Some people are disappointed in the hit Frozen 2, while other people are overjoyed, but this is hardly the first modern Disney animated sequel. Frozen 2 continues the story of Elsa and Anna, going into detail into the origins of her powers, exploring their larger world, as well as offer new content and songs.
However, there was another sequel to a modern Disney princess film that came out in the last couple of years. While Frozen proved far more successful among critics and audiences, Tangled is the film that really kicked off Disney's modern renaissance. Tangled never had a proper sequel like Frozen 2, but it did have a Disney Channel Original film: Tangled: Before Ever After, which served as an hour-long pilot for Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure. Both serve as sequels to iconic films, but which one is the better sequel?
Frozen 2 Has a Few HUGE Advantages
There are a few big things to consider when comparing the two films. Frozen 2 is a theatrical production with a ton of money put behind it. Tangled: Before Ever After is forty minutes shorter, two-dimensional, and serves as an introduction to a bigger narrative that just started its third season. As such, the animation in Frozen 2 is far more elaborate. While Tangled: Before Ever After has pretty good animation for its production, Frozen 2 has more time and money put behind it.
Frozen 2 also had more expectations to meet. Being such a high-profile film put it under heavier scrutiny. Meanwhile, this lesser seen television movie was a far smaller production. This means that every decision made in regards to Frozen 2's narrative is tailor suited to be perfect. Both films reprise their original cast (though Frozen 2 replaced Elsa and Anna's original parents with Evan Rachel Wood and Alfred Molina). And both films feature original songs, but Frozen contains more songs, with them being sung by the iconic Idina Menzel. Tangled: Before Ever After's songs are good, but there's no comparison to "Into the Unknown," "Show Yourself," or "The Next Right Thing."
However, despite those limitations, Tangled: Before Ever After manages to accomplish a great deal.
Fairly Similar Plots
The plots to both are surprisingly similar. In Frozen 2, Elsa and Anna go on an adventure when an enigmatic series of spirits from the north come calling, only to find the source of Elsa's powers. In Tangled: Before Ever After, Rapunzel and her friend Cassandra, daughter of the Captain of the Guard, go on an adventure to escape the restrictions of castle life for a day, only to find the source of Rapunzel's powers. Both films also include a subplot involving the boyfriend characters, Kristoff and Eugene, proposing. Both feature the sins of the past coming to hurt the main characters, with Frozen 2's history focusing on Arendelle's past wars coming back to haunt them and Tangled: Before Ever After focusing on the king's anti-crime policies inspiring a new generation of crimes.
The big thing here are the stakes of each story. Frozen 2's spirits threaten to destroy Arendelle. While Tangled: Before Ever After is a far more personal story about Rapunzel and her role in modern society, though, in the last act, the fate of Corona is placed at stake. The big difference between each film is that Frozen 2 features a far more external story, while Tangled: Before Ever After is way more personal.
However, because Tangled: Before Ever After is a pilot more than a complete film, while every individual conflict of the movie is resolved by its conclusion, many plot threads are left dangling or unresolved.
Exploring the World
Both sequels attempt to explore the worlds which they established. However, Tangled: Before Ever After has the benefit of how its prior film ended. The last film ended with the main characters migrating from the wilds of her kingdom to the inner workings of Corona. Because of this, the world-building is far more organic. There is no external plot point to move the main characters to a new location. They are now in the kingdom, starting off the film out of their element.
This also has the added benefit of requiring less exposition as to what the world is like. It starts in the middle of the story. In this sense, it's far better paced. Frozen 2 explores the entire secret history of Arendelle and the new region of Northuldra. We explore the mystical side of Frozen's world in far more detail. To explore Northuldra, however, the characters go on an adventure. The characters feel secondary to exploring the lore surrounding them.
Tangled: Before Ever After puts the characters in a new location, then allows them to just function in this new setting. Because of this, less time is spent explaining how the things that are happening can happen, and the events are just allowed to unfold. The most exposition we get is a fifteen-second villain monologue at the end. Otherwise, world-building is told through action, not explanation. This makes it far more interesting to watch.
But Let's Talk About Characters
What makes Tangled: Before Ever After truly special, however, is how character-driven it is. In under an hour, Tangled: Before Ever After does more with its characters than Frozen 2. Yes, in Frozen 2 we see how Elsa feels restless and we see Anna pushed to new depths of despair, but the rest of the cast feels strangely one-dimensional. On the other hand, Tangled: Before Ever After uses every opportunity to layer the characters with dimension and complexity. Yes, at no point do we get a scene as emotionally raw as Anna's "The Next Right Thing" scene in Tangled: Before Ever After, but we get far more character growth throughout the shorter film.
Consider the proposal arc in both films. With Kristoff, it felt as though the writers didn't know what to do with him beyond the one-off joke of trying and failing to propose to Anna. With Eugene, however, we see every step of the arc, see how each decision he makes changes and affects his relationship with Rapunzel, in an intriguing and effective manner.
Furthermore, Tangled: Before Ever After introduces new characters that are actually memorable in their own right. Most notably, Cassandra, who loves Rapunzel and wants the best for her while hating Eugene, and Rapunzel's father, who remained notably mute in the prior film but here really serves as the biggest source of conflict for Rapunzel.
When looking at both films in terms of production, Frozen 2 clearly is the superior film, since it had more money and time behind it. However, in terms of narrative, story, and characters, Tangled: Before Ever After tells a far more interesting story with its more personal story while still genuinely leaving audiences interested to see what happens next.