Not only was the Year of the Dragon competition a means to allow Dinotopians to compete in an otherwise mythical category, but it was also a way to learn more about dragons in general, especially those from other cultures. For example, those who were more familiar with Asian dragons were startled to learn that dragons in other lands, especially the Western lands, were seen as symbols of greed, vanity, and other negative things.
There were plenty of other things to keep the competition interesting in various ways.
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The two divine councilors presiding over the competition as a whole were the Young Yomigami: two converted Japanese seahorses whose ceremonial outfits looked like an odd cross between kimonos and rolled scrolls. While initially confusing at first, those who were familiar with Okami and Okamiden would know that, in those games, Yomigami was depicted as an Eastern dragon whose body was at least partially fused with a picture scroll.
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Not only was the Year of the Dragon competition the first time Dinotopians were allowed to compete, but it was also the first competition that was not only divided into a Mr. and Miss Pageant, but it was also divided into three different "subcategories", though, arguably, two of those subcategories were rather similar: The Sea Dragon and Sky Dragon Competitions focused on both speed and agility (with Sky Dragon 'targets' being held in place by drones while Sea Dragon 'targets' were held in place by anchors underwater), while the Land Dragon competition was all about raw strength and endurance, similar to those found in World's Strongest Man competitions.
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There was also some "backstage banter" that the fans had come to expect, so there was some "trash-talking" recorded 'behind the scenes', even if nobody really meant it. It was rather amusing for 'prey' Dinotopians to call 'predator' Dinotopians "Sharptooth", which was also an Easter Egg reference to the Land Before Time series.
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Unsurprisingly, there weren't many who signed up for the Fire-Breathing Curry Contest, since it was only in the West that dragons were capable of breathing fire. While the competition was smaller, it was no less hilarious to watch.
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Finally, there was the Mountain of the Zodiac Challenge, where the top three in both Land, Sea and Sky Dragons would race each other to the top of the Mountain while also hitting the targets representing each member of the Lunar Zodiac. One really clever addition was added to the mountain at the last moment: There was a large spring at the top of the mountain that split in two for two different courses, one that was considerably longer but didn't go over any waterfalls, and another, shorter course that had four or five waterfalls camouflaging climbing walls for the "Sea Dragons" to "swim up".
As with the last few Mister and Miss Zodiac competitions, just because you won first place on the Mountain of the Zodiac, it didn't mean you were guaranteed the crown. In fact, you could have gotten second or third place in the Mountain challenge and still win the crown, as long as you did well in the other competitions, with the Fire-Breathing Curry Contest being considered 'extra credit'.