“Zootopia 2” - I’m a s-s-s-snake.

Here’s my biggest issue with the world in Zootopia. If all of the animals have evolved higher intelligence and become anthropomorphized, why are fish still treated like regular fish? And I don’t mean like pet fish. They are literally still food for the now enlightened other animals. We see fish being chopped up and devoured by denizens of Zootopia. At least in the first Zootopia, this could be explained by saying it was just the mammals that evolved. But the sequel specifically centers on the plight of reptiles, snakes in particular, who are decidedly not mammals. You get it now; the fish thing seems wrong. But this isn’t about the fish.

After teaming up to save the city with Judy Hopps, Nick Wilde is made an official police officer and partnered up with Judy. Eager to prove their worth, Judy and Nick go undercover to bust a corrupt customs officer. Things don’t go as planned and a high-speed chase ends with a whole lot of damage done to the city. As a consequence, Nick and Judy are ordered to go to therapy for incompatible pairings. If that last bit sounds familiar it’s because that’s what the first movie was about as well - if different species can live and work together.

On top of that, this is also a typical buddy cop movie where two very different styles of cops are partnered up. I ran through a bunch of examples of movies and TV shows in my head and the closest parallel is Amy and Jake in Brooklyn Nine-Nine. Like Amy, Judy is the straight-laced, always studying detective trying to prove her worth and Nick, like Jake, is the laid back, fast talker always relying on his instincts. When Zootopia 3 comes out featuring Judy and Nick dating or married or pregnant with a fox-rabbit mutant hybrid baby, just remember that ‘fobbit’ and ‘rabbox’ are equally funny words for that baby.

Anyway, during the botched bust, Judy finds a piece of snakeskin in one of the vehicles. She starts investigating because no reptiles have been spotted in Zootopia in one hundred years. That was when a pit viper was accused of killing a turtle/maid of the lynx (Ebenezer) that invented the weather walls and founded the modern Zootopia. You read that right - a snake killed a turtle so they banned all reptiles from Zootopia. No, it doesn’t make any sense that it’s all reptiles. Just like it doesn’t make sense that fish are just food.

At least, the reptile thing doesn’t make sense until much, much later in the movie. But I’m getting ahead of myself. Zootopia is celebrating its hundredth anniversary and the Lynxleys - the descendants of Ebenezer - are throwing a big party to celebrate, including displaying Ebenezer’s journal containing the walls’ designs. Judy suspects that a snake is going to steal the journal, so she convinces Nick to do another undercover mission, this time to protect the journal and prove to the chief (Bogo) that there is a snake in Zootopia.

Unfortunately, things go wrong again, but this time Nick and Judy are accused of helping the snake (Gary) steal the journal. The rest of the film unfolds exactly like every movie where the hero is falsely accused. They go on the run, try to redeem themself by uncovering the villain’s plot and exposing it, all while evading capture or death from the villains. Even though we’ve seen this story a thousand times, it’s still fun because Zootopia is filled with talking animals behaving in ways that satirize humans while still making fun of the animals. Look no further than Flash, the sloth. Plus, there are more Easter eggs than you can catch in a single viewing.

I also enjoyed the plethora of new characters, as well as exploring a new area of Zootopia called the Marsh Market. Fashioned as a riff on the bayou, it’s filled with a bunch of aquatic mammals living out almost every swamp people stereotype you can think of. I got a particular kick out of a quick gag featuring a touchy sea lion and another featuring the result of an underwater wake on some diners caused by a chase passing by. It’s the attention to those little details that really endear me to films like this.

As much as enjoyed the film, I was a little disappointed that it fell into the sequel trap of forcing characters to relearn a lesson they already learned in the first movie. And a little disappointed that it warmed over a couple of very tired relationship cliches (the misunderstanding that leads to a breakup, and the declaration that “I didn’t do it for myself or for them, I did it for you”). I also found it weirdly lazy that certain characters got great surnames like Hopps (for a rabbit) and Winddancer (for a horse), yet Gary’s surname is De’Snake and the lynxes are surnamed Lynxley. And don’t even get me started on the sheer number of contrivances used to further the plot.

But those are just minor flaws that don’t significantly impact the entertainment factor of the film. All in all, it was a solid movie with a good social message (one that is exceptionally relevant in the year 2025). While it might not hit quite as well with some (my wife and son were a little cooler on it than me), it won’t leave anybody fuming when they leave the theater. Except maybe fish lovers.

Rating: Ask for three dollars back and look forward to seeing a fobbit/rabbox in the next film.