Line #14 Sequelitis/Disney


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5	[[caption-width-right:280:[[ComicallyMissingThePoint What a waste of perfectly good popcorn...]]]]
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10
11	->''"You can't top pigs with pigs."''
12	-->-- '''Creator/WaltDisney''' (on the failure of ''WesternAnimation/TheThreeLittlePigs'' follow-up shorts)
13
14	Creator/{{Disney}} has produced many classic films, both animated and live-action, in their [[LongRunner century of existence]]...but they've also produced a notoriously large number of [[{{Sequelitis}} underwhelming to just plain lousy (often cheaply-made) follow-ups]] to their classics along the way.
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16	----
17	!!Examples:
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19	[[foldercontrol]]
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21	%%[[folder:Comic Books]]
22	%%* The fourth chapter of ''ComicBook/MickeyMouseAndTheSwordOfIce'' is not as well regarded as the original trilogy. (Zero Context Example. Doesn't explain why it's not as well regarded.)
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25	[[folder:Films -- Animation]]
26	* Franchise/{{Disney\|AnimatedCanon}}'s run of DirectToVideo sequels produced by Creator/DisneytoonStudios (sometimes derisively termed as "cheapquels") from 1994 to 2008 are some of the most infamous examples of {{Sequelitis}} in not just animation, but in ''all media'', and they are near-unanimously considered to be inferior follow-ups to their predecessors for a variety of reasons, particularly for their generally poor animation and writing quality. After ''WesternAnimation/AladdinTheReturnOfJafar'' enjoyed reasonable financial success, it opened the floodgates. When Creator/JohnLasseter became Chief Creative Officer of the Walt Disney Animation Studios, he unplugged any future DTV Disney sequels and prequels that were still on the drawing board[[note]]including a ''WesternAnimation/{{Dumbo}}'' sequel that was announced on that film's 2001 DVD but had ended up in DevelopmentHell[[/note]], and only allowed films that were already in production (such as ''Cinderella III'' and ''The Little Mermaid: Ariel's Beginning'', which became the last two of Disney's 14-year slate of DTV sequels) to continue. While not all of them were disasters, there were far more poor and mediocre sequels than you should expect from their franchises.
27	** The first of the sequels, ''[[WesternAnimation/AladdinTheReturnOfJafar The Return of Jafar]]'', was intended as the multi-part pilot episode for ''WesternAnimation/AladdinTheSeries'', hence why it establishes many things that would become the status quo in the TV series, e.g. the recurring IneffectualSympatheticVillain Abis Mal, the Carpet's new design, Genie coming back, and Iago's HeelFaceTurn. However, it was [[PoorlyDisguisedPilot hastily converted into a direct-to-video feature]] late in its production. While it does have a fanbase, it's universally considered to be a blatantly inferior follow up to the original ''WesternAnimation/{{Aladdin}}'', mainly due to the much poorer animation (it ''was'' intended for television...) and [[TheOtherDarrin replacing]] Creator/RobinWilliams with Creator/DanCastellaneta.
28	** ''WesternAnimation/BeautyAndTheBeast'' has two sequels. The first one, ''WesternAnimation/BeautyAndTheBeastTheEnchantedChristmas'', is considered slightly above average for the Disney sequels, but the plot has little to do with the fairytale, being more of a standard Christmas movie. The second one, ''WesternAnimation/BeautyAndTheBeastBellesMagicalWorld'', is unanimously loathed by many and is often considered one of the worst, if not the absolute worst, of the sequels; it's little more than a series of disjointed episodes clearly written for [[FailedPilotEpisode a TV series which did not happen]], with {{Flanderization}} aplenty, embarrassingly bad artwork, and worse animation. As of 2016, ''Belle's Magical World'' stands as the only ''Beauty and the Beast'' installment without a UsefulNotes/BluRay, or even behind-the-scenes DVD bonus features. It is available on Creator/DisneyPlus, but two segments—"A Little Thought" and "Mrs. Potts' Party"—[[KeepCirculatingTheTapes are cut]].
29	** ''WesternAnimation/PocahontasIIJourneyToANewWorld'' brings the title character slightly closer to her historical, real-life counterpart (her romance with John Rolfe, visiting England), and also shows her making more mature decisions. However, the quality of the movie itself was met with more varied opinions. It is particularly disliked because Pocahontas has a relationship with a different man in the sequel, destroying her romance with John Smith (though granted, she did think Smith was dead for most of the movie). The original was far enough removed from historical accuracy as it was.
30	** ''WesternAnimation/{{Cinderella}}'' has the first sequel, ''[[WesternAnimation/CinderellaIIDreamsComeTrue Dreams Come True]]'', which was perceived as weak and rather episodic. This is because, like ''Atlantis 2'' and ''Belle's Magical World'', it's made up of episodes for a planned TV series that never got off the ground.
31	** ''WesternAnimation/TheHunchbackOfNotreDameII'' was criticized for inferior animation, generic songs, and how many of the characters were incompetent. It was also heavily panned for its villain, widely considered one of Disney's worst in a follow-up to the film that gave us Judge Claude Frollo, who is widely lauded as one of Disney's deepest villains. One of the complaints included that Victor Hugo's novel couldn't have had a sequel because close to none of the characters survived. It was largely created to [[ThrowTheDogABone give Quasimodo a girlfriend]], but Madellaine was not a popular character.
32	--->'''Online:''' "Nearly everybody died at the end of the book, and the movie didn't exactly leave loose ends itself. This leaves the writers to showcase how well they can write an original character, or a decent love story or a threatening villain without ripping it off from a classical story written 200 or so years ago - ie, they can't."
33	** ''WesternAnimation/TheJungleBook2'' is universally considered to be inferior to [[WesternAnimation/TheJungleBook1967 the original film]], due in part to its story being a [[SamePlotSequel blatant, watered-down rehash of the first]] and for undoing Mowgli's CharacterDevelopment from the original. It was one of the few sequels to get a theatrical release, and [[CriticProof while it was savaged by critics, it did quite well at the box office.]]
34	** ''[[WesternAnimation/ReturnToNeverLand Peter Pan in Return to Never Land]]'', while by no means one of the worst Disney sequels, absolutely pales in comparison to [[WesternAnimation/PeterPan the original film]] and has numerous flaws that drag it down, most notably its plot being a [[SamePlotSequel bland retread of the first.]] Like ''The Jungle Book 2'', this movie got a theatrical release in some regions [[CriticProof that made plenty of money despite flopping critically.]]
35	** ''WesternAnimation/TheLittleMermaidIIReturnToTheSea'' is accused of [[SamePlotSequel reusing the first film's ideas]], only telling the story in reverse (a human character wanting to become a mermaid) with a few new characters thrown in -- including "[[RememberTheNewGuy Ursula's crazy sister]]" Morgana, who is so similar to Ursula herself that she's even played by the same voice actor. [[WesternAnimation/TheLittleMermaidArielsBeginning A prequel to the first one]] was also created; though its art and animation get some praise and there are some flashes of good writing and genuine wit, the story is criticized for making the characters act like idiots (Triton outlaws music from his kingdom after... his wife is killed by a very slow-moving pirate ship? Because she was trying to recover a music box?), the ForegoneConclusion puts a bit of a damper on the happy ending, and (ironically) the soundtrack is usually considered forgettable. It's most notable for being the last of Disney's DTV sequels -- all future Disney sequels, like ''WesternAnimation/FrozenII'' and ''WesternAnimation/RalphBreaksTheInternet'', have been big-budget theatrical affairs.
36	** ''WesternAnimation/AtlantisMilosReturn'', the sequel to ''WesternAnimation/AtlantisTheLostEmpire'', is surprisingly engaging, but only if you watch it for what it is: the [[FailedPilotEpisode cobbled-together remains of the cancelled TV series]] ''Team Atlantis''. Everyone's in-character and the various [[TheOtherDarrin Other Darrins]] may be surprisingly good and the mysteries cool, but the narrative is [[RandomEventsPlot extremely disjointed]] due to it being three episodes held together by chewing gum and wire, and the TV level animation is a ''massive'' downgrade from the first film.
37	** ''WesternAnimation/{{Tarzan}}'' had two sequels. One of them was ''WesternAnimation/TarzanII'', a {{midquel}} featuring a young Tarzan. The other was ''Tarzan & Jane'', a CompilationMovie of three episodes of ''WesternAnimation/TheLegendOfTarzan'' with some original framing material dealing with Jane & Tarzan celebrating their first year together. ''Tarzan & Jane'' is considered at best mediocre, but ''Tarzan II'' is largely seen as even harder to sit through, due to basically being the first twenty minutes of the original film stretched to fit a 90-minute runtime. Its only remarkable feature is the new character Zugor, an ape played by Creator/GeorgeCarlin, who seems to spend the entire movie holding back a swear. Neither film received a Blu-ray release.
38	** ''WesternAnimation/MulanII'' is decently animated, but is largely overlooked and ultimately criticized for the even greater liberties taken in its portrayal of Chinese culture, Mushu [[TookALevelInJerkass taking a level in jerkass]], and for leaving the plot in which Mulan must save China once more unresolved; specifically, it was Mulan's mission to escort the Emperor's three daughters to a powerful lord to marry his sons, which would secure a union that would safeguard China from an impending invasion by the Mongols. Instead, shocked at the very idea of an ArrangedMarriage, Mulan teaches the princesses to [[MarryForLove follow their own paths]]. This would be a meaningful lesson except for the fact that in doing so such a union apparently never took shape by the end of the film, which despite ending on an uplifting note with Mulan's wedding [[InferredHolocaust does not address the Mongol invasion that is now sure to happen]] due to these actions. Disney originally sold both ''Mulan'' and ''Mulan II'' on the same Blu-ray, until a 2015 Disney Movie Club-exclusive re-release removed ''Mulan II''; this disc would hit general retail when bundled together with the ''Mulan'' UHD.
39	** ''WesternAnimation/LeroyAndStitch'', which does a decent job of giving ''WesternAnimation/LiloAndStitchTheSeries'' a proper ending and watching [[Characters/LiloAndStitchExperiments the experiments]] use their powers and abilities to fight back against the Leroy clones is great. However, its ending is very predictable,[[note]]Hämsterviel is defeated, Gantu gets his old job back, 625 gets named and stops being lazy, and Jumba, Pleakley, and Stitch [[IChooseToStay all decide to stay on Earth with Lilo]]; none of these are really surprising.[[/note]] Leroy is a {{flat\|Character}} EvilDoppelganger of Stitch,[[note]]although this did not stop him from becoming an EnsembleDarkHorse[[/note]] the way he is defeated ([[spoiler:as a fail-safe, he is programmed to shut down if he hears "Aloha ʻOe"]]) is a rather lame DeusExMachina, and audiences still don't get to see what most of the other unseen experiments look like. (Some never-before-seen experiments do show up, and we see a list of experiment names in the credits, but that's really it.) This all makes it seem like Disney made this movie just to give the ''Franchise/LiloAndStitch'' franchise some sort of conclusion regardless of how well it would turn out. This is best summed up with what [=WatchMojo=] said when they ranked the film number 10 on their list of the [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sEl6cXB_riA "Top 10 Worst Straight to DVD Disney Sequels".]]
40	--->'''[=WatchMojo=]'s Rebecca Brayton''': "The movie itself isn't ''unwatchable'', [[ItsTheSameNowItSucks just more of the same]] and ''entirely'' unnecessary."
41	** ''WesternAnimation/TheEmperorsNewGroove'' manages to really break the mold in terms of Disney animated movies. Its sequel, ''WesternAnimation/KronksNewGroove'', feels rather generic in comparison, playing out more like three episodes of a TV show strung together than an actual movie and is considered to be [[SoOkayItsAverage average at best]]. Fittingly enough, there actually was later a TV series called ''WesternAnimation/TheEmperorsNewSchool'', complete with a [[TheOtherDarrin new voice actor for Kuzco]] and apparently having all of the soul of the first movie surgically removed and replaced with more slapstick.
42	** ''WesternAnimation/{{Bambi}}'' has a direct-to-video midquel, ''WesternAnimation/BambiII'', which was released [[SequelGap just shy of the original's 65th anniversary]]. While it fares better with fans than most other Disney sequels, it is still usually regarded as [[SoOkayItsAverage average at best]]. The main complaints stem from that it either [[ItsTheSameNowItSucks adds too little new to the universe of the original]], or the changes it did make (i.e. playing up contemporary humor, humanizing the characters' personalities, and using contemporary folk songs mixed in with an orchestrated soundtrack) [[TheyChangedItNowItSucks were not for the better]]. It is generally praised for having good animation and visuals among the Disney sequels, however. Its high budget even garnered it a theatrical release in some regions.
43	** ''WesternAnimation/TheFoxAndTheHound2'' is hated as well, due to being almost completely InNameOnly with a nasty case of MoodWhiplash. The original film was one of Disney's darkest and most somber works; the sequel runs completely against that by having Copper join a ''country band.'' And, as WebVideo/TheNostalgiaChick pointed out, the fact it's a midquel means that, ultimately, nothing changes -- Copper and Todd may tell each other they'll "always be friends", but they'll still grow apart and become enemies in the end. As with some other movies on this list, some people do think there are some silver linings, among them the [[SugarWiki/AwesomeArt well-done art and animation]], Music/RebaMcEntire as one of the members of the aforementioned band, and Creator/RobPaulsen's flawless Pat Buttram impersonation in the role of Chief. This is one of the last DirectToVideo sequels to the canon produced.
44	** In general, the "cheapquels" all suffer from this, simply by virtue of being lower-budget DirectToVideo sequels of polished, famous classics. Almost none are considered worthy followups, and even then, only in the cases where [[SurprisinglyImprovedSequel the original film was considered poor to begin with.]] In general, the ones considered good films in their own right (if not compared to the original) include the ''WesternAnimation/{{Aladdin}}'' [[WesternAnimation/AladdinTheReturnOfJafar sequ]][[WesternAnimation/AladdinAndTheKingOfThieves els]], the ''[[WesternAnimation/TheLionKing1994 Lion King]]'' [[WesternAnimation/TheLionKingIISimbasPride sequ]][[WesternAnimation/TheLionKingOneAndAHalf els]], ''WesternAnimation/LadyAndTheTrampIIScampsAdventure'', ''WesternAnimation/OneHundredAndOneDalmatiansIIPatchsLondonAdventure'', and [[ContestedSequel maybe]] ''WesternAnimation/ReturnToNeverland'', ''WesternAnimation/BeautyAndTheBeastTheEnchantedChristmas'', ''WesternAnimation/AnExtremelyGoofyMovie'', ''WesternAnimation/BambiII'', or ''WesternAnimation/BrotherBear2''[[note]]The last DTV Disney sequel with a story set entirely after the original movie, save flashbacks[[/note]]. ''WesternAnimation/CinderellaIIIATwistInTime'' is likely the only one that many consider to be as good as, if not better than, the original movie.
45	** ''WesternAnimation/MickeysTwiceUponAChristmas'', a follow up to the surprisingly good direct-to-video special ''WesternAnimation/MickeysOnceUponAChristmas'', suffers from ugly CGI animation, Donald and Max coming off as UnintentionallySympathetic (with Daisy and Goofy being UnintentionallyUnsympathetic as well), and an overall lack of interest.
46	** ''WesternAnimation/{{Planes}}'', a spinoff of ''Franchise/{{Cars}}'' made by Disneytoon Studios, managed to come off of as even more cliché and [[MerchandiseDriven toyetic]] than the franchise it was spun off of, having not much heart or purpose outside of being TheMerch to four-year-old boys.
47	** Usually avoided with the ''Franchise/WinnieThePooh'' movies. The franchise's unique nature lends itself quite well to the simpler storytelling of DirectToVideo projects[[note]]The franchise had in fact already had two long-running TV series by that point[[/note]]. As such, these movies [[QuietlyPerformingSisterShow tend to be viewed separately from the rest of the sequels, and are thus exempt from the scorn thrown at the others]]. ''WesternAnimation/PoohsGrandAdventure'' and ''WesternAnimation/TheTiggerMovie'' in particular are seen as some of the finest works in Pooh's name. The later Pooh movies are usually considered to [[ToughActToFollow not have achieved the heights set by those movies]], and admittedly a lot of the direct-to-video ''Pooh'' films are simply just compilations of previous ''[[WesternAnimation/TheNewAdventuresOfWinnieThePooh New Adventures]]'' episodes with new animation to tie them all together. Still, even the weaker ''Pooh'' films are generally considered better than most Disney sequels (and considering how well-regarded ''New Adventures'' is, most don't mind that aspect).
48	* ''WesternAnimation/TheRescuersDownUnder'' got some good reception and is still considered a good film to this day, but it became the [[BoxOfficeBomb sole financial bust]] of the Disney Renaissance (and only one of two Disney Animation flops during Jeffrey Katzenberg's reign, the other being ''WesternAnimation/TheBlackCauldron''). It also has a lower ''Rotten Tomatoes'' rating than the [[WesternAnimation/TheRescuers original Dark Age Disney classic]], though still in fresh territory. This is what actually resulted in the start of the company’s Direct-to-Video sequel trend.
49	* ''WesternAnimation/Fantasia2000'', while enjoying quite a good reception overall, is not as well regarded as the original ''WesternAnimation/{{Fantasia}}'' thanks to [[LighterAndSofter a lighter tone]] stemming from celebrity hosts and more cartoony pieces, which speaks of lower artistic ambition. Regardless, the film is reasonably popular and generally considered a decent follow-up to the 1940 original.
50	* Creator/{{Pixar}}
51	** One of the conditions Pixar had in place with their acquisition to Disney was that they wouldn't be [[ExecutiveMeddling required]] to make sequels. In fact, because one of the parts of the merger was putting Pixar's people in charge of Disney's animation studio, one of the first things they did was halting production of ''WesternAnimation/ToyStory3'', shutting down the studio that was making it (Circle 7 Animation, which got labeled as "[[FanNickname Pixaren't]]") and then they began working on the title in-house. Consequently, ''Toy Story 3'' has been lauded as the EvenBetterSequel instead of the subpar cash grab it could have been.
52	** They made a sequel to ''WesternAnimation/Cars1'', already considered one of their weaker movies, resulting in what is widely considered their ''worst'' movie, ''WesternAnimation/Cars2'', [[BrokenWinLossStreak and shattered their nearly spotless artistic reputation]][[note]]the Cars series makes a ''lot'' more money than their other movies thanks to merchandising[[/note]]. The 2013 prequel to ''WesternAnimation/MonstersInc1'', called ''WesternAnimation/MonstersUniversity'', [[ContestedSequel didn't help matters]], despite getting several good reviews.
53	** The only Pixar sequels outside of those of ''Toy Story'' to get a near-unanimously positive reception are ''WesternAnimation/FindingDory'' and ''WesternAnimation/Incredibles2''[[note]]which is the first non-''Toy Story'' Pixar sequel to receive an Academy Award nomination[[/note]], both of which still tend to be seen as slightly lacking compared to [[ToughActToFollow their respective]] [[WesternAnimation/FindingNemo first]] [[WesternAnimation/TheIncredibles1 movies]].
54	* The theatrical special ''WesternAnimation/OlafsFrozenAdventure'', putting aside all of the controversy involving the special being shown ahead of ''WesternAnimation/{{Coco}}'', has some quite mixed reviews, with critics and audiences being so polarized that you would think that they were talking about different works.
55	* The page quote itself was a long-time slogan for Disney. With ''WesternAnimation/TheThreeLittlePigs'' being the best-selling WesternAnimation/SillySymphonies cartoon, and thus a ToughActToFollow, it's unsurprising to think about how ''The Big Bad Wolf'', ''The Three Little Wolves'' and ''The Practical Pig'' fared in comparison.
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58	[[folder:Films -- Live-Action]]
59	* ''Film/TheSantaClause'': One reviewer put it best when he said Creator/TimAllen "did the first one with enthusiasm, the second one with affection, and the third one [[MoneyDearBoy for a paycheck.]]" Tim's heart obviously isn't into it come 3, and he's upstaged completely by [[LargeHam Martin Short]]. It also didn't help that in 3 one well-liked character was DemotedToExtra and another [[ChuckCunninghamSyndrome disappeared entirely with no passing mention]]. Heck, this trilogy's Website/RottenTomatoes pages even provide the page image for Sequelitis.
60	* While it's somewhat divided as to whether the first ''Film/BeverlyHillsChihuahua'' was even a good film, to begin with, even fans agree that both of the sequels are [[SoBadItsGood guilty pleasures]] at ''best''.
61	* While ''Film/ThePrincessDiaries'' is considered good, its sequel ''The Royal Engagement'' is not too well-liked. It diverges completely from the books and falls heavily into the GirlShowGhetto.
62	* Each sequel to ''Film/TheLoveBug'' proved less and less successful as time passed, but ''Herbie Goes Bananas'' kept Herbie on the lot for the next 25 years before his next big-screen appearance.
63	* ''Film/AirBud''. It went from a touching story about a dog escaping an abusive owner, helping a young boy find his place, and leading a small-town sports team to victory, to a wacky comedy about talking puppies. Most fans were not amused - bar the ones amused by the fact that a story like the above somehow netted ''thirteen'' sequels, two of which star Santa's dog.
64	* Neither of the two sequels to ''Film/HoneyIShrunkTheKids'' were anywhere near as popular as the first, although some fans consider ''Film/HoneyWeShrunkOurselves'' (ironically a DirectToVideo film) to be a SurprisinglyImprovedSequel compared to ''Film/HoneyIBlewUpTheKid''.
65	* Critical reception of ''Film/AliceThroughTheLookingGlass'' is more unfavorable compared to [[Film/AliceInWonderland2010 the first film]], and it was written off as a completely unnecessary sequel. Its [[BoxOfficeBomb poor box office numbers]] prove just that; this is ironically the second time in only weeks this has happened to producer Joe Roth. One of the main complaints is that while the first movie was a different take on Lewis Carroll's classic novels, its sequel was completely unconnected to Carroll's ''Alice'' books apart from the names of the characters.
66	* ''Franchise/PiratesOfTheCaribbean'' began with a SleeperHit, and then turned into a TwoPartTrilogy that was overall liked but divided many due to an [[GambitPileup increasingly complicated plot with]] [[ChronicBackstabbingDisorder plenty of backstabbing]] and missed opportunities. The TrilogyCreep got even more haters, [[ContestedSequel though some at least appreciated]] that there was an attempt to make the plot easier to follow in the [[Film/PiratesOfTheCaribbeanOnStrangerTides fourth]] and [[Film/PiratesOfTheCaribbeanDeadMenTellNoTales fifth]] movies.
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69	[[folder:Video Games]]
70	* ''VideoGame/EpicMickey'' was an average game at worst, suffering mostly from CameraScrew, janky controls, and [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot not living up to the (admittedly impressive) hype]]. ''VideoGame/EpicMickey2ThePowerOfTwo'' took all the problems the original had and left them basically unchanged (if anything, they got worse), and added co-op play with a broken AI, grating voices and song sections, and boring puzzles. The resulting game collapsed with a quarter of the original's sales and [[CreatorKiller took its developer with it.]]
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Context Sequelitis / Disney