Its sequel time! I know there is a general consensus nowadays that sequels do not tend to do as well as the original nor are they as engaging as the original, but that’s just not true when it comes to Disney! There are over forty sequel animations, but let’s have a look at my top five:
First place:
The Little Mermaid II: Return to the Sea
This is probably because The Little Mermaid is my all-time favourite so I welcomed any continuation of Ariel’s world, but the fact is, this has a very good plot. As Ariel had already lived happily ever after at the end of the first movie, it made sense to have a spin of events and focus on something new and someone new. What better way to continue the story’s theme of self-identification than through Ariel’s own daughter, Princess Melody! Unlike Ariel, who dreamed of life as a human, Melody dreams of life as a mermaid. The songs may not have been as catchy and definitely did not resonate the same way as ‘Part of your World’ or ‘Under the Sea,’ but there were some exciting new characters including Morgana, ‘Ursula’s crazy sister,’ the quirky penguin Tip and the clumsy Walrus Dash. The film ends uniting those with fins and feet forever, a perfect close to one of Disney’s most beloved classics.
Second place:
The Lion King II: Simba’s Pride
This one never seemed to appear in the top twenty either, but again, very solid plot! Like Return to the Sea, the story continues through the eyes of a new protagonist, Simba’s daughter Kiara who is gutsy and adventurous like him, but ends up falling in love with the enemy. Unlike Return to the Sea, I actually think some of the songs from this film were just as good as the original. ‘He lives in you’ was so successful that it was added to Disney’s Broadway musical The Lion King to enhance the theme of the circle of life. A very well made sequel.
Third place:
Toy Story 3
I skipped number 2 because we all know number 3 was better! That day care centre and that crazy strawberry bear! Aside from the new characters, this film is more sentimental than the first two because Andy has finally grown up and is off to college. We identify with both Andy and the toys, we are excited for Andy, but we don’t want the toys left behind feeling unhappy so ending the film where the toys are able to all stay together in the gentle hands of Bonnie is the perfect end. Looking forward to Toy Story 4!
Fourth place:
Finding Dory
Since Finding Nemo was one of Pixar animations 'top successes, we all welcomed this sequel with open arms even though this one wasn’t all about Nemo. Again some pretty awesome new characters including Hank, the grumpy octopus who plays quite a prominent role in helping Dory on her journey to find out where she came from. Nemo and Marlin are of course still in many scenes of the film, but it was important for Dory, the character who brought so much comic relief in the original Finding Nemo to have a story of her own. A heart-warming sequel.
Fifth place:
Aladdin and the King of Thieves
As great as it is, Aladdin wasn’t one of my favourite Disney films, but the sequels were made very well and I remember watching this one over and over as a kid. Like the other films on this list, this one had a real plot. We join Aladdin on his quest along with Jasmine, Genie, Iago, carpet and Abu to find out more about his heritage leading him to defeat a crew of crazy thieves. Disney definitely painted some very original characters in this one including the villainous Sa’luk, the mysterious Casim as well as dropping in some catchy tunes such as ‘There’s a party here in Agrabah’, ‘Are you in or Out’ and of course bringing in a reprise of ‘Arabian nights’ to seal the deal at the film’s closing.
So there are my top five sequels. I hope you all enjoyed them as much as I did and I can’t wait for more to be added as time goes on!
First place:
The Little Mermaid II: Return to the Sea
This is probably because The Little Mermaid is my all-time favourite so I welcomed any continuation of Ariel’s world, but the fact is, this has a very good plot. As Ariel had already lived happily ever after at the end of the first movie, it made sense to have a spin of events and focus on something new and someone new. What better way to continue the story’s theme of self-identification than through Ariel’s own daughter, Princess Melody! Unlike Ariel, who dreamed of life as a human, Melody dreams of life as a mermaid. The songs may not have been as catchy and definitely did not resonate the same way as ‘Part of your World’ or ‘Under the Sea,’ but there were some exciting new characters including Morgana, ‘Ursula’s crazy sister,’ the quirky penguin Tip and the clumsy Walrus Dash. The film ends uniting those with fins and feet forever, a perfect close to one of Disney’s most beloved classics.
 |
| Melody and Sebastian from Disney's The Little Mermaid II: Return to the Sea |
Second place:
The Lion King II: Simba’s Pride
This one never seemed to appear in the top twenty either, but again, very solid plot! Like Return to the Sea, the story continues through the eyes of a new protagonist, Simba’s daughter Kiara who is gutsy and adventurous like him, but ends up falling in love with the enemy. Unlike Return to the Sea, I actually think some of the songs from this film were just as good as the original. ‘He lives in you’ was so successful that it was added to Disney’s Broadway musical The Lion King to enhance the theme of the circle of life. A very well made sequel.
 |
| Nala, Simba, Kovu and Kiara from Disney's The Lion King II: Simba's Pride |
Third place:
Toy Story 3
I skipped number 2 because we all know number 3 was better! That day care centre and that crazy strawberry bear! Aside from the new characters, this film is more sentimental than the first two because Andy has finally grown up and is off to college. We identify with both Andy and the toys, we are excited for Andy, but we don’t want the toys left behind feeling unhappy so ending the film where the toys are able to all stay together in the gentle hands of Bonnie is the perfect end. Looking forward to Toy Story 4!
 |
| Bonnie and the Toys from Disney's Toy Story 3 |
Fourth place:
Finding Dory
Since Finding Nemo was one of Pixar animations 'top successes, we all welcomed this sequel with open arms even though this one wasn’t all about Nemo. Again some pretty awesome new characters including Hank, the grumpy octopus who plays quite a prominent role in helping Dory on her journey to find out where she came from. Nemo and Marlin are of course still in many scenes of the film, but it was important for Dory, the character who brought so much comic relief in the original Finding Nemo to have a story of her own. A heart-warming sequel.
 |
| Hank and Dory from Disney's Finding Dory |
Fifth place:
Aladdin and the King of Thieves
As great as it is, Aladdin wasn’t one of my favourite Disney films, but the sequels were made very well and I remember watching this one over and over as a kid. Like the other films on this list, this one had a real plot. We join Aladdin on his quest along with Jasmine, Genie, Iago, carpet and Abu to find out more about his heritage leading him to defeat a crew of crazy thieves. Disney definitely painted some very original characters in this one including the villainous Sa’luk, the mysterious Casim as well as dropping in some catchy tunes such as ‘There’s a party here in Agrabah’, ‘Are you in or Out’ and of course bringing in a reprise of ‘Arabian nights’ to seal the deal at the film’s closing.
 |
| Iago and Cassim from Disney's Aladdin and the King of Thieves |
So there are my top five sequels. I hope you all enjoyed them as much as I did and I can’t wait for more to be added as time goes on!
By Tasneem Mahmoud
