Defenders of Berk 213 Review

PLOT A: Free Willy…I mean, Scauldy

On a scouting mission for the Screaming Death Hiccup, Fishlegs, Ruffnut, and Tuffnut come across a scualdron that’s stranded on land because it’s wing is trapped under some rocks. While trying to free the dragons before it dries up, the Scualdron takes a particular liking to Ruffnut

Soooooo, it’s the moment we’ve all been waiting for…

A Ruffnut-centric episode!!!

As all over-hyped episodes go, will it ever meet fan expectations? Will it reign with the over-hyped episode greats such as “Heather Report” and “Fright of Passage”? Well….yeah, actually it does.

This was a perfect episode to introduce what it’s like for Ruffnut to take center stage.

But before we get to that, we’ve gotta cover the set up. A scouting mission to see if the Screaming Death is roaming about, and that was also a nice touch. That little detail reminds us of the Screaming Death’s plot which might’ve been forgotten/not have really paid attention to anymore since it hasn’t shown up since episode 208. So that was a good and light way of reminding us without shoving it down our throats.

Now on for Scauldy himself, I do like the teens coming across a wild dragon and trying to help it but facing the problem of…it’s wild and it’s not too friendly or trusting of humans. And for once, Hiccup—our illustrious main character—couldn’t get this dragon to trust him. I guess he can’t always gel with every dragon he meets, luckily Ruffnut was there to pick up the slack.

And I know we were all glad that they decided to finally go with Ruffnut and not Tuffnut in this matter. Cause Tuff would’ve been the expected easy out for some comedy, but Ruffnut added a bit more of that serious tone that the plot needed at times, while still providing funny and light-hearted moments. (Because I still stand by her being the more level-headed of the twins). Her Hiccup impression as well as the lullaby were some of the funniest moments of the episode.

But, it was interesting to see how the episode would pull off Ruffnut and Scauldy bonding since the only had two acts to do it but, oddly enough, it was actually really well paced out! The different stages on bonding and trusting were well done and believable. Which does make me think back to a similar episode that tried to form a dragon/human bond in one episode, that being 107 “How to Pick Your Dragon”, and wondering…why that episode didn’t get it right but this one did? Probably because Scauldy and Ruffnut were together the entire time, while Stoick was mostly chasing Thornado trying to bond with him rather than…actually bonding with him.

But, moving on….the thing that really separated the boys from the men, the girls from the women, and a good episode from a great episode, was the ending. The sacrifice that Ruffnut made to ensure that Scualdy made it back to the ocean in time…in which she cut off her hair to finish making his prosthetic.

I gotta say, this show—or any show for that matter—rarely gets an audible response from me (like something will be funny, but I won’t actually “laugh out loud”) but I did let out a gasp when Ruffnut flew into the shot with short hair. I just wasn’t expecting that.

As far as shock value goes, this episode definitely delivered. And as far as emotional depth behind the shock value goes, this episode definitely delivered that as well!

Aside from the Ruffnut stuff, the other characters had good performances as well. Hiccup was his typical mix of bossy and sassy (never get tired of the “my leg didn’t fall off” line). Tuffnut offered a really nice genuine moment of non-comedic sibling love and worry. And Fishlegs…forbidden friendship. Nuff said.

This plot was pretty much spotless. Though just to nitpick I can say that the group’s—minus Ruffnut—quickness to leave Scualdy there and let nature take it’s course when the iron was hot did seem a little out of character. Especially since they all had dragons there that could defend them. I don’t know it seemed more like the group’s style to stay there and fight even if the odds were kinda slim.

PLOT B: The Final Testament of Snotstrid (not really…)

Forced to be with Snotlout on a two-person scouting mission, Astrid has finally had the last straw of his flirting and decides to end the charade once and for all.

So everyone’s noticed that this season the Snotlout/Astrid moments have been pretty prominent. One can even say *gasp* more prominent than Hiccstrid.

But by “moments” of course we mean Snotlout hitting on Astrid and clearly getting nowhere because she’s said again…and again….and again…and again….and again…and again that she’s not interested.

But the fact that there was so much Snotstrid this season begged the question of “is this building up to something?” to be asked. And, what do you know, it was building up to something.

So here we go, Snotlout and Astrid are alone on the other half of the scouting mission and Snotlout’s giving the term “flirt till it hurts” a whole new meaning. And I’m glad that we finally see Astrid having the last straw of it. We all wondered when she’d snap, but everyone—including me—thought it would be handled more in a “she yells and brings up some kind of valid point about how they’ll never be together blah blah blah” kind of scenario. I liked the approach this episode took a whole lot better, though.

Astrid was more in a manipulative mode and used reverse psychology to actually give Snotlout what he had been vying for since—probably—he was a kid. And “girlfriend-mode Astrid” wasn’t what he thought it would be.

I just really enjoyed how this was handled. And it was a perfect end to Astrid and Snotlout’s ongoing flirting and rejection plotline and it went out with a hilariously lovely bang. In terms of character development I’m pleased with both of them.

Though this plot did do something else as well, and that’s being one of the first—if not the first—honest to goodness side plot. As in a plot that has nothing to do with the main plot, but doesn’t take too much time away from the said main plot. This Astrid/Snotlout side not could’ve existed in any episode, cause it had nothing to do with Scaudly or that plot whatsoever. But it still stood on its own had a powerful effect to it. I’m more used to episodes having a real “A plot/B plot” set up, which RoB/DoB normally doesn’t do to its entirety, but with this episode they definitely did have a real B plot that was strong enough to stand on its own.

FINAL THOUGHTS:

So this episode was really close to perfect. It finally put some spotlight on a very underused and underappreciated character, and did so in a way that really added depth and virtue to her character. As well as gave us a really satisfying ending that was one of the biggest shocks the entire franchise had to offer.

The side plot of Astrid and Snotlout was also a really good landmark for both characters, and all the other teens brought something noteworthy to the table as well.

All and all, and like I said, it was a close to perfect episode. Though I am slow to award any episode with a perfect 30/30 this episode definitely is one of the closest we’ve gotten so far.

Though, writing this review, I do already have the knowledge that neither Ruffnut’s cut hair or Snotlout’s disinterest in Astrid will be carried over in future episodes…which does make the really big moments and character revelations in this episode come off a little more…lackluster. Not a lot but, just a little.

While issues of budget and difficulties in major character model changes can kind of answer and somewhat excuse the issue of Ruffnut’s hair returning back to normal in the next episode…I really don’t get why the whole Snotstrid plot end won’t be carried over. And to be honest, it seems just a little lazy to me. As I, for one, am sick of that being run as a continuous gag and the two character’s only means of communication. But…we’ll see what later episodes have to bring.

Still, this episode, not looking towards the future, brought forth a lot of really great revelations in character development!

29.9/30

Defenders of Berk 212 Review

PLOT A:  Gustav gets his head in the Game

When Snotlout starts seeing the “Five signposts of Valhalla” he thinks he’s going to die and recruits a willing Gustav to take his place in the Academy.

So I was surprised when it seemed like we’d get an episode centered around a minor character. Gustav’s been well received among the fans, and we so rarely get to see the younger generation on Berk so it was a refreshing change of pace to see what the kids on the island do…which is apparently strap fake wings and flame throwers on sheep and ride them around (that was insanely adorable by the way).

On the other side of the plot, Snotlout seeing the “5 signposts of Valhalla” was a smooth way to throw in some culture and make the “I’m gonna die” plot more believable. Because I was getting a bit worried that it was going to be one of those poorly played “the character thinks he’s deathly ill and stays in bed when it turns out being something harmless”. And the speech Snotlout made about everyone’s “imperfections” and the “Oh, Astrid, what might’ve been” was arguably my favorite moment in the whole episode. (I know I’ve mentioned this before but I love what Zach Pearlman does with Snotlout’s character).

Still with those two plots coming together and focusing on Snotlout training Gustav to be a rider was great character development for both of them especially near the end during the fight where Gustav wants to leave but Snotlout says if he wants experience staying and fighting is how he’s going to get it. That was a great teacher moment for Snotlout (because it’s always nice seeing someone other than Hiccup teach someone something).

And I hope with Gustav being a junior, trainer, fourth-class whatchamawhooey that it means we’ll see him working around the academy sometimes, it would be a nice continuation to have a junior trainee around, but I’m not really expecting it….I’ll just be happy if that does happen. Or at least see a little more of him and Fanghook, because those two do seem to have a bond already as a dragon and rider (which makes me question why did he have to let him go back in the woods….?)

And as for the other riders in this episode. They were all perfectly in place. The twins were hilarious as always, and it was an expected but not degrading touch that they were simply messing with Snotlout. Hiccup, Astrid, and Fishlegs were the golden trio as usual (I just love those three together so much). And no one really overshadowed the main focus of this episode, which was Gustav and Snotlout who really have formed an endearing bond.

Gustav was cute following Snotlout around before but I just really like that it really is Snotlout that he admires and wants to be like, which gives Snotlout a chance to be a little mature. Nice stuff going on with this plot, I couldn’t really find too much wrong with it. It was nicely paced, wasn’t overshadowed, and had a clear and satisfying start and end.

(Also Gustav is voiced by Lucas Grabeel from “High School Musical”…that seems like a fun fact to me.)

PLOT B: Dagur being…Dagur

Dagur is seemingly planning a new weapon to use on Berk…but it winds up simply being a trap to get the riders on Outcast Island.

So I really do have to get used to now when they say “Outcast Island” they mean Dagur.

But this was a standard third act conflict throw in (enhanced because DAGUR!) Dagur is “as crafty as he is crazy” as Stoick puts it and I guess he was talking up this big weapon while Trader Johann was  doing business knowing he’d leak it back to Stoick.

Which makes me wonder why is Johann even allowed back there after he clearly picked a side in the season 1 finale? But, either way, there’s a trust issue there since they all clearly knew he’d go blab to Stoick about what he saw and used that to their advantage.

Still, there wasn’t too much substance in this, but then, the episode didn’t really call for it. It was more of a set up simply to get Gustav to get experience, which is fine cause they didn’t built it up like it was going to be something big in the first place. I do wonder what his next big plan is going to be to get the night fury? Or Hiccup…or whatever he wants these days.

But all and all it was a decent third act conflict that served it’s purpose and produced a decent fight. There might’ve been one too many unrealistically long pauses during the fighting. Like Gustavs and Snotlout’s talk (though I can let that slide cause that was important). And the fact that Hiccup and Toothless just floated around and didn’t move as Dagur was shooting them down. And when they were trapped they didn’t just burn the net. Seriously why does everyone always forget that? Fanghook and Gustav didn’t forget it.

Though did Dagur kill more people at the end? Cause he raised his sword, was talking about execution, and then at the scene cut we heard a scream in the background.

Umm….

FINAL THOUGHTS:

So this episode was solid. It did a good job developing a minor character fully in one episode, set up a good potential reoccurring theme in the riders having a trainee (Which I really hope they follow up on).

It only had a few bumps and bugs but nothing too jarring to make the episode less enjoyable past making a few “huhs?”

It’s odd how Snotlout-centric episodes usually end up being the ones I like. As far as characters go, I think they’re doing a good job with his when he has episodes that focus on him, and as I mentioned before, pairing him with Gustav gives Snotlout a way to mature while still being in character. I can’t wait for more Snotlout-centric episodes (hopefully) in the future!

Defenders of Berk 211 Review

PLOT A:  "Double-O Berk"

Having found the twins, Hiccup sends Tuffnut to spy on the Berserks and the Outcasts to find out what they’re planning

So I was pretty excited when it seemed that the twins and Hiccup were going to be working side-by-side in this episode. It seemed like it would be a nice touch after the previous episode establishing that the twins finally came to terms with themselves not being completely useless.

Though, unfortunately this episode fell into a pit hole that all the twin-centric plots seem to.

It was all about Tuffnut.

I’m not going to lie, Tuffnut’s hilarious. Everything he says he pretty much funny. But there’s a time and a place for Tuffnut’s comedy act and a lot of places in this episode is slowed down the plot and brought back the first season’s problem of “lollygagging” in the second act only having to make up for it in the third act.

This episode had a pretty pressing issue, two of our main villains were working together, they had a skrill, and were planning an invasion. And yet…pretty much all of the second act was given to Tuffnut being funny. He is a rather dominating character and it’s easy to get caught in the “rhapsody of it all” with his funny lines. But I felt a lot of his scenes could’ve been shortened and cut out and the plot would’ve faired the same.

Why? Because the last act felt rather crammed.

Think about it, we had three battles in the last 7-5 minutes of the episode. Why couldn’t some of that have been resolved in the second act as well? Cause the second act was all about Tuffnut being funny.

Plus, again, Ruffnut was there…and what did she do…? Nothing.

I don’t know, I just felt it focused a little too much on the funny aspect of Tuffnut being a spy than the strategy of him being a spy. They should’ve taken notes on what they did in “Heather Report, part 2” or 

“Defiant One” for the spying aspect of being on Outcast island.

Still, it was nice to see the twins in a tag-team mission with Hiccup yet again. Though I just wished the whole second act hadn’t been slowed down so much to unnecessarily add funny stuff in.

That being said…at least Tuffnut did do his job and got information and successfully got it back to Hiccup. So, that’s something.

PLOT B: "Outcast vs. Berserkers"

Alvin has captured the skrill and is making a plan with Dagur that they both attack Berk in exchange for handing over the skrill to the Berserkers. But Dagur’s got other plans.

Now this plot was surely interesting. Alvin vs. Dagur. Almost like the good villain vs. the villain who’s falling flat. And with how the ending battle between those two was handled I’m thinking that maybe Alvin’s lack of…exciting-ness was actually intentional.

Was he supposed to be a failed villain…? Who knows, but if it was supposed to be intentional than…well, that’s rather interesting.

Though there is the pressing question of did Dagur kill Alvin…? I’m not too sure because getting struck by lightning in the water could kill him believably. But, I would say no, even though I saw on tumblr that there might’ve been official confirmation on twitter that he actually did die. Though I haven’t looked into anything so I don’t know.

Taking the surprising road and killing Alvin off in such a way—after failing and being humiliated only to have his tribe barely mourn him and switch over to the Berserkers—that’s pretty depressing…makes me feel sorry for him.

But, if he’s not dead and they’re planning to bring him back, I think it would be interesting to have him ride in on the screaming death, wanting revenge and then we’d have a three-way battle between Berk, the Berserkers and Alvin and the Screaming Death. Now that would be interesting, but we shall see. Still, if they are going to bring him back, they’d better do something interesting with him to make up for his rather lack-luster performance lately.

And as for Dagur…he continues to impress me as a villain. He’s entertaining to watch, has a personality, an established history and motivation, and has the intimating factor to make him a threat to our heroes. All of which was perfectly shown in this episode. I absolutely loved the little moment about him hating people who smack because his father used to smack. Always calling back to that past of his…nice establishment.  

I only wished we had more time focusing on the tension between Alvin and Dagur before their battle. Which would’ve happened if a certain twin hadn’t hogged a lot of screen time….

But the end battle between Alvin and Dagur was very good even if it was short. They’re both skilled fighters so it was really just a matter of who would get the upper hand first. And Dagur had a skrill at his disposal so…we all knew how that was going to end….

Still, aside from this plot not being as present as it could’ve been and the ending battle being perhaps a tad too short—probably cut for time—this was a very good show down, and should’ve taken up a majority of the screen time instead, in my opinion.

PLOT C: "Brotherhood, the Reunion"

Finally with the skrill to himself, Dagur and Hiccup face off, Night Fury vs. Skrill

I was kind of disappointed how this fight was literally left to the last 5 minutes of the episode as it was one of the main buildups since the previous episode.

Hiccup vs. Dagur, that’s what we’ve all been waiting for. But, like I said, they basically crammed all three of the ending battles—Daugr vs. Alvin, Dagur vs. Hiccup, and Hiccup vs. the Skrill—into the last act. So each battle could only last about 2-3 minutes each.

Which was a bit of a letdown, especially after the previous episode’s wonderfully choreographed fight.

Still, it seems a little clearer now that Dagur definitely wants to capture Toothless and have him for himself…and I suppose kill Hiccup…? What he wants to do with Hiccup is still a bit unclear. But Dagur seems pretty bent on just having every fleet he can get his hands on. And so far he’s successfully taken over the Outcasts so, he’s got the odds in his favor.

Still, the ending battle between these two was left on a good cliffhanger, but the battle was still…just too quick. I wouldn’t say it was rushed just…quick. Quicker than I would’ve liked.

Now the ending battle with the skrill seemed alright, even though that was crammed into the remaining minutes of the episode. And I have heard some complaints that re-freezing the skrill was anti-climatic. I suppose it was…but Dagur gained a whole extra fleet, so it’s not like he left this whole mess with nothing. He’s still more intimating now with twice the number of soldiers, so…it evens out. And it was nice to see the twins helps out in freezing the skrill.

So…all of this was good stuff, just…too crammed into a short period of time. Everything was too quick. Though I did love the ending scene. Dagur just looked scary…..in a good kind of way, of course.

FINAL THOUGHTS:

So, really this episode was filled with good stuff. Had a really great set up…it’s problem was really just time management.

And, sorry, but I’ve just gotta blame the Tuffnut stuff. There was just too many long scenes with Tuffnut being funny…that were hilarious but not needed to advance the plot. They should’ve allowed more time for the pressing matters of the plot. Like Alvin vs. Dagur, and Hiccup and Dagur’s battle. Because those plots—even in the short time they were allotted—were very well done.

So…it’s always so odd how the second parts to these two part episodes never seem to meet the great set up they’re given. Though hopefully the finale (that probably going to be another two-parter) will fix this streak.

Defenders of Berk 210 Review

PLOT A: "Frozen Fire"

Having found a skrill frozen in ice after being attacked by the Berserkers, Berk tries to figure out why the Berserkers have broken their peace treaty.

So, we all knew that it was going to be some kind of plot like this eventually. Dagur clearly wasn’t going to pay attention to the treaty, and while Hiccup and everyone else knew about that since episode 203—and never told Stoick again—the rest of the village has finally caught on.

A frozen dragon is certainly interesting, but I do wonder how it got there. That’s an unnecessary detail to the plot but does make you wonder….

Still, this plot really just took up the first act of the episode as the second half was left for the action, but it provided a decent set up for the second episode without a doubt. We have a dangerous skrill awakened and wandering around, the Bersekers are after it, and so are the riders.

But alongside the main plot set up, the character interactions here were so good! I love how the main group of six has broken down into lately. With, as I keep saying, Hiccup, Astrid, and Fishlegs being the main problem solvers and plot advancers and Snotlout and the Twins being more of the comedic side-characters who are the ones who usually have a lesson to learn.

But definitely out of the two groups Astrid, Hiccup, and Fishlegs are the ones with the most appeal, there’s so many little moments of great interaction that call to their friendship and the three definitely have natural chemistry. The way their dialogue is written really makes me believe that these three spend time together off camera and have a relationship that continues even after the credits role, which might sound easy but it is a lot harder than it sounds. So, nice characterization as usual.

And I even didn’t mind how they decided to have the skrill being released Snotlout and the Twins—though probably mostly the twins—fault. It seemed very in character for them, but what made it work was probably their reaction afterwards, as they were kind of scared of getting in trouble with Hiccup because they knew he left them there putting some kind of trust that they wouldn’t screw up. Which ties in nicely with the previous episode’s outcome.

So yeah…this was a good set up to the action that would happen in the second and third acts.

Also, Bucket and Mulch came back! They haven’t been around much…

PLOT B:  "Berk vs. Berserkers"

While the riders try to catch the skrill before the Berserkers find it, they realize this dragon might be harder to catch than anticipated.

Everyone’s been waiting to see a skrill in action. At least I know I have, and this episode really did not disappoint.

A skrill’s probably one of the few dragons that can really go toe to toe with a night fury in a fair fight, and it’s always nice to see the riders face a challenge in battle rather than come out on top every time. Losing is essential to heroes, believe it or not.

But this episode heavily reminds me of another great one this season: 204. Mostly because the action sequence took up both act two and three, and it was good action. The fight scene between the riders and the skrill were just great, and once again, even though it was a long fight scene it didn’t lose my interest. They kept it moving, and added appropriate pauses for the teens to strategize and then get right back into the action. So, more nicely done pacing in the action department.

And the special effects…oh man…they were excellent. I know clouds and whatnot are hard to render and light but those were some really amazing clouds, some awesome lighting, and just overall good animation going on in that scene. Well done for the team who worked on that, and on a tv show budget.

I also did like how Hiccup was using the twins to help out here, and how everyone just seems to be coming together as a formidable team, all working their strengths during battle and bringing back techniques we’ve seen them working on throughout the season. (Like Fishlegs’ drop and hove trick…is that what’s it’s called?).

And…of course…the triumphant return of Dagur! We haven’t really seen him leading a battle up until this point so it’s nice to see him being the chief and not just running around going crazy (not that seeing him like that isn’t enjoyable). But it makes him all the more intimidating to know that he’s as insane as he is and still can strategize and lead a fleet properly.

Though I wonder what really he wants to do. Last time he seemingly wanted to capture both Hiccup and Toothless. Now it seems he only wanted the skrill so he could capture just Toothless as a means to simply take him away from Hiccup.

Does he want Toothless just to take him away from Hiccup, or because he wants to have a night fury from himself…? Both options are both equally exciting since it is Dagur, but hopefully the next episode will shed a little light on that because I am a tad confused on that now.

Still, this episode set up a great plot for episode two as well. The Skrill has been captured by the Outcasts—who I figured would show up and it was a nice touch adding them at the very end—and the twins are off on their own and actually doing something helpful by following the Outcasts to see what their up to. Hopefully the next episode plays it’s cards correctly and uses the twins to its advantage, because the set up here is great!

FINAL THOUGHTS:

This episode was pretty near perfect for me. I could barely find anything wrong with it. It was a great set up, had great character moments, and nicely done and paced out battle scene with a beautifully animated dragon.

And Dagur!

What’s not to like…?

If I had to get nitpicky maybe with the twins a little too much of Tuffnut’s jokes…where I felt like some non-joking dialogue would’ve made it a bit more…serious? But then that is simply Tuffnut’s character, but, like I said, if I had to get nitpicky…then yeah. Cause in hindsight there really isn’t too much wrong with this episode.

Though I am a tad hesitant to give it a perfect score, though, but its came pretty darn close.

Defenders of Berk 209 Review

PLOT A: "Tuff Luck"

Trying to prove that they are useful, Ruffnut and Tuffnut pull their weight and help rid the forest of old dragon traps, only Tuffnut ends up getting stuck in one himself.

So..another Twin-centric episode? We were all wondering if this was really going to be twin-centric and not just Tuffnut-centric…and while it wasn’t as “Tuffnut only” as episode 115, the playing field of writing was still more in his favor.

While Ruffnut is more prevalent this season, Tuffnut still seems to be the favorite twin of the writers, but still, at least she got a little independence and some funny lines in this episode as well.

But, the majority of this plot really was Tuffnut stuck in a tree talking to dragons. Which sounds kind of boring but he said some rather interesting stuff. I was pretty impressed when they brought up him coming to realization that Ruffnut might be angry because the world she lives in is male-oriented. That was a nice touch for feminism. As well as him talking to Barf about how they never talk because he rides Belch. That was funny.

I also liked the initial set up for the episode on two fronts. First off being the clearing dragon traps…that was a good mission for the teens, and a nice callback to the “old ways” that the movie had.

On the other front the line that got the whole episode started, which was basically Hiccup saying that he didn’t know if he could trust Ruff and Tuff out alone, that was wonderfully condescending. I’m one of those people who doesn’t go off the deep end with rage because Hiccup isn’t perfect. He’s smug and can same things that easily land him in the “condescending prick” territory sometimes. That’s just a flaw of his, everyone has them, and it’s a rather nicely done, and realistic, human flaw at that.

And Torch’s triumphant return! I liked his character even if I really didn’t like the episode he was introduced in, so it was a very nice touch to have him back, and all grown up to boot! I definitely wasn’t expecting that, so points for surprising me. And I liked the little fight Torch and Toothless had, also a nice touch. Though it was interesting to pair Torch with Tuffnut, but I guess Torch remembers everyone even if he mostly interacted with Hiccup and Toothless.

And on one last note, But, after this episode I do expect to see the twins trying a little harder sometimes to not be “useless” now that they’ve halfway tasted victory.

PLOT B: The Forest is getting…Torched (haha…get it?)

A brush fire is quickly spreading through the forest, and right for a trapped Tuffnut.

So I think they mentioned “fire weather” at least three times before the fire actually started so…that wasn’t much of a shock.

And the fire effects were just…geez, they were good! A+ on that stuff.

As for the actual problem to be solved I do wish in the end had been left exclusively for the twins. Hiccup seemed to kind of ambush their plot near the end, when I think the twins could’ve pulled of the fire problem on their own with Torch. Or maybe even have the twins having to save Hiccup and Toothless from the fire…? I’m not sure, but for all the buildup of the twins finally being useful—while they did suggest a good idea at the end—I think it could’ve been pushed a lot more to really solidify the point of the episode.

FINAL THOUGHTS

This episode was pretty straight forward, well written, and had a good moral too it. As well as some amazingly done fire effects.

My only beef was, the twins didn’t really “save the day” as much as I would’ve liked them to. And the episode did build it up so that it seemed like they would perhaps get a solo save. But…Hiccup kind of did his usual “main character” thing and…yeah.

This twin-centric episode was heading more in the correct direction more so than last season’s was, but it still had a few bugs to work out…so, maybe next time….?

Defenders of Berk 208 Review

PLOT A: Chomp Chomp, there goes your island

While trying to keep tabs on the dragon’s migration habits, Hiccup, Astrid, and Fishlegs investigate the mysterious flocking of all the dragons back to dragon island only to find that the Screaming Death has returned and is sinking all the islands.

Aaaaand the Screaming Death is back! I’m pretty excited about this, as I loved her in episode 204.

But, first and foremost, the group is trying to keep tabs on the migration habits of dragons…I gotta admit, at first when I saw the teens “tagging” the dragons I got a bit worried, but if it’s for purposes such as studying migration—cause that’s pretty useful to know—then I suppose it’s fine. And it’s just paint. And it offered some hilarious moments between Fishlegs and Astrid about the color correction.

That being said, this plot did give us some excellent character interaction moments between Hiccup, Astrid, and Fishlegs.

It’s very clear—even last season—that these three were the “main of the main”. As in out of the six kids these three are most likely to take the lead in advancing the plot (as I mentioned in 206’s review), and I’m always happy to see fewer characters being focused on in advancing episodes such as these. As I mentioned a lot about last season, having all the teens together during every problem-solving adventure wasn’t necessary and in some ways hurt the story because there were too many people to keep tabs on.

But, with these three, the show has taken some careful time to push the friendship to a more comfortable level and this episode shines in showing the almost effortless chemistry between all of three of them. Well done.

Though, while on the subject of communication, I can say that while a good 75% of the communication between the three was wonderful, the other 25% was rather annoying. Why? Well…because it was all a bunch of in-your-face explaining.

One thing I really loved about the movie was its “show-don’t-tell” nature. Which seems kind of obvious for a movie, right? WRONG! This episode proved that, even when something is almost all visual…things still aren’t shown and not told. Or, more accurately, things are shown and then also unnecessarily told.

Go back to the scene in the movie where Hiccup realized Toothless is missing half of his tail and erases the tail fin in his drawing. In the commentary the directors said that they could’ve easily had Hiccup mutter to himself “oh, his tail is missing.” But, having Hiccup erase the tail was a perfect visual moment that connected with Hiccup’s perception and the audience’s perception without saying a word.

Now, let’s look at a scene in this episode, say…when the screaming death…screams and Hiccup says that the scream disorients the dragons. Well…we already knew that—it was only 4 episodes ago—that and it felt more like he was saying that to the viewer and not Astrid. There were many moments like that where Hiccup, Astrid, and Fishlegs were “communicating” but it felt more like they were just spitting out facts to the viewer so they wouldn’t be confused…when, chances are, they got the point rather easily.

And there are other ways to tell information about dragons than just long sentences of facts in the guise of conversation. This episode had a lot of that and it was a problem last season as well so…I’m not too sure it’s going to be fixed any time soon.

But, onto the meat and potatoes of the plot: the screaming death.

Since most of its screen time was during the ending battle, I can say that…it was a little lack luster, but then comparing it to the other episode feature the screaming death—episode 204—where the ending battle was literally the entire second half of the episode…it’s a hard comparison. It fell a little flat for me, though, especially since the fight scenes this season have been rather superb most of the time.

And the “Fishlegs is the hero of the day” thing…neh. I felt like it could’ve gone without mention as it didn’t seem like a “fish-centric” episode where that really needed that to be pointed out.

Overall this plot’s bright spots were definitely in the chemistry between Fishlegs, Astrid, and Hiccup putting their heads together and solving a problem…though I would’ve hoped for a more exciting face-off with the screaming death and a lot less explaining pretending to be dialogue.

PLOT B: Insert some “airmail” joke from tumblr here

Hiccup and Fishlegs create a new way to communicate long distance, but the twins don’t seem to get the memo.

So, this is a good example of a side plot in its proper place. As I mentioned, Fishlegs, Astrid, and Hiccup were the main problem solving focus here while the others were just chilling on Berk. The tie over of having airmail so that we could go back to the island and see what the twins and Snotlout were up to was pretty clever…as well as just the idea in general.

It had a carrier pigeon feel to it, and I hope the airmail sticks because that’s a rather good means of Viking-communication.

Though, in a bit unrelated to this plot, I do wonder why Hiccup seems so put off by asking his father for help. This is like, what, the third time he’s brushed off getting help from his father to solve the problem on his own? Last season it was all about him being impulsive and not wanting help from anyone…now it seems he just doesn’t help from his father?

I could easily say it’s because he’s trying to prove himself…but I just hope that little facet about him is going somewhere. And not just in the franchise but in this actual season…

I know they’re waiting for the sequel to flush out more of his imperfections but having a show where there’s nothing but build up and no mention of resolution of said build up is…neh.

But, back to the B plot here. The twins are always funny, but I liked how their plot didn’t fight for attention to the A plot like it did in 206. It was a nice side note to return to for a minute or two before heading back into the A plot. So…nicely crafted there.

And Snotlout’s “see you back on Berk suckas!”…golden.

FINAL THOUGHTS

This episode was definitely back to the good stuff…as it seems the episodes got a tad off track in quality for little bit.

But I can say that I do actually want the Screaming Death’s next appearance to not end with her leaving and Hiccup staring off to the horizon saying “it’ll be back”. They’ve done it twice already, I think that’s enough. 

What is the Screaming Death going to do exactly…? Who knows, but I’m still pretty excited to find out!

So…good characterization, good plot balance, decent fight…but perhaps just less explanation within the dialogue.

Defenders of Berk 207 Review

PLOT A: Life’s a Competition

Trying to prove who’s the best dragon trainer on a “level playing field” the teens all take their own terrible terrors and attempt to train them.

I saw a few people comparing this episode to “Thawfest” from season one, and I guess that can be somewhat true on some levels. It’s got the “spirit of competition” plotline looming around, but this time it’s more of a Fishlegs vs. Snotlout plot.

Like Hiccup in Thawfest, Fishlegs seems to be a bit of a d-bag in certain areas, mostly when it comes to paying attention to his own dragon over his new one. Though I do feel like this plot had one too many things going on. It didn’t seem entirely grounded in what it was trying to tell us.

First we had the group competition, and everyone was getting pretty rivalry against each other, but then it was Fishlegs vs. Snotlout….but then it was Meatlug getting jealous of Iggy. I feel like it shouldn’t focused on one or two of these…but all three got to be a little much.

The group competition got kind of blown out of importance after they all showed what their dragons could do, but it was interesting to see that they all really did manage to train their terrors something in a day.

The Fishlegs vs. Snotlout plot is always fun to watch just because Snotlout has a interesting way of bringing the most entertainingly worst part of every character. Fishlegs is becoming less timid and more cocky as the series goes on—which is nice character development, by the way—so it wasn’t a big surprise to see him get too caught up in proving his superiority in dragon training. Though I do wish this plot got more of a finish to it…because after Meatlug got captured, the competition between them pretty much ended, I guess…?

PLOT B: Meatlug be jellin’

As Fishlegs gets too caught up in the competition of training terrors, he starts ignoring Meatlug, much to her disappointment.

So, Fishlegs goes off the deep end and poor Meatlug gets the boot. I can say I liked her reaction to the plot she was placed in a lot better than, say, 202, and I did find the “toss the sheep” joke to be both cute and funny.

I really can’t find too much wrong with this part of the story in particular other than I think it would’ve fit in better with Alvin’s plot if Meatlug had just run away and then got captured out at sea by Alvin. But in terms of the plot by itself, the cause was clear, the effect was clear, and the aftermath was clear.

PLOT C: Alvin and Company….do evil things….

Alvin, Mildew, and Savage come back to Berk to check on their whispering deaths only to find that they’ve already hatched and Berk is still in one piece. After that they explore the tunnels until they figure capturing Meatlug is a better idea.

Okay now this plot…I just can’t even….

It was really all over the place. I really can’t even tell you the point here. It seemed like it had a point when it started…Alvin, Mildew, and Savage were going to check on the whispering deaths and the eggs are hatched and Berk is still perfectly fine. Alvin gets mad about the plan seemingly not working, blah blah blah. That was fine.

But then after that…they just walk around in the tunnels…spot the training academy…spy on the kids...capture Meatlug…leave….what’s going on here?

Alvin mentioned killing dragons, so I guess he captured Meatlug to get all the riders to come find her and then he’d kill them all…? I feel like I’m missing something, like they said something extra about their plan and I just didn’t catch it. But this entire plot seemed really misguided and random.

And it didn’t really help me like Alvin any more as a villain. I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again, in terms of who I feel is a “threat” to the main cast I’m more interested in what Dagur and the Screaming Death are up to than Alvin…he, Mildew, and Savage definitely got some funny “three old men” moments for sure, but they are still supposed to be intimidating villains.

Just when are they going to get a plot that advances them towards something instead of just making them seem like Saturday morning comedy villains? Especially since they have a lot in their good bag to pull out. 

They could have the whole “Mildew betrayed Berk” plot rear it’s ugly head again. Or the fact that Alvin has a potential army of ruthless dragons under his control now….? When are these assets going to be used? It is almost halfway through the season by now.

FINAL THOUGHTS

So…this episode had balance issues and just general “which way are we trying to go” issues. I think it just had one too many plots going on. It probably should’ve just focused on the Fishlegs vs. Snotlout/Fishlegs ignoring Meatlug plots for the teens, and then having Alvin find Meatlug running away and capture her after he’s sailing back to Outcast island to plan another attack…? I don’t know (I’m thinking off the top of my head) but something more…point oriented would’ve helped a lot. Because this episode was all over the place in some areas.

But on a positive note, the jokes in this episode were hilarious and extremely…mature in some places. The show does split in some I suppose “adult humor” very slyly every once in a while, but this episode…it’s cup runneth over with them.

Like come on…Tuffnut saying Fishlegs finally “grew some….” We all know how that sentence was going to finish. I’m actually pretty surprised they got away with that one, to be honest. That was very close to the fence. But still hilarious.

So, this was an odd episode for me, as it really was all over the place. Some of it was good, some of it great, some of it extremely…odd. Hopefully the next one has a bit better of a directional sense.