The Pitch... The follow up to 2010's well-received fantasy animation, with older characters, a bigger world (and new cultures and dragons) and of course more conflict between men and dragons that see Hiccup and Toothless at the centre. Plus a new threat (of course,) and a stranger who claims to be Hiccup's mother. Plus Points The first one was brilliant, so there's a strong precedent, and there's enough confidence to make this the second of a planned trilogy. The Reservations... Even the best animations (especially outside of Pixar) tend to reduce their sequels to that one hook that the biggest demographic (the kids and their money spending parents) loved first time out (see Despicable Me 2 and its minion fetish). The other issue is of progress: the first film worked well because of the restricted boundaries of the story, but now that those borders have been broken down, there's less restraint for the film-makers, and the opportunity to go too big, too quickly is a distinct possibility. And of course, from the sound of the synopsis, it feels like the story is going backwards with the progress we've seen in human/dragon relations, which means retreading old ground somewhat.
