When we last saw Mumble, Gloria, and the whole dancing penguin gang, they tap-danced their way to survival.  "Happy Feet 2" returns to Antarctica a few years later and falls victim to the all-too-rampant sequel-syndrome.  With a shaky storyline and less than stellar soundtrack, the movie is unable to match the charm of its original. 

The movie boasts big names such as Robin Williams, Brad Pitt, Elijah Wood, Matt Damon, Hank Azaria, Alecia Moore (P!nk), and "Modern Family’s" Sofia Vergara.  It follows a now adult Mumbo in his life as a husband and father, and his journey to save the entire penguin community from the consequences of global warming.  

Familiar favorites like Ramon and Lovelace return to the screen while a host of new characters make successful debuts.  There’s Sven, a puffin with a serious attitude, and Bill and Will, two tiny krill on a mission to find meaning beyond their microscopic selves.  But no amount of witty one-liners delivered by old (and new) favorites can protect the adult audience from the dizzyingly disjointed plot, and an uncharacteristically dull soundtrack.

There was a lack of music in general…good music specifically.  Pop-culture references missed the mark, falling just past current and approaching dated with samples of once-viral “Dragostea din tei” (or, “The Numa Numa Song”) and “Milkshake”, by Kelis.  The most impressive musical numbers depended on this year’s inexplicable but undeniably obsessive trend with Journey songs, but most often the movie’s characters broke into original song that was overall unmemorable.  

To put it shortly, with "Happy Feet 2," it’s probably best to just wait for the DVD.