#dangerous secrets

The Fires of War Chapter 35: Cursed and Broken Things

Gentle Touch

Thought it'd be nice to have an analysis on that

Hello anon and thank you so much for your question!

I think you will find at least some answers in the Character names and Places - Shops - Professions-tabs of our "Frozen Facts Spreadsheet", compiled by our member @bigfrozenfan. You will also find a list of known citizens of Arendelle and their professions in his "Citizens of Arendelle"-book.

In this, this and this post by our member @theartoffrozen you will also find some interesting details regarding the architecture of the different town buildings.

In terms of where new Arendelle residents go is to my knowledge an unexplored topic. We know from the novel Forest of Shadows that Arendelle started attracting new inhabitants after the first movie when the gates of the castle were opened–indicating some sort of restriction on immigration during the thirteen years the gates were closed.

Forest of Shadows, ch. 1.

In the novel Dangerous Secrets, Iduna does indeed start a windmill business where she offers technical advice and blueprints to farmers which allows her to save up money to rent a cottage. We learn that she has a landlord and that rent is paid monthly.

Dangerous Secrets, ch. 20.

In a comic called The Little House we see Anna and Elsa and a group of children seek shelter from some rain in a seemingly abandoned house. They essentially occupy the house by making it their "hideout" without anyone protesting. Whether this means there is no housing crisis in Arendelle or that no one dares to say "no" when the queen unexpectedly occupies your property is left to the imagination 😁

The Little House.

Oh hey look fanfic fanart haven't drawn that in a hot minute

If you like Wicked/The Wizard of Oz and you aren't reading Dangerous Secrets by @ichiwashername-o then IDK what you're doing but like. Get on that. I love this version of Dorothy and the underlying mystery and political turmoil is such a fun take that I am thoroughly enjoying

Before becoming a Frozen nerd, I often wondered how Elsa was an infant. We know about her life as a toddler before and after the accident, but how was she as a wee baby? How did Agnarr and Iduna react to finding out about their first-born being blessed with such a power over ice and snow? Luckily, these two pieces of media were already ahead of me!

Here is baby Elsa making snow in her cradle as Agnarr and Iduna reassure each other 🥹

(Frozen (Graphic Novel Retelling), adapted by Cecil Castellucci, with art by Paola Antista)

And of course, we also see baby Elsa in Chapter 42 of Dangerous Secrets in Iduna's POV, written by Mari Mancusi.

I love the way this scene was written and the way Iduna's and Agnarr's reactions were handled. It was exactly the way we would've expected it, knowing them as characters! 👏

I highly doubt it, but I wish we could get a glimpse of Anna and Elsa as infants in the upcoming sequels. We've already seen the sisters in almost all the stages of their lives, so they might as well add their baby phases into the mix while they're still making movies! 😅

Except for the Conceal Don't Feel Twisted tale, I like to consider all Frozen books canon to a certain extent, especially the ones for older readers.

Though we know for certains the F2 themed novels were approved by the creators, A Frozen Heart, which not only was the first adult novel to be published about Frozen but also one of the only media tackling Hans' character, doesn't seem to have had the same treatment, despite some of its events being referenced in Polar Nights and All is Found (I believe I read somewhere the filmakers didn't know about the book, correct me if I'm wrong).

But some things seem to contradict the "official" canon material, which I'll try to debunk as best as I can.

Hans' age

A Frozen Heart mentions Hans being 17 when Anna is 15, meaning he would be around 21 (depending the time of year he was born) during the coronation:

Yet, in a tweet published not long after the release of F1, Jennifer Lee revealed the age of Hans:

... Or did she? She said "I THINK he's 23", not "he is 23", like the way she affirmed Anna and Elsa's birthdays for example. It was never something the filmakers really thought about, except that Hans was in his twenties. Also, her answer is kind of humorous.

2) Kai's contradicting personality

One detail I saw no one mentioning was the portraying of Kai in A Frozen Heart VS Dangerous Secrets. Sure, he's not such a deep character, yet the two books seem to clash about Kai's perception of commoners marrying into royalty, and of love stories in general:

In "A Frozen Heart":

In "Dangerous Secrets":

Kinda hard to find a logical explanation for this one. Did Kai change his mind afterwards? Why would he approve of Iduna but make clear for Anna he disapproves mixed marriages? I still find kind of ironic that Elizabeth Rutnick insists on "Kai wouldn't know a great love story if he saw one" because he saw Agduna right away! Also I like the idea of Kai seeming uptight at first glance but being so human and romantic and supportive inside. Could also be Anna misinterpreting Kai's reaction because she believes to be the only one to understand love lol.

Speaking of Anna's perceptions...

3) Hans' eye color (+Sitron)

We can all agree Hans is a redhead with green eyes, and Sitron is a Fjord horse cream colored:

But here's how Anna sees them in A Frozen Heart:

But let's remember Anna lives in the perfect fairy tale dream - so she only sees what she wants to see. She can't even remember Hans' eyes when Kristoff interrogates her! She's just picturing the eprfect prince charming with a white steed.

4) Iduna and Agnarr leaving period

We all know the tragic "See you in two weeks!" Anna says to her parents before they leave for the Dark Sea.

Yet in A Frozen Heart, it's more of a whole month:

I guess she isn't talking about her parents' departure then? But about the delay Gerda gave her to clean her room? Or until her 15th birthday? Can't really explain this one either, except a typing error.

5) Ballroom balcony

A Frozen Heart suggests the ballroom has a balcony on which Anna and Hans eat krumkakes before singing "Love is an Open Door". I debunked in a previous post how this balcony can't be located in the ballroom since it's clearly not on the ground floor. This Arendelle castle plan from A Frozen World confirms it:

And yet again, in a Frozen Heart:

Let's say this balcony is "a few feet away" but vertically! So not really the direct ballroom balcony.

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So? Is A Frozen Heart canon or not? I'll say apart from these inconcistencies I'll go for a YES - all elements that don't directly contradict official material is canon for me, filmakers approval or not.