I ended up going to this movie after seeing all the hype, and after watching and examining it, I would say this movie was worth the 98% on rotten tomatoes.
1.
Normally musical numbers make me cringe like in Disney movies. They force music into the movies for kids so people remember it, but Puss in Boots 2 pulled it off flawlessly without making it boring. It wasn’t a pointlessly over energetic song and dance, but it came to show a bit of Puss personality, and how much he has to lose with his life of danger.
2.
A fear of death. This movie has a great concept and moral, as it shows Puss paralysed by fear and commitment. He is the great Puss in Boots, he has no time for anything to last forever, as in the story of Puss in Boots, there can only be one. Puss in Boots has issues himself. He has a fear of commitment and, since he parades around with so many lives and no regard for any of them, he can never feel real fear as nothing will be permanent for him. But when Puss is scared, he is shown to scramble away with his tail between his legs. Whenever he sees the big bad wolf, he knows he is incapable of defeating him in the state he was at, and runs with disregard for everything around him. Or when Puss was supposed to marry Kitty, he did not show up, as he fears permanency.
3.
Morals. The ribbon on the wrapping paper. The movie has a great ending after everything. All the villains and protagonists come together, each of them at each others throats (including those of their allies, friends and even family) and ready to redeem their wish. One thing I must say, the villains are each perfectly written and there are lots of magic items that you would find interesting, but that’s not the topic. Puss ends up confronting the wolf, as he has no other choice, and faced with certain death, his wish was no longer the same. He wished he hadn’t made that choice at the altar, and he wished he hadn’t hurt his friends abandoning them. He faced death with new determination and survived, while the other characters mend their relationship and come together to defeat the final villain. We learn many lessons; though there is one that stands out. Don’t fear death with everything you have. We all die, that’s certain, but what sets apart the deaths of each and every being, from an ant to a human, is the life they lived. The purposes they fulfilled. The meaning they had. If you cannot live a life worth living, then death has already reached you. Imprint yourself on the world and create your legacy, as they say you die twice. Once when your body stops working, and another time when your name is spoken for the last time.