There's a reason Ryukishi07 oversaw the Higurashi adaptation, right?
4chan and Reddit are pretty terrible, though. There are many bullies on those sites.
I'm honestly not that surprised, seeing as they haven't released any new "big hits" lately, or at least none that were on my radar. I think DreamWorks will be fine, as they are a studio with lots of potential. They just need to stop relying on sequels to get them through, and try to create some grand, new material. Disney, for all their faults, learned their lessons about making sequels, and rely more so on new lines/franchises to keep going. It's worked so far, and because DreamWorks has more appeal in certain regards, due to their wider variety of ideas to utilize without being oppressed by certain standards, they should run wild soon, I hope. I think Hiccup's new position will be a superb chance for development and exploration of his character, which is always good. I'm not saying that merchandise should go away, I just wish studios with toy lines would make less plot-relevent choices so it can sell as merchandise. It can get grating, to me, but if it doesn't bother you, I envy you.