous chances he likes.  It’s the rest of us who have to stay in line.”  Hiccup tries to get everyone back on track; they can work together to drive the Singetail off and save the storehouse.  His suggestion, since it is an unconventional dragon, is to fight it unconventionally.  They soon discover the dragon can also fire from its belly.

Fed up, the chief lays down the law and both sons hesitate to follow their fathers.  Hiccup talks to his father, pointing out that Snotlout and Spitelout both just want to prove themselves to the Haddocks.  They fly back to the storehouse to find more Singetails.  Hiccup realizes that the fires the one has been setting have been a call for back up.  Spitelout agrees to give up the structure, though Stoick does save the ‘S.’

In Buffalord Solider, Astrid is checking the perimeter and comes across an abandoned ship.  It’s filled with bodies, mostly dead.  One that still has a bit of life in it scratches her arm.  She and Stormfly quickly fly back to the Edge.  Her description of the bodies reveals that they died from the Scourge of Odin, a deadly plague that “swept through the archipelago centuries ago, wiping out entire Viking villages.”  Tuffnut’s solution is moldy bread [which is technically how penicillin was discovered.]  Astrid doesn’t mention the scratch.  It’s Stormfly who gets Hiccup in the middle of the night when her rider becomes very sick.  Astrid still protests there’s anything wrong with her, until she faints into Hiccup’s arms (we love Hiccstrid!)

Everyone works together, Snotlout having flown to Berk and back with Gothi’s notes.  There is a cure for the Scourge, a solution made from the saliva of a Buffalord dragon.  Except, those were hunted to extinction during the last plague.  The twins start seeing a pattern in Dragon’s Eye notes and help discover a map to the Buffalord.  The team sets out to find the dragon, Hiccup using Flightmare Algae for tracking and Deathsong amber glasses he was working on to see in the bright sunrise.  There’s one dragon left.  Pretty calm, but when the riders try to fly him back to the Edge, it freaks out and puffs up.  Very well, they’ll get the solution and take it back.  But it evaporates too quickly.  Thanks to the twins, they also figure out that the saliva must be mixed with the herbs that the Buffalord eats.  Snotlout retrieves Astrid.

She falls into Hiccup’s arms (and we hear a quiet, slow version of Romantic Flight) and he pleads with her to hold on.  “I can’t imagine a world without you in it.”  Hiccup is prevented from getting the cure for Astrid by the arrival of Viggo, Ryker, and other Hunters.  This was all part of Viggo’s plan, to create supply and demand; Astrid just stumbled onto his test ship.  Hiccup at first refuses to let them take the Buffalord dragon, until Viggo and Ryker are willing to kill it.  Hiccup then begs for enough of the cure to save Astrid, “that’s a loss I’m not willing to take.”

Hiccup is able to cure Astrid and keeps his word that Viggo may take the dragon.  But Hiccup also knew that the dragon would not travel with Viggo.  The Hunters are forced to release the dragon, who flies back to his island and peacefully eats his herbs.  The riders give the boat a proper funeral [which echoes a scene that comes up in How to Train Your Dragon 2, so if you’ve seen that movie first (which came out before the show), this is a very poignant scene].  Astrid then tells Hiccup, “I can’t imagine a world without you either.”  The couple is well on its way to becoming an official couple.

The riders work together in A Grim Retreat to produce Gronkle Iron.  They have a production line going.  Except, they keep at it all day, which drains everyone.  Most of the riders want a vacation.   Hiccup is more concerned about having the iron for weapons and defense against Viggo.  Even Astrid counsels Hiccup that they need rest in order to perform better.  She and Fishlegs find a nice island that they can visit and pick up more sandstone even.  Stoick and Gobber arrive to keep an eye on the Edge, and babysit Tuffnutt’s pet ‘Chicken.’

The teens enjoy an afternoon of swimming.  At night however, the dragons turn feral, except Toothless.  They all have to hide from their dragons; Snotlout at one point annoying Astrid so much she tells him “if you don’t shut your piehole, I’m going to leap out and plead with them to eat us both.”  Hiccup eventually figures out there’s something in the water that’s affecting the dragons.  Tuff throws salt when he runs out of weapons against their attacking dragons, which actually causes the dragon to stop.  Tiny bugs leap out of the dragon; grimora.  They are parasites that affect dragons.  Salt drives them out, so they have to find a saltwater source.  Toothless gets infected for a second time and traps Hiccup on top of a cliff.  They both fall off, into the water, but there is a plasma blast.  Could Toothless have fired on Hiccup?  A minute later, the grimora fly out and Toothless and Hiccup burst out of the water.  Hiccup now agrees that they will take breaks as they need so he doesn’t work them too hard and have to repeat the incident.

When arriving back on the Edge, the teens find out that Stoick and Gobber both think that Chicken was eaten by the other and have found replacement chickens.  Chicken is of course fine.

Everyone is suspicious of the notes that Fishlegs keeps receiving in To Heather or Not to Heather.  They find out they’re from Heather and urge Fishlegs to have her stop at the Edge.  Everyone also wants to ask Heather to join the dragon riders permanently.  But Heather worries she has the Berserker insanity in her.  Hiccup is quick to assure her she is nothing like Dagur.  Heather also spends time with Astrid as two warrior women.  Until Heather brings up the subject of Hiccup; she feels that the two are perfect for each other and they should stop wasting time and express their feelings.

Heather and Fishlegs are rather cozy; Heather was more open in her letters to Fishlegs and readily agrees to take a tour with the young man, much to Snotlout’s dismay.  Their mood is ruined once Meathlug and Windshear start fighting.  Windshear is not used to spending so much time around other dragons, or other people being so near her rider.  Hiccup is willing to work with Heather and her dragon, again, in the hope that Heather will stay with the riders.

There is a skirmish between Hunters and Riders; Fishlegs and Heather end up switching dragons and that seems to work.  Windshear will still protect Heather, but not attack the riders’ dragons.  Heather decides to stay.  The mood is ruined when Hiccup receives a letter from Dagur, asking for his help to find his sister.  Hiccup promises that Dagur won’t find Heather.

Styke Out centers on dragon fights run by Ryker and other Hunters.  The matches have low attendance since one champion outperforms the other.  When Snotlout and Hiccup go to rescue dragons, Hiccup is trapped by a knock-out gas and ultimately taken to the dragon fights, where Toothless as a Night Fury will be a new star and drum up business.  Hiccup is also chained alongside the dragons.

Hiccup ordered Snotlout to go get help and Snotlout is very keen to get Hiccup back.  The twins decide to become Thorston and Thorston, Sleuths Extraordinaire.  What works better is using Heather’s knowledge of the Hunter organization.

Hiccup watches Toothless’ match against a Razorwhip and urges his dragon not to kill.  After winning that match, the Night Fury will face the Triple Stryke champion dragon.  Ryker finds out about the match and warns his underling, who won’t call it off, that if the Night Fury dies, he faces an unhappy Ryker and Viggo.  Ryker also wants Hiccup.  Said Viking the meantime, befriends the other dragons, though very carefully.  “Call my old fashioned but I prefer not to lose another limb.”  (Yay, the lad has some self-preservation.)  Again, Hiccup urges Toothless not to kill the Triple Stryke, though the dragons are evenly matched, and is freed by Astrid shortly afterwards.  Toothless shows the other dragon mercy and the rest of the dragons are set free.  Ryker is forced back and the other riders chase the crowd away.

The Triple Stryke, which Tuffnutt suggest be named ‘Sleuther,’ follows them back to the Edge.  All the riders are happy Hiccup is back, though Fishlegs points out that “Astrid would have killed you (Snotlout) if we hadn’t found Hiccup.”

I like that this episode focuses more on Toothless as a strategist and a glimpse what a Night Fury might be like in the wild.  Hiccup still uses his brains to help dragons, but this wasn’t a problem to be solved from the air.  It’s also a bit sweet that the riders all care so much about Hiccup that they get very angry when trying to find him.

The riders rescue a dragon egg in Tone Death.  It’s a very cute dragon when it hatches.  Until it starts screaming, and spitting amber.  It’s a baby Deathsong.  Hiccup still wants to train it.  Heather figures out the way to calm the baby, named Garff now, is to sing to it.  Commence all the different riders singing their lessons; it’s rather hilarious.  But they decide it’s best to take the baby to be with its own kind.  Things are a bit tense, hoping that the adult Deathsong will bond with a baby not its own.  Garff has to echo that dragon’s song back and forget what the riders taught it.

Hiccup is also working on a new gadget; a flaming sword using Nightmare gel he calls Inferno.  [Spoiler, this is a prototype to one he carries in the second movie.]  It’s inspired by figuring out that a lit dagger will cut through Deathsong amber.  He excitedly talks about modifications with Astrid, who comments “that will be the last we see of him for a week.”

Between a Rock and a Hard Place has the riders tracking a convoy of marble blocks.  Turns out that the Hunters are using Catastrophic Quakens to mine the marble.  Viggo is using it to create an impenetrable roof for his hide out.  But the mining has made the island unstable.  Hiccup does get to show off his different tails for Toothless, but Fishlegs is a big help.  They free the Quakens, then use them to tear down Viggo’s roof (you can hear a bit of the battle theme in the background).  Viggo is extremely displeased with Hiccup after that stunt.

When the riders return from a practice run at taking out a fleet, they find Dagur at Dragon’s Edge in Family on the Edge.  He’s come in person to ask Hiccup for a dragon so he can find Heather.  Hiccup and Toothless owe him; he saved their lives.  Hiccup points out that Dagur also tried to kill them.  Well, maybe deep inside, Dagur didn’t actually want to kill them.  Hiccup eventually relents, mainly so Dagur doesn’t go wandering around.  Dagur hugs his “brother,” and calls him “small and cuddly.”  We agree with Hiccup, that Dagur should never say that again.

Hiccup on the side has to get Heather to leave so the siblings don’t see each other.  He picks a sturdy and safe dragon for Dagur, a Gronkle.  Also not terribly dangerous and less of a threat to the riders.  Dagur still names the Gronkle ‘Shattermaster.’  Dagur is an enthusiastic student, but tries to do too much too fast.  He ends up barreling into Hiccup and breaking his prosthetic leg.  Hiccup takes Shattermaster to get a spare.  While they’re gone, the other riders find Dagur with Toothless and fear he’s done something to Hiccup.  Hiccup shows up to set them straight and admits he didn’t tell them about Dagur saving his life because he honestly doesn’t know how he feels about it.

There is still their plan attack on Viggo’s shipyard.  Astrid finds it very strange that Dagur shows up right when they’re getting ready to strike.  And unfortunately, Heather returns early and finds Dagur on the Edge.  She is not happy.  She calls Dagur a spy.  Points out that he set her adrift as a child and killed their father.  Dagur pleads that he is trying to change.  He decides to leave since the riders don’t trust him.  But he comes across Hiccup’s plans.  He guesses what Hiccup’s attack plan will be and calls the young Viking gullible.  Astrid sees them and Dagur agrees to be locked up, though he warns Hiccup that if anything happens to Heather on the mission, he’ll hold Hiccup personally responsible.

Dagur then escapes and heads out for the shipyard.  Heather races after him, intent on killing him.  Dagur starts the attack and reveals that it was indeed a trap.  He flies alone into an ashy cloud where explosions go off.  The rest of the riders have to hang back.  Hiccup wants to go save him, but Astrid stops him.  It’s too late.  Hiccup is genuinely upset that Dagur is dead.  On the Edge, Heather finds a letter her brother left for her.  He has her “tell our little brother” (that is kind of sweet) to hit Viggo’s auction and release all those dragons.  He also wants to set the record straight; he never killed their father.  He just used his disappearance so the tribe would think he was tough enough to be chief.  It starts to rain, but the letter gets wet from Heather’s tears.  All accompanied by bagpipes and mournful music.  I wanted to shed a few tears myself.

They take Dagur’s advice in Last Auction Heroes and have Trader Johan steal a map for them to the next location.  Hiccup goes to his father to ask for Berk’s cache of gold to get Snotlout into the auction.  He tells his father, “Viggo Grimborn is the most ruthless Viking we have come in contact with…. No dragon will be safe and eventually, he will set his eyes on Berk.”  Snotlout is the only rider that Viggo hasn’t seen.  He’ll still go in disguise and Gobber will go to keep an eye on the gold.  Snotlout enjoys his assignment of being a rich businessman a bit too much; he’s gleeful to order other people around.  The riders sneak in in the belly of Johan’s ship, with their dragons as the bait.

Eventually, the riders are caught, though Heather and Astrid make a kickass double team.  Viggo intends to sell Toothless, as the only Night Fury in existence.  There is a stranger at the auction, keen to buy the rare dragon.  Viggo brings Hiccup out so he can watch.  Gobber comes to the rescue, with his new dragon, Grump.  He fights Ryker to protect Hiccup.  Astrid is the one to saves him, but Viggo still gets away with their gold.  Hiccup thought they had a chance to get it back, but Viggo switched the chests.  The other riders tell Hiccup to look on the bright side, they saved the dragons.

The season ends with the first of a two-parter Defenders of the Wing.  The riders continue to rescue dragons.  But now, Viggo wants to meet.  All of the riders, even Hiccup, is aware that this can be a trap.  He lets Heather and Astrid come to the meeting spot with him, which is full of blue oleander, which is poisonous to dragons.  Viggo calls Hiccup a worthy opponent and wants to offer a truce.  They divide the map.  Everything north of the line, the Hunters will have free rein, the riders may stay to the south, and neither side will cross the line.  Viggo even signs his name to the map.  He has no desire to rule the world, unlike some [big old hint drop].  He’s a business man and all this fighting is bad for business.

After the meeting, Hiccup notices that there is an island he doesn’t recognize as Viking or Hunter just inside the line on Viggo’s side.  Hiccup is trying to work out what Viggo is thinking.  So, they need to investigate this island.  At first, all seems fine, though there is a large statue of a dragon.  Then, the riders start disappearing and getting drugged.  They eventually meet Mala, Queen of Defender of the Wing Island and her right-hand man, Throk.  (Ironically, Mala is voiced by Adelaide Kane, who plays Mary Stuart in Reign, along with Ivy Belfrey/Drizella in the last season of Once Upon a Time.)  Mala thinks that Viggo sent the riders to their island, that they are Hunters.  They’re enslaving their dragons.

But when her Defenders try to release the dragons, they don’t fly away.  Instead, Mala holds a trial and asks Hiccup questions.  Tuffnutt does not help matters when he points out things that Hiccup has done, like shooting down Toothless and crippling him.  Hiccup tries to argue that they could be allies against Viggo.  He is willing to earn their trust.  But Mala feels that the map Hiccup carries makes him guilty.  Hiccup again will do anything to save his friends and their dragons.  He bets their lives he can train a dragon in front of Mala.  Of course, there are three Speed Stingers, but Toothless comes to his rescue.  Mala trusts the dragon and releases the riders.

She explains that their island is home to a volcano and their Great Protector.  An Eruptadon eats the lava and keeps them safe.  But they find the Great Protector gone, with evidence that Hunters had attacked.  Now Mala is angry that Hiccup has led the Hunters right to their home and taken their treasured dragon.  Mala vows to kill Hiccup. 

And that is how the season ends!

I like how the storyline is advancing.  There are new challenges for the characters.  They learn to work together and everyone has a skill to bring to the group.  I of course like that Hiccup and Astrid are growing closer.  Astrid still is the voice of reason in their friendship and continues to act as his right hand.  Snotlout, while still reckless, is tempering it a bit.  He wants to be helpful.  He listens to Hiccup more.  The twins are crazy, but do we expect any different.  Stoick listens to his son as a leader and again, as the future chief.

As I commented in Season 2, Viggo is a smart opponent.  Hiccup has his victories, but he can’t easily outsmart this man.  Viggo has to work harder to counteract Hiccup.  I like that Dagur is now on Hiccup’s side.  Honestly, the boy doesn’t need that many enemies, and a Berserker is a good weapon in the arsenal; he’s got crazy ideas and enough guts to back it up.  As showcased by taking the suicide mission.

The Defenders of the Wing will be a great group to keep an eye on.

Up Next: Season Four

“I see nothing has changed.” “Yup, same story, different year.”

Dawn of the Dragon Riders

This was released as a short with the second movie, but takes place between the end of Defenders of Berk and Race to the Edge.  The riders are catching sheep and then start discussing how Dragon Racing was started [which spoilers, opens the second film].  They all wear face paint and Astrid comments to Hiccup that “red is your color,” but is speaking more to Toothless [note how Hiccup wears a red tunic in Race to the Edge].  Snotlout’s sheep catapult apparently took 32 attempts to perfect and thus he argues that he created the sport.

What really happened is that Stoick had the teens help Silent Sven gather up his sheep, and as the other riders tend to do, they made a competition out of it.  Stoick then has to go on business to Loki Island for wood for their fleet and leaves Hiccup as ‘acting chief,’ and with strict instructions to begin preparations for the annual regatta.  Hiccup remarks how the regatta comprises of boats sailing slowly across the harbor, arguing that they could start a new, exciting tradition.  Stoick holds to the regatta; their clan has been doing it for ages as a way to blow off steam instead of fighting each other.

Fishlegs is the only one really excited for the regatta.  Meanwhile, Hiccup walks in on Tuffnut planning on catching more sheep.  When he tries to put a stop to it, explaining that they need to work on the regatta, Snotlout, in all his brilliance, retorts “Who made you acting chief?”  “Stoick.”  “Well, who made Stoick chief?” and everyone gives him a look.  Hiccup asks Astrid for back up, then has to face the village when they excitedly cheer on the riders chasing sheep; one even remarking “this is better than the regatta!”  So, Hiccup allows one more race to settle everyone down, though he works on making teams and baskets, then figures they’ll all be ready for regatta work afterwards.

Snotlout crashes into Astrid and hurts her arm.  Hiccup finally talks Fishlegs into joining him when they find out that Meatlug is seasick and sinks their boat.  However, Stoick returns early.  Seeing how excited the village is, he decides to switch to dragon racing and adds some more ideas, such as the face paint to give it a warrior feel.  Astrid will be the referee and keeps an eye on the riders.  It comes to a tie breaker, involving the black sheep.  Fishlegs and Hiccup find one in the well, but Snotlout has returned with one.  Tuffnut rubs his face on the sheep, revealing it was painted, so the results are overturn to crown Hiccup and Fishlegs as the winners.

So, Tuffnut argues he invented the game, well, definitely the cheating.  Hiccup insists they all invented it to keep peace, though it was Snotlout who made the sheep launcher.

Race to the Edge: Season 1

This show was developed by Netflix (though I have them on DVD in case of no Internet connection, or Netflix ever drops it) and was actually done after the second movie, but chronologically takes place before.  It features an entirely new intro and utilizes music from the second movie.  The series starts with the two-parter Eye of the Beholder, which sets the stage three years after the showdown with Dagur (making our main characters all around eighteen). Indeed, Dagur actually ends up escaping the Outcast prison and is bent on revenge on Hiccup.

Meanwhile, Hiccup is still doing stunts with Toothless and remarks he needs his own set of wings when they end up separating and plummeting for a minute.  The narration of “this is Berk,” is back, explaining the time jump and showcasing the new parts of Berk.  The riders have moved on to new tasks; the twins pledging to cause all the chaos they can in the name of Loki.  Snotlout is a weapons’ tester, and Fishlegs is educating the children, talking about Hiccup and Toothless as the new heroes of Berk.  Astrid catches up to Hiccup, who is eager to do more exploring; except they’ve covered the area directly surrounding Berk, more than once.  Hiccup says “this can’t be all there is.”  Astrid tells Hiccup she has joined the Berk Guard, so all of his friends have moved on to new jobs.  But Hiccup still yearns to explore.  He says as much to his father that evening.

Their evening is interrupted by news from Johann that Dagur has escaped and he is more berserk than ever.  He also holds a map to Johann’s graveyard of ships, where he hides all his treasures.  He warns the Berkians of the “Reaper” ship, which is full of booby traps.  The other riders eagerly join Hiccup to head off Dagur; they plan to steal the treasures first so Dagur can’t use them to purchase a new armada.  Their way is impeded by giant eels, which chase most of the dragons off.  While they wait for them to return, they separate to gather treasure.  The twins find jewels, Fishlegs finds maps, charts, and books, and Snotlout finds a chest of blond hair [which was actually prized by Vikings.]  Hiccup heads over to the “Reaper,” determined that the most valuable items will be there.  And if the ship is that booby trapped, it must be hiding something important.  He jokes of the benefit of a metal leg when a trap springs around it and he prefers Toothless’s plan of simply blasting the door open.  They also discover a dragon skeleton aboard the ship; so this place was no friend of dragons.  Hiccup takes an object from the captain’s room because it must be dangerous to dragons and thus really cannot fall into Dagur’s hands.  A giant axe falling makes sure they rush back to the deck of the ship, only to find that Dagur has captured the other riders.

Dagur is certainly more unhinged after three years in prison, attempting to flirt with his brother.  But he’s busy with an army to build and revenge to plot.  Astrid sends Hiccup after Dagur, but Dagur was expecting that, so he arranges for the ship to be sunk, causing Hiccup to have to choose between going after Dagur and the strange new item, or saving his friends.

Part Two immediately picks up with the riders’ predicament.  And a new challenge is that the cage is made of dragon-proof metal.  And the giant eels are back.  They manage to escape and their dragons come to the recuse, so Hiccup chases after Dagur and gets the strange item back.  Gobber tries to help the teens figure out what the item is, which Hiccup has named the Dragon Eye, though Tuffnut bears the brunt of the mistakes.  While they’re at Gothi’s she recognizes a mark on the item that came from a Snow Wraith dragon.  Hiccup persuades Gothi (who may have scribbled something not kind about him, but Gobber wouldn’t translate since Hiccup is the chief’s son) to go with them to get the tooth they need to unlock the Dragon Eye, saying that didn’t she once want to see what is out there and find answers to questions not thought of yet.

The Snow Wraith attacks during snowstorms, able to sense heat signatures, which the teens do try to use to their advantage.  Luckily, when it attacks Gothi at one point, she makes to get a tooth stuck in her staff.  Hiccup is now able to unlock the Dragon Eye.  And it doesn’t do much to start, until it catches the light of a dragon’s fire, then it presents images on the wall.  “This changes everything,” Hiccup remarks (and this line is used in the new intro.)

Hiccup excitedly shows the riders his discovery in Imperfect Harmony, explaining that much of it is in a different language and the maps show areas beyond the boundaries of their archipelago.  Next, Hiccup goes to the council, pleading that he wants to explore the new areas.  Spitelout brings up that they have been at peace for several years and they shouldn’t go looking for trouble.  It’s more important to hunt for Dagur, than new dragons.  Stoick agrees that peace is important, but dragons are important to Hiccup and what would any of them do for something like that?  How far would they go to get it, what would they risk?  Besides, they couldn’t stop the boy if they tried, he might as well have their support.  The council agrees and Stoick sends his son off to find what is pulling on him.  And when he’s done, Berk will be waiting for him.  He also tells Toothless, “take care of my boy.”

The other riders again join in, shouting “into the great beyond!”  They get discouraged after a while and Hiccup encourages them by saying “nothing that’s worth anything comes easy.”  They have to fly though a bit of a storm, but the cloud covers break and they see new islands below them.  A strange sound comes to them and their dragons head down to an island.  It’s idyllic, but come morning, all the dragons are gone.  While searching, Toothless comes across the riders and quickly pulls Hiccup’s leg to follow.  The prosthetic leg.  Which comes off, but Hiccup appreciates Toothless’s enthusiasm.

A Thunderdrum comes along while Toothless and Hiccup are flying and screams at the other teens.  Hiccup comes back to chase the dragon off and tries to say he is going back up, but everyone shouts “no,” and Snotlout adds “I will take your other leg!”  So they all go together and find a pile of dragon bones, then find pieces of amber, and finally, dragons trapped in the amber.  A large shrieking dragon makes an appearance, which they name the Death Song.  Its cry draws dragons in, then it spits amber at them to trap them, then eats them later.  Toothless tries to take on the Death Song, but he’s soon trapped, as are the other riders, though Astrid pushes Hiccup out of the way.

He comes across the Thunderdrum again and manages to get it to trust him.  They return to Hiccup’s friends, where he has an idea to spread Monstrous Nightmare gel on the cocoons, then make a spark so they break open.  They also free a baby Thunderdrum, which why the adult one had stuck around.  All the dragons work together to relocate the Death Song to a cave.  The riders eagerly continue on their adventure; it’s the most fun they’ve had in years.  They will try to find an island of their own to make into a base of operations.  Into the great beyond!

That search continues in When Darkness Falls.  Apparently, they keep coming across an island full of boars and once, Snotlout even tries to use Hiccup’s leg as a weapon, though they’re rescued by their dragons in time.  Eventually, they come across a perfect looking island.  The riders start planning what their outpost is going to look like; Hiccup just wants them to set up camp for the night.  Astrid wants it defensible, Snotlout wants an “S,” Fishlegs wants it to be zen, and the twins wants a boar pit.  They sleep next to their dragons that night and Tuffnut wakes to an odd sound.  He does come across a chicken, but also a large dragon.  The rest of the riders don’t immediately believe him, mainly since he shouts “chicken roar!” to warn them along with his phrase “I am hurt, I am very much hurt!” (first appeared in the first movie).  Tuffnut goes looking for the dragon again, and Ruffnut accompanies him, ready to declare herself the winner of the “Thorston challenge” if Tuffnut is making it up.  Hiccup pleads to go with them to get away from the others arguing about the outpost.

The giant dragon indeed shows up, though they realize it’s a lot of little dragons.  The twins capture the light-colored leader.  Hiccup allows Tuffnut to name it “Smidvarg,” though they call the rest of them Night Terrors.  But Changewings soon move in and harass the other Night Terrors.  The riders figure out that the small dragons work together to look like a large version in order to scare off predators and all work together to chase off the Changewings.  The riders befriend the Night Terrors and Hiccup comes up with a single idea for the outpost, incorporating everyone’s wants.  Everyone has their own spot and then there’s a clubhouse in the center, along with a training arena and stables.  He calls it Dragon’s Edge.

The riders return to Berk at Stoick’s request to relocate a Scauldron, but the plan goes awry in Big Man on Berk.  Fishlegs is now possibly allergic to Meatlug.  Gothi determines that they should hypnotize him in order to get him over the allergy.  Snotlout takes it as an opportunity to suggest a new personality to Fishlegs.  When he wakes, he ignores Meatlug and is now all about heroics and being a super Viking named ‘Thor Bonecrusher.’  Snotlout gets a crush on him, but Fishlegs is fairly dismissive.  The other riders want Fishlegs back, but since he broke Gothi’s staff, they have to figure out another way. 

Fishlegs goes after the Scauldron, with Snotlout and Hookfang.  Meatlug ends up saving Fishlegs, but then the Scauldron chases Meatlug.  That fear snaps Thor back to Fishlegs.  The riders end up being successful in their job to relocate the dragon.  And unfortunately relocate Stoick’s new axe, which ‘Thor’ had taken.  Turns out, Fishlegs was allergic to the new wax Gobber was using on the saddles (his earwax, everyone is suitable disgusted).  Snotlout gives a kiss to Fishlegs, saying ‘Thor’ broke his heart.

Gustav Larson, now sixteen, shows up at Dragon’s Edge in Gone, Gustav, Gone, ready to join the Dragon Riders.  Hiccup is busy checking out the Dragon Eye and so the other riders pass the teen around (he also has a crush on Astrid) and he causes chaos.  He eventually comes across the Dragon Eye and thinks it’s a treasure map, taking it in order to find the treasure and prove his worth to the other riders.  Hiccup finds him before he gets killed on an unstable island and explains that the rules are different out at the Edge.  They’re far from Berk and other help, so they can’t be reckless.  And to Hiccup, Gustav has just proven he’s not responsible enough to stay at the Edge.  He’ll talk to the teen more in the morning.  But Gustav takes off and gets captured by the Berserkers.  He promises information to Dagur in return for a hot meal.  He also promises the Berserker chief the Dragon Eye and a treasure.  Hiccup arrives and trades the Eye for Gustav, but Gustav stays with Dagur, citing better treatment.  Hiccup understood what Gustav was doing and has the other riders meet him at the island in order to save Gustav and the Dragon Eye.

The episode ends well, with Hiccup promising that Gustav will be ready to join the riders, someday.  Gustav also needs to get back to Berk before his mom worries too much.  Hiccup also managed to find the treasure chest on the island they had been looking for amongst the chaos and discovers another lens for the Dragon Eye.  Meaning there are more out there.

The Dragon’s Edge census is interrupted by the Reign of Fireworms, with a possible migration of the fire starters hitting the island.  But the teens can’t focus fully on the problem because the twins discover a “namey rock;” a claim stone that Stoick and Gobber verify as authentic and states that the twins are the direct Thorston descendants of the founder of the island, making Dragon’s Edge their island.  The twins are thrilled and have ridiculous plans for the island.  Hiccup just wants to make sure it doesn’t burn down.  He figures that they should play along and let the twins try to rule and when they discover it’s harder than it looks, they’ll be begging for help.  Which they ultimately do when the island is almost engulfed in fire.  Before the others will help, Hiccup enforces that the island will be equally claimed by everyone, they’re all equal rulers. 

The Night Terrors help out by forming a Fireworm Queen and Hiccup helps lead them away from Dragon’s Edge.  And the claim stone matter is settled when Meatlug eats the rock, so everyone dances while chanting “it’s our island!”

The teens deal with a new dragon problem in Crushing It.  A Rumblehorn has been causing destruction and they haven’t managed to capture it yet.  Gobber comes to the Edge with news from Berk; Stoick is as ornery as a dragon and driving everyone crazy.  Hiccup heads back to talk to his father, and Gobber will help fortify the base.  He ultimately builds a defensive wall.  Hiccup finds Stoick by “following the sound of the angry Viking,” and even Gothi writes some choice words about the chief, which Hiccup can’t repeat.  Hiccup finds his father shining Thornado’s saddle and realizes his father is missing his dragon friend.  So he invites him back to Dragon’s Edge to help with the Rumblehorn.

They arrive after the Rumblehorn has passed through and toppled a tower onto Gobber, making the one-armed, peg-legged Viking rather loopy.  Stoick witnesses his son issue orders (like a chief in the making) and agrees that this wild dragon is fast, smart, and elusive.  He’s a worthy adversary, the chief declares and helps his son search for the beast.  They do make an attempt at capturing the dragon, but the Rumblehorn takes off, with Stoick hanging on to a rope.  Toothless catches the falling chief.

Stoick and Hiccup note that the dragon is an excellent tracker, yet also doesn’t hurt anyone.  Stoick feels that the dragon is trying to tell them something.  He manages to get back on the Rumblehorn and rides the dragon out to sea, to discover a giant wave is coming right for the base.  The teens reinforce Gobber’s wall, and the Rumblehorn helps Stoick topple a sea stack to protect everyone.  Due to how well the Rumblehorn tracks, they name the new class the Tracker class and Stoick names the dragon Skullcrusher since he’s a protector, a leader, and hard-headed; a lot like Stoick.  He’s gained a new companion and reminds his son that while he may miss Thornado, he also misses Hiccup.

It’s Fishlegs’ turn to check out the Dragon Eye and he comes across information about Dark Deep, the ancestral home of the Gronkles in Quake, Rattle, and Roll.  Hiccup agrees to go with Fishlegs in case he would need help.  When they find the rocky island, there are few Gronkles about.  They’re chased by a boulder that turns out to be a gigantic dragon: a Catastrophic Quaken.  It’s been chasing the Gronkles away, and they’ve moved to the Edge.  The teens know they can’t stay, but Hiccup isn’t sure how to get rid of the Catastrophic Quaken and maybe, that’s just the natural order of things.  Snotlout instead suggests fighting dirty and when Fishlegs doesn’t like Hiccup’s answer, he agrees to lessons from Snotlout.

He stands up to Hiccup, arguing that they do need to go back to Dark Deep.  He gets Snotlout to go with him, but Snotlout is freaked out by the size of the giant dragon.  Luckily, Hiccup and Astrid followed.  Fishlegs uses his new courage to stand up to the Catastrophic Quaken.  Turns out, the giant dragon was scared and defensive, which is why it scared off the other Gronkles.  But when they realize it just wants friends, they return.  Fishlegs is also reminded that he is not Snotlout and doesn’t have to act like the other rider.

There is a mysterious rider and dragon that have been attacking ships in the two-part Have Dragon, Will Travel.  The riders are back on Berk, stocking up on necessities when Stoick gets the news.  Hiccup insists it wasn’t them, so they go to investigate.  They figure out from the barbs its left that the dragon is a Sharp Class, like Stormfly.  They use the fire from Stormfly to discover more information and conclude that it’s a Razorwhip they’re looking for.  They do find the campsite and the mysterious rider manages to capture the other riders until Hiccup and Toothless chase them, discovering that it’s Heather.  She’s been living on her own for years and came across an injured Razorwhip that she nursed back to health and named Windshear.  Hiccup offers their help; at the very least, she should come back to their base.  Astrid likes how intense Heather has gotten and remarks that they’ve all grown up.

Hiccup also tries to talk to Heather about the ships that she and Windshear are attacking, arguing that there has to be another way.  That night, Hiccup follows Heather when she leaves.  She visits Trader Johan and Hiccup wrangles the information out of the long-winded man (even threatening trade sanctions, two words that the trader dislikes).  He finds out that Heather’s village and family were decimated and Heather has vowed revenge.  She goes after Dagur and his new dragon-proof chains wrap around her and Windshear and start pulling her in.  The episode breaks at that point.

And immediately picks right back up in the second part.  Hiccup and Toothless manage to save Heather and Windshear, though Dagur shouts something about a family reunion, since his so-called “brother” is there.  On the way back to the Edge, Hiccup once again tries to talk sense into Heather; her mission is suicide, and while she may be comfortable doing whatever it takes, is she willing to sacrifice Windshear?  Heather claims she is destined to be alone.  The parents she knew, that were killed by Berserkers, where her adoptive parents; she was separated from her birth family as a child.  She has vague memories of her father, and a horn to remember him by.  They arrive back at the Edge and Toothless manages to get the other dragons to leave Windshear alone.  Astrid takes Heather out from some girl time to compare their axes.  It’s Heather who brings up the question to Astrid whether she’s a thing with Hiccup. Astrid insists she is only friends with Hiccup.  Well, Heather notes, Hiccup is cute.  Astrid admits yeah, if you like that “unassuming, heroic, dragon rider type.”  Meanwhile, Heather admits she likes Fishlegs; Snotlout is off-putting.

While girl talk is happening, Hiccup gets a look at Heather’s horn.  It bears Stoick’s crest.  He flies back to Berk.  Meanwhile, Heather goes back to Trader Johan, with Astrid’s company, and gets information on where to find Dagur.  Heather plans to go after him again and asks for the riders’ help.  Astrid insists it must be a capture mission, not killing.  They’ll leave a map for Hiccup to find them.  Back on Berk, Hiccup explains the situation and point blank asks his father, “is Heather my sister?”  He arrives to stop Heather from killing Dagur and explains what he found out.  The horn bears Stoick’s chief seal because it was a gift to the child of another chief, Oswald the Agreeable.  Heather is Oswald’s daughter, making her Dagur’s sister [this is something Dagur had to have known; hence the “family reunion” quip].  He gets free in the confusion and while the other riders get ready to leave, he asks Heather to stay.  She eventually flies off, but Dagur seems pleased with the idea of Heather joining him one day.  Astrid asks Heather to stay, but the other girl needs to work things out.  Hiccup apologizes to Astrid; he’s sorry she’s losing a friend.  Astrid still has him though, she points out.

Hiccup shows off his latest invention in The Next Big Sting, the Dragonfly One, his own set of wings.  Useful, if he ever gets separated from Toothless in the air.  There’s an updraft at the cliff he’s standing on and figures it will help him with gliding.  He gets three tries in before he wrecks the contraption and Toothless is not wholly pleased to continually rescue his rider.  Astrid even insists he’s done.  The riders then find an injured, young Speed Stinger.  They splint its leg, then decide to take it back to the Edge to recuperate.  Snotlout is not pleased.  Fishlegs manages to work and rehabilitate the Speed Stinger, but it gets agitated when the other riders show up.  They also discover that this pack of Speed Stingers have evolved to have webbing between their toes so they can cross water (and we see the larger pack doing such).  Astrid then threatens to lock Hiccup up if his new project is “Dragonfly Two.”

Snotlout and Ruffnut decide to take the Speed Stinger back, but end up crashing, then getting surrounded by the pack.  The Speed Stinger protects them, considering them to be its new pack.  They hold off the main pack long enough and Snotlout even bonds with the Speed Stinger.  But Hiccup insists its best to let the Speed Stinger go back to its pack.  In the scuffle, Hiccup does in fact show off a new glider, using the idea of webbing.

The riders turn a new drill into a competition, as they always do, in Total Nightmare.  Toothless and Hiccup work on beating a closing dome and are successful, due to the Night Fury’s speed [accompanied by theme music].  The twins live for the drama.  Snotlout takes his turn, but Hookfang gets distracted and fights Snotlout.  He puts Hookfang in a pen overnight, but Hookfang gets out.  Snotlout finds him and discovers he’s visiting a female Monstrous Nightmare.  Fishlegs also ponders if Hookfang could be going feral, considering Hookfang won’t leave the female.

The other riders round up other Monstruous Nightmares to tempt Snotlout back to riding, but he refuses, and there are no other dragons he wants to try.  If he can’t fly Hookfang, he doesn’t want to fly any other dragon (and the other riders feel the same way).  So Snotlout quits and plans to return to Berk.  When he goes to say goodbye to Hookfang, he finds his friend injured.  He also finds eggs in the cave behind the female Monstrous Nightmare.  Worse, there’s a Titanwing Monstrous Nightmare.  Toothless manages to scare it off, but Snotlout knows that it will have to be Hookfang that beats the Titanwing in order to protect the female.  “He’s crazy!” Astrid exclaims.  “He’s Snotlout,” Hiccup retorts.  Snotlout goes to beat the dome, but purposefully loses, getting trapped with the Titanwing.  The enclosed area works to Hookfang’s advantage and they tire the Titanwing out.

Thus end the first season of adventures for the dragon riders.  I love this series.  I love seeing the characters older and taking on adult responsibilities.  This series does an excellent job of fleshing out the characters; we’re already seeing some of the other teens take center stage for an episode.  We witness Hiccup growing into a leader and Astrid becoming his second, clearly shown in Dawn of the Dragon Racers.  Snotlout is even maturing, showing that he truly cares about Hookfang and won’t ride another dragon.  The twins are as crazy as ever, with Tuffnut adopting the chicken as a pet…the chicken is not amused at Hiccup’s attempts with Dragonfly One.  I adore the humor of the series.

There’s the twist with Heather being Dagur’s sister.  That was not something I originally saw coming and the writers did well to tie back in to Riders of Berk and Defenders of Berk.  I did think for a minute, the first time watching the episode, that they were going to make Heather Hiccup’s long-lost sister, following the steps of many fanfictions.  So I’m glad they made her Dagur’s sister instead and that will be something that comes into play in later seasons.

Up Next: Season Two

“It’s a great day for lugging sheep!”

Riders of Berk

The first season that continues the story of the How to Train Your Dragon movies.  Dragons are now on Berk.  And Vikings have to learn to live with them.  This is not something solved overnight, as Hiccup as the other teens discover.  Most of the teens’ voices are back, though Ruffnut and Snotlout have new actors, as do Gobber and Stoick.  Tim Conway (from the Carol Burnett Show) voices one of the villagers, Mulch and David Tennant does continue to voice Spitelout when he appears.

Since it is now a television cartoon, the animation quality is lower (and really noticeable at times).  All of the episodes also echo Hiccups opening and closing narration from the movie; usually highlighting what the lesson that is to be learned (make your own call on how cheesy they are).  As Hiccup lays out in the first episode How to Start a Dragon Academy, Vikings now have to learn to not battle dragons and learn to take the good with the bad.  He starts with his friends riding dragons and training them.  They do a little trick competition.  We continue to learn that the twins get very excited about nearly dying.  Astrid is the second-best rider after Hiccup.

One villager staunchly dislikes dragons being on Berk, Mildew (and he is as pleasant as his name and is constantly accompanied by a sheep…best description of him is why did they bother to spend a week digging him out of a snowbank).  He’s able to stir up crowds and loudly demands that the dragons need to be put in cages, or better yet, off Berk completely.  Hiccup volunteers to help solve the problem of dragons being in the Vikings’ business.  It’s his chance to prove himself a man (at fifteen).  Mayhem ensues and Stoick sides with the villagers and order the dragons off the island.  Hiccup realizes they need to work with the dragons’ natural instincts…like using their poo as fertilizer.  In response, Stoick grants Hiccup and the teens the right to use the former kill ring as a new dragon training academy.

Another consequence of no longer fighting dragons is that Gobber finds himself without much of a job.  There is not as much need for weapons and he struggles to find purpose in Viking for Hire.  He even tries to help Stoick out one day, but he makes a poor chief, such as naming a baby girl Magnus.  Eventually, Hiccup tries to have Gobber build the other teens saddles, but they’re filled with weapons and not the most useful.  However, it’s Gobber who takes on Hookfang, Snotlout’s Monstrous Nightmare, who’s going berserk.  Turns out, he had a bad tooth and Gobber extracts it.  He turns his attention to dragon dentistry.

It becomes dragons versus animals in Animal House; the animals on Berk, such as the chickens and yaks, are not used to the dragons being around constantly.  It puts them off milk production and egg laying.  Hiccup tries to show the animals that dragons aren’t so bad…it doesn’t go as well as he hopes.  A big snowstorm rolls in.  The teens are tasked with bringing the last animals in, but they bolt.  Their dragons follow them into the snow and end up cocooning them in the wild weather, even the animals.  (They had shown this protective instinct earlier in the episode when Astrid and Hiccup get stuck in an avalanche after sledding.)  Trust is gained.

Terrible Twos introduces a new dragon to the teens, who are practicing evasive maneuvers (and Hookfang doesn’t like to listen to Snotlout).  It’s at first equated to a flaming squirrel, but they eventually name it a Typhomerang for how it spins and fires up.  Toothless dislikes the new addition to the house, particularly when Torch steals his dinner.  Toothless is also the first to realize that Torch is a baby and the mother is looking for him.  But Hiccup doesn’t understand what Toothless is pointing out, until he sees the parent for himself and realizes his mistake.  He vows to listen to his dragon more.

We continue to see Toothless direct the other dragons on Berk.  The riders go through trust exercises with their dragons and unfortunately crash into Mildew’s house in In Dragons We Trust.  Stoick orders Hiccup to rebuild the roof, without Toothless.  The chief explains to his son that all eyes are on Hiccup in regards to the dragons and his actions reflect on Stoick.  (In other words, keep the dragons under control.  Dragons, Hiccup can handle.  It’s the twins and Snotlout in the mix that chaos erupts.)  Overnight, dragon prints appear, seemingly Barf and Belch and they stole all the Vikings’ boots (an odd tradition [to an American] they have of leaving them outside overnight.)  So Hiccup starts a night patrol, named “DUMB” for “Dragon United Monitoring Brigade” (and yes, it is a rather dumb name, and is pointed out several times in the episode) so they can prevent more dragon accidents.  Except claw marks, possibly from Hookfang appear in the Great Hall.  Toothless goes to investigate a noise while Hiccup defends the dragons.  The armory explodes before Toothless can find his prey and he is instantly blamed, loudly by Mildew.  Which makes Hiccup suspicious.  But Stoick orders the dragons off the island to keep the peace.  Hiccup vows to return for Toothless.  While he is fixing Mildew’s roof later, he sneaks in and confirms his suspicions when he finds dragon props.  Except Mildew returns (Hiccup hides) and throws the evidence into ocean.

With the armory gone, Gobber points out to Stoick that this would be an extremely bad time for an attack, namely by someone called Alvin the Treacherous (voiced by Mark Hamill; he’s got a thing for bad guys) in Alvin and the Outcasts.  While the teens are searching the beach for the evidence to exonerate their dragons, Astrid and Hiccup spot an odd ship.  The Outcasts have arrived.  Hiccup sets off to retrieve the dragons, while the rest of the village take to the caves and woods.  Fishlegs comes across Alvin, who declares he is looking for the “dragon master.”  Fishlegs is tossed into the ocean for his trouble, but he comes back ashore and finds Hiccup.  Astrid keeps Alvin occupied, particularly when Mildew intends to give the boy away.  But Hiccup still steps out to protect his people, claiming to be the dragon master.  Alvin points out that the teen is “Stoick’s little embarrassment,” but Hiccup persists in his claims and manages to get Alvin to take him to Dragon Island.

Still on Berk, Stoick and Gobber handily take on the Outcasts they come across (despite no official weapons).  Stoick soon discovers why Alvin has come and worries for his son.  But on Dragon Island, Hiccup finds Toothless and sneakily gets his saddle on, then corrects Alvin.  He’s not a dragon master, he’s a dragon trainer.  Stoick and the other teens have come as reinforcements and the teens take to the sky to launch dragon attacks against the Outcast ship.  They work together to burn Alvin’s ship, but even in defeat, the Treacherous Outcast leader lets out a demented laugh, eager to get his hands on the boy again.  These episodes reinforce that Vikings and dragons can trust each other, especially the duo of Toothless and Hiccup.

Hiccup attempts to sway his dad from the traditional, hard Viking way and learn to do things the dragon way in How to Pick Your Dragon.  Stoick is stubborn, but Gobber manages to talk him round.  Stoick agrees to ride behind Hiccup on Toothless and witness cheifing from a dragon.  Now he’s eager for the idea and takes Toothless out the entire next day and exhausts the poor Night Fury.  So Hiccup has to find a dragon for his father.  They eventually come across a wild Thunderdrum that initially resists being trained and does not trust Stoick.  When the Vikings find out that this one is protecting an injured friend, Stoick stays behind to aid the Thunderdrum, finally gaining the dragon’s trust.  Stoick is slowly coming around to some of his son’s ideas.

Portrait of Hiccup as a Buff Man is self-explanatory.  There is a portrait being painted of the chief and his heir; a tradition going back generations.  Stoick is initially fine with Hiccup not looking as brawny as some others, but when the portrait is revealed to show Hiccup as a more typical Viking and Stoick loudly praises it, Hiccups is dejected.  Stoick points out that the picture is Hiccup, just bigger and stronger.  A villager openly remarks that it looks like the son of a chief.  The teens have found a treasure map that stumped even Gobber and Stoick back in the day.  After hearing everyone’s comments and pointing out that Viking tradition is to name the runt of the litter “hiccup,” the lad decides to try his hand at the treasure map.  They start finding pieces and Gobber and Stoick soon figure out what Hiccup and the teens are up to.  Gobber has to spell it out to Stoick that Hiccup is upset about the painting and then points out that the younger generation has gotten further in one afternoon than the two of them got in a month.

Eventually, Hiccup and Toothless fall into a cavern after getting the last piece of the puzzle.  They discover the treasure, but that cavern soon collapses, scaring his friends and father as they search for him.  He chose wisely and gets out and is greeted by a large hug from his father.  He admits he just wanted to prove to his father that he was his kind of Viking.  Stoick assures him he already was and orders the portrait redone.

Trader Johann is introduced in Dragon Flower, with the Vikings of Berk eagerly lining up to look at his exotic items.  This is how Hiccup gets squid ink, instead of his charcoal.  Mildew gets a strange order, but no one follows up immediately.  Until their dragons start getting ill.  Gothi, the village elder who scribbles in the sand since she is mute, determines the dragons are allergic to something new on the island. [The animation quality is particularly poor in the beach scene, where everyone throws things away.]  The teens eventually work out that the new flowers they’ve been seeing across the island is poisonous to their dragons.  Mildew claims innocence, but he is forced to come along to retrieve the antidote from a Scauldron.  As usual, the plan doesn’t go exactly as they figured (Gobber eventually has to go scream in the forest after witnessing Mildew’s bare backside), but they do get the antidote and save the dragons.  Stoick does not immediately jump anymore to wishing to be rid of the dragons; he’s even worried about his own dragon.

The first half of the season ends with a two-part episode: Heather Report.  Snotlout and Hookfang come across a young girl washed ashore from a shipwreck.  The rest of the teens are eager to help the girl, Heather (voiced by Mae Whitman, who voiced Katara in Avatar: The Last Airbender), though Astrid is suspicious.  Heather is eager to learn about dragons and asks several questions, even inquiring about their Book of Dragons.  Again, Astrid doesn’t trust the newcomer and doesn’t think they should be sharing so many secrets with her.  It is also possible Astrid is a bit jealous.  She eventually witnesses Heather speaking to Alvin’s second-in-command, Savage, promising to get the Book of Dragons.  Afterward, Hiccup can’t find the book.  Heather has taken Stormfly and is off to Outcast Island.  The riders go after her, Astrid even fighting the other girl on the back of Stormfly.  Unfortunately, the book lands on the island.

In the second part of the episode, Heather is trying to break out of jail so she can return to Outcast Island.  Turns out, Alvin is holding her parents hostage.  The teens begin to prepare to go against the Outcasts.  Astrid dresses up as Heather in order to fool Alvin and get the book back.  She has to demonstrate what she “learned,” and eventually tries to escape.  The riders follow her and Heather successfully breaks out and follows on Stormfly.  Hiccup has faith that Astrid will take care of herself and goes through with the plan.  They’re briefly captured, but Heather arrives just in time, giving them the diversion to get free.  Of course, the episode ends happily, with Astrid and Heather putting aside their differences, and the Book of Dragons back on Berk.  But Alvin wants Hiccup even more now.

Thawfest is a lighter episode, highlighting the ongoing animosity between Snotlout and Hiccup.  The Thawfest games have been going on for generations and the Jorgenson clan typically wins.  [Apparently, in the books, Snotlout and Hiccup are cousins and fandom has accepted this.  It doesn’t quite appose canon, though it’s never explicitly brought up.]  We also see the Jorgenson chant of “oi oi oi!” (it will come up through the rest of the series.)  Snotlout has won the past several years in a row, but this year, they’ve added dragon events, so Hiccup has a chance.  He loses at the sheep lug, log roll, and axe throwing, with Snotlout taking the honors once again.  But Hiccup excels at the dragon hurdles, freestyle event, and fly and shoot portion.  He’s ecstatic and gloating, but Astrid warns him that he’s being a sore winner, compared to a gracious loser.  It all comes down to an obstacle course and Hiccup has been modifying Toothless’ tail to increase their speed.  He falls behind in the rock-climbing portion, but soon catches up to Snotlout, who begins to panic at the pressure his father has put on him to win.  And Hiccup realizes he doesn’t want to win like this, so he purposefully crashes Hiccup.  Status quo remains, but Stoick passes along that he’s proud of Hiccup and Astrid even rewards him with a kiss for being the better Viking.

When Lighting Strikes is my favorite episode of this season.  Hiccup explains that life on Berk with dragons has its ups and downs.  He helps design metal perches for the dragons so they stop landing on houses and crushing them.  Then a lightning storm hits in the village, the first in many years.  Fires start and the villagers believe that Thor is angry.  Mildew instead blames the dragons, per usual, though this time, he targets Toothless directly.  A Night Fury is said to be the ‘unholy offspring of lightning and death itself,’ thus, that is what Thor is upset about.  Hiccup talks the villagers down for a minute and suggests a statue to Thor.  His friends help him out, though make it out of metal again [which makes sense on the one hand, since Hiccup is a skilled metal smith, though we in the twenty-first century have figured out what’s going on.]  Unfortunately, the lightning returns and strikes the statue, firing it at the metal perches that Toothless is hoping on.  Mildew works the crowd into a frenzy and Stoick tells Hiccup to hide Toothless.  Stoick doesn’t believe Toothless to be a threat and will now actively protect him.  However, for their safety, he does suggest his son leaves with his dragon, until everyone calms down.  They try to make it off the island, but the lightning in the sky hits the metal rigging on Toothless’ tail.  They crash and that allows the crowd to catch up with them and lock Toothless away.

They make preparations to ship Toothless off the island.  Except now they have to deal with the chief and Gobber, joined by Bucket and Mulch.  Hiccup has also worked out that the lightning is hitting the metal specifically and he’s got an idea.  Not a great idea, because it’s to stand at the top of a mast with a metal spear in his hand.  Lightning strikes before he can lash it, so it travels through Hiccup, sending him into the water.  Toothless breaks free and rescues his friend again.  This echoes the ending of the first movie, even with Hiccup waking up in his bed and Toothless waiting for him.  He looks down and dryly remarks “at least I didn’t lose another one,” regarding his legs.  Stoick happily hugs his son.  The villagers now believe that Thor is angry at the metal, so for now they take down the perches and the statue.  Well, the male riders carry the statue up to Mildew’s house (Stoick’s instructions had been a high point on the island and technically…)  The villagers apologize to Toothless and life goes on.  I like that Hiccup continues to prove that he will do anything for his dragon.  He used his analytical mind to solve the question, though some of his ideas are still a bit on the crazy, stupid side.

We’re introduced to another dragon in What Flies Beneath when large holes start appearing around Berk and animals are dropping away.  When the riders go to investigate, they hear a strange whispering before a massive dragon erupts from the ground, a Whispering Death.  Toothless orders the other dragons to back off and attacks the beast himself and won’t even let Hiccup help him.  That night, he leaves on his own to hunt down the Whispering Death.  Hiccup of course goes after him come morning and finds more holes, even jumping into one.  Yep, the home of the Whispering Death, but no Toothless.  Hiccup instead wants to attempt to train the beast.  Luckily, Toothless is to the rescue before the teen gets bitten.  Fishlegs and Hiccup have also discovered a bite mark on the tail of the Whispering Death, which matches the teeth pattern of a Night Fury; these dragons have a past and hold a grudge.

Hiccup knows that Toothless needs to be able to fly in order to really fight the Whispering Death, but Toothless continues to push him away.  So, another crazy idea, he walks off a cliff, praying that Toothless will save him.  Of course the beloved black dragon does, and now they can really fire away at the Whispering Death.  They realize that the enemy dragon dislikes sunlight and use that to their advantage so Toothless can pin and roar at his enemy.  The dragon slinks off.  Hiccup remarks in closing “I will always have Toothless’ back and he will always have mine.”

Twinsanity focuses more on Barf and Belch and the twins.  The riders are working on commands, and of course, Ruffnut and Tuffnut can’t agree on which signal to give their one dragon.  They get fed up and walk away from each other.  To throw a wrench into the works, a contingency from the Berserker tribe is coming to Berk to sign an annual peace treaty.  Since Stoick doesn’t believe that other Vikings will react well to dragons in the village, he orders the riders to hide their friends.  Only, Barf and Belch are still in the village when the visitors arrive.  Instead of Osvald the Agreeable, it is his son, Dagur, who know goes by the Deranged, who leads the Berserkers.  Hiccup’s not pleased because Dagur usually uses the skinny teen as target practice when he’s visited in the past.  Hiccup tries to get Barf and Belch away, but Dagur spots the dragon and eagerly declares they should kill it; one head for each chief.  Hiccup has to find the twins.  He finds out that they’re tired of sharing everything, though he urges them that other items can be replaced and duplicated, but not Barf and Belch. 

Stoick stalls Dagur, and the riders arrive just in time to prevent the chief from putting an end to the visiting Berserker.  The riders stage a dragon attack (using their hand signals) to drive the Berserkers away.  The tribes remain at peace.

Hiccup ends up working with Snotlout in Defiant One.  Snotlout dislikes having to take directions from Hiccup and attempts to go his own way in a search and rescue mission.  Hiccup doubles back to help him, and they get caught in a waterspout.  Hookfang goes flying and Toothless’ tail is damaged, again.  They land on an island and Hiccup sets to work replacing Toothless’ tail.  Snotlout is not much help, though he points out that Hiccup should be more prepared with proper provisions.  He also whines about how great everyone thinks Hiccup is now; he killed the Red Death, he trained the dragons, he’s got the metal leg.  When he steps in to ‘help’ with a connecting rod, he breaks it instead.  Now they’re truly stuck.  Hiccup eventually figures out they’re on Outcast Island…and Snotlout has left Hiccup’s satchel with the Berk crest lying around.  But to get off the island, they have to sneak into the blacksmith shop.  Hiccup is captured and Snotlout has to work with Toothless in order to rescue him.  Alvin still wants the boy to train his dragons, though when Snotlout gets Hiccup out, he groans “how does that ninety-pound boy repeatedly defeat an entire army of blood-thirsty savages?”  After this adventure, Snotlout and Hiccup begin to get along better.

Stoick sends the dragon riders out to search for Trader Johan, who is late.  Apparently, there is something important aboard for Stoick.  They eventually find the man adrift at sea, without his boat.  It was lost to the titular Breakneck Bog.  And the item aboard isn’t for Stoick, it’s for Hiccup, and further, it’s from his mother.  Well, that just means that Hiccup is more determined to find it.  Led by the twins and Snotlout, there is the tale that there is a fog monster within the bog that scrapes the skin from your bones.  Hiccup orders Snotlout and the twins to take Johan back to Berk; he, Astrid, and Fishlegs (who is now not eager to potentially run into a fog monster) will search for the boat.  They ultimately find it oddly in a tree.  Along the way, Fishlegs warns the others “you don’t go towards the weird, scary sound.”  Astrid points out, “yeah, we do.  We always do.”  But both will follow Hiccup on this important task. 

There’s a strange bone shower and the noises increase.  Turns out, it’s the twins and Snotlout, gleefully scaring Fishlegs and the others.  Astrid then gleefully beats Tuffnut with a bone for the scare.  They left Johan on a rock in the middle of the sea.  But Hiccup finds the chest and is ready to leave.  The boat falls out of the tree and then a strange fog rolls in.  It takes the box and doesn’t behave as typical fog.  That’s because they’re dragons, called Smothering Smokebreaths who steal metal to melt down to make their nests.  Hiccup of course wants the chest back, so Snotlout gets to be the distraction.  All the riders manage to make it out and back on Berk, Hiccup opens the chest.  It’s a stuffed dragon toy his mother made him as a child.  He was initially scared of it and accidentally dropped it in the water while fishing many years ago.  Hiccup is now happy to have it back.

Fishlegs leads the story in Gem of a Different Color; he skips out on hand-to-hand combat (most would want to avoid Snotlout in that training.  Hiccup is recommended to play dead when Astrid pins him) and ends up finding a glowing rock on his excursion.  Gobber claims it to be a stone of good fortune and the villagers clamor to touch it.  And Snotlout desperately wants it.  Stoick lays down the law that Fishlegs found it.  But Fishlegs doesn’t like all the attention, so he returns it overnight.  Except he finds more glowing rocks and determines they’re dragon eggs.  The eggs of an invisible dragon that spits acid; the Changewing.  Unbeknownst to Fishlegs, Snotlout followed him and has nothing against taking the eggs.  He auctions them off to the highest bidder, even getting a child Gustav Larsen in the deal.  Fishlegs demands that Snotlout takes the eggs back; he refuses.  The Changewings come to Berk to find their eggs, leaving destruction in their wake.  Fishlegs gathers the courage to properly confront Snotlout and gets the last egg.  Hiccup sums up the lesson: having courage isn’t the same as having no fear.  It’s being afraid and pushing forward anyway.

The two-part episode We Are Family ends the season.  Stoick has instructed the riders to put together a parade of dragons for their annual Bork Week celebration.  Bork was the man who compiled the Book of Dragons and is Gobber’s ancestor.  In order to gather all the dragons, the teens work on dragon calls.  It’s then pointed out that there are no other Night Furies nearby.  Hiccup’s a little sad about it, but Astrid points out that Toothless doesn’t seem to mind.  Hiccup is also granted all the notes from Bork in order to continue his own study of dragons.  In his reading, Hiccup finds there is a legendary Isle of Night, filled with Night Furies.  So the riders set out to find Bork’s cave for the map.  Snotlout hilariously gets taken by a Changewing and smacked against the pillar.  And Toothless demonstrates the ability to use echolocation to find his way in the dark.  On the map, Hiccup reads, Night Furies don’t get along with other dragons (bit odd, considering Toothless gets along fine with the rest of the dragon herd on Berk).  So, of course, he sets out on his own.  He thinks he’s found the island, but it’s soon apparent it’s a trap, set by Alvin to capture Hiccup, with Mildew’s help (he was too interested in those notes).

The second part of the episode has Hiccup breezily telling Alvin and his men that they don’t understand the dragons they have.  Alvin locks up Toothless and Hiccup separately until Hiccup agrees to train their dragons.  Mildew’s put in the next cage because Alvin is Treacherous.  The other riders and Stoick follow Hiccup’s path and discover he was taken, determining that it was by the Outcasts.  Meanwhile, both Toothless and Hiccup separately get free, Mildew even ‘helping’ Hiccup.  In return, Hiccup shows Mildew how to gain a dragon’s trust.  Reinforcements arrive and Hiccup’s new friend helps them out when Alvin releases the wild dragons.  Hiccup does ultimately escape with Toothless, but Mildew gets left behind.  And that was all part of the plan.  Mildew now has tricks to teach the Outcasts.

Hiccup flies with Toothless in the parade and realizes they are each other’s family.  Family is also the friends who stand by you.  Sadly, we’re left with Alvin gaining the trust of a Whispering Death (of all the dragons to befriend!) and his maniacal laughter.

Overall, it’s a good continuation from the movie.  Not as high of a quality, but it has its moments.  Hiccup struggles to learn how to cope with being the dragon expert and melding Viking and dragon in one new way of life.  Stoick in turns has to learn how to trust his son and comes around to being more supportive and even gains his own mount.  The teens’ characters are further developed: Fishlegs supports Hiccup in knowledge, though is more scared than one would think for his size.  Astrid is an excellent second-in-command.  The twins love to goof off and Snotlout struggles a bit fitting in with a new Viking way, since he rarely wants to listen to Hiccup.  We get some villains that are a credible threat to Berk: Alvin and Dagur.  Mildew is annoying, but every village has that cranky old geezer who wants everything done the old way and complains about everything, constantly. 

We also see Toothless take a leading role with the other dragons and also seems to love being with Hiccup.  It is a kids’ cartoon, but it’s something that the whole family can watch.  The narration doesn’t beat the lesson over your head too hard.  Overall, well-rounded.

Next Time: Defenders of Berk

“Trolls exist! They steal your socks! But only the left ones, what’s with that?”

How to Train Your Dragon

As with some other fandoms, I came a little late to this one.  I vaguely recall the commercials advertising this film first coming to theatres and ignored them.  Then, I was bored on a break from college and decided to give it a shot…and instantly fell in love.  And, really, should we be surprised?  It involves dragons (fantasy) and Vikings (history).  I also utterly fell in love with the soundtrack.  I can listen to it on repeat for weeks.  [There will be a separate post about the soundtracks for all three movies.]

I have actually already notated this movie [and not sure where the notecards presently are], because I have started an essay on this film following the hero’s path as laid out by Jospeh Campbell.  Still need to finish the essay…

The film is actually based on a series of children’s books by Cressida Cowell, inspired by her summers spent on an uninhabited island in Scotland.  I have not read the books and considering that the films have deviated from the books and how desperately I love the movies, I don’t think I will go back and read the books at this time.  The movie features the voices of Jay Baruchel (he was in Sorcerer’s Apprentice with Nicholas Cage) as Hiccup, America Ferrera (known now for Ugly Betty and the Barbie movie [neither of which I’ve watched, but I have seen her speech from the Barbie movie] as Astrid, Gerard Butler (starred in 300 and Phantom of the Opera [see my post on that movie for my opinion]) as Stoick, and Craig Ferguson (the late night comedian of Scottish descent, who also voiced Lord MacIntosh in Brave) as Gobber.  The cast is rounded out with Jonah Hill as Snotlout, Christopher Mintz-Plasse (he makes a brief appearance in Pitch Perfect, as well as other comedy movies that I am not going to watch) as Fishlegs, and David Tennant (the beloved Tenth Doctor, Barty Crouch Jr in Harry Potter, Crowley in Good Omens, he voices Scrooge McDuck in the new DuckTales cartoon, and other countless roles) as Spitelout [Snotlout’s father].  This also means that the Viking adults are Scottish [Vikings did settle in Scotland and some clans could trace their ancestry to the Norse] and the teens are American.

Toothless actually makes an appearance in the DreamWorks intro; if you look closely, the shape of a Night Fury blocks out some stars for a second.  Then Hiccup starts narrating that “This is Berk…”  We learn that their pests are not like other places; they have dragons, who are in the middle of raiding their village.  This is why the Viking tribe has been on Berk for generations, but every house is new.  “We’re Vikings, we have stubbornness issues.”  Hiccup rushes outside to help, but keeps getting told by the villagers to get back inside.  Even the chief, Stoick the Vast picks up the scrawny teenager and orders him away from the action.  Gobber, the village blacksmith, takes the lad to the forge, where Hiccup is his apprentice.  Again, the teen is desperate to go out and attempt to kill a dragon so his life will get better, just like the other teens: Snotlout, Ruffnut, Tuffnut, Fishlegs, and Astrid (note the romantic swell in the music when Hiccup sees her in front of a fireball).  As Gobber puts it, the lad has already made an impression, in all the wrong places.  Hiccup uses mechanical inventions to make up for what he lacks in typical Viking toughness, but they end up backfiring.  Gobber tells his apprentice, “you need to stop all this.”  “You just gestured to all of me,” Hiccup bemoans.  He’s then ordered to stay put while Gobber helps the village. 

Once Gobber leaves, Hiccup sneaks out the back with his bola catapult and starts searching for the elusive Night Fury to shoot down.  Hiccup is actually able to track the outline of the dragon in the fireball that the dragon sets off, pulls the trigger, and actually hits his target!  But the only one to see him is a Monstrous Nightmare.  Stoick has to rescue him from the large dragon, and once the beast has used up his shot limit, takes it on barehanded.  But Hiccup has already caused enough damage and the chief is not impressed.  Oh, and Stoick happens to also be Hiccup’s father.  Gobber once again takes hold of the lad and leads him back to his house so the other Vikings can clean up.  Hiccup is aware that he is a disappointment to his father (mimicked in a hilarious accent); all Hiccup wants to be is one of the Vikings.

Stoick plans to take several other adults to search for the dragon’s nest, to put an end to the raids once and for all.  When they hesitate about joining their chief, he states that those who stay behind will have to look after Hiccup; then everyone joins in.  Stoick asks his friend Gobber to remain behind and start training the teenagers.  Gobber also insists that Stoick finally give in and allow Hiccup to train as well.  Stoick points out that since the boy could crawl, he’s been different.  Gobber comes back with the fact that Stoick can’t stop the boy, only prepare him.  Hiccup’s probably already out there now, into mischief.

And in fact, Hiccup is out there, searching for the downed Night Fury.  (Notice that the boy is left-handed.)  What’s more, he finds the dark dragon.  With his little dagger, he’s ready to kill the dragon and present its heart to his father, finally earning respect and acclaim.  But the dragon’s green eyes pin on Hiccup for a minute, before closing and accepting its fate.  After that, Hiccup can’t go through with it.  He cuts the ropes that have entangled the Night Fury.  The beast quickly pins him, once again glaring at the small lad.  With a roar, he scares him, then takes off.

At home that evening, Stoick informs Hiccup that he is leading another expedition and Hiccup will finally get his wish to be put in dragon training.  Only now, Hiccup knows for sure that he can’t kill a dragon.  Stoick doesn’t listen to Hiccup, insisting that his son “walk like us, talk like us, and think like us (meaning the other Vikings).  No more of this.”  “You just gestured to all of me.”  Stoick wheedles a deal out of his son and leaves.

Hiccup is not terribly enthused to enter training and the other teens aren’t enthused to have him, but Gobber attempts to put knowledge in their head.  The twins, Ruffnut and Tuffnut, are a few yaks shy of a herd; Snotlout is boastful and keeps trying to impress Astrid; Fishlegs is knowledgeable, but frightened; and Astrid just wants to complete training and join the fight.  She even points this out to Hiccup; it is time he decides what side he’s on.  But now Hiccup starts thinking.  Gobber told them that dragons always go for the kill.  So, why didn’t the Night Fury?  Hiccup goes searching for the dragon again and finds him in a cove.  The dragon is having trouble flying and Hiccup realizes, when he goes to sketch the beast, that he’s missing part of his tail.  When Hiccup reads the dragon manual that evening, the only information on the Night Fury is that it’s believed to be the “unholy offspring of lightning and death itself,” and never engage this dragon.  Your only chance is hide and pray it doesn’t find you.  Meanwhile, all other dragons are termed extremely dangerous, kill on sight.

Hiccup goes back to the cove again, with a peace offering of fish.  The black dragon is imposing as it approaches the Viking teen and growls until Hiccup tosses away his dagger.  Then sits there like an adorable black cat waiting for its treat.  Hiccup notes the dragon appears to be “toothless” when it approaches, then teeth appear as it swallows the fish.  When the dragon notices that Hiccup has nothing, it regurgitates half the fish and stares at Hiccup until he eats it, then even attempts to mimic Hiccup’s lopsided smile.  But he scampers off when Hiccup attempts to touch him.  So Hiccup patiently follows him, hoping to wear him down.  Then Hiccup starts sketching again and the dragon is interested, again, mimicking the human.  Hiccup carefully backs up over the large squiggle and ends up right in front of the Night Fury.  Hiccup holds out his hand again, and turns his head away, hoping that the dragon will trust him.  He hesitates for a second, but bumps his nose against the human’s hand.  Then scampers away again.  [All over the wonderful Forbidden Friendship track]

Training continues and Hiccup continues to get more ideas.  When he’s told that a downed dragon is a dead dragon, he knows he needs to help Toothless fly out, so he designs a new tail for his new friend.  More fish helps calm the dragon down on his first attempt to put on a tail fin.  It works…sort of.  It won’t stay open and they eventually crash.  This does nothing to dampen Hiccup’s spirit; it’s just back to the drawing board.  While he’s with Toothless, Hiccup learns more about dragons, which helps him in the training ring.  They don’t like eel.  They have a spot they loved to be scratched.  There is grass that is like cat nip to them [it’s called dragon nip in the subsequent series].  The other teens are happy to hang out with him now, though Astrid is suspicious.  Even the rest of the villagers are starting to pay attention to Hiccup, so he has to sneak off in order to work with Toothless.  He eventually devises a rigging system, saddle, and vest so he can use foot movements on peddles to help Toothless’ tail.

Stoick returns with the other adults, unsuccessful.  The villagers are pleased to tell him they don’t miss the nuisance Hiccup was.  Stoick asks Gobber if Hiccup is gone.  His friend eventually tells him that yes, Hiccup is gone most afternoons, but it’s to get away from his fans and his parenting troubles are over (because yes, Stoick probably wonders for a minute if Hiccup ended up dying).

Meanwhile, Hiccup is going on a test flight with Toothless [again, the soundtrack is amazing!]  He’s got a little cheat sheet, which works until the wind tears it away.  The two become separated, but Hiccup manages to get back in the saddle and now it’s up to instinct to fly together.  And it works.  They make a great team.  Hiccup remarks to his friend when they take a break, “everything we know about you guys is wrong.”  Stoick surprises his son in his workshop that evening, pleased that with Hiccup doing so well in the ring they finally have something to talk about.  Except not really.  So Stoick gifts his son his first Viking helmet [yes, they have horns, which historically they didn’t, but this is a fantasy world with dragons interacting with humans and a young lad creates a catapult, so we’ll forgive them], which had been half of his mother’s breastplate.  That’s of course, after Stoick claimed that Hiccup had been the worst Viking for years and he’d almost given up on him.

Exam day comes for the teens and it’s down to Hiccup and Astrid.  Hiccup really rather not win the competition because the prize is to kill a dragon in front of everyone.  But he also won’t let Astrid hurt the other dragon, so he accidentally wins.  Afterwards, Astrid comes across Hiccup, who is getting ready to leave Berk forever with Toothless.  Astrid and Toothless frighten each other and Astrid gets ready to run back to Berk and tell everyone: “da-da-duh, we’re dead.”  Toothless picks up Astrid and drops her on a tree while Hiccup attempts to explain.  She’ll listen to him only if he gets her down.  So she climbs aboard and instead of taking the Viking girl down gently, Toothless teaches her a lesson.  Hiccup’s not pleased, at one point dryly commenting, “and now the spinning.  Thank you for nothing, you useless reptile” [that part is my text notification on my phone].  Once Astrid apologizes, Toothless slows down and takes the pair up into the clouds (the soundtrack changes to Romantic Flight, and the artwork is stunning.)

Toothless hears something and they soon find themselves in a herd of dragons all flying somewhere…their nest.  Which is ruled over by a gigantic queen that eats all the food that the dragons bring back to her.  And the occasional dragon as well.  She’s as large as a mountain and almost captures our heroes, who manage to fly away in the nick of time.  This complicates matters.  Hiccup manages to stand up to Astrid and tells her he’ll come up with an idea because he won’t kill a dragon, but he’s also got to protect the other villagers from the gigantic dragon at the nest.  Astrid punches Hiccup first for kidnapping her, then gives him a quick kiss on the cheek “for everything else.”  (This echoes her finding Hiccup earlier and twisting his arm for the lies and then dropping her axe handle on him for everything else.)  She stands by Hiccup’s side when he gets ready to enter the ring the next morning.  He pleads that she keep Toothless safe in case the worst should happen to Hiccup.

Stoick jokes to the crowd how Hiccup was a hiccup, though he’s the most surprised and most proud of his son.  “Today, my boy becomes a Viking.  Today, he becomes one of us!”  Hiccup then enters the ring with his large shield, helmet, and pulls out a small dagger.  But he soon sets them aside once the dragon is released and slowly approaches the Monstrous Nightmare, telling the dragon he is not one of the Vikings and trying to show everyone, including his father that these beasts are not what they think they are.  But Stoick is worried for his son and shouts for the fight to be stopped.  The loud bang sets off the dragon and Hiccup has to try to run away.  Astrid manages to get in and distract the dragon.  Stoick gets her out, but Hiccup is always a step behind.  In the cove, Toothless hears Hiccup’s shouts and claws his way out, running to the rescue of his friend.  He blasts his way into the ring and takes on the Monstrous Nightmare (remember, Toothless can’t properly fly without Hiccup to help with his tail).  Eventually, the other dragon backs off and Toothless protects Hiccup.  Then the Vikings start descending in and Hiccup begs Toothless to leave.  Stoick runs towards the dragon and his son, armed and ready to kill the black beast, but Toothless takes him on.  Hiccup shouts “no!” to his friend, and the dragon swallows his blast, but is soon pinned.  Astrid holds Hiccup back from going after Toothless.  Stoick throws his son into the great hall to have a talk.

Again, it’s one where they don’t really listen to each other, though Hiccup admits he should have told his father the truth earlier.  He begs for his father to be angry at him, but spare Toothless.  Stoick is more concerned about the Vikings who could have been hurt.  Hiccup finally yells at his father that while dragons have killed hundreds of Vikings, Vikings in turn have killed thousands of dragons; they defend themselves.  He also lets slip the knowledge of the nest and the queen, and that only a dragon can find it, but pleads with his father that this is not a dragon he can win against.  “For once in your life will you please listen to me!”  Stoick shoves his son aside and declares “you’ve thrown your lot in with them.  You’re not a Viking.  You’re not my son.”  Both are shocked at the way the conversation went, but Stoick presses on, chaining Toothless and gathering the ships so they can wage war on the dragons’ island.

Astrid approaches Hiccup, not exactly giving him a pep talk, but demanding an answer on why Hiccup was the first Viking in three hundred years who wouldn’t kill a dragon.  She points out he’s the first to ride one [some of this will actually play into the second movie].  Hiccup admits that when he looked at Toothless, he saw himself; the dragon was just as scared as the Viking.  She asks what will Hiccup do now.  “Probably something stupid.”  He’s done that.  Then something crazy.  And crazy being getting one of the other dragons out.  Astrid brings the rest of the teens who agree to follow Hiccup.

Stoick soon finds out, once the mountain is cracked open on the island and the other dragons have dispersed, that Hiccup might have been right about this dragon.  Everyone starts to run, but the large dragon (the Red Death according to other material) burns their ships.  He sends Spitelout with the rest of the Vikings to the other side of the island while he distracts the dragon.  Gobber joins him.  Then there’s a flash at the dragon; Hiccup has arrived with the teens to save everyone.  He gives orders like a leader [note how the animation takes into account the wind in Hiccup’s hair]; even Gobber admits to Stoick that his son is as stubborn as his father.  Astrid drops Hiccup to free Toothless, but the pair are soon sent into the water.  Stoick dives down to save his son, then goes back for Toothless.  The two eye each other for a second, but Stoick is able to break the lock.  Toothless pulls them both up and goes over to Hiccup, who quickly sets about mounting the Night Fury.  Stoick apologizes to his son and tells him he doesn’t have to go fight the dragon.  “We’re Vikings, it’s an occupational hazard” (calling back to a line Stoick said earlier in the movie).  Stoick admits he’s proud to call Hiccup his son, and lets him go.

They save Astrid from falling (the other teens are rather funny at this point) and set her down, then race into the sky, drawing the Red Death up.  Toothless’ blasts in the dark clouds look like lighting down below.  One of the Red Death’s blasts begins to take out Toothless’ new tail.  Hiccup settles on diving down, tearing up the Red Death’s wings, then blasting into her open mouth at the last second.  Which works…until they’re trying to escape the aftermath.  Her large tail knocks Hiccup out of the saddle and Toothless’ tail isn’t working properly.  We see Toothless dive after an unconscious Hiccup as he falls into the fire.  [This sequence is all-around brilliant, including the soundtrack.]

When the ash settles, Stoick goes looking for Hiccup.  He comes upon Toothless, eyeing the damaged rigging.  With tears in his eyes, Stoick apologizes to Toothless in place of his son, admitting what has happened is his fault.  Toothless opens his wings to reveal Hiccup wrapped in his legs.  The boy is alive!  Stoick is grateful and Gobber makes a comment about Hiccup being mostly there.  We next see Hiccup waking up, with Toothless bounding around the house.  When he goes to rise, something makes him pause.  The bottom of his left leg is now a metal foot.  Toothless helps his friend to the door (and there’s a poignant scene for a second showing that Hiccup’s loss now mirror’s Toothless’).  He opens it to discover dragons have made Berk their home alongside Vikings.  Everyone joyfully greets Hiccup.  Turns out they just needed a bit of this, Stoick gestures to his son.  Astrid even hits him again for scaring her, then a longer kiss.  Gobber gifts his apprentice with a new saddle and tail for Toothless so Hiccup can continue flying.  His new foot, which Hiccup may tweak a bit, hooks into the pedals to control the rig.  The other teens cheerfully join Hiccup in flying around Berk (even mimicking the flyby scene from Top Gun with an adult Viking spilling his mug as they go by).  Hiccup’s narration bookends the movie, recalling that “this is Berk,” though now it’s their pets that are different.  “We have…dragons.”

Overall, this film is beautifully written and beautifully animated.  The characters are very lifelike, particularly with the way they speak.  I adore Hiccup because he’s utterly sarcastic.  There are also so many depths to this film.  It’s a film about family, about friendship, about discovering one’s self and accepting it.  It’s an underdog story; the least Viking-like kid saves the day.  His inventions are actually good; he just needed the chance to prove it.

There is the poignant friendship between Toothless and Hiccup.  Just think about that; a dragon befriends a human.  Befriends the human that shot him down.  Then spared him.  Then saved him.  No wonder Toothless dives in to save Hiccup.  And Toothless is utterly adorable.  He has a lot of cat qualities.  And by the end, you just want to hug him.  A little tidbit…the hesitation Toothless shows in the “touch” scene was actually an animation error.  But it looked so perfect, it was kept in the film.

There are other little shorts that follow the first movie, like “Legend of the Boneknapper,” where the teens go on an adventure with Gobber to save him from the scary and possibly mythological Boneknapper dragon.  It ends well, with Gobber’s belt buckle being the missing bone for the dragon.  There’s the “Book of Dragons” feature that explains how the Book of Dragons came to be written.  The dragons they name will be shown in the subsequent series.  There’s even a feature on “How to Find Your Dragon,” where the host shows that there is evidence that dragons are not as far-fetched as many people fear.  Elements exist in nature and many cultures spanning the globe have myths and legends about dragons.  [It’s a topic I want to research at some point.]

Then there is “Gift of the Night Fury,” which was actually released on DVD.  It’s a cute Christmas-type special, with the Vikings celebrating “Snoggletogg.”  It’s the first year with dragons around and everyone is excited.  Until the dragons leave.  Hiccup decides to make a tail for Toothless that doesn’t require Hiccup around.  Toothless takes off and all Hiccup can do is hope his friend will return.  Fishlegs hid Meatlug, but Hiccup discovers the dragon and is taken to a crescent-shaped island where the dragons have gone to lay and hatch their eggs.  Back on Berk, the teens discover that Meatlug also laid eggs.  Astrid decides to distribute the eggs to cheer everyone up.  Then discovers that eggs explode (her just repeating “the eggs explode” several times is hilarious).  Everyone is disheartened until Hiccup arrives with their dragons and the new babies.  But Toothless wasn’t among them.  Toothless sneaks in during the celebration and pukes up Hiccup’s helmet, that had been lost to the ocean.  The next morning, Toothless also smashes his new tail and wants Hiccup back with the old style.  Very heartwarming for the holidays.

Up Next: Cartoon Network started a series Riders of Berk (oh yes, we’re covering the whole fandom here)

The Legacy of Batman

Return of the Joker

Batman gets to work and interrupts a heist by the Jokerz; a new group we haven’t seen in the show.  There’s a spot of gentlemanly behavior, when he hesitates to hit the pair of girls.  There’s no such hesitation after they taser and kick him.  Of course, Batman stands out from other heroes and saves one of the girls when they start to plummet to their death.  Her twin sister rescues her.  Destruction is caused, but one of the Jokerz gets away with a computer component.  When they meet up with their mysterious boss later, it’s not enough.  When one of the gang members speaks out on his frustration with their current jobs for the mysterious boss, the boss shoots him.  Okay, this is something new…and made a bit worse by the revelation that the original Joker is back and he is ready to give Gotham a wedgie.

Back in the Batcave, Bruce can still throw a batarang with precision.  And his company has dropped “Powers” from their name, returning to Wayne Enterprises.  Bruce is taking more control of his company again.  He keeps an eye on his protégé and questions Terry’s decision to go out that evening; he’s sore and tired, but Terry quips back, “the night is young and so am I.”  That lasts all of a couple minutes once he hits the club with Dana; he falls asleep on her.  Later, at a Wayne Enterprises party, the Joker’s laugh interrupts the festivities.  Terry, as Bruce’s assistant, tries to head off some of the Jokerz gang.  Once Bruce is fine for the moment (he takes out one member with a cane), he tells his assistant to “go to work.”  A minute later, Batman swoops in to save the patrons.  The Joker rises out of the floor and causes mayhem, but ultimately escapes.  Terry grouses to Bruce later in the cave that he should have gone after the Joker, but Bruce reassures him he did the right thing by saving the people.  However, he won’t talk about the Joker.

Terry switches tactics and goes to Barbara Gordon; “what do you know about clowns?”  “In this town, they’re never funny.”  And she refuses to talk.  Terry comes back to the cave to see Bruce going over the Joker’s file.  He is listed as deceased, yet when Bruce runs an analysis on the voices from the archive and from the previous night, they are a match.  When Terry asks again, Bruce calls the man a psychopath and a monster; and he wants Terry to give back the suit.  He has no right to force this life on the young man, or anyone.  Terry disagrees; Bruce didn’t force the life on him, Terry stole the suit.  And they come from two different worlds.  For Terry, Batman is a way for him to make up for past sins (running with a gang, etc), this appeases his soul and is a chance for him to be a worthwhile human.

  “It’s what I want, Bruce.” 

“Stupid kid.  You don’t know want you want, none of you did,” Bruce retorts as he walks away.  Terry throws the suit as his feet and runs out.

With his new free time, Terry meets up with Dana at the club again.  Bright side, more time for her.  Bad side, less pocket money.  Their evening is interrupted when the Jokerz gang shows up and goes after Dana.  The two girls attempt to distract Terry while Dana is grabbed, but he fights them off.  Dana is hurt and Terry puts Chelsea in charge while he finishes off the gang.  He heads to Bruce, who has been working on Joker anti-toxin.  The clown himself shows up in the cave and greets Bruce “hello Batman.”  A gas fills the room.  By the time Terry arrives in the cave, the clown is gone, but he left graffiti and a mess.  Bruce is frozen on the floor, wheezing out a few words between a weird laugh.  Terry administers the anti-toxin in time and calls Barbara for help.  She finally opens up about what last transpired between Bruce and the Joker, still adamant that it’s not the real Joker, but Terry deserves answers. 

Dick Grayson had already left; Tim Drake was Robin.  He was abducted and she and Bruce spent three weeks searching for him before a clue was delivered.  The Joker and Harley Quinn had taken Robin to Arkham Asylum.  They decided they wanted a family of their own and decided to “borrow” one of the kids that Batman had lying around.  The Joker molded Robin into “Joker Jr” and not pleasantly.  He tortured the kid (and shows Batman a video) and now know who’s under the cowl.  Barbara goes after Harley, who falls several stories, though they never found the body.  Bruce goes after the Joker.  The Joker gets a lucky cut on Bruce and holds Batman up for Robin to kill.  Robin ends up shooting the Joker amidst laughing, then crying.  Barbara tells Terry they buried the Joker and Tim was able to put the events behind him after extensive therapy, but Bruce forbade him from ever donning the Robin costume again.  Tim eventually left as well.

Terry decides to pay Tim a visit while in the Bat suit.  Tim is adamant that he knows nothing about the Joker’s reappearance and he as much as anyone wishes the clown gone.  Besides, he was so sick of the crime-fighting that he never wanted to see his suit again.  Terry goes searching for other clues, Barbara sitting in the chair in the cave this time.  She does suggest that Terry look up Nightwing for more stories if he wants.  Batman checks on a disgruntled Wayne Enterprises employee, thinking he’s behind it, but finds the Jokerz gang there, ready to waste him.  Yes, the employee had been in on the one attack, but the man behind the scenes decided to tie up loose ends, sending a laser weapon after the man and Batman.  Batman saves him, but is more than happy to turn him over to the commissioner. 

Bruce is up and around a bit more now and apologizes to Terry; he never wanted the young man to go against the Joker.  Terry notes that he is a completely different Batman, he never was a Robin.  And it’s then that they notice the only costume the Joker completely shredded was Tim Drake’s old costume.  And Terry puts together the parts he knows the Jokerz have stolen and they align with Tim’s expertise.  Bruce tells him to suit up, and take Ace with him.  The Joker is not pleased that Terry has figured it out shoots down the Batmobile. 

Between Ace and Terry, they take out the Jokerz gang.  Terry finds Tim face down, but then the man starts acting funny and feels unwell.  Soon his body transforms and Tim Drake is not just in league with the Joker, he is the Joker.  Or rather, as the Joker explains, the old Joker implanted young Tim with a chip coded with the Joker’s genetics.  Tim doesn’t realize he is the Joker.  His first order of business is to threaten to either go after Dana, Mary and Matt, or Bruce.  Ace attacks and the fight begins.  The Joker knows all of the tricks from Bruce’s peek and Terry is out of his league.  Bruce suggests that Terry tries to drown out and power through the Joker’s talking.  Terry has a different idea.  He likes to talk too.  He mocks the Joker; it was sad that he fixated on Batman in the past; the man wouldn’t know a joke if it bit him in the cape.  Oh, and Terry fights dirty.  Proof the Joker doesn’t know him.  Terry laughs, the Joker is pathetic.  “Not funny,” the Joker growls.  “I thought you wanted to make Batman laugh!” Terry calls down from the rafters.  “You’re not Batman!”  The Joker gets a good hit and Terry’s on the ground, the Joker trying to choke him.  Terry picked up a joy buzzer and burns out the chip on Tim’s neck with it.  Terry manages to get himself, Tim, and Ace out of the hideout before the laser (that has been running through Gotham) hits.

Terry visits Tim in the hospital alongside Barbara.  Tim thanks him and compliments that “Bruce couldn’t have chosen anyone better to put on the mask.”  Bruce actually shows up to visit Tim.  Before Terry leaves, Bruce corrects his earlier statement; “it’s not Batman who make you worthwhile, it’s the other way round.”  (On a funny note, Dee Dee, the twin girls from the Jokerz gang, have their bail paid by their grandmother, Nana Harley [Quinn]).  At the end, Terry stands over Gotham, in the suit, ready for work.  He slips on the mask and swoops into action.

As already stated, Terry McGinnis as Batman makes a few more appearances in the DC Animated Universe.  He shows up in an episode of Static Shock, where a young Static time-travels to the future, meeting old Bruce Wayne and the new Batman (and having to help break his future-self free from the Kobra gang).  He also appears as part of the two-part episode Once and Future Thing in Justice League Unlimited.  In the first half, Batman (Bruce Wayne), the Green Lantern, and Wonder Woman chase a thief named Chronos to the past, specifically, the Wild West.  They then end up following him to the future in the second half and there meet the older Static, Warhawk (who happens to be the Green Lantern’s son), and younger Batman.  Also featured are the new Jokerz gang that were introduced in Return of the Joker…with some upgrades.  The heroes manage to escape, after taking a beating and Batman leads them to the new Justice League headquarters, the old Hamilton Hill High School.  The Watchtower had been attacked and most of the members killed.  Old Bruce enters at that moment to keep everyone from dwelling on the bad; they’ve got a mission to attend to.  Bruce faces his younger counterpart and comments “surprised to see me?”  “A little,” original Batman remarks, though he’s more surprised to see he lived that long. Terry quips “Batman, Bruce Wayne, Bruce Wayne, Batman…or, have you met?”  They deliver “not now!” at the same time, so he gripes “what did they use to call it, stereo?”

The main issue is that the time line is becoming polluted, as original Batman notes, and Bruce responds that history is becoming fluid.  This needs to be stopped.  Batman writes a program to put an end to Chronos’s time travel belt; now they just have to find him.  Terry tries to warn Batman he doesn’t know the new town.  “Are criminals superstitious and cowardly [and we laugh because of the musical!]?”  “Yup,” Bruce responds.  They catch one of the gang and original Batman’s method of interrogation is to hang him over a building and tell him to talk before his arm gets tired.  Bruce hauls the criminal away and growls he can’t believe he was ever that green…his cane is a bit menacing in his hand, but he succeeds.  They can get to Chronos through his wife.  

There is a final showdown between the League and the Jokerz while time itself unravels.  Dee Dee pins Terry and electrocutes him.  We hear his cries of pain, then Bruce at the school shouts “Terry!”  Then silence.  But Green Lantern and Batman follow Chronos who wants to see the beginning of time and put a stop to the madness.  They end up back at the Watchtower from when everything started; the only ones to remember the events (and putting everything back in order).

Justice League Unlimited also brought us Epilogue.  We’re even farther in the future; Terry has bulked up and sneaks into Amanda Waller’s residence for some answers.  Apparently, Bruce needed a new kidney and Terry was found to be a perfect match.  The odds of that are suspicious, so he does a DNA test and discovers his DNA matches that of Bruce, not Warren McGinnis.  There is a scene where Terry confronts Bruce about it and also where he breaks things off with Dana, but these turn out to be just a dream.  Terry is mad at Bruce, thinking he meddled, but Amanda admits it was her doing; Project Batman Beyond.  She used project Cadmus (which, the Joker used on young Tim Drake in the flashback of Return of the Joker; Terry admits it was as low blow when he accused Bruce of it) and Batman’s DNA from crime scenes; then she overwrote Warren McGinnis’s reproductive DNA to that of Bruce and so when he and Mary had a son, Terry, he was in fact, Bruce’s son.  (This was a way to explain how both Matt and Terry have dark hair while their parents have ginger hair; Warren and Mary were selected since they had similar psychological profiles to Bruce’s parents.)  Amanda originally had planned that Warren and Mary would be killed while Terry was a child to mimic the tragedy Bruce underwent to become Batman, but the assassin backed out, arguing it was not what Batman would want.  So life continued unassuming until Paxton Powers had Warren McGinnis murdered and Terry met Bruce as a sixteen-year-old.  She urges Terry not to make the same mistakes as Bruce and points out that he is Bruce’s son, not his clone.  He doesn’t have quite the brilliant mind that Bruce does, but his heart is just as big, if not bigger. 

The episode ends up Terry contemplating an engagement ring for Dana, then helping Bruce out with his meds and vowing to continue to be Batman.  Bruce urges the younger man to eat something before attending to League duties.  Terry quips he’s stubborn, like his old man.

First, my thoughts on Return of the Joker; I think it’s a great continuation of the Batman Beyond story and a reasonable way to bring back Batman’s greatest enemy.  Because who would have ever expected that the Joker was hiding in Robin?  And the showdown between Terry as Batman and the Joker is great.  Terry is a different Batman and he doesn’t have a history with the Joker.  I wouldn’t say he’s not emotionally involved in the fight, because this man did harm his mentor (I’m sure running down to find Bruce gave Terry flashbacks to finding his father).  Terry also shows that he’s not a brash teenager any longer; when Bruce doesn’t want to talk about something, he does back off, same with Barbara.  But he is correct that he deserves answers.  Also, Bruce doesn’t waste time telling Terry off for suspecting Tim; Bruce trusts Terry’s skills.  And he tries to help during the showdown with the Joker, giving Terry advice.  And I think it’s a bit sweet that Barbara fills in for Bruce after the Joker’s laughing gas attack.

And the irony of Mark Hamill aka Luke Skywalker voicing the Joker will never not be funny (and it will always be funnier that he voiced Fire Lord Ozai in Avatar: The Last Airbender)

As for the Justice League episodes; Epilogue at least gives us a proper ending to the series (as does Return of the Joker; Unmasked was pathetic and lame).  And I agree that it gives us a reasonable explanation to the family non-resemblance Terry has with his parents.  On the one hand, it’s sweet that Bruce has a biological son, though in the lore, he adopted Tim Drake (apparently Dick Grayson was a ward, which had some standing; I reiterate, Batman lore is not my strong suit, I just like this show).  Terry will continue his legacy not just as Batman, but potentially as a Wayne (he’d have to find some way to explain that to the public pending circumstances).  And as Amanda points out, Terry is Bruce’s son, not a clone.  He is not Bruce Wayne, he’s still just Terry.  His decisions were his own.  On the other hand, there is a more compelling story of Terry being Batman with no blood connection to Bruce.  I’m glad the episode ended well nevertheless.

As for Once and Future Thing, Terry is hilarious at times.  I’m a bit sad to realize he was essentially killed at one point, though relieved that it was erased.  It’s a satisfactory story, though I mainly watch it for the “Batman meet Bruce Wayne” bit.

This was one series I explored fanfiction early on.  I have several recommendations that I repeatedly re-read:

Katfairy has “Beyond Knightfall” where Terry lands is a spot of trouble and his friends have to help him out (though I wish it would be completed), and “Divine Secrets of the YoYo Sisterhood.”  It has a good mix of drama and humor.

“Virus” by ChampagneWishes could be another episode in the show.

Bumpkin has some good little scenes in “Welcome to My World,” “An ‘Inside Peek’ into Mary’s Mind,” and “Nelson’s Wake Up Call.”

Tomy’s “Reparation” is excellent and “Reclamation” is good as well.

Jadeling has a whole series of stories, most especially “Lover, Friends, and Family.”

And if you want a hilarious crossover joke, try “Ron Beyond” by speedster.

Next Time: Batman Forever and Batman and Robin with Chris O’Donnell.

“Anything broken?” “If I said yes, could I go home?” “No.”

Season Three

The Royal Flush Gang is back in King’s Ransom, minus Ten.  And King gets angry if you mention her.  Turns out he’s working with Paxton Powers; well, more like Paxton’s assistant.  King is having an affair from his Queen.  She’s not happy with the state of the family, things are not like when her father was in charge.  King tries holding Paxton for ransom, but Bruce won’t deal.  If King has a problem, Paxton wrote the policy.  Though Bruce is now able to nail Paxton on some crimes (and Barbara has a snarky comeback when Paxton protests being arrested; he’d never try to kill Bruce, he was like a father to him.  Well, Bruce doesn’t glow in the dark like Paxton’s real father).  And when Queen finds out about the affair, she goes after her husband.  King protests to Batman, “do you have any idea what it’s like living in someone’s shadow?!”  (Yes, he does.)  On a happier note, Melanie stays out of the criminal activity and even pays Jack’s bail so he can have a fresh start.

There is a thief running around Gotham, stealing isotopes and wearing a force field, making him Untouchable.  Bruce and Terry investigate the force field and discover that Wayne Enterprises is funding its’ research to be used for patients with weak immune systems.  Terry befriends one of the female teenaged patients (and Bruce makes a crack that women used to throw themselves at his feet; he simply stepped over them).  She does help discover that one of the doctors is behind the thefts.  While Bruce is away in Inqueling, Terry has to face Inque by himself; he refuses to risk Bruce again, after the last encounter brough out the dangerous Bat Armor.  Dana is not as upset about Terry missing their date; she’s figured out that Bruce is a father figure to Terry.  Terry admits to Max that his girlfriend may not be so far off.  Inque is in trouble and needs to lay low; she finds her daughter and convinces her to steal the appropriate mutagen.  But after only sending money her entire life, the daughter betrays her mother for her large bank account.  Batman is not convinced that Inque is truly gone at the end.

An old friend of Terry’s returns; Charlie Big Time Bigelow.  He was the one who took Terry on a heist when Terry was fourteen and Charlie was eighteen.  It was when Terry’s parents were divorcing and he was being an angry kid with Charlie.  Terry didn’t realize what was going on until it happened.  Terry got three months in Juvie, Charlie got three years in jail.  Now he’s out and wants Terry’s help.  Terry refuses; he has a life now, a job.  However, he still feels guilty and tries to get Charlie a job at Wayne Enterprises.  Bruce figures out that Charlie is trying to get in with another crew and is using his connection.  Terry goes after Charlie; Batman is waiting at the next break in.  Charlie is exposed to cerestone, a growth hormone.  He becomes large and disfigured and goes after the crew.  Batman is involved in the fight and takes down Charlie.

Bruce starts to feel his age in Out of the Past.  Terry treats him to the Batman musical for his birthday; Bruce does not find it amusing.  [Though, the music and lyrics are very good, even using “I am vengeance, I am the night, I am Batman.”  And criminals are a “superstitious and cowardly lot.”]  he reminisces about his past relationships and Talia al ’Ghul steps out of the shadow.  Terry even knows who she is; he’s actually done research on the Bat computer.  She’s offering Bruce a trip to the Lazarus Pits for eternal youth.  Bruce takes it when Batman has to save him and a young woman from an accident.  The process works and Terry enjoys working out with a more youthful Bruce.  But Bruce feels like it’s a cheat, so they plan to leave.  The guards won’t let them, so the two kick butt together (and the Animated Series theme plays for a minute).  And Talia is actually Ra’s al Ghul; he used his own daughter to continue to cheat death.  His ultimate plan is to transfer his consciousness into Bruce, now younger and stronger, and return to Gotham to take over the company as Bruce’s long-lost son of Talia’s.  Batman to the rescue!  The pits are ultimately destroyed and Bruce bids farewell to his beloved.

There is a gorilla on the loose in Speak No Evil.  The local university used human DNA to give the gorilla human intelligence.  Now he’s after James van Dyle; he appears to be a conservationist but is actually a poacher and captured the gorilla and his mother years ago.  Batman helps the gorilla and investigates, but he’s captured.  The gorilla helps get him out of a tiger’s cage and the commissioner is there to arrest van Dyle.  Bruce and Terry release the gorilla back into the wild so he can scare away poachers.

Superman shows up in The Call, a two-part episode.  The Justice League tower in Metropolis is facing danger, superheroes are being put out of commission.  Superman comes to Gotham to ask Terry to help the Justice League.  The other members are not happy about young Batman joining them and they don’t trust him.  Batman does his research and even rescues Aquagirl when she’s in danger.  Superman feels there is a traitor in the League and right now, he only trusts Terry.  Metropolis is under multiple attacks and the League is spread thin.  Warhawk receives a distress signal and Batman follows him because no one else heard it.  Warhawk is apparently killed in an explosion and when Bruce investigates the footage, it looks like Superman is responsible.  Bruce has kept kryptonite on hand, in case Superman ever went rogue again.  His directive to Terry is “do whatever it takes, but make sure you stop him.”  However, turns out that Warhawk is alive; he suspected something when he was the only one to receive the distress call and now trusts Batman when he suspects Superman.  When they go to confront Superman, he is being controlled by an alien starfish.  He escapes, but Bruce knows where the Fortress of Solitude is located.  There, the League finds a zoo of alien creatures.  Batman uses kryptonite to stop Superman and Aquagirl is able to read the starfish’s mind to discover that the starfish was kidnapped from its’ home world.  Superman eventually freed him, but kept him locked up again.  Now the starfish wants freedom and to take over the world, so he’s using Superman.  Superman and the starfish wake up and take control of the League, except Batman.  Now Batman has to fight several other superheroes in order to save the world (just another day in the life, huh).  Superman goes after Batman and eventually an electric shock brings Superman back.  They work together to free the League and to stop the starfish’s friends from escaping.  Superman almost traps Batman (“he knew what he was getting into” Superman tells another hero when they protest Batman is still underwater), but Batman flies up at the last second.  They send the starfish home and Batman is offered a full-time position with the League.  Old Batman was only ever part-time.  Then they have something in common, Terry remarks.  Superman muses, more than you think.

Big Time is back in Betrayal and Bruce has to warn Terry against going after Charlie again.  Leave it for the police.  But Terry won’t back down.  He ends up kidnapped by Charlie (Max picks up the backpack with the suit and Bruce calls her to warn her against putting it on…the old man knows everything).  Charlie wants Terry to join the new operation as his loyal companion.  Terry refuses, which makes Charlie angry.  Terry escapes and Charlie chases.  When he catches his old friend, Charlie says he can’t kill Terry due to their friendship.  Terry convinces Charlie to go to the police; yes, he’ll go to jail, but while there, Terry will have Bruce’s company search for a cure to the cerestone.  When the police arrest the gang, Charlie runs.  Terry is only slightly surprised, but now he’s angry.  Charlie lied to him; he never had any intention of going good.  He used it as a way to get the leaders out of the way and now he’ll take over the gang.  Bruce drives by and throws the bookbag to Terry.  Batman appears a minute later to save Bruce and take on Charlie.  Bruce once again warns Terry against facing an old friend.  Charlie ultimately falls off the bridge during the fight and Terry claims he outgrew him.

Terry faces the Kobra cult in the two-part Curse of the Kobra.  They start by stealing a thermal bomb and Batman can’t face off against all of them.  Instead of berating Terry, Bruce sends him to an old martial arts teacher to fine-tune his technique.  There, Terry makes friends with Zander.  He even introduces Zander to Max when they go to get a slice of pizza (“who’s bad, who’s rad, who’s never been had,” she cheers when she beats Zander at a video game).  But Zander is being groomed for something else and can’t socialize with his new friends.  Turns out, Zander is the leader of Kobra and they have something big planned.  Then he kidnaps Max (who immediately calls Bruce and Bruce immediately sends Batman to her house when they hear her scream).  Batman ends up with a minor concussion and four cracked ribs after trying to go after Max and Zander.  Bruce warns him that it will hurt to move and breathing won’t be fun.  He helps with the investigation since Terry is in no condition and blaming himself is not productive.  When Bruce finds the hideout, Terry immediately suits up: “I’ll breathe on the weekend.”  “It’s a toxic waste dump,” he tells Bruce when he arrives.  “Or so they say.  Can you think of a better way to make people want to avoid the place?”  “Call it a high school?” Terry quips.  Max meanwhile attempts her own escape (after being changed out of her clothes into something that is almost slave-Leia inspired).  She’s stopped by a dino-man, the result of a Kobra lackey breathing in green gas.  Zander’s master plan is to use the thermal bomb to heat the Earth up so only he and his men will survive and thus they’ll rule the world [not the brightest plan], and he’s chose Max as his companion.  He likes that she’s different, though to make her subservient, he does order her to be gassed.  Batman goes in (sore) to rescue Max and receives a bit of help from a ninja in the shadows.  After Zander breathes in the gas to go through the transformation, their teacher (the ninja) appears to take him down.  She buys Batman and Max time to escape.

At a science symposium in Countdown, Mad Stan interrupts to “blow it all up!”  He comes across a man in distress afterwards and rescues him from federal agents.  The man is actually a synthoid; Zeta is back [tying in to the new show that was developed].  Mad Stan figures it’s the feds out to get him so he arms Zeta with a secret bomb and releases him.  Batman discovers the plot and now has to go after Zeta. He tries to get the feds to help him, but they are only concerned about getting Zeta back, not the innocent people that could be hurt or killed.  Batman of course finds the bomb in time, but they’re surrounded by the feds.  Zeta pretends to be Batman so he can escape and Terry gets out as himself in disguise.  [Not a terribly exciting episode.  Nor is the final episode.]  Unmasked relates a mission Terry had when he was first becoming Batman when he showed a young kid his face in order to rescue him.  Kobra found out and kidnapped the kid so they can find out who Batman is.  Terry lucked out and the kid remembered his face as a famous action figure.  Terry uses the tale as a caution to Max for making jokes about Batman in Terry’s place. 

If the final episode feels like a letdown, never fear; Terry McGinnis shows up as Batman in a follow-up movie Return of the Joker and several episodes of Justice League Unlimited.  What I really appreciated about this season is Bruce showing obvious care and concern about Terry.  I do so love when a crochety character shows tenderness to a select group of important people.  Bruce may be learning from his past mistake of shoving people away.  Overall, the episodes are not as interesting as season two, but Out of the Past was fairly interesting, giving Bruce a little bit of the limelight again. Charlie Bigelow as a villain after being a friend to younger Terry is a good twist; Max remarks in his second appearance that Charlie was always a monster, just now his outside matches his inside and Dana never trusted the guy. It highlights Terry’s growth as a person. As he remarks when Charlie first approaches him, he has a life now.

Next Time:  Return of the Joker and the other episodes featuring the new Batman.

“Where were you?” “Oh, just out saving the world.”

Batman Beyond: Season Two

Season Two opens with introducing a friend of Terry’s, Maxine Gibson (voiced by Cree Summer, who has provided voices for hundreds of shows and games, including Susie Carmichael in Rugrats and All Grown Up, Valerie Grey in Danny Phantom, and Princess Kida in Disney’s Atlantis movies).  In Splicers, Terry faces off against Dr. Cuvier, who leads the splicing movement in Gotham; splicing animal DNA in humans.  DA Young stands against the movement, understanding its dangers.  Even Terry agrees with him, though his friends are piqued by the teen craze.  When Batman investigates the Chimera Institute (Reborn to be Wild), he’s electrocuted and captured.  Cuvier injects bat DNA into Batman, but Batman escapes, in time to help stop an attack against Sam Young.  Barb has to stop Batman from killing one of the henchmen (even calling him Terry in the process); the invading DNA is starting to take over.  Barb calls Bruce to warn him and Terry steps out of the shadow; he’s now half man, half bat.  He attacks Bruce, but the old man is a few steps ahead and already has a mutagen antidote ready.  Terry is cured and takes Ace to help him track down Cuvier “you find, me stop.”  Cuvier spends part of the fight as “a true Chimera,” injecting himself with multiple animals’ DNA.  Then Batman overloads him and he gets real creepy.  Ace leaps to Batman’s rescue and Batman returns the favor “don’t touch my dog.”  The factory ends up going up in flames and Barb speaks to Terry afterwards; he can’t live a life of narrow escapes.  It’s a thankless existence with few rewards.  To Terry, the small rewards are the best, like now being friends with Ace.

Earth Mover is a bit creepy.  Terry is studying with a classmate, Jackie, and they feel something watching them.  Terry chases after a blob, which throws him around a bit (and he gets right back up), but it disintegrates into dirt.  Later, there is an earthquake at a field where Terry is with Dana, Jackie, and her stepfather.  Radioactive goo spills out and they all run.  Batman swings in to the rescue.  The truth comes out that Jackie’s birth father worked for Bill, until there was an accident illegally dumping chemical waste.  Tony was believed dead and Bill adopted Jackie.  Turns out Tony’s DNA was scrambled with the earth thanks to the waste and he’s now trying to contact Jackie and get revenge on Bill.  Batman helps saves the pair and Tony finally dies.  (Terry does have to point out to Bruce that ten years ago, when some of this went on, he was only seven so no, he didn’t read the news.)

A few Jokerz find a new government vehicle abandoned (because it was going to overheat) and take it for a Joyride.  They terrorize Gotham with it and Batman has to work with the woman who developed it to get it shut down before the nuclear core blows.  Of course, Batman saves the day and another teen realizes he does not want to join the Jokerz.  Lost Soul is also a bit creepy; a businessman from the past who had his mind stored in a computer decides that when he’s woken up he’s going to take over his grandson’s body.  He manages to take control of the Batsuit and attempts to drown Terry before Bruce uses the kill switch.  The suit escapes the Batcave and Terry decides he’s going after it.  Bruce tries to stop him; that suit is very powerful and just punched through a stone wall.  Terry brings up “is Batman just the suit, or the man inside?”  Bruce gives Terry one of his old utility belts and Terry uses Nightwing’s mask.  The actual suits won’t do much good since they have bullet holes and cuts in them.  Using his wits and gymnastic moves he already possesses, Terry faces off against the controlled suit and runs a spike plugged into a magnet to shut it down.  At the end, Terry says he’ll be glad for a few nights off for Bruce to reprogram the suit.  Bruce quips, it’s the suit that’s out of commission, not Batman.

Max is running a program in Hidden Agenda to discover Batman’s true identity; she’s brilliant and bored.  Terry is fearful that she’ll find out his secret, but first he has to protect her from a band of Jokerz out to hurt her.  They’re led by a classmate angry that Max beat his test score.  For a while, Max believes Terry is one of the Jokerz, but quickly realizes the truth.  She’s eager to help Batman, going after the female Joker when Batman tells her to run.  “Not what I meant,” he quips.  Max points out to Terry at the end that her knowing his secret can be good; she can cover for him with Dana when he as to cancel dates.

Batman gains a Stalker in Blood Sport.  Stalker is a poacher who is now hunting Batman as the ultimate prey.  He bears a scar down his back from an encounter with a panther; the scar now gives him enhanced strength and other abilities.  Stalker also believes that the bat spirit is an ageless soul that inhabits the strongest warrior in each generation.  Terry doesn’t realize he’s been marked after his first encounter with Stalker and ends up leading the man to his younger brother while he’s babysitting.  So Batman swoops in to rescue Matt (which Matt finds thrilling).  Matt even quips to his brother that Batman is super cool, unlike Terry.  To which Terry responds, “we can’t all be Batman.”  Ten is back in Once Burned, stealing from a high-stakes poker game to pay the Jokerz ransom to get her family back.  Turns out, it was all a test by her family to prove her loyalty.  Melanie stays with Terry while she’s in Gotham and really wants to get back together with him.  But she goes on the run after breaking with her family and Terry decides to not read the note she left with Batman for him.

Max pressures Terry to let her help Batman in Hooked Up.  He ends up agreeing when clues from comatose runaways lead to the Virtual Reality gaming room.  Max is approached, but Terry is hesitant and suspicious.  She goes without him and comes under the thrall of Spellbinder, who is using virtual reality to give people their dreams, in exchange for money.  They steal when they run out and when they get too much of their dreams, it puts them in a coma state.  Max likes the dream world because she’s alone at home and in the dream, her family surrounds her.  She does ultimately help take out Spellbinder, but she’s beginning to learn what Batman’s world is really like. 

Rats is another creepy episode (this season has several).  As you can guess, rats feature heavily in the episode.  Dana is mad at Terry for breaking another date, but decides to give him another chance when she finds a white rose.  However, Terry ends up late for the date anyway (keeping Mad Stan from blowing everything up).  And when Dana goes to leave before he arrives, she finds another rose, then is chased by large rats.  She wakes up in an underground lair of Patrick, the rat boy.  He collects unwanted things and has been spying on Dana, realizing that Terry’s been letting her down, so he’s brought her to him.  She plays along to get Patrick to leave, then attempts to escape on her own (you go girl!).  She gets away for a while, but ends up lost and stuck; Patrick finds her.  Batman is also searching desperately for Dana when her father reveals to Terry that Dana never came home.  He discovers the giant rats at their meeting place and follows them back to Patrick.  While Batman fights Patrick, who has decided that Dana needs to die since she won’t stay with him and teases him like others have (he’s done this before…you might not want to think about that), Dana fights off the rats and starts a fire.  Gotham’s underground seems riddled with chemical waste and a pool of it explodes while Batman flies Dana to safety.  It’s Terry who meets her above ground and she has him take her home.

A psychic girl, Tamara, contacts Batman to save her in Mind Games.  The Brain Trust told her parents she was going to a gifted school, but when they try to contact them, they get nothing.  With Tamara’s help, Batman is able to track them down and rescue the little girl.  Max pops up in the episode, helping Terry study while on patrol (all presidents are boring, according to Terry), and accompanying him to a swanky hotel to find the girl.  There is a supposed ghost haunting Hamilton Hill High in Revenant.  Strange accidents have been happening around school, so a few girls hold a séance to contact the ghost (at home, Matt wants to hold one to contact his father).  Nelson interrupts them and the “ghost” attacks.  Batman has to begrudgingly save Nelson.  But Bruce doesn’t believe it’s an actual ghost; not because he doesn’t believe in ghosts.  He’s seen actual magic, but this stunt seems “so high school.”  Terry puts together some of the clues and visits Willie Watt in Juvie.  Willie has retained his powers and is responsible.  He escapes and goes after Nelson, then fights Batman.  Willie is locked up again and cannot access his powers.  At home, Terry reminds Matt of the good memories they have of their father.

When animals start going nuts in Babel, Bruce and Terry realize that Shriek is back.  And Shriek plans to use sound to his advantage and terrorize Gotham; he’ll drive them all mad unless Batman hands himself over at midnight.  Barbara tells him “you’re out of your mind” on the phone; Shriek answers “duh.”  Barbara calls Bruce and he is the first to offer himself up as Batman.  But he’s not the Batman people know now.  And Bruce won’t hand Terry over so easily; while he may trust Barbara, he doesn’t trust the others around her.  “That kid’s done a lot for the city; it’s time for the city to do something for him.”  Max cautions Terry that he has friends and family that would miss him if he handed himself over.  And the public isn’t going to do anything to protect their vigilante hero.  But Terry still shows up at the Batcave in his suit; it’s not his first plan to just hand himself over, but he also remembers why he became Batman.  And he figures out where Shriek is hiding.  They fight and Shriek is buried in a pile of rubble.  Back in the cave, Bruce thanks Terry for reminding him why he started his crusade.  This is one of my favorite episodes because it’s about Terry as a person, not in the suit.  He has to decide that he’s the kind of guy to put others ahead of himself.  And I love Bruce standing up for him.

Terry’s Friend Dates a Robot is exactly what it says on the tin.  Terry’s friend Howard is trying to be popular.  When he accompanies Terry on an errand to a synthoid factory for Bruce (he has Terry run simulations against the classic villains as training), he discovers a man running a side-gig, hooking men up with…let’s say female companions.  Howard orders himself a hot and loyal girlfriend.  And it works to get people to come to his party.  But “Cynthia” attacks Nelson when he makes fun of Howard.  And she tries to go after Chelsea when she flirts with Howard; Terry manages to stop that.  And at the party, when Howard tries to hook up with Chelsea, Cynthia goes berserk.  Max buys some time for Batman to swoop in; and Howard does nothing to help when he utters “can we still be friends?”  As Batman points out, that is never the right thing to say.  Cynthia self-destructs and Howard now has to deal with irate parents.

While Barbara won’t hand Batman over to Shriek, she will believe that he killed Mad Stan in Eyewitness.  To be fair, it’s not entirely her fault.  Spellbinder is behind it; and Batman interrupted an undercover sting.  But Terry has to go on the run for a while after he finds cops at his home asking to see him.  Bruce luckily believes him and works to clear up the video recording of the last fight between Batman and Mad Stan.  Barbara reminds Bruce that Terry has a record; he knows.  Terry spent three month is juvie, but Bruce argues, the teen is still learning.  And if Barbara takes Batman in and reveals Terry’s secret, she reveals a lot of other secrets too.  Bruce is able to give Terry the clue to reveal Spellbinder.  Barbara makes it up to Terry by giving him a student award to cover for the police looking for him.

Curaré is back in Final Cut.  She’s taking out the rest of the Society of Assassins.  The last member comes to Batman for protection (voiced by Tim Curry, a most excellent Cardinal Richelieu in Three Musketeers with Chris O’Donnell [who plays Robin in Batman Forever and Batman and Robin]).  He’s planted a bomb in Gotham that will go off if he doesn’t input a code every twelve hours.  Batman needs to stop Curaré, or a lot more people will die.  Max again tries to help Batman, but Terry warns her off.  She doesn’t listen and is almost killed by Curaré.  Batman saves her (and warns her not to call him “Terry”) and the assassin dies.  Now it’s a race to find the bomb and disarm it.  And fight off Curaré.  The latter task is Batman’s and Max has to deal with the bomb.

Dr. Wheeler has set up a ranch for troubled teens in The Last Resort.  But his methods aren’t the best.  Busloads of kids are being sent to the ranch for minor things, apparently due to a new parental liability law.  Luckily, Terry is not sent, but Batman investigates because what kind of ranch would take his friend Chelsea alongside a legitimate threat like Sean Miller.  Wheeler’s methods run alongside those use to brainwash prisoners of war; and he’s using it on kids.  Terry heads in as himself to speak to Chelsea; he has to sneak past the guards to get the truth and ends up running into Sean Miller.  Wheeler catches him and throws him in a cell.  If no one comes looking for him, he’s to be terminated.  Terry works with Sean to escape and Batman swoops in to finish the job.  The kids run free and Batman has to stop Sean from killing Wheeler.

Terry’s friend Jared shows up again in Armoury.  His stepfather throws him a lavish birthday party, then ends up laid off.  As a weapons’ developer, his skills are just not called for now and he struggles to find a new job.  An old buddy suggests some illegal methods and the man takes them so he can maintain appearances.  That means stealing from Wayne-Powers and Batman gets involved.  Jared figures out the truth of what his stepfather is doing and the partner is not happy.  Batman shows up and the partner tries to kill him, but the stepfather saves him.

Batman’s identity is almost revealed in Sneak Peek.  A nosy journalist, Ian Peek, has found a way to get exclusive dirt on celebrities.  Turns out, he has a belt that allows him to go intangible and sneak through walls.  When Ian gets in a spot of trouble, he finds the Batmobile and sneaks a recorder inside.  He captures an image of Terry unmasking in the Batcave and Bruce alongside him.  He plans to reveal the exclusive on television.  Terry attempts to tell his mother, but she laughs him off.  He goes as Batman to Ian to persuade him to not reveal Bruce; he’s done too much good for the city.  Ian is his usual reporter self.  Batman flies away.  Then Ian needs Bruce’s help; he can’t control the intangibility, he needs Bruce’s company to save him; after all, the original scientist worked for him.  Oh yeah, he killed the scientist.  Bruce isn’t happy and walks away.  Ian attacks and luckily, Batman is nearby.  When he begins to sink through the floor, Batman tries to save him, but gravity is the only thing that works on him now.

Eggbaby actually won an Emmy award for the show and it is a fairly funny episode.  It’s a classic family studies episode, which Terry is failing.  So he has to take care of a baby simulator, an egg.  While being Batman and facing Ma Mayhem and her boys from stealing rubies.  Bruce is not happy that Terry takes the egg on patrol (for a second he thinks there is an actual baby and does Terry have something he needs to tell Bruce?), but he also won’t watch the egg.  Through various mishaps, Terry has to get the egg back.  And all the excitement is apparently good for his grade because he’s the only one to pass since he gave it positive stimulation.

There’s a synthoid on the loose in Zeta (which ended up being the backdoor opener to a new series that no, I did not watch).  It first masquerades as a teacher at Hamilton High, then the feds show up and start shooting (not the smartest of ideas).  Zeta was a deep cover operator for the NSA, whose purpose was to infiltrate, interrogate, and dispose of terrorists.  Now it’s gone off target.  Max gets involved and Batman goes to save her.  Turns out, Zeta doesn’t want to kill anymore.  Max persuades Batman to help and when Zeta resists killing an NSA agent, he does help Zeta disappear.  The NSA shows up in the next episode, Plague, when they’ve hired Stalker to track down False Face, who is helping the terrorist organization Kobra spread a super virus through Gotham on credit cards.  Batman and Stalker have to work together and their styles do not wholly mix.  They stop the virus, but False Face gets away.

Batman faces a gang of thieves who have metal accessories in their bodies in April Moon, thanks to a specialized doctor.  He gave the gang their powers hoping to save his kidnapped wife.  When Batman does further investigating, it turns out that she was in on the operation, which breaks the doctor’s heart.  Batman is able to defeat the gang, though the leader escapes.  He goes to the doctor at the end of the episode, not knowing that the doctor knows the truth now (that can only spell bad things).  Luckily, the next episode is a bit funnier, and a bit of a spoof on Star Wars.  Sentries of the Last Cosmos is an elaborate series of video games.  One of Terry’s friends excels at the game and is invited to the home of its creator.  Who believes the story he has spun, that he is a Wise One and uses the kids on sentries to destroy his enemies, like the Dark Regent is on Earth.  They attack a hall of records and Batman investigates afterwards (dissing Jar Jar at the same time).  Batman is able to reach “the Dark Regent” first, who is actually the original writer of the game series, the other man was the producer, but wanted more of the profits, so he cut the writer out.  His charade falls apart and the kids leave him.  They turn up on the writer’s doorstep and ask their questions.  “It began a long time ago, in a cosmos far from Earth…”

There is a masked man attacking people who disrespect kids in Gotham, named Payback.  Bruce figures out the connection between the kids; they all attend youth counseling.  Terry goes in and has a convincing story about being overworked and underappreciated by his boss.  Batman goes after the wrong man first and gets in an argument with Bruce (proving his point).  We do get this exchange (this episode has some of my favorite quotes from the show):

“Ow!”  “Why weren’t you watching your back?”  “I was too busy watching my front.  Am I supposed to have eyes everywhere?”  “Only if you want to live to a ripe old age.”  “You don’t make it sound too inviting.” 

They attend a fancy dinner and Payback attacks…as planned.  Payback goes after Bruce. 

“You’re a mean old man, you know that?”  “Mm-hmm.  And what are you?”  “Your worst nightmare!”  “You have no idea what my nightmares are like.” 

Of course, Batman saves Bruce and Payback is revealed to be the counselor’s son, hoping that taking out the kids’ problems would allow his father more time to spend with him.

Terry leaves a date with Dana, Max, and Howard, then ends up following a guy in the subway.  The next day, he’s not at school and Bruce can’t hail him.  Max decides to help Bruce find Where’s Terry?  Batman wakes up in rubble.  There’s a runaway kid there who wants Batman out of his domain.  He’ll lead him topside.  Batman thought he recognized someone.  He did; Shriek is behind it.  But the tunnels make aiming bad for him.  Batman sends the kid on for help, but Shriek strikes again, releasing the river into the tunnels.  Batman can now escape and goes to help the kid.  Meanwhile, Bruce and Max track down Terry’s backpack and Bruce uses Max as a decoy so he can find Terry.  A well-aimed strike with his can puts Shriek out of commission and the kid decides to run back home.  Luckily for Terry, his mother doesn’t suspect anything; she just now thinks that he makes his bed in the morning.

We discover Ace’s background in Ace in the Hole.  His previous owner had him in dog fights.  He managed to run away during a police raid and found Bruce while he was paying his respects to the spot his parents were murdered.  They save each other from a clown and Bruce takes Ace home.  Now the previous owner is back and Ace chases after him.  Batman searches and even goes undercover as Terry.  Ace finds the bandages with Terry’s scent and Batman discovers that the owner is making serostone growth hormones to use on the dogs.  Batman has to face one of the huge mutant dogs, but Ace breaks free in time to help him.  It’s a happy ending, with Bruce and Ace reunited.

I like the character development we see in this season.  Bruce genuinely cares for Terry, even if he is sarcastic about it.  He doesn’t want to see Terry hurt.  And Terry cares for Bruce.  When his mentor wears the powered Bat-armor, he’s fearful of the effect it will have on the elderly man.  This season also shows Terry coming into his own as Batman.  He doesn’t always need the suit and he’s developing his own deductive sense.  Though, could the bad guys please stop electrocuting Batman?  That’s got to have some consequences for Terry down the road.

Next Time: Season Three

“I’m Batman now”

Batman Beyond

I’m not entirely sure how my brother and I stumbled onto this cartoon aside from it was on when we came home from school.  It was also my first foray into the superhero world.  I of course knew basics about the major superheroes; I knew Batman, Superman, and Spider-man existed, but I never read comic books, I never played video games.  This is essentially a continuation of Batman: The Animated Series, but I had never watched it.  The stories though are what kept me coming back.  It does feature Kevin Conroy, who has voiced Batman in any number of shows, as Bruce Wayne.  And Will Friedle (Eric in Boy Meets World; he’d later go on to voice Ron Stoppable in Kim Possible) headlines as Terry McGinnis.

The first episode is a two-parter, entitled Rebirth and gives us the back story.  Batman is breaking up a kidnapping, but he now has heart issues, so when he strains too much, he ends up breaking his one rule and picks up a gun to scare off a crook.  He’s disgusted and retires.  Twenty years into the future (where cars fly now, but obviously written before our technological advances because there are no smartphones) Gotham is rank with crime.  Gangs modeled after the Joker roam the streets and cause problems.  We meet Terry McGinnis when he takes on one.  Wayne Enterprises is now paired with Powers, headed by Derek Powers, and we soon learn the merger was not for the best.  Terry’s father, Warren works for Wayne-Powers; his friend delivers him secret information then disappears.  Warren reads the information and realizes something horrible is going on at the company.  He and Terry argues over Terry’s temper and fights before Terry storms out to join his girlfriend Dana at a club.  Jokerz attack outside the club and Terry takes them on.  Before they can hurt too many in the crowd Terry takes a bike and leads the gang away.  He ends up on Wayne property and meets old Bruce.  Terry attempts to keep the gang away, but Bruce uses his cane to great effect.  But he’s overexerted himself, so Terry helps him back to the house and gets his medicine.  Before he can leave, he finds a bat stuck in a clock and discovers the Batcave.  Bruce chases him out.

Terry arrives home to find police there, and his mother.  His father is dead, police are blaming Jokerz (we noticed a henchman of Powers waiting outside [Mr. Fixx, voiced by George Takei, aka Mr. Sulu from the Original series]).  Terry finds the information tucked away and makes the same discovery as his father.  He goes to Mr. Wayne, yelling “something stinks in your company!”  When Bruce doesn’t respond, he shouts “you’re no Batman!”  The episode ends with the gate opening.  The second part of the episode reveals that Powers is using the company to make nerve gas to supply to a dictator.  Wayne reads the information and is furious, but sends Terry to Barbara Gordon, the new police commissioner.  Terry doesn’t trust the cops and ends up stealing the new suit to take care of business on his own, including finding out that Powers had his father killed.  Terry’s got the quips down (“just in time for fall”) and learns the suit quickly.  But Bruce is not happy with Terry and shuts down the suit.  Terry pleads for help and Bruce relents.  When the new Batman goes to break up the delivery of nerve gas, Powers is hit by a cannister.  Batman goes after the boat and Mr. Fixx, ending up sending the boat to the bottom of the harbor.  Powers is secretly treated, but it makes him radioactive and turns him into a more classic villain; he’s got the chuckle down.

Bruce visits Terry at his home the next day and offers Terry a job in front of his mother.  A part-time assistant is the official cover, but Bruce tells Terry he needs an ally.  “Welcome to my world,” he tells the young man when Terry agrees and they shake hands.

Black Out introduces Terry’s first villain, Inque; a woman who underwent genetic manipulation and can now slide through cracks and uses it to commit corporate crime.  Powers has hired her to attack Foxteca, a company with times to the old Wayne Enterprises, knocking out his competition for a government contract.  Powers is displeased with Batman interfering and sends Inque to kill him.  She hides in the Batmobile (which flies now) and makes it back to the Batcave, but Bruce is crazy prepared.  She does try to bring the cave down on them, but her new body dislikes being frozen by a freeze gun.  Bruce calls Barbara Gordon (voiced by Stockard Channing, Rizzo in Grease, and the aunt in Practical Magic [I like the concept of that movie, but it’s also a bit creepy]); his new errand boy is making a delivery.

Batman has to take on a giant lifting machine in Golem, controlled by a teenaged boy (a classmate of Terry’s) who is going after a bully at school.  As Terry tells Bruce, there’s a line of people that starts with him and wraps around the block, twice that has beef with Nelson Nash.  Unfortunately, an accident fries the controls of the Golem to Willie’s mind.  He’s ultimately caught and the machine is destroyed.  Willie keeps the powers.  Mr. Freeze [I know him more as played by Arnold Schwarzenegger in the 90’s Batman and Robin movie with George Clooney and Chris O’Donnell] returns in Meltdown.  A doctor tests a theory on him to give his head a new body; to see if it would work for Derek Powers.  Bruce doesn’t trust Freeze, but Terry thinks he’s not too bad.  When Freeze realizes the doctor and Powers mean to betray him, he tries to turn villain again.  He ultimately saves Batman by shooting Powers, now known as Blight.  The building collapses on Freeze.

Heroes brings new heroes to Gotham; accepted by the public and backed by the government (and as noted by fans, they’re very similar to Fantastic Four).  They’re the Terrific Trio and they will wage a war on crime in Gotham.  Terry’s younger brother Matt still thinks Batman is the coolest, so his big brother rewards him with ice cream.  However, one of the members of the trio, Magma is dejected; this is not how he had planned his life.  He discovers that their friend knew an accident would occur and didn’t stop them.  The Army has turned on them and Batman gets embroiled in their fight.  The Trio secretly escapes and Batman is still Gotham’s defender.

Batman’s second new villain shows up in Shriek.  A scientist is working for Powers to use sound as a mean of demolition.  Powers sends him to the old part of town to tear it down so he can turn a profit.  Bruce gets the board to stop him, but he’s almost killed by Shriek when he visits the old police station.  Batman saves him, but Bruce is admitted to the hospital.  And he starts hearing voices.  Powers is gleeful, but Batman breaks him out.  Terry tries his hand at investigating and confronts the sound scientist.  A batarang damages his suit and he ends up deaf.  Bruce explains to Terry he knew he wasn’t crazy because the voice called him “Bruce.”  He calls himself something different in his own head.  Terry drops his voice, “that’s my name now.”  “Tell that to my subconscious.”

The Royal Flush Gang returns in Dead Man’s Hand; they’re a family of crooks that steal from the rich.  When Terry briefly breaks up with Dana due to his limited social life, he hooks up with Melanie; who happens to be Ten from the gang.  Her father vows to get revenge on Batman for breaking up the gang.  Bruce and Terry also get into an argument and Terry doesn’t feel any better when Melanie breaks things off with him; her family is pressuring her to put the family first.  Terry traces the call to a hotel, to discover the trap that the gang left for him.  He connects Melanie and Ten and then has to fight the family when they return.  He ends up saving Ten, but has to watch as Terry while Melanie is led away.  Bruce starts to tell him the story of Selena Kyle.

The Winning Edge could be called the “drug” episode of the show (very popular in the 90s).  Terry falls asleep in class and his grades drop.  His mother starts to believe that he’s using the popular drug going around “slappers.”  She enforces a curfew, which cuts into his Batman patrolling.  Bruce wryly notes he knows how to handle archcriminals; mothers are another thing.  In the meantime, Terry discovers that one of his classmates is stealing and using the funds to purchase “slappers.”  They examine one and Bruce realizes the formula matches venom, used years ago by Bane.  Batman pays a visit to Bane to discover that the man is on life support due to using the drug.  When Batman traces the shipment, he also discovers that Bane’s doctor is the one behind the drug; he had to make it for Bane and decided to make a further profit.  Batman and the doctor fight, the doctor falling into a pile of the product and overdosing.  Terry tests clean, to his mother’s relief and a story comes out about the kids on the sports team using the drug, the coach implicated by turning a blind eye.

Another new villain pops up in Spellbound.  A man in a weird leotard uses an orb to hypnotize his victims and steal expensive items.  First, it’s a classmate of Terry’s.  Then a wealthy fashion collector.  Terry borrows a different suit, belong to “DG” to attend a wedding where the villain shows up to collect priceless jewels.  Batman rescues the bride, but ends up hypnotized.  Bruce is able to help him out of it by connecting to his vidlink.  At school, the psychologist decides to check in with Terry after the death of his father; and working for Bruce Wayne.  Bruce hears a break-in and finds out Terry was hypnotized again.  Bruce had made the deduction that all of Spellbinder’s victims had a connection to Ira Billings, the psychologist.  Batman heads out to stop Spellbinder and tries not to get caught in the visions of zombies.  Again, Bruce coaches him and Batman unmasks Ira.  At the arrest, Barbara Gordon begins to make the connection between the new Batman and Terry (Terry also comments to Bruce earlier “guess you’re the expert on troubled kids.  You collect them,” tying back to the animated series.

Inque is back in Disappearing Inque.  She’s been imprisoned on ice, but her caretaker starts to take things too far and is fired (he’s been a bit creepy, confiding in her and even kissing the ice).  The caretaker sabotages her containment and she escapes.  But the ice has damaged her genes further and she can’t shift back into a human.  So they break into a lab to mix a serum to fix that.  The caretaker wants to become like her as a reward.  Inque also plans revenge on Batman; she also wants the old guy she’s heard in the headset.  Young Batman does end up captured and Inque threatens to kill him.  In true hero fashion, Batman warns his mentor not to come.  Bruce goes anyway, clad in his exo-suit that gives him incredible strength, but puts too much strain on his heart.  Together, they do manage to defeat Inque (and you hear a bit of the animated series’ theme) and now the caretaker is the one locked up and has to listen to a woman tell him all her woes.

Barbara Gordon features in A Touch of Curaré.  Curaré is an assassin sent by a society to kill Sam Young, the District Attorney, and Barbara’s husband.  Batman helps stop her first attempt.  Afterwards, Barbara visits the Batcave, to Terry’s surprise.  He’s further surprised to realize she was Batgirl.  Barbara warns Bruce and Terry to stay out of police business.  Batman still keeps an eye on things and bundles a trap set for Curaré.  Barbara is waiting for Terry afterwards; she takes him to a diner to have a conversation.  She stayed with Bruce after Dick Grayson left (she was more than partners with Bruce at that point).  On the streets, Batgirl and Batman were great.  But to Bruce, there was nothing but the street.  So Barbara left.  She doesn’t hate Bruce, she just hates what he became; a great man all alone.  Bruce will keep protecting Barbara, though Terry warns him he doesn’t want to get on the wrong side of her; he respects her.  Bruce also warns Terry that Curare will be desperate now; assassins from the society who fail become the next target; they kill their own.  Batman does end up swooping in to save Barbara and Sam, and Barbara proves she can still use a batarang.  She comments to Batman is was like old times.  And just like old times, Batman vanishes.  The episode ends showing that Curaré managed to escape, but now someone else is after her with their own super sharp sword [that thing acts like a lightsaber, deflecting bullets, cutting through steel doors.]

Blight is back in Ascension; he’s burning through his skin that covers his radiation, not helped by his temper.  New arrangements must be made; so he calls in his son, Paxton (voiced in this episode by Cary Elwes; most famous as Westley in Princess Bride, Robin Hood in Men in Tights, and the evil uncle in Ella Enchanted, and I totally want to check out Castle for Christmas).  Paxton will be his front man, but Derek will retain the true power.  However, in a board meeting, Derek loses his temper and reveals himself as Blight.  He goes into hiding.  The Batsignal lights the sky again; Paxton is asking Batman’s help in finding his father, under the guise of helping him.  Bruce does warn Terry about sounding too vindictive going after Blight; the teen’s also not terribly sad that he may have inadvertently caused the accident that made Derek Powers into Blight.  The man had Terry’s father killed and hides from the law.  He taunts the man when he finds him aboard a nuclear sub.  “This is personal,” he declares.  You killed my father.  “Do you know how little that narrows it down?” Derek is flippant.  But Derek has a larger problem once Paxton steps out.  He taught his son the only way to get power is to seize it, and Paxton has no problem killing his father.  Batman tries to step in, let justice be served.  But Blight goes supernova and the sub begins sinking.  Paxton escapes and Batman carries some of the men he was just beating up to safety.  But Batman is not sure that Derek is truly gone.

I like the banter in the show and how they develop the relationship between Bruce and Terry.  And I am fine that this show is not all light and fluffy.  It’s not too dark, which a lot of Batman movies and such try to do.  Batman can get knocked down and it really is a team between Bruce and Terry.  The creators also commented that while some of the original villains make comebacks, they also wanted a new Rogues gallery for this Batman.  And yeah, as a teen, it was cool that Batman’s suit has jetboots and the Batmobile flies, and he’s a teen just like us who has to deal with school and homework.

Up Next: Season Two

You’ve Become the Very Thing You Sought to Destroy

Episode III: Revenge of the Sith

Let me include a few thoughts about Clone Wars first.  While I have not watched the whole series (and not entirely sure if I want to due to some plot points I’m aware of), it does come up in fanfiction a lot.  I watched most of the traditional animated series when it came out, and it was weird.  So no, I did not want to watch the animated film that came out later and I objected to the idea that Anakin had a Padawan.  And, by the way, the film is still weird.  The series, once I gave it a chance, it better.  I learned to like Ashoka and was pleased with elements they included in parts of Rebels that I happened to catch.  I agree with some plot points that occur in the series (SPOILERS); I thought it was interesting to give Obi-Wan a possible love interest (and if you’ve read some of the Legends books, you know this isn’t the first time).  I adore his sassiness; because my favorite characters tend to be snarky, so much fun!  Anakin isn’t as whiny, huzzah.  We see clones in action and bond with certain ones (which comes to bite us in the butt later).  I was not fond of them bringing Maul back because, really!  Obi-Wan sliced the guy in half and he fell down a shaft [I could make a comment regarding the sequel movies here…apparently that does not mean death in the Star Wars universe…I also disagree with that; more of that rant later].  Can we be nice to Obi-Wan, please?  There are some plot lines that I understand needed to occur, but wish they hadn’t because we’d rather see our characters ultimately happy (after we whump them a bit)

I am interested in reading the Wild Space novel, which has been referenced in several stories (which will be listed at the end of the blog), but for now, on with the main event!

All the familiar faces are back: Ewan McGregor as Obi-Wan, Natalie Portman as Padmé, Hayden Christensen as Anakin, Christopher Lee as Count Dooku, Samuel Jackson as Mace Windu.  Anthony Daniels as C-3PO and Kenny Baker as R2-D2 are the only two actors to appear in all of the original and prequel movies; in fact, the characters appear in all nine films, plus Rogues One, as well as two of the cartoon series, Clone Wars and Rebels.  A fun note about the title of this episode; originally, Episode VI was supposed to be Revenge of the Jedi, but George Lucas decided that revenge was not the Jedi way, but completely acceptable for the Sith.

After the title crawl, the film opens with a huge space battle; you really get a feel for the scope; there are layers and levels and feels a bit like a roller coaster…so be careful if you have a bit of a squeamish stomach.  Also, we now realize fully where the stylistic designs for the Empire originated; those certainly look like Star Destroyers and it doesn’t take much to see the similarity between clone troopers suits and stormtroopers.  Our heroes are in the thick of it and Obi-Wan’s starship gets attacked by buzz droids, so he’s not happy.  Anakin tries to help and R2 is cool; they ultimately end up crashing into General Grievous’ ship [I’m not a fan of Grievous; he was totally unnecessary, you’ve got Dooku]…Obi-Wan does a totally awesome flip out of his fighter and slashes through droids.  Now, time to spring the trap and rescue Chancellor Palpatine.

Anakin and Obi-Wan confront Dooku together this time; Sith Lords are their specialty, but Dooku is quick to take Obi-Wan out of the picture, throwing him into a walkway.  Anakin gets a bit cocky and Dooku can sense fear, hate, and anger in Skywalker, but he doesn’t use them.  Anakin manages to disarm (literally) Dooku and crosses a red and blue blade at the Sith Lord’s neck.  Palpatine orders Anakin to kill Dooku (Dooku was not aware that that was part of the plan); his Sidious voice comes out when he growls “do it” [and that throne looks awfully familiar…fast forward to Return of the Jedi].  Anakin decapitates the Sith Lord and frees Palpatine.  [Ok, seriously, you’ve got Christopher Lee and you use him for about ten minutes, to make room for some mostly-droid being that should have been hacked to pieces the first time he crossed someone’s path]  The Chancellor then tries to get Anakin to leave Obi-Wan (all part of his plan), but Anakin will not leave him.  All three manage to get captured by Grievous, for about a minute, then Anakin and Obi-Wan escape their bonds.  Grievous is a coward and abandons ship.  Anakin manages to land the wreckage of the ship, or as Obi-Wan puts it, half a ship, and calls it “another happy landing.” 

Obi-Wan leaves the politics to Anakin, who sneaks away as soon as possible to visit his wife.  Padmé quietly reveals that she is pregnant.  Anakin is happy (though note the brief hesitation).  Their happiness is soon marred by nightmares Anakin has of Padmé dying in childbirth.  He will not let what happened to his mother happen to the other woman he loves.  Now he’s on a search to find a way to save her.  He even seeks help from Master Yoda, with no details revealed.  Yoda once again counsels Anakin that fear of loss will lead to the Dark Side; attachments lead to jealousy and greed.  Anakin does not seek help from Obi-Wan.

Instead, the Council is concerned by the powers that Chancellor Palpatine is amassing.  Palpatine puts the next step of his plan into action and appoints Anakin as his personal representative on the Jedi Council, planting doubt in Anakin’s head [along with the dream about Padmé, no doubt].  The Council reluctantly accepts the appointment, but will not grant Anakin the rank of Master.  After the meeting, where Yoda states he will help the Wookies on Kashyyk, Obi-Wan and Anakin talk.  Anakin may not have asked for the position, but it is something he has wanted and Obi-Wan tries to get his former Padawan to see that Palpatine is interfering with the Jedi.  The Council, against Obi-Wan’s protests, are asking Anakin to spy on Palpatine (which is what Palpatine is asking of Anakin, but he’s too blinded by loyalty bought at a young age to see that…Palpatine tells Anakin what he wants to hear, so the young man keeps coming back).

Anakin visits Palpatine that evening.  The Chancellor feeds the young Jedi the information on where Grievous is hiding.  Then their conversation drifts to the Sith; Palpatine claims they are similar to the Jedi in their quest for greater power.  “All who gain power are afraid to lose it.”  He also knows a Sith legend on Darth Plageus, who could manipulate the midi-chlorians in a life form and create life [hmm, maybe that’s how Anakin came to fruition], and also, how to keep from dying.  That perks Anakin’s ears, his thoughts are on Padmé.  Palpatine claims that the Dark Side is a pathway to many abilities that would be considered unnatural (and Anakin is so consumed with thoughts of his wife he doesn’t question how the Supreme Chancellor knows Sith legends, or why, or why he’s telling him these things).

The Council decides to send Obi-Wan, who has more experience, to Utapau to capture Grievous.  Former Master and Apprentice bid each other good-bye; Anakin apologizes and thanks Obi-Wan for his training and Obi-Wan declares his pride in Anakin; he’s a far greater Jedi than Obi-Wan could ever hope to be [we’ll get to some Obi-Wan appreciation in a bit].  “Good-bye, old friend,” Obi-Wan says in parting.

Obi-Wan engages in a duel with Grievous on Utapau, leaping down and quipping “hello there.”  Grievous, proving to be a lazy coward, first instructs his guards to kill the Jedi (and weird opening lightsaber stance), Obi-Wan quickly rids himself of the pests.  Then quickly removes two of Grievous’s extra limbs to even the fight.  Obi-Wan’s division of clone troopers [the 212th] arrive to take on the droids, and Grievous runs off.  Obi-Wan pursues him and loses his lightsaber.  When the pair fall onto a platform, Obi-Wan first uses an electro-stave, then decides that hand-to-hand combat is a brilliant way to take on a heavily machined opponent (Obi-Wan, dear, don’t kick the droid) and he gets thrown around a bit.  He manages to grab a hold of a blaster while he’s dangling and a few well-aimed shots ignite what is left of Grievous’s organs.  “So uncivilized,” he quips when he regains his feet (call forward to A New Hope when he refers to a lightsaber as a weapon of a more civilized age).

Meanwhile, Mace Windu senses a plot to destroy the Jedi, the Dark Side surrounds Chancellor Palpatine and there is a fear that he will not set down the extra power he has been granted.  Now the Jedi Council is treading a dangerous line, planning to take control of the Senate.  At the same time, Palpatine is speaking to Anakin, making him believe that everyone else is out to get Palpatine and then he blatantly tells Anakin “only through me can you achieve a power greater than any Jedi,” only the Dark Side holds the power to save his wife.  The young Jedi finally realizes that Palpatine is the Sith Lord they have been looking for all these years.  He wisely goes to the Council.  Windu orders Anakin to remain at the Temple while they arrest Palpatine; Anakin argues that the Masters will need him.  Well, one point for Anakin for finally making a good decision and Windu has a point that Anakin would be comprised, facing Palpatine, but Anakin does not handle sitting still well.

Palpatine continues to weave his influence over Anakin and Anakin leaves the Temple for the Senate building, walking in on the arrest.  Palpatine has finally drawn his own lightsaber and killed the three Masters who accompanied Windu.  Windu has Palpatine cornered, Force lighting reflecting off his blade back onto the Sith Lord.  Anakin pleads that he needs Palpatine in order to save Padmé.  Palpatine pretends to be feeble and Anakin still argues to do the right thing, then takes off Windu’s hand when the Master goes to strike down Palpatine.  Palpatine strikes back, shouting “unlimited power!” and tosses Windu out the window.  Anakin realizes he’s made another mistake and promptly agrees to be Palpatine’s apprentice and turn to the Dark Side [because that’s very logical; let’s negate the good decision made with the worst possible alternative].  Palpatine is now fully Sidious, scarred face and deep voice.  We hear the Imperial March when Sidious names his new apprentice Darth Vader.

That’s not terrifying at all

Sidious proclaims the Jedi an enemy of the Republic and sends Anakin to the Temple to kill all the Jedi there.  Afterwards, he is to go to the Mustafar system and destroy the Separatists leaders.  Anakin leads the 501st division of clones on the Temple, he’s gained the yellow eyes of the Sith, and they murder all there, including Younglings (our hearts start breaking).  Sidious issues Order 66 and the clones turn on their Jedi generals [oh boy, after learning to love these clones and see that they love their Jedi commanders in Clone Wars, yeah, stomp on our hearts why don’t ya…we also discovered in the cartoon that this order is compulsory; the clones were essentially under mind control and didn’t have a choice…bar a few we find out later].  Yoda, already reeling from feeling Anakin, manages to sense his attack and escape, with the help of a familiar Wookie (Chewie!).  Cody and his men fire on Obi-Wan, after he gave his general his lightsaber back.  Obi-Wan falls into the water and does not emerge.  We see him steal a fighter and escape.

Bail Organa investigates the commotion at the Temple and is lucky to escape alive after witnessing the clones kill a Padawan who tried to defend his home.  He boards his ship (the Rebel runner we’ll see in the opening of A New Hope) and goes to rescue Jedi.  He makes contact with Obi-Wan.  Padmé cries when she sees the Temple in flames and is thankful that Anakin is alive.  Anakin reports that there was a Jedi rebellion and they must stay loyal to the Chancellor [deleted scenes show that Padmé was already doubting Palpatine and was part of the group that would become the foundation of the Rebellion, including Mon Mothma and Bail Organa].  Obi-Wan joins Yoda at the Temple and they take down some clones and change the outgoing message to turn the Jedi away from the Temple [we eventually discover most notably in A New Dawn by John Jackson Miller that Caleb Dume/ Kanan Jarrus was the young Padawan who recommended this to Obi-Wan].

Palpatine calls a special Senate meeting that Padmé and Bail attend where he blames the Jedi who have left him scarred.  But his resolve is stronger than ever.  So, in the name of security and stability, he will dissolve the Republic and create the Galactic Empire!  As Padmé puts it, “this is how liberty dies, with thunderous applause.”  [There is a can of worms here that I am not brave enough to open.]

Obi-Wan doesn’t want to believe the security recordings when he discovers it was Anakin who marched on the Temple, or that he has turned.  The two Jedi Masters must face the two Sith Lords; Obi-Wan begs Yoda to allow him to go after Sidious, he cannot go after Anakin.  The young man is like his brother, he cannot kill him.  But Yoda fears Obi-Wan would not survive Sidious, so Yoda takes on the Sith Master himself.  Obi-Wan goes to Padmé; he must find Anakin.  But Padmé won’t say where he husband has gone; and Obi-Wan knows she’s pregnant, and Anakin’s the father.  [Side rant here, it’s made clear in Clone Wars that Anakin and Padmé are not as subtle as they believe they are; Obi-Wan has probably known for a while that there is something between them, maybe not marriage per say.  And how does no one else know Padmé is pregnant!  Look at how she dresses now!  (Mind you, they are pretty gowns, and I love her more natural hairstyle, but that’s beside the point).  And she’s have to be a far ways along; it’s stated at the beginning that Anakin and Obi-Wan have been gone for months in an Outer Rim Siege, meaning her baby was conceived the last time Anakin was home.  How do her friends not guess?]

Padmé flies off to see her husband and Obi-Wan stows away on the ship; he knows his friends.  Anakin has executed all the Separatists leaders but is still excited to see his wife.  Until she questions his actions.  Anakin now believes that Obi-Wan has turned her against him; it’s back to being all Obi-Wan’s fault.  Then Obi-Wan reveals himself and Anakin turns on his wife.  He chokes her (cause that’s a real smart idea with a pregnant woman) and Obi-Wan tries one last time to talk sense into his former Padawan, but his mind is lost to Palpatine’s machinations.

Thus begins the Battle of the Heroes [another stunning masterpiece composed by John Williams.  I can remember Jimmy Smits introducing this piece at A Capitol Fourth, referring to the orchestra as “some friends,” I thought it was funny and totally cool that they played it in Washington D.C. for everyone].  It’s blue lightsaber versus blue lightsaber (a first for the series), brother versus brother.  This is the most epic duel of the entire saga [I will fight you on this].  It is fast, and no, that was not digitally altered, Hayden and Ewan performed this duel themselves and are skilled enough now to fight at that speed.  This is a fight between foes that know each other’s fighting styles intimately.  They’re often a blur of blue and will use the same move against each other.  Heck, they even throw in a bit of Duel of the Fates at one point.

At the same time, Yoda faces Sidious in the Senate building.  Sidious resorts to throwing the Senate seats at the diminutive Jedi and it ends as a stale mate.  Yoda escapes and tells Bail Organa he must go into hiding, failed, he has.

Obi-Wan expresses his own failure to Anakin.  Anakin is now immersed in the Dark Side and feels that the Jedi are evil (goes back to everything Palpatine has fed him for over a decade).  Obi-Wan gains the high ground and cautions Anakin to surrender.  Anakin is still cocky and flips over his former master, but he’s still in reach of Obi-Wan’s blade and loses the rest of his limbs.  The heat of the lava lands on him, burning and scaring him as Obi-Wan releases his pain: “You were the Chosen One!  It was said that you would destroy the Sith, not join them!  Bring balance to the Force, not leave it in darkness!”  Anakin shouts his hatred at Obi-Wan.  “You were my brother, Anakin.  I loved you.”  [Excellent acting by Ewan]  Obi-Wan cannot bring himself to end his best friend (which could be argued was a mistake, but we love Obi-Wan too much to judge him too harshly), so takes his discarded lightsaber and walks away.  He takes Padmé to Bail Organa where the medical droids deliver her twins (a bit of a shock to everyone, except us).  Sadly, she’s lost the will to live but tells Obi-Wan as he holds newborn Luke that there is still good in Anakin.

Palpatine senses Vader is in trouble and saves him, but that necessitates a large black suit to keep him alive.  This is where that iconic look comes from and that distinctive breathing.  When Vader asks about his wife, Palpatine tells him that he killed her.  Construction begins on the Death Star [why it takes nineteen years to build the first one, unless there were large-scale prototypes first…there are a few plot holes between the ending of III and beginning of IV].  Padmé’s family buries her on Naboo.  Yoda recommends that the infants be split up for their protection; Bail offers to take Leia to Alderaan.  Obi-Wan will take Luke to his family on Tatooine (cue theme from Episode IV).  Yoda has one final lesson for Obi-Wan; Qui-Gon has kept his identity in the Force and offers to teach the remaining Masters.  We also get a quick scene that shows C-3PO’s memory was wiped before working for Bail Organa, but R2-D2’s was not…meaning that little astromech knows everything.

So now, all we have to do is wait for the next generation to grow up.

This movie, like the other prequels, has its good and bad points.  Anakin’s Heel-Face Turn was too sudden when it finally happened.  Yes, the ground work has been laid, particularly since Attack of the Clones.  But it seems within the space of a few hours, Anakin goes from ‘I trust the Jedi Council to handle this threat I discovered’, to ‘I kill the Jedi Master and boom, now I’m a Sith Lord’.  And then he takes it out on his wife.  Of course, this is majorly influenced by Palpatine’s schemes, but I really want to smack Anakin upside the head.  [And this is why there exists many fix-it fictions].  And all Padmé does it sit around, being pregnant.  She took charge and kicked butt in the previous two films and now, nothing.  She loses the will to live after giving birth…yes, this obviously had to happen because she’s not around in the originals (and begs the question, how did Leia have memories of her…plot hole), but still disappointing.  Grievous was an unneeded character; you already had an extra bad guy and why build up Count Dooku if you’re not going to use him.

The banter was fun; Anakin was a bit better, at least at the beginning of the film; not so whiny.  The massive duel at the end was epic!  That sells the entire film; it’s fraught with emotion.  Obi-Wan may not have been planning on killing Anakin, but he did plan on stopping him.  What makes it even more interesting is that the two characters (and actors) were evenly matched.

Up Next: Solo

I’ll put my musings on the Jedi Code here:

As the extended universe wrote out, the Jedi Code declares There is no emotion, there is peace.  There is no ignorance, there is knowledge.  There is no passion, there is serenity.  There is no chaos, there is harmony.  There is no death, there is the Force.  I’m sure someone has done a paper somewhere comparing this to different philosophies or religious beliefs and this as it is written out is a mindful way to live.  For a while, I felt that the Jedi Code was meant to make Jedi into unfeeling beings, which is the opposite of what humans are.  As humans we have emotions, we are emotions.  And as a teenager, just getting into the fandom, I went along with the idea that the Council was denying Anakin’s basic needs as a human; of course he should feel love.  But there is a difference between love and attachment.  It circles back to that saying “if you love something,  let it go.”  The attachment rule is to prevent the Jedi from putting one thing or being or whatever about another.  Like Anakin putting the fate of Padmé above the rest of the galaxy.  Of course Jedi should love and have a compassion, but they have a larger duty to the galaxy.  In Clone Wars we see Obi-Wan tempted due to love, but he resists.  Is the Council flawed?  Yes.  It’s a bit odd to look back and see that wise Master Yoda made some mistakes.  Like, instead of simply telling Anakin over and over that fear leads to the Dark Side, how ’bout some actual help? And it pains me to say this, but technically Palpatine had a point in telling Anakin to completely understand a subject, he must study all aspects, not just the dogmatic, narrow view of the Jedi. There is obviously a fine line (and someone could make the connection between magic and the Force and compare Harry Potter to Star Wars…I do not have the time for that, lol), but simply excluding something because it is “dark” without understanding it is asking for trouble. Caution is urged, of course.

It is heavily implied within the extended universe that Qui-Gon Jinn loved a fellow Jedi Master, Tahl and his decisions regarding her were not wholly logical.  It caused a rift between him and Obi-Wan more than once while Obi-Wan was a Padawan. …Yeah, I’ve come to realize that Qui-Gon was not the greatest Master and this is where fandom has declared Obi-Wan deserves hugs. I once thought Mace Windu cold and unfeeling.  While he too was flawed, as is any good character, he also had his depths.

Some Obi-Wan Kenobi appreciation [can you tell he is my favorite character?]:

He’s referred to as the Ace on TV Tropes [a lot of this information came from there, but I certainly agree with their points]; one of the best Jedi that the Order ever had.  Third strongest Council member after Windu and Yoda; tactical genius, top diplomat (Negotiator), expert pilot (out flew Jango Fett), master of multiple forms of lightsaber combat (particularly Form III [Soresu] and Ataru).  Considered to be the single best defensive duelist in the galaxy in his prime.  In canon, the only battle he loses is against Vader in A New Hope and he most likely threw that as a distraction to help Luke.  He faced off against the Sith, killing an apprentice when he was only a Padawan and Grievous.  Became a broken ace after the death of Qui-Gon and most of the Order, and (SPOILER) his love Satine by Maul [I disliked that bit].  Saw the death of Padmé and spent nineteen years in hiding on Tatooine with guilt and trauma. 

Sees more combat that most of the other Jedi in canon.  More of a brother relationship with Anakin, less of an age gap; bicker like siblings (and it is hilarious).  The one who started the trend of Jedi generals wearing clone trooper armor in order to relate more closely to their troops.  Primary enemy of Maul and Grievous, but greatest enemy was Anakin.  Took a Level in Badass: goes from getting very lucky against Maul to a Master who defeated Grievous and bested the most powerful Force User in the galaxy.  Badass Bookworm – intelligent, cultured gentlemen, who can kick a lot of ass when the time comes for it (love this!).  Bash Brothers and Big Brother Instinct and Mentor with Anakin.  The fandom is quick to point out that while Obi-Wan undoubtedly made mistakes in training Anakin (and he beats himself up for it), he went directly from being a Padawan to having a Padawan and one who was already too old to begin Jedi education yet young to be a Padawan.  And had several members of the Council who disagreed with training the boy, so cut him a little slack.

Is described as “the ultimate Jedi” partially because he is modest, heroic, focused, and kind.  Nevertheless, if you push him far enough (like taking part in the murder of almost his entire “family” aka Jedi Order, including innocent children) he is prepared to hack off your limbs and leave you alone to slowly burn to death.  Calm facade breaks while fighting Anakin in Revenge.  Anytime the emotionally controlled Obi-Wan get emotional, something is wrong.

Humble Hero [fanfic authors recognize this]: It seems that Obi-Wan is the only being who doesn’t understand how great a Jedi he is – when the Council proposes to send their ‘most cunning and insightful Master’ after Grievous, he has no idea who they mean.  He’s also surprised when Mace Windu (the guy who created his own form of lightsaber combat) refers to him as ‘the master of the classic form,’ note, the master, not simply a master.  He is easily the nicest and most immediately personable member of the Jedi Order in Prequels.  Overall, maintains a kind demeanor and strong moral code in spite of the vast amount of hardship he faces.  Slightly aloof and snarky and times, but also polite and compassionate.  The Paragon: stands as pinnacle of heroism; selfless, morally upright, humble, and inspires others, in control of his impulses and emotions.  Not perfect, but closest to embodying ideals of Jedi Order.  Extremely clever, worldly, intelligent.

Does get beaten up at times (Attack of the Clones where he jumps out window and then the arena).  Combat Pragmatist.  Sharp wit and sardonically sarcastic sense of humor (could be a result of seeing death and destruction…I believe somewhere in Legends canon, young Obi-Wan suffered from visions).  Gentleman Snarker [I love that]: Obi-Wan’s polite, diplomatic demeanor can mask some pretty biting snark.  Poster boy for Snark Knight; he also likes to flirt with his enemies. Mainly meaningless, but still funny.  Refuses to give up after learning about the occurrences of the Jedi Purge and Anakin’s betrayal of the Order.  Still hurt years afterward, still believes Luke will save the Jedi.  Jedi are fettered as a rule, but Obi-Wan explains the strength that comes from resisting the temptation of the Dark Side while confronting Maul later.  Makes up for lack of character growth with the sheer amount of action he goes through.

Foil to Anakin, both skilled and famous Jedi with troubles love lives: Anakin and Padmé obviously.  Obi-Wan and Duchess Satine (Legends: Siri).  Obi-Wan takes firm hand training Anakin, more of a gentle touch training Luke.  Throughout Prequels and Clone Wars, Obi-Wan has several good reasons to turn to the Dark Side, but resists.  Cannot be corrupted.  Has Innocent Blue Eyes that symbolize his heroic, righteous, and pure nature.  Mentor Archetype.  Morality Chain to Anakin: Anakin respected Obi-Wan enough that Palpatine had to get him off the planet before turning him to the Dark Side, and Anakin still tries to (threateningly) talk Obi-Wan out of fighting him.  Morphs into dark version of Worthy Opponent.  Dooku  considers Obi-Wan a worthy opponent (Hardeen plotline; foil an attempted kidnapping by disguising himself as a bounty hunter and sabotaging the plot from the inside)

Implied friendship formed with Padmé and turned blind eye to her relationship with Anakin.  Good is not Soft: prefers to settle conflict diplomatically.  But will fight.  Demonstrates some of the most powerful Psychic Powers in canon.  Also prone to passively enhancing his physical strength and durability with Force; shot straight up four feet by arm strength to beat Maul; shook off blows from Grievous that sent him falling thirty feet; and fought Anakin within inches of lava.

Similar position to Han Solo in Prequel Trilogy; they both serve as older brotherly figures (Han to Luke, Obi-Wan to Anakin…I’ll get into more of the former when we hit the original trilogy because I love that part).  Obi-Wan is Anakin’s Jedi Master and partner who Anakin also saw as a Parental Substitute while Han is Luke’s partner and closest friend, who later becomes his brother-in-law.  Conversely, Anakin and Obi-Wan’s bond is destroyed, while Luke and Han have a rocky start but become family (even before marriage).  Belligerent Sexual Tension with love interests (Satine, Leia).  Obi-Wan Ideal Hero, Han Anti-Hero.  (SPOILER): Both are murdered by someone they had a complicated father-son relationship with.  Driving force behind the Prequels, but still major character in New Hope.

Disagrees with (SPOILER) dismissing Ahsoka [and another reason I’m not keen on finishing Clone Wars].  Also believes the Council should be more open with Anakin about their concerns over Chancellor Palpatine and the Sith, but overruled.  The Stoic: has one of the most unpleasant lives (and afterlife?) of any character in fiction, but remains clam, never complains, and usually keeps his emotions well in check.  You Didn’t Ask: rather sad one, only reason didn’t stay with Satine is she didn’t ask.  Oh, and Leia is Luke’s sister.

Later in life, the Atoner for training the man who destroyed the Jedi Order and never recognizing the threat Anakin really represented.  Will still cut off arms if need arises.  Even after all the trauma he went through in his younger days and having spent almost twenty years living as a hermit, Obi-Wan is a remarkably kind and patient man.  Explanation for fight against Vader; stalling and Vader’s powerful attacks.  Starts off as a young and brash apprentice to Qui-Gon, becomes more wise and experienced Jedi Master, culmination in teaching Luke, his former pupil’s son.

And thus I am totally excited for the upcoming show on Disney+ and very glad they kept Ewan McGregor for the role.

Some fanfiction recommendations, all from AO3:

Check out

Both Lost Destiny and Crossroads by Nihes are interesting, but you end up wanting to punch something at the end.  However, Jedi Babysitting for Professionals is hilarious

I certainly hope that Big Fat Bumblebee’s Found is continued because it is certainly time that someone takes care of Obi-Wan.  Brothers care for brothers, Infuriating Man, Battle of Wills, and Enforced Convalescence are heartwarming (apparently the only thing Anakin and Mace Windu agree on is caring for Obi-Wan, not the Order, or the Republic, or even the Force, but yes to Obi-Wan).

Meysun’s There is no Pain is rather poignant, and you certainly want to wrap Obi-Wan up in a hug afterwards.

As I Fall and A Long Way Down by KCKenobi include some Obi-Wan whump.  Some Things You Just Can’t Speak About is another one that makes you want to wrap Obi-Wan up in a hug.  We get some protective Mace Windu in Old Wounds.

Must_Be _Thursday’s Just Surrender is rather good.

AndyHood’s Fought for Him really emphasizes why Obi-Wan needs some hugs.

Siri_Kenobi12 gives us some Obi-Wan whump in Tested.  Memoirs of Kadavo is wonderful and I already told you I love It Takes a Village from the write-up on Phantom Menace.

You Are Wanted Obi-Wan Kenobi by allwalkfree is my new favorite story.

“The biggest word/ you’ve ever heard/ and this is how it goes!”

Mary Poppins

An iconic Disney musical.  And it so happened to have been on television both the night my brother was born, and the night I was born, twenty months later.  The original book series was written by P.L. Travers.  For the film, music was composed by the Sherman brothers and production was overseen by Walt Disney himself, as showcased in Saving Mr. Banks.  I have seen the film and it was an interesting look into how the film was created, though a bit sad as well.  Tom Hanks and Emma Thompson were excellent in it.  The classic movie stars Julie Andrews (Sound of Music, The Princess Diaries) in her first major movie role (though she was already experienced on the stage) as the titular Mary Poppins.  [And a note about that; Julie had starred as the original Eliza Doolittle from My Fair Lady on stage and had hoped to earn the role again in the film.  But it went to Audrey Hepburn.  Mary Poppins won the Oscar that year.]  Her co-star was Dick Van Dyke (Chitty Chitty Bang Bang) as Bert, David Tomlinson (Bedknobs and Broomsticks) as Mr. George W. Banks, Reginald Owen (Bedknobs and Broomsticks) as Admiral Boom, and Arthur Treacher (yes, of the Fish and Chips restaurant line; he also appeared in several Shirley Temple films) as the Constable.

The establishing shots of the London skyline tell us we’re in England and we see Mary Poppins sitting on a cloud.  Bert is a one-man band, entertaining a crowd, until the wind blows by: “something is brewing/ about to begin.”  Then he addresses the audience, as we asked for directions to Number 17, Cherry Tree Lane.  We pass by Admiral Boom, who has rigging on the top of his home, as well as a canon to mark the time.  The world takes its time from Greenwich, but Greenwich takes its time from Admiral Boom.  There is an argument brewing at Number 17; seems Katie Nana has lost her charges, but blames them, so she is leaving.  Mrs. Banks arrives home from her Sister Suffragette rally, though it takes several tries to inform her that her children are missing.  She quickly puts her things away so as to not upset her husband.

Mr. Banks arrives home cheerfully, it’s 1910, “King Edward’s on the throne/ it’s the Age of Men,” and he is pleased with The Life I Lead.  Everything is on schedule, his servants and family treat him with the respect he deserves as head of the household (noblesse oblige) and it takes several minutes before he realizes his children are missing.  The kindly constable brings them home and tries to encourage Mr. Banks to not be hard on them, but Mr. Banks dismisses him.  With the same tune, he has his wife take down an advertisement for a new nanny.  No-nonsense is the first requirement, “tradition, discipline, and rules/ must be the tools/ without them/ disorder, catastrophe, anarchy/ in short, you have a ghastly mess.”  Jane and Michael have their own advertisement and though their mother follows her husband’s commands, she does insist that they listen to their children.  Their first requirement is a cherry disposition, and a desire for games, all sorts.  After the children are sent to bed, Mr. Banks tears up the notice and throws it into the fireplace.  What he doesn’t see are the pieces float out the chimney.

There is a queue of nannies in the morning, but before Mr. Banks can begin interviewing there is a large gust of wind that blows them all away.  Mary Poppins gently floats down and lands at the door.  In her hand are the children’s qualifications, not Mr. Banks’ and so he wonders over at the fireplace what happened.  Mary gives herself the job, but Mr. Banks seems suitably impressed and takes credit for it when his wife asks.  Mary does the most extraordinary thing and rides the banister up.  She quickly takes control in the nursery, putting her things away, after pulling them out of an empty carpet bag (loved that part as a kid).  Michael thinks she’s tricky.  Jane thinks she’s wonderful.  Mary also pulls out her tape measure, to see how the children measure up.  Michael is extremely stubborn and suspicious, while Jane is prone to giggling.  Mary Poppins is “practically perfect in every way.”  Time for their first game, tidying up the nursery.  “In every job that must be done/ there is an element of fun/ you find the fun/ and snap, the job’s a game.”  A Spoonful of Sugar helps the medicine go down.  Snapping puts the toys and items laying about away, though it takes Michael several tries.  It gets a little out of hand and Mary Poppins puts an end to it, but the children eagerly join her for a walk afterwards.

Today, Bert is a street artist and the trio arrive.  He recognizes Mary Poppins and knows Jane and Michael from their adventures nearby.  He tries some magic to pop the children into a drawing, but Mary Poppins steps in to do it properly.  Now the children run off to a fair in new outfits and Bert remarks to Mary “it’s a Jolly Holiday…when Mary hold your hand/ it feels so grand/ your heart starts beating/ like a big brass band.”  Animated animals come up to them and even join in the singing [animation style reminds me a bit of 101 Dalmatians].  The pair end up at a cafe with dancing penguins (I love this part!)  Bert joins in the dancing and it’s wonderfully hilarious.  He is quick to insist “cream of the crop/ tip of the top/ is Mary Poppins/ and there we stop.”  They do join the children on a merry-go-round, but Mary has the horses jump off the carousel.  They join a fox hunt, with Bert rescuing the Irish fox and that leads to a horse race.  Mary’s manners lead her to the front and when the interviewers congratulate her, she reveals there is a word to use when one does not know what to say.  Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious (just about the best song of all time).  “Even though the sound of it/ is something quite atrocious/ if you say it loud enough/ you’ll always sound precocious.”

Meeting Mary in Disney World in 2007

Rain ruins their day and they’re back in London in their regular clothes.  Mary shows further magic when her medicine changes color and flavor for each person’s preference.  When the children insist they are much too excited to go to sleep, Mary lulls them to Stay Awake.  Of course, they drift off, but are cheerful the next morning, to their father’s chagrin.  He feels Mary Poppins is undermining the discipline in the house; indeed, everyone is in a good mood except him.  But he goes off to work and Mary takes the children out on errands.  The dog, Andrew, barks he needs Mary’s help; so the children meet Uncle Albert.  Bert is already there, and oddly, Uncle Albert is floating near the ceiling.  I Love to Laugh, he declares, “loud and long and clear.”  “The more I laugh/ the more I fill with glee/ and the more the glee/ the more I’m a merrier me.”  Everyone joins him on the ceiling, though Mary simply floats up.  She raises the tea table, but a little later, insists they must get home.  And that is the secret to getting down; one must think of something sad.  Bert stays with Albert.

Mr. Banks confronts Mary Poppins at home about the nature of her outings.  He dislikes filling his children’s heads with silly nonsense.  If they must have outings, they should be practical.  Like taking them to the bank, suggests Mary.  She tells the children that she never puts notions in someone’s head; it’s just the logical following of what they were saying.  She urges the children to look for the bird lady at St. Paul’s Cathedral and to hear her cry of Feed the Birds (one of Walt Disney’s favorite songs).  The song lulls the children to sleep again.  They eagerly accompany their father, but he won’t let them use their money to feed the birds.  Instead, he shows them to the leaders of the bank; several old men who use financial terms that confuse the children.  The eldest, Mr. Dawes Sr (played by Dick Van Dyke as well) wants Michael to give his tuppence to the Fidelity, Fiduciary Bank.  One must think prudently, thriftily, frugally, patiently, and cautiously.  Of course, these all go over the children’s heads (and mine).  When Michael is a bit confused, Dawes Sr. grabs the tuppence.  So Michael shouts “give me back my money.”  The other customers hear and start demanding their money as well.  In the chaos, Michael and Jane run off.  It’s a bit scary for a moment and they run into a man covered in soot.  Luckily, it’s Bert.  He calms them down and leads them home.  Today he is a chimney sweep, “you may think a sweep’s/ on the bottom-most rung/ though I spends me time/ in the ashes and smoke/ in this whole wide world/ there’s no happier bloke.”  Chim-Chim-Cheree  “Good luck will rub off/ when I shake hands with you/ or blow me a kiss/ and that’s lucky too.”  At the house, Mrs. Banks is off for another rally and asks Bert to look after the children since it’s Mary Poppins’ day off.  The children are interested, until Michael shoots up the chimney when Mary walks in.  Jane quickly follows, so Bert and Mary join them.

They get a beautiful view of the rooftops of London and march about.  They run into Bert’s pals, all of whom are chimney sweeps as well and they entertain their visitors with a Step in Time (love this dance).  Mary even joins in with a rising spin [I wonder what effects they used to film the sequence, since it had to be safe for the dancers.]  Admiral Boom spots the dancers and has his assistant shoot firecrackers at them, chasing them off the roof.  They all end up in the Banks’ home until Mr. Banks returns.  After the exodus of chimney sweeps from his house, Mr. Banks gets a call from the bank; they want him to return later.  He has a conversation with Bert, who points out that it is admirable to want to provide for your family, but soon they will grow and he won’t know them.  Jane and Michael apologize to their father and Michael gives him his tuppence.

The board wants to dismiss Mr. Banks, for causing a run on the bank.  They invert his umbrella, tear his flower, and punch out his hat.  When they ask if he has anything to say, he recalls “Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious.”  He even repeats the joke Michael taught him; for he’s seen what good Mary Poppins has done in his family and has made the decision that they are more important.  He gives the tuppence to Dawes Sr, who starts pondering the joke and then begins to laugh.  He laughs so much, he begins floating and his grown son cries out “Daddy!  Come back!”

Mr. Banks gives his family a bit of a scare; they’ve called the constable because they can’t find him, until he emerges singing from the cellar.  He’s mended the kite and asks Jane and Michael to join him.  Mrs. Banks adds a sash for a tail and they are all excited to Let’s Go Fly a Kite, an absolutely heartwarming number.  The wind has changed, and it’s time for Mary Poppins to go.  The children are sad at first that she’s leaving, but their father’s good mood cheers them up and Mary leaves once the family does.  Bert nods to her and she smiles at her friend.  Her talking parrot umbrella insists that Mary Poppins does love the children, but she states it is proper that they love their father.  “Practically perfect people never permit sentiment to muddle their thinking,” and she rises back to the clouds.

Mary Poppins is a lovely family film and is cherished in our home.  We did watch the late sequel, Mary Poppins Returns, which stars Emily Blunt and Lin-Manuel Miranda, with appearances by Dick Van Dyke, Angela Landsbury, Ben Whishaw, Julie Walters, Colin Firth, and Meryl Streep.  Did not like it.  It was trying too hard and didn’t have the charm that the original had; there’s just no repeating the magic.

Up Next: The last musical, The Sound of Music