one minute that's all it took one minute to change everything between Hiccup and Toothless one minute to flip a viking tradition on its head 1 minute to take a scrawny Oddball disappointment and turn him into the most legendary dragon rider in history DreamWork somehow pulled this off in just 60 seconds and they did it with maximum emotion little to know dialogue and a complete character pivot I mean just look at this guy five minutes ago he couldn't even lift a knife properly and now he's the first Viking ever to ride a dragon seriously what so
how did this happen how did hiccup go from Village clutz to guy rewriting Viking history and how did DreamWorks make us buy it in just 1 minute oh wow I I I did it yeah you did Hiccup and now you've got to deal with it so let's set the stage hiccup is the scrawniest Viking in Burke a village where muscle equals respect and well he has neither his dad stoic is basically the Viking Superman if Superman had a beard and a battle axe and Hiccup more like like Viking Clark Kent before the powers the guy
just wants to belong it's not so much what you look like it's what's inside that he can stand wow thanks for the confidence boost Gober anyway hicup dreams of proving himself by slaying a dragon and one night he actually does the impossible he takes down a Night Fury one of the deadliest dragons in existence now here's where everything chefs hiccup tracks toothless into the woods knife in hand ready to finish what he started this is it his big Viking moment the thing that will finally earn him a pat on the back from stoic but just
as he's about to strike something happens something he definitely never saw coming his hands won't move his grip on the knife falters but why the harsh ideals of Viking culture dictate that dragons are monsters to be killed on site there are even entire manuals about how dragons can attack but hiccup he isn't just any Viking he's well he's a hiccup a glitch in The Matrix a viking sized error message and that is why he finds himself in the truly Oddball position of changing the Status Quo because when he sees those ginormous terrified eyes staring back
at him he realizes toothless isn't a Mindless Beast he's just scared at this moment hiccup steps into his own moral compass instead of the beliefs that have been passed down to him and suddenly killing him doesn't feel like Victory even though this is everything that he has ever wanted doing it feels like cruelty and just like that hiccup makes a choice that sets him apart from every other Viking he lets toothless go but hiccup's growth aside what about toothless's reaction let's recap that for a second he doesn't run instead he lunges at hiccup infuriated roaring
and pinning him down this is a creature who's just been shot out of the sky tied up and trapped and now he's facing the person who put him in that position in the first place at this moment hiccup is completely at toothless's Mercy he doesn't have a weapon no backup and no way out but toothless just stares no growls no fiery dragon breath just a stare that says I could totally end you right now but I'm going to give you a moment to think about it honestly I think toothless is kind of like do I
really need to do this I mean I've been shot by this guy do I want to kill him and I mean he's kind of cute in a helpless way and and it was at this point that we understood that toothless too was grappling with the complex emotions was he scared distrustful curious or perhaps all of these things but here's the thing toothless doesn't know what to do either he's caught between instincts and curiosity he's torn between fear and restraint and in that hesitation we see something incredible happen for the first time neither of them is
acting on what they've been taught they're just two scared creatures staring at each other trying to figure things out this right here it's the ultimate we cool moment because For the First Time man and dragon are not enemies there're something else entirely this exchange of intense emotion within such a short span of time makes this film a masterpiece but there are subtleties beneath the surface and I for one hadn't noticed them until I got to the Wiki [Music] page in a brilliant directorial Choice emotional scenes are devoid of Music according to Dean dubo removing the
score allowed the audience to take in a little bit of the room's Ambiance throughout the film this technique has been applied on multiple occasions to accentuate the emotional depth of what was being delivered dub masterfully wo music into subtle sound effects and silence this helped create a tapestry of emotions that resonated deeply with all of us but nowhere is this better done than in the scene where hiccup sets toothless free composer John Powell's evocative score plays a pivotal role in conveying the film's emotional depth and the track Forbidden Friendship underscores the initial bond between Hiccup
and Toothless it uses a delicate Melody to highlight their tentative steps toward trust as the scene progresses the music swells it mirrors the character's growing connection the auditory Journey enhanced the visual narrative and allowed us the audience to viscerally feel their evolving relationship it made the moment more intimate and impactful but that wasn't the only thing besides music another powerful tool was at play can you guess what it is [Music] without dialogue the scene relies heavily on body language toothless's initial aggression pinning hiccup down quickly shifts to curiosity he doesn't attack instead he observes hiccup
on the other hand lowers his weapon and extends a hand signaling peace while the latter happens in another scene we can witness exchanges from facial expressions confusion understanding curiosity fear it's all in the eyes and the face here the mutual hesitation broke centuries of hostility between Vikings and Dragons it was a dance of trust beautifully animated to convey complex emotions without a single word this Choice exemplifies how sometimes less is more in film making but how did one minute leave such a profound impact on the franchise and why is it so important to uncover every
bit of it this is why How to Train Your Dragon is a masterpiece in just 60 seconds it flips the whole Viking dragon war on its head hiccup sees dragons differently toothless starts to question humans and we witness the birth of one of the greatest friendships in animation history now let's pause for a second and just appreciate what a master stroke of Storytelling this is because this isn't just some touching moment of Mercy it's the fulcrum of the entire Trilogy this single act of kindness of empathy does something that generations of Vikings with axes and
fire couldn't do it begins to heal the Divide between humans and Dragons it's not just a small personal decision it's the first crack in an entire worldview that is has stood for centuries and it happens right here in this quiet little clearing between a scrawny teenager and a wounded Night Fury these 60 seconds bear the moment that allows everything to unfold without it there's no Forbidden Friendship no dragon riding lessons and no change of Burke's future without it hiccup remains an outcast toothless remains a hunted creature and the Viking dragon war rages on but because
of this one act of empathy we get everything that follows we get the unbreakable bond between Hiccup and Toothless we get the shifting tide of Viking tradition we get the legend that turns Hiccup from a nobody into the greatest leader Burke has ever known and perhaps most importantly we get the emotional weight that carries through the entire Trilogy because this isn't just a one-time thing the way this scene is crafted lays the foundation for every single moment of trust betrayal heartbreak and Triumph that follows the final moments of How to Train Your Dragon the Hidden
World when hiccup makes the impossible choice to let toothless go again it's all echoing back to this moment to this clearing to this knife to the boy who couldn't bring himself to kill and in doing so changed the world see the Brilliance of this scene isn't just in what it does for this movie it's how it foreshadows everything that's coming it tells us exactly who hiccup is going to be not a conqueror not a warrior but a bridge a leader who doesn't just defeat his enemies he turns them into allies it's the moment that tells
us that this isn't a story about war it's a story about transformation about rewriting the rules of the world and that that is why this moment isn't just powerful it's legendary this moment it's everything all right that's it for today's breakdown if this scene hit you right in the fields like it did for me drop a comment below with your thoughts and don't forget to like subscribe and hit that Bell icon so you never miss a deep dive into animated greatness may your work always soar through the skies and may your pets always be friendly
now if you'll excuse me I need to go rewatch this scene for the h 100th time bye
