dragons: riders of berk, parts 1 & 2

Fans of the Dreamworks animated film How to Train Your Dragon can now enjoy its spinoff series, featured on on Cartoon Network, Dragons: Riders of Berk, in two DVD collections, which are jam-packed with the first series' 20 episodes and lots of extras. The series picks up where the film left off, with Hiccup and his friends, both human and dragon, trying to coexist peacefully together.

The series looks as great. Although maybe slightly less intricately drawn than the film, the colorful CGI animation is quite detailed, and brings the teen vikings, various dragons, and their surroundings to vivid life. The aspect ratio for both sets is 1.78:1, and the sharp images and bright colors look especially great on a large-scale high-definition television screen. The Dolby Digital 5.1  sound provides clear dialogue, sound effects, and music. Subtitles and dubbed languages are available in English, French, and Spanish. Viewers can choose to "play all" or select individual episodes on both sets of discs.

Hiccup and Toothless share new adventures

The characters of Hiccup (Jay Baruchel) and his dragon Toothless and their friends are as charming as ever. Many of the original film's actors have returned for the series. Besides Baruchel, America Ferrera is back as the Astrid, Hiccup's spunky love interest. Christopher Mintz-Plasse returns Hiccup's best pal and dragon expert Fishlegs, and T. J. Miller is back as the not-too-bright Tuffnut. David Tennant is also back as Spitelout, Snotlout's father. New voice cast members include Julie Marcus as Ruffnut, Tuffnut's twin sister (voiced by Kristen Wiig in the film), Zack Pearlman as the adversarial Snotlout (originally voiced by Jonah Hill), Chris Edgerly as Gobber (who was voiced by Craig Ferguson), and Nolan North as Stoick, Hiccup's father (who was originally voiced by Gerard Butler). Familiar actors who show up through the series to play guest or recurring roles include Mark Hamill, Stephen Root, and Tim Conway.

The over-arching conflict of the series continues to be the struggle of the Vikings and their dragon friends learning how to trust one another. The extended format of the series gives the audience an opportunity to get to know the main characters better and explore their Viking world. Even the dragons have distinct personalities, and part of the fun is watching the dragons and their human counterparts form long-lasting bonds.

As the dragons become more and more integrated into the Vikings' lives even Hiccup's rough and tumble dad Stoick gets his own dragon to ride, Thornado. In an early episode ("Animal House") the Vikings learn that the dragons not only want to protect them, but also their domestic animals, like sheep and pigs. Who knew that dragons weren't carnivores? Apparently they eat fish, so that would make them pescatarians.

Undeniably the main appeal of Dragons: Riders of Berk is — lots of cool dragons. Dragon aficionados will love the gang's favorite friends, as well as enjoy encountering new dragon species along with Hiccup and his friends through the series. Folks who may have previously bought the series preview DVD, How to Train Your Dragon, will recognize the first four episodes in Dragons: Riders of Berk - Part 1:

Disc 1:

1 - "How to Start a Dragon Academy"
2 - "Viking for Hire"
3 - "Animal House"
4 - "The Terrible Twos"
5 - "In Dragons We Trust" (Part 1)
6 - "Alvin and The Outcasts" (Part 2)

Disc 2:

7 - "How to Pick Your Dragon"
8 - "Portrait of Hiccup as a Buff Man"
9 - "Dragon Flower"
10 - "Heather Report" (Part 1)
11 - "Heather Report" (Part 2)

The 11 episodes have a run time of approximately 242 minutes and the Part 1 collection includes some fun extras:

Dragon Tracker (Part 1) - A map of Berk, with Hiccup narrating a guide to each of the featured dragons, including Stoick's Thunderdrum dragon Thornado, the Typhoomerang, and many more.

Evolution of Thunderdrum - A behind-the-scenes feature on the visual creation of the new dragon for Stoick, the Thunderdrum.

"Heavy Metal" Dragon mash-up - A rock and roll video featuring clips from the series.

World of Dreamworks Animation  - Includes songs and DVD promos from DreamWorks favorites Shrek, Madagascar, Kung Fu Panda, MegaMind, How to Train Your Dragon, and Puss in Boots.

At the Dragon Training Academy (CW from top: Ruffnut and Tuffnut on Barf and Belch, Snotlout with Hookfang, Astrid with Stormfly, and Fishlegs with Meatlug)

Dragons: Riders of Berk - Part 2 includes 9 episodes (with a running time of approximately 203 minutes). Extras on Part 2 include:

Dragon Tracker (Part 2) - A map of Berk, with Hiccup narrating a guide to some of the featured dragons, including Changewings and their dragon eggs, Smokebreaths on Breakneck Bog, and more.

Evolution of Whispering Death - A behind-the-scenes feature on the visual creation of the new dragon that can burrow underground, the Whispering Death.

"Fly High" Dragon mash-up - A rock and roll video featuring clips from the series.

World of Dreamworks Animation  - Includes songs and DVD promos from DreamWorks favorites Shrek, Madagascar, Kung Fu Panda, MegaMind, How to Train Your Dragon, and Puss in Boots.

Disc 1:

12 - "Thawfest"
13 - "When Lightning Strikes"
14 - "What Flies Beneath"
15 - "Twinsanity"
16 - "Defiant One"

Disc 2:

17 - "Breakneck Bog"
18 - "Gem of a Different Color"
19 - "We Are Family" (Part 1)
20 - "We Are Family" (Part 2)

Both sets include a code for the Ultimate Battle Pack to be used to play the online and mobile game School of Dragons. Gamers can create their own viking and interact with all the show's characters.

After watching Dragons: Riders of Berk fans should be primed for the new season, Dragons: Defenders of Berk, which is scheduled to start in September. The first season even manages to end with a bit of a cliffhanger. These DVDs should keep dragon fans happy until the release of the sequel, How to Train Your Dragon 2, which is planned for a June 2014 release. It looks like the adventures are just beginning for Hiccup and his friends.

Originally published on Blogcritics: DVD Review: ‘Dragons: Riders of Berk, Parts One and Two’

puss ... all that he needs are the boots

Cat people may be crazy, as Puss tells master thief Kitty Softpaws, but they can also propel a movie to the #1 box office in the country, to the tune of $34 million. Puss in Boots proved this past weekend that it is more than just a spin-off from the successful Shrek film series — it is well on its way to becoming a successful franchise on its own — with an ending definitely left open for a sequel (or two or three.)

If there are indeed more Puss movies to come, that would be fine for star Antonio Banderas, who is obviously having the time of his life portraying the feline swashbuckler. His delight came through loud and clear in his very expressive voicework.

Audiences first met the character of Puss in Shrek 2, when he was introduced as another comic foil to Shrek (Mike Myers), much to the dismay of Shrek's original sidekick Donkey (Eddie Murphy), who told Puss that the position of "annoying talking animal" was already taken. Puss won over Shrek and everyone he met, pretty much stealing the movie from the ogre and his friends.

No matter how bombastic his boasting may get, Puss is never too proud to pull out "the look"
when he's in a tough spot and needs to win someone over.

Banderas was the perfect choice to play the tricky Puss, and the role quickly morphed from a French cavalier to a more Zorro-like bandit. He was encouraged to not only bring his own personality to the part, but his humor as well, as he told blackfilm.com (about Shrek 2):

If there is a word that defines this type of movie, and not just the second one ... is wit. I think that's the type of humor that they are trying to create.

Puss in Boots is witty. And silly, but it's not so much a comedy as an action-adventure, super-hero origin story. We learn through flashbacks how the kitten Puss was raised in an orphanage, where he met and befriended Humpty "Alexander" Dumpty (a very funny Zach Galifianakis). Humpty and Puss are outsiders, and they bond over Humpty's dream of finding Jack's magic beans and climbing the beanstalk to steal the Giant's golden eggs. But boys grow up. Puss moves on from the dream but Humpty doesn't. The two have a falling out, and through a series of misunderstandings Puss is accused of a crime he didn't commit. He flees, becoming an outlaw. Years later Humpty enters his life again, with a new ally, Kitty Softpaws (Salma Hayek), and the same old dream, to steal the magic beans, which he has tracked to be in the possession of bandits Jack and Jill (Billy Bob Thorton and Amy Sedaris). But can Humpty and Kitty persuade Puss to join him on their quest?

Jill: [as she dangles Puss over a canyon] Is it true a cat always lands on its feet?
Puss in Boots: No! That is just a rumor, spread by dogs!

Puss in Boots mixes the fairy tale world from Shrek with bits of Zorro and Sergio Leone westerns to create a fun  back-drop for the fearless feline. You may never think of Mother Goose the same way again.

Directed by Chris Miller (Shrek the Third) Puss in Boots is a good-looking film (as surely Puss himself would agree). We saw it in IMAX and it was truly impressive. The 3D looked the best I've ever seen it, with objects really appearing as if they were in front of each other. The sheer size of the screen highlighted the detail with which every hair on Puss had been rendered, the little bumps and imperfections on the surface of Humpty's shell, even dust motes floating in the air.

Dreamworks's Glendale studio worked with Indian animation company Paprika Animation Studios (which also created Scared Shrekless), and the results are indeed impressive. But beautiful images aside, Puss in Boots wouldn't work without the power of personality, actor and character. Audiences have come to love Puss. He is strong and interesting enough on his own to carry the movie without any of his old Shrek chums. Hopefully there will be more films to come featuring the feline hero.