Six years after Wreck-it Ralph first appeared, Ralph (voice of John C. Reilly) and Vanellope (voice of Sarah Silverman) are forced to make the jump from their games at Litwak’s Arcade to the spectacular hub of the internet itself to find a crucial part and save the “Sugar Rush” game.  Ralph is overwhelmed by the chaos surrounding him, but quickly learns how to make a complete video fool of himself to get the money needed to continue, while Vanellope is entranced by a darker video game called “Slaughter Race.”

This animated comedy, co-directed by Phil Johnston and Rich Moore, ignores almost all of the supporting characters from the first film but introduces a few new people to help or hinder Ralph and Vanellope in their quest.  The most intriguing of these is Shank (voice of Gal Godot), the hot racer lady who takes Vanellope under her wing.  The story pokes fun at a host of internet tropes, and Ralph’s growing frustration with how everything works — or doesn’t — reflects the attitudes of many of us.  The big concluding sequence, triggered by a computer virus, is completely overdone, but so much of what precedes it is fun and clever.

Appreciation of this movie really depends on one’s familiarity and fondness for the internet itself.  So much of the script and visual detail is dedicated to exploring, spoofing or castigating elements of the virtual world that viewers who are unconnected would be completely lost.  Are there still people who aren’t familiar with the web?  Probably not many.  The story depends on Ralph’s naiveté about everything around him, which can be sweet or silly.  I found the quest to buy the steering wheel replacement a bit tiresome after a while, but I enjoyed many of the little detours taken along the way.

Beneath all the chaos and cat videos crowding the internet is the friendship between faithful Ralph and maturing Vanellope.  Their paths, which begin to diverge, keep the narrative grounded and shape the structure of the drama.  Watching these two friends try to remain so as things change around them, and transform who they are, is the most rewarding aspect of the story.  Credit the filmmakers for keeping all this in mind even as the craziness of the internet demands one’s attention.  Look, another cat video!  ☆ ☆ ☆.  31 December 2018.