Let's Talk About That Traumatizing 'How to Train Your Dragon 2' Scene
Warning: This article contains major spoilers.
How to Train Your Dragon 2 opened in theaters yesterday, and if you're a parent, then you're probably still reflexively covering your children's eyes. That's because the family-geared animated sequel has a scene so traumatic, we dare say it rivals the primal wallop of Bambi's mother's death: Stoick — the stalwart dad of Hiccup, Dragon's hero — dies in a fiery blast (Happy Father's Day weekend, everyone!). What makes this death even more disturbing is that the fire-starter in question is Toothless, the cute, cuddly dragon who's been beloved by kids since the first Dragon film was released in 2011.
Maybe we shouldn't have been surprised: After all, Dragon director Dean DeBlois has told interviewers he prepared for the film in part by studying the elaborate narratives of the Star Wars films, particularly The Empire Strikes Back. As he told the L.A. Times: "When I considered the most successful sequels I could think of, my mind wandered to Star Wars and The Empire Strikes Back and how [the Dragon] world shares similar traits — there are endless islands they can travel to." And as any Star Wars fans knows, if you spend a lot of time watching the downbeat Empire, you're going to end up in some pretty dark places. Hence, the nightmare-inducing Dragon scene.
Of course, Dragon is certainly not the first animated movie to deal with untimely death. Aside from the famous Bambi scene, there's also Mufasa's murder in The Lion King; and while the Frozen parents are never officially declared dead, it's clear they wind up lost at sea. And even when animated danger is ultimately thwarted — like when our toy troop is rescued from the incinerator in Toy Story 3 — the mere threat can be emotionally overwhelming. But Dragon's latest turn seems particularly harrowing. What did you think, readers? Was it too much this time?
Photo credit: DreamWorks
