#httydtome

[inhonoredglory]

Thank You HTTYD

Thank you for giving me the best years of my life in this franchise. Thank you for sharing your thoughts, analysis, spazzing, speculation, and absolute and utter love for Hiccup and Toothless over these long years. My heart came alive in 2012 (when I saw the first film) and today I see the end to the story that defined my life ever since.

Thank you my gorgeous, wonderful Hiccup Haddock the Third. You are the most perfect person in my eyes and you will be my Hero forever. Thank you for your heart, your soul, your endless and fierce conviction. Thank you for putting down your defenses and opening your heart to a dragon the entire world said was dangerous. Without your sarcasm and your love, I would not be who I am today. I will love you forever.

Thank you, Toothless, for being everything my sister loved, for being fierce and powerful and dangerous and mysterious––and above all, loyal and compassionate and caring. You are a part of Hiccup, the way my sister is a part of me. You are the Other, strange and wonderful, but you are also the Friend, fierce in your love and your protection. You wanted to need Hiccup, down to the deepest part of your being, and for that, I will always love you. For you are an example of true love, true devotion.

There’s only a couple hours left for me to live in anticipation. I am sad but excited. LONG LIVE DRAGONS. A HERO IS FOREVER.

[avannak]

Where to next, bud?

I’m going to see the movie soon. Really soon. I wanted to get off one last sketch before that happened. Something that brought me back to the beginning. Something that represented the relationship that made the movies, and the lost---but once possible---outcome.

In 2010 I was going through a period of finals that had my stress levels questioning if the journey was “worth it”. I was also house-sitting for my parents for that particular weekend. I had seen the HTTYD movie a couple of weeks earlier with my sisters and found it enjoyable. Nothing more. But during this time of isolated stress, commuting back and forth every other day... well, that IMAX theater en route had seemed pretty tempting as a whimsical stress reliever. And it was playing HTTYD

I was an “adult”. So I made it a stop on my way up to feed the pets and lock the doors. Then again, on my way down. Then again, the next time I rode up...

For some reason, the second, and third, and fourth time I saw HTTYD the entire presentation rang with me. Before I knew it I spent all my free “procrastinating hours” in the week before my big presentation scouring the fandom for content.

Mind you, this was April 2010. There were maybe 4 pages on FFnet of content and I had read all of it. Every day I checked it to see updates of pre-existing fics or new ones. I was on DA. I re-opened an old account to see if I could dabble in art again. Something I hadn’t been inspired to do much of since getting tits-deep into biochem.

I read Grim Revolution and Backroads and Starstruck-Inu and Rift-raft. I’m not sure if they’ve written more since, but back then they had amazing HTTYD stories--pure content straight from the films, it felt like.

I read To Soar Into the Sunset by Fjordmustang, THE First Movie take from Toothless’s POV by someone who’s writing I admired so much I nearly lost my marbles when she started commenting on my own fics. Years later I got to meet up with her and watch the 2nd movie together. We spent hours in a cafe afterwards talking. It was incredible.

I read Gumdropboo (@ch4rmsing here) and her seasonal series... and then conversed with her on DA... where she later took the time to teach me, via the internet, how to use online art programs, given that was her profession.

She’s the reason I could pull off redraws like this. She’s probably a good part of the reason I got back into art altogether. I even got to see her get married several years later. And to the HTTYD soundtrack, at that. I’m going to see the third movie with her.

HTTYD was a slippery slope. A gateway to a fandom I knew, burgeoning into adulthood, I shouldn’t afford, but did nonetheless. It was worth it.

Yet, despite after consuming every fic the fandom had to offer thusfar in a young 2010, after waiting... and waiting... and waiting for someone to write a fic that was so obvious to me, a fic that jumped straight out of the canon plotline: “We’re going on a vacation... forever...”

Well, I had to do it myself.

And that’s what really nailed me to this fandom. Completely unintentionally. I had meant to write a series of ‘what if’ deviations with each chapter. What happened was Hitchups. On the surface: a comedy-adventure-drama. In actuality: me working through young teen-adulthood and realizing there is no checklist to ‘success’.

A what if Hiccup had left exactly when he said he would that turned into 300k words and 40 chapters of self-discovery, and more feedback and interactions and willingness to contribute translations/opinions/help than I had ever anticipated. It was more a fandom effort than a one-woman fic by every stretch of the imagination and I thank everyone. That story, that year long snow-ball-into-an-epic, more than anything, is what cemented me into seeing this franchise through.

I can’t wait to see the final installment tomorrow. But I will also always, fondly, remember the thrilling possibility that somewhere, in some universe, Hiccup and Toothless are riding free and forever, together.

The exact sort of freedom a young college student needed to distract her from a grounding reality. The exact sort of community I hadn’t known I could use at an isolating point in my life. Thank you.

[raflovestuffs]

HTTYD To Me - Special +3k followers

You did it. Last week, my blog reached 3k followers... You can’t imagine how much I’m thankful to you, for enjoying this blog... it means a lot to me, especially because I never thought I will reach so much followers in such a short period of time. I didn’t know what to do but then, I remembered @hello-em75’s HTTYD to me. And I felt like it was the good time to do it so here it is.

Actually, HTTYD to me is a lot of things, like a LOT. My life revolves around HTTYD, wether it’s for this blog, my writings, my videos, my dolls... I talk about Dragons every day and it kind of gets my parents mad aha... Fortunately, I got the Annecy Team to speak with.

My story with HTTYD started a while ago when I was 11. I went to the theater with my family to watch it in 2010 and it was really funny because my brother was 9 and it was his first date aha. So we compared him and his girl friend a lot to Astrid and Hiccup. I remember the feels I had while watching this movie, especially when Hiccup lost his leg. I was so shocked! And what I remember above all, is what my dad said to me after seeing the movie. You have to know that my dad isn’t really a fan of animated movie and especially 3D movies. But this time, he said that he loves it. He loves the movie, like really and “for once the 3D was useful”. That’s why I started to love the movie but also because I was seeing myself through Hiccup (even if I didn’t realize this at this age).

I was bullied when I entered the secondary school. It never went too far but it was all about looks, words, and being alone in my class. I didn’t really have friends at that time so it was really hard. I felt different from the other boys and girls of my age. I was never interested in what they were interested so I prefered staying on my own.

I relate a lot to Astrid too because she’s a strong woman and we all are strong womans in my family, we don’t let anyone tell us what we have to do aha... Above all, she’s a role model for me. Also, I know I can be rude with my words sometimes. Like her, I say out loud what I think. I have difficulties to express what I feel...

That’s the reason why I can’t choose between Hiccup and Astrid. They’re my favorite characters of this franchise and there’s no one above the other. I love them equally.

I really enjoy the relationship they share but I think you all have understand it... I spoke a lot about that in my Hiccstrid Appreciation Post but I will say it again, the relation they share is pure, natural and feel realistic to me. It’s a healthy relationship because they were friends before and they become more than that through the years, exactly like my parents did. And if I had a boyfriend one day, I want it to happen just like this. I shared a bond like this with my best friend who drew some illustrations for my fanfiction That is who you are.

But the problem was that our relation couldn’t last because he was a member of a cult. So when I wrote my fanfic and especially the last chapter where the dragons left like in HTTYD3, my relation with my friend inspired me for Hiccup and Toothless’s relationship and the fact they had to live separated for their own good. It helped me to accept it. That was before HTTYD3 and that’s why I wasn’t surprised to know that the dragons will leave in it. Because that was the obvious conclusion.

Anyway, this happened in 2015 and that’s when I entered the fandom. And it brought me so much.

I developed so much skill I would never thought I had! Thanks to my dolls, I learned how to sew! xD Believe me or not, I never sewn before that! Also I started video editing! I never knew I could be good for that, since you seem to appreciate my edits xD I also learned to make gifs thanks to HTTYD3 x)

Thanks to HTTYD, I improved my writings by writing stories like real novel which I was not used to do before. Also, you maybe don’t know that but that’s thanks to HTTYD that I learned how to really speak English! Before that, I was speaking a very basic English aha...

Finally, the most important thing is that HTTYD gave me friends and a group, my Annecy Team: @poppysfanworld @megtoons @furydiver

@leffiesart @raidesart @haddock-the-third

I love you all, you are truly friends to me and I know I can count on you.

I don’t forget all my Tumblr and Discord friends: @chiefhiccstrid @JoyOfBerK @winxrus @cassadrachan @martabm90

Thank you guys for your support!

[maganefilimforever]

Am i the onlyone who broke in tears in that part?? I'm serious, i have wet tissues all over me xD c':

[falling-last-stardust]

How To Train Your Dragon is the best animated franchise and no one can convince me otherwise.

Now that I have already seen THW, it's about time I write my own #httydtome post. First of all, thank you to @hello-em75 for arranging this amazing idea. 

I remember it was back in early 2010 when I went to the theatre to watch the first HTTYD film with my family. At that time I had not heard of the film and the books. I have never seen the trailers before either. Plus judging from the name itself I actually expected it to be another cookie-cutter type of film. 

Boy I was wrong! By the end of the film I was completely enthralled by it. From the beautiful animation to the sweeping cinematography and the heartwarming friendship between Hiccup and Toothless, I could not keep my eyes of it. It also helped that I was watching in 3D thus making me feel more immersed in the film, particularly the flying scenes. I was left with not just a lot of joy, but the desire to go back to this wonderful world. When Dreamworks announced that there will be two more HTTYD films, I was so happy even though we had to wait several years for each. Furthermore, I was also very grateful when Dreamworks created the film shorts and the TV series to satiate our hunger until the next films are out. 

I first got into Tumblr back in 2013 as it appeared to be one of the few places with an active HTTYD community and where I can continue to get further news and updates. Although I was not that active at that time, I had fond memories of eagerly waiting and raving about any new content whether it’s from the TV series or HTTYD2. As the TV series was airing on Cartoon Network back then, I was looking forward to watching a new episode once every week. 

Then HTTYD2 came out and when I watched it in IMAX 3D, I was just blown away, especially since the animation by then has improved leaps from the first film. The fact that this film is not only more mature and emotional than the first, in addition to featuring older characters which is not commonly done in animated films, is what cemented to me that this franchise is not just willing to push their limits further, but is on par with that of other epic sagas such as Star Wars and The Lord of the Rings. 

After that, it was a five-year wait for the third film, but thankfully Race to the Edge came and provided more content to keep us occupied. I would eagerly wait for each new season to come out every six months. Just like the second film, I loved the fact that RTTE is different and more mature than the Cartoon Network series featuring older characters this time. I enjoyed the development of the secondary characters that we don’t see much in the films such as Snotlout, Fishlegs and the Twins, in addition to the new characters such as Dagur, Heather, Viggo and Mala to enrich the world further and of course, the growing romance between Hiccup and Astrid that leads to their close and intimate status by the time we reach the second film. 

And finally at last, we reach the conclusion with The Hidden World and despite my mixed feelings about the plot, there is still so much that I loved about this film such as the animation that has evolved further, the gorgeous music and several other moments that made me laugh and cry. Although I am sad that we have come to the end (for now), I can take comfort in the fact that we already have so much content provided for this franchise and that we can always go back and revisit those special moments again and again. I will forever hold HTTYD a special place in my heart, as it has helped me endure the difficult times of my life (special credit goes to the first HTTYD film and RTTE for that). 

To end this post, I would like to show my gratitude to these people below: 

To my mother, for taking me and my siblings to the theatre back in 2010 and introducing us to the wonderful first film. 

To Cressida Cowell for writing the books and providing inspiration for the movie franchise. 

To Chris Sanders and Dean DeBlois for directing and developing the films to the ones we will love and cherish for a long time. 

To Bonnie Arnold and Brad Lewis for being the main producers and bringing their ideas to the films, along with the other producers involved. 

To Douglas Sloan and Art Brown for overseeing the production and writing of the TV series. 

To Richard Hamilton for coordinating the entire franchise and providing more content to the universe whether it’s RTTE, the graphic novels and video games. 

To Jay Baruchel, America Ferrera and all the voice actors involved in both the films and TV series for giving the characters their distinct voices and personalities. 

To John Powell for composing the beautiful and recognizable themes for the franchise. 

To all the animators in both the films and TV series for your hard work and dedication in bringing everything on screen to life, whether it’s the movement of the characters or the texture or the background details. 

To the other crew members involved in both the films and TV series to ensure that they are released on time and with the highest quality.  

And lastly to the HTTYD fandom and all the amazing people I have interacted throughout these past years. Despite a few ups-and-downs you guys have made my experience in this fandom overall a positive and meaningful one, and I hope we can continue to enjoy the HTTYD universe for many more years to come. 

[joyfulprincessdragonlover54]

How to Train Your Dragon to Me (Edited) 

I would like to start off by saying thank you to @hello-em75 for creating this awesome project for the fandom on Tumblr.  I think it’s truly wonderful how it’s being encouraged for all of the fans to share why this franchise is so special to them as individuals.  I also appreciate how it was encouraged for everybody to do it in whatever way they feel the most comfortable. Mine will simply be by the “Text” page of Tumblr.   I’m afraid I’ve never had the unique talent in fan art or tribute video making.  Yet even before I found out about this fantastic HTTYD themed project.  I always hoped to create a post in which I could share my love for this franchise with other devoted fans.  And why it means so much to me. So once more, thank you @hello-em75 for conceiving this brilliant idea. It’s not about competing against other fans. Instead it is about everyone diving into their personal stories with the franchise and keep supporting all the fans who are shy about their love for it to speak out. We all want to hear what everybody has to say.  No pressure to be concerned it won’t be good enough in comparison to anybody else’s level.   Only share how you feel. I just love it! 

My story in being introduced to How to Train Your Dragon was back in February 2010.  I was 21 at the time.  Always been an animated film lover.  I won’t deny that my fiber stemmed from mainstream studios. Even still, I was always up for traveling off the beaten path.  Found some spectacular hidden gems. DreamWorks has quite a few of those.  Be that as it may, I never would have predicted the film I was about to see would create such an impact on my life.  I saw the trailer and thought to myself “ What an interesting film. I wonder if it will share the same DNA with another DreamWorks film? Spirit: Stallion of the Cimmeron.”  

Needless to say it became far more then an “interesting film”.  My soul was re-awakened! I say that without of any kind of irony or exaggeration.  I’ll first address that this was the film that introduced me to the value of 3-D format. Nope it was not another famous  record breaking box office hit.  How to Train Your Dragon was the one who changed my perspective of how this can benefit a story on screen.  Rather then manufacture it as the sole reason to see a film.  I was engaged from beginning to end. 

One of the main reasons the story appealed to me was how it synonymously displayed it’s lead character as someone who was identifiable and admirable. There were uncanny traits Hiccup and I have in common.  Sometimes it felt borderline identical.  It was as if the filmmakers had been clandestine in studying many of my struggles and displayed them on screen for the world to see. A medium that has done a swell job at bringing to light self identity issues people from all walks of life grapple with.  Yet his resilience and resourcefulness despite being an outcast in his society is commend worthy.  And that was well before we even reach the middle of the first film.  This was already becoming a consolation piece of fiction for me. 

Then they bring in Toothless.  A character that in it’s roots is exceedingly difficult at earning sympathy from the audience.  Animal driven films in animation have a notorious history of dividing movie goers.  If they talk it seems cliche.  The redundant corny trademark people roll their eyes at.  If they don’t talk, the audience sees them as mere props for the human characters in their story.  They can’t resonate with the audience as they don’t know how exactly to relate to their plights if it is not verbally stated.  It becomes even more staggeringly challenging as he is a dragon.  For fiction has a long history for interpreting these fantasy creatures in the villain bracket.  Even author G.K Chesterton made a significant point on what their role was in literature.  “Fairy Tales don’t tell us dragons exists. We already know they exist.  But that they can be beaten and killed.”  The filmmakers of this franchise took a bold risk at turning this classic notion on it’s head.  Hoping the audience would be willing to surrender to their story.  That by using a different but equally classic adage of “The eyes are the window to the soul” the audience would understand and sympathize with Toothless as much as any human character.  Now Toothless to this day still has his detractors from professional critics and amateur movie buffs alike.  Regardless of that, he has touched my heart beyond compare! He is a fully realized character who is multifaceted and has his own dilemmas. 

Book series author Cressida Cowell, directors/screenwriters Dean DeBlois and Chris Saunders are so brave for taking this chance in creating a dragon themed narrative that is not about conquering a monster as a ritual in transitioning into adulthood.  But about the obstacles of earning trust from a creature that is long ingrained in everyone’s mind is apart of evil forces who live to bring humans emotional torment.  Sure this franchise is not the first to explore this theme.  And nobody on the creative team tried to take credit for it.  They all openly acknowledged their inspirations and thanked them for it allowed them to take a closer inspection of why it is rarely explored in text or on screen.  What they did though was unconventional (in terms of mainstream studio features)  in it’s own right.  

At it’s core is a love story.  Not the typical owner and pet fictional iteration.  A genuine brotherhood team love story. One that requires slower pacing.  Another risk the creative team was willing to gamble on.  Earning trust is not immediate.  Mainly being Hiccup’s goal to prove he is not a social leper. He initially intends to kill Toothless. His own unique empathy for Toothless leaving him conflicted.  He does not grasp why he is ashamed of what his tribe does despite all of the rules and regulations drilled into his conditioning.   But his conscious tells him otherwise. It is wrong to murder this frightened creature. He deserves to be released unharmed.  A travesty to the Viking culture he grew up in. Hiccup freeing Toothless then Toothless sparing Hiccup’s life is a shocker! Neither quite comprehends why they just gave their sworn enemy a second chance at life. But this question is an internal odyssey Hiccup is willing to take. 

Hiccup did not dive in head first expecting  Toothless to cuddle up to him and offer him a ride on his back.  This had to be a gradual process.  Trial and error. Repetition and reinforcement.  Compassion and respect.  All of these features were crucial of guiding their story about strangers who met under negative circumstances and would later become brothers in arms.  The filmmakers shamelessly display every bit of this.  Hiccup and Toothless unexpectedly become dependent on each other.  Hiccup needs to brainstorm and invent contraptions as to feel worthwhile as his upbringing as has gone awry.  Brute strength and fast reflexes are not in his being.   Toothless needs to fly to survive. Navigating from island to island in the archipelago.   They each believe their purpose is to make it by in a society that wishes to subjugate them.  They just want as little confrontation as possible.  The chance encounter of Hiccup trapping Toothless with his own version of a catapult and him later venturing into the forest of Berk to find him was the beginning of their “Forbidden Friendship”.  Hiccup and Toothless alike always knew they were misfits. But neither ever dreamed of having the agency of seeking someone or something out who could potentially be like them.  They both believed they were all alone in the world. That is why I find their journey so rewarding to watch! 

They never expected to find one another.  Let alone feel so joyfully fulfilled.   This in turn was why I was so emotionally caught up watching the films.  In particular the first one.  Pretty much everything they do contradict’s their society’s dictation.  Their lives are literally in danger by merely engaging with the other presence.  Their secret of knowing and allying with one another is a secret that casts as much liberation as it does a burden.  They can be themselves when alone together. Exploring new ideas and places. Yet Hiccup’s tribe is acutely aware something is off.  Initially believing that he is inadvertently discovering dragon weaknesses that could lead to concocting a plan to eradicate all dragons.  Hiccup’s time with Toothless runs dangerously low.  My heart was in my throat with dread they would be separated from each other.  Hiccup and Toothless together gives them a purpose to live! I wanted them to live happily together and in harmony in their society. 

Such a love story is often over hyped and I could care less as is has their characters saying a bunch of frivolous dialogue with empty gestures.   Love is proven through consistent actions.  The hardships Hiccup and Toothless would have to painfully face head on to reach a happy end was not glided over.  The creative team was not shy about offering it’s share of agonizing lows.  Hiccup’s self-esteem dropping to practically zero.  Same goes for Toothless.  I still can not get over how blatantly the filmmakers do that to these precious characters. It’s so harrowing it hits me every single time.  Yet these emotions happen in reality.  These fantasy animated films are a mirror to it.   No happy ending is worth getting if  the characters don’t hit rock bottom.  

This is precisely what this entire franchise stands for and why it has become my all time favorite piece of fiction. It is as emotionally draining as it is fulfilling.  And I want to keep returning to them.  Both films have this in spades!  For me personally this is is so rare to watch a film that has all three of these qualities.  But the HTTYD franchise still had unexplained factors I can’t wrap my mind around  that it stands above anything else I have ever come across.  All I know for certain is that it is special.   And I am forever grateful to have discovered it.  

Also a huge shout out to Animation screencaps for these! They alone can define this beautiful under-rated love story.   :)  

[hello-em75]

Has How to Train Your Dragon made a big impact on your life? Share your story with the franchise using the tag #httydtome. 

For those of you who love the How to Train Your Dragon franchise, I highly encourage you to share as much as you’re comfortable with about your journey.

#httydtome has been going on since roughly the end of September and will continue up until February 22nd (the US premiere date of HTTYD:THW) so I can record - and hopefully find some way - to share some of the fan stories and/or content relevant to the #httydtome project with the HTTYD team upon the movie’s release in the United States.

For the project, you can express the impact of How to Train Your Dragon for you through any medium (e.g. art, video post, text post, music - literally anything) you deem appropriate - just as long as you tag it #httydtome.

If you are interested and/or you know someone outside of the Tumblr HTTYD fan base that might be interested in participating, don’t hesitate to publish a post or let them know about #httydtome!

[the-fanaddict]

HTTYDToME

(aka the-fanaddict gets sapppppyyyy)

HTTYD1 released when I was 10. I wasn’t as big as an animation nerd back then as I am now. I did not grow up on cable, (PBSkids for life!!) and my family was more connected with Hindi language films. My dad is a Pixar fan so we’d watch mainly Pixar movies. I didn’t grow up with the Disney princesses either.

So overall, animation wasn’t exactly a huge thing for me comparatively.

It was no surprise that I wasn’t really interested in the HTTYD at first. I saw the occasional promos in 2010, and for some very odd reason my 10 year old mind thought it was a princess movie??

Anyways fast forward to April 2013. I was 14 years old and had been lurking around anonymously Tumblr with the Wild Kratts fandom for 2 years (I love animals and the Kratt Bros!) and quite a few people in that fandom were also into the Rise of The Brave Tangled Dragons crossover as it had been popular at the time. It intrigued me because the only movie I watched from those four was Tangled (I caught the ending on TV one day and I adored it).

Eventually, I saw more posts about HTTYD. Two very interesting things caught my eye: Stoick cradling Hiccup at the end of HTTYD1 and Hiccup losing a leg. It really surprised me how daring that was, to have a main character, in an animated movie nonetheless, lose a limb. On top of that, sequel news was beginning to spread and I noticed how the characters are aged up.

I finally decided to give the movie a try. That fateful July (7??) I watched the movie. I still remember how amazing and spellbinding that first experience was. One particular moment that still stays with me to this day is how I bobbed my head up and down to the end of Forbidden Friendship. It was such a moment of wonder for me: Hiccup trying not to step on Toothless’ drawing, John Powell’s wonderful music swelling in the background, and me dancing in bed. It truly was a spellbinding moment.

After that moment, I was hooked. No turning back. I watched the movie a second time with my brother the very next day, and then a third time with my cousin the day after. After that, the teaser for HTTYD2 was released. I was very excited. I soon immersed myself in everything HTTYD: I watched all the shorts, caught up with Riders of Berk, read the books, and kept myself up to date with the fandom.

I also begun to play piano. I listened to the soundtrack and really enjoyed John Powell’s amazing themes. HTTYD brought me amazing music and kickstarted my hobby in piano. I also begun to experiment with my art style. I’ve always love to draw. One of the reasons why I ended up active on the internet was to get inspiration from different artists online. As I drew more, my art style improved.

Time went by and HTTYD2 came along. I absolutely adored it.

And thus began the long wait until HTTYD3. It was through this time period where I begun to explore more animation. I was so impressed with HTTYD I wanted to see more hidden gems. I immersed myself into different animated shows and movies such as Steven Universe, Gravity Falls, Trollhunters, The Book of Life, The Iron Giant, Big Hero 6, Into The Spiderverse and so much more! While I may have gotten more involved with other fandoms, I never did drift too away from HTTYD. Partially because the TV-Series was still going on.

I also watched many making-of videos. Animated movies fascinated me. The process, from story boarding, to the voice acting, to the cg - animation/2D styles, everything was so interesting. There is so much animation can do and how many different stories can be told with different animation styles. Animation became my dream job, and even though I never pursued animation, it is still my dream job.

This is what Httyd is to me. It was the gateway to the wonderful world of animation. It was also my escapist world. The amount of worldbuilding and character and heart that went into this franchise made the experience so immersive. It’s sad to let go of this franchise, but all good things must come to an end. I don’t think I will ever find something as heartfelt and immersive as httyd. Thank you Chris Sanders, Dean Deblois, Cressida Cowell, John Powell and everyone behind this amazing franchise.