Here are my spoiler-filled ramblings about How to Train Your Dragon 2.
Hiccup's meetup with his mother Valka is paced almost glacially, spanning several scenes and allowing for multiple cuts to other events. Because of this it seems like he's too distracted by the pretty view and all the dragons to worry about the threat of Drago Bludvist, and although it's a beautiful scene with some emotional moments, it feels like it could have been shorter.
That said, the scene where Valka and Stoick meet up again is touching to the extreme. You can see how much they've both aged from the grey strands in their hair, and seeing the two on the same page after so many years apart is a truly beautiful moment. There's a number of different elements that combine to make the scene where the two dance as wonderful as it is, and without all of those it wouldn't be quite as great.
One character, Eret, is an interesting contrast to Drago. Drago is shown as a man who cannot be reasoned with and who only wishes to see the world burn, whereas Eret starts out as a somewhat selfish-seeming trapper before having a change of heart when one of the vikings' dragons saves his life when his master turns on him. It's a particularly great piece of character development, and while Eret never becomes an especially important character, he's still an interesting one.
The scene of Stoick's death is made all the more emotional and poignant by the fact that it's done by Toothless, who's under the control of the alpha dragon, who in turn is under the control of Drago. On top of that, the inclusion of a Viking funeral for Stoick is one of the film's most brilliant moments, as it proves one of the most emotional moments in the entire movie.
Hiccup reaching out to Toothless is done wonderfully as well, as we see through Toothless' eyes the blurred perspective that the alpha's influence gives the smaller dragons. We see this filmy perspective being broken by Hiccup's touching words, and damn are those words well-written. What Hiccup has to say to Toothless is beautiful in its own right.
And did I mention how pretty the movie is?
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