Five years have passed since the first installment in The Lego Movie franchise, with two additional entries along the way. While the original movie is hailed as one of the more creative and unique movies to come out in the past 10 years, its other two spinoffs, The Lego Batman Movie and The Lego Ninjago Movie, weren’t as well received. The formula had begun to feel stale by the third movie, and the hype built around the franchise had significantly declined.  However, the first movie’s direct sequel, The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part, has now officially hit theaters and brings back the cleverness of its predecessor and adds a new layer of depth previously unseen in the franchise. The power of Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, who are also known for Cloudy With A Chance of Meatballs and Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse and were both absent from the other two entries, as screenplay writers is largely responsible for this.

Two things in The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part are apparent from the very beginning. The first is that there is so much incredible detail to every scene in the entire movie. While it may appear at first that the movie is a combination of stop motion and other minuscule animations from time to time, it’s actually all animation from scratch, meaning every scene in the entire movie was lovingly crafted using computer generation. While this was true for the other three movies, it really stands out here because it’s improved so drastically. Every scene is visually engaging and full of color and it’s hard to look away. The second is that the movie is a non stop ride from start to finish. It wastes no time going from one scene to the next, and there is very little downtime between the big action scenes. Many characters in the movie are doing different things at different times. Quick, seamless transitions from character to character connect the movie and keep the momentum going throughout the entire story. Each storyline in the movie is unique and fast paced, keeping viewers engaged throughout its entire runtime.

The big twist at the end of The Lego Movie was that all the characters were just on an adventure in the imagination of a little kid and this movie expands upon that concept, now adding a villainous sister into the mix. This adds a whole new dynamic to the story and also brings plenty of clever humor, with one recurring cameo in particular being especially hilarious. These gags range from an abundance of pop culture references to creative puns. It all fits together perfectly, and nothing seems out of place in the zany world the movie takes place in.

While being mostly lighthearted, there’s also some very strong messages to take away from the main story, some more sensitive and controversial than the others. While the main theme of the story is getting along and growing up, there’s also the hard to ignore toxic masculinity aspect. This is a very difficult subject to address, but the movie manages to pull it off pretty well, and it fits right in with the other messages the movie has to offer. The first theme mentioned is the better executed of the two, which makes sense as it’s the bulk of the movie. The second one, while undeniably effective, feels slightly tacked on to include just one other theme. It’s a great one for sure, but something the movie wouldn’t feel too different without.

The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part, in the end, is exactly what it’s supposed to be: a second part. It fits right in with the creativity and originality of the first movie, and is a welcome addition to the franchise. There’s plenty of content to entertain both younger and older audiences, and in general, the movie is a great time from beginning to end.