I love how RttE starts with the Dragon Riders growing apart.
They all have their own thing going on. Snotlout/Hookfang, Ruffnut and Tuffnut/Barf and Belch, and Fishlegs/Meatlug are already doing their own thing and then we see Astrid breaking the news to Hiccup that she and Stormfly will be joining the Berk Guard. This means that Astrid was the last Rider to leave the Dragon Academy. Which makes sense, she’s the closest thing that Hiccup has to a second-in-command. In R(D)oB, Astrid even states that she would take over the Academy if Hiccup were to leave.
It also makes sense for the Dragon Riders to find their own thing when the Dragon Academy is slowly dying. They’ve found every dragon in their Archipelago, they’ve mapped every island. And since the Dragon Academy’s purpose was to help the dragons integrate in Berkian life, it makes sense that it wouldn’t be around forever.
It also doesn’t help that they’re all 17 to 18 years old. They would probably be expected to leave the Academy and do something a little more permanent.
And just as one adventure for Hiccup comes to an end, another comes knocking almost immediately after.
But what I love about RttE starting with the Dragon Riders having grown apart or being in the process of growing apart, is that they will be a family at the end of this series. They will be ride or die. They will be “Where Hiccup goes, we go” all the way! And looking at how they start out in RttE, I think that’s quite beautiful.
