(Note from a DisNerd:  I promise in any movie I review here to keep the reviews short, sweet, and spoiler free – I encourage anyone who wants to see this or any movie to make up their minds for themselves and enjoy the magic!)

Images in this post copyright The Walt Disney Company

I’ll be the first to admit, I was taken by surprise by the Tinker Bell series of movies. Somewhere along the line, I went from, “Oh look, a blue fairy…” at Pixie Hollow in Disneyland, to insisting on picking up and immediately watching the latest movie in the Disney Fairies franchise, “Secret of the Wings.” I’m sure it has something to do with a certain blue-eyed little girl, but it also has a lot to do with quality film making.

For anyone not familiar with the series, it follows Tinker Bell’s origins and her adventures among other pixies in Pixie Hollow, an apparent appendage of Neverland. Will we ever find out how she comes to meet Peter Pan and his Lost Boys? That remains to be seen, but the stories being told in this realm have been entertaining enough to keep bringing fans back. Stories of friendship, loyalty and courage – these are values that good family stories are made of.

Needless to say, expectations for this one were pretty high, and it didn’t disappoint.

In “Secret of the Wings,” we learn that unlike other pixies, winter fairies live in a separate area of Pixie Hollow: the Winter Woods, which are off limits to everyone but winter fairies (and the rest of Pixie Hollow is off limits to winter fairies as well). The reason? Apparently, the change in climates can damage their wings; if that happens, there is no cure and the fairy can never fly again.

However, this doesn’t stop the curious Tink from setting out for the Winter Woods, where she seems drawn by some mysterious force, noticing her wings appear to sparkle when she steps foot in the forbidden land. The reason her wings sparkle, she soon discovers, is because she is in the presence of the frost fairy Periwinkle – her sister, born of the same laugh. While thrilled at the prospect of having a sister and someone with so much in common, the joy is short lived; as mentioned before, it is forbidden to cross over into each others’ respective land. This doesn’t stop Tink and Peri from trying, however. Let’s just say the results are far from successful, and soon it’s up to fairies from both lands to work together and save the day. Of course there are a few more twists and turns than that, but what fun would spoiling the movie for others be?

Sisters? There were never such devoted sisters!

As I stated before, the Tinker Bell movies are a big hit in our house, as is anything to do with the realm of Neverland. This movie seemed a little slower to start than the others, but once it got going it was really quite a treat and lots of exciting fun and quite a few laughs as well. The little girl loved it. Even though there were a few heart tugging moments, including when Tink and Peri thought they would have to say goodbye forever. Sometimes it’s hard to watch those goodbyes, even for adults! However, as the fairies worked together to save Pixie Hollow, she sat on my lap with rapt attention. Afterwards she informed us she was Periwinkle – a sure sign that the movie was a hit!

If you’ve seen the other Tink movies, this one stands well with the rest. If you haven’t, it also works well on its own, but I recommend the rest as well! Mae Whitman brings a great voice personality to Tinker Bell, a character who I previously thought was best to remain voiceless. The new characters are a treat as well, and of course, the stories are great ones of courage, strength, loyalty, faith, trust, and pixie dust.

Anyone else out there fans of the Tink movies? Have you watched this one as well? What did you think? Can’t wait to hear from you!

(Disney’s Secret Of the Wings is available now on DVD and Blu-ray.)