As an enormous fan of How to Train Your Dragon franchise I was, like many others, not very optimistic, even doubtful for this show when it was first revealed. While many of my concerns did crop up, my expectations were fairly low and I am happy to say the show surpassed or subverted many of my worries. If you were a doubter, I would say to give the show a chance. While it is nothing groundbreaking, I do believe The Nine Realms will give most fans the feeling of a return to his universe, even if it is in the modern world. Most of the stories are fairly simple, and the animation is a hugely mixed bag, but there are some compelling elements to be had amongst it. Feathers and Alex are two characters who are the most interesting, as having a dragon as a sort of support animal is both a new and rich concept that I hope will be explored further. Huge props must be given to the composer who modernised, but captured the feel and soundscape of the Dragons soundtracks that have preceded it and honestly do the most work in carrying much of the show throughout its six episodes. On the note of number of episodes, 6 episodes means the show is neither a huge investment for a viewer, which is good, but also leaves a lot to be desired, with rushed pacing and character moments that sometimes need more time to set. I feel like I'm not able to give it a lower score in good faith simply due to the restrictive structure a short 6 episode season brings. In my eyes, they've done alright with what they got, and the first season essentially acts as an extended pilot. While I really appreciate some of the nods and parallels to earlier Dragons iterations, I hope the show expands in scope in a lengthier second season to capitalise on all the promising aspects yet to be fully explored.

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