The trilogy has a special place in many hearts of its fans, and for good reason.
We have followed Hiccup's journey since the time he had two feet to stand on and witnessed him grow from a mere lowly civilian of Berk to its strongest leader.
The cast, the animation, the music, and the story all blend perfectly to gift us a heartfelt trilogy about dragons and their history with humanity.
Dreamworks have a reputation for making absolutely brilliant animated trilogies, Kung-Fu Panda would be a great example of their work.
However, it is my personal opinion that this trilogy came out on top when it comes to how good a trilogy can be.
Of course, there are a few reasons to back this opinion, and the major ones are as follows:
Hiccup's and Toothless's arc
The dragon and the dragon master, are the two main protagonists of the trilogy.
Without these two, the How To Train Your Dragon universe will always feel incomplete due to the massive impact they have had in creating this fictional world in such detail.
Toothless's arc is an almost perfect mirror of Hiccup's, as one starts off as the weakest member in their group while the other is already a legend and extremely powerful to begin with.
By the second film, both of their arcs meet each other midway as both Hiccup and Toothless have to step up and become the leader of their groups in order to protect and care for their loved ones.
By the third film, Hiccup had to shift his entire village to another island, essentially leaving their homeland to settle somewhere fresh whereas Toothless had to return to his origin, home of the dragons, in order to live his life in peace and independency, separated from the chaos of man.
Even though both of their arcs start from where the other ends, the two share an extremely strong and unconditional bond which went above and beyond in the second film where their relationship was tested the most.
Musical scores
There was absolutely no reason for the soundtrack to be as perfect as it is for a children's animated film.
The song that first played when the two had their first flight together was so great that it is too good for lyrics, you can't sing along to it, but your heart can.
It is at that specific moment when Hiccup throws away his flight manual that the audience gets to realize that this film's music is not something that should be ignored.
The music of How To Train Your Dragon stays strong even after four years after the release of the last film in its trilogy.
The soundtrack of the trilogy belongs to the time of Vikings and how full of life and adventure dwells within each note.
Consistent change in time
It was an unforgettable time when the fans of the franchise first witnessed Hiccup with a beard.
The feeling of everything we have loved being wrapped up with a bittersweet ending made such a lasting impression as we have been in Hiccup's shoes at some point in our lives, whether it has to do with feeling like an outcast or feeling the pressure of new responsibilities entering your life.
The comedy, the music, the themes, and the stories, all matured with their audience while still remaining as a category that can be enjoyed by all ages.
The trilogy is a work of art as each film stands its own ground and doesn't have to leech of off its predecessors' success as there have been multiple sequels to movies that just do not hold the same charm as their first film.
The bond between friends, family, and dragons only grows stronger with each film.
As our gang first started off by competing against each other and ended with joining each other's adventures across the world, trusting each other with their lives.
World-building
One element of this film that it never fails to nail is its world-building aspect.
With each installment the How To Train Your Dragon universe grew larger in size.
The first film explored Berk and a few neighboring islands.
The second film starts off with Hiccup and Toothless mapping out the rest of the world surrounding Berk, even going as far as to make its antagonist a man foreign to Berk.
The third film was about exploring the secrets within the world of dragons that cannot be placed on a map for the average explorer.
Not to mention the variety of dragons and their unique designs and personalities.
The creative minds behind this trilogy deserve so much more recognition than given for all of the work put into this masterpiece of storytelling through animation.
Even the places and characters that were introduced since the first film gave more to its world-building aspects as we get to learn about each character's backstory a little more with each film, making the entirety of its cast go through character development alongside the best duo in Dreamworks animation.
Dylan Jobe
