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Dragons: Only Finding One than The Nine Realms

This series synopsis says this latest is a continuation of HTTYD. There are a few nods, but I’m fairly sure none of the heroes here are reincarnations of Hiccup and crew.

Available on Hulu

When DreamWorks bought the media rights to Cassandra Cowell‘s How to Train Your Dragon, nobody realised how much of a success it would be. That book and cinematic series about a gangly hero who becomes best friends with a rare dragon is technically over, and the studio is continuing the saga as Dragons, which looks at other humans becoming a rider.

Rescue Riders is a pre-school non-canonical oriented version where each episode essentially teaches kids a solid core of values. It’s not a series for everyone. The Nine Realms is a modern-day take geared for the tween crowd. The latter is a decent watch as it puts the story in the present day. A comet crashed on Earth and created a fissure. Scientists are curious about what it has opened, and it’s literally a “Hidden World.”

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It’s A DreamWorks Christmas Watch List!

DreamWorks Animation’s catalogue of Christmas episodes hasn’t been updated for years, and I’d welcome a new compilation release.

The Madagascar Penguins in a Christmas Caper (Short 2005) - IMDb I have to admit, every Holiday season, I’ll have a DreamWorks Animation Holiday Marathon. As I’m updating this list to include The Boss Baby: Christmas Bonus (released 2022), I must say I’m glad this studio is remaining festive with some property every year. It’d be a shame should they ever decide to skip a year.

They don’t often update their catalogue of seasonal delights every year, and hopefully soon we can find a home video release of everything produced to date.

The Madagascar Penguins in a Christmas Caper (2005)

There’s actually two episodes featuring these penguins–Private, Rico, Skipper and Kowalski–attempting to spread holiday cheer.

With Caper, Private goes on a search in New York to find a present for Ted, a polar bear. But he gets found by a human and the rest of the team has to rescue him. It’s a fairly fun episode, but my preference is with the season two episode “The All Nighter Before Christmas.”

As the zoo prepares for Kidsmas, things go awry when King Julien interferes and Skipper has trouble being Santa. Typical for the series, things get chaotic and it’s up to someone to fix things up.

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The Croods Family Tree Needs to Grow

The Croods Family Tree retains much of the humour from the sequel, and it seems a lot of the family dynamic has reset.

The Croods: Family Tree - Hulu Series - Where To Watch YTV (Canada)
Saturdays 9:00 AM EST/PST

Also on Hulu and Peacock Network (USA)

The Croods Family Tree is a surprisingly short animated series which is now available across specific cartoon networks and streaming services. YTV in Canada is stretching the six episodes out, and hopefully, more episodes will be released sooner than later. Waiting this series out for new tales in 2022 is a long way away.

This series is decent enough for fans to enjoy. It retains much of the humour from the sequel, and it seems a lot of the Croods family dynamic has reset. Grug is even more overprotective of Eep, and instead of her and Guy leaving the compound they are in, they are all staying safe within. Plus, they have another clan to annoy, whom they met in Croods: New Age. If this series is supposed to take place within the time frame of this sequel as a whole, it’s not been said at all.

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When A Horse’s “Spirit” Goes from “Untamed” to Trained

But there’s something to be said about the lead–the horse, of course. It’s unclear if he’s the same throughout the different tales, but I’d venture to say they share the same DNA (is the son of) rather than being one and the same.

DreamWorks Entertainment
Available to Purchase on Amazon

DreamWorks Animation’s Spirit has a sequel, and viewers don’t need to know the Netflix series or past iterations to enjoy the latest release. The CGI animated update certainly reveals how this franchise has evolved with the times. It’s a different beast when compared to Stallion of the Cimarron (2002). They are all set in the Wild West–even though many years have passed between story to story. This latest focuses on the girl attempting to tame a horse, who conveniently shows his independence, and establishes a relationship with.

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Boss Baby. From Back in Business to Family Business, the Clues are There…

Knowing the Netflix series isn’t required and I thought the next movie of the Boss Baby franchise on a rival streaming network unusual.

Playing on Peacock and theatres near you.

Spoiler Alert

The only shame with The Boss Baby franchise is the voice of Tim Templeton, one of the main characters, was recast. I would’ve preferred Pierce Gagnon from the Netflix continuation than James Marsden to take over. Tobey Maguire isn’t back because he doesn’t have the skills to sing. Usually someone else can fill in those bits but the producers opted to get a new performer. This information was reported on Yahoo News.

Unless Timmy’s voice cracked twice, he’s not likely to experience a second or third childhood since he never fully grew up. The hilarity isn’t tough to maintain. As a director, Tom McGrath‘s crazy sense of humour is exemplified when he was the brains behind Penguins of Madagascar. Ever since that series was retired, he’s been bringing his style to other properties. He directed Back in Business and shared creating the story with Michael McCullers. The short bursts of kiddie humour are off the rails—especially during the climax—and yes I miss the birds.

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The Croods Come Alive with Virtual Paleontology

“Family Day with The Croods” will be a live event where families can meet scientist and Paleobiologist Dr. Danielle Fraser, who will teach participants about the saber-toothed cat and other prehistoric animals. Participants will also meet DreamWorks animator Ludovic Bouancheau, who will demonstrate how to draw a Croodimal from The Croods: A New Age in an exclusive tutorial. Bring your paper, pencils and eraser to draw along with the tutorial and bring the fan favourite Croods characters to life.

The Croods

In partnership with Universal Pictures Home Entertainment, the Canadian Museum of Nature will host “Family Day with The Croods,” based on the DreamWorks Animation family film The Croods: A New Age. The fun virtual event will be broadcast live on Family Day this Monday, February 15^th on the museum’s Facebook page at 2:30pm ET in English and 4:30pm ET in French. To join in the interactive programs, like the Canadian Museum of Nature Facebook page. The Croods: A New Age is available to own on Digital now and on 4K Ultra HD, Blu-Ray™ and DVD February 23, 2021 from Universal Pictures Home Entertainment.

“Family Day with The Croods” will be a live event where families can meet scientist and Paleobiologist Dr. Danielle Fraser, who will teach participants about the saber-toothed cat and other prehistoric animals. Participants will also meet DreamWorks animator Ludovic Bouancheau, who will demonstrate how to draw a Croodimal from The Croods: A New Age in an exclusive tutorial. Bring your paper, pencils and eraser to draw along with the tutorial and bring the fan favourite Croods characters to life.

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