Available to Buy on Hardcover and Kindle.

I spent the last two days reading the fantasy novel Highfire by New York Times bestselling author Eoin Colfer, which is being released today by Harper Perennial. I don't read very many dragon novels but the premise of a vodka-drinking and Flashdance-loving dragon intrigued me.

Highfire centers around the last known dragon, Wyvern, Lord Highfire of the Highfire Eyrie, who now lives in the bayous of Louisiana and goes by the name Vern. He prefers to avoid the public at all costs in fear of what the humans would do him. He spends most of his time watching Netflix in a fishing shack. Well, that's until he life is turned upside after rescuing Squib.

AMAZON

After being a little upset at the way the fantasy drama Game of Thrones ended last Sunday, I ended up spending my Memorial Day evening watching a different (& better) dragon tale - How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World (PG; 104 minutes), which landed on Blu-ray and DVD last week from Universal Pictures Home Entertainment.

The Hidden World is the final chapter in the How to Train Your Dragon trilogy, which is based on the children book series of the same name by Cressida Cowell. Written and directed by Dean DeBlois, the film features the talented voice cast of Jay Baruchel, America Ferrera, Cate Blanchett, Gerard Butler, F. Murray Abraham , Kit Harington, Craig Ferguson, Kristen Wiig, Jonah Hill, and Christopher Mintz-Plasse.

Picking up one year after the second film, Hiccup, Toothless, the other dragon-riders, and their entire Viking village must go on a journey to find a new home after being threatened by the legendary dragon hunter Grimmel the Grisly and his army of minions (and a few evil dragons). At Grimmel's disposal is a female Light Fury who easily captures Toothless's heart and sets the stage for the the dragon-riders' final battle.

Bonus Features include:

• Alternate Opening with Intro by Writer/Director Dean DeBlois
• DreamWorks Shorts:
• Bilby – Directed by Liron Topaz, Pierre Perifel and JP Sans; produced by Jeff Hermann and Kelly Cooney Cilella. Threatened daily by the deadly residents and harsh environment of Australia’s Outback, a lonesome Bilby finds himself an unwitting protector, and unexpected friend, to a helpless (and quite adorable) baby bird. 
• Bird Karma – Directed by William Salazar and produced by Jeff Hermann, the beautifully artistic 2D short film Bird Karma tells a delightfully lyrical and fully unexpected tale of a long-legged bird’s journey of blissful joy, inescapable greed and the accidental discovery of the consequences when too much is not enough.
• Deleted Scenes with Intros by Writer/Director Dean DeBlois
• How to Voice Your Viking – Go behind the scenes with the cast as they record the Viking voices of HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON: THE HIDDEN WORLD. 
• Creating an Epic Dragon Tale – Discover what filmmakers learned while crafting this epic dragon trilogy.
• How I Learned from Dragons – The diverse cast of characters reveal why they think the dragon trilogy is so special. 
• Brave Wilderness Presents: Nature + Dragons = Awesome – Join Coyote Peterson, host of Brave Wilderness, as he explores what it takes to make the dragon’s characters come to life. 
• The Dragon Sheep Chronicles – Protecting sheep from the dragons of Berk is no easy task but Hiccup has a plan. 
• A Deck of Dragons – Observe four new dragons as Fishlegs unveils his original deck of dragon trading cards. 
• Growing Up with Dragons – After years of being with these characters, hear the lasting effects of the dragon trilogy from the filmmaker’s perspective.
• The Evolving Character Design of Dragons – Cast and crew reveal what it was like to evolve not only the characters of HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON: THE HIDDEN WORLD, but themselves as well. 
• Drawing Dragons – Get a glimpse of what goes in to designing a DreamWorks dragon. 
• Epic Villain – A different kind of villain, Grimmel brings great challenges to the village of Berk. Go behind the scenes as filmmakers breakdown this epic character.
•  Astrid’s Whole Dragon Trilogy in 60 Seconds – Hold on tight as Astrid sums up the whole dragon trilogy in a legendary 60 seconds. 
• Welcome to New Berk – With Hiccup as your guide, get a firsthand look at the updated Viking village of New Berk.
• Feature Commentary with Writer/Director Dean DeBlois, Producer Bradford Lewis and Head of Character Animation Simon Otto.

Final Thoughts

Mill Creek Ent.; PG-13; 91 minutes

Do you like watching cheesy B-flicks? Well, you can find plenty of them in the $5 DVD bin at Walmart, including the recently re-released of Dragon Wars: D-War.

Based loosely on the 1989 role-playing video game, Dragon Wars: D-War was released to theaters in 2007. Directed by Hyung Rae Shim, the film stars Jason Behr, Amanda Brooks, Robert Forester, Craig Robinson, Aimee Garcia, and Chris Mulkey.

Ever since he was a child, Ethan Kendrick (played by Jason Behr) has known he has the ability to change an Imoogi into a Celestial Dragon. Now as an adult, working as a news anchor in L.A., he realizes his destiny will finally be foretold when an evil Imoogi, known as "Buraki," is unleashed and brings forth the "Atrox Army," an army of supernatural dragons and warriors, to destroy the world.

This is where Sarah Daniels (played by Amanda Brooks) comes into the story, a young woman who is an incarnation of Yuh Yi Joo. Before the dragon army can get to her, Ethan shows up in the nick of time and rescues her. Well, at least for the time being, as there a prophecy that needs to be fulfilled in order to destroy the Imoogi and the dragon army, so a sacrifice is needed.

The film earned nearly $100 million at the box-office, which isn't too bad considering the budget was round $35 million. However, it was later revealed the special effects went way over-budget, costing nearly $99 million.

Not Rated; 559 minutes; $59.99; Amazon

Fans of the hit HBO series Games of Thrones will have to wait a bit longer for the new season to begin, which will premiere on April 24th. Until then, you can rewatch The Complete Fifth Season that is available to own on DVD & Blu-ray, featuring all 10 episodes.

The fantasy series is based on the "A Song of Ice and Fire" book series by George R. R. Martin. The fifth season uses materials from the fourth and fifth novels (A Feast for Crows and A Dance with Dragons), as well as borrowing a few scenes from the third book (A Storm of Swords) and the yet-to-be-released sixth novel, The Winds of Winter.

Picking up shortly after the fourth season finale, Tyrion Lannister (played by Peter Dinklage) is on the run after murdering his father, Tywin. He is later captured by Jorah Mormont (played by Iain Glen), who plans on delivering Tyrion to Daenerys Targaryen (played by Emilia Clarke), in the hope she will forgive him for his betrayal. Daenerys has more things to worry about than her former guard returning as a civil war is brewing in her kingdom.

Arya Stark (played by Maisie Williams) makes her way to House of Black and White, so she can learn the powers of the Many-faced God; however, her passion for revenge might ruin everything.

Jamie Lannister (played by Nikolaj Coster-Waldau), along with Bronn (Jerome Flynn), travels to Dorne retrieve his teenage niece/daughter, Myrcella (played by Nell Tiger Free), but things aren't quite as easy they planned it to be.

While Cersel Lannister (played by Lena Headey) awaits Jamie's return with their daughter, she must deal with a religious group, the Sparrows, who are determined to out anyone who sins.

Jon Snow (Kit Harington) has more problems than any other character as he steps into the role as Lord Commander of the Night's Watch. After making the decision to make an alliance with the wildlings, his men loses their trust in him. To make matters worse, the White Walkers and their army of dead are getting closer.


The bonus features on the five-disc DVD set are:

Dragonheart 3: The Sorcerer's Curse
Director: Colin Teague
Starring: Julian Morris, Jassa Ahluwalia, Jonjo O'Neill, Jake Curran, Tamzin Merchant, Dominic Mafham, Ben Kingsley
Studio: Universal Studios Home Entertainment
Release Date: February 24, 2015
Retail: $34.96
ASIN: B00P7RWOF0
Running Time: PG-13
Rating: 97 minutes
Buy Link: Amazon

Review:

Wow! I had completely forgotten about the 1996 fantasy adventure Dragonheart until I heard about the the direct-to-video prequel, Dragonheart 3: The Sorcerer's Curse, was being released this year. The original was an underrated medieval dragon tale with Sean Connery voicing the last dragon, Draco. I recall watching it several times in my late teens; actually, I think I might even still have it on VHS (Remember those?). A direct-to-video sequel, Dragonheart: A New Beginning, was released in 2000. I recall watching it once, but I didn't care much for it due to the cliched plot and cheap CGI effects.

Considering it has been fifteen years since the sequel, I'm surprised that Universal 1440 Entertainment would produce a film. Dragonheart 3: The Sorcerer's Curse arrived on Blu-ray and DVD last week (February 24, 2015). Directed by Colin Teague (Doctor Who, Torchwood, The White Queen) and stars Julian Morris, Jassa Ahluwalia, Jonjo O'Neill, Jake Curran, Tamzin Merchant, Dominic Mafham and Ben Kingsley as the voice of Drago. The only bonus feature is "Bringing Drago to Life."

Set years before the original film, The Sorcerer's Curse centers on an aspiring knight named Gareth (played by Julian Morris), whom is in dire need of money, so he can buy his knighthood. After witnessing a falling comet, he goes in search for it as he has heard rumors that comets contain gold, but he finds something else - a dragon named Drago.

DreamWorks Dragons: Defenders Of Berk - Part 1
Voice Cast: Jay Baruchel, America Ferrera, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, T. J. Miller and David Tennant
Studio: 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment
Release Date: March 25, 2014
Retail: $19.98
ASIN: B00FLAL3BO
Running Time: 220 minutes
Rating: Not Rated

Review:

Arriving on DVD this week is DreamWorks Dragons: Defenders of Perk: Part 1, featuring ten episodes from the second season. Bonus features include Dragon Tracker Part 3, Evolution Of Screaming Death, "Superfly" Dragon Mash-Up, and World of DreamWorks Animation.

The computer-animated series, which airs on the Cartoon Network, is a sequel to 2010's How To Train Your Dragon, which is based on the children's book series of the same name by Cressida Cowell. The original voice actors Jay Baruchel, America Ferrera, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, T. J. Miller and David Tennant return for the series, which bridges the gap between the first film and this summer's sequel, How To Train Your Dragon 2.

The episodes on the two-disc set are:

Pages: 214
Ages: 9-12
Reviewed by Billy Burgess

In the first book in the series, on the island of Berk, eleven-year-old Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III, the son of the Viking chief, must follow the rite of passage and capture a dragon from a cave. Hiccup, along with other children, are led by Gobber the Belch to catch their own eggs. Whoever can’t find an egg and train a dragon, will be kicked out of the tribe forever.