alexjones-33768

The first Chicken Run film is one I watched repeatedly when I was a kid, so naturally, I was excited to hear about a sequel. This one definitely has a more happy tone than the original because they're living independently on the nature reserve/island/sanctuary, but their way of life is threatened by the appearance of Fun Land Farms nearby. Now I gotta say, although it's not as grim as Tweedy's prison camp farm in the first movie, Fun Land Farms' use of mind control collars to keep their chickens happy and flavorful in this vibrantly colored playground until they march up the stairs to their deep-fried death is incredibly eerie. All in all, the film still holds a lot of the same charm as the first did and I can see many kids enjoying it. I wouldn't say that it's better than the original--very rarely that sequels are-- because there's so much difference in tone and aesthetic.

In fact, with enough callbacks and flashback sequences to the first film, Dawn of the Nugget works pretty well on its own. I especially enjoyed the introduction of new characters Molly (Rocky and Ginger's curious daughter) and Frizzle (quirky friend of Molly's from a different farm) as they sort of helped breathe new life into the Chicken Run franchise. Like we know everyone loves to see their favorite characters from the first movie doing their thing, but it's nice to throw some different bits in there, too. After all, they've had over 20 years to ruminate on a new story, haha.

In summation, Dawn of the Nugget is a pleasant movie for the whole family and I'm sure die-hard fans of Aardman animation and newcomers alike will enjoy it.

The penultimate episode to this whimsical and brilliant animated series does not have us gear up for the famous finale later. Instead, we are treated to watching Dr. Zoidberg -the pathetic crab/human hybrid- find love. With a forgettable B-story about Bender Rodriguez tap-dancing or something, the real focus of the episode is Zoidberg meeting Marianne (voiced by Emilia Clarke) a human woman who makes her living selling flowers on the streets of New New York. The kicker is Marianne has no sense of smell and Zoidberg has the body odor of "a burning zoo." The whole concept is sickeningly sweet, but seeing their romance develop throughout the episode is really cute and by the end, arguably the most miserable character of the show gets his perfect fairytale ending at long last. Even though Zoidberg makes an appearance in the very next episode without his human lover by his side, this heartwarming rom-com episode preceding it definitely completes his arc.