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Fridge Brilliance
- The Country Trolls didn't just lock Poppy, Branch, and Biggie up because they didn't like their performance; they did it because they were Pop Trolls.
- They're outright told their music wasn't liked. While on the surface it fits with King Peppy's assessment that the tribes have no tolerance for each other's music, Pop music in particular probably opens many too many old wounds for the Country Trolls to react with anything other than disgust.
- Not only that, but Poppy thinking that the Country Trolls were singing the wrong way because their songs were sad and soulful instead of happy and upbeat, along with shoving a bunch of random Pop songs in their faces to show them the “right” way to sing, unintentionally mirrors how the original Pop Trolls thought their music was superior to the other tribes’ and tried to remix all their music into Pop songs against their wishes. No wonder Delta Dawn was so upset with them!
- Related to the above, when Barb receives Poppy's letter asking to be "best friends", she immediately assumes that Poppy is mocking her. While her own insecurities certainly played a part, Barb knows that the last time the Pop Trolls offered them friendship, it was actually an attempt to oppress them, so this letter could just as easily be another trap.
- Branch doesn't know what K-Pop is when he's captured by the eponymous bounty hunters, even though he, Poppy and Biggie were singing "Gangnam Style" for the Country Trolls the day before. Following the reveal that the original Pop Trolls tried to steal music from the other tribes to turn it into pop, we can assume that "Gangnam Style" is a song that they appropriated from K-Pop culture.
- Of course the pop string is still in the lyre seen in the scrapbook. The pop string was never taken.
- The Funk Trolls are the most technologically advanced. With sons that enjoy both Pop and hip hop possibly a metaphor for how embracing other types of music can be an advantage as well as a hint that funk inspired both pop and hip-hop. Something that is seen later when the Pop Trolls try to blend in as Rock Trolls, the song they sing is more in-line with metal. Makes sense since early bands like Black Sabbath are considered early metal as well as rock.
- The Pop Trolls' Rock Troll disguises make a good example of the message that "we're not so different after all." Specifically Biggie's disguise is heavily reminiscent of Elvis: The King of Rock, whose controversial musical style during his career is now considered as family friendly as the music the Pop Trolls sing.
- While the rest of the Pop Trolls are lost on the singing and dancing styles of the other tribes, Branch is able to dance perfectly in-sync with both the K-Pop and Reggaeton trolls during their dance-off. Despite being a Pop Troll, Branch spent most of his life rejecting their love of music and has only recently re-embraced it as an adult. Because he's still re-adjusting to his own tribe's traditions, it's easier for him to break from them and embrace the influence of the other troll cultures.
- Although as we would see from the next movie, he might have had a bit more experience than we initially thought.
- Branch's inconsistent color scheme might be due to how his trauma isn't magically healed. He's long internalized his sense of identity as a cynical paranoid troll and likes being who he is. He's happy to be able to connect to other trolls again but doesn't want to feel like he has to change completely to fit in. Him still being gray most of the time isn't just status quo but a reflection of how his mood shifts depending on the situation. Notably, when singing with Poppy he's completely back to his vibrant colors, even if he's hesitant to go through with the plan.
- While the obligatory disco joke is mentioned here, it's possible that the reason the Disco Trolls' territory dissolved is that they merely got absorbed into other tribes. Disco music is used in some funk, hip-hop, and throwback pop music, so even if the scene is dead, its influence is still around.
- Hickory’s song "I Fall To Pieces" (sung right before Hickory and Branch have a heart-to-heart on the raft) has a double meaning. It more obviously refers to Branch and his struggle with his feelings for Poppy, but it could also refer to Hickory and his conflicted feelings on tricking the trolls to turn them in over to Queen Barb. The line "How can I just be your friend?" references Branch’s unrequited love, but also Hickory’s conflicting wishes to save his music by being a traitor (thus becoming their enemy) or to help the pop trolls by revealing himself (thus becoming their ally)—in other words, he can’t “just” be their friend because his very involvement with them demands choosing a side, which he can’t do.
- The line "I fall to pieces" also foreshadows that he’s actually two trolls disguised as one, who indeed "fall to pieces" once their ruse is discovered.
- Hickory was able to preemptively protect himself from Chaz's hypnotic tunes before he even appeared while the others where doped up on smooth jazz. With the reveal that Hickory was actually the Yodelers in disguise, it is possible that they were expecting the other bounty hunters to appear, the Yodelers having been called in by Barb and thus he was able to think ahead knowing that they had competition.
- The Yodelers disguising themselves as a Country troll makes sense, as it's close to what they know. Country/Western music has a history of yodellers out on the prairie, after all.
- Poppy and Branch's relationship is a strong analogue to the events of the movie. They start off feeling disconnected with one another symbolized by how they can't seem to high-five, much like how the different troll tribes are separated. Branch spends much of the movie trying to support Poppy even though she's very much lost in her own thoughts, often trying to steer her in the right direction since Branch sees the writing on the wall, the other tribes aren't going to accept Poppy's help until Poppy accepts them. Starting the third act, Branch calls out Poppy for failing to listen to everyone else, mainly citing that their differences matter, much like the differences between the two of them, how difficult it is for the two of them to be friends, and yet despite all this, Branch still loves Poppy not in spite of their differences, but because of it. This it what allows her to accept everyone, the different tribes, and even Branch as they finally confess their love finally getting their connection through the epic high-five.
Fridge Horror
- What happened to Disco?
- Also how many more subgenres died out as a result of the separation or nearly died out as a result. The Bounty Hunters could be some of the last of their kind and hold resentment towards the main tribes for not helping them with some seeing it as Laser-Guided Karma for the tribes separating in the first place and allowing all this to happen.
- Why would there be the need for bounty hunters and mercenaries in the first place? To the point where there's a magazine called Bounty Hunters Weekly.
- There's a chance that Barb's plan to turn all Trolls into Rock Zombies could've gone horribly wrong. At the concert, when Branch gets turned into a Rock Zombie, there is a pause as Barb waits for something to happen and the Rock Trolls mutter to each other in concern. It's evident that Barb and the other Rock Trolls didn't know what would happen if a Troll got hit by the power of all six Strings. Branch or Poppy could've died that night and it would be Barb's fault. Imagine how Poppy or Branch and the other Pop Trolls would react to one of their own being dead and the ramifications for the rest of the Troll Kingdom.
- Doubled with the fact that it's revealed that Branch has 4 brothers in the sequel. How would they react to the news that their baby brother, the one who looked up to them, who they left behind, is now dead?
- At the start of Band Together, John Dory - the eldest brother - explains that he thought Branch had been eaten as a baby when the Pop Tribe were taken by the Bergens, and only found out he was still alive when he heard how Branch and Poppy stopped Barb's plan in this film. If Branch had died here, John Dory would not only have had to learn that his baby brother had been alive all this time, but that he'd also missed his chance to reconnect with him.
- And without Branch, BroZone would be unable to perform the Perfect Family Harmony to save Floyd so they would lose both of their younger brothers.
- How would Viva react to her sister's death?
- Also, how did Barb learn that all Six Strings corrupted into a single genre could turn anyone into a Musical Zombie?
- We know that Pop tried to oppress the other genres a long time ago, and the other leaders were so afraid of losing their way of life that they fled and lived in isolation. Seems like just a bit of an extreme reaction... unless the Pop leader tried to use the strings the same way Barb did. Pop might not just have been appropriating other musical genres- they might have literally been creating Pop zombies, leaving the stories to be passed down through the other tribes for Barb to eventually hear about and form a plan around.
- After this film's events, Trolls: Holiday in Harmony would show Val getting a "never-break guitar" - which magically repairs itself after being smashed - as a gift from Holly. With this apparently being a commonplace item, what would have happened if Barb had decided to use a never-break guitar for her Ultimate Powerchord? Poppy's plan to undo the Rock Zombie transformation would've failed and Barb would've won.
- The threat of Rock or Musical Zombies in general isn't over with the destruction of the Strings. In both Trollstopia and Remix Rescue, Chaz turns Trolls from 4 genres into Jazz-obsessed Zombies without the Strings so it's possible that any Troll could do the same if their music was powerful enough.
- Promotional materials state that Essence's leadership has allowed the Funk Trolls to survive several disasters in recent years. Given that the Funk Trolls seemed ready to battle against the Rock Trolls, were those disasters Rock Troll attacks by King Thrash in an attempt to get the Funk String? What if one of those attacks forced him to be in a wheelchair?
- The sheer mess the Troll Kingdom must've been following the events of the World Tour? How many Trolls were rendered homeless due to the Rock Trolls rampaging through their villages and towns? How many families must've gotten separated from the chaos?
