Are sequels better than originals?
 

Well it has always been common to make a sequel once the original has a fair amount of commerical or critical success. But thinking back, there have been plenty which have proven to be actually better than the original.

In my opinion, Spiderman 2 was better than 1.

Same goes for X-Men 2.

Everyone knows about Aliens.

Empire Strikes Back is regarded as the best one in the Star Wars franchise.

Superman II was way better than 1.

Toy Story 2 was another which vastly improved over part 1.

Blade 2 was actually more neat than 1.

I would regard Chronicles of Riddick on par with Pitch Black though.

Evil Dead 2 is regarded as a better movie than ED1.

Jason was actually liked a lot more in pts 6, 9 and Jason X than pt.1 or 2.

Terminator 2 is a vast improvement over the original Terminator of the 80s...


These are some which come to mind (I know I am missing more).
Is it because a sequel is made after examining the flaws of the original, and refined and made better with more cash and using better technology?
Or is it because it tends to tie up the loose ends left by the original?
Maybe better marketing?
Maybe some other reason...

Whats your say on this?

Re: Are sequels better than originals?
 

I'll break down my opinions of yours, then offer some of my own.

I slightly disagree, but just barely.

I can jump on that bandwagon. X-2, IMHO, was definately superior to the first.

This is one I never understood. Alien is a horror movie. Aliens is an action movie. Alien is the superior of the two.

I agree. I've also seemed to notice that this differs with age. People too young to see the original in the theater tend to think Empire is superior. Most people I know who were old enough to enjoy A New Hope when it came out think it's the superior of the two.

Eh...they're about the same to me.

Another one I whole-heartedly agree on. I actually didn't enjoy the first one when it came out. After watching 2, I went back and re-watched the first one and enjoyed it.

This is obviously because del Toro is a god amongst men.

I enjoyed Pitch Black more. It was one of, if not the coolest alien movie to come out since Alien. I really dug CoR, though.

I don't think very many people will argue with this. I, however, think ED 2 just barely eeks it out, where as most people I know think there is no comparison.

A lot of people who didn't watch the first Friday 1st hate the movie. I like it, but it definately doesn't seem to fit into the franchise it became. I can't really state which I like more.

Effects & action-wise, there's not even a shadow of a doubt.

Here are some that I suggest to be added to the list:

I think Shrek 2 is better than Shrek, for the same reasons stated in the Toy Story response.

I think Exorcist III is superior to Exorcist. Again, though, they're almost completely different movies. As far as I'm concerned, they never made an Exorcist II.

There is a school of thought that Dawn of the Dead is superior to NotLD. I happen to belong to this school.

I consider Chamber of Secrets to be the best of the Harry Potter series so far.

Batman Returns is better than Batman. Batman Begins is the best Batman movie so far, but it's not really a sequal.

Don't forget the classic "Bride Of Frankenstein" a superior film even to the original film classic

But sequels cannot exist without the first film which sets the foundations, so while they might expand the storyline and introduce new characters they are always feeding off the original.

Absolutely.

The Matrix Reloaded was more fun than The Matrix to me, but that's an opinion not many other people share with me.

If you consider The Devil's Rejects a sequel to House of 1,000 Corpses, it wa far superior.

I thought Alien was better than Aliens, though, in regard to the first post.

These are all IMO, though, of course.

I prefer the original Terminator over T-2. It had a lot more heart.

The thing is, the basic idea of the plot still comes from the original. The cast and the production crew may change or stay the same, but a sequel is basically a continuation of the original story. Yet they are preferred over the original. Why?

What about sequels which were actually paler in comparison than the originals...

TCM 2 over TCM?
Jaws 2 over Jaws?
E.T. 2 over E.T.?
Hidden II over Hidden?
Child's Play 2 over Child's Play?

There must be more in that bracket too...

When the fuck was there an ET 2?

Mac and Me tried to be.

yeah...Mac and Me...they touted it as E.T. II damn em...:D

(thanks Austin)