(Banner image by Ryan Campbell.)
Welcome to The DRAGONS TV Recap! This is a Rotoscopers series in which we recap and discuss the DreamWorks Dragons television series!
Today, we will review and recap episode seven (“Reign of Fireworms”).
(WARNING #1: This recap/review will contain SPOILERS for episode seven. Do not read if you haven’t watched this episode yet.)
(WARNING #2: Only spoilers for this episode can be discussed in the comment section. If I see spoilers from other episodes, you will be put on notice.)
We met up with a familiar face and discovered something new about the Dragon Eye in the last episode (Gustav in “Gone Gustav Gone”). Now, we get to meet up with a familiar species of dragon and discover something new about the Thorston twins. In “Reign of Fireworms” (written by Art Brown and Douglas Sloan and directed by T.J. Sullivan), we once again meet the titular Fireworm species from Defenders of Berk.
As Fishlegs and Meatlug go about the island, collecting a census on all the dragons that live on Dragon’s Edge, they discover that the Fireworms are beginning to migrate elsewhere, sending scouts to various islands that could act as a temporary stopover while on their route. This isn’t good news for the Riders, since the rest of the Fireworms could arrive in a week and burn down their base. Hiccup, Astrid, Fishlegs, and Snotlout meet up at the Clubhouse to discuss the preparations needed to weather out a Fireworm visit, but the twins (as they are) get occupied by something else.
As it turns out, the twins find a claim stone that just so happened to belong to their ancestor, Magmar Thorston, who proclaimed himself the rightful owner of the island (with said ownership meant to be passed down to future members of the Thorston family). This puts all the other Riders in a bit of a frenzy, so much so that Stoick and Gobber make a cameo appearance as they confirm that the claim stone is legit and that Ruffnut and Tuffnut are the rightful owners of Dragon’s Edge. None of the other Riders are very enthused about the idea, but Hiccup allows it to happen on the basis that, once the twins know what it’s like to be a leader, they’ll beg him to take back control.
Ruffnut and Tuffnut are the primary comedic characters in the Dragons franchise, and this is still true in this episode of Race to the Edge. What I do like here is how the writers expand upon their backstories in a major way this time around. It also puts the twins in a situation that we’ve never seen them in before: in the role of leadership. Of cours, things don’t go over quite smoothly, but (as one will see) it gives T.J. Miller and Andree Vermeulen a more broad spectrum of material to play with in a comedic sense (with some of the best lines coming from Tuffnut). If “Gone Gustav Gone” was a definite Gustav episode, then “Reign of Fireworms” is most definitely a Thorston twins episode.
The twins begin to make their ‘stamp’ on the island (renaming it ‘Thorstonton’) and lay down new roles and new rules for the Riders. As you would expect, hilarity ensues when the Riders try to follow their absurd rules to the letter, which ends with each of the Riders in prison as the Fireworms draw closer to their base.
Luckily, it doesn’t take too long for the twins to finally buck up and realize the seriousness of the situation. They ultimately relinquish their shared leadership role and join the Riders as they try and find a way to drive the Fireworms away from the island in another stunning visual sequence (in which they fly through a cloud of Fireworms).
Later on, the Riders are trying to mount makeshift defenses against the Fireworms when a figure that resembles the Fireworm Queen arrives. Hiccup takes this as a cue to pack and leave, until Snotlout notices that it’s actually not the Fireworm Queen but Smidvarg and his pack of Night Terrors (in the shape of the Fireworm Queen) heading toward the Fireworms. Hiccup sees an opportunity and gets the Night Terrors to direct the Fireworms away from Dragon’s Edge.
In the end, the Thorstons give up on leadership, as they see how it wasn’t all it is cracked up to be. Rather, they are just fine sharing the island with everyone else (and breaking tradition in their own way).
Random Thoughts/Observations/Quotes
– “What are ya in for?” Hiccup and Astrid are almost equals when it comes to sarcastic banter.
– Ruffnut and Tuffnut’s ‘serious’ faces. Nailed it.
– One for the readers: “The chicken is not amused.”
– Snotlout (when he puts himself in prison): “I was framed.”
– When Snotlout says (to Hiccup, Fishlegs, and Astrid), “Snotlout is outlout.”
– The runes on that claim stone are a nice detail (and accurate!).
– When Stoick says to Hiccup, “Welcome to my world. Only now, it’s your world.” It’s another clever reference to what happens in How to Train Your Dragon 2.
Video Recap #5
Thanks for reading! Check back tomorrow for the recap/review of Dragons: Race to the Edge episode eight!
What are your thoughts on this episode? If you have seen this episode, discuss it in the comment section below!
Edited by: Hannah Wilkes
