Lysen: Mighty Ducks 2 best sequel known to man

Recently, I wrote a column about the announcement of the new “Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy” sequel. In the column, I argued that the film would be a success because of the power of the cast. I compared the “Anchorman” sequel to “The Hangover 2″ and referenced that the movie made a lot of money, but was not necessarily a good film. The response to my column in the online comments allowed some disgruntled readers to tell me to “get some perspective” while another listed several films that were very poor sequels.

I started to lose confidence. Maybe these commenters are right. Maybe I have no idea what I’m talking about, and I do need to get some perspective. They did list a lot of sequels that were pretty terrible.

But then, the following happened:

Gordon Bombay: Did y’all enjoy that?

Everyone: YEAH!

Bombay: Okay, well so did they. Because they are still three comments up, and were one comment away from looking like sore journalists.

Lou Schumaker: Well, if we can’t beat them, we might as well keep our pride.

Bombay: Lou, that’s not pride. Sure, when Jarod made fun of the commenter’s misuse of the word “your”, part of me cheered. But guys, I’ve been there. I know how you feel. I wanted to cream that jerk that said I had no idea what I was talking about. And I really, really wanted to go after that guy that was calling me names on the Internet. But you know what? My ego will heal, and if I become someone I’m not, if I sink to their level, well then I lost more than my ego. You understand? We’re not goons, we’re not bullies, we’re not trolls, and no matter what people say or do, we have to be ourselves.

You. [Points at Jarod] Who are you?

Jarod Kilgore: Jarod Kilgore.

Bombay: From where?

Jarod: Olathe, Kansas

Bombay: You. [points at Brett]

Brett Salsbury: Brett Salsbury, from Chapman, Kansas.

Vikaas Shanker: Vikaas Shanker, Chicago, Illinois.

Kelly Cosby: Kelly Cosby, Overland Park, Kansas.

Me: Dylan Lysen, Andover, Kansas

Everyone: YEAH!

Bombay: And I’m Gordon Bombay, Minneapolis, Minnesota. We’re team UDK, gathered from all across Kansas (and two from the upper-Midwest). And we’re going to stick together. You know why?

Me: Because we are columnists. And columnists write together.

Bombay: That’s right, Dylan. And just when you think they are about to break apart…

Everyone: COLUMNISTS WRITE TOGETHER.

Kelly: And when the wind blows hard and the sky is black…

Everyone: COLUMNISTS WRITE TOGETHER.

Lou: and when the roosters are crowing and the cows are spinning in circles in the pasture….

Everyone: erm… COLUMNISTS WRITE TOGETHER.

Bombay: And when everyone says your wrong, columnists write together.

Everyone: quack, quack, quack, quack!

This little scene we played out was from the greatest sequel of all time. Yes, Disney’s “D2: The Mighty Ducks.” Sure, maybe there are a lot of films out there that are cash grabs sequels. Maybe a lot of them are really bad. Maybe the writers and producers of those films don’t really care what you think because they got your money.

But in the end, not all sequels are bad. Some even make a film franchise, make the parent company buy an NHL team, raise awareness in America of a sport dominated by Canadians, turn kids (like myself) into die-hard hockey fans that desperately wanted to play in their youth despite the fact he grew up in Kansas.

Sometimes a sequel can change someone’s life. And that’s exactly what “D2: The Mighty Ducks” did for me. I think I’ve got all the perspective I need.

Dylan Lysen is a senior from Andover majoring in journalism. Read more from Dylan Lysen.

• Updated Nov. 6, 2012 at 8:57 pm