Epic Universe, Epic Memories: Revisiting a Childhood Built on Dragons and Games

Eli was five years old when we went to go see the original How to Train Your Dragon in 2010. When we walked out of the theater, I asked him if he liked the movie.

“If I had seen that movie one million times,” he declared, “I would want to see it one million more.”

Over the years, my son attempted to make good on that pronouncement, repeatedly watching the original until it was supplanted four years later by its sequel, How to Train Your Dragon 2. My wife would find him in his room with tears in his eyes. Worried that something was wrong, she’d learned he’d just watched a hypnotized Toothless forced to kill Hiccup, with the young viking’s father sacrificing himself to save his son.

My son—precocious, sensitive, funny, kind, and maybe the smartest person I know—was not like the other kids. High-functioning autism was the first diagnosis, though the last year has been filled with others. Already struggling with sensory issues and anxiety, he’s also been saddled with a number of physical and autonomic ailments that had him visiting nearly two dozen different doctors in 2025, derailing his first year of art school.

With both of us needing a break, Eli and I recently drove down to Orlando to visit the city’s newest theme park, Universal’s Epic Universe, and go see some old friends.

We’d started the week visiting Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure, where Eli had first discovered his love of roller coasters. Seeing their little brother braving every ride he was tall enough for gave his two older sisters the nudge they needed to try the big rides. He was so disappointed in not being tall enough to ride The Incredible Hulk Coaster, he made us remeasure him the next day to see if he’d grown. On this trip, he got to ride it on his own (by the time we got to it, I was coastered out—pro tip, the first aid office at most of the parks will give you dramamine if you forgot to get your own.)

But the highlight of our trip was a visit to Isle of Berk at Epic Universe, where giant viking and dragon statues stood welcome. “This place is incredible,” Eli said, as we took it all in. “I kind of forgot how big an influence this was on my childhood. This music is definitely reminding me. ”

The rides were enjoyable—flying on the mythical beasts in Dragon Racer’s Rally, shooting water cannons at mischievous dragons (and getting sprayed in return) with Ruffnut and Tuffnut in the Frye Drill, and especially taking a roller coaster trip around the fantastical island on Hiccup’s Wing Gliders. But what makes the park special is the way that it brings the cinematic world of How to Train Your Dragon to life. The scenery around the island is breathtaking—this was the world Eli spent so many hours watching on the screen—making the story of an atypical viking who was not like the other kids his own. And here it was in 3D. Eli walked around the giant Mead Hall examining every hanging banner as if he were in an art gallery.

We also managed to ride every other single attraction in the park. If anything colored Eli’s childhood more than the How to Train Your Dragon movies it was his Nintendo consoles, from the Wii to the Switch. And Super Nintendo World was another marvel as you enter through a tunnel into a kaleidoscope of colors. The visual feast surrounding us made the slow roll of Yoshi’s Adventure as enjoyable as the more thrilling Mine Cart Madness through Donkey Kong’s domain. The interactive games you can play with the purchase of an overpriced wristband were kind of a dud, but Mario Kart: Bowser’s Challenge made up for it—a VR display brought the familiar race to technicolor life. For Eli, the nicest touch was the little Pikmin hidden throughout the area.

For pure jaw-dropping spectacle, though, it was the new entry into Universal’s sprawling Potterverse that left an impression. After strolling through the streets of 1920s Paris, we took a flue in the British underground to the Ministry of Magic. J.K. Rowling may be doing everything she can to sour my children on her legacy, but I’ll always treasure the time I spent reading the series to Eli, a chapter each night at bedtime for months. The rule in our house was that we’d read the books before watching the movies to form the images in our own heads. But it’s fun to see how others interpret the stories, and the artists at Universal have done an amazing job translating that to the truly epic motion simulator of Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry.

The new park hit so many beats of Eli’s childhood and my time as a young parent that the nostalgia reminded me how lucky I’ve been to have gotten to raise such a special kid. I left the Epic Universe content, exhausted and so glad to have shared the experience. And while I’d love to return in the future, I’m just not sure my constitution could handle a million more times.