I feel like Astrid soaring through the clouds with Hiccup for the first time on a dragon in How to Train Your Dragon. After the initial fear and exhilaration have worn off, she is left with a sense of calm and wonder about the whole thing. Her response is, “All right, I admit it, this is pretty cool. It’s amazing. He’s amazing,” in reference to Toothless.

Similarly, I never expected to analyze each film in the How to Train Your Dragon trilogy to discover the chiasmus in them. But here we are. Like Astrid, I wasn’t exactly the instigator of this incredible journey. Instead, I just kind of stumbled upon the first film’s chiasmus years ago. It was a brilliant reader of mine named Jo who introduced me to the chiasmus in How to Train Your Dragon 2, which I never suspected would be there so clearly.

I promised her I would look for a chiasmus in the third film, How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World. And boy did I find it.

Now that the initial feelings of surprise and excitement have dissipated, I’m left with a sense of awe at what these films have managed to accomplish. Following in the footsteps of the Spider-Man trilogy, each How to Train Your Dragon film manages to weave a beautiful chiasmus that is truly breathtaking.

Please join me as we take flight once more in the world of dragons and Vikings to discover the extraordinary chiasmus in it all.

The Chiasmus

This is the way that the chiasmus works in How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World.

A. One year after the last film, Hiccup scares a trapper on a ship, reassures him it’s okay, and frees dragons with help from Toothless and his friends
 B. Toothless is the last to leave the trappers’ ship after failing to find the Light Fury amidst all the other dragons that got away
  C. Hiccup welcomes the new dragons to their new home at Berk
   D. Valka worries that Hiccup and his friends rely too much on dragons to save their lives, and Toothless demonstrates his role as the king of dragons by forcing a much bigger dragon to obey him
    E. Gobber grabs Hiccup and Astrid, attempting to pull them together, and he tells them to get married. This stops a food fight, and he says one day Hiccup will pick a fight he can’t win
     F. Grimmel the Grisly plans to use the Light Fury to bait Toothless
      G. Stoick tells Young Hiccup about the Hidden World, which he hopes to seal up to end the war between humans and dragons
       H. Toothless leaves Hiccup’s presence, and he follows the Light Fury into the woods
        I. Toothless is in love with the Light Fury and yearns to be with her
         J. Hiccup discovers a trap in the forest that was set to capture Toothless
          K. Eret warns Hiccup not to take Grimmel lightly
           L. Grimmel visits Hiccup at night and threatens to take Toothless away from him
            M. Hiccup tells his fellow Vikings to leave Berk in search of the Hidden World
             N. The Light Fury carries Hiccup off of Toothless and drops him
              O. Grimmel delays hunting for Toothless after the dragons and Vikings leave Berk behind
               P. The Vikings establish New Berk once they reach an island with their dragons
                Q. Toothless clumsily tries to show his love for the Light Fury, making her fly away from him
                 R. Hiccup creates a new tail for Toothless so he won’t need a rider
                  S. Toothless leaves Hiccup for good to be with the Light Fury
                   T. Valka is attacked, but Grimmel lets her escape
                    U. Toothless finds the Light Fury and the Hidden World
                     V. Hiccup worries when Toothless remains absent
                      W. Valka warns Hiccup about Grimmel’s army
                       X. Hiccup attempts to surprise Grimmel by sneaking into his fortress. He wants to stop Grimmel from stealing or killing any more dragons
                       X. Grimmel surprises Hiccup by anticipating his sneak attack. He admits that he has killed numerous Night Furies and has no intention of stopping
                      W. Valka saves Hiccup from Grimmel’s Deathgrippers
                     V. Hiccup worries when both Ruffnut and Toothless are missing
                    U. Hiccup and Astrid search for Toothless and the Hidden World
                   T. Ruffnut is imprisoned, but Grimmel lets her escape
                  S. Hiccup and Astrid discover where Toothless went with the Light Fury
                 R. Toothless uses the tail Hiccup made for him to pull Hiccup and Astrid from danger
                Q. Stoick resolutely declares his love for his wife, even though she was taken from him by a dragon
               P. Hiccup and Astrid return to New Berk with Toothless and Stormfly
              O. Grimmel immediately shows up after the Light Fury and Ruffnut arrive at New Berk
             N. Grimmel captures Toothless and the Light Fury, lifting them up
            M. Toothless tells his fellow dragons to stay away like he had in the Hidden World
           L. Grimmel makes good on his threat, taking Toothless away from Hiccup in broad daylight
          K. Astrid encourages Hiccup not to give up against Grimmel
         J. Hiccup hatches a plan to rescue Toothless and the other dragons
        I. Grimmel wants to kill Toothless in front of his beloved
       H. Toothless is freed from his restraints with Hiccup’s help, and he follows the Light Fury into the sky
      G. Old and young Vikings free all the dragons from their cages, winning the war against the trappers for power over dragons
     F. Grimmel rides the Light Fury to get Toothless to follow him
    E. Deathgrippers grab Toothless, attempting to prevent him from getting to his beloved. He stops struggling, and he uses a new power to win the fight they picked with him
   D. Hiccup tells the Light Fury to save Toothless instead of himself, and she demonstrates that she has learned to do what Toothless would want her to do and saves Hiccup
  C. The Vikings say goodbye to their old dragons at New Berk
 B. Toothless is the last to leave New Berk after the Light Fury leads the rest of the dragons away
A. Years after their last meeting, Toothless scares Hiccup on a ship, then Hiccup assures Astrid it’s okay, and their children ride free and become friends

Hidden No More

How do you sum up something so wonderful? I never expected any of this. I must give all the credit to Jo because I never would have discovered this chiasmus if she hadn’t inspired me to go looking in the first place. And after I sent her my first draft of the chiasmus, she helped me refine it and correct some errors I had made.

I had originally split G into two points, but she helped me realize they are really one. And she gave me pointers on what Astrid’s and Grimmel’s dragons are called, among other things.

As for the turning point, I find it fascinating that it shows the dichotomy between Hiccup and Grimmel. Hiccup wants to stop the murder and enslavement of innocent dragons, while Grimmel takes pleasure in murdering and enslaving dragons. Grimmel proves to be a much better tactician than Hiccup, but he uses that talent to the detriment of those around him rather than their betterment. And Grimmel faced a difficult choice as a boy when he could either kill or show mercy to a Night Fury, like Hiccup did in the first film with Toothless. He took the wrong path by killing it, while Hiccup chose the right path by saving it.

It’s interesting that the Night Fury is with Hiccup at the start of this film, while the Light Fury is with Grimmel. Black and white. That’s the difference between Hiccup and Grimmel. One is dedicated to selflessly protecting his dragons and people, and the other is equally dedicated to selfishly destroying all dragons and any people who get in his way. Hiccup is obviously the white, and Grimmel is the black, but they have opposite-colored dragons on their sides. It’s significant that the Light Fury has a change of heart at the climax. She saves Hiccup and lets Grimmel die.

It’s been an incredible journey getting to this point. I welcome your comments on individual points of the chiasmus and what they all mean. I’m just going to relax and take solace in the fact that the chiasmus in The Hidden World is hidden no more. It’s revealed for all the world to see, much like the dragons themselves.

This is the Deja Reviewer bidding you farewell until we meet again.

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