How To Train Your Dragon: The Biggest Differences Between The Books And The Films – GIQUE

Although popular, the how to train your dragon movies are nothing like the books they are based on.

the number of differences between the two is truly staggering.

both are set on the island of berk. Both the book and the movie focus on the adventures of a young Viking, Hiccup Haddock, and his toothless dragon.

That, more or less, is where the similarities end.

You are reading: How to train your dragon books vs movies

These are some of the most significant differences between the How to Train Your Dragon series of books and the movies.

The Vikings are not at war with the dragons (at least not at first).

Hiccup struggles to impress his father in the first film.

The core conflict of the first How To Train Your Dragon film is the ongoing war between Vikings and Dragons. This makes Hiccup’s friendship with the Night Fury, Toothless, and his attempts to train him, strictly forbidden.

This is not like that in the books. In the first How to Train Your Dragon novel, the Vikings of Berk use trained dragons to hunt and travel.

Capturing and training your own dragon is an important right of passage for the youth of berk. however, the price of failure in ‘dragon training’ is much higher than in the movies. anyone who doesn’t train their dragon within a certain amount of time is banished from berk.

The book’s hiccups set him apart by not just training his dragon, but understanding it. he is the first Viking in generations who can speak Dragonese, the special language of the dragon.

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While a war between Vikings and dragons becomes a plot point, it doesn’t happen until much later in the series.

toothless is much smaller in the books.

How To Train Your Dragon books

Toothless as he appears in the books.

One of the most memorable and iconic moments in the film series is the ‘Test Drive’ sequence, in which Hiccup successfully rides Toothless for the first time.

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In the books, however, Hiccup never rides toothless. Instead, Toothless hiccups.

the book version of toothless is much smaller, initially believed to be a common garden dragon. he is called toothless not because he can hide his teeth, but because he has lost them all. in later books, it is revealed to be a baby seadragonus giganticus maximus, one of the rarest dragons of all.

Despite this change in size, the close link between hiccups and edentulous remains the same. Toothless, along with Hiccup’s mounted dragon, the Windwalker, are among the few who remain with their humans when the war begins.

Early concept art for the movie shows a smaller Toothless, however they ultimately decided to go with the Night Fury design we all know and love.

astrid does not exist.

Astrid and Hiccup enter the Hidden World.

In the films, Astrid Hofferson is one of the story’s most important characters. Aside from being Hiccup’s love interest, she is the first to see Hiccup’s bond with Toothless, and to take on his belief that peace with the dragons is possible.

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astrid is not present at all in the how to train your dragon books. Many believe that she takes the place of the Camicazi book character: a young warrior from an all-female tribe. She plays a role similar to that of Astrid in the film, often encouraging Hiccup to follow her instincts.

unlike hiccup and astrid, the relationship between hiccup and camicazi never goes beyond a subtle crush. this is probably due to the age difference between the characters in the movie and those in the book. While Hiccup and Astrid are in their early twenties from How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World, Hiccup and Camicazi are only fourteen and twelve in the final book.

fishlegs faces his own ‘darth vader’ plot in the books.

In the first film, Fishlegs and his encyclopedic knowledge of dragons prove vital in the final battle. this knowledge ensures that he remains a valuable member of the group in subsequent films and television series.

The characterization of fishlegs remains similar between the book and the movies. fishlegs is smart, with a wealth of knowledge in his head. he is nervous and sensitive. he loves the dragon of him.

It turns out that Fishlegs is also the son of the book series’ main villain, Alvin the Backstabber. Abandoned by Alvin at birth for being a dwarf, Fishlegs came to the shore of Berk and grew up there. He is horrified to discover that he is Alvin’s son and quickly disowns his father.

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Although Alvin does not appear in the How to Train Your Dragon movies, he is a major antagonist in the first two seasons of the television series. however, there is never any indication that he is related to fishlegs or any other character. he was, however, an old friend of Stoick the Vast.

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also, unlike the book, the tv series alvin finally redeems himself. becomes a recurring ally in dragons: race to the edge.

the fate of the lout

the movie version of snotlout is quite cocky. a bit of a bully, though this usually doesn’t extend beyond light teasing, more annoying than hurtful.

The TV series fleshes out snotlout’s character quite a bit, adding insecurities and a troubled relationship with his father that aren’t present in the movie.

In the How To Train Your Dragon series of books, Snotlout starts out as a bully, plain and simple. he spends most of the early books trying to shake off the hiccups so he can take his place as heir to the chiefdom of the furry thugs tribe.

snotlout finally decides to change his ways. In the eleventh book, he sacrifices his life to save Hiccup from Alvin.

Some fans feared that Snotlout would meet a similar fate in How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World.

Despite numerous changes, Cressida Cowell has given her stamp of approval to the film series. she has stated that while the portrayal is different, the heart of the story remains the same.

And though they may have taken different paths to get there, both stories end the same way. dragons disappearing from the world, until humans are ready to live with them in peace.

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