#Anna and Elsa: Sisterhood is the Strongest Magic

[riddlerosehearts]

got myself thinking about my own personal experiences with frozen, and why the first movie means enough to me to be my favorite of all time, and thought i might as well just go ahead and post about it in case there's anyone who wants to read it. although i'm not great with words, so this post will probably be too long and feel too silly and over the top, and i should also warn that this is a lot of very personal information, but:

i saw frozen in theaters on its opening weekend in 2013. i hadn't listened to any of the songs in advance at all--i've avoided listening to the soundtracks for new disney movies prior to seeing them in theaters ever since i saw princess and the frog in 2009, because i feel like i enjoy my first experience with the movie and the music more that way. although i may have already overheard snippets of let it go back then just because it was so popular. i honestly don't remember too clearly because my strongest memory by far of hearing let it go for the first time is being absolutely blown away by it in the theater.

so. i've had depression and social anxiety since i was a kid, and, although i didn't know this until several years after frozen was released, i'm autistic as well. so dealing with all of these things at once, combined with the fact that i had no idea i was autistic, made me think i just couldn't ever fit in with anyone because i was weird and there was something wrong with me. for most of my life i never had any friends and i thought i had to hide from people as much as possible. which i do think is at least a little justified by the fact that the whole time i was in school from fifth grade through tenth grade--after tenth grade my parents finally pulled me out of public school and i was homeschooled, something i'd honesty been begging them to do--i was bullied and betrayed by friends in various ways because i was weird and didn't fit in. i won't go into details, but the fact that i knew while still in public school that i was bisexual also played into this.

so seeing elsa's parents hide her from the world because she had something that made her different from others, seeing her be taught to "conceal, don't feel" and called a monster, just hit me very hard when i first saw the movie. i interpreted her as having developed depression and anxiety like i did (and now, ever since 2016 when i discovered that i was autistic, i've also liked to headcanon her as such) and just felt so incredibly happy to see her proudly proclaim that she wasn't going to hold back and hide who she was anymore, letting herself freely use her powers, and decide that even if she had to be alone, at least she was free.

and then, seeing how anna fought so hard to get elsa to come home and make sure she knew that she didn't have to be alone and that she wasn't unloved, and seeing the people of arendelle accept her wholeheartedly as she created an ice skating rink at the end, gave me so much hope for myself. as did reading the "sisterhood is the strongest magic" books and other things like the various frozen comics, and watching frozen fever and olaf's frozen adventure, and seeing that elsa truly was accepted by her people, that she was capable and loved as queen and had a home, that anna and kristoff and all the people of arendelle appreciated her as she was, would be there when she felt anxious or needed a shoulder to cry on, and didn't at all believe that her powers made her weird and out of place with them. all of this just gave me so, so much comfort throughout the years and still does all of this time later.

i know a lot of people are sick of frozen and find it to be overhyped, and everyone certainly has the right to their opinion! but elsa is basically tied with one other fictional character as my favorite of all time, i love anna and kristoff and yes, even olaf, very dearly, and i do believe that the movie deserves all of the love it gets. i find it so beautiful that people can read elsa's powers and her story as an allegory for so many different things and connect with her and find comfort in her in so many different ways. i can hardly believe that it's been over 10 years since the movie came out, over 10 years since i saw elsa transform her stuffy coronation gown into that beautiful flowing ice dress and sing about finally letting herself be who she really was. maybe loving frozen even half as much as i do is "cringy", but this is my own personal tumblr blog and i will be as cringy as i want! and besides, the cold never bothered me anyway. i'm sorry, i couldn't resist saying that.

[cloudberriesforaqueen]

FOUND ANOTHER ONE! IT'S FROM THE ANNA & ELSA: SISTERHOOD IS THE STRONGEST MAGIC BOOKS! ♡

I didn't mean to but I realized I'm now stuck in a constant search for Elsa wearing this night gown all across Frozen media 😆

Elsa's Original Blue Night Gown Appreciation Post! ❄️

Elsa's purple night gown in Frozen 2 is beautiful and iconic, but I wanted to pay my respects to her original night gown too!

It's basically her sleepwear as a kid (likewise with Anna's), so it's technically not "exclusive" to the comics and books, but we never see adult Elsa with these on in animation, so I'm showing it some love~

Of course, Elsa has to add a cape because she's just extra like that 🤭 Also... it's interesting to know she wears a sleep mask.

I tried to find one in different art styles!

[greatqueenanna]

Revisiting all the Frozen Novels.

Over the past couple of weeks, I took it upon myself to re-read all of the Frozen Novels and chapter books. I had been meaning to revisit Dangerous Secrets, and then I thought to myself - "Why not revisit them all?!" So here we are.

Keep in mind that these are my personal opinions, and I encourage all of you to read the books for yourselves and give your own thoughts! Also, if you guys read any of these books, which ones were your faves and least faves? Let me know!

*Also, my audience scores are based off of Goodreads. Just in case if anyone was curious about that haha.

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Anna and Elsa: Sisterhood is the Strongest Magic

By: Erica David

Released: January 6th, 2015 - January 3rd, 2017

Type: Series

Age Range: 5 - 7 years

Audience Score: Average for whole series 4.9/5

My Score: 3.0/5

Anna and Elsa is an adorable series that tells of fun little adventures that the sisters have. A lot of the adventures seem a bit unoriginal, as the plot lines seem to be similar to that of the Disney Press picture books. I feel that the most original book of the series was Memory and Magic, as it dealt with something not put forward by any other books at the time. Due to its reading level, it might not be all that fun for older fans, but younger fans will more than likely love the stories. I find it a little silly that in book 3, A Warm Welcome, Anna and Elsa apparently don't know what a desert is, but regardless the series is honestly super cute. I also remember how everyone used to ship Queen Marisol and Elsa for a while - what good times haha.

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A Frozen Heart

By: Elizabeth Rudnick

Released: October 13, 2015

Type: Stand-Alone

Age Range: 10 - 14 years

Audience Score: 3.8/5

My Score: 2.5/5

This story was supposed to be the backstory for Hans that everyone was excited about. I was also really excited, as a Hans fan. The story is basically a retelling of Frozen through the perspectives of Hans and Anna. It gives us some of Hans' backstory, along with some scenes before the coronation. Rudnick herself is a good writer, and is great at really setting the overall tone and staying true to the characters. However, I feel that Hans' backstory was a bit predictable and cheesy, and Anna's side of the story didn't really offer anything substantial. The contradictions were also really jarring for me. ______________________________________________________________

Frozen Northern Lights: Journey to the Lights

By: Suzanne Francis

Released: July 5, 2016

Type: Stand-alone novel, but part of a Spinoff Series

Age Range: 8 - 12 years

Audience Score: 3.8/5

My Score: 3.0/5

Frozen Northern Lights was a spin off series that released this novel, an Adventure Notebook that works as a companion to the novel, 3 picture books, and a LEGO miniseries. I actually remember this spin off series being foreshadowed by A Year With Anna and Elsa, which was released March of the same year. I honestly thought that this was supposed to be Frozen 2, until we got the full background on the spinoff. The story follows the Frozen gang helping a Troll named Little Rock gain his tracking crystal while looking for Gran Pabbie during the Troll's Northern Lights festival. Overall, I thought this series was actually pretty good for what it was. I liked the idea of exploring more of the Trolls' culture while also teaching kids more about the Northern Lights.

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Conceal, Don't Feel: A Twisted Tale

By: Jen Calonita

Released: Oct 1, 2019

Type: Part of a series, but stand alone for the Frozen related story.

Age Range: 12 - 17 years

Audience Score: 3.8/5

My Score: 2.8/5

This story follows the original tale of Frozen; but, as the title says, a twist. In this alternate Frozen, Agnarr and Iduna choose to separate Anna and Elsa entirely, giving Anna away to one of Iduna's friends to keep her safe, and erasing both sister's memories of each other. Overall, the novel is written well and the characters were pretty true to their film counterparts. However, I found the set up doesn't really make much sense - I simply don't feel that Iduna and Agnarr would make Elsa forget her powers or give Anna away. That just seems nonsensical to me. I have to say though, it was interesting to see where the story was going and I actually, ahem, really liked the Helsa crack content. Don't kill me haha.

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Frozen 2: Forest of Shadows

By: Kamilla Benko

Released: October 4, 2019

Type: Stand-Alone

Age Range: 8 - 12

Audience Score: 4.1/5

My Score: 4.8/5

Honestly, I feel this is the best Frozen novel out there. Forest of Shadows tells a story that happens a few months before Frozen 2, and was meant to help set up Anna's dedication towards Arendelle and her questioning her self-worth. The novel follows the sisters trying to stop a strange sleep disease caused by a Nightmare Wolf. This book honestly strengthens the relationship that the sisters have for their parents, and even *lightly* has the sisters talk about the separation. Other than a few pacing issues and couple inconsistencies here and there (like...where did that ice bear go?), the novel is just fantastic and really does add to Frozen 2 as a whole.

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Frozen 2: Dangerous Secrets

By: Mari Mancusi

Released: November 3, 2020

Type: Stand-Alone

Age Range: 12 - 18

Audience Score: 4.4/5

My Score: 4.0/5

Dangerous Secrets explores Iduna and Agnarr's relationship before their marriage and how their love blossomed over the years. I wrote a review for this one late last year, not liking the book too much. However, I was told to give it another chance, and I have to say that I enjoyed it much more the second time, with my biases out of the way. I still strongly feel that there was not enough sensitivity and care put into Iduna's connection to the Northuldra, and if/how she chose to handle the discrimination towards her people as Queen. However, I can't deny that Mancusi delivers in giving Iduna and Agnarr fantastic chemistry, delivers in answering a lot of questions put forth by Frozen 2, and gives an amazing take on Iduna and Agnarr's heartbreaking feelings over the separation.

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[hafanforever]

Just have something to say...

Although I’m nowhere near as active on Twitter as I am here on Tumblr, for months now, when I do wander over there, I have seen many Frozen-related posts with the hashtag #BringElsaHome. Recently, I have seen more posts with people declaring anger, sadness, and disappointment that post-Frozen II books/comics are barely mentioning Elsa, not showing the Northuldra, or that there is nothing to show Anna and Elsa remaining in touch with each other despite living in two different place.

Seeing all of that made me want to speak up and share something with all of you fans, whether or not you follow me or if you are on here or Twitter more often.

As my good friend @greatqueenanna stated and organized in this post, and as we both said in our two-part collaboration essay “Canon Fodder”, much of the printed media for Frozen and Frozen II, be it chapter books, picture storybooks, and SPECIFICALLY comics (which I perceive as virtually nothing more than illustrated fan fiction) in magazines and as collections in books aren’t necessarily canon to the franchise. In other words, despite these stories offering a significant amount of lore, particularly those that are set after the events of the first or both movies, if there is no proof or confirmation that the filmmakers of Frozen had any involvement with the writings and creations of these media, much less make any kind of approval or acknowledgement on their parts, then they are not truly canon to the movies.

The only books that @greatqueenanna and I consider to be true canon to the franchise are Forest of Shadows, a prequel novel that takes place a month before Frozen II, and Dangerous Secrets, also a prequel novel that tells Agnarr and Iduna’s stories from the time of the battle in the Enchanted Forest to when they have grown up, married, and had their daughters. I say these two books are strong canon primarily because their respective authors Kamilla Benko and Mari Mancusi even confirmed in the interviews below that they worked with the film team while writing them.

https://www.yayomg.com/frozen-2-forest-of-shadows/

https://www.laughingplace.com/w/articles/2020/11/03/frozen-2-dangerous-secrets-interview-with-mari-mancusi/

Additionally, there are a few comic series where their author Joe Caramagna confirmed on Twitter that he worked with Jen Lee while writing them. These series are Breaking Boundaries, The Hero Within, Reunion Road, and True Treasure, the last one being one in particular that sets up Anna and Elsa’s journeys in Frozen II.

The way I see it, an important proof and major benefit that helps support these novels and comics as canon is that, since they were created under a collaboration and consultation with the filmmakers, the stories preserve the series’ continuity, meaning the filmmakers help ensure that what is written is accurately consistent to the films with few to no contradictions or discrepancies. However, other comics, illustrated stories, and chapter books, such as A Frozen Heart and the series Anna & Elsa: Sisterhood is the Strongest Magic, have no proof of approval or consultation from the filmmakers, and some of them contain contradictions to the films.

Now I’m not trying to dismiss any of you fans who dislike the ending of Frozen II, because all of us have rights to our own opinions. However, if you are disappointed by it even more because post-movie books and comics appear to be an even bigger letdown, I want to try and help ease your feelings by letting you know that this media isn’t actually, and shouldn’t be considered as, strict canon. Again, this is especially if nothing proves or confirms that the film team had any approval or involvement with making them, and if there is even no acknowledgement from them on it, either. If anything, the team is most likely totally unaware that these books or, more likely, comics, even exist. I once saw images of a Frozen/Frozen II comic submitted with Kristen Anderson-Lopez tagged in it, and she replied to it by saying she had no idea these comics even existed.

So once again, all of what I said about what printed media is canon or not is something vital to keep in mind if you don’t like the ending. I’m not at all saying it’s wrong if you dislike the ending, but I want to make it clear and put you at ease some more about these post-Frozen II stories.

[ericmicael]

Crazy Theory of the Day: “A Warm Welcome” is the real ending to “Frozen 1 ″

In fact, this theory is quite simple.

The book “The Snow Queen” ends like this: Gerda manages to rescue Kai who had been kidnapped by the Snow Queen and corrupted by the pieces of the mirror, they return home and that is the end of the story.

What about the Snow Queen? Simple, she traveled to spread the winter in warm countries.

"Frozen 1" ends with Anna becoming an ice statue and saving Elsa from being beheaded by Hans' sword. Elsa hugs Anna and thaws her in an act of true love. The “eternal winter” is undone thus avoiding the beginning of a second ice age in the Frozen universe and in the final scene everyone celebrates Elsa's powers.

I got it, but what about the Snow Queen's final destination? Frozen does not adapt this part? Gerda is Anna, Hans is the mirror that was defeated and corrupted Kai, Elsa is the union of Kai + Snow Queen. That part was missing from the movie.

"Anna & Elsa: Sisterhood is the Strongest Magic - A Warm Welcome" shows exactly Snow Queen Elsa traveling to a kingdom known for its warmth and there she ends up presenting winter to this land and her Summer Queen where she too believed to have powers.

I really found it interesting that technically this book is the real ending to "Frozen 1" if we go after adaptations of each of the elements of the book "The Snow Queen".

If there was a continuation of the book "The Snow Queen" would it show that she also met a Summer Queen on her travels to warm countries? Who knows, but I'm already thinking about the fanfic kkkkk

[tonyphan27]

First of all, I do NOT know Frozen 2 true ending nor care about the leaks, spoilers, etc... This is my own version of what I think will happen at the end of F2. My headcanon.

From the trailers so far, the fog keeps everyone from get in or out, and there is magic at work. So in order to free everyone, Anna and Elsa battle the forest's magic with their own power: sisterhood is the strongest magic. They win, but not without sacrifice.

I don't think Disney will ever consider this ending because it's too Naruto-y but it's really fun to draw :)

https://sta.sh/0n7udox94xj <--link to full size pic, will it work like this?

[tenshichan1013]

@super-mam-te-moc I feel like elsa would hesitate on destroying his sled because she knows he needs it for work. Then I could see Anna convincing her to do it. :) similar to how they were trying to break down the library doors in “return to the ice palace”

predictions for frozen 2: kristoff will get a new sled and then it will explode at some point during the adventures of elsa and anna. 

[riddlerosehearts]

god, tts is so fucking good it really makes me wish we could’ve had a 2d cartoon series as a frozen sequel too... tbh if we ever do still get a frozen series i just want it to fill in the 3 years between the movies!

[hafanforever]

As a collaboration project with @greatqueenanna​, we decided to discuss the books of the Frozen franchise and explain what makes some canon and what makes others not canon. Our reasoning for this is because there is a great deal of confusion among fans on what novels, comics, and guide books have reliable information about characters, motivations, and overall lore. We focused our attention on books because they are what specifically tend to have added information or significant prequel and post-movie content that adds both story and lore to the franchise.

In my post, I will be discussing which books have a strong case of not being canon; that is, they fall under the categories of Loose Canon and Non-Canon. greatqueenanna has her own post that begins the discussion towards what is canon (Hard Canon and Soft Canon). Please read it below to see the full collaboration effort, with the details on what books are considered canon and why.

- Canon Fodder Part 1 -

Which Elements Help Make a Book Canon?

As stated in Part 1 of this collaboration, when discussing the canonical strength of a specific book, two main components are examined to determine where it falls on the canon spectrum:

Collaboration with Filmmakers - Did the author(s) work with the main creative team of Frozen while writing the book?

Creation Time Period - If there is little to no evidence of the filmmakers’ involvement with the book, the time it was written or created during the films’ development is taken into account, since it means that the story and/or lore presented was taken directly from the creators to some extent.

Consistent Lore - Does the book’s story follows the lore presented by the main team?

Which Books Do NOT Have These Elements?

A Frozen Heart, Journey to the Lights, and the Anna & Elsa: Sisterhood is the Strongest Magic series are chaptered storybooks that offer a lot of lore to the franchise. A Frozen Heart alternates between the third-person perspective of Anna and Hans, giving readers a glimpse of their inner thoughts and pasts before they met, such as showing Hans’s life with his family in the Southern Isles. Likewise, Journey to the Lights and the Anna & Elsa series tell different stories of the sisters and their friends following the events of the first movie.

Pictured storybooks with unique stories vary in offering lore to the franchise, which may or not contradict that of the films. Their stories include Anna and Elsa’s childhood (Anna and Elsa’s Secret Playtime), the two traveling to another kingdom in which they encounter the Duke of Weselton (Across the Sea), Anna and Kristoff babysitting baby trolls while also sharing some information about Kristoff growing up in the Valley of the Living Rock (Anna Is Our Babysitter), and others set after the first movie as well as after Frozen Fever.

Despite their stories with the main characters and whatever lore they may or may not offer, it is unclear just how much or if these books’ authors consulted with the filmmakers while writing them, which makes their standing Loose Canon.

Like the aforementioned storybooks, the guidebooks A Frozen World and A Year with Elsa & Anna offer the franchise a significant amount of lore, including pieces of information that have already been confirmed by the filmmakers.

But also like said storybooks, they are considered Loose Canon due to them having a lack of involvement and/or acknowledgement from the creators. A Year with Anna & Elsa also recaps some the pictured storybooks mentioned above, making it somewhat dismissible. Additionally, both books were made years after Frozen came out, so they did not have the same access to the filmmakers’ notes and such as the novelizations and official guides did.

Comic books, whether they are in actual printed books or magazines, can also be sources of lore for the franchise. They include stories, both long and short, that take place after the events of both movies as well as those within the timeline by being in between. In other words, there are comics about Agnarr’s childhood before Runeard’s death, Anna and Elsa’s childhood before and during their separation, and Kristoff’s childhood before and during the time he lived with the trolls.

But the fact is, except for some retellings of the movies, these comics are virtually nothing more than glorified fan fiction in illustration, and they occasionally contain contradictions and inconsistencies to the films. Additionally, the creators were not involved with the making of them, making their standing in canon extremely weak.

However, it has been brought to my attention by @super-mam-te-moc​ that there are some comics that make an exception as being canon. As @greatqueenanna​ mentioned in “Canon Fodder Part 1”, from 2018 onward, author Joe Caramagna had collaborated with Black Horse Comics, apparently under the supervision of Jennifer Lee, and wrote four Frozen related comics series: Breaking Boundaries, The Hero Within, Reunion Road, and True Treasure.

Since these series of comics have the collaboration element, they are an exception to others and can be considered canon.

Conceal, Don’t Feel is part of A Twisted Tale, an anthology series of books based around alternate "what-if" spins on familiar animated Disney films. It is a retelling of the main Frozen story, but in an alternate universe in which Elsa and Anna do not know each other.

Because this main plot concept obviously contradicts the plot of the original film, and also because the creators appeared to have virtually no involvement with it at all, it is safe to say that this book is entirely Non-Canon.

[hereisisa]

You are worth melting for, i was dying to read that book, is very lovely. but if you notice the illustrations are not new, are from the anna and elsa sisterhood is the strongest magic series, im not complaining, still is worth, for the first time the illustrations are in color. lovely

It’s really adorable yes! I’ve ordered it twice and the order was deleted twice by amazon, not sure why it’s so difficult to get in this corner of the world, but I’m glad I’ve read it online now.

I needed something elsanna-focused after F2 :)

[hafanforever]

For Elsa and Anna, sisterhood is the strongest magic. ❤️

❤️ Sisters ❤️

[gatorsnot]

so would it be at all possible for some to link me to / upload pdfs of the elsa and anna books? help a girl out

[hereisisa]

I have been reading a lot of storybook and comics and the majority of them always focus more on anna, then the sisters and very few are only for elsa, kristoff and olaf have more books where they are the protagonists, even when elsa barely appears she is always there. i just notice and still cant guess what disney wants to do. elsa seels more and she have a lot of merch but almost no stories, so whats up? i still dont know elsa. havent read sisterhood is the strongest magic so i dont know there

It seems clear to me that they don’t know what to do with Elsa. They identify with Anna, the hetero princess/hero they saw in movies dozens of times before. They write for her, they even said they started to write the movie from Anna’s story.

You can tell they don’t know what to do with Elsa since they wanted to kill her. It was a waste.

[beatrice1979a]

Love this one!  I bought this only for the kistanna pics. 

For reference Anna and Elsa sisterhood is strongest magic book 2 

Anna & Elsa 1~3 kristanna

[riddlerosehearts]

@ the frozen fandom i need everyone to know that in the official book “a warm welcome”, the third book in the anna & elsa: sisterhood is the strongest magic series, elsa and anna go to another kingdom called eldora because olaf told them that the queen there, marisol, has fire and heat powers that caused an eternal summer. elsa gets super excited to meet someone else with magic like her but then it turns out marisol is just a normal queen and eldora naturally has tropical weather year round. but elsa still 1000% has a crush on her and they’re so cute:

elsa can’t stop thinking about marisol the entire way to eldora. she describes marisol herself and her name both as beautiful. they become incredibly fast friends and admire and appreciate each other. they hold hands and hug constantly. they make each other happy, say they’re going to miss each other, and promise to meet again as soon as possible. i love them.

marisol is only in a few pages of this one children’s book from 2015 so i’m not surprised people don’t know about her but she and elsa are so cute together! i’ve never seen anybody talk about marisol/elsa (marelsa? marielsa? elsasol? mariselsa??? idk if they have a name but i’m going with mariselsa) and i get why, but... it’s so cute. everybody wants elsa to have a fire girlfriend and i say it should be marisol because they’re soft and in love. she may not have real fire powers but she’s elsa’s fire gf in my heart.

[mam-te-moc]

Second level canon material ie books and comics was steadily approaching this aim during years after Frozen. Sisterhood Is The Strongest Magic started from Elsa being overworked by doing all ruling by herself and ended with Anna taking charge while Elsa was away. OFA novelization showed how sisters divided responsibilities and consulted each other on matters all the time. They perfectly complemented each other as rulers of Arendelle. F2 made it difficult to continue, but not impossible.

I do love the concept of Elsanna as two queens of Arendelle, co-queens, equals in each other’s respect and equals in strength and skill.