http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HwXbtZXjbVE

I love animation. Almost all kinds of animation. I loved animation before it was cool. I consider a hot date to be the latest Disney or Pixar film, and always have. I go to animated movies whether I have a child with me or not, because I love the medium and I love the movies made for the medium. I like them whether they’re serious, like the older Disney films, or more pop culture funny, like Kung Fu Panda or, oh, the first Despicable Me.

On the other hand, I hate 3-D. Almost always. And I avoid 3-D whenever possible.

So, I was a little wary, seeing as I was going to the 3-D screening of Despicable Me 2. I loved the first one, but saw it in the nice, 2-D style I prefer.

But…

Wow.

The 3-D was excellent. Per the hubs, who hits more 3-D than I do, it’s the best use of 3-D he’s seen. Per me, it didn’t make me sick or want to hunt down the filmmaker and kick him in the tenders. The use of 3-D actually made the film more enjoyable, not less. It was mostly seamless, and what I mean by that is that it wasn’t 3-D hitting you over the head screaming, “LOOK! A ball’s flying at you! LOOK!” The 3-D in this movie actually worked to make you feel much more as if you were IN the movie.

That said, there’s some really cute, overtly “LOOK!” 3-D at the end, during the credits, that the audience loved as much as the rest of the movie, so definitely wait around through the start of the credits roll for that.

Now, enough of the technical. I know what you’re all really waiting for — the answer to this question: is this one as good as the first? And I can honestly say, “IT’S SO FLUFFY!!!”

Voice talent is great — I didn’t know Benjamin Bratt had it in him, but he was both unrecognizable and excellent. Everyone else — Steve Carell, Kristin Wiig, Russell Brand, Miranda Cosgrove, Steve Coogan and the rest of the cast — also does an awesome job. And kudos to the guys doing the Minions for the best, and funniest, gibberish around.

Gru (Steve Carell) has happily given up the Evil Geniusing to raise his girls and is starting a business when he’s pulled back into the game by the good guys in the form of Lucy (Kristin Wiig). And he has to go undercover in a mall. Hilarity and hijinks, along with some bad guy menacing and unicorn peril, ensue.

There were a ton of kids in the screening with me and they all LOVED this movie. All the adults did, too. The Minions once again are hilarious and show stealing, but all the humor works, whether it’s dealing with the minions or not. There are references to the first Despicable Me, but you don’t have to have seen that movie to enjoy this one. (Though, I do have to question what’s wrong with you if you haven’t seen Despicable Me yet.)

Oh, and the chicken really deserves a mention. (That’s it. You have to go see the movie to know why the chicken’s gotten a shout out. Best chicken in a film, potentially ever.) And I defy any adult not to laugh to the pee-your-pants level over the Minion Musical Numbers. (Again, not saying any more, just, trust me, they are so, SO worth the price of admission.)

Yes, this is the one where Gru gets a girl. But it’s also the one that has some hilarious comments on suburbia, exciting derring-do, new cool futuristic gadgets, and over-the-top Evil Bad Guy schemes. Which are all tied up nicely within this series’ main theme: that family is what matters and blood doesn’t make a family, love does.

I can’t wait for Despicable Me 3.

All ages. Rating: A