Alpha and Omega 2

Alpha And Omega: Family Vacation is a 2014 American animated adventure/action-comedy film. It is the second film in the Alpha and Omega series and the seventeenth Sony Pictures Animation film. The film first aired on Discovery Kids in Mexico on March 28, 2014, as a made-for-TV movie. It was later released worldwide on DVD in August 4, 2014. Fan reviews for the film have been positive, with fans expressing that the film met their expectations and being called the second best sequel of the franchise. However, the ending was criticized for being rushed.

Plotedit | edit source
The film opens up with Kate, Humphrey and the pups, who are on their way to Alfred Creek Falls for their first family vacation together. The pups - especially Claudette - are feeling lonely for not bringing the other animals, but Kate reminds them that it's their first vacation to share experiences. Claudette has a flashback of her and Fleet from the third film and ends up embarrassing herself in front of her family. Kate feels uncomfortable from this and Runt starts teasing Claudette for her infatuation with Fleet. Stinky suggests his plan for creating a wolf park to supervise the young wolves, but Humphrey disowns it, much to Stinky's dismay. After this, they continue their trip but eventually come across two female wolves running to hide from human wolf trappers. The wolves inform Kate and Humphrey that the trappers are trapping wolves and wolf pups to relocate them on the other side of the country, and that all the other wolves are hiding in the mountains near the border. The two wolves are captured when they try to escape. Humphrey suggests going across the border to escape the trappers, as Kate senses the Canadian express they used before.

The wolves hide under a log in order to get across the field, only to stop in front of the trappers, who have tranquilized the two female wolves. The trappers then spot Kate, Humphrey and the pups, and a chase ensues where the wolves narrowly escape. They miss the train and realize the trappers are still on their trail. Meanwhile, Marcel and Paddy have been ordered by Winston to go and search for Kate, Humphrey and the pups. They come across Fleet, Brent and Agnes who are also looking for them. Fleet also appears to be deeply in love with Claudette and vows to save her and her family. They all agree to go on a search party. Freida and Fran show up and also join in. While the trappers are searching for the wolves, Kate, Humphrey and the pups are hiding in a tree, thanks to an idea Runt had earlier. The pups ask their parents about how they went on their first date, flashing back to the Moonlight Howl scene from the first film. Once the trappers get closer, Humphrey tells Kate to lead the pups away while he distracts the trappers. Just as one of them is about to shoot Humphrey, Brent, Fleet and the porcupines arrive just in time to help. Humphrey catches up with his family while Fleet reunites with Claudette, Runt (who has sprained his ankle) with Freida and Fran and Stinky with Brent and Agnes. The animals reach the train by nightfall and manage to get inside of one of the carts just before the trappers can capture them.

The cart turns out to be the same cart Kate and Humphrey used to get back to Jasper before, as they reminisce the first time they howled together. They are about to kiss, but Brent interrupts them, claiming he "has to pee". The animals help him by singing his song, and Humphrey remembers the same thing he did in the first film. When the train stops, the animals jump out and Paddy informs them that they are getting closer to the border. The next day, Stinky senses the presence of a nearby moose, which leads to a flashback showing Humphrey's embarrassing encounter with one by Marcel flew him into a moose's butt and farted on him as he screams well much to his shock and embarrassment. He describes he had this wide stance and had to go to counseling. The moose appears, Humphrey doesn't recognizes him at first then the moose turns around showing his butt and then realizes it was him. Then, Stinky senses the wolf trappers getting closer. The animals cross an open field and Paddy and Marcel direct them to a nearby human road, where the trappers can't shoot. They reach the road and narrowly avoid being shot from the plane.

As they travel on the road, Kate and Humphrey start to worry about Runt's sprained ankle, but the trappers once again catch up to them. Just as they are about to shoot the wolves (who are hiding in a small rock den), Runt and the porcupines scare them away. The next day, the animals reach the same RV from before. They encounter Garn and Debbie, the woman who recently broke up with her boyfriend, Garn. She decides to shelter the animals for the day. The wolf trappers arrive and ask her if she has seen the wolves, but she denies it while the animals hide. When they leave, Humphrey instructs Debbie to drive them to Idaho, where the trappers won't follow them anymore. Debbie also mentions she was planning on driving to Idaho, so she takes them there, but the wolf trappers spot them again. A car chase ensues and eventually Debbie drives in the forest to let the animals free, but the trappers catch up and follow them. Debbie notices the two female wolves from earlier in crates and frees them. Just as they reach Idaho, the wolf trappers start shooting at them, with Runt falling behind. In order to save his family, Humphrey tells Kate once again to lead the pups to safety, while he turns around and attacks the trappers.

Kate, the pups and the rest of the animals make it through the border (on the same golfing course Kate and Humphrey first met Marcel and Paddy), but Humphrey doesn't show up. As they hear gun shots, Kate rushes back into the forest to save Humphrey, while the others wait and hope. The pups are feeling very worried for their parents, but Kate and Humphrey eventually return, unharmed. The animals finally reach Alfred Creek Falls for their vacation. The film comes to an end with all of them heading back to Jasper Park, as Humphrey starts making animal impressions.

Castedit | edit source

 * Ben Diskin as Humphrey
 * Kate Higgins as Kate/Lilly/Stinky
 * Lindsay Torrance as Claudette
 * Debi Derryberry as Runt
 * Mike Jacobs as Fleet/Brent
 * Mela Lee as Agnes
 * Gina Bowes as Freida and Fran
 * Catherine Lavin as Debbie
 * Maxine Blue as Julia
 * Elizabeth Alvarez as Liz
 * Chris Smith as Marcel/Paddy/Mooch/Shakey/Jethro
 * Benjamin Waters as Griffin
 * Chris Collins as Garth

Releaseedit | edit source
Alpha and Omega: Family Vacation was first released as a made-for-TV film in Mexico and Latin America on March 28, 2014. It had it's U.S release on August 4, 2014. The official trailer was released on July 2, and gained largely positive reviews from many fans

Receptionedit | edit source
Alpha and Omega: Family Vacation was generally well-received from the majority of the fans. It was praised for its characters, action scenes, improved animation, overall charm and sense of humor. It was also considered the second best sequel of the franchise, after The Legend of the Saw Tooth Cave. However, the ending was criticized for being rushed, with a few fans claiming that it made the movie feel "incomplete". The film's constant use of flashbacks from the original film was also criticized, with fans stating that it becomes repetitive.

Reviews from critics were mostly mixed, with some stating that it was a step-back from the fourth film, while admitting it was an entertaining sequel overall. It holds a rating of 67% in Rotten Tomatoes and a 62 out of 100 in Metacritic, indicating "generally favorable reviews".

Triviaedit | edit source

 * The film first aired on Discovery Kids in Mexico on March 28, 2015.
 * Fans were mostly happy with the new film of the franchise, but also expressed disappointment on the rushed ending.
 * Alpha and Omega is the fourth Sony Pictures Animation film to become a franchise, after Open Season, Surf's Up and Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs.
 * This is the first sequel to have other sequel characters (excluding Stinky, Claudette, and Runt) reappear in it.
 * Family Vacation is also the last sequel to be produced by Crest Animations, considering the 3 new sequels are being produced by Splash Entertainment.
 * Strangely enough, in Alpha and Omega 3: The Great Wolf Games, Humphrey was overprotective of Claudette when she and Fleet flirted with each other and Kate was alright with it, but in this film, Kate isn't sure if she's okay with it, while Humphrey doesn't really comment on it, suggesting that the roles have been reversed. However, there's a scene where Fleet and Claudette are about to nuzzle, but Humphrey stops them and shoos Fleet away, which indicates he might still be overprotective.
 * While in Humphrey's flashback with his embarrassing encounter with a moose, in the original movie, Humphrey collides with the moose's antlers, while in the flashback version in this movie, he collides with the moose's butt (complete with a fart sound effect) and falls into the river. This was due to a different script.