mother of dragons

How to Train Your Dragon, based on the series of books by Cressida Cowell, was a fun, quirky little entry in the glut of animated films that has come down the pike since Toy Story. Dragon has flown (ha) slightly under the radar compared to the enormous success of other animated films, but it has quietly, successfully, and adorably forged its own franchise, which shows no sign of stopping. Between film releases, DreamWorks Animation has sandwiched an entertaining animated television series, DreamWorks Dragons, and a few special shorts as well. The second feature length movie, How to Train Your Dragon 2, the second in a planned trilogy, was released recently, and it was just as much fun as the first, and even more visually stunning than expected.

This sequence was reminiscent of My Neighbor Totoro and other gorgeous Japanese animation, which is high praise indeed

Dragon has done a good job of sketching the Viking world of Berk, a place where Vikings, dragons, and some unfortunate sheep try to coexist. The animators actually base their stunning backgrounds on real Norwegian locations, including Oslo, Bergen, and Svalbard. In the first film, young Hiccup (Jay Baruchel), the son of Berk's Viking chieftain Stoick (Gerard Butler), met a Night Fury dragon that he named Toothless, and proceeded to not only train the dragon, but his fellow Vikings — that humans and dragons could not only live peacefully together, but become friends. In the second film Hiccup has grown, along with his friends and Toothless. Life in Berk is pretty idyllic (except for the local sheep who have to take part as targets in human/dragon sporting events (note: no animated sheep were harmed in the course of the movie, just man-handled and annoyed). But there is trouble on the horizon, with a gang of dragon hunters led by Eret (Kit Harington), who have to answer to a villainous boss named Drago (Djimon Hounsou). While Hiccup and Toothless are trying to evade the hunters they run across a pro-dragon vigilante, who also happens to be Hiccup's long-lost mother Valka (Cate Blanchett) — no spoiler, as her identity is revealed in all the ads and trailers.

Hiccup and Toothless are as cute together as ever

The plot is your standard good guys vs. bad guys, but there are some surprisingly sweet and sad emotional moments in the midst of all the dragon adventure. But the real prize is the stunning animation — of the rugged yet beautiful landscape of Berk, and especially, some of the "new" dragons. Hiccup has grown, and is even sporting a little stubble. He also gets just a little canoodling time with his fellow dragon trainer and friend-turned-girlfriend Astrid (America Ferrera) before the story gets going. The voice cast is good, and features many well-known actors, like Jonah Hill, Kristen Wiig, and Craig Ferguson, but they tend to disappear nicely into their roles, rather than create star turns.

I have to admit that I was a little confused by Hiccup's mother's reasons for staying away from her Viking family and instead opting to live in the world of dragons. But her hideout sure is pretty to look at, and her backstory didn't seem to bother my 10 year-old daughter, who loved the film. It will be interesting to note if that changes once we check out the movie when it comes to dvd and aren't distracted by the soaring large-scale dragons and movie theater 3D.

dragons: riders of berk

This week DreamWorks premiered a DVD of Dragons: Riders of Berk, the brand-new animated series airing on the Cartoon Network. Based on the successful animated movie How to Train Your Dragon, viewers will recognize their favorite characters from the feature film - Hiccup, his dragon Toothless, their Viking friends, and a host of new dragons, too.

In the original film Hiccup (Jay Baruchel) was expected to become a dragon slayer, but he rebelled after capturing and befriending a young dragon named Toothless. Between them, Hiccup and Toothless convinced their friends and family that the humans and dragons can work and live together in peace. Dragons: Riders of Berk picks up the story to tell new adventures and to show how the human and dragons of Berk are getting along.

Actors Baruchel (Hiccup), America Ferrera (Astrid), Christopher Mintz-Plasse (Fishlegs), and T. J. Miller (Tuffnut) are once again on hand to voice their characters. Other characters in the series are voiced by Stephen Root, Zack Pearlman, Chris Edgerly, Nolan North, and Tim Conway.

Hiccup is back, with his trusty dragon Toothless

The DVD includes four episodes from the series and many extras, including previews for Dragons: Riders of Berk, the recently released Rise of the Guardians, and Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted. Viewers can also get a sneak peek at a behind-the-scenes featurette on the touring arena show How To Train Your Dragon: Live Spectacular and the upcoming Valentine's Day television special Madly Madagascar. Subtitles can be accessed in English or Spanish, and closed-captioning is available.

Episodes included on the disc are:

"How to Start a Dragon Academy" - Although the inhabitants of the Isle of Berk have now made peace with the dragons, the winged creatures can still be a source of mischief and mayhem. Hiccup comes up with an idea of how to tame - and train - everyone.

"Viking for Hire" - Gobber doesn't want a new job, but Berk no longer needs him to make weapons to fight the dragons. How can Hiccup help Gobber find a new career and keep him happy, too?

"Animal House" - The human inhabitants of Berk have accepted their dragon friends and neighbors, but what about the other animals? Hiccup and his friends need to help all of the creatures get along, before Berk's farm supplies dwindle to nothing in the coming winter months.

"The Terrible Twos" - Toothless is not thrilled when Hiccup discovers a new species of dragon. The dragon is not only injured, but a baby, and Hiccup and his friends soon realize that its mother should be arriving in Berk soon, too, looking for her missing baby.

The series Dragons: Riders of Berk has already been renewed for a second season, which will air before the upcoming feature film sequel in 2014. An extra-special bonus are five collectible Dragon Training Cards linking to a free app, which can be downloaded at DreamWorks Animation Augmented Reality for even more dragon-training fun. After downloading the app, point your smartphone's camera at a training card image and watch each dragon come to life.

Hiccup and Toothless and all of their friends

The original How to Train Your Dragon film was great to look at, but computer graphics have already improved leaps and bounds since its 2010 release. The characters in Dragons: Riders of Berk are amazingly detailed, with surfaces like fabric, water, hair, and wood realistically rendered. Perspective and shading help to give the episodes a 3-D feel. The colors are bright and shadows dark. The episodes look wonderful on a large-scale high-definition television. The series is rated TV-PG for moderate violence - mostly some fighting amongst the dragons and Viking swordplay. Dragons: Riders of Berk is a highly enjoyable animated series with humor and great visuals which can be enjoyed by family members of all ages.