Movie Time: Zootopia 2

It's....Movie Time! 

Today's post is about a movie that came out last November and proved Disney still had it in them to produce a really good animated film that people wanted to see.

Here is Zootopia 2, the second-highest-grossing film of 2025 and the second-highest-grossing animated film of all time, all to mostly positive reviews.

Andrea and I did not get to see this movie when it came out last year but she had expressed interest in it since it came to Disney+.  Since last weekend was Mother's Day, I thought it would be a good idea to give this a go. 

Here's my blog post about the first Zootopia from (can this be right?) March 2016? It's been THAT long?!  Ten years ago?

But as far as bunny Judy Hopps and fox Nick Wilde are concerned, it's been one week since they became  partners in the Zootopia Police Department (ZPD).

They say opposites attract and boy, Judy and Nick do seem to have opposite visions of what to do with their new positions with the ZPD.

Nick thinks they have a pretty sweet gig and doesn't want to lose it (or Judy) and thinks the best course is to play it cool, stay low, just go with the flow and see where life and their ZPD career takes them.

Judy...eh, not so much.  Bursting with boundless energy, Judy is determined to make a splash, solve a big case and prove without a doubt their worth to the ZPD and without a doubt a bunny and a fox can be partners.  

Judy's desperate desire to take the initiative does lead to an arrest but also to a lot chaos, carnage and some other 3rd word that begins with "c". 

Which causes their ZPD chief to doubt Judy and Nick's worth to the department and if a bunny and a fox can be partners.  

Nick reiterates his position to play it cool, stay low, just go with the flow.

Judy can't do that.  At the crime scene of the bust that went awry, she found a piece of snake skin.

Which can't be right: a snake has not been seen in Zootopia in a hundred years.   

Judy coerces Nick into joining her to infiltrate the Zootennial Gala. hosted by Milton Lynxley.

Zootopia was founded 100 years ago with Milton's grandfather created the weather walls that regulate Zootopia's climate zones.

The story of how those walls were created is detailed in a revered and closely guarded book. 

A pit viper invades the Gala to steal that book.  

Once more we've got chaos, carnage and some other 3rd word that begins with "c". Milton demands that Gary be killed and the book burned. Judy thinks something is up and, with Nick in tow, helps Gary escape.

At Milton's urging, Gary, Judy and Nick are declared fugitives from the law.   

Nothing is what it seems. 

Although if it seems like the Lynxleys are up to some shady shit, well, you're on the right track.  

With the help of Nibbles Maplestick, a very talkative conspiracy theorist beaver, Judy & Nick arrive at Marsh Market, a secluded area of Zootopia where reptiles hide. 

Eventually their paths cross with the pit viper (named Gary De'Snake) and his accomplice, Pawbert Lynxley who is defying his family's sinister proclivities.  

It seems the official story of the founding of Zootopia is not the real story and the book Gary stole will reveal the truth. 

But still to be found: a missing page from the book that will reveal the true creator of the Zootopia weather walls.  

Caution: all is still not as it seems. 

There is a LOT going on with this plot and things don't get any easier with Judy and Nick constantly at odds on what to do next. Ironically, these disputes that are driving them apart are born from a mutual fear of losing each other. 

Along with the surprising dark turns of the plot and the unfolding drama between Nick and Judy, there is a still a lot of fun to be had with animal themed and pop culture based puns flying fast and furious.  And speaking of "fast and furious", the action sequences are fast and clever.  

Zootopia 2 is packed with jokes, action and drama. This movie is a lot of fun.   

The "It's That Person Who Was In That Thing" Dept.

• Ke Huy Quan is Gary De'Snake. Quan was in season 2 of Loki and won an Oscar for his supporting role in Everything Everywhere All At Once.     
• Fortune Feimster, our North Carolina native lesbian, frequently stole the show in FUBAR walks away with a crap ton of scenery as Nibbles Maplestick, a beaver podcast host and conspiracy theorist. Nibbles has a lot to say about a lot of things,some of which makes sense.  
• Why does Pawbert Lynxley sound like Jake Peralta from Brooklyn Nine-Nine? 'Cause it's Andy Samberg is behind the mike, y'all!  
• Kronk is in the house, dudes! From The Emperor's New Groove, Patrick Warburton is the voice of Brian Winddancer, a Clydesdale horse action hero actor  who is now the the Mayor of Zootopia. 
• Quinta Brunson (AKA Janine Teagues from Abbott Elementary) is on hand as as Dr. Fuzzby, a quokka psychotherapist at specializing in partners' therapy.   

The "I Get It: It's a Pun!" Department 

• Ed Shearin is a sheep voiced by singer Ed Shearan.  
•  Michael J. is a fox voiced by (who guessed it) Michael J. Fox! 

Shirley from Community, Yvette Nicole Brown is in the movie TWICE!

• An EMT otter 
• The Bearoness, a grizzly bear gala guest.  

Alan Tudyk (Doom Patrol, Firefly, Resident Alien) is not be outdone and is in the film  for THREE roles : 

• Duke Weaselton, a weasel crook.  
• A French raccoon dog chef that oversees the catering at the Zootennial Gala.  (There's a sight gag when a rat is exposed as hiding under the chef's hat.) 
• Molt Kohl, a green iguana at the Reptile Hangout

Zootopia 2 does what you expect a good Disney animated flick to do with fast paced action, heartfelt drama and mile a minute comedy.  

Stick around for a post credit scene. A feather floats down to Judy's window sill, setting up her next case.

What about the birds of Zootopia? I guess that will wait for the 3rd film,  

Which hopefully won't take 10 years to make.   

Your Friday Video Link: DAVID!

 

I'm having an identity crisis,

Who am I?

Sometimes I just lose track and forget who I am.

If there was only someone who would just say my name over and over.

Your Friday Video Link is from Schitts Creek as Alexis Rose says her brother's name (and mine!) a lot!  

Yes, that's it! I'm David! 

BY THE POWER OF CASTLE GREYSKULL, I... AM... DAVID!!

Ew, David! 

No, David! 

We're back tomorrow with Movie Time! 

Until next time, remember to be good to one another.

Even if their name is David. 

Dave-El's Spinner Rack: Superman & Spider-Man

While at Acme Comic a few weeks ago, I picked up the new DC/Marvel collaboration that teams up Superman and Spider-Man once again.   

There were two different editions of this crossover: DC took point on one and Marvel on the other.

I somehow missed the DC book but I purchased the Marvel ediion.   

The book features a main lead story followed by a series of short subjects with various Spidey/Supes combos as well as appearances by other DC and Marvel characters.   

Brad Meltzer and Pepe Larraz provide the lead off tale that begins in medias res with Superman and Spider-Man caught in a trap, a dark cave like structure that is radiating kryptonite and steadily collapsing on itself.  The predicament has been orchestrated by Lex Luthor and the Green Goblin.  

What drives this narrative is the dialogue between our friendly neighborhood wallcrawler and the Man of Steel as they trade witticisms and barbs as well words of encouragement and insight as their dilemna grows more dire. 

Then the villain's secret weapon reveals itself.

VENOM!!

Venom has got a hold of Superman! 

With help from Spidey, Superman is able to assert himself over venom through sheer force of will and a display of raw power.

A big honkin' super hand clap disperses the Venom symbiote.

Time to confront Luthor and the Goblin.

Superman: Do us a favor?

Spider-Man: Fight back! 

Superman: Please! 

But the story is not over. 

Clark Kent meets up with Peter Parker at  Uncle Ben's grave site.   Comparing notes on what they learned about each other in their fight with Luthor and the Goblin, Clark offers a positive alternative to Peter's guilt ridden angst. 

The story ends with Peter and his Aunt May joining Clark and his parents for a home cooked mean. Martha Kent makes a mean apple cobbler.   

The rest of the stories that fill out the issue are short, no more than 4 or 5 pages a pop but each provides interesting insights into Spider-Man, Superman, their supporting casts and other heroes that make up their respective worlds. 

It's back to 1938 with a meet up between the original Superman (leaping tall buildings with a single bound!) and Spider Noir.

Jane Foster's Thor encounters Wonder Woman.   

The Miles Morales Spider-Man has his own meet up with Superman.

There's a bittersweet meet up with Lana Lang and Gwen Stacy as they commiserate about Clark Kent and Peter Parker with both imagining they're going to marry these guys one day. (They will not.) 

The issue is a fun collection of stories with varying takes on these most iconic heroes from DC and Marvel.

It was 50 years ago that DC and Marvel united for the first inter-company crossover team up of Superman and Spider-Man.   

Click here for Alan Stewart's Attack of the 50 Year Old Comic Books for a detailed look back at that seminal issue. 

And on the subject of comic books from 50 years ago,  next week we're back with Comic Book Retro 50 as we look at what a young Dave-El was buying in May 1976.   

Saving the Ridglan Beagles

Located outside Madison, Wisconsin is Ridglan Farms, a medical research facility.

Ridglan breeds dogs, specifically beagles, for experimentation.

Because beagles naturally have a friendly, docile temperment, it makes them preferred subjects in the labratory.  

Ridglan asserts that their research using these dogs provides valuable information and treatments for rabies, canine parvovirus, heartworm, dog arthritis and distemper.

Ridglan also insists that accusations of animal cruelty are untrue and unfounded.  

But even a well tended life in a cage is still a life in a cage.  These beagles are born, live their short lives and die without seeing the sky, feeling grass underneath their paws.   

And as for that alleged lack of animal cruelty, there is a prosecutor in Dane County, Wis. with a different assessment.

The prosecutor concluded that Ridglan Farms’ treatment of beagles, specifically how they conducted eye surgeries on the beagles without anesthesia or pain management, violated state veterinary standards and constituted animal mistreatment.

Well, that's some kind of messed up shit, if you ask me.  

Various animal rights activitists and dog rescue groups have mounted protests and even raids on the facility to retrieve dozens of dogs.  Protestors took their greivances with Ridglan to the Wisconsin State Capitol.

Behind the scenes, rescue organizations negotiated a purchase agreement for 1,500 dogs from Ridglan. 

What followed was a national groundswell of support for these beautiful beagles, bounding across grass fields and wiggling happily in the arms of humans who want only to love and care for them.  

Below is a series of clips from various news outlets covering this incredible tale of these sweet and gentle creatures.

Sadly, Ridglan Farms is still a thing and they still possess approximately 500 beagles for medical research.  

So that part of the story is not over.

But for 1,500 beagles, their stories are also not over but will continue free from cages and darkness but finding their forever homes where they will know love and compassion. 

Tuesday TV Touchbase: Daredevil: Born Again

Last week Andrea and I caught up to the season 2 finale of Daredevil: Born Again and it was quite the dramatic denouement of two seasons of Wilson Fisk's reign of terror as the mayor of New York City.

The criminal mastermind known as the Kingpin in a legal position of power over a governmental insitution? Well, that was never gonna be good for anybody.

Any comparisons to Donald Trump and ICE are purely coincidental.  Or the fucking point. You make the call.

Trump Fisk blames all of NYC's ills on one source, undocumented immigrants masked vigilantes and has unleashed an army, ICE the AVTF or Anti-Vigilante Task Force. The AVRF rampages through the city, jack booted thugs brutally arresting anyone who dares stand against them, if they are not a vigilante or masked. 

Fisk speaks to the city and assures them he (and he alone!) has made New York City safe! As the armored AVTF rolls through the city, funny, no one feels safe.

The New York State Attorney General is gearing up to take action against the Mayor but Fisk doesn't care. He's full of his swaggering self confidence that he ALONE has the power to rule his city as he ALONE sees fit.  

The governor of New York pointedly tells Wilson Fisk he is on shaky legal ground with what he's doing as Mayor but (ONE MORE TIME!) Fisk....Does...NOT... CARE!  Hell, he send an assassin up to Albany to end his problem with the Governor.

Trump Fisk makes the classic misstep that all villains make: he assumes his powers have no limits and pushes those who would oppose them past their breaking points.

And people pushed past their breaking points are dangerous. They have nothing left to lose.

Which brings us to person whose name is in the title of this show: Daredevil, AKA attorney Matt Murdock.

Karen Page has been arrested by the AVTF and put on trial as a terrorist.   

• The prosecutor is under Fisk's control. 
• The chief witness for the prosecution, psychiatrist Dr. Heather Glenn, is all-in for Mayor Fisk and is prepared to assert on the stand that Karen Page is a wacko nut job who is a threat to all good decent people. 
• The court room is lined with AVTF "storm troopers".

Yeah, the deck is kinda stacked against Karen.

Then....enter Matt Murdock for the defense.   

Matt's been busy.  

With help from Jessica Jones,  Matt has tied the Northern Star vessel that was sunk at the start of the season to an illegal gun running operation led by Fisk as well as a bunch of other crimes. All the shit Fisk is accusing Daredevil and Karen Page of doing, Matt has evidence to show it's all on Wilson Fisk.

But he needs to do one thing to seal the deal that will exonerate Karen Page and put Wilson firmly on the hook for those crimes.

In open court, Matt Murdock declares he's Daredevil.   

Wilson Fisk has spent nearly 2 seasons having everything go his way as Mayor of NYC.

In short order, it all goes in reverse.

• Murdock has exposed his corruption.
• The Governor has revoked Fisk's authority as Mayor.
• The Attorney General has a warrant for his arrest. 

Fisk commandeers a camera and proclaims to the citizens of New York City that all they have heard are lies and he will still fight for them as he ALONE can! 

The citizens of New York City respond to this message of fealty and love by assembling to storm the courthouse to force his oversized ass out of power.

Fisk responds by demonstrating his fealty and love to the citizens of New York City by wading into the mob to beat the crap out of them. 

Daredevil intervenes to save people from Fisk and keep the good people for murdering Fisk. The Attorney General has offered Fisk as deal that involves renouncing his citizenship and living in exile. 

Which is way better than this fucker deserves but it does end the carnage. And if anything is ever really going to actually hurt the erstwhile Kingpin, it's being forced to live with the knowledge that he had power and now he doesn't.

But Matt's victory comes at a cost. Having outed himself as Daredevil,  Matt ends the season arrested for Daredevil’s crimes (such as charges of assault and attempted murder) and stuck in the same priosn for the AVTF members he helped put away.   

Daredevil: Born Again is renewed for season 3 and is currently in production. So what will that look like with Matt Murdock in jail?

The comics have explored this territory a couple of times with Matt in prison while others took up the mantel of Daredevil such as Danny Rand AKA Iron Fist and Elektra. 

In season 3, Daredevil AKA .... Jessica Jones? Hey, why not!

I was pysched for the return of Krysten Ritter as Marvel's favorite ill tempered super strong private eye.  I was pleasant surprised to find Jones living in suburbia as a mom to a young daughter.  Who da thunk it? 

Domestic bliss has not dulled Jessica Jones' caustic wit and badass attitude.  So no, I do not see her suiting up as Daredevil. (Still think it would be cool though.)   

Somehow this information has eluded me all these years but Charlie Cox who plays Matt Murdock is British? 

I had to find a clip from Law & Order: Criminal Intent to show Andrea that Vincent D'Onofrio does not actually look or sound like Wilson Fisk.  

We watch TV to get away from the shitshow reality we live in under Donald Trump so Daredevil: Born Again didn't help much to show us a world where that level of malice and corruption reaches an extreme.

But it was cathartic to watch the citizens of New York City rise up to take back power from the Kingpin's cruel and selfish grasp.

That is that for this week's Tuesday TV Touchbase.

Next week is gonna hit hard, guys!

The series finale of Outlander. 

Until next time, remember to be good to one another and try to keep it down in there, would ya? I'm trying to watch TV over here.   

Deranged In the Membrane

For today's political themed post, I have a plethora of fuckery by Donald Trump and his snivelling synchophants to pontificate about.

• The war with Iran.
• Rising prices for gas, groceries and some other 3rd thing.
• Donald Trump's perpetual denial that rising prices for gas, groceries and some other 3rd thing is actually a problem.
• Pay attention, people: it's a Golden Age for America. Why are we not impressed? Because we are not impressed with rising prices for gas, groceries and some other 3rd thing.
• Acts of censorship against those who dare speak against der Führer.
• Cuts to programs that help people with disabilities.
• Invoking religion as governmental policy.
• Continued cover up of the Epstein files. 
• Trump and other MAGA faithful benefiting financially from Trump's chaotic impulses.
• Election interference through a compromised judiciary and rampant gerrymandering. 
• Trump and his synchophants putting his fucking picture on every damn thing.  
• The goddam ballroom that no one wanted or asked for.

I could keep going as the list of incompetence, cruelty, grift, etc etc etc is quite extensive.

Or maybe all these problems are not problems at all.

Maybe it's just me.

Maybe I have (dramatic pause) Trump derangement syndrome!

Trump derangement syndrome is invoked by Trump and his minions to undermine those who speak out against Li'l Donnie and those things he do. 

So if I say that Donald Trump is a lying, petulant, bullying, unintelligent, sociopathic, dishonorable, treasonous, gutless, moronic, heartless, soulless, slimy, loathsome, vile, incompetent, psychotic, crooked, disgusting, reprehensible, revolting, horrible, malicious, obnoxious, hateful, small minded, despicable god damn, motherfucking piece of shit, well, that's my problem for being crazy! 

I'm just deranged for refusing to see the obvious power and wisdom that is Donald J. Trump.  

ME: Trump has been reckless and incoherent in this war he started with Iran.

DONALD TRUMP: Dave-El has Trump derangement syndrome! The War is going GREAT!  The war is WON! We won it on DAY ONE!  AND we're going to keep winning it!   So much winning!! Dave-El said mean things about TRUMP!! I'm not a fan of Dave-El! NOT A FAN!! "I'm So Glad My Suffering Amuses You"! He does not know suffering! I have SUFFERED!!! MORE THAN JESUS!! I have survived 100 assassinations!  The Russia Hoax! RUSSIA! RUSSIA! RUSSIA! I WON 3 ELECTIONS!!! Dave-El is a LOSER!! He doesn't have a ballroom! Only Trump can build the BIGGEST, the BEST, the GOLDEST Ballroom EVER! Dave-El is WEAK ON CRIME and BAD FOR AMERICA! 

There's an entire article about this on Wikipedia. 

From that article, here are a couple of bills introduced by Republican legislators to codify Trump derangement syndrome as a real and actual thing.

• Minnesota Senate Republicans introduced a bill in March 2025 that seeks to classify "Trump Derangement Syndrome" as a mental illness and incorporate it into the state's legal definition through amended statutes.
• U.S. Representative Warren Davidson of Ohio introduced a bill in May 2025 that would require the National Institutes of Health to study Trump derangement syndrome and report annually to Congress. 

The truth is there is so much going to shit in this country and in this world and the sewer line leads right back to Donald Trump.

The evidence of that is readibly apparent to our eyes and ears.

But we are being told to not accept the reality of what we can see and hear.  Our perception of that reality is dismissed as hysteria, deranged crazy talk. 

The truly deranged are the ones who cannot or will not accept what reality clearly demonstrates.   

Unless it is just me? 

Star Trekking: Dropping Names with Brent and Jonny!

 

Today's installment of Star Trekking is NOT about Star Trek.

But it is Star Trek adjacent.

Today I'm going to post about my current favorite podcast! 

Hosted by Jonathan Frakes and Brent Spiner, Dropping Names with Brent and Jonny takes place in a warm and comfy library/den set where these vets of Star Trek: The Next Generation sit around and bullshit with each other and engage in friendly chats with people they know.

This is NOT a Star Trek podcast but yeah, Star Trek stuff comes up. 

Hell, their first guest was Levar Burton so yeah, Trek ain't too far away.   

The "Dropping Names" in the title is a challenge for Brent, Jonny and their guests to drop as many names of famous people as they can into their conversations.

Sitting on a table next to Frakes is a bell which he rings every time someone drops the name of a notable actor, director, writer, relatively famous person they personally know and/or have worked with. 

Frakes thinks the bell is funny as hell.

Spiner is somewhat annoyed by it.  

I tend to agree with Spiner because Brent and Jonny know a LOT of famous people.  So that's a lot of bell ringing.  

But Frake's joyful reaction to Spiner's annoyance is amusing.

I realize Dropping Names may not be for you, that these free wheeling discussions may be too insular, too "inside baseball" to be interesting to everyone.  

Brent Spiner was in this play with that actress who was in a movie with some guy who once co-starred with the guest in a TV episode directed by Jonathan Frakes. Stuff like that.  

And Brent, Jonny and guests are too gracious and cordial to drop any real tea on anyone.  Everyone on this show is still actively working on something somewhere in the entertainment industry and can ill afford to burn any bridges.   

When Joel McHale was a guest, they couldn't bring themselve to trash talk Joel's former Community star Chevy Chase. And no one in Hollywood likes Chevy Chase so if there was anyone to talk shit about, it's him.  

Other than a reluctance to expose any real dirt or juicy gossip, these discussions are mostly candid and usually a lot of fun. To me, anyway. 

So that is that for this side trek from StarTrekking.

Next week, we're up to season 5 of Star Trek: The Next Generation.