Tales of mismatched buddies remain perennial favorites of children. Characters who shouldn’t go together are forced by circumstance to get along, and discover a lot of common ground between them. Come to think of it, those kinds of stories still remain favorites of adults, too.

The original The Fox And The Hound was one of those stories. It related the meeting between Tod the Fox and Copper the Hound, and all the adventures they had.

At least, the young fans had thought all the adventures had been told. Now, with the release of The Fox And The Hound 2, they realize only part of the story has been told. Where the original movie dealt with the issues of liking each other when they weren’t supposed to, the sequel focuses on the things that can sometimes pull friends apart.

The movie takes place during Copper and Tod’s early years, when they’re both basically just kids still learning a lot about the world and about each other. Copper just hasn’t found his niche in life. He’s not a good hunting dog and he can’t seem to do anything else right either. Tod is just a natural at anything he does, always sliding through life so easily.

In the opening sequence, Copper and Tod’s friendship is shown at its best as they chase a grasshopper. The pursuit should be nothing, a short piece that leaves them winded and frustrated, but together. Instead, their chase leads them out to the road as a traveling fair rolls by. Copper hears the music made by the Singing Strays for the first time and young viewers will see that he’s immediately drawn to it, foreshadowing where the story will go. A misstep puts Copper in danger and Tod has to rescue him, leading Copper to feel even worse about his situation.

Later, during his “hunting” lesson, Copper ends up chasing Tod and chaos ensues as they tear up everything between Copper’s house and Tod’s house. The chase also establishes the continuing enmity between the farmer and the widow who have different views about fox hunting.

The antics during these chases are guaranteed to keep young watchers in stitches. As a result, however, Copper is told he’s a bad dog. He’s left tied to a leash and isn’t going to get to go to the fair. Tod stops by and takes the leash off him. They go together.